Where People Rule...and you're the serf!
Sep 23 '00
I like my Solo 9150. It usually works the way I would want a computer to work. It is reasonably fast and operates well. That is not what this review is about. Since purchasing it a little over a year ago, it has had three major technical problems, all of which Gateway support has bungled in some way. As a note, I bought the 3 year service plan, so all the repairs were on Gateway.
The computer had some problems when I originally purchased it: it wasn’t quite as stable as I had wanted. I assumed the problem was Win98 and I just lived with it. Plus, at the time, I needed my computer daily and couldn’t give it support. I just lived with the crashes. Gradually, the system became so unstable that it ceased booting. I finally called Tech Support. Their recommendation? Format and reload. Like a moron, I actually listened. After the reinstall, same problem. Gateway’s answer? Format and reload. Believe it or not, that did not solve the problem. They told me to bring it in.
The First Repair: “We’ll fix it, but you’re gonna wait!”
I made the mistake of not following up on the repair for awhile. They assured me that they would call and I made the mistake of believing them. I heard nothing from them for a month. That is right, a full month. When I finally started calling them, miraculously it was ready in two days. The problem? A bad “chassis” (I think that would be a motherboard). I have to admit, when I brought it home, it worked. The only problem is that there was no software loaded. When they restored my system, they decided not to load the original software that was preloaded. When I asked why, the manager stated that I had the software on CD and I was perfectly capable of doing it. I must admit that he was correct, I would just have hoped that they would have corrected their mistakes...the faulty product and the faulty tech support. None the less, I loaded the software and all was good...for a month.
The Second Repair: “Not only are we wrong, but we’re going to lie to you!”
A month after having the first problem solved I tried watching a DVD. The program failed and said that the disk was encoded for the wrong region. This is the same disk that worked without problems before my system was "fixed" by Gateway. A call to service yielded no results. Their first “solution” was “don’t play non-region one DVDs.” Once assured that I only owned region 1 DVDs, service told me that I had done something to my system and that it needed to be formatted and the system software reloaded. Before taking such a drastic step, I tried to have the tech explain to me how this could have happened. I got answers about Hexkeys and region flipping, none of which made any sense when applied to my system. They were telling me I had done things that I clearly hadn’t done (such as purchase illegal DVDs off the street and run the DVD installation software for non American DVD players). The techs, being eternal doubters, refused to believe that I hadn’t done something to my computer that could had created this problem. To every question, the technicians (I spoke to two) gave me answers that implied the problem was my fault and that the only solution was to format and reload.
After getting a service manager on the phone and having a lengthy discussion, it turns out that the DVD problem is a known issue (the manager read me the Tech Support Bulletin from Gateway). It requires that the DVD player's bios be flashed with an upgrade (this does not require writing to the hard disk). When I asked why the techs told me something completely different, he said, "The format and reload works about half the time, but it sounds like you want it fixed right." Damn straight I want it fixed right...and could you not erase my hard drive while you’re at it? This was incredible. He actually expected me to believe that line of bunk. I think the real answer it clear. When the techs don’t know what the problem is and they can’t figure out what to do, they say the same thing: “Format and reload”.
Repair Three: Took so long, my Grandkids are in Medschool!
Since then, my computer has worked flawlessly. Really it has. I love my computer. But, then it broke again. This time it was my fault. I spilled on the keyboard. Computer went kaboom. I dried it out and tried to make it work. It did...kind of. After some troubleshooting, it was clear that I killed the hard disk (just for kicks I tried to format and reload). I skipped calling tech support and just dropped it off at my local country store (a different one than before). After going through the litany of my troubleshooting and explaining that the problem was the hard disk, the tech wrote “does not boot” on the service order. I realize that I am just a “dumb user,” but I would think that whatever I could tell him would help. After all, many human illnesses are diagnosed based on the history of the illness alone. I would actually think that computer problems would be similar.
Having learned from my previous experience, I called every 2 days to check up on my computer. They did not even touch it for 3 days. Finally, I was told that a “part” was on order. They couldn’t tell me what part or give me an ETA on it. They said call back in a week. Cut to a week later. Still on order, this time they know it is a hard disk, no ETA, call back in a few days. 3 days later, same story. It took 19 days from the time the hard disk was ordered to the time it arrived (let alone was installed) at the Gateway store. Two days later I had it back in hand.
I wouldn’t think that a hard disk would be such a rare part that it would take almost 3 weeks to get one in stock. Is there a national hard drive shortage? This is outrageous. When my friend's Thinkpad needed a new hard drive, IBM overnighted it to him. It was waiting for him when he got to work the day after he spoke to IBM support. 19 days? What could possibly be the deal with that? Just so you know, Gateway customer care thought it was way too long as well. They could not come up with a single reason for why it should take so long to ship a hard disk to a Country Store
I must say two things in their defense, the hard disk was a warranty repair and they fully restored all the software that originally came with my computer. Still, a 25 day repair time for a dead hard disk is unacceptable. The things slide in and out...it isn’t that hard.
Like I said, I love my computer. It has worked beautifully since the end of last January. Now that I have it back, it works great. Still, my dealings with their service department have left me feeling so angry. They made me wait an unreasonable amount of time and they gave me advice that was flatly wrong...twice. Not to mention that their recommendations unnecessarily destroyed all the data on my hard disk. When they don’t know, they “Format and reload.” I’m surprised they don’t print it on their business cards. Just to top it off, they treat you like you're a moron.
I can’t in good faith recommend to someone that they buy a Gateway laptop. They just don’t stand behind their products very well. Could you imagine trying to be a student and losing your computer for a month? How about a small business owner having all your data erased because a tech forgot to read the service bulletin? Gateway Service has been 0/3 for me. If I have to deal with Gateway service again, I’m going to screw it and just get an IBM Thinkpad. At Gateway, "People Rule." To bad they rule over their customers.
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Epinions.com ID:
bdolcourt
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Member: Bram Dolcourt
Location: Valhalla, NY
Reviews written: 33
Trusted by: 35 members
About Me:
After graduating in Chemistry from Brandeis and a short EMS career, I'm a Medical Student.
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