I was tempted to just give this place one star, but decided to go with two because, after all, my…read morelaptop did get repaired and is working now. It took nearly a month and a half (08/22-10/02 - and please take note of these dates, they will play an important role further on in the review), cost a lot and in the process, I witnessed just about every rule of professional behavior and work ethics violated. And the latter is what this review is about.
I found the place online. Reviews on Yelp were stellar. Oh my, how grateful was I to the Universe for this find after I had (stupidly, I admit) spilled water on my laptop!
Maybe I should skip Shawn's unprofessional demeanor and behavior as my husband and I were dropping Lappy off (he was stretching on his chair, yawning and generally giving this "I couldn't care less" vibe). But I will mention it briefly, because this should have been a red flag for me right there. Now on to the more important stuff.
Shawn has a lot of certifications under his belt, including the CompTia A+. Since my husband is studying to take this exam right now, I know it includes a huge section about work ethics and how to work with a customer. Oh CompTia, you would not be proud of Shawn!
During the time Shawn had my laptop, he never volunteered any information about what was happening and what exactly he was doing with Lappy. Except for the last week (when we had basically given up), the same scenario repeated over and over: We called and heard "I'm waiting on a part. Will have it in 2 days" 2 days (or more) came and went, we called again and heard "I'll have the part in 3 days, I'll call you". 3 days came and went... and so on. Now let me stress that I do understand this wasn't an easy repair and parts were hard to get (my laptop model is not made any more). But there is this little thing called communication that was sorely lacking here. If you tell a customer you'll have something done in two days and then realize there would be a delay, how about calling and letting them know? He had our phone number and email address. Yet the *only* time he called us during that period ("that period" being all but last week) was to ask "Is there a trick to turning the monitor on?" I replied there wasn't (in fact, the monitor had worked when we were dropping the machine off) and heard "It will not light up" ... long pause followed until I finally said "Well, are you expecting me to tell you what to do next? I thought it was *you* that was the computer specialist here." (Let me mention here that among the myriad of certifications Shawn has, there's also an HP one, which would hint at least basic knowledge of their machines). Next question from him was "What's the password?" ... Ehm, you mean the password we had to write down for you as we were dropping the machine off? Any information about what was going on had to be dragged out of Shawn. For example, at some point I had to ask "So you say it wasn't the monitor that was broken, what part exactly are you waiting for now?" because I was rather sick of hearing "I'm waiting on a part", without the "part" ever getting named.
Now in the last week or so Shawn did call us twice: first to let us know that he was "waiting on a part" and should have it in 2 days and then, a week later, to finally tell us the laptop was ready for pick up.
Now my two biggest gripes.
1. How unprofessional, how blatantly, glaringly unprofessional is it to tell a customer (multiple times, first over the phone and then a few times when we were picking Lappy up) that their computer is/has been "a pain in the butt"?
2. I know that work ethics, as defined by CompTia (and just about any human being with a bit of common sense) strictly forbid computer technicians to change passwords or add programs without the owner's permission or even awareness. How about doing both and also flat out lying when confronted about programs added on the desktop?
Here's the dialogue that took place as I was checking my laptop before paying for the repair:
Me (surprised it started right up): "It didn't ask for my password."
Shawn (nonchalantly): "Oh, I deleted it"
Me (a moment later): "How come I have Google Chrome here?"
Shawn: "I certainly didn't add anything there."
I am uploading four screenshots with this review, of the properties of four programs (CCleaner, Malware Bytes, AusLogics Disk Defrag and the aforementioned Google Chrome). Can you see the "created" date on these? Yes, September 20. Now do you remember the dates I mentioned at the beginning of this review, the ones I said would be important? Between late August and 10/02.
As I said, my laptop did eventually get fixed. Interaction with Shawn did leave a very bitter taste, though. The "I'm doing you a big favor" attitude and the lack of professional ethics is something I might expect from a friend fixing my computer for free, but not from a professional interacting with a paying customer. I know I will take my business elsewhere in the future.
