It's time to buy a new computer or server, but what do you get? One that does "what you want it to do", or one that does "what you need it to do"?

You want to get a top-of-the-line machine that can wow with its speed, power, and digital agility but you'll need to drop a large wad of cash to get it. New top-of-the-line is nice, but let's look at the economic reality, new top-of-the-line is more often than not just out of reach for many SOHOs and entrepreneurs. The "latest and greatest" computer or server on the market could easily rival the cost of a good used car and are only the "latest" for about six-months! Add depreciation and it gets really depressing. If a reseller starts upselling and says you need it to run Windows 35, it is just not true. It is all about moving expensive boxes that mean you need to buy expensive software!

Many people still run Windows XP and Windows 7 but have been left behind in security terms.

INFERNO^©™ recommend A-Brand (HP/Dell/Lenovo) refurbished systems as the logical second step in the buy-decision process. It is the second step because the first step should always be define what you need to do (not how fast you want it to be). Although, we offer the HP thin client T520 as the INFERNO^©™ base refurbished model, we always supply a model which meets the functional expectations. It is used here as the INFERNO^©™ Model A guideline.

Any computer hardware that does what you need to do for a reasonable price is win, win, win all the way. It's the choice I made for myself and my companies many years ago.

Refurbished INFERNO^©™ computers don't just save you money; they come loaded with features and are an excellent basis for many networking, office and server tasks.

When some people hear the "refurbished", they think it means that a refurbished computer is the same as a second-hand computer. Refurbished computers are machines which were returned, for example, at the end of a lease. They are sold to a wholesale reseller, inspected, cleaned, upgraded, repaired, graded and resold by the wholesale reseller. There is no data, malware or viruses on refurbished INFERNO^©™ computers because the HDD or SSD are wiped or often replaced.

A used computer or server on the other hand, is just that; a computer of dubious origin that has been used. It is not inspected for defects, or wiped, and buying one is done under the rule "buyer beware" with no warranty.

Green is good. We are all citizens of the world and the world is our community. INFERNO^©™ continuously review our eco-footprint to ensure our impact is as small as possible. Computers are full of nasty chemicals. Refurbished computers are a giant green step; adding them to the circular economy ensures usable hardware is not dumped in land-fill, at sea or a third world countries. Join us.

Some people want a new computer and have the means to do so regardless of the price so they don't often buy refurbished computers. People who want good technology, reliability, and performance but aren't willing to drop top dollar to get it look to refurbished computers and servers as their solution.

INFERNO^©™ refurbished systems enable entrepreneurs, operating within tight budgets, to save money without sacrificing much in the way of performance at the low end of the market. Most people just wanting cheap reliable computers and networking devices also see refurbished computers as an attractive option. Especially, if they would rather not spend any of money on a computer and are risk-averse.

Refurbished computers and servers come in three different grades which are assigned during the refurbishing process.

A-grade refurbished computer or servers are computers that show no significant superficial signs of wear or use and function flawlessly with relatively new performance metrics. A-grade systems are mainly sold through the manufacturer's web outlet shop.

B-class refurbished computer or servers with cosmetic imperfections such as scratches on the screen, worn keys on the keyboard, or minor dings in the shell.

C-class refurbished computer or servers show significant signs of wear.

In all cases INFERNO^©™ systems are loaded with an up-to-date Linux operating system, the required programs for the selected application and security enhanced.

The under-the-radar benefits of refurbished computers in addition to the lower price can include installation of a secure operating system and updated software. The refurbished computer or servers are also closely inspected and tested before they are repackaged and shipped. When you buy a refurbished INFERNO^©™ computer or server you know the machine has been verified to work as expected while providing the optimum security for the application.

The Raspberry Pi 4 offers ground-breaking increases in processor speed, multimedia performance, memory, and connectivity compared to the prior-generation boards, in a low-cost package. The Raspberry Pi 4 Model B is the latest iteration of the Raspberry Pi Foundation's Small Board Computer (SBC). It has a high-performance quad-Core 64-bit Broadcom 2711, Cortex A72 1.5GHz speed processor. This processor uses 20% less power with 90% greater performance than the previous model. However, this is at the cost of heat generation so it is very important to ensure sufficient cooling to prevent processor-throttling.

The Raspberry Pi 4 comes in three on-board RAM options for even further performance benefits: 2GB, 4GB and 8GB LPDDR4 SDRAM. Other features include dual-display support up to 4k resolution, hardware video decodes at up to 4Kp60, dual-channel 2.4/5.0GHz wireless LAN (WiFi4), true Gigabit Ethernet, two USB 3.0 ports, Bluetooth 5.0, and PoE capability (via a separate PoE HAT board).

Overall, the Raspberry Pi 4 uses more power than the previous SBCs and requires a minimum power supply of 3.0 A, 5 V_DC USB-C but it's maximum power consumption is tiny under load at 10 W.

Some say the Raspberry Pi 4 provides desktop performance comparable to entry-level systems, and others say a Chromebook is better. But INFERNO^©™ say it is perfect for small sever and network security applications plus all the things a Chrombook, tablet or base-level laptop are used for without the Google or Microsoft "telemetry".

The Raspberry Pi 4 due to its extremely small size can be put into or onto a whole range of case designs enabling true design creativity to be applied.

Standard HDMI ports are not available on the Raspberry Pi 4. They are replaced by two micro-HDMI ports to provide dual monitor support. INFERNO^©™supply the Argon ONE v2 case ensuring standard HDMI cables can be connected for ease of use.

The GPIO pin outs can be found here or here and the schematic diagram here

The Argon one aluminum case cools the Raspberry Pi by acting as a heatsink and comes with a 30 mm temperature controllable fan. All ports on the rear of the case minimizing clutter and makes cable management easy. The power button can perform a safe shutdown, reboot, or forced shutdown depending on the length of time the button is pressed. Additionally, two full-sized HDMI ports, and IR for remote functionality make the case ideal for media centers. The GPIO pins are accessible on top of the case and protected by a removable magnetic cover.