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StarEmpty StarEmpty StarEmpty StarEmpty StarBy -
Rating: 1/51

MAGNOLIA, DELAWARE -- I easily migrated two laptop computers -- one an HP and one a Compaq -- to Windows 8.1 and the Windows 10. However, my Gateway desktop was nothing but problems. Not only would it not download and install W10, the W8.1 OS kept freezing or hanging. I called MS Tech Support, and the techie told me that mine was on a short list of computers that could not upgrade to W10. It would wreak havoc on my drivers, he said.

I then called Gateway, only to be told... yup, the MS techie was correct. The Gateway techie couldn't tell me why, and he said Gateway has no patch or workaround to fix this known problem. My PC is only 2.5 years old and came with W8. So I not only can't upgrade, but the PC is pretty much worthless now because of the constant hanging -- which is the result of downloading updates to prepare for W10. Argh! I will never purchase another Gateway. Never.

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Don't Expect Acceptable Support During Warranty Period From Gateway
By -

TEMPLE, TEXAS -- In September my son purchased a Gateway DX4820 for me. The specifications included a 56kb V92 fax modem and the OS was Windows Vista Home Premium. When we assembled the computer we found the socket for the phone line just outside the PCI slots location. When we looked at the Device Manager there was no modem listed. I contacted the company and was told that to use a modem I had to have Windows Vista Business (this option was not explained when the computer was purchased). I did not upgrade my OS because Windows 7 Home was due out shortly and it included a fax capability.

My Windows 7 upgrade came from Gateway and after installation the Device Manager still did NOT list a fax modem. I contacted the e-mail support for Gateway and it took me 2 e-mails to get the support personnel to acknowledge that "As per our records your desktop is in warranty and is registered." They then proceeded to look at their canned answers book and instruct me to go through the Windows 7 fax installation package (I had informed them that I had already done that).

After several e-mails on this issue they tried to switch me to their paid support service, and when I AGAIN explained that my computer was under warranty they suggested I go to a shipping company, have them package and send the computer (at MY expense) to the Gateway depot in Texas where it would be "fixed" in 7 to 10 days after it was received.

I work from home and could NOT be without the service of a computer for such a long period of time, and suggested that because the fax modem is just a PCI card they could send me a new card and I would install it. This was a too obviously simple solution for the technical support personnel, who insisted that "As per our policy Fax modem is not an end user replacement part." A PCI card is not "user replaceable"??? Then I was supplied with the phone number of the Gateway "Voice Technical Support" where the support technician I contacted was even less knowledgeable than the ones I had been dealing with over e-mail.

She first insisted that my computer was NOT equipped with a fax modem card. When I pointed out that the specs for this model list such a card and that there was a socket on the outside of the section where the PCI slots are located, she said that the card on that slot might not be a fax modem card. When I asked her what other kind of card had a socket that fits a phone line jack she said it could be an Ethernet card (on a PCI slot with a socket that would not fit an Ethernet jack???).

At this point she kept mumbling and going around in circles about what my computer model could have so I realized I was wasting my time with the whole support crew and I hung up. I bought a new fax modem PCI card for $40, removed the original one, put in the new one, and lo and behold! The computer recognized it and I now have a working fax modem. I looked at the original card I removed and it was indeed a fax modem card model HPI56L6(P40) manufactured 2009/06/02.

If Gateway personnel have such poor knowledge that they could not solve this simple problem, I hate to think what would happen to buyers who face more complicated problems while still under warranty. (PS I have a copy of all the e-mail traffic with Gateway.)

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Do Not Buy A Gateway
By -

I like others have purchased Gateway computers for years and have loved them. Last October I purchased one from HSN and it worked fantastic until September of this year. The computer shut down. I called Gateway customer service and after getting the runaround with their computer operator not being able to recognize my computer ID#, I finally got to speak to a representative, who unfortunately did not speak very plain English. Her only answer for me was to buy the restore disks.

I like others was quite put out with this as I already had tried a factory restore from the partitioned drive to no avail, but they assured me that this was what I had to do. So I put out the $21.25 for the disks. They arrived 8 days later and of course did not fix the problem. I called Gateway again and spoke to another individual with very broken English who informed me that I would have to send the computer to Gateway at my own expense.

Their product doesn't work and I am bearing all the expenses. I asked to speak to a supervisor and was told that there was no supervisor to talk to. I was told that I would receive an email specifying exactly how to package. I never received that email. So I took the package to Staples and had it packaged.

I received a call from their Repair Center in Texas, which isn't Gateway - it is Acer (I was not aware that Gateway was bought by Acer). She informed me that the packaged arrived and was damaged in shipping. The exterior shell of the computer was dented and due to that, they would not honor the warranty and fix the computer. When I explained to her that the exterior of the computer had nothing to do with the interior of the computer she informed me that she understood, but would not repair the computer unless I was willing to pay for it. So I asked her to speak to a supervisor.

She informed me that she could give me a number but that I would not be able to speak to a supervisor. Apparently the supervisors at the Texas location do not deal with customers. By this time, I was very upset and told her that Gateway had ** customer service (probably not the most appropriate word to use). She said that if I did not calm down she would hang up on me. I said "Excuse me" and she hung up on me.

I realize I shouldn't have gotten so upset, but since it broke down they have done absolutely nothing to get it fixed but charge me money. I will never buy another Gateway. I will stick with HP, they have great customer service and don't charge to send the computers to be repaired. I guess the blessing in disguise is that I paid for insurance and hopefully between UPS and Staples I might be able to recoup some of my loss. I don't know that I will ever see my computer again.

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Hard Drive Crashed in 3 Months
By -

With a decade of owning home computers by Dell and Packard Bell, I had no issues or concerns until I went to Best Buy and bought a Gateway computer in August of 2009. I was set to get a Dell but was talked into the Gateway by the salesman. And it has been the worst purchase I have ever made as a consumer. This thing as being a piece of garbage since Day 1.

The first computer wouldn't start up at all so I returned it. The second computer seemed to work just fine until I got the blue screen of Death after 6 months. We called the Geek Squad and had to re-install everything to the factory default settings. OK... great. And then 6 months later (still under warranty) - this awful machine crashed again with another blue screen of death.

We took it to Geek Squad. We were told it had severe hard drive damage but there was noting else they could do but charge us to re-install everything - which I can do on my own. So... we started over from scratch again. Same drill... we re-installed everything. And like clockwork, this piece of garbage crashed again 6 months later. You could set your watch to it.

This Gateway is the worst purchase I have ever made as a consumer and Geek Squad hasn't been much help in the process. God forbid you put anything on this hard drive and trust that it won't crash EVERY 6 months. I regret putting my hard-earned money down on this thing. Imagine taking your car in to get started back up every 6 months. This purchase has been a disaster and nothing but a heartache. AWFUL. I will not rest until I settle this with Gateway and so far their customer service is scarce at best. You would think I bought this used at a garage sale.

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Repair Department Beyond Awful
By -

Hard drive busted after less than 6 months. Now the real fun begins. Hours trying to just find out where to send it because their automated system does not work right and you never get to speak to a human being. No response to emails. Finally after 100 phone calls and using a fake number, spoke with someone. Sent in for repairs. Got back, STILL BROKEN, hours on the phone again trying to get through to someone. System still messed up big time. Their email system does not work, online chat does not work, down for over 24 hours.

Gateway representative told me a number to call the first time, turns out it's wrong. Again doing something to trick their system; get through, have to send back again for repairs. Their automated system is beyond awful, never recognized their SNID or serial number, employees give out bad info, send in for repairs and they send back broken products; one hour on hold twice, and disconnected both times. I will never buy one of their products again because if you need tech help, it's a total mess. They do nothing but waste your time.

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Gateway Computer Service
StarStarStarEmpty StarEmpty StarBy -
Rating: 3/51

IRVINE, CALIFORNIA -- I have a Gateway DX4820 Desktop Computer that came with Windows 7 64-bit, 6 GB memory, 1TB hard drive, DVD+/-R burner. It also came with a 24-inch widescreen monitor in a package deal from Costco. I paid CDN$799 for it, and the price included a two year warranty. Since I got it about a year and a half ago, I have added memory to max it out at 8 GB, a second 500 GB hard drive, a wifi card and an analog fax modem card.

The only complaint I have is that it only has 3 expansion slots, but that will become less of an issue once faxing is officially dead, and I can toss the fax modem. I also have an external floppy drive hooked up via a USB port, but again, floppies are all but officially dead. I have an external HD for backup, and the operating system is set up for periodic automatic backup. The computer stays on all the time.

Several months after I got it, I had problems with the monitor, so I took it to the Acer Service Centre here in Canada and they fixed it and shipped it back to me all on warranty. I've had no problems since then. My experience with computers started 20 years ago with a 486 clone and over the years, I've had every problem one can have with a computer. The most important thing I've learned is don't ** with it unless you really know what you're doing. And stay away from those third party "fix your registry" apps. They mostly screw it up.

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NEVER BUY A GATEWAY!
StarEmpty StarEmpty StarEmpty StarEmpty StarBy -
Rating: 1/51

TEXAS -- My higher-end Gateway desktop computer had a defective media card reader (bent connector pins) right out of the box. After 6 days of e-mailing and over 2 hours on the phone with their so-called "support," Gateway tells me that 1) I need to pay shipping to Texas for my defective computer. 2) I will be completely without a computer for 2 weeks - even though I told them I need my computer every night to coordinate a charitable event. 3) I need to remove all files and software before shipping it.

4) There is a very high likelihood they will charge me $199 plus tax for the in-warranty repair because they are calling it physical damage. and 5) Their "customer care" (what an ironic name!) supervisors do not accept phone calls and will not speak to me. All of this for a component that should cost less than 10 bucks on a $1,000 computer! DO NOT BUY FROM GATEWAY/ACER!!!

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Service
By -

TENNESSEE -- I bought a Gateway GT5220 and was hit by a Trojan. No recovery disk came with my system. It was a 64 bit dual processor. When I contacted Gateway, they sent me a recovery disk for a 32 bit system. When I had to recall them, they sent me another disk 2 weeks later and it was for the 32 again. When you contact Gateway, they route you to India. If you want to speak with a specialist, it cost you 40.00 dollars. When you talk with the free part, they have no idea of what you need and if you are out of warranty, they want to charge you 200.00 for the right disk. I have contacted them for the last time.

Since they are built in America, they should keep their service tech here too. I'll never buy another Gateway even if they're the last computer on the market. I'll do without. When you buy one, any one, make sure they give you the disk for that system. IF THEY WANT TO CHARGE YOU FOR IT, DON'T BUY IT.

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After Reading Other Reviews, I Feel "Lucky".
By -

I was feeling frustrated because my system is a little less than 2 years old and is beginning to have little hardware "glitches" - power light isn't coming on, screws are breaking off, label flash device and memory card reader won't stay closed, etc.

My gripe, and someday I may find it amusing, is that I am in the process of relocating from Hawaii to the US mainland and I wanted to sell my CPU for about $200.00 and now these glitches are showing up. If I get problems repaired, I will be paying at least $150.00+ parts, so if I was lucky enough to get $200, I'd be just about breaking even. Now I'm wondering if I should try to just sell the working parts.

I really liked my Gateway, with the exception of when I go to clean inside unit, I have a hard time getting side panels back in place, but function is great. I didn't buy extended warranty which, from other reviews I've read, I'm glad of, but attempting to get any $$ out of this thing is going to be a problem, I can see. When I get to my new location, I think I'll look into learning how to "build" a system so I'm more familiar with CPU parts. Thanks for listening to my gripe.

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The Worst Customer Service on the Planet
By -

My son received a Gateway computer for exams purchased at Costco - it has already crashed. The computer did not come with a recovery disk - he has been online with them for three days for them to determine whether or not he now would have to PURCHASE a recovery disk or if they can just send him one. THIS IS THE WORST COMPANY TO DEAL WITH. Who buys a computer and when it crashes after a month they don't even want to send you a recovery disk. Do not buy Gateway computers - they really are a piece of garbage and they do not stand behind them.

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Gateway Desktops Rating:
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1.7 out of 5, based on 3 ratings and
22 reviews & complaints.
Contact Information:
Gateway
4545 Towne Centre CT
San Diego, CA 92121-1900
858-799-3401 (ph)
858-799-3459 (fax)
www.gateway.com
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