Okay, you're not sure if you should be monkeying around inside your PC. You still have a warranty, a long term service contract and everything, right?
Yes, I understand. But what you don't know if that the PC support industry is slowly dying out or being outsourced overseas.
Yep...my "bread and butter" work (that has put food on the table for me for over 18+ years) is going the way of the buggy-whip and horse-drawn carriage.
As computers become smaller, more compact and more "appliance-like", desktop support technicians will become obsolete and useless. And what is a Razr phone or a Blackberry if not computerized communication appliance? Can we say, Star Trek?
Okay this means I'm going to out of a job someday in the future but what does that mean for you, today?
Hands-on technical service is expensive to provide long term. Hint: Dell, HP and eMachine are investing millions in low-cost "over the phone" help desk support. They are not hiring as many "boots on the ground" technicians as before. This means that when you do get a problem that requires a little hands-on work, you go on a long waiting list.
Even worst yet, is that the "Big Boys" are quietly slipping into the fine print of all their newest support and service warranties the concept of "Consumer Replaceable Parts".
What are "Consumer Replaceable Parts"?
I'm glad you asked that. There are basically only ten to twelve essential hardware parts inside a modern computer. And most of the larger PC manufacturers have now made sure at least half of them are no longer covered under their warranties or service contracts.
For example, one of the largest PC makers, Dell admits they no longer include CD-ROMs, DVDs, floppy drives, power supply units (your PC's power plant), or the motherboard (that's the circuit board that contains your video, sound, modem or network modules) in their "CompleteCare(TM)" agreement for consumers (the home office market). The "CompleteCare(TM)" is not "free" by the way.
And if they do cover a bad part, they state further down in the agreement that," At our discretion, the (helpdesk) technician will either send you a replacement part to for you to install on the computer device or give you directions to ship the computer device to our repair facility."
Got that?
That's right. Even with a service agreement, they will send the part to you so YOU can put it in or YOU can ship it back to them for repair. See what I mean by "Consumer Replaceable"? Oh, yeah by the way the parts they send out for you (to install all by yourself) will probably be "refurbished". Nope, you don't even get a new one.
Now I don't want to pick on Dell. I like them a lot; they are indeed one of the good guys when it comes to tech support. But all of the PC makers are doing this, "Consumer Replaceable Part" thing. You can either install your own "consumer replaceable part" with a little help from my very affordable mini guides or lug your machine down to that expensive computer repair store and let their geek-to-go replace it for you.
So in the next few years, your computer will become like any other major appliance. The maintenance and care of its few "moving" parts will become your sole responsibility, warranty or not. When was the last time you saw a refrigerator repair guy?
Your options are already being taken away from you... It's your choice; your time; your wallet.
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