When it comes to computers, there are just as many marketing pitches as there are practical details. Many specifications (specs) contribute to general computer performance, while others are helpful for special tasks such as graphics design or deep research computation. To find out what you need and whether a big selling point with big numbers is worth making a big deal, here are a few specifications and marketing terms with the details that matter and the hype deflated.

Drive Size Is Not a Sales Point

The uninitiated computer buyer will be attracted to whatever a seemingly smart technical salesperson says, or to big numbers. One of those big numbers is the hard drive, which is both important and not vital for different reasons.

Storage drives such as hard disk drives (HDD or hard drive) or solid state drives (SDD) are the components that hold your operating system and all of your files. It isn't the brains of the computer, but it is the part that holds everything that makes your computer experience different from others. Without some sort of storage, you won't be able to use your computer.

That doesn't mean the drive needs to be big or cost a lot of money.

Industry professionals and tech enthusiasts pay attention to how much a component costs based on its potency over time. In the early 2000's, for example, people were waiting for the legendary "$1 per gigabyte" breaking point that would lead to bigger drives and lower costs. As of 2016, that price is down to $0.019. Terabyte hard drives--1,000 gigabytes--are now commonplace, and most businesses and individuals don't even need half of that capacity.

There is a slight difference in performance when discussing hard disk drives and solid state drives. SSDs are faster than HDDs and allow computers using the technology to start their systems in seconds instead of minutes--although this time can become longer as the system becomes bogged down with programs and other inefficiencies over time. Still, the prices are continuing to drop on SSDs, and a higher capacity drive for an excessive cost is not worth the investment for most businesses.

Graphic Design or Video Playback? Pick a Good Baseline Card

Video cards deliver a newer, higher quality video performance for computers. For graphic designers, a graphics card enables faster rendering (calculation and deliver) of deeper artwork details, animation, and complex toolsets. For video editors, professional gamers, or high definition video enthusiasts, video cards unlock higher video qualities that aren't interrupted by multitasking.

The average computer is more than good enough if you just plan on watching videos on streaming services such as Netflix, or if your business has to view videos on the internet as part of trainings or other presentations. Unfortunately, if you're stocking a department that performs customer service for games or a team of professional gamers, computers without video cards lack both the power and specific instructions to get the job done.

A video card is more than just extra power dedicated to graphics. Functions such as graphics shaders can't be understood by a normal computer's processor or any other component by the video card. This is actually helpful to bulk computer buyers, because average computers stay cheaper without more expensive, multipurpose processors driving up bulk costs. 

You can simply purchase a supply of modern computers, then pick a subset of video cards with their own budget considerations to control costs. Contact a team of computer wholesale distributors to discuss computer inventory and parts delivery in bulk.

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