My 8880 Experience

[NRLphabrik]

First of all, I got my 8880 in June (from ProStar not Sager) and here are the specs:

2.4Ghz.
1GB RAM
2x 40GB 5400RPM Harddrives
etc...

I purchased this for means of evaluation for a large purchase for my company (we were considering outfitting all of our support personel with one as a desktop replacement). I tried originally to set up some sort of corporate account with ProStar, but Andy Luu from sales told me that I would have to talk to Amazinglaptops.com since they were the prefered sales conduit. He refused to talk about large purchase discounts (we are talking a lot of units here).

The first one that I got was unstable. The TV tuner had a short, which caused the laptop to reboot spontaneously. I sent it back, and two weeks later I received another one with 12 bad pixels on the screen. They tried to refuse to replace it, but after some arguing they offered to replace. I decided instead to keep because this is my main portable (yeah, 13lbs is a lot, but I have the Targus Backpack Deluxe and it is not so bad) and I cannot afford the downtime.

I kept it until it completely died in December. (NOTE: the battery by that point had degraded from 2+ hours to 5 minutes) I sent the machine back for another replacement.

I got the new machine in two weeks, and it had scratches all over the top, but the screen and keyboard were fine so I used it, they had also forgotten to send back my second hard drive, so I called and had them ship that. I just received the laptop one week ago, and this last Tuesday evening the primary IDE controller died. I called them and they wanted me to ship it off again for another two weeks. I told them that that was not acceptable and could they please cross-ship. I also heard from Ryan at amazinglaptops.com that my model was discontinued, so I asked for replacement with whatever the current model is. They said that it was against their policy to cross ship, and that the new model was a totally different machine (motherboard changed only, actually). They also came at me with the attitude that, "we already replaced it twice, what more do you want", like I should put up with a new unit that only half worked. Eric from RMA and Kenneth from sales were hostile, Andy Luu lied to me and said that they would call me to set up a cross-ship and a replacement with an 8874.

They never called and I had to call them 4 times to get someone other than Andy (who kept giving me the runaround). Andy finally sent me to Eric from RMA, who was very rude, and then told me that what he said "overrode what Andy said", and that he was "not doing cross-ship, and no replacement of 8874". I asked him if sales were important to him, and if he was willing to say to the consumers on behalf of his company, that they "didn't care about customer service". He said yes. I demanded to speak to his boss, he said that he was the decision maker here, and what he said was final, and that I did not need to speak to his boss, that he was the boss. I hung up.

I called back immediately and got Andy again. After 20 minutes of waiting, I got Kennet from sales. He had obviously talked to Eric because he had the same attitude. I asked to talk to his boss, and he said no, that I did not need to talk to his boss... (I have recordings of all of these conversations)

So now I am stuck sending this back to them again, and obviously they will delay it further in sending it back. I have filed a complaint with the Better Busineess Bureau in their area but doubtless that it will do any good.
So for the companies that sell these Clevo machines, (Sager, Alienware...) I hope that they treat their customers better than this.

These units are awesome, but I will not buy another from ProStar. I am looking to buy the 8854 model from a competitor, since the one that I have is discontinued.

Are any of the other companies looking for a big sale?


references:
http://www.pro-star.com
http://www.clevo.com.tw

[vanfanel]

I'd look into the sager alternatives (8886) As for vendors the following two are exceptional:
www.pctorque.com
www.powernotebooks.com

[prostarcustomer]

This customer requested a free upgrade to a new and more expensive system. If the system is no good, why he still want a Prostar laptop???

[Ultima]

Maybe cause he invested money in it, and by the sounds of it, you guys over at ProStar wouldn't even consider giving a refund for this crap.

I'll bet that if he would get his money back from you guys, ya wouldn't hear from him again.

If this whole thing is true, then I know where I won't be buying a laptop when I do.

[elisahsu]

Hi, My Prostar 8874 is great. I also have a 3-year Prostar Notebook. Prostar is the only one can help me with my Windows 98. No other companies did a better job than Prostar. I believe in Prostar. If he does not like Prostar, he shall ask for a refund. I know that Prostar's system is the best, and that is the only reason he keeps asking for more.

One more time, I believe in Prostar

[NRLphabrik]

Quote:

Originally posted by prostarcustomer
This customer requested a free upgrade to a new and more expensive system. If the system is no good, why he still want a Prostar laptop???

I was told by Ryan @ amazinglaptops.com (your preferred reseller) that ProStar didn't have any more of the new 8894s (my model) because they were discontinued. I requested specifically to have it replaced with a current model "with the same specs" as the one that I currently have. When you replaced it with another 8894 the second time, it was dirty and scratched, and the primary IDE controller died in 3 days from the time that I got it. (hence my current situation).

BTW Forum Members:
don't let elisahsu and prostarcustomer lead you to believe that they monitor these forums, or care about their customers opinions. They only posted here because I sent them links to three of these posts.

BTW ProStar Guys: If this is Eric, Andy, or Kenneth, I sent Andy links to three posts. There are 45 total on the net right now. Can you find and counter them all?

[NRLphabrik]

Something else that ProStar seemed to overlook (this will tell you how much they care about ego more than customers). I was evaluating this unit for a large sale of over 300 units over the next year. They never seemed to understand that.

[NRLphabrik]

Quote:

Originally posted by elisahsu
Hi, My Prostar 8874 is great. I also have a 3-year Prostar Notebook. Prostar is the only one can help me with my Windows 98. No other companies did a better job than Prostar. I believe in Prostar. If he does not like Prostar, he shall ask for a refund. I know that Prostar's system is the best, and that is the only reason he keeps asking for more.

One more time, I believe in Prostar

You might know that they are the best, but I think that consumer opinion will always prevail:
http://www.resellerratings.com/selle...pl?seller_id=6

[tygirwulf]

Sounds like you have more of a problem with ProStar and amazinglaptops than with Sager itself. I've had my NP 8880 since August, and it's been the most reliable, trouble-free machine I've ever had. I'm far from a newbie at this computer thing as well. I'm very, very picky when it comes to spending my money and if this laptop was anything less than I expected, it would have gone right back and I would have invested in a desktop system and LCD screen. I bought mine from powernotebooks. Not for nothing do they have the highest rating on resellerratings. I hear pctorque is good, too, and their prices are a bit lower, but I have no firsthand knowledge of them.

[eagle1]

Sager is a great laptop maker.!
Too bad that the company you ordered from doesn't give the proper customer support.!