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Cheap PCs and Windows / MS Office deals for non-profit organisations ?

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    Cheap PCs and Windows / MS Office deals for non-profit organisations ?

    Hi,

    I do some voluntary work for a non-profit organisation (not a charity by the way) and they've asked me to choose a couple of computers for them.

    In some respects it should be easy as they have no special requirements - just web, email and office use will be required, so no high-spec graphics cards or CPUs or anything like that. On the other hand they do have specific requirements to use Windows 10 as well as MS Office as that is what their people are familiar with and for compatibility with existing documents etc. Linux and any of the free office suites are specifically off bounds for this, alas.

    I'm thinking of small box, low priced PCs complete with monitor and keyboards/mice etc and I looked on PC World which always used to be my goto place but their selection is completely uninspiring.

    Can anyone tell me a good supplier for low cost PCs ? Reliability must be good but price is definitely a big issue too.

    Also, are there any discount schemes from MS for not-for-profit organisations ? It's not a charity remember... Office and Windows are a significant expenditure so if they could be ordered as a discounted extra at the same time that would be good.

    If the end user was me then I woiuld just wait for a discount on HP Gen 8 servers to arise, but those don't come with monitors or keyboards or OSs or disks so not really appropriate and not all that cheap when you've specced them up a bit...

    Many thanks,

    Boo

    #2
    Dell.
    'CUK forum personality of 2011 - Winner - Yes really!!!!

    Comment


      #3
      Originally posted by Boo View Post
      Hi,

      I do some voluntary work for a non-profit organisation (not a charity by the way) and they've asked me to choose a couple of computers for them.

      In some respects it should be easy as they have no special requirements - just web, email and office use will be required, so no high-spec graphics cards or CPUs or anything like that. On the other hand they do have specific requirements to use Windows 10 as well as MS Office as that is what their people are familiar with and for compatibility with existing documents etc. Linux and any of the free office suites are specifically off bounds for this, alas.

      I'm thinking of small box, low priced PCs complete with monitor and keyboards/mice etc and I looked on PC World which always used to be my goto place but their selection is completely uninspiring.

      Can anyone tell me a good supplier for low cost PCs ? Reliability must be good but price is definitely a big issue too.

      Also, are there any discount schemes from MS for not-for-profit organisations ? It's not a charity remember... Office and Windows are a significant expenditure so if they could be ordered as a discounted extra at the same time that would be good.

      If the end user was me then I woiuld just wait for a discount on HP Gen 8 servers to arise, but those don't come with monitors or keyboards or OSs or disks so not really appropriate and not all that cheap when you've specced them up a bit...

      Many thanks,

      Boo
      I have setup Office 365 for a non profit a few years ago. Here is some further information on what needs to be done to get it setup - https://products.office.com/en-gb/no...ricing#seemore. MS have started to charge non profits for O365 now if they need to use a locally installed version of office.

      Looking into the T&Cs you are out of luck unfortunatly if organisation is not registered as a charity:

      Any organization that does not meet the criteria outlined above for eligible nonprofit missions is ineligible for Microsoft nonprofit programs. Ineligible organizations include, without limitation:

      • Nonprofit organizations that have not obtained recognized charitable status in their respective country;
      Last edited by redgiant; 9 October 2017, 20:05. Reason: Read MS T&Cs

      Comment


        #4
        What's the non profit org for?

        I've got a half decent laptop that i would donate. Sure some others here would do the same.

        Comment


          #5
          Good idea about the laptop.

          Can get some cheap refurbed Lenovos (e.g. T410/420) that have probably the best keyboard you'll find on any laptop, and no glossy screen or other consumer grade bling that is total for prolonged daily use.

          Side benefit being you'll not be expected to fix them (hardware wise) when something goes wrong. Don't underestimate the hassle supplying any PC to anyone can be. Somehow they think you're on free call forever after. So if a laptop is a no go, I'd be tempted to offload the supplying to the local PC builder so they can get all the hassle that will come for months and years down the line.

          For MS Office, see if OpenOffice is a solution. It's mostly compatible (not sure what isn't these days but it may be things they'll never need) and it can save files in MS format if they need to move between the two.
          Maybe tomorrow, I'll want to settle down. Until tomorrow, I'll just keep moving on.

          Comment


            #6
            How many users? MS Action pack is cheap way to get 10 users licensed with windows 10 and office.

            For the PCs, the best option for reliable gear on the cheap is old HP/Dell kit off auctions or e-bay

            Comment


              #7
              Originally posted by sal View Post
              How many users? MS Action pack is cheap way to get 10 users licensed with windows 10 and office.

              For the PCs, the best option for reliable gear on the cheap is old HP/Dell kit off auctions or e-bay
              It’s 5 licenses not 10.
              And it’s for MS Partners not for general business.
              See You Next Tuesday

              Comment


                #8
                Originally posted by Hobosapien View Post
                Good idea about the laptop.

                Can get some cheap refurbed Lenovos (e.g. T410/420) that have probably the best keyboard you'll find on any laptop, and no glossy screen or other consumer grade bling that is total for prolonged daily use.

                Side benefit being you'll not be expected to fix them (hardware wise) when something goes wrong. Don't underestimate the hassle supplying any PC to anyone can be. Somehow they think you're on free call forever after. So if a laptop is a no go, I'd be tempted to offload the supplying to the local PC builder so they can get all the hassle that will come for months and years down the line.

                For MS Office, see if OpenOffice is a solution. It's mostly compatible (not sure what isn't these days but it may be things they'll never need) and it can save files in MS format if they need to move between the two.
                Lots of people use MS Office for Excel and it's functionality. So it's worth checking if they need Excel.
                "You’re just a bad memory who doesn’t know when to go away" JR

                Comment

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