What is the benefit of buying through the Lab’s Online Computer Store rather than browsing the Web for another vendor?
The Lab benefits from having a single vendor to deal with. Vendor performance statistics (average delivery time, warranty repair issues, and so on) are part of the contract. In addition, some companies do not extend academic discounts to the Lab, so you may be paying more than necessary. We know that quotes can sometimes be generated assuming an academic discount, only to have procurement hit a barrier when they actually go out and attempt to procure the system at the price you found.
