External hardware can be an important addition to your day to day computer activities.  Ensuring you back up your precious files and photos is crucial if you have a temperamental computer and you are worried that you may one day lose everything.

Think about all the different varieties of external hardware. You don’t need to spend a fortune on something that you has 60GB worth of space if you only have a few small files that you need backing up. Its at this point that you start to think “is it worth backing my files up” and the answer is yes; most definitely! Even if it is only one important document that goes missing, that is still one document that could have been retrieved had it been saved on a piece of external hardware.

Go into the computer store and ask the sales assistant for advice if you are stuck. Give them a rough idea of how many gb worth of storage you think you may have, and then they will be able to advise you what the smallest external hardware option available to you is. Maybe you just need a little memory stick? They are great for their portability and being able to store the essentials on there. Great for students too, who need to take it to lectures and save important files. However, if like me you are a little bit accident-prone, don’t leave your memory stick lying around. It will get picked up by a stranger and not everyone is kind enough to hand it in to the Uni Library.

My Tip: Add it to your keyring with your car keys on. If you lose this, then you really are in trouble!

It might be difficult to know exactly when to upgrade computer hardware and there will be many discussions about when is the right time.

Firstly, think about it logically. If you go to a computer store like PC World or Currys and start browsing the computers, you will probably find a sales assistant strolls up to you and looks rather interested at his commission potential. Don’t be fooled into buying a new computer system just because the sales person has the ‘gift of the gab’. Sometimes they can blind you with technical jargon and you can be made to believe you need a new computer when you may just be considering buying one.

If you are unsure about what you’re looking for when upgrading your computer hardware, why not take a knowledgeable teen along with you when computer shopping. This will then make the sales person feel more intimidated that he can’t get away with spouting a load of technical stuff and automatically convincing you that a new computer is a must. Refer to the teen for any stuff you’re not sure about; they won’t be gaining commission from any resulting sale.

Lets think about why you might be considering upgrading computer hardware. It might be that your system is running very slow and you need a simple upgrade. Computers aren’t built to last forever, so naturally there will be a time to upgrade at some stage. My parents got their first computer 15 years ago and have had 4 desktop computers since. The reason they upgraded the last time was due to numerous problems with a little known computer brand, which was also using Windows 2000. It kept crashing, losing data etc. They now have a Toshiba with Windows XP and the speed is quite incredible (and no problems yet!). Upgrading computer hardware in this instance is a worthwhile investment.

AllBusiness.com suggests that upgrading your computer comes down to one thing: cost vs benefit. Do you really need the upgrade? Make the right decision.

Bear in mind that a computer upgrade will require you to transfer your data over. An external hard drive can be a great idea, because you can copy all the info on there and transfer it over easily. These can cost around £60 for a 160gb one.