According to research firm estimates, China’s hunger for devouring PCs is finally surpassing that of the U.S. During the second quarter of the year, shipments in China rose 14 percent to 18.5 million while they fell 4.8 percent in the U.S. to 17.7 million. [More]
computers
Most Computers Now Use Something Other Than Windows XP
By 8.2.11
Windows XP, Microsoft’s ridiculously popular operating system, is about to turn 10 years old. While it’s still the most popular OS out there, as of the end of July it’s no longer installed on the majority of active systems. [More]
EECB To Sony Turns Lemon Laptop Into New Laptop
By 7.28.11
Aaron’s Sony VAIO has failed a few times too many. He faithfully sent it back for repair or had a technician visit his home four times, believing Sony’s promise that the repairs would fix the issue. The last time, it failed during finals week at his college on the East Coast. Sony’s repair depot kept the machine for a month, yet the issue still wasn’t fixed for good. The laptop is now out of warranty, but Aaron had the law on his side. He launched an executive e-mail carpet bomb to some Sony contacts, copying Consumerist. The next day, he heard back from two different people at Sony, offering him a new machine comparable to the one that had failed him. [More]
Best Buy Replaces Deaf Bed-Bound Girl's Laptop After Holding It Hostage
By 7.22.11
After the story of a deaf and bed-bound girl whose laptop had been bouncing back and forth between Best Buy Geek Squad repair for 3 months went up on Consumerist, the ambassador for Geek Squad City, Randy Ratliff, reached out to help. “The buck stops here!” he said in his email. And of all the many who say that, he’s one of the few to mean it. He investigated the issue and now Jenni’s sister has a new laptop. [More]
Best Buy Holding Deaf Bed-Bound Girl's Laptop Hostage Since May
By 7.13.11
Jenni’s sister is disabled and bed-bound, and her laptop is her portal to the world. So when her HP laptop had to go in for repair, it was a big deal. It was an even bigger deal after the Geek Squad spent over a month dickering with the repair and while it was in their hands, the warranty ran out. Now Geek Squad won’t give it back unless the full out of warranty price is paid, and HP says it’s not their problem, it’s Geek Squad’s. Meanwhile it’s been almost three months and Jenni’s sister has no computer. [More]
Judge Rules IP Addresses Aren't People, Blocking Subpoenas
By 5.4.11
In a decision that could have long-term implications for cybercrime prosecution, a U.S. District judge ruled that IP addresses do not directly represent people, and thus aren’t fair criteria for copyright holders to subpoena individuals. [More]
The Magical Chinese Hard Drive
By 4.8.11
A customer walked into a Russian hard-drive repair center complaining about his broken 500Gb USB-drive. He had bought it dirt cheap in China but it had a problem. If you saved a movie to it, it would only play the last five minutes. They opened up the case and found inside a 128-MB flash drive working in looped mode. It displays the correct capacity when you plug it in but when you write to it and run out of space, it just overwrites the old data. Two nuts make it feel like it has the right heft. Crafty, crafty counterfeiters! Caveat emptor, if the price is “too good to be true,” it is. [More]
The Classic Commodore 64 Reborn As Modern PC
By 4.8.11
If you fetishize the look of old technology but are frustrated by how it can’t actually be used to perform present-day tasks, it’s time for a party. Commodore is making new PCs running Windows 7 housed in those familiar and beloved beige Commodore 64 shells. [More]
Stretch The Life Of Your Laptop Battery
By 3.10.11
If your laptop is saddled with a battery so poor that you have to constantly be plugged into an outlet, you’re missing out on all the benefits a portable computer can offer. There are steps you can take to make sure your batter lasts as long as possible before you need to replace it. [More]
Sorry, No Parts At Asus: Guess You'll Just Have To Buy A New Computer
By 2.25.11
As consumer electronics become lighter and tinier, and are assembled on the other side of the planet, we’re more inclined to replace something than to repair it. Mike’s experience takes the “ending is better than mending” phenomenon to a new level: he’d be happy to replace the unbearably loud fan on his Asus Eee PC himself, but the company doesn’t sell parts. Asus could accept the machine for repair, but no one knows how much the repair would cost, or if it’s even possible. [More]
Is Windows 7 Optional At Lenovo, Or Not?
By 2.24.11
Greg wanted to order Lenovo’s new ultraportable laptop, the x120e, without Windows 7. A site error briefly let some customers (including Greg) order the computer without an operating system, but then restored the unwanted OS when he went to check out. He hopped on customer support chat, and found a representative who… well, we don’t want to say that the rep “lied,” but they were certainly misinformed about the company’s own products. [More]
Via Email, HP Apologizes For Sending Too Many Emails
By 2.24.11
HP apparently sent some customers too many emails recently by accident. So they sent out an apology to them, via email. No doubt they will realize this additional email was an unwanted further intrusion and send out another email to apologize for it. [More]
Check The Specs Yourself Before Ordering Electronics
By 2.15.11
Corey found a great deal on a Dell laptop at Best Buy. He was under the impression that the computer included a Blu-Ray optical drive, since Best Buy’s “specifications” page listed the drive as included on the computer. Twice. So did the product overview page. But after bonding with the computer for a few hours, Corey learned that the computer was Blu-Rayless. [More]
Netbook Freezes, I Send It Back, Get A New One, Repeat And Repeat
By 1.7.11
Brian is an Acer devotee, but says his girlfriend has been stung by a particular netbook model that freezes up on her no matter how many times they exchange it for a new one. [More]
Finallyfast.com Refunds Thousands In Scareware Suit
By 1.5.11
FinallyFast, one of those companies with the late-night infomercials promising to make your computer faster, has settled with the Washington AG for misleading and deceiving consumers, and making it hard to cancel or get refunds. One of their tactics was to make the free scan on their site falsely identify harmless files on your computer as being errors. Consumers can now get some of their money back. [More]
There's No Caps Lock On Google's New Laptop
By 12.21.10
The most revolutionary feature on Google’s new laptop might not be the Chrome OS, free broadband or cloud-based computing, but their decision to leave off the Caps Lock key entirely. How else will everyone on the internet know that I am screaming? [More]
Reach Dell Resolution Expert Center
By 12.9.10
Here’s how to contact the Dell Resolution Expert Center (REC), another place to get action on your Dell customer service issue. It’s a special internal escalations team set up to resolve thornier problems that’s been around for several years but many customers aren’t aware of. [More]
Does Logitech Disable Keyboard Combos To Stifle Gamers?
By 11.23.10 — Updated: 3.20.13
Greg bought a Logitech keyboard, hoping to use it on first-person shooters. He discovered that a common shift+W+space bar combination, which apparently is often used by gamers, doesn’t work on its lower-end products. [More]
