Consumerist
videos
-
consumer confusion
Befuddled Customers Find Netbooks Are Nyetbooks, Notebooks Are Notbooks
The majority of people in the market for a laptop can't tell the difference between notebooks and netbooks, and are disappointed to end up with one when they thought they bought the other, an NPD survey finds. More » -
laptops
HP Ruins Yet Another Laptop Repair—Three Times And Counting
Tyler needs his laptop repaired, but he's got the bad luck to own an HP product. If you read Consumerist regularly you know that Hewlett-Packard has one of the worst track records for taking care of its customers. The last time we posted a complaint, the person who reached out to us from the corporate side was a third party at a PR firm hired by HP, if that tells you anything about how little they care about doing a good job. Read Tyler's recap below and remember it the next time you're in the market for a computer. More » -
funny
Jake Hunts For A Good Laptop
Funny or Die has a pretty funny, nsfw parody of the current Microsoft "You find it, you keep it" commercials. Jake's in the market for a decent laptop that can meet his needs, which include a big screen, the ability to go online, and enough cash left over for some subscriptions to certain adult websites. It's basically what the real commercial would look like in a world without TV censors. More » -
follow ups
More Info On Replacing An HP Laptop Motherboard
We asked John, who wrote to us earlier this week about replacing the motherboard in his HP laptop, to send us a link to the listing he found for $150. Below is his response.
Several readers also contacted us to point out that HP extended the warranties on a number of models recently due to motherboard failures, so John or other readers may have more options than they initially thought. More »
-
repairs
Need Your Apple Product Fixed? Try TechRestore Or iFixIt
I've always relied on TechRestore for cheap upgrades or repairs on any Apple products I've owned, but if you prefer DIY repairs, try thenewiFixit website, which will sell you the parts and then provide detailed guides on what to do with them. More » -
computer repair
How Much Should It Cost To Replace The Motherboard On A Laptop?
John's wife's laptop died, and his local Geek Squad wants $800 total to replace the motherboard. John says he found the motherboard for $150, and he wants to know why Geek Squad thinks it will require $650 in labor. So all you IT and geek readers out there, we ask you: is this a fair price? More » -
discounts
Best Buy Offers Enticing -$120 Off Laptop Price
Looking for an insane deal on a laptop? Look no further than Best Buy. They have a sale going on now that you wouldn't believe. We got a screencap just in case you miss it.
More »
-
computers
HP Overdrafts Your Checking Account After 4-Day-Old Laptop Breaks
The hard drive of Chris's HP laptop failed within its warranty period. Technically, it was four days after he bought the brand-new computer, but who's counting?
He was willing to give the company the benefit of the doubt. HP sent him a replacement hard drive, without including the prepaid shipping label he needed to send the hard drive back. Then...well, that's when things sort of all went to hell. More »
-
-
fire
HP Calls About Pants Burnin' Laptop
HP called Consumerist about our inquiry about Jillian's sparking and flaming HP dv2845se laptop adapter that she says burned a hole in her pants and caused a welt on her leg. Jillian had also alleged that HP customer service, regular and escalated, was both unresponsive and rude. HP told us.... More » -
fire
HP Adapter Catches Fire, Burns Pants, Execs Ignore
UPDATE: HP Calls About Pants Burnin' Laptop
Pants pants, burning bright, in my house in the night, thanks to a malfunctioning power adapter for the HP dv2845se. It's no Blake but it is what happened to reader Jillian Madison. While she was using her laptop, her adapter started sparking and burst into flames, burning a hole in her pants and causing a welt on her legs. Now, after dozens of phone calls and emails to HP executive support and HP executives, and 6 weeks of waiting, she hasn't heard a thing back from HP, though she says some reps have given her an earful of rudeness. More »
-
recalls
HP And Compaq Laptop Computer Batteries Recalled Due To Fire Hazard
HP announced today that laptop computer batteries have been recalled as a fire hazard due to risk of overheating. Affected models are HP Pavilion, Compaq Presario, HP, and HP Compaq computers sold from about August 2007 to March 2008. Find out if your computer is affected and get a replacement battery at HP's site.
HP Recalls Notebook Computer Batteries Due to Fire Hazard [CPSC] (Thanks to The Fake Geek for the heads-up)
HP Notebook PC Battery Pack Replacement Program(Photos: Markusram and CPSC)
-
usps
USPS: Your Five New, Insured Laptops That We Lost Are Worth $74
The US Postal Service lost five new Lenovo laptops that Pedro's friend bought and shipped to him. Pedro expected that this might happen, so he wisely insured the package for $3,000. After stalling for about two months, USPS finally agreed to pay his insurance claim, but reduced the payment, claiming his merchandise was only worth $74. More » -
-
dell
Dell Breaks Customer's New Laptop Remotely, Won't Send Him Replacement
Anthony has been a long-time Dell customer and has shared his positive experiences with friends and family, but that's come to an end thanks to Dell's abysmal customer service. It's been one month since he first received his new Studio 15 Laptop, which worked correctly for 4 days. Since then, he's been on the phone with Dell for a total of 14 hours, he's watched a Dell CSR remotely break his laptop by interrupting the BIOS flash, he's been locked out of the data on his hard drive, and there's still no replacement laptop on the way to him. When he copied us on this email, he added, "All I wanted was the computer that I paid for long ago." More » -
customer service
HP Will Fix Your O And P Keys For $298...Oh Hell Just Buy A New Laptop
Randy tried to get new O and P keys for his HP laptop. The outsourced, English-is-not-his-first-language, customer service rep won't sell or send him the keys and instead insists that Randy sit in for a $298 repair. Blithely indifferent to Randy's increasing incredulity and rage, the customer service rep suggests that for that amount of money, Randy should just buy a new laptop for $400. That's right, a new laptop because two of the keys are bad. The ridiculous chat transcript, inside... More » -
hewlett packard
Reader Uses HP Executive Customer Service Number, Great Success!
Chris reports getting sweet satisfaction from HP after he searched for their executive customer service number on our site and gave them a ring: More » -
amnesia
Best Buy Forgets It Sold Laptop, Won't Take Customer's Money
The Best Buy where Toni bought a laptop earlier this month has no record of the sale, and it won't collect the funds that have already been released from her account. This sounds like a fun problem to have—$1500 extra dollars, free laptop, woo hoo!—but it's actually pretty annoying. Toni doesn't want this phantom $1500 messing up her balance indefinitely, and she doesn't want to feel like she's stolen a laptop. More » -
dirty tricks
Office Depot Employee Claims He Photoshops Price Tags
Who needs to lie about inventory when you can inflate the price directly? LAPTOP has uncovered more dirty secrets of Office Depot employees being dishonest to customers, this time by altering price tags on clearance items to incorporate the cost of an extended service plan. More »
