HP, How Thou Doth Vex Me!
Written: Oct 14 '00 (Updated Oct 14 '00)
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Product Rating:
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Pros: Circuit City will take it back
Cons: It's an HP. 'Nuff said
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| Bruguru's Full Review: Hewlett Packard CD-Writer Plus 8220e CD-RW Burner |
It has happened. I am so thoroughly Epinionized that not only do I write opinions on the things I buy, I also now right opinions on the things other people buy. Recently, a very good friend purchased an HP External USB CD-Rewrite drive, model 8230 E. Not being particularly computer savvy, he called me and asked me to help him install it. Shouldn't be a problem, I thought. This being USB (Universal Service Bus, a fancy name for a standard sized plug on your computer that a lot of devices should operate off of), I had him plug it in and boot the computer. Before I tell you the horror story that ensued, let me explain....
WHAT YOU GET
The external drive itself, an audio cable to run to the computer, one blank CD recordable disk, one blank CD re-writable disk, a diskette containing the necessary drivers, the USB cable, and software: Magic Match Jukebox, HP CD recording software, Adaptec Direct CD.
MY HORROR STORY
HP and I have a history. I have owned an HP computer, printer, and scanner that were junk, and that is putting it nicely. I now can honestly add CD Burner to the list of products HP has failed to impress me with. Let me explain. My friend booted his computer (an E-Machines 466 Celeron). We installed the drivers from the diskette, and then the software. Then the problems began. Adaptec would not function. I took a ride over. Though Direct CD loaded the Adaptec option menu when a blank CD was installed, choosing one of the options (Copy a CD as we chose) brought up an error message that indicated Adaptec was not installed.
I tried to re-install the software, but it wouldn't run. Ok, time to call HP. Unfortunately, HP does not provide toll-free support for this product. We had to use a toll number, and the call ended up lasting two hours at my friend's expense, and the CD recorder still would not work at the end of the night. It played CDs just fine. But my friend bought a CD BURNER, not player. The tech had me go through a series of folders, and we did get the HP MY CD recording software installed. It should never have been that difficult to do, however. Adaptec, a good program I use on my system at home, never worked.
At first, the recorder kept saying there were problems with the blank CDs. Then it kept kicking the drawer open, insisting there was no disk in the drive. The tech seemed somewhat knowledgeable, but he gave me a series of remedies to try which I knew would not work. He claimed that there were too many programs running in the background (something I had considered), and sent me into a round about method to enter MSconfig to shut some down. I was familiar with this procedure, and actually showed him a more direct route into that utility. He got a little defensive at that point, and my confidence in HP's support dropped a few notches. Hey, some of us out here do know a few things about computers.
Repeated attempts to get the recorder working failed, and I could tell the tech was getting frustrated. After two hours, I politely thanked him, but reluctantly told him that after countless error messages and failed attempts to record something, we would be returning the unit and purchasing another brand.
Do yourself a favor. If you buy an external CD recorder, don't buy an HP. If you buy anything computer related, avoid the words "Hewlett Packard" on the label. Shoddy products and incompetent tech support have been the hallmark of my experiences with HP. Don't let that be true for you too.
Recommended:
No
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