Total Cost Of Ownership: Important Considerations When Comparing Rugged And Consumer Mobile Devices

Mobile computing is becoming more prevalent in the enterprise today as consumers ranging from executives in the C-Suite to forklift operators in a warehouse use a mobile computing device to carry out their jobs. Mobility is the key to advancement, power, and efficiency for both consumers and companies.

The introduction of the Apple iPad® propelled the popularity of tablet computers in the enterprise, even though rugged tablets have been used by global industries for much longer. Recent research from VDC indicates that the trend towards rugged tablet adoption will only continue to grow between now and 2020 as other rugged form factors lose traction in professional environments. That means that businesses now have two key questions to consider:

1. Will the tablet computer become the default device for my company’s mobile users?
2. How will the deployment of tablet computers in the enterprise affect my company’s bottom line?

There is a growing segment of the workforce whose jobs demand mobility in their computing and improved technology, including more durable, powerful, and lighter tablets, have acted as a driving force to feed this growing demand. So the answer is yes: tablet computers do seem to be on a path to becoming employees’ default devices, and if you are considering a mobile tablet platform for your personnel, you need to consider the costs that can be associated with deploying a large number of computers in a non-consumer environment.

When integrating tablets as a business solution, the Total Cost of Ownership (TCO) is a much more important consideration than just simple hardware costs. There are many factors that affect TCO— maintenance, breakdown costs, and peripheral integration, to name a few—and if you want to make the best long term investment into mobile technology for your business, you should consider all of these factors before making a purchasing decision. While a consumer tablet might seem like the cheapest option in the short term, in the long term, non-rugged products can end up slowing down operations and costing much more. This white paper is intended to help you understand all the issues that affect a mobile device’s TCO, so you can determine the most cost effective device over its long term life cycle.