larry moe 'n curly wrote:
>
> straightnut wrote:
>
>> I went with a custom PC builder called PCUSA.com and I received my PC
>> today with something rattling around in it. I went to open the case
>> and there was a sticker sealing it saying that the warranty is void if
>> removed. Is this a common thing?
>> What about people who want to add a PCI card or a drive or something.
>> This seems ridiculous.
>>
>> Also, even if they don't honor their warranty, will all of the parts
>> manufacturers at least honor theirs, even though I went through a
>> third party to build it?
>> If so, what would I need to have in order to return a part to a
>> manufacturer?
>
> There are free diagnostics that can read hard drive serial numbers so
> you can verify the warranty with the drive maker, and one such
> diagnostic is Hitachi's (www.hgst.com) Drive Fitness Test, which will
> do this for any brand of HD. If the drive has a retail warranty, you
> can usually get it replaced under warranty without a receipt.
>
> What do the directions say about installing cards or HDs? Because if
> they show you how to do it but don't warn against voiding the warranty
> by opening the computer case, then the sticker seal may be
> meaningless, although I'm no lawyer. I've never heard of a computer
> warranty being voided for opening the machine because it's normal to
> open it, and every major manufacturer allows it.
>
If there are parts rattling around inside, I would not power it up :-)
A loose screw could go just about anywhere.
Paul wrote:
> larry moe 'n curly wrote:
>>
>> straightnut wrote:
>>
>>> I went with a custom PC builder called PCUSA.com and I received my PC
>>> today with something rattling around in it. I went to open the case
>>> and there was a sticker sealing it saying that the warranty is void if
>>> removed. Is this a common thing?
>>> What about people who want to add a PCI card or a drive or something.
>>> This seems ridiculous.
>>>
>>> Also, even if they don't honor their warranty, will all of the parts
>>> manufacturers at least honor theirs, even though I went through a
>>> third party to build it?
>>> If so, what would I need to have in order to return a part to a
>>> manufacturer?
>>
>> There are free diagnostics that can read hard drive serial numbers so
>> you can verify the warranty with the drive maker, and one such
>> diagnostic is Hitachi's (www.hgst.com) Drive Fitness Test, which will
>> do this for any brand of HD. If the drive has a retail warranty, you
>> can usually get it replaced under warranty without a receipt.
>>
>> What do the directions say about installing cards or HDs? Because if
>> they show you how to do it but don't warn against voiding the warranty
>> by opening the computer case, then the sticker seal may be
>> meaningless, although I'm no lawyer. I've never heard of a computer
>> warranty being voided for opening the machine because it's normal to
>> open it, and every major manufacturer allows it.
>>
>
> If there are parts rattling around inside, I would not power it up :-)
> A loose screw could go just about anywhere.
>
> Paul
>
Also, in his battle with the vendor, I would not tamper with the
warranty sticker, if a return + paying a restocking fee is
contemplated.
The warranty reads that they are not responsible for shipping
damage. I guess you're supposed to take that up with the
shipper. But, of course, you can't open the thing up, for
fear of tainting the rest of the business arrangement.
Truly a finely constructed trap. The dude at pcusa should be proud of
himself.
On Nov 14, 9:46 pm, Paul <nos...@needed.com> wrote:
> Paul wrote:
> > larry moe 'n curly wrote:
>
> >> straightnut wrote:
>
> >>> I went with a custom PC builder called PCUSA.com and I received my PC
> >>> today with something rattling around in it. I went to open the case
> >>> and there was a sticker sealing it saying that the warranty is void if
> >>> removed. Is this a common thing?
> >>> What about people who want to add a PCI card or a drive or something.
> >>> This seems ridiculous.
>
> >>> Also, even if they don't honor their warranty, will all of the parts
> >>> manufacturers at least honor theirs, even though I went through a
> >>> third party to build it?
> >>> If so, what would I need to have in order to return a part to a
> >>> manufacturer?
>
> >> There are free diagnostics that can read hard drive serial numbers so
> >> you can verify the warranty with the drive maker, and one such
> >> diagnostic is Hitachi's (www.hgst.com) Drive Fitness Test, which will
> >> do this for any brand of HD. If the drive has a retail warranty, you
> >> can usually get it replaced under warranty without a receipt.
>
> >> What do the directions say about installing cards or HDs? Because if
> >> they show you how to do it but don't warn against voiding the warranty
> >> by opening the computer case, then the sticker seal may be
> >> meaningless, although I'm no lawyer. I've never heard of a computer
> >> warranty being voided for opening the machine because it's normal to
> >> open it, and every major manufacturer allows it.
>
> > If there are parts rattling around inside, I would not power it up :-)
> > A loose screw could go just about anywhere.
>
> > Paul
>
> Also, in his battle with the vendor, I would not tamper with the
> warranty sticker, if a return + paying a restocking fee is
> contemplated.
>
> The warranty reads that they are not responsible for shipping
> damage. I guess you're supposed to take that up with the
> shipper. But, of course, you can't open the thing up, for
> fear of tainting the rest of the business arrangement.
>
> Truly a finely constructed trap. The dude at pcusa should be proud of
> himself.
>
> Paul- Hide quoted text -
>
> - Show quoted text -
And I believe it is just a dude. One guy who likely picks a name out
of a hat to
call himself that day. I didn't power up. I didn't do anything except
to take it out of the box.
Once I saw the sticker, I called the company and haven't touched the
thing since.
I'm calling the credit card company tomorrow to complain.
Thanks
Jeff
> larry moe 'n curly wrote:
>>
>> straightnut wrote:
>>
>>> I went with a custom PC builder called PCUSA.com and I received
>>> my PC today with something rattling around in it. I went to open
>>> the case and there was a sticker sealing it saying that the
>>> warranty is void if removed. Is this a common thing? What about
>>> people who want to add a PCI card or a drive or something. This
>>> seems ridiculous.
>>>
>>> Also, even if they don't honor their warranty, will all of the
>>> parts manufacturers at least honor theirs, even though I went
>>> through a third party to build it? If so, what would I need to
>>> have in order to return a part to a manufacturer?
>>
>> There are free diagnostics that can read hard drive serial
>> numbers so you can verify the warranty with the drive maker, and
>> one such diagnostic is Hitachi's (www.hgst.com) Drive Fitness
>> Test, which will do this for any brand of HD. If the drive has a
>> retail warranty, you can usually get it replaced under warranty
>> without a receipt.
>>
>> What do the directions say about installing cards or HDs?
>> Because if they show you how to do it but don't warn against
>> voiding the warranty by opening the computer case, then the
>> sticker seal may be meaningless, although I'm no lawyer. I've
>> never heard of a computer warranty being voided for opening the
>> machine because it's normal to open it, and every major
>> manufacturer allows it.
>>
>
> If there are parts rattling around inside, I would not power it up
> :-)
He could attach it to a paint shaker
I would dispute the charges for defective merchandise. Credit card
companies are very very good about reversing charges for defective
products purchased on the Internet. The insistent threat of
disputing the charges might even be enough. I haven't heard of or
experienced any unsuccessful attempt to reverse charges.
> A loose screw could go just about anywhere.
>
> Paul
>
On Nov 14, 8:40 pm, "larry moe 'n curly" <larrymoencu...@my-deja.com>
wrote:
> straightnut wrote:
> > I went with a custom PC builder called PCUSA.com and I received my PC
> > today with something rattling around in it. I went to open the case
> > and there was a sticker sealing it saying that the warranty is void if
> > removed. Is this a common thing?
> > What about people who want to add a PCI card or a drive or something.
> > This seems ridiculous.
>
> > Also, even if they don't honor their warranty, will all of the parts
> > manufacturers at least honor theirs, even though I went through a
> > third party to build it?
> > If so, what would I need to have in order to return a part to a
> > manufacturer?
>
> There are free diagnostics that can read hard drive serial numbers so
> you can verify the warranty with the drive maker, and one such
> diagnostic is Hitachi's (www.hgst.com) Drive Fitness Test, which will
> do this for any brand of HD. If the drive has a retail warranty, you
> can usually get it replaced under warranty without a receipt.
>
> What do the directions say about installing cards or HDs? Because if
> they show you how to do it but don't warn against voiding the warranty
> by opening the computer case, then the sticker seal may be
> meaningless, although I'm no lawyer. I've never heard of a computer
> warranty being voided for opening the machine because it's normal to
> open it, and every major manufacturer allows it.
They give no instructions whatsoever. It ain't Dell. I wonder if they
even use new parts.
Maybe they doesn't want you looking, so they put that sticker on.
Jeff
On Nov 14, 8:51 pm, "John Weiss"
<jrweiss98155NOS...@NOSPAM.comcast.net> wrote:
> "straightnut" <ck74...@aol.com> wrote...
>
> > Thank you all. And thanks so much Paul for being so thorough. I suppose
> > returning the PC is the most ethically appropriate thing to do, but I'm
> > wondering how sticky this can get. I was actually considering building a PC
> > with practically all of the same parts that PCUSA put in this one. And I
> > priced it and they did it cheaper than I could have. Plus they added a 3 year
> > warranty and lifetime tech support, so that was my reasoning for going with
> > them. Now that I realize the warranty is crap, I have to consider whether the
> > computer itself is built well and whether or not the warranty for the
> > individual parts is under my name and can therefore be used if something
> > should fail within the warranty period for that part.
>
> Unfortunately, you cannot determine how the computer is built unless you open it
> up...
>
> Have you tried using the "lifetime tech support" to ask them what they want you
> to do? If they merely say "send it back," that will be an indication that you
> MUST send it back -- permanently! OTOH, will they give you your $$ back if you
> do?
>
> The other option is to open it anyhow, and commit yourself to doing your own
> repairs if necessary. You save the $30+ shipping, and you may be able to fix it
> in a couple minutes.
>
> You would likely prevail in a small-claims court suit for "warranty of
> merchantability" or similar, but again, would it be worth it?
>
> > No course of action will sit well, so I'm wondering which one to take to save
> > me the most stress. I haven't
> > touched the PC yet, and what seems the next thing to do, is to contact each of
> > the manufacturers of the parts to see how they view the situation.
>
> What is their return policy? If they say they will NOT take it back, the court
> solution may be the only feasible one. If they agree to refund your $$, take it
> and build your own.
>
> > I did use a credit card for the purchase. The shipping was $55, and shipping
> > back I assume would be at least $30. And who knows how ugly they'll be about
> > it, so I'm at least considering other options.
>
> You can try to dispute the charge if PCUSA doesn't respond well. However, that
> may only delay the inevitable if the card company eventually sez, "You got the
> box; you gotta pay."
They don't have a return policy that I can find. At the end of our
conversation I was perturbed and
asked, so how do I go about a refund. As he was hanging up on me he
said to get an RMA through
pcusa.com. Can't find any link for returns or warranties. I even
looked using the site search option on google for "return" "refund"
"rma" and "warranty" each coming up with nothing.
Jeff
"John Doe" <jdoe@usenetlove.invalid> wrote...
>
> You said there is something rattling around inside of the case.
> It's not built well.
Not necessarily true...
Shipping may loosen stuff that would otherwise be reasonably secure in a
computer case. The "rattling" could be as simple as a PSU or IDE cable
terminal, or as bad as a CPU or heat sink. We don't know which, yet...
"straightnut" <ck747sf@aol.com> wrote...
>
> They don't have a return policy that I can find. At the end of our
> conversation I was perturbed and asked, so how do I go about a refund. As he
> was hanging up on me he said to get an RMA through pcusa.com. Can't find any
> link for returns or warranties. I even looked using the site search option on
> google for "return" "refund" "rma" and "warranty" each coming up with nothing.
OK. You now know you're stuck with it. The only decision is to use it or not,
and if you do use it, how much $$ you're going to try to get back from him:
If you decide to NOT use it (i.e., you can forego the cost of the box for
the foreseeable future), you can start with the credit card and BBB complaints,
and look into a small claims court action. Put it back in the box and leave it
there until you get a result.
If you decide to use it, open it up and see what's wrong. If it's a simple
and/or cheap fix, and the machine then works, consider it an inexpensive lesson.
If you "lose," and the fix is more than you would have liked, then continue with
the actions as above.
You already know the guy's a dirtbag. If you send it back, you risk losing your
$$ AND the machine. If you keep it, you stand a good chance of getting use out
of it.
If it were mine, I'd crack the case and fix what's broke. Send a claim to the
guy for what it cost to fix (if anything), and report it to the credit card
company and BBB. Dispute the cost to fix with the credit card company.
> They don't have a return policy that I can find. At the end of our
> conversation I was perturbed and
> asked, so how do I go about a refund. As he was hanging up on me he
> said to get an RMA through
> pcusa.com. Can't find any link for returns or warranties. I even
> looked using the site search option on google for "return" "refund"
> "rma" and "warranty" each coming up with nothing.
> Jeff
All you have to do, is look at an archived page from the site. This page is
from 2006. (And maybe the next time you're on the phone with them, ask them
why their new website design, has no terms and conditions page on it.)
Open order can be changed and cancelled without penalty.
Orders shipped or completed by PC Source, Inc ( dba PCUSA.COM ) are not
subject to change or cancellation by purchaser except with PC Source's
written consent and upon payment of an appropriate charge to cover the cost
or less incurred by PC Source which, unless otherwise agreed in writing shall
be not less than fifteen percent (15%) of the price of the product subject
to charge or cancellation.
Freight charge is NOT refundable nor credit."
That means there is a restocking fee of 15% plus the cost of shipping the
item to you originally, if you return it. And in order to return it, you'll
need the equivalent of an RMA number to write on the outside of the box.
Re: Should have built my own, but... 
Linear Mode
