[OPLINTECH] MSi All-in-One computers

[Chad Neeper]

Someone brought up a very good point off-list. He mentioned that, "you 
might be trading innovation and small footprint for increased 
maintenance and service headache." That would certainly be a risk with 
these types of all-in-one units. If, for instance, the mainboard or the 
LCD display fails, you're forced to deal with the manufacturer for a 
replacement. This is pretty much guaranteed down-time.

However, what made me take a second look at the MSi All-in-One is the 
simple fact that there are a few different models to choose from:  There 
is the "pre-packaged" model, which comes ready to go, complete with OS 
out of the box. But there is also another set of models which are more 
"whitebox" or barebone models. It looks like you add the 3.5" hard 
drive, RAM, CPU, and OS. The LCD (obviously), DVD-ROM, and mainboard are 
pre-installed. There would still be issues if the mainboard, LCD or 
DVD-ROM failed, but the other components should be more readily replaced 
without necessarily involving the manufacturer. So...the "pre-packaged" 
models are very likely to also have easily-replaceable components.

One thing I haven't been able to find on the web site is how long the 
warranty is. If it's a one-year warranty, then I'd probably stop right 
there. If it's a three-year manufacturer warranty, then I'd continue to 
look at them. When it comes to component quality, warranty seems to be a 
good indicator of the level of confidence the manufacturer places in the 
longevity of their components. (Have you ever noticed that the warranty 
on 2.5" laptop hard drives are almost always a 1-yr warranty? The 
manufacturers know darn well that, even idling, the hard drives tend to 
run very hot in laptops...often above the 55 degree Celsius spec. 
Without precautions, HDs in laptops don't tend to last under extended 
use. Solid State drives are more likely to have a better warranty. They 
also don't overheat in the laptops. Check your own laptop. See how often 
it approaches or exceeds 55C!)

Anyway...

Chad

-----------------------
Chad Neeper
Senior Systems Engineer

Level 9 Networks
740-548-8070 (voice)
866-214-6607 (fax)

--   Full LAN/WAN consulting services   --
-- Specialized in libraries and schools --



Eric Maynard wrote:
> Chad,
>
> I haven't used any, but I would be interested in your thoughts if you 
> do get the chance to test one.
>
> thanks
>
> Eric Maynard
> Head of Information Technology,
> Holmes County District Public Library
> Millersburg, OH  44654
> Email [emaynard at holmeslib.org <mailto:emaynard at holmeslib.org>]
> Phone [330.674.5972 x.224]
> Fax   [330.674.1938]
>
> "Failure is only the opportunity to begin again more intelligently"
>
>
>
>
> On Tue, Mar 30, 2010 at 6:30 PM, Chad Neeper 
> <cneeper at level9networks.com <mailto:cneeper at level9networks.com>> wrote:
>
>     I recently had the opportunity to take a look at an MSi All-in-One
>     <http://us.msi.com/index.php?func=prodpage2&maincat_no=654&cat2_no=655>
>     computer, which was being used by one of the newer Early Literacy
>     Workstations at one of my libraries. It looks like a nice compact
>     design and I thought I'd look into them as possible options for
>     patron/staff workstations. Has anyone used them in this capacity.
>     Thoughts?
>
>     Thanks,
>     Chad
>
>     -- 
>
>     -----------------------
>     Chad Neeper
>     Senior Systems Engineer
>
>     Level 9 Networks
>     740-548-8070 (voice)
>     866-214-6607 (fax)
>
>     --   Full LAN/WAN consulting services   --
>     -- Specialized in libraries and schools --
>
>
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