Posted 10/26/09 at 01:00:04 AM by Justin Kerr

I'm willing to bet than not to many of the Maximum PC readership make regular use of the Geek Squad, but at the very least, they help take some of the burden off us from "friends who are our friends simply because we know how to fix computers". With little in the way of competition, the Geek Squad has been making a killing setting up routers and HDTV's, but Wal-Mart is stepping in, and they are looking for a piece of the action.

Very little is known about the Wal-Mart branded tech team, but we do know that it is being offered in partnership with N.E.W. Customer Service Companies, and should be starting up sometime before the holiday. The service plans will be sold on prepaid cards ranging from $99 to $399, and each installation will include a consultation and tutorial.

Wal-Mart's non technical audience might make this initiative a hit, but then again, Wal-Mart customers can also be known for being a bit on the thrifty side. Do they have what it takes to compete with Best Buy?

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Posted 08/11/09 at 11:30:40 AM by Paul Lilly

Commercialized PC repair services like Best Buy's Geek Squad and, when it was still around, Circuit City's Firedog are often mocked for being over priced and under qualified, the latter of which might be an unfair generalization. Or maybe not, now that we've seen Geek Squad's CompTIA A+ preparation exam.

The exam questions were sent in to Gizmodo from an "anonymous tipster," and while some of the multiple choice answers are a bit amusing, you'd be hard pressed to find a question/answer combo that you couldn't answer correctly without too much thought. For example:

Q: What is the most effective way to increase the performance of your PC?

• Upgrade your processor from Intel to AMD
• Tweak the registry for maximum efficiency
• Installing more RAM
• Use your PC for shorter periods during the day

It doesn't get any more challenging than that out of the six samples Gizmodo posted. And we suddenly understand why a dislodged hard drive cable was so hard to diagnose.

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Posted 05/22/09 at 08:43:28 AM by Paul Lilly

As if Geek Squad, the PC repair portion of mega electronics chain Best Buy, needed any more damage to its geek cred, it went and got punked by a local Oregon Fox News team. But what's most surprising is how easily the undercover news team did it.

Taking a problem-free PC, the investigators pulled the IDE cable out of the hard drive and told local PC repair shops in the Portland-Metro area that the system wouldn't boot. This included a pair of Geek Squad locations, the first of which identified the problem and fixed it free of charge. Kudos then, right?

Wrong. The second Geek Squad location charged $70 off the bat for a diagnosis, which isn't particularly egregious. But after two days of waiting, a tech called back to inform the undercover team that their hard drive was broken. If that weren't bad enough, the tech claimed it would cost up to $580 to fix the problem! That's not all. Geek Squad said it found a virus and suggested that the 'owner' buy a new PC instead of having the 'broken' one repaired.

"We take any misdiagnosis very seriously, and I personally feel horrible that we missed this opportunity to be consistently accurate," Steve Carter, Geek Squad District Manager, wrote in a statement. "I'm working closes with my Geek Squad agents going forward to ensure that the highest level service is maintained consistently for our customers in Portland."

Watch the undercover video here.

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Posted 07/17/08 at 05:08:36 PM by Paul Lilly

Say what you will about Best Buy's Geek Squad and Circuit City's Firedog computer repair centers, but no matter what amount of ridicule each one might receive in tech circles, those without access to a next-of-kin techspert find themselves using the oft overpriced (and sometimes overzealous) services offered by each. Now Wal-Mart wants a piece of the fix-my-PC pie too.

According to the mega-chain, Dell is testing a repair and installation service for electronics in up to 15 of its stores in the Dallas area. The "Solution Stations" will not only offer PC repair, but HDTV and home theater installation, wireless support, and other electronic services.

"For Wal-Mart, the program provides an opportunity for us to understand more about what our customers need and expect in home installation and technology services, within a specific market," the company said in a statement on its website. Wal-Mart also indicated that the program is a small pilot and that there are currently no plans to expand outside of Dallas beyond the 15 select stores.

And what about pricing? According to the Dallas Morning News, memory installation will run $29 in-store, or $99 if making a house-call. To install a wall-mounted TV, connect cables, and integrate three video components, it is charging $289.

So it's official; you can now get everything and the kitchen sink at Wal-Mart, and that includes PC repair. But would you want to?

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Posted 07/06/07 at 11:21:21 AM by The Maximum PC Staff

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