new PC at work..build or buy?

[moonbogg]

So, my boss offered me a new work comp. I usually build my comps and could build one easy enough, but I actually have some concerns regarding warranty. If something breaks on my comp at home, I just RMA the part that breaks and replace it. But this is not my money nor my time I am dealing with. It is his. So, would it be a safer bet to buy a workstation from Dell and have a good warranty on it? That way if something goes wrong they will quickly replace it or fix it or whatever? I've never had a part break on me, and regardless of wether nor not the PC is built, parts can still break outside of warranty. I just want to cover my ass and do the most responsible thing. Anything I might not be considering here?
I was just going to throw together an i7 4770k build with a mid range quadro card. I couldn't imagine having any problems. Throw in a reliable and proven SSD like an 830 and I should be solid, right?

 

[corkyg]

If it belongs to the company, then buy. Dell is a good source. If it is given to you by your boss, your choice. Remember that you are not permanent, and should you leave, for whatever reason, you don't want to be on the hook for maintenance and repair.

 

[DSF]

I think your best bet for a work PC is almost always a prebuilt. For example, let's say a part breaks and it takes you two days to figure out which part to RMA. Is your boss OK with that? Are you OK with that?

The service contracts that come with prebuilt business purchases are usually pretty darn customer friendly - they understand the importance of minimizing downtime.

 

[zerogear]

Yep, business-side warranty (from Dell, dealing with first hand) is pretty awesome. They usually provide same day (if early enough) or next day service. They send a tech out to your site or straight swap the computer (laptop).

 

[mfenn]

I think your best bet for a work PC is almost always a prebuilt. For example, let's say a part breaks and it takes you two days to figure out which part to RMA. Is your boss OK with that? Are you OK with that?

The service contracts that come with prebuilt business purchases are usually pretty darn customer friendly - the understand the importance of minimizing downtime.

This. Your time is valuable given that you are provided with a high-end machine to work with. A single day of troubleshooting will cost more than the difference between some self-built machine and a workstation from a major OEM.

 

[cbk]

If your boss understands that those sneaky power supplies are always failing , you could build a PC, if he doesn't, just buy a prebuilt PC. I would honestly just buy a PC, your boss doesn't have to know how much money you can save if you build it... :sneaky:

 

[moonbogg]

All your thoughts are my own. Buying a Dell. Thanks. I couldn't imagine telling a customer, "sorry, I CAN'T make that drawing for your machine because I am too stupid to know whats wrong with my PC". Some of these people lose many thousands per hour if a machine is down and they can't wait for some IT noob to fix his stupid comp.