WARNING: Micro Center Motherboard Scam

[WaTaGuMp]

+1

People need to realize how much money retail stores loose to newb PC hobbyists. I've seen the Microcenter on Elston in Chicago take back a 775 motherboard w/ thermal paste caked into the pins... The guy thought he was suppose to put thermal paste on the pins first then mount the CPU into the socket...

So I'm betting the issue in this thread originated w/ end user error.

WTF.

 

[erikistired]

So the board was sealed and shrink wrapped? For any new product, I would never think of ripping the packaging open to check the product is there at the cash register, who does that? So I'm not sure what else you could have done here.

i've never bought a motherboard that had shrink wrap on it.

 

[Ariae]

WTF.

True story. lol. I remember standing in line for a pickup order and the guy going back and forth w/ CS about how he's been a technician for 10+ years, etc ,etc.

 

[WaTaGuMp]

True story. lol. I remember standing in line for a pickup order and the guy going back and forth w/ CS about how he's been a technician for 10+ years, etc ,etc.

He probably just put TOO MUCH on the pins, that's my story and I am sticking to it.

 

[GotIssues]

Step 1: Take it to Corporate. Escalate if necessary.
Step 2: Corporate resolves the matter
Step 3: If the matter is resolved in a positive way, business as usual. If they jerk you around or say "Tough" - never shop at MC again.

I've had to complain to corporations maybe 5 times. Most companies are willing to work with customers. Circuit City screwed me out of $60, refused to do anything about it (it would have cost them $25, tops), so I stopped shopping there. Their greed saved them $25 in the shortrun and cost them hundreds, if not thousands, in the longrun. Needless to say, I'm pretty sure I'm not the only one they screwed, and I enjoyed every bit of their collapse.

TLDR: Money talks. There are plenty of easy substitutions for MC, use them.

 

[boozie]

I live right by the Westmont MC and was planning to buy from them but now I'm a little worried since my computer knowledge is pretty low. Is it a bad idea to pay them to get a cpu/mobo (that I buy from them) to post? I think it's around $20 and it would save me from screwing it up plus any hassle of them accusing me of breaking something.

Anyone know if Fry's does this and at what price if so?

 

[iluvdeal]

i've never bought a motherboard that had shrink wrap on it.

My P55 board from Frys was shrinkwrapped. They also put a couple of big stickers on it which specifies the 15 day return policy for mobos and a warning that physical damage voids any return/exchange privileges. It also advertises they install CPUs for only $9.99.

 

[Zivic]

I live right by the Westmont MC and was planning to buy from them but now I'm a little worried since my computer knowledge is pretty low. Is it a bad idea to pay them to get a cpu/mobo (that I buy from them) to post? I think it's around $20 and it would save me from screwing it up plus any hassle of them accusing me of breaking something.

Anyone know if Fry's does this and at what price if so?

I believe if you buy a board and proc, they will due a test post for free

 

[s44]

Cops? Jesus, just do a chargeback.

 

[pcgeek101]

Lecturing this guy about his wallet is a moot point & I don't think he needs people on internet forums to play Dad.

OP, if I were in your shoes, I would try to work with Asus on this (not saying you haven't), but call Asus & see if they'll find some middle ground with you. This is a very unfortunate situation & to be honest, doesn't sound like MC's going to do the right thing. I'm not a huge fan, even though they're only a 20 minute drive, I'd much rather go to Fry's. IMO, the only thing MC has going for them are their CPU deals. This is just another reason for me to shop elsewhere (Fry's & Newegg).

I've done RMA's in the past with Asus & never included the CPU socket cover, so that shouldn't be a big deal.

Yeah, on the HardOCP forums, a bunch of people were complaining about me going back home to get my wallet. I'm still not clear how that turns the argument against me? I left my products at the store so I could get my wallet to come back and pay for the upgraded replacement product? How is that bad? People do forget their wallets occasionally, and the wallet isn't REQUIRED (I'm talking fundamentals here, not the law) to operate your car ... only the keys are. Haha ....

Anyway, I've contacted Asus for a RMA and am waiting to hear back from them. Everything is working great on the board from Fry's. It had a bunch of layers of security, and there's no way in hell that I'm buying another motherboard, or similar part, without validating the seal on it. I've never had a problem with Fry's, and they've always had this type of security on ALL of their products, including things like hard drives (shrink wrap in that case).

 

[faxon]

I live right by the Westmont MC and was planning to buy from them but now I'm a little worried since my computer knowledge is pretty low. Is it a bad idea to pay them to get a cpu/mobo (that I buy from them) to post? I think it's around $20 and it would save me from screwing it up plus any hassle of them accusing me of breaking something.

Anyone know if Fry's does this and at what price if so?

fry's will post your board and cpu for i think $10? im not sure off the top of my head we rarely do it. when you go in, the product number for POST testing is on the WARNING 15 DAY RETURN POLICY sticker for motherboards i believe. i dont go back in till friday or i'd check, you want me to call my supervisor and find out?

ed: yea someone else already posted it. i believe what it means specifically is if you have a case to put it into with you, or you buy a case, cpu, mobo, and provide ram, then we will put it in and post it for you for $10. if you dont have a case, they will still post it anyway, you just gotta put it all back once done


frys is really big on security and loss prevention. we strap all our boards with plastic straps around the box so you cant open it without removing them, which prevents people from swapping boards from box to box (swap a p67A-ud3p for a UD7 ect...) and also from putting the board into say a shredder paper catcher and buying the shredder but not the board. also prevents serial swapping and stealing of accessories. most boards we get from the factory arent even sealed with a sticker. i think only evga plastic/sticker seals all their boards, though MSI, ASUS, and Gigabyte all make efforts to package their higher end product very well and seal it properly. if you're uncertain of the contents @ frys still, request to open it in front of a sales associate or supervisor before purchasing it. you should be able to do this at any retail store, but if they refuse tell them you're going to just go elsewhere. it's your right as a customer to verify that the product you're buying is what you're actually buying and they know it (at least in california)

 

[CZroe]

Circuit City sold a completely sealed GeForce 6600 to a friend of mine. It has a GeForce 2 MX inside with the window sticker barcode/SN/warranty label from a GeForce 6600 stuck to the back.

Someone scammed the store by resealing it and returning it as unopened. I often keep things sealed in case I need to return it, sell it, change my mind, etc, so I'm likely to get burned by something similar. At least I usually video myself opening things for the first time.

 

[fourty03]

Leaving the products at the store is questionable..

I've seen it happen, where as the manager instills a strong trust between the customer and the store, to show a commitment to the customer that the store will be behind 100%..

Also, as this thread gets more exposure, I will bet there will be countless of posts showing someone's buddy going to a store, buying a product and then after going home, opening it to find something totally different from what they intended to buy..

Walmart actually caught a group of people buying car stereos, amps.. etc and then returning junk equipment, and resealing the box with shrink plastic.. after numerous complaints from customers buying the returned but sealed products, they finally caught on and inspected everything before being returned.


Im sure Microcenter can track what has been returned to them and what date..etc they could see if that particular motherboard was a returned item recently and any one with common sense could see "yea, a customer returned a XXXX motherboard on this date, and this particular model in our inventoried was returned xx times.."

 

[bestnotebooks]

I work at Micro Center's corporate HQ. I am giving everything about this to our Customer Relations area so they are alerted to the problems you have faced. Please contact custrel@microcenter.com. I hope we can resolve everything to your satisfaction. Please accept my apology on behalf of everyone at Micro Center.

 

[pcgeek101]

I live right by the Westmont MC and was planning to buy from them but now I'm a little worried since my computer knowledge is pretty low. Is it a bad idea to pay them to get a cpu/mobo (that I buy from them) to post? I think it's around $20 and it would save me from screwing it up plus any hassle of them accusing me of breaking something.

Anyone know if Fry's does this and at what price if so?

Honestly, I'd be happy to help you out with it for free. I would not recommend purchasing ANYTHING from Micro Center, given the lack of product security that they have. As you may have seen in another one of my posts, the motherboard I bought from Fry's the same evening had the following:

* A 15-day return sticker COVERING the flap
* 2 box straps completely preventing someone from opening the box without breaking them, or killing the box itself
* The cashier opened the product for me at the counter to approve

Fry's is awesome ... I am sure that they screw up sometimes too, but the facts that I mentioned above certainly set them apart and give them a much better chance of NOT screwing up.

 

[Tegeril]

I work at Micro Center's corporate HQ. I am giving everything about this to our Customer Relations area so they are alerted to the problems you have faced. Please contact custrel@microcenter.com. I hope we can resolve everything to your satisfaction. Please accept my apology on behalf of everyone at Micro Center.

It's always reassuring when employees actively check enthusiast forums for issues. Regardless of the final outcome, thanks a bunch since it doesn't look like you're required to do this

 

[CZroe]

I work at Micro Center's corporate HQ. I am giving everything about this to our Customer Relations area so they are alerted to the problems you have faced. Please contact custrel@microcenter.com. I hope we can resolve everything to your satisfaction. Please accept my apology on behalf of everyone at Micro Center.

Wow! pcgeek101, did you notice this?

 

[pcgeek101]

I work at Micro Center's corporate HQ. I am giving everything about this to our Customer Relations area so they are alerted to the problems you have faced. Please contact custrel@microcenter.com. I hope we can resolve everything to your satisfaction. Please accept my apology on behalf of everyone at Micro Center.

Thank you -- I've sent you guys an e-mail so we can get this sorted out.

 

[pcgeek101]

It's always reassuring when employees actively check enthusiast forums for issues. Regardless of the final outcome, thanks a bunch since it doesn't look like you're required to do this

I think he's probably the person behind @MicroCenter on Twitter. I linked to this forum post on Twitter.

 

[mizzou]

This sounds fishy. Im sure if i had a defective cpu after opening the box, with a valid receipt and return window thephysical defective product can be returned. The store shouldnt care how it happened, just that it came in within the return period. Anytime after, you are SOL and will have to ty your luck on the.mfg warranty...good luck there!

Thankfully, the visible damage is extremely rare. Ive never seen first or second hand a caee of a bent pin from mfg.

 

[Zap]

the motherboard I bought from Fry's the same evening had the following:

* A 15-day return sticker COVERING the flap
* 2 box straps completely preventing someone from opening the box without breaking them, or killing the box itself
* The cashier opened the product for me at the counter to approve

They also subject you to the final indignity at the door. That's because they are absolutely paranoid when it comes to their customers, even though they've lost more money to their own management.

 

[Nebor]

Wow! pcgeek101, did you notice this?

He's already telling people not to buy ANYTHING at Microcenter. If I were MC I'd tell him to get bent. What a tool. Oh, you're not going to shop there anymore? Not a big loss, it's not like you carry a wallet with you most of the time anyway.

 

[Sulaco]

I actually had a similar problem with a motherboard I purchased from the Columbus, OH Microcenter, although I was 100% satisfied with the way they handled it.

Detailed in this thread:

http://forums.anandtech.com/showthread.php?t=2130325


Anyway, long story short, I bought an Asus Sabertooth x58 mobo on Christmas eve. The day after Christmas, I try and assemble my new rig, and I get no video display, and the "RAM Error" light stays on.
Return the RAM I bought from them for another set, same problem.

Finally, I decide it must be the motherboard, so I take it in. Seeing the Gigabyte for nearly the same price, and liking the layout more, I ask if I can just return the defective Asus for a new Gigabyte and pay the difference (it was like $10). They said that was fine.

Sure enough, I get it home and everything works.

As far as testing the mobo/cpu there, I was quoted $10 over the phone to do. Seems worth it in the future just to make sure I'm not getting a dud, and avoiding the hassle of troubleshooting again.

 

[erikistired]

My P55 board from Frys was shrinkwrapped. They also put a couple of big stickers on it which specifies the 15 day return policy for mobos and a warning that physical damage voids any return/exchange privileges. It also advertises they install CPUs for only $9.99.

i'm not saying it doesn't happen, just saying in the 20+ years i've been buying motherboards none of mine were shrinkwrapped. most, if not all, had the sticker sealing the anti-static bag tho.

 

[CZroe]

i'm not saying it doesn't happen, just saying in the 20+ years i've been buying motherboards none of mine were shrinkwrapped. most, if not all, had the sticker sealing the anti-static bag tho.

Fry's usually has the plastic straps that you are supposed to cut before opening. Several times I have managed to slip them off instead.