It’s 2.59pm. One minute to go until the meeting begins. You click on your video call app and … nothing much happens. Not for a few agonising seconds, anyway. The call finally loads up, and small boxes containing the faces of your colleagues pop into view – but it’s a very stop-start affair, with frozen pictures and choppy audio. And under the weight of the call, you can feel the laptop’s fans kicking into overdrive, and the device’s processor struggling to handle everything you’ve asked of it.
It might be time for a new laptop, because when it comes to business, productivity is everything; lost time is lost money.
So how can you pick the right business laptop for the job? Here are seven crucial things you should look for …
1 Power and memory
Not all laptops are created equally. Though most home laptops will work just fine for browsing Facebook or watching a few YouTube videos, business users need a laptop that will help get work done without fuss. This means you’ll need a device that doesn’t break a sweat when you ask it to open dozens of browser tabs, a Zoom call, and multiple spreadsheets and documents all at the same time.
The crucial factors to look for here are the amount of RAM – the temporary memory used by software your machine is currently running – and processing power.
On the former, the general rule is that bigger numbers generally translate to better performance. So if you’re expecting heavy workloads, it might be wiser to go with, say, 32GB instead of 16GB of RAM.
And on the latter, look to modern laptop chips such as Intel’s Core i5 and i7. The i5 presents a nice balance between performance and price, while the i7 is specifically optimised for multitasking across business applications – enabling you to create presentations, run reports and PowerBI analytics smoothly.
2 Battery life
Doing business is about moving quickly to take advantage of new opportunities, and working flexibly to meet changing conditions. But you can’t move quickly or flexibly if you’re tethered to a plug in the wall. So a major factor to prioritise is battery life.
The good news is that in recent years battery chemistry has improved significantly. Dell laptops, for instance, can often run for 8-10 hours on battery alone, to get you through the working day without you needing to down tools and hunt for a socket.
3 Form factor
Laptops come in different designs and sizes, and it is important to choose the right form for what you need to do. For example, if you’re planning to mostly sit at your desk crunching data, then something beefy with a large screen and powerful processor might make the most sense. But if you need a device you can sling into your carry-on luggage and take to meetings around the world, then something more portable may be in order, such as a 13in laptop.
There are also other less conventional form factors to consider. For example, if your work involves marking up documents or drawing diagrams, then you might want to consider something like one of Dell’s Latitude 2-for-1 laptops, which are also available with a hinge that enables the screen to fold all the way around, so your computer can be used like a tablet.
4 Security
A business is only as secure as its weakest link, and every digital device is a potential entry point for hackers and malware. It’s no wonder that the phrase “enterprise” (business tech) has become a byword for toughened security.
So, when device shopping, look for hardware and software features such as on-device encryption, secure network connectivity, BIOS tampering notifications, and authentication credentials protection, each of which provide additional layers of security to keep your data safe.
Dell laptops with Intel vPro come with unique additional hardware-based security inside. This reduces the attack surface of the chip inside the PC, which keeps your most critical security credentials separate from the rest of the device, or a special external privacy filter, which narrows the viewing angles from which you can see the screen, to prevent anyone snooping on your computer as you work on the train, for example.
5 Connectivity and compatibility
A work laptop has to play nicely with other devices. It might need to plug into wired networks, connect to peripherals such as scanners or printers, or maybe you will need to mirror the display to a larger screen or projector.
This is not a job for laptops with just one or two ports. Sure, you could add a dongle – but that’s just one extra annoyance to remember to pack on your next business trip.
Instead, consider a PC that seeks out the best wifi signal available along with connectivity options, whether that is wifi, LTE or 5G. In addition, make sure they have plenty of USB ports, HDMI video output, and support for the latest peripheral devices such as a wireless headset, to keep you productive throughout the day.
6 Value for money
Businesses often buy a batch of laptops to kit out a team. Ideally you want to find a vendor who can cater to the whole team, so that they can be deployed at scale.
One advantage of choosing a company such as Dell is that it offers a range of models and configurations for different users with different requirements. But what unifies it is a common platform, common add-on tools (such as security features), and common hardware. This makes it easier and, crucially, more affordable to support an entire team, as factors such as device management can be performed at scale across your business.
7 Maintenance and support
As with all IT investments, you need to prepare for when something goes wrong. For a home user, a problem can be annoying, but it is less likely to be mission-critical. But for businesses, time spent fixing a cracked screen, for example, or reconstructing lost data, can be felt directly on the bottom line.
That’s why for businesses in particular, it’s important to not just choose the right devices, but to make sure there is the technical expertise on call to assist or to show up at your doorstep on the same day your business requires it. Intel vPro can provide remote management, which means its IT teams can help support businesses with their laptops. And this is an area where scale helps, as larger suppliers such as Dell have the international reach and depth of knowledge to be ready and waiting, to help keep your business running and keep your team productive.
Dell makes business technology work for you. Find out more here