It is a question that we are helping customers grapple with almost daily. Should I repair my old device or order a new one? The answer increasingly is to do both. With lead times sometimes stretching out to almost a year, repairing your broken device and ordering new ones at the same time can be the option that makes the most sense.
And we are not just talking about mobile computers, mobile printers are the things that have borne the largest share of the lead time woes caused by the chip shortage, we definitely have customers waiting almost a year for new Zebra ZQ printers. And the cost to repair those is reasonable, so repairing at least some of your mobile printer fleet while you wait for new printers is probably the most reasonable and cost-effective path.
Desktop printers have the same strategy, repair at least some of them while you wait months for the new ones. And even more affordable are the repairs to get the printer back up and limping along while you wait for new hardware to get through the long supply chain funnel.
Mobile computers are the hardest ones to repair instead of replacing since many times the reason to replace the devices is driven by outdated technology that has to be updated. Fortunately, mobile computers so far have reasonable lead times and can be gotten in a few months and not nearing a year.
Our sales and service group can get you both pieces of information needed to make a good decision, cost of repair, and lead time for new. Strange times that we live in where we recommend possibly repairing equipment that is well past its prime, but keeping your operations up and running is our top priority.
We are here to help you navigate the murky waters, as always, contact us with any questions!