If your ancibi.t desk top takes over, five minutes just to load Microsoft Word, you'll only get stressed out instead of getting work done. Invest in a solid, capable workhorse machine: you might not need fancy graphics, but don't skimp on the RAM and hard drive space. Most vendors offer machines tailored to small businesses, which might even be cheaper than mainstream ones and will come with more responsive service and support. If a laptop will help you make presentations or work while travelling, spend a little extra for one. In fact try to have a laptop anyway; it'll always come in handy and you never know when you'll need a backup-computers can fail anytime, and your income will depend on being able to meet deadlines.