Animal Welfare Professionals

Hey all! My small organization is looking to purchase a new computer (desktop or laptop) to help us move into the digital age (we literally still do EVERYTHING on paper and our record keeping is not is good shape.) There will be many barriers to doing this (old staff are very set in their ways), but the first step in breaking down the barrier is to get a new computer! Our office laptop is incredibly slow, pretty much to the point it is unusable! But I'm struggling with what type and model to get- I want to get something that is decent and will last us, but ideally doesn't cost a big chunk of change (maybe looking to stay under $750, if possible! Although our board hasn't exactly given me a budget.)

What makes models would you recommend? (I personally love my Lenovo, but they tend to be more expensive.) 

Any other considerations I should take into account?  

Thanks!!

Welcome to the digital, world (smile).  There are many unstated needs in your post to give you a solid response. Some considerations

• how many people in your team and is sharing a machine during the work day realistic
• what are you creating with the machine

Here are some recommendations or you can read Toms Guide a trusted review site [https://www.tomsguide.com/best-picks/best-laptops]

• the best Pro laptop is the Dell XPS13 - portable but durable and will last 4+ years. Price at $1.1k
• at your price point you should consider a Chrome Book, which will focus your work on the web and is secure

Typically organizations want external monitors for laptops so that will add +/- $500 and can be used for group presentations, etc. Given what I know about your organization, I wonder if a Mini PC might be better. They are more cost effective. My favorite is from AMD produced by Bee https://www.bee-link.com/collections/mini-pc. The price point is under $600. 

Good luck. 

Hey all! My small organization is looking to purchase a new computer (desktop or laptop) to help us move into the digital age (we literally still do EVERYTHING on paper and our record keeping is not is good shape.) There will be many barriers to doing this (old staff are very set in their ways), but the first step in breaking down the barrier is to get a new computer! Our office laptop is incredibly slow, pretty much to the point it is unusable! But I'm struggling with what type and model to get- I want to get something that is decent and will last us, but ideally doesn't cost a big chunk of change (maybe looking to stay under $750, if possible! Although our board hasn't exactly given me a budget.)

What makes models would you recommend? (I personally love my Lenovo, but they tend to be more expensive.) 

Any other considerations I should take into account?  

Thanks!!

Thanks Peter!

We are a very small organization (only 4 part-time employees + a handful of volunteers and 2 of the employees are self-proclaimed computer illiterate so probably won't be using it much.) There is also generally only one employee present at the shelter at a time, so one machine will be sufficient at least for now! And I will most likely be the main user!

I am hoping to bring us up to speed by creating digital records and have decided to push for enrolling into a shelter management software- the current frontrunner being ShelterLuv (but still researching those as well.)  

We will also be using the computer for our Google Account which we use for scheduling our volunteers, organizing digital copies of all our documents, eventually maybe Google Forms for applications (?), uploading general pictures taken by the volunteers and staff to be use in future posts and promotional materials, website building (also being done by me! ahhhh!),  and using Canva for generating both physical and social media materials. I've also been experimenting with using Google Forms for daily record tracking for enrichment and behavior of our dogs.  When I think about all the updating we need, it can be a bit overwhleming so trying to take it in steps. All of it seems like pretty basic stuff that should need too high powered of a machine or too much space (plus we could always add an external drive later if needed), but I don't want to short ourselves with something we might outgrow in a year!

I will see if I can get a slightly bigger budget from the board- we did just have our biggest fundraiser of the year and made almost $9,000 which is alot for our small organization.

Welcome to the digital, world (smile).  There are many unstated needs in your post to give you a solid response. Some considerations

• how many people in your team and is sharing a machine during the work day realistic
• what are you creating with the machine

Here are some recommendations or you can read Toms Guide a trusted review site [https://www.tomsguide.com/best-picks/best-laptops]

• the best Pro laptop is the Dell XPS13 - portable but durable and will last 4+ years. Price at $1.1k
• at your price point you should consider a Chrome Book, which will focus your work on the web and is secure

Typically organizations want external monitors for laptops so that will add +/- $500 and can be used for group presentations, etc. Given what I know about your organization, I wonder if a Mini PC might be better. They are more cost effective. My favorite is from AMD produced by Bee https://www.bee-link.com/collections/mini-pc. The price point is under $600. 

Good luck. 

Hey all! My small organization is looking to purchase a new computer (desktop or laptop) to help us move into the digital age (we literally still do EVERYTHING on paper and our record keeping is not is good shape.) There will be many barriers to doing this (old staff are very set in their ways), but the first step in breaking down the barrier is to get a new computer! Our office laptop is incredibly slow, pretty much to the point it is unusable! But I'm struggling with what type and model to get- I want to get something that is decent and will last us, but ideally doesn't cost a big chunk of change (maybe looking to stay under $750, if possible! Although our board hasn't exactly given me a budget.)

What makes models would you recommend? (I personally love my Lenovo, but they tend to be more expensive.) 

Any other considerations I should take into account?  

Thanks!!

Hey all! My small organization is looking to purchase a new computer (desktop or laptop) to help us move into the digital age (we literally still do EVERYTHING on paper and our record keeping is not is good shape.) There will be many barriers to doing this (old staff are very set in their ways), but the first step in breaking down the barrier is to get a new computer! Our office laptop is incredibly slow, pretty much to the point it is unusable! But I'm struggling with what type and model to get- I want to get something that is decent and will last us, but ideally doesn't cost a big chunk of change (maybe looking to stay under $750, if possible! Although our board hasn't exactly given me a budget.)

What makes models would you recommend? (I personally love my Lenovo, but they tend to be more expensive.) 

Any other considerations I should take into account?  

Thanks!!