Hardware and Software

Purchasing from J.D. Fox Micro

As part of our comprehensive set of service offerings to our clients, we make carefully considered recommendations on hardware and software for you to purchase for expansions, upgrades, and repairs. We also offer equipment and software for sale, including a range of servers, computers, laptops, tablets, network infrastructure equipment, security solutions, storage devices, application software, and system management software from select manufacturers.

Of course, as we are primarily a service provider, we will only recommend equipment to purchase from J.D. Fox Micro when what we offer provides you with the best value. And, your J.D. Fox Micro IT System and Cloud Management Contract allows you the freedom to acquire hardware and software from any source, regardless of our recommendations. If you choose to do so, we will put forth the same effort to integrate it fully with your existing IT system and/or any upgrade plans in progress.

Which manufacturers does J.D. Fox Micro sell?

We sell products from any manufacturer (vendor) that is amenable to working with independent IT service providers such as J.D. Fox Micro. In the world of IT product distribution, J.D. Fox Micro is known as a system integrator or value-added reseller (VAR), because of the value J.D. Fox Micro provides from knowing your existing equipment, your users, how your business operates, your future plans, and the state of the IT industry to combine products from various manufacturers to develop comprehensive solutions to your IT system requirements.

Some of the manufacturers, software publishers, and service subscriptions we sell include Acer, Acronis, Adobe, APC, Asus, Belkin, Brother, Buffalo, Cisco, CMS, Corel, CybertronPC, Crucial, EMC, ESET, Fujitsu, Hewlett-Packard, Intel, Iomega, Kensington, Lascar, Lenovo, LG, Linksys, Logitech, Microsoft, Mimecast, NETGEAR, RealVNC, Samsung, SMC, Sony, Sophos, Supermicro, Symantec, Trend Micro, Ultra Products, Verbatim, ViewSonic, VisionTek, VIVOTEK, VMware, and Western Digital.

J.D. Fox Micro does not sell products from vendors that have exclusivity or minimum sales requirements, because such vendors require their resellers to advocate their products for their own sake. We will certainly recommend their products when appropriate, but you will need to purchase these products direct or from their retailers.

Why You Should Purchase from J.D. Fox Micro

In some cases, for products offered for sale by J.D. Fox Micro, you may be able to find the same items for sale from others for less money. However, for many years our clients have found it beneficial to purchase the items from J.D. Fox Micro, for many varied reasons, such as:

  • Fitness for Purpose Warranty
  • Quality
  • Smooth, Integrated Experience
  • Simplified Invoicing and Asset Tracking

Read on for more detail about each of these.

Fitness for Purpose Warranty

This has proven to be the most valuable over the years for our clients, and it truly sets J.D. Fox Micro apart from ordinary IT service providers.

More often than you'd expect, IT equipment manufacturers change specifications in products without notice, or their distributors mix up different variants of the same model. It can be something as simple as the position of a screw hole, or as big as a critical function that the manufacturer suddenly decides to disable unless you pay hundreds or thousands of dollars more for it (this does happen; see Vignette 2 below).

However, equipment you purchase from J.D. Fox Micro is guaranteed to meet your requirements, whether it's replacing one workstation or a major upgrade or expansion. This means it will be compatible with your equipment and provide all the features we need. If not, J.D. Fox Micro will replace the equipment and/or perform whatever additional work is required so the intended specifications and capabilities are realized.

To do this, we utilize the resources of our supply chain, and our leverage as a volume purchaser, to minimize the chances of acquiring incompatible products, and to address any problems that do arise in the most efficient and least disruptive manner possible—even after normal return policy time periods.

Vignette 1: Flaky Wireless Devices

Several years ago, when wireless standards were still emerging, we implemented a project to expand the network at a client's site, including deploying several new wireless access points. The project was a success, but shortly afterwards we noticed peculiar problems with some devices that worked well, others that intermittently worked, and others that were particularly unreliable. We implemented workarounds so the client could be as productive as expected, and, after several weeks of diagnostic work, we conclusively determined that the wireless access points were not engineered to the level of quality expected of this manufacturer. Because the client purchased from J.D. Fox Micro, we were able to exchange these through our distributor for devices from another manufacturer, making for a stable network going forward. And, even if J.D. Fox Micro could not exchange the bad devices for the new ones, we would still have provided the new ones at no additional cost to the client.

Had the client purchased these devices elsewhere, they would have had to exchange products within the retail return period, possibly rushing the diagnostic process and causing us to "spin our wheels" if the wrong products were returned. If the client returned the correct products later for replacement under warranty, we can't expect that the new ones would have done the job, since the problem was the design, not a spontaneous failure.

Vignette 2: Crippled Software

A major software publisher surreptitiously disabled a key function in some editions of its popular desktop productivity software suite, which had worked in all previous editions for thirteen years. J.D. Fox Micro sold this software to several clients with the expectation it was fully functional. Once we figured out that we didn't get the software we paid for, we took legal action against the publisher. Despite initial resistance, the publisher eventually agreed, just prior to our court hearing, to provide upgraded and fully functional licenses for all our affected clients, worth thousands of dollars, for free. J.D. Fox Micro was able to bring the case against this publisher on behalf of all affected clients only because the clients had purchased through J.D. Fox Micro.

The software in this case was non-returnable. Had any of our affected clients instead purchased the software elsewhere, their only option would have been to pursue the publisher separately, with J.D. Fox Micro unable to help directly.

In short, you never have to worry about any unforeseen incompatibility when you buy from J.D. Fox Micro.

Details and limitations of the J.D. Fox Micro warranties are described in the IT System and Cloud Management Contract itself, available for your review on this website. Visit the Service Contracts page for more information (link will open in a new window or tab).

Quality

Where possible, J.D. Fox Micro acquires all hardware and software directly from the manufacturers or through their top-tier distributors to ensure items are genuine, up-to-date, and fully supported by the manufacturer.

Often, the low prices you might find for some products are due to suspect background of the equipment. At worst, it's a counterfeit (which is surprisingly common, especially for high-ticket items), or stolen. Because of this, some manufacturers will not support items that were not purchased through an approved distribution chain, which J.D. Fox Micro can offer.

Even when purchasing from well-known, legitimate online sellers, you can still end up with a fake. Or, it might be old stock; often a manufacturer will honor its warranty only based on the item's date of manufacture, not the date of sale.

If we do ever have to purchase a non-current product from other sellers, you can rely on the experience of J.D. Fox Micro to ensure the item is genuine.

Smooth, Integrated Experience

Ordering through J.D. Fox Micro is as simple as can be. When we have something to offer for sale as replacement equipment or for an upgrade, we will send you the description and pricing. All you need to do is approve it, and we will handle the delivery and installation without any further involvement by you, so you can concentrate on running your business.

You won't have to worry about receiving and storing shipments at your office. After installation, you don't have to keep the boxes, or ever pay for return shipping if there is a problem and we need to exchange an item under warranty. And if there are problems, J.D. Fox Micro will handle the replacement transparently, and can more likely get replacement equipment in place even before the manufacturer has fulfilled the warranty.

Simplified Invoicing and Asset Tracking

Many clients enjoy seeing all of their IT expenditures on one invoice, with one payment to make, rather than having to deal with multiple invoices from various resellers. Also, you can find a list of all purchases from J.D. Fox Micro, including serial numbers, on the J.D. Fox Micro Secure Website (when available), and export reports to spreadsheet files as needed.

J.D. Fox Micro accepts all major credit cards, cash, checks, and payment via ACH, and you can pay easily on our secure website. You don't have to worry about any payment options not being available to you during the procurement process.

Equipment Not Offered for Sale by J.D. Fox Micro

In some cases, clients need to purchase equipment or software that J.D. Fox Micro does not offer for sale. The most common example for our clients is an IT system based on Apple—meaning iMac desktops, MacBook laptops, iPad tablets, AFP-based file sharing servers, and/or the iWork software suite. Apple is not interested in selling through independent VARs like J.D. Fox Micro. Or, you might have a standard Microsoft-based IT system but need some specialized software such as Intuit QuickBooks, which is only sold directly on Intuit's website, or through consultants that usually have minimum sales requirements.

As described above, we will always provide earnest advice on which products by such vendors you should buy, and, should there be a problem, assist to the maximum extent in assessing when you need to return items to your retailer or make a warranty claim. Although our options will be limited compared to equipment and software you purchase from J.D. Fox Micro, you can be assured we will offer the high-quality service you deserve as a client of J.D. Fox Micro.