Compustore Boycott

Fobia

I think it is time we nerds got together and started a boycott against compustore.
Most of you don't like the place, for their ridiculous prices and bad service, but now there is a new, much greater reason.

When a person of average computer knowledge enters a computer shop to buy a comp, he/she gets a good computer, asks the sales rep to install everything etc, this is all just fine, but , as you all know, every comp should be sold with both reinstallation disks for os's and a drivers cd, at the very least. Well, you'd never guess, compustore have gone and broken this rule! They are selling pc's to users without any extra cd's/diskettes, after inquiring I discovered that they are supposed to give the user a quick restore diskette with the comp, but I have found 4 cases of people who have bought comps in compustore over the last 6 months and have not received even a diskette, I have not found any cases where they have, I think we should start a proper boycott against them, if you share any of the same reasons for not liking compustore as me, please post, the more supporters to this boycott the more powerful it will become, of course, you are expected not to buy things from compustore once this boycott begins (it will begine once/if I get a good few replis to thei thread). Everyone is welcome

SantaHoe

Since I don't shop at compustore and have never purchased there before - this'll be easy... I'm in.

palance

what rubbish. Compustore like every other retailer just sell the boxed product from HP, Packard Bell or whoever. They dont decide whether recovery disks are included or not, its the manufacturer that does.

Sir Random

I've noticed that a lot of PC manufacturers have switched to the "hidden-partition" OS recovery instead of issuing WinXP CDs. To reinstall XP on these PCs, you just hold down F10 (or some other key) on bootup, and it asks if you want to reset the PC to factory settings, which involves a format and reinstall. It even retains your email address book and web settings.

tman

i'm in, unless the bastids give me a job...
(i'll take the system down from the inside if that happens)

i'd rather spend €10 on delivery from komplett than buy there tbh

Creamy Goodness

only thing i bought from compustore was norton system works.

also they are selling second hand geforce 1's yes 1's at 199 euros (in the sandyford store) :eek: :eek: :eek: :eek: :eek: :eek: :eek:

elexes

im inalso as i never liked shopping there . have avoided it for a good few years now . but i dont see how this problom is a compustore one . its compaq problom ( its only those systems there selling init ?? )

Sarsfield

Is it OK to browse? I quite like a look around the Stephens Green store on a Saturday afternoon.

l3rian

well... only if you steal something

Ajnag

Perhaps the absence of reinstall disks, is due to an open source terrorist who dosent want you to reinstall windows, perhaps working in Compustore, Hp or maybe theres a network at large :ninja:

cravat emptor seems to be a lost phrase these days, it means buyer beware.This gos for the Os as well as the hardware.

Tho it would be in compustores intrest to have non technical costumers return computers that cant be fixed at home and require the 2 botton touch such that repair charges could be incured.


Either way I dont use em, nor to I wish to use them to avoid being in this proposed boycott, so Im off to ponder this unique delima.

Cabaal

Originally posted by quetzal
I think it is time we nerds got together and started a boycott against compustore.

Pffttt..
In fairness any self respecting person who calls themself a nerd, nard or a geek does not even think about buying ANYTHING in compustore

What the above 3 groups can do in compustore is confuse the **** out of the staff and laugh there heads off at the crazy prices and bad support offered by the company.

There's a reason why the Waterford store has blacked out windows you know....
Its ****e plain and simple

cgarvey

Originally posted by quetzal
They are selling pc's to users without any extra cd's/diskettes

If they're not doing what Sir Random suggested, then are they not in breach of the MS OEM license? As in, does the MS license not dictate that original discs, or restore discs (presumably including the hidden partition idea, if it applies), accompany the MS software purchase? If it is in breach, I'm sure MS would like to hear from you.

.cg

Cabaal

Originally posted by Sir Random
..... reset the PC to factory settings, which involves a format and reinstall. It even retains your email address book and web settings.

Hmm dodgy, that don't sound like a format and reinstall to me...sounds like a system restore which is about as good as pointing and laughing at your pc and hoping that doing so will fix your windows installation

Oh the fun of dealing with people who have done these so called "reinstalls" at work every day :rolleyes:

milltown

Cop on you gob****es!
Compustore's crimes are no more heinous than most other computer retailers. They have driven me as demented as most as they run my company's staff discount scheme yet seem only to stock the quick buck items, i.e. boxed pcs, cameras, printers.
They sell you a box with a computer in it from a big brand supplier. They don't have a clue what is in the box apart from what the supplier gives them in the sales pack. If the supplier tells them there is a USB Jennifer Lopez in the box then that is what Compustore will tell customers they are getting, until enough customers complain and it's clear there is no J Lo in the box.
They employ salespeople. Most people know at least one salesperson in some business. They will tell you that, by and large, people are idiots who come in to a shop to be told what they want/need. Salespeople live on sales and the nature of the computer business is that people do not buy more than one PC every four years. Meanwhile most PC sales people don't stay in one place more than 12 - 18 months, so aren't particularly worried about repeat business. The likes of Dell, IBM and HP corporate sales being the exeption.
If you buy a PC from Compustore and have issues with the software intalled on it, Compustore are not going to be any help whatsoever. The PC they got from the wholesalers had that s/w on it and will/should be supported by HP, Packard Bell, Toshiba, whichever manufacturer. Similar risk to buying OEM s/w from Komplett or anywhere else. Apart from their unique body odour (in Longmile rd. at least) The service/repair staff have little to offer anybody apart from forwarding warranty claims.
In closing; a person with "average computer knowledge" won't go to Compustore, they will call Dell and TELL them what they want or else they will build/get somebody to build the PC they want with the s/w they want and get qualified support, from the vendor, for what they bought.
This should not be taken as any sort of endorsement for Dell. Go HP

Cabaal

Originally posted by milltown
In closing; a person with "average computer knowledge" won't go to Compustore, they will call Dell and TELL them what they want or else they will build/get somebody to build the PC they want with the s/w they want and get qualified support, from the vendor, for what they bought.

Bollix and you know it a person with so called "average computer knowledge" hasn't a bloody clue how to fit a harddrive, the average joe who "thinks" they know stuff about pc's only think they know what they want in a pc AND although they have the sense NOT to buy from the likes of compustore they still ain't that bright as they still buy a Dell

yes I don't like dells, there quality has gone down in recent years, though from what I see it *may* be getting better again now..

I deal with these so called "average computer knowledge" people every day and they know f*ck all :mad:

Robbo

Originally posted by quetzal
They are selling pc's to users without any extra cd's/diskettes, after inquiring I discovered that they are supposed to give the user a quick restore diskette with the comp, but I have found 4 cases of people who have bought comps in compustore over the last 6 months and have not received even a diskette

Did these people, upon noticing or being informed that they were shortchanged, actually go in and ask for the discs?

milltown

I think you are confusing the "average consumer" with the person with "average computer knowledge". The average consumer educates themselves to the extent that they can walk in to a shop and tell the assistant in a loud voice that they need at least 256meggybites of raam because they need to check their e-mail and a minimum of 512migs video rom because they will probably, at some stage, be recording the birth of their nephew on the digital camcorder they don't own yet, and need to edit it to a level above what is acceptable for TV3.
The person with "average computer knowledge" knows enough to ask for recommendations from ppl who don't sell computers to pay the bills. In most cases they will be given a list of requirements to tell the Dell salesbot who will process the order and ship a PC which will do 90% of what is expected straight away and the other 10% will be a frustrating hour with tech. support away.

cerebus

Originally posted by Ajnag
cravat emptor seems to be a lost phrase these days, it means buyer beware.

No it doesn't - but it might have something to do with buying ties?

milltown

ROFL

Hail to the pedant!

po0k

Originally posted by milltown
I think you are confusing the "average consumer" with the person with "average computer knowledge". The average consumer educates themselves to the extent that they can walk in to a shop and tell the assistant in a loud voice that they need at least 256meggybites of raam because they need to check their e-mail and a minimum of 512migs video rom because they will probably, at some stage, be recording the birth of their nephew on the digital camcorder they don't own yet, and need to edit it to a level above what is acceptable for TV3.
The person with "average computer knowledge" knows enough to ask for recommendations from ppl who don't sell computers to pay the bills. In most cases they will be given a list of requirements to tell the Dell salesbot who will process the order and ship a PC which will do 90% of what is expected straight away and the other 10% will be a frustrating hour with tech. support away.

Of course the educated consumer will build their own dualie workstation Ex-Vat on the shly and install a non-Tellytubbie OS.....

Ajnag

should of known some smartass would remind me of spell check latin, meah!

http://www.google.ie/search?q=cravat+emptor&ie=ISO-8859-1&hl=en&meta=

http://www.google.ie/search?hl=en&ie=UTF-8&q=caveat+emptor&spell=1

seems other dolts without a classical 19th century education make the same mistake.doh!

but the buying ties reference?, im stumped, spell check returned nothing.

:dunno:

tman

http://dictionary.reference.com/search?q=cravat

timeout

Buycott Compustore, No I don't think I'll do that. From the above mentioned posts I can see no reason, besides, even most people will get screwed around every once in a while. Wether this is in a computerstore or a tradesman(i.e. ****ing builders). Check out the commerical section where people are having trouble with products and deliveries to know end.

LFCFan

I've dealt with nearly all the main PC stores in this country at one time or another and I have to say Compustore rank as the most inept, useless, overpriced, rude, uninterested, lazy shower of dumbass gobsh1tes I've ever had the misfortune to deal with. They make PC World look like a heavenly body!

Cabaal

Originally posted by LFCFan
I've dealt with nearly all the main PC stores in this country at one time or another and I have to say Compustore rank as the most inept, useless, overpriced, rude, uninterested, lazy shower of dumbass gobsh1tes I've ever had the misfortune to deal with. They make PC World look like a heavenly body!

I've never honestly heard one good thing said about compustore, not one
a friend of mine got a compaq laptop from them (sadly before we could educate him) and the CPU was clocked 300Mhz slower then the spec sheet he was given, so he brought it back and they said it was nothing to do with them.

So finally they excepted it after he kept going back loads and loads of times, he got back the laptop with a note saying that the only issue they could find was low disc space, now strangely enough this thing had 10GB free.
Bunch of muppets I tell ya!

PC World on the otherhand although there not very bright (from experience of dealing with customers who have to deal with them) if you know anything and go into a PC World store generally speaking they'll replace broken stuff and sort you out there and then.
But your fecked if you don't know what your talking about, they'll just ripp you off like most other PC shops in Ireland

galwaydude

I agree with the previous post, its better to get the pc built for you as sales ppl generally sell you what you dont need or want.Or better still build it yourself, even cheaper still, thats what i did anyways:D

dangerman

i dont c what problem everyone has with compustore. ppl buy computers in tescos' ffs.

compustore take the morons and fleece them, which is an excellent business model.

if someone cant be bothered to educate themselves, (ask a friend, buy a few magazines, ring around all the manufactures etc.) when theyre making a 700 - 2000 euro purchase, then they deserve to go to compustore and put up with the crap service.

If someone gets sucked in by a sales pitch, then fair play to the sales guy i say, its business, and they make business out of the losers.

dell make business out of big business who have to have support and people who want an overpriced pc without hassle (which, i have to say has been the prevailing experience with dell having worked in their tech support hell hole for a year a while ago, though i agree that their overall quality did plummit for a while) and komplett make business out of the very informed/skilled puter users.

Fobia

Tanks fer all teh support. Compustore say that they give quick restore diskettes away with new comps, these are compustore diskettes, not hp or packard etc, but, as I said in my first post, I don't think they give anyone the quick restore disks unless they are asked for, even if they did, a quick restore disk cannot reinstall windows, nor can it fix 25+ major viruses (the pc witch made me start this thread had many a virus on it). I agree that most compuster stores will try to rip off customers, but compustore is just the worst of the worst fer sure. The sales people rip you off, then you phone them up only to find that the techies know less than you (I'm reffering to me of course, a 14 year old!). It's a no-win situation for newbs I'm afraid, in a world that is supposed to be computer friendly! Burn 'em all!

The Brigadier

Originally posted by quetzal
a quick restore disk cannot reinstall windows, nor can it fix 25+ major viruses (the pc witch made me start this thread had many a virus on it).

A windows install CD will not fix 25+ virii. I don't know where you got that from. A clean boot disk and a virus killer is what you need for that. Reinstalling Windows just because you got a virus is like getting a spot on your finger and cutting your hand off.

I think it is odd to want to boycott Compustore over this anyway. Any retailer who sells computers as boxed products will not have any say on what is supplied. HP/Compaq (and many other manufacturers) have a windows restore partition on the HD. They will supply you with set of CDs at an extra cost if you call them. This is HPs call not compustores and will occur no matter where you buy.

When you buy a new PC with Windows, what you are buying is a licence to use the software - not a boxed product.

I think you have a chip on your shoulder here to a certain extent. Compustore are not intentionally trying to screw anybody. If you don't want to shop there, well that is your right as a consumer. I personally think you are getting worked up over nothing. YOU think a PC should come with individual driver disks and a Windows Install disk, well, were you told it did? You might think a DVD player should come with at least a scart lead to connect it to your TV, they don't - do you want to boycott Power city now?

unkel

Originally posted by cerebus
No it doesn't - but it might have something to do with buying ties?

LOL cravat emptor = CJH?

Cake Fiend

What exactly is the point of this thread? Anyone in the know already 'boycotts' Compustore, unless there's an emergency of some sort.

Originally posted by dangerman
if someone cant be bothered to educate themselves, (ask a friend, buy a few magazines, ring around all the manufactures etc.) when theyre making a 700 - 2000 euro purchase, then they deserve to go to compustore and put up with the crap service.

Exactly how I see it. Techno-darwinism in motion. If someone isn't going to make a single bit of effort to research something they're considering outlaying a couple of grand on, they deserve whatever they get and I sure as hell don't have much pity for them.