NEW DELHI: Small and medium businesses using a PC older than four years may be spending about Rs 93,500 (USD 1,279) per device on maintenance -- enough to replace the ageing hardware with three or more new computers, a study commissioned by Microsoft and Intel Thursday said.
The report, by Techaisle, surveyed 2,156 SMBs across India, Australia, Indonesia, Japan and South Korea to establish a direct cost implication for SMBs from loss in productivity and security risks resulting from outdated devices.
The report said despite cost implications and security risks, 49 per cent of larger SMBs surveyed and 31 per cent of small SMBs are still working on older PCs.
"PCs are the productive engines for most SMBs in India, where organisations rely heavily on their devices for their day-to-day tasks.
However, 3 in 10 SMBs in India surveyed have PCs that are older than four years, which significantly increases maintenance costs," Microsoft India Country General Manager (Consumer and Devices Sales) Priyadarshi Mohapatra said.
Apart from 1.6X higher repair and maintenance costs, there is also 1.9X increase in 'lost productivity cost' per computer that is older than four years, according to the report.
He added that Microsoft is invested in extending a secured and productive computing experience to SMBs across sizes and geographies of India, enabling them with a modern workplace.
"We are also continuously working with our OEM partner ecosystem for PCs and laptops across price points that offers SMBs relevant options depending on their size and requirements," Mohapatra said.
The report also found over 61 per cent of PCs used in SMBs in India are still on older versions of Windows.
Respondents that have already embraced a modern workplace strategy, said they experienced better productivity, reduced costs, and enhanced security.
About 66 per cent of SMBs said they saw improved efficiency, while 63 per cent said they felt that they were able to better secure and protect their data on newer PCs.
About 58 per cent said adopting newer PCs reduced overall maintenance costs, and 41 oer cent agreed that newer PCs made their employees more productive.
India is home to more than 51 million micro, small and medium enterprises, which have a workforce of over 114 million and contribute over 30 per cent to India's GDP.