In the short term it's a good idea to lease: you get a lot of machines in quickly and spread the cost. However your budget cost goes up approx. 50% if leased over three years. And your costs probably went up 40% when you mentioned laptop rather than desktop. I recommend you talk to your bank manager if you go that route: you can get better rates, and you end up owning the machine (if you feel that a 3-4 year old machine is worth owning); but that depends on what form of funding is available to you. In the long term leasing is a problem: it commits your capital long-term and limits your ability to be flexible. -----Original Message----- From: D Garside [mailto:darren.garside1@virgin.net] Sent: 11 November 2002 17:46 To: suse-linux-uk-schools@suse.com Subject: [suse-linux-uk-schools] Laptops: lease or outright purchase IS there a stong current of opinion about whether it is more effective to lease or purchase laptops. Apologies if this is too off topic for this list. Darren Garside Freshford Primary School Bath -- ******************************************************************************** All mail sent and received may be examined to prevent transmission of unacceptable material. Wellington College does not accept responsibility for email contents. Problems to postmaster@wellington-college.berks.sch.uk. Website: http://www.wellington-college.berks.sch.uk ********************************************************************************