Tip #3429 - OEM Printer Friendly Version | E-Mail This Tip
OEM
What does
OEM stand for? What does it mean? You may have heard of these
letters before, but what do they have to do with computers? Well, I'm
here to put all of those questions to rest. To begin, OEM
is short for Original Equipment Manufacturer and as a whole, they are
basically companies that build certain products that are then sold by
another company. Those companies then are usually referred to as Value-Added
Resellers (VAR).
For example, the hard
drive in your computer may have been built by company A, but they are
sold in an actual computer through company B. The OEM companies are usually
given design guidelines from the VAR companies and they build the products
based on those specific directions. It's just the basic rule of some companies
are better at making certain products than others, so the two collaborate
to sell a better finished product.
Now, sometimes you
will never know what the OEM company is, because they are not often given
recognition on the final result. But, on the other hand, the OEM products
are sometimes sold by themselves at lower prices. So, if you're ever looking
for one particular part for your computer, you may be able to find it
that way. OEM is mainly used in reference to computers, but it has also
been used in other markets, including the automotive industry. Cool, huh?!
~ Erin
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