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If you have received this newsletter, you may already be a
customer of Computer Troubleshooters – and according to the June 2007
issue of Consumer Reports magazine, that makes you a pretty smart person.
Consumer Reports surveyed over 23,000 computer users and
created a picture of what computer support is really like today.
They asked questions about how effective each computer support provider
was at resolving the problem, pricing and general satisfaction.
First up was support from manufacturers, such as Dell, HP,
and Lenovo. Most manufacturers offer some level of free
support, at least during the computer’s warranty period. Not
surprisingly, the free support was the lowest ranked of all computer
support sources – according to the survey, the free support was only able
to resolve the problem a mere 53% of the time. Paid
manufacturer support, both from “premium” support lines as well as
extended warranties, was only slightly better at 62%.
Next Consumer Reports looked at data regarding what they
called “independent” services, which included services from large retail
chains (such as Geek Squad or Firedog in the US), and also
non-affiliated, truly independent providers and franchises like Computer
Troubleshooters. Both types of “independents” scored
really well when compared to manufacturers. Retail-based
services were able to resolve 84% of the problems on Windows-based
PCs. Their pricing was fairly high though, often double or
triple the rates charged by the non-affiliated service providers.
The non-affiliated provider category included
single-location stores, online repair services and franchises like
Computer Troubleshooters. Hands down we performed the best,
resolving problems more than 93% of the time, and usually being much less
expensive than the other paid options.
It is great to see an independent survey confirm our resolve
to provide you with complete, cost-effective solutions to your computer
problems.
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There are also things you
can do now, to help reduce the time and effort it takes to recover from a
computer problem, such as:
- Keep all of your
technology documentation, software CDs and licenses together in a
convenient location.
- Upgrade your
technology regularly. Underlying technology components have changed
drastically from Windows 95 to Windows XP and Vista, and some problems
may have been ‘engineered’ out. Often it can take longer and be
more expensive to find a solution to a problem on an older system when
compared with upgrading to the latest software version. Many
manufacturers (including Microsoft) no longer provide support or fixes
for ‘end of life’ older systems and, as they are not as prevalent
anymore, troubleshooting information can be hard to
source.
- Make sure you have
Anti-Virus and Anti-Spyware software installed and regularly updated –
the majority of preventable problems we see today are related to virus or
spyware infections.
- Backup your data
regularly and test that you can read your backups. Recovering data
from a ‘crashed’ hard drive is an expensive and uncertain process,
whereas replacing a hard drive and restoring your backed up data can be
relatively simple and easy.
- Consider using a
proactive monitoring system such as Computer Troubleshooter’s Business
Enhanced Support Technology (B.E.S.T), if available in your country, to
monitor your technology for signs of impending problems. Then your
Troubleshooter can be automatically notified and can take action BEFORE
problems happen.
Talk to your local Computer Troubleshooter about how you can
improve your computer recovery options now, before problems occur.
We would also like to welcome our newest team member - Tania Edwards.
Tania is filling the position of Office Manager and will be in the workshop between 9am and 1pm Monday to Friday.
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