Hewlett Packard Company - Compaq RIP OFF Unreliable Products; Rude, Unhelpful Technical Support; Expensive Repair ripoff business from hell Palo Alto California

I am a college student who saved up and bought a Compaq Presario Laptop in December of 2002. Low & behold, in January of 2003, a little over a year later, my laptop failed to turn on & was rendered useless.

I discovered that because my warranty had expired Compaq Tech support specialists could give me NO Information about what was wrong with my pc, or what i could do to fix it. All I got was a phone number to take my laptop to a repair shop. I was left high & dry in mid semester with no access to my homework, the internet, online assignments, important photo & data updates for my job.

After speaking to the repair shop about my broken Compaq Presario, I was informed that the repair shop could not fix my laptop. The Compaq repair outlet wasn't there to fix computers, they were just there to send broken pc's & laptops to biger repair shops who could actually fix the products. So, My laptop was shipped out of state to be fixed.

A week later, I received the phone call telling me that my laptop would cost $682 to fix. Apparently I needed an entirely new processing unit AND a new keyboard--Why they threw the keyboard in there, I have no idea.

My father's laptop has had similar problems. Like mine, his broke within the first 2 years of owning it. Except he was smart about his broken computer. He bought a new computer from a different company instead of wasting his money repairing his laptop & feeding a money hungry MONSTER like Compaq. It is a shame that he spent almost $2000 for a piece of junk that lasted about 13 months and sits in a corner collecting dust.

The cost to fix my Compaq Presario was HALF of what I paid for it, and it broke after only a year. In this information age, people like me, students in particular, DEPEND on products like laptops and PC's for almost every aspect of life.

When I needed help the most, I was let down. Compaq FAILED in its responsibility to consumers. When I called Compaq for help, I was greeted by a rude woman who could barely speak english. When I told her what was wrong, all she could tell me about was that my warranty was expired so she could not help me.

I spent MORE money on a Compaq because I truly believed that HP was a company that stood up for its customers. I only wish now that I would have spent a lot less on a BETTER brand. I could have bought 2 of those for the money that I spent buying and fixing my UNRELIABLE Compaq Presario.

Through all of this I have not received any word from Compaq. A simple I'm sorry or even the slightest indication that the people behind compaq are even slightly human would have made me jump for joy. I was "helped" by a robot-like tech support who told me they couldnt help me after my first year was up.

Because of the experience that I have had with the Unfair and Terrible consumer practices of a Company like Compaq I can assure you that I will NEVER AGAIN buy a Compaq Product, nor will any of my sorority sisters, my family, or ANYONE I come into contact with.

Nicole
Berthoud, Colorado
U.S.A.