Best Buy ''Optimization'' A Waste of Money

[captaincharisma]

sigh if people would actually grow a brain and use the info on google to speed up there PC's for free instead of paying stores like best buy for useless programs.

 

[brando56894]

I've heard a lot of Geek Squad horror stories and stuff like this just adds to that feeling. Although they might have crappy computer services they do have some good deals I just bought a 1TB WD hdd for $95.

 

[jh77573]

This is a pretty biased article. While Geek Squad services might not be what is needed for 80% of people here, and their prices can be a tad high, we (Geek Squad) deal with people every day that know nothing about computers and want their new PCs ready to use out of the box with everything updated. That is what the optimization is; nothing more, nothing less...and people are willing to pay for it. I'll agree some of BB sale associates do not sell the service correctly; for example, license agreements only allow us to remove bloatware that customers specify they want removed. This means they got to name the exact program, and I can tell you from experience that never happens.

 

[shockerz33]

As a former BBY employee (go go company reorg!!) I just have this to say. MANY of the customers coming into a computer department have no clue at all what to do on a computer. I've seen everything from people thinking that you only get viruses from looking at porn, that e-mail actually goes through the US Postal Service, that WD40 helps keeping everything inside the PC running smooth, and that the DVD tray was actually a cupholder. (I died a little inside when I saw that one.)

For some people, doing the Windows Updates, removing bloatware, and cleaning the registry is like asking them to climb Everest. For others like myself, I usually do it for family and friends in exchange for beer. But when looking at how many people out there are computer illiterate, does a service like this surprise anyone? How much does it cost a person to change their own oil? How much does it cost to have a soda in a movie theater? The point is, there is always someone that can see a pricetag and think its worth it.

And BTW, for whoever said they were required to pay the $39.99 for an ad computer because all that was left was the optimized kind, try disputing the charge. Being forced to pay an extra $40 for a sale computer is a perfect example of bait-and-switch, and most managers I ever knew would always back down and give the service away for free if they confronted with that argument, and there were no more untouched ones left. At a minimum, they will get an untouch computer transferred for you.

 

[wussupi83]

Why do I get the feeling half of these reader comments are from persons receiving a check with a yellow ticket it on it in the mail soon. Unless there actually are a buncha Best Buy fandboys underneath the woodwork. Not saying I don't understand the arguements, but at least calm them down a little sheesh. You make it sound like you raise the best buy flag in your front lawns everyday.

 

[c0r3f1ght3r]

they just now noticed this...

 

[porksmuggler]

For those justifying this scam by saying the customers don't have enough sense to get out of the rain, you're pathetic. For those of us that service and build computers, we all have the occasional inept customer, but that doesn't warrant a practice like this. Maybe it helps you sleep at night, but I can only hope you get taken to the cleaners on a regular basis at other businesses like your auto shop, plumber, etc.

 

[gilbertfh]

I see a lot of good points in the post. There can be a lot of good in tuning up(optimizing) a computer that has seen better days. Eradicating viruses, worms and useless bloatware can go a long way toward making a computer run more smoothly. Not just any idiot who can click an uninstall button can make a new computer run smoother than it does from the manufacturer. Sometimes there are programs and drivers specifically designed for use on that computer and jacking with that can have consequences.

I believe testing and writing a report on 3 computers from one location is not a good enough sampling to for an overall opinion on the service.

 

[anamaniac]

[citation][nom]christop[/nom]It's total bs. I use to work for staples and they had a tune up for 20.00 and it was just a norton tool kit. The same tools your os has defrag stuff like that. I loved how they told me if I didn't sell a pc with the extended coverage they lost money. I told them they are retarded and that their purchase order er is buying all these computers at retail price and hoping to sell an extended warranty to make money yeah right.. They are stupid to think I would not know they are making 30 percent profit if not more.. So I quit working for those freaks.. ALL THE TUNE IS.. EMPTY YOUR WALLET WITH UPSALES...[/citation]
Ha...
Staples in my area charges $100/hour for tech support. The guy gets paid $13/hour to do it. The company tells him they can't afford to pay any more...
[citation][nom]Porksmuggler[/nom]For those justifying this scam by saying the customers don't have enough sense to get out of the rain, you're pathetic. For those of us that service and build computers, we all have the occasional inept customer, but that doesn't warrant a practice like this. Maybe it helps you sleep at night, but I can only hope you get taken to the cleaners on a regular basis at other businesses like your auto shop, plumber, etc.[/citation]
It's rewarding to know what you should expect.
$150 for tighten a bolt? Screw off. $10,000 to fix a transmission? I could just run to a junk yard and pay the guy there peanuts to put it in and give me some fresh oil...
Most people get taken to the cleaners quite often. It pisses me off though when it's the only option at the time. (In my days of infancy, I paid a guy $40 to install a HDD and put the OS on it... I regret that deeply now).
I commonly try disputing prices, but it doesn't always work. Another example is a local company my mother dealt with had a 400% premium when working with government...

Geek Squad (and others like it) are complete BS. I'd pay $39 to pay someone to beat the guy who decided to put a 30 day $xxx/year antivirus, and every other type of useless bloatware on every retail PC, not to put more on. Fresh, clean OS with no junk is the best. Microsoft provides a decent antivirus, firewall, browser etc., so screw it.

Last I check, automatic updates was on by default.

 

[Guest]

ohh please, most techies will charge $50 an hour at the very least for anything. so $39.99 for windows updates, virus definition updates, changing a few things in msconfig aint that big of a deal for anybody that doesnt know how to do anything.

 

[dtemple]

I should also mention that I've never seen a report from The Consumerist that wasn't biased. They assume everyone is ripping you off. If everyone was truly ripping you off, then somebody would come along and offer the same product for a lower price, causing the rip-off company to go out of business. That's economics. Maybe it takes the guy an hour or two to do all the setup included in an optimization, costing $10-25 of labor. The rest goes to labor for the guy who sold the optimization, utilities to run the store (electric, internet, water, rent for the building) and lastly, advertising for Geek Squad - which there is plenty of. So 40 bucks ain't bad for what you're getting, but as previously mentioned, they're not doing much that you couldn't do on your own with a little research on how to change registry options.

 

[demonhorde665]

and no one saw this comming ?

i mean seriously most of best buy employees consist of pimple faced college student s who have no real IT back ground shit most of them cant even figure out their way around any software past the windows default install ware like paint or basic word. let alone do any real worth while optimizations.

you want your computer optimized or fixed , take it to alocal boutique builder , where they actually hire real IT staff. not some retail giant whose store are filled with idiots that actually think buying a sony vioa or an HP is a great deal comapred to building your own.

i admit i buy software from best buy , movies , music and the like but when it comes to comptuers or computer hardware i dodge them like you would dodge a terminal plauge

 

[demonhorde665]

oh and PS: BB's prices are a sham , 40 for optimizing and 200 for virus removal ??? lol any one dumb enough top go for that deserves an ass reeming. our local boutique builder (thunder computers) , charges 40 bucks an hours ,yeah i know sounds worse than bb , But what BB doesnt want you to know is that the local boutique builder will only charge you for the actual time they are "manning" your comp. i have gotten viruses removed by them on mroe than one occasion , and the price has never been higher than 10-15 bucks meanign they were onlky manning the comp a frew mintues. while obviously BB's model , cahrges you a flat rate aka bassically cahrges you time that no one is actually stationed and working on the computer

 

[rantoc]

Actualy just unpacking the computer and boot it costs money in saleries ect wich many forget when its their spare time. I dont think the price for the service is way off - infact for a novice its quite fair.

However claiming that it speeds up the computer by 200 percent or that it is incomplete without are false marketing! It would be fun to have a car service company claim your car would run that much faster after their service in court...

 

[millalyte]

lol I keep getting posts notifications in my e-mail about this article but first of all someone please show me a legit Geek Squad advertisement that "boasts a 200% speed increase" just throw up a link somewhere because I've never seen one. Then once you find it, go sue the company for false advertising.

What's funny about techies and geeks is how stubborn they are. They can't get past the reality that because it's something so easy for them to do it should be a walk in the park for 100% of the population.

You can't see past your ugly mug and pair of glasses Mr. "I run my own shop". Tell the guy what YOU posted in this thread that CARVED OUT the inside of his antivirus disc with a NAIL FILER to fit in his laptop tray because he thought it wouldn't fit . . . please just quiet yourself and ponder that for a minute. . .
and then tell me that people paid $12-14 an hour are charging too much to un-box the customer's computer, update it, remove the crap, reduce start up processes and apply their tweaks so all they have to do is hit the power button.

 

[Rancifer7]

Because charging someone $40 to update their old ass computer from windows xp service pack nothing to current with all updates and remove the 40 some odd bloat programs that come with computers that old, just not that useful....

 

[r0x0r]

[citation][nom]millalyte[/nom]lol I keep getting posts notifications in my e-mail about this article but first of all someone please show me a legit Geek Squad advertisement that "boasts a 200% speed increase" just throw up a link somewhere because I've never seen one. Then once you find it, go sue the company for false advertising.What's funny about techies and geeks is how stubborn they are. They can't get past the reality that because it's something so easy for them to do it should be a walk in the park for 100% of the population. You can't see past your ugly mug and pair of glasses Mr. "I run my own shop". Tell the guy what YOU posted in this thread that CARVED OUT the inside of his antivirus disc with a NAIL FILER to fit in his laptop tray because he thought it wouldn't fit . . . please just quiet yourself and ponder that for a minute. . .and then tell me that people paid $12-14 an hour are charging too much to un-box the customer's computer, update it, remove the crap, reduce start up processes and apply their tweaks so all they have to do is hit the power button.[/citation]

You just know that in another forum on the internet somewhere, someone is saying the exact same thing about computer geeks in relation to a completely different topic...

We're all stupid/ignorant about something. For some people it just happens to be computers.

 

[itadakimasu]

This lady I used to work with took her laptop to bestbuy for "optimization" and I believe she payed them around $150.

 

[phantomtrooper]

in line with my recent trend of leaving sarcastic comments on lame articles...

Oh really, paying several hundred dollars for some loser who cant get real job to write my name on my account and uninstall useless software is a bad idea? Gee I had no idea. I thought only losers with no college degree could figure out how to do that.

 

[decepticon]

[citation][nom]PLiNkO[/nom] I've made lots of money following the Geek Squad around with a mop.[/citation]

QFT! I have had many of my clients tell me that they went to the Geek Squad to 'fix' their PC. I have had to clean up their messes ever since this Geek Squad started.

The whole idea of Geek Squad is ridiculous. Just look at their 'position' titles:

Available Positions:
Store Agent positions:

* Counter Intelligence Agent (CIA)
* Deputy of Counter Intelligence (DCI)
* Store Service Manager (SSM)

Field Agent positions:

* Double Agent (DA)
* Certified Special Agent (CSA)
* Deputy Field Marshal (DFM)

C'mon...Counter Intelligence Agent?!!?! Are they serious?