I just found out... The LCD televisions are made by AStar (www.astarelectronics.com)

Finding out more information as well.

oooooo kkkkkk first of all you are asking about three different catagories, not to be mean, but maybe read up on the technology you are trying ask about
(1)802.11 IS A WIRELESS CONNECTION ......FOR USING A WIRELESS INTERNET IN CASE YOU WEREN'T SURE
(2)USB 2.0 For the love of crap...is in no relation to a TV. It handles periferal devices such as cameras, externals, etc.
(3) Holy something... a TV Tuner is sooooo not what you think it is!! It is for solely recording/pausing TV that comes into your COMPUTER ONLY!
If you are going to complain, at least have the dignaty to understand what you are complaining about. None of the things you have complained about are standard on ANY MDG system, except USB ports, which won't help you out at all in hooking a TV to your computer.

Not ALL MDG TV's are made by Astar, only some of them. Some are Apollo, some Acer, some Sharp, some Toshiba, some even Samsung. Do you want me to go on??
We have many different models and will get what ever matches your price range.

I do want you to go on.

I know the one I purchased and the ones that are presently on the website are astar... Confirmed by your buying dept in headoffice.

Now my next question is who makes astar tv's?

I have a solution for all who's complaints have fallen on dead ears. STEVE NASH. Having worked in retail for 20 years I'm quite familiar with what MDG is doing: 'bait & switch'. Which if I'm correct is not only dishonest but actually illegal. You may not be able to get the name of the CEO, but STEVE NASH does have a reputation to protect. Simply contact one of those 'consumer help' journalists at one of the big tv stations & explain the situation to them. What a great story this would be for them. Since MDG does the 'what we advertised is crap, you really need..." bait & switch everytime, and the 'free UPGRADE' really isn't an UPGRADE (I'm sure there's a dictionary def of the word UPGRADE) they could do one of those undercover reports & expose them. Even have a tech check the pc purchased to see if it matches up to the ad claims & invoice. Then confront the store manager on camera, and best of all...publicly ask STEVE NASH his opinion of it all.

You must remember that mgd and dell take advantage of people who cannot manage to save money to buy a system.Some people are just happy to get a system and do not not care what interest rate or system they are getting.

they advertise 9 % rate but i am sure most people who can not afford to save for a system in full would not have great credit then it goes to 28.8 %

some times people will just buy it from these companies because of the percieved cheapness of the system it is along the line of a restaraunt chain in my city called foody goody that advertises 5 dollar chinese buffet. the food is crap but it is busy because most people equate cheapness wirh a good deal. the convinience of the easy no fail financing is also a draw but i am pretty sure you end up paying a lot more than the system is worth like the rent to own furnature centers where you would end up paying 100% over the cost of an item after you calculate fees and interests

i have never bought a laptop from these companies i waited till i had the cash aand bought one locally, you would be surprised what deals you get when you walk in with the ability to pay in full.

I have a 6 year old MDG with lots of upgrades. At the time I bought it, I went through hell having to take it in to Scarborough from Pickering all the time for problems.

My Brother bought his at Best Byte in Oshawa, where I got my first system in 95. Great service I remember. His is trouble free.

Anyhow, I thought I would check them out as the price advertised was AWESOME. And even Steve Nash is in the ads. Must be good stuff?

I have NEVER, I repeat NEVER had a worse salesman in my life. I printed the coupon for the mega deal system, but it must have fell out on the way. I told the guy I thought it was an " LV" . He did not seem to know. It turns out I was right. After not being able to bring up the deal page on the net that I saw, he handed me off to another guy who would be with me soon.

After waiting this guy approached me. No smile, no warmth, no personality no nothing but a very cold " Can I help you?

That was the only question he asked me besides "When will you be purchasing? " as he looked around the room, anywhere but at me?!?!

I struggled to get info out of this zombie to which he replied in yes and no grunts, or prices. Not once did he ask what it was for , who I was, or anything.

Best part is, I asked him 3 times about the end of sale date as I was sure it was tommorow at 7 30. "No it is tonight. We always have sales Saturday to Tuesday". But I noticed that when this guy found the page I refered to earlier, he did not show me the top of the page where the date was shown earlier. This was my fault for not getting him to show me as I was sure about the date.

I left, very frustrated, only to see him run to another couple. And guess what? The sale end is indeed TOMMORROW!! He freeking sat there and lied to me!!!!!!!!!!!!

I have been in sales for over 10 years.I have seen some bad sales guys. This guy is right there in the worst of the catagory.

I wanted to contact MDG to tell them about this experience, But there customer service is only open till 6 PM??!? What about west coast?? The guy that answered the phone said he was not the guy, and that they were franchises. There was nothing they could do anyway. But said try tommorow when they are open!?!? And for a computer company, you can't email anyone. ( I was still going to try to go to North York or something as the Downtown place is a dump, with the worst sales guy in memory) So if a franchise is messing up, the actual chain can not do anything?? BS! I know Franchises who have to retain rigourous guidelines for fear of fines or being closed. TOTAL BS

With that I came here and a few other forums. I was hoping that I would read some good things.

And I will never go near the place again. There is too much bad stuff being written all over, and I would rather spend a few humdred more feeling good, than paying and praying.

I would like to share just a few memories from several years spent working at a busy MDG store.

I hope this will demonstrate how a lack of computer knowledge can be very detrimental to your first computer buying experience.

This is what happened daily at MDG:

Countless people got "upgraded" to on-board video and downgraded CPU's without their knowledge.

Processing fees of $300 for a year of "interest free" financing on an entry level computer.

One year licenses of McAffee Antivirus sold for as much as $150.

Non-existent built-in network "cards" sold for as much as $100 and once, a regular AC power cord was sold for $75.

Shouting matches, threats of bodily harm, and actual fights between customers and employees.

All in all... a pretty bad environment. That's how it goes when you are in the business of duping the gullible masses. Although hardcore nerds might get a decent deal on a high-end system after they pile on the upgrades, MDG makes most of its money on unsuspecting noobs.

I also want to say I am sorry to have participated in the swindling. I needed a paycheck but I think drug dealing is a lot more honest.

MDG Stores are Franchises not owned by the parent company

I totally agree. The same scamsters charged me extra for the laptop they gave me for $3300

Neil gave me a second hand laptop and charged extra for the printer (twice the price)


He promised to change the laptop but went back on his promise

My laptop crashed and I lost this huge amount of money.

I cringe to even go to the store

Regards, ALec

I totally agree. The same scamsters charged me extra for the laptop they gave me for $3300

Neil gave me a second hand laptop and charged extra for the printer (twice the price)


He promised to change the laptop but went back on his promise

My laptop crashed and I lost this huge amount of money.

I cringe to even go to the store

Regards, ALec

anyone have any horror stories about etobicoke yet?

I just purchased a system there before X-mas. Brought it home and installed a game (MoH) that had run successfully on two other machines. For some reason, the cursor was shakey/slow and the diagnostic identifies my cpu as operating in the negative(?). I called support and they gave me a bunch of suggestions which I'd already tried. Everything else seemed to be okay though.

Well, about a week later, I had my first crash/restart. Called T/S, more useless info. I suggested to them that perhaps windows had not been properly installed which, obviously, they denied as being likely. Eventually though, a reinstall was recommended. Not that the phone rep could promise that it'd be covered... rather, it was implied that I'd have to negotiate at the store.

Now this is where it gets good. A few days ago, the mouse crapped out, along with all the USB's. I brought it to the store as this was unarguably a hardware issue now. Of course, the tech there immediately claimed that Limewire was the sole source of my problems, and when I informed him that they'd started before that was on the computer, he all but called me a liar.

Told me the most effective thing would be to reinstall windows and it'd cost me $100. I countered that since the software hadn't been installed properly in the first place, it should be free. He told me to speak to the manager who immediately launched into a verbal assault upon me and adopted a threatening posture. (estimate he's about 6'4" and over 300 pounds). Needing the computer asap, I allowed the work to be done.

To their credit, it was completed the same day. However, the same issues are still present and now, I'm not even running the same copy of windows anymore.


So I've spoken to consumer protection, MDG's main office (where I got the "franchisee" excuse... Canada's computer my butt), and am in the process of contacting a few journalists I've had past correspondance with.

I'll be taking them to small claims court, but I'd like to start organizing a class action.

Caveat Emptor folks... and spread the word.

Got an incredible system with Computer people Tech downtown. As for Must Distribute Garbage, well, not word from them, despite writing all departments.

Losers, and scammers, an I have lost most of my respect for that "mvp"

I bought a horizon 4 years ago and there has never been a problem

Thanks for all the opinions everyone they have been very helpful. So far it seems there is too much controversy over MDG systems, I have also noticed a lot of the same with HP systems. Dell, Sony and Apple/Mac on the other hand have received quite a lot of praise. All in all though it appears nobody is happy with any system. So i suppose in conclusion I will have to select a system based on severity of complaints.
I have friends that have bought Dells and have been satisfied with their purchase, Sonys as well but very expensive. HP and MDG though I don't know too much of a risk, I hate it when my computer breaks down.
BTW I have owned a Dell, and I presently own a Sony Vaio notebook and an HP media centre. The Dell was great as is Sony, HP has been back and forth for repairs but still very good.

According to your purchasing manager at Head Office, all of your TELEVISIONS are made by ASTAR.

According to MDGDIRECT all your televisions are made by ASTAR.

I think you may be getting confused with LCD monitors (the smaller 15-22 inchers).

Just want to confirm, MDG Sales was the worst experience i've ever had with a sales person in my life. He hung up the phone on me, and I hope Paul from MDG loses his Job. The other few people that helped me out were awesome... They even sent the wrong TV which was an upgrade :)

I still wouldnt deal with them in the future though.

I sent this complaint letter into MDG about 11 times now...still no reply. Basically this is my horror story for anyone even considering this ******** company (and yes I was a naive kid at the time when I opted to buy my first laptop fro MDG):

Hi,
I am here to report a very unsatisfactory experience with MDG. Let me tell you what happened in a nutshell, and I hope to get a response on this issue soon.

If you need my information it should be under:
XXXXXX

To begin, my laptop is from MDG in South East Marine Drive, Vancouver BC, purchased in the summer of 2004 for over $2,500 with a $250 'platinum warranty'. After only 1.5 years of use, the laptop died and even before that the batter charger was having issues so I took both of them to the MDG store in London, Ontario (as I was living there at the time). Now, the only reason I chose to purchase an MDG computer is because what was advertised to me was that repairs could be done within 48 hours when you bring your computer in to the store. I need my laptop everyday for work purposes and thought that would be a great benefit to me if anything should arise. And behold, the piece of **** died in one and a half years.

So this is where the problems begin. I took the laptop to MDG in London Ontario in February 2006. They said that they need to pull up my documents to confirm the purchase before they can start working on it. Why nothing was in an electronic database is beyond me! I wait a week and they didn't do anything! Finally I contacted MDG Vancouver FOR the London store to see what kind of documentation was needed because everyone in the London store is too incompetent and I find out it is the invoice that I had all along! Why they did not ask me for it is beyond me!! It is seriously like working with dumb & dumber at your franchises!

After all that the London store said they would find out what is wrong with the laptop and give me a call back. NO ONE GAVE ME A CALL BACK, and being anxious I called in and nothing was done for a good month. They couldn't even give me a loaner laptop to use so I was stuck without a laptop! After a long while I contacted them again and finally they said that it was the motherboard that died and that a new one would have to be made and it could take up to 8 weeks. FINE, since I paid $2,500 I might as well get the service I deserve. But what was incredibly insulting was that the sales girl there tried to SELL ME ANOTHER LAPTOP for $2,300, saying that was THEIR COST, when in the following week the MDG ads came out in the paper and offered the SAME laptop for around $1,900!!! This underhanded thieving sales tactic is unacceptable!!! Your piece of crap laptop dies one me and now you want me to waive my $250 extended warranty to buy another piece of crap from you?! That is totally unacceptable!

So I wait and nothing happens, no one calls me back despite promises that they will after every phone call I give them! Finally I had to leave back to British Columbia in April 2006 and still nothing was done. They said they would call me if there was any news or updates and throughout the ENTIRE 4MONTHS NO ONE CALLED ME! I come back to London, Ontario in September 2006 and I call MDG in London to see what is going on. They said the laptop was shipped to the main service centre somewhere in Ontario for repairs, and I found it odd, because they had assured me before that once the parts came in, they would install it and I would go

to the London store to pick it up.

Afterwards there was no reply for another good 2 months or so (End of October 2006 now!), when I called in again they said they no longer had the laptop and that it was sent back to the original shop where it was purchased, meaning Vancouver BC. So I call the Vancouver store and they tell me that they've sent it to California for the motherboard to be put in. At this point I am beyond fed up. You people sent me on a wild goose chase for over 9 months!!! I call again in November and they said that it hasn't come back yet.

Miraculously, a week after that call my laptop turns up on my OLD DOORSTEP in British Columbia, WITHOUT CONFIRMATION THAT IT WAS OK TO SEND IT THERE, they called my BC home and said the laptop was fixed and was ready to be sent back to me, even though they knew I was in London, THEY SENT IT BACK TO MY BC ADDRESS !!! Good thing there was some one to keep it on my behalf, but I was in London, Ontario at the time!!! Not professional at all!

It is now December 2006, and my blood is boiling. I came home a few days ago to BC, finding my laptop in worse condition than it was when I brought it in!
Here are the problems:

1) It still does not turn on
2) My charger is missing, a new one was supposed to have been supplied to me
3) ALL THE SCREWS AROUND THE SCREEN OF THE LAPTOP ARE MISSING!
4) HALF OF THE SCREWS ON THE BOTTOM OF THE LAPTOP ARE GONE!!!

This is one half a*s job and I have been VERY patient with your company. I have been trying to get a hold of the managers at both London and Vancouver stores for the past few days now and every time I am either put on HOLD FOR OVER 40 MINUTES (and each time I just end up hanging up)!! OR the incompetent sales associates there promise that their managers will call me back but they never do. It is funny too, because every single time I call and request to speak with the manager, it is either the manager is on his lunch break or he is busy with a customer.

I am sorry but this is not the way to do business, I feel that I have been cheated of over $2,500 of my hard earned money. No one should have to suffer through this debacle!!! If I were to have purchased a laptop from Bestbuy or Future Shop, they would have given me a brand new laptop by now, no questions asked! I do not deserve this amount of stress for ALMOST A YEAR NOW! People don't just drop $2.5K for a laptop with an "extended platinum warranty" (which is complete bulls***!) and anticipate to be treated like s**t!

I hope whoever it is that is reading this email at MDG, that you will do something about my problem, and especially something to improve the professionalism of your franchises.

Sincerely,
One very UNSATISFIED customer,
XXXX

ok.. I saw the ad on TV.. liked the system advertised.. saw the EVERYONE approved for 9% financing thing..
used the website to apply..
3 days later get a phone call from sales rep.. figure out the system that I want.. (of course he informs me I don't want the advertised one--which I was expecting)

Bottom line the interest is not 9% it is 28.9% making the affordable $1700 system a not affordable $3400 system
Section 13
13. WARRANTY Where permitted by law, MDG disclaims all
warranties and conditions, express or implied, including,
without limitation, implied warranties or conditions of
merchantability and fitness for a particular purpose.

so they don't even warranty the merchantability (meaning that it actually works) of their products

and oh yes.. Section 14 of the agreement states;
14. RETURNS, REFUNDS AND EXCHANGES As permitted
by law, there are no returns, refunds or exchanges of any
kind, whatsoever. All sales are final.

so even if they send me a different computer than what I ordered.. I would be SOL..

MDG is not getting my money..

http://www.mdg.ca/en/support/pdf/warrantyinfo.pdf

C. WHAT IS COVERED:
(1) ONLY COMPONENTS AND DEVICES INTERNAL TO THE COMPUTER UNIT ITSELF (“TOWER” OR “DESKTOP”) ARE COVERED FOR WARRANTY AND REPAIRS. PURSUANT TO CLAUSE (10) OF THIS AGREEMENT MDG WILL NOT WARRANT OR REPAIR PERIPHERAL DEVICES ALTHOUGH INCLUDED IN THE COMPUTER “PACKAGE”. (2) REPLACEMENT OF HARDWARE AND DEVICES CONTAINED IN THE TOWER AND DETERMINED TO BE FAULTY BY MDG AFTER INSPECTION PURSUANT TO THE WARRANTY LENGTH AND TERMS PROVIDED FOR ELSEWHERE IN THIS AGREEMENT. (3) INSTALLATION OF HARDWARE AND DEVICES CONTAINED IN THE TOWER AND DETERMINED TO BE FAULTY BY MDG AFTER INSPECTION PURSUANT TO THE WARRANTY LENGTH AND TERMS PROVIDED FOR ELSEWHERE IN THIS AGREEMENT.

D. WHAT IS NOT COVERED:
(1) MALFUNCTIONS OR FAILURES DUE TO IMPROPER USE, INCORRECT SOFTWARE OR HARDWARE CONFIGURATION, MODIFICATIONS, FAILURE OR IMPROPER INSTALLATION OF AFTERMARKET DEVICES OR PERIPHERALS. (2) DAMAGE RESULTING FROM MISUSE OR MINOR IMPERFECTIONS WITHIN DESIGN SPECIFICATION OR THAT DO NOT MATERIALLY ALTER FUNCTIONALITY. (3) MISUSE, ABUSE, ACCIDENTS, UNAUTHORIZED SERVICE OR PARTS, OR THE COMBINATION OF MDG BRANDED PRODUCTS WITH OTHER PRODUCTS.(4) ANY EQUIPMENT WHOSE SERIAL NUMBERS HAVE BEEN MODIFIED, CHANGED, OR REMOVED, (5) AESTHETIC OR COSMETIC ELEMENTS OR COMPONENTS INCLUDING, BUT NOT LIMITED TO, THE CASE, DRIVE OR DEVICE COVERS OR PAINT OR FINISH ON SUCH. (6) ANY DAMAGE OR FAILURES RESULTING FROM ELECTRICAL SURGES, POWER OUTAGES, OR OTHER ELECTRICAL IRREGULARITIES AND FROM CUSTOMER’S FAILURE TO HAVE THE SYSTEM AND ALL PERIPHERAL DEVICES INSTALLED THROUGH AN APPROVED SURGE-SUPPRESSION DEVICE. (7) ANYTHING LISTED UNDER “WHAT IS COVERED” IF MDG DETERMINES THAT THE COMPUTER HAS BEEN OPENED, SERVICED, OR MODIFIED WITHOUT PRIOR WRITTEN AUTHORIZATION BY MDG OR BY AN MDG AUTHORIZED RETAILER. (8) ANY PERIPHERAL DEVICES AS DESCRIBED IN CLAUSE (10) OF THIS AGREEMENT. (9) ANY SOFTWARE OR SOFTWARE-DERIVED ERRORS, DAMAGE, OR LOSS INCLUDING, BUT NOT LIMITED TO, VIRUSES, AD-WARE AND/OR SPYWARE.

E. IF A SYSTEM, COMPONENT, OR DEVICE IS FOUND NOT TO BE COVERED UNDER WARRANTY, SERVICE WILL BE BILLED AT $90.00 CDN PER HOUR FROM MDG OR THE GOING STORE RATE IF SERVICE IS CONDUCTED AT AN MDG AUTHORIZED RETAILER PLUS APPLICABLE TAXES WHETHER OR NOT THAT DEVICE IS THE CAUSE OF THE PROBLEM EXPERIENCED BY . BEFORE WORK MAY COMMENCE THE CUSTOMER WILL BE NOTIFIED AND AUTHORIZATION TO SERVICE MUST BE PROVIDED BY THE CUSTOMER. EXCEPTION: AFTERMARKET EQUIPMENT INSTALLED BY AN MDG AUTHORIZED RETAILER, ALTHOUGH NOT PART OF THE ORIGINAL COMPUTER, WILL NOT VOID THE EXISTING WARRANTY SO LONG AS SUCH ITEMS ARE NOT THE CAUSE OF CUSTOMER’S PROBLEMS.

F. MDG reserves the right to substitute components with new or like-new components, devices or hardware of equal or greater specifications without notification to the customer as part of its repair and warranty process. Customer will be deemed to have accepted any such changes as part of their request for service. Warranty term shall not be extended for substitute or new components but shall be determined as of the Commencement date. G. All equipment and devices removed or replaced become the property of MDG. Should customer wish to retain original equipment they will be billed for the replacement or substitute components installed in the computer during repair at the regular MDG sale price. MDG will not be responsible to re-install or make operational any such removed ...