I am infuriated by the speed and completion of their work. I am literally 2 weeks behind in business work because it has taken a little over a week for them to replace my keyboard. On top of that, this is only 1 of 2 certified places that can repair my Lenovo laptop and I had to drive hours to just pick up and drop off my laptop. They offer shipping, but that's more money out of your pocket for them to use on top of the diagnosis cost, repair costs, and cost for any other supplies. Whenever I asked for a time estimate on how long it would take to diagnose my laptop or to see what's wrong they can never give me an accurate time. They always say a couple hours or the next day. They told me that they would be able to fix my keyboard in one day once it arrives, and I bring my laptop thinking that I can wait there a couple hours for them to fix it and then they tell me that they can't guarantee that will be done that day. I literally drove all the way home to get a phone call saying that my laptop was ready to pick up! I could had waited if it was only going to take a couple hours oh, but they couldn't tell me. They definitely do not speak the customers language or put them first. I feel like they're more in it for the money then going above and beyond for customers. I've literally wasted hours of driving back and forth just to get my laptop keyboard fixed. When I finally received my laptop, they fixed the problem, BUT added another irrelevant problem! My laptop's battery now isn't being detected by the system and isn't charging and has to be connected to an adapter at all times to function. Now I have to pay another trip to Redmond to fix this new problem! Absolutely more inconvenience on my plate! Don't be surprised if you bring your laptop here and get it back with another problem, because that's what happened to me. read more

If you're looking for a cheap deal, this place is not the computer store for you. On the other hand, if you want a machine that will last you many years, then it's an investment that I'd highly recommend you make at Hard Drives Northwest. They have knowledgeable staff, and you can expect to get better service than if you went somewhere like Best Buy. Certainly, with the higher quality, you will end up paying more for it. I've purchased computers and parts as well as taken my older devices in to be fixed. They are very clear upfront about the cost, so there are no surprises when you get the bill. In particular, my experience with the service department has been phenomenal! My computer wasn't working, so I took in to get checked out where it was quickly diagnosed as a hard drive failure. The guy I was working with, Pat, worked with me to replace the hard drive, and now my computer is as good as new! When my family purchased a new laptop, Matthew helped my mom figure out the optimal machine for her small business. The staff was incredibly friendly and helpful and got her laptop all set up for her. She loves it! I'd highly recommend Hard Drives Northwest for the quality they provide. read more

Through the decades we have purchased over 15 computers from HARD DRIVES NORTHWEST. We have our machines custom-built for our exact low cost needs. The service department has been the best. They seem to be able to figure anything out and are always there to help for a reasonable to low price. I need service and another computer. I look forward to going into HDNW soon. HARD DRIVES NORTHWEST was here at the beginning of the computer age before all the national big-box stores consistently doing an excellent job. Local quality. THANK YOU read more

Thing is, Hard Drives Northwest has people who know what the information you might need to build your own machine, but their selection is somewhat lacking and their prices run about 25-30% higher than the average retailer in the area. They don't do price matching, and you may be lucky to walk out with something that isn't a failed drive. That said, they are knowledgeable and intelligent about their computers - when you can get one to talk to you instead of their friends. Small shops like HDNW are going to be a thing of the past - they actually listen to the problems and look for a solution, and most of the time can actually provide a solution. That's it, though. If you want a machine made from scratch from bespoke, high-end components, expect to pay $100-300 more than if you did a little research and built it yourself. For certain things they're fantastic - if you want to build a small system and keep it running for the long term, this is the place you want to go to -learn- the mechanics of it. And for some stuff (throw-away power supplies, kits and kitsch) that you can actually ASK someone about and find out more information on what's ideal, this is pretty much your place to go. The problem is, HDNW loses a lot of my business to Fry's, Best Buy, and Amazon simply because they don't have the selection, the components, or realistically, the service that these other places have. (Their receipts still come off dot-matrix printers.) Where HDNW falls down, though is that their prices are easily 25% above other local retailers, and while they do have people who are smart, intelligent representatives, (as opposed to some of the knuckle-dragging troglodytes that march around Fry's spouting technogibberish) they simply don't have the volume that allows them to compete. I'll still swing through HDNW for the errant DVD drive or minor components, but sadly these days their major items (a i7 960 processor that consistently costs around $279.99 plus tax on Amazon is $369.99 at HDNW. It's the same chip, the same item, it's just around $90 more at HDNW.) run a good $90 over the competitors. Not to harp on the issues, but the same Lenovo ThinkPad that at HDNW costs $1,400 and change (http://shop.hdnw.com/product.aspx?n=NB-LEN891) costs around $1,200 on Amazon.com - for the exact same machine. Why bother dropping $1,500 on a machine that you can get for far cheaper elsewhere? The service is precisely the same. The only addition is a more personable feel to the place and an absence of being asked by morons in white shirts and black ties if they can help you find anything every five seconds. I don't mind a little personal service, but frankly when the markup is this high the knowledge comes at too high a price - especially when there are ten or more people working in the same region. I expect the hands-off approach when it comes to the Tweeting Dorkbots of Fry's and Best Buy, but when it comes to a place that supposedly made its bones on awesome service and components, it lately seems to provide neither. read more

My backup hard drive with all my home movies died when something happened with a plug and it started to burn. Melted plastic in the power hole, etc. The man at the service department here popped the hard drive enclosure open, took the drive out, tested it, verified that it still worked, and installed it in a new enclosure. I was in and out in ~15 minutes, my home movies are safe, and it was far less than the price of a new drive. What a great, confidence inspiring experience! I would recommend Hard Drives Northwest to anyone having computer problems. read more

Life Savers!! I have a year-old Lenovo laptop - I love it but it came pre-installed with all the bloatware that Lenovo is justifiably famous for. I dealt with it for a while, but eventually found the machine running very slow, crashing frequently, and finally, the webcam simply stopped working. It was beyond my ability and patience level to fix myself. I called a couple of places, and these guys were able to get me in most quickly. I panicked a bit when I hadn't heard from them in 24 hours, but when I called in, they were in fact working on my machine and hadn't yet determined the problem. A day or two later, they called me: all is well, come pick up your laptop. I really appreciate that they did exactly what was needed and didn't try to sell me anything not needed. Their initial thought when I delivered the laptop was that the hard drive was failing, but the problem turned out to be viruses (probably on the machine due to Lenovo's crappy antivirus software that is itself a virus - you can't get rid of it). They cleaned off the crud, then took care of my request to remove all the Lenovo crud, and got the laptop running at its original zippy speeds, and with a functional webcam to boot. The cost for all this was under $100 - well worth it for the excellent work that was done. read more

My home machine died last week and I needed to get it back up and running fast. I knew this shop was right down the street but never went there because I recall reading reviews that this place (like other smaller computer shops) would be a bit pricy. Since I was in a bind and this place was so convenient to me... I thought I would check it out. Wow! I walked away with a fresh perspective on what a good retail can be. I'm not sure what has happened over the past 10 years that made all of us feel that $$ is the only dimension we should judge commerce. The folks at this shop made me feel welcomed. One of them entertained my baby (I was on baby duty) while the other helped me think through an approach that would get me back to work with my computer while spending the least amount of money required. When my first attempt did not work (I tried just replacing the SATA card)... they happily took back the card while we tried another approach. In the end, I only replaced what was required / did not need to buy a new PC / kept all my old data / back up and running with my computer in 24 hrs ... all over one weekend. Summary: - If you have a computer problem and you're willing to challenge your perception that $$ is all that matters in a retail experience ... give this place a try. Ask for Max or the service director (I can't recall his name) - I'm an Electrical Engineer working at a local high tech company and I'm surprised how fast this area of the industry is changing. The folks here gave me a good impression that they're on top of what's good now (which product is good, which manufacturer is more reliable). I confirmed a lot of what they said to me during my visit with Amazon reviews. - I forget how nice it is to be able walk down an aisle, physically touch products, ask people tough questions and get smart answers, be able to tickle the "I want this now" itch and when something does not work out... easy returns! read more

CompStop is one of quite a few local computer stores along twentieth which offers custom built systems and a decent selection of components. I recently went to CompStop to price out a Shuttle computer. I was surprised that their prices were within ten-percent of the lowest online prices (that is my threshold for buying locally). Their prices on RAM and harddrives in particular were very reasonable; CPU prices were less so. Also, the sales staff was fairly knowledgeable which was helpful in determining hardware compatibility. I ended up returning the system I bought there (which is one of the reasons I bought locally; I wasn't sure if the hardware would meet my requirements). They do charge a fifteen percent restocking fee but I was able to get out of that for most of the components. I've been told that Frye's doesn't charge a restocking fee, so I may be more likely to go there in the future if there is a risk that I may need to return the product. read more

I'm very happy with this company. I built a Linux box, picking up the board, GPU, CPU, cooling system, and power supply from their (sadly now closed) Aurora location. There was a compatibility issue between the board and the CPU. At first I was mad that they sold me the 2 pieces as compatible. I went to the store and their tech worked with me for a good while, trying to figure out the problem. As it turns out the manufacturer mislabeled the pieces as compatible so it wasn't the salesman's fault at all. They got me the right CPU, verified it worked and waived the service fees. Most recently, 3 months after the build, the fan went out on the cooling system. At first I was frustrated that I had to drive out to Bellevue to have them look at it. When I got there, the service was again excellent. The tech was highly competent and polite. They swapped out the fan free of charge. In 15 minutes, I was on my way home. The Bellevue store is more well stocked and staffed than the Aurora store ever was. Prices are a little higher than ordering from an online retailer, but that's relatively common in my experience and the service made up the difference for me. My only complaint/suggestion would be to mention on their voicemail system that the Aurora store is closed. That would have saved me time driving. read more

On Monday the Windows operating system crashed on my computer, so a friend recommended COMPUTER STOP down the street (they did a great job for him). However for myself it was a different story. They mentioned it would be a few days to get it backed up and running. I didnt get my computer back until Friday (5 days in the shop). The final bill came out to $253 dollars. On the plus side they do give a 3% cash discount, so that helped a bit! Im not a computer genus...But they mentioned that Windows would be installed yet I would have to install all other software, which is fine. Then I asked if Office would be installed along with Windows and the technician said yes. A few days later I went back in because Office was not installed and they mentioned they probably heard me wrong and said yes...so now I need to buy Office again, fun times! They were very professional, yet I would not use them again! read more

Not what it use to be. Internal communication is poor and there is no system of record for WTF is going on with your PC.

Just bought another machine for my daughter. I needed a basic gaming PC. They hooked me up. The Mobo had some sound issues and a few other glitches. They fixed them for almost nothing. Just parts. They stand behind their work. read more

Since I left my previous review HDNW has moved basically across the street to a new smaller location. The same helpful knowledgeable service moved with them though! I bought a new PC from them in September (I mean, my old one was only about 10 years old...). I had a price range I wanted to stick too, and they had some models in that range but after finding out I was going to be gaming with it they recommended something that was a little more money but a lot better machine, something my salesman called a "entry-level gaming rig". I thought about it for a while and really it made sense to get that one (I was thinking I could buy something lesser and upgrade it later but that was a dumb idea) and I sprung. So glad I did. I love my new machine and I haven't had any problems with it. Because they know every human being hates Windows 8, they offer to install, at no charge, a program called Classic Shell that makes hideous Windows 8 run like a normal version of Windows. I was determined to stick with Win 7, but Classic Shell and the idea of some "future-proofing" convinced me to go with Win 8. I'm glad I did, but even with Classic Shell there are some times where you end up in Windows 8-land; it's like fighting off some horrible demon..."Ugh, no! Back, back you fiend!" Anyway, I highly recommend HDNW for buying a new rig, picking up some parts, or getting advice from actual computer people. Oh I forgot, if you buy a new computer there they will recycle your old one for no charge, which is nice. read more

My son and I went into the repair shop and Josh did a great job at explaining to both of us why our computer wasn't working and what were our options. He was very friendly and obviously very technical, too. I have been into this store several times over the last couple of years and I am always treated well. My only knock on them would be their prices for hardware are sometimes not very competitive. Even with that said, I like supporting this small business and I will continue to do so. I recommend them for anything computer related. read more

Don't buy from here! There is a reason their other stores are being closed down. They sell sub par hardware for a marked up price and when in 30 days it fails, they won't replace it just tell you to go to the maker of the product for help even if you are with in the stores warranty. read more

Hard Drives Northwest - Computers Near Me - Redmond, Washington

I built a new system over the Christmas holidays. Top of the line Corsair and Asus components, all bought from Newegg online. I totally spaced on the DVD/ROM drive though, so I drove over to Hard Drives Northwest and bought a nice Asus Bluray burner. There was a problem with it though. It worked intermittantly. After enough of that, I checked the SATA connection and discovered it wasn't seating properly. When I pulled the drive out and looked closer, I discovered the plastic guide that accepts the SATA cable was missing, and the pins weren't making contact with the cable connector. So, to get by, I swapped the broken drive with an older DVD/ROM drive I had. I drove all the way back to Hard Drives Nortyhwest this evening (from Woodinville), to exchange the broken Blura burner for another one - but they gave me a hard time, and ultimately refused! They said the manufacturer wouldn't take the drive back because a month and week had elapsed, and they weren't willing to absorb the cost. I was really surprised. I hadn't considered that as a possible outcome. I'd grown accustomed to the excellent service I've always received from Newegg (their prices are generally better too). And you know, when I decided to go out and buy a Bluray burner, my first thought BestBuy, but when I passed Hard Drives Northwest enroute, I decided - why not turn around and give them my business instead. You end up paying a little more for hardware at Hard Drives Northwest. I didn't mind because I wanted instant gratification. But buyer beware--if there's a problem with your order, don't expect any favors. read more

I love Computer Stop. Whenever I need a single new part or am building a brand new machine, this is my only stop. The staff is friendly and knowledgeable. Sometimes I spent 30 minutes just chatting about new games or hardware. I always leave feeling good about my purchases and feel confident that if there is a problem I can come back. A lot of people say this place is too expensive and that' Fry's is cheaper. That may be true but unlike Fry's you get good customer service here. That to me by itself makes it worth it. If you need computer parts or to have your computer worked on, you cannot go wrong with Computer Stop. read more

I have purchased 5 PCs over the last 15 years from HDNW. The machines are excellent and so is the service.

About six months ago I brought in my computer for a major upgrade. I usually source the parts and build them myself, but I was extremely busy and figured I'd pay a little premium for the convenience of having someone else do it for me. They were in the neighborhood where I used to live, so I've done business in the past here, typically just individual parts when I couldn't wait for shipping from somewhere cheaper, and never had a problem then. I was very explicit with my instructions: I had my Raptor drive partitioned into an OS drive and a data drive, and if an OS reinstall proved necessary I wanted them to wipe and reinstall the OS drive but LEAVE THE PARTITION STRUCTURE ALONE. I spoke those exact words. When I got my computer back, I found that the partition structure had been nuked, the drive wiped and reformatted. Everything was gone. There was absolutely no need to do this, and it resulted in the loss of a huge amount of data that never should have been at risk. Some I was of course able to recover from backups--but not all. When I went back to them and asked why they had done this, they claimed to have had no such instructions (the words I quoted above were literally the last thing out of my mouth before I left my hardware in their care), and they actually had the gall to propose to *charge* me for a suggested data recovery service that I wouldn't have needed if they hadn't royally screwed up. That would've been enough to put an end to my willingness to do business with them. But to make matters worse, the computer they built for me is unstable, and has proven over time to be reliably unreliable. The only parts I carried over were the hard drives and video card; everything else was brand new and chosen by their technicians for compatibility--but the computer regularly, several times a week (and sometimes more than once a day), hard freezes and requires a cold reboot. This is a hardware conflict of some kind, and one I've been unable to resolve. I never had this problem before their upgrade. So to recap: they destroyed my data by doing exactly what I told them not to do, and they built a computer that crashes regularly even with a fresh OS install and no new hardware other than what they added. Yeah. Not going back. If you're considering an upgrade, either do it yourself if you can, or go elsewhere. There are plenty of safer, cheaper and more competent options. read more

I am really surprised at the bad reviews. We have bought several computers here over the years and they do a great job. They made a stellar custom system for us which works great, was reasonably priced and has everything we need. We have always had excellent service and dealt with really knowledgeable staff. I highly recommend these guys. read more

Great local service. I've purchased four computers from these folks for Snoqualmie Valley Animal Hospital in Fall City and have been pleased with all of them. I'm also pleased with the support I've received both on the phone and in the service department. Skilled and friendly folks. Eric Greene read more

There's nothing more frustrating for a computer dweeb than to go into a computer store and have to deal with some salesguy who has absolutely no idea what you're talking about. I've bought parts for three or four computers HDNW (I build my own machines) and have nothing but good things to say about their expertise and pricing. Very highly recommended for the serious home user who needs straight answers and good prices. read more

These people especially technical department are really awesome. They removed virus from my laptop without wiping my information. Finally they gave me a good discount. What I paid was way less than what we agreed before. I am very happy with them. They are kind, knowledgeable and helpful. I highly recommend them to my friends. read more

Geek Squad said it would take about a month to get my hard drive recovered if they could even do it at all, and it would cost about $1300. Hard Drives Northwest got it done in two days for $95. Guess who I will go to next time. read more

These guys are great! We've used them for years for all of our computer repair and data recovery needs.

They are really good to work with. I always have some sort of problem they know the answer to and even better stuff than I thought there was, often. Quality goods, knowledgeable people, great hours and location. Prices are right, too. read more

Hard Drives Northwest helped me solve an issue with a PC I was putting together. They took a complex issue, found a solution and fixed my problem all within 10 minutes of closing. I'd recommend their tech services to anyone. read more

I purchased a high-end desktop system here nearly five years ago and it's been a great performer. Recently, the system CPU began to overheat so I called to ask about possible causes. I was connected to Dana who asked a few questions and recommended that I bring the tower into the shop as he believed it was just a minor problem with the CPU cooler. Sure enough, he found the heat sink was loose and removed it to clean and apply new thermal grease for free. I had my PC back in top shape in 20 minutes. If you want a quality build for the way you use your PC, and don't want to do all the deep research and assembly yourself, this is the place to go. Sure, you pay for the service, but I can attest that the result is worth it. For a small business, it's wonderful to know that you have some real help just a few miles away. Thank you HDNW! read more

The service was great and fast. We were real concerned we were going to have to buy a new computer when ours stopped working and didn't turn on. Took it in on a Saturday and they diagnosed it was most likely a power supply. Left it with them and they called back that afternoon saying it has a new power supply but there was an issue with the video card (which my husband has been suspecting for some time). They replaced everything the same day and we got out without the high price tag of a new computer. Very professional and fast work. I would come back again if ever I needed the computer worked on and have full confidence they would do a great job! read more

I went here to buy a server for my business, and they tried to sell me their services to have it install by there makeshift circus they call a support team. After I got the server install, two months later the raid card and all hard drives failed losing all my data. Lucky for me the IT company I went with had it all backed up for me. I can never recommend HDNW harddrives northwest to anyone horrible company. read more

Every computer and accessory I've had for the last ten years was bought from Hard Drives NW. But I don't think I'll be back. Customer service, which used to be high, is slipping. I recently brought a PC (which I bought there) in for repairs and a video card update. While some of the service folks were very nice and helpful, others (Brian, for instance) were rude and combative. There is a kind of techie who acts as if he's doing you a favor by working on your machine and resents questions. I don't need to be treated like I'm wasting the staff's time when I'm the one writing the check. Complaints went nowhere. The whole experience left a bad taste. I used to like this store but I'm going to start shopping around. read more

Wow, we first took our PC to a small, free diagnostics place where we were told the video card needed to be replaced and later that the mother board was bad. That shook my confidence so we decided to get a second opinion and paid the $50 for the diagnostics with Hard Drives Northwest. I'm so glad we did. They were able to fix the computer without replacing the motherboard (which was fine) and the computer is running better than before. Thank you! read more

Computer stop was a great buy on a refurbished Toshiba Satillite two years back. It has never had a problem and works as fast as most laptops in the same 600 ish price range today. Great buy! read more

I've been doing business with HDNW for about 25 years, and have been consistently impressed with the quality of knowledge and service. I'm used to knowing more than the salespeople, but here it's the other way around -- which is why I keep doing business with them. read more

I give this store zero star for rating. I bought an Asus motherboard 3 days ago and a bald guy gave me wrong information about socket type for the processor. This guy did not even know what to recommend to customer about good choice for motherboard. Today I came back the store to return the board and they did not accept it. They said there are two bended pins on the processor. I explained to them that I did not even put processor on the board because I realized that the board does not compatible with my intel LGA 1155 socket. I did not even see any bended pins. It seems that they try to make up some story to avoid my return. I would not recommend anyone to shop here. They do not have good selection for computer stuffs and very bad customer service/ management. I would recommend you guys to go to Frys in Renton. read more

I have been having my computers built here for over 10 years and have referred friends and family here as well. They may charge a few bucks more but you get what you pay for. I don't like the big box store mentality and fast talking sales people. These folks have always responded to any problem and in many cases fixed or resolved my problem for free. Maybe I get a little better service because they know I am a long time customer or maybe they just have what I call good customer service. The only time I have had an issue is when I wanted something right away and it was the Christmas holiday. That is their busy time and you might need to wait for a week or two at most to have a new computer built or fixed. That would be the same issue at any store. They also offer one of the best warranties in the industry and stand behind it. It is worth paying a few bucks more for the personal touch and customer satisfaction. My latest build is running strong after two years and I do a lot of photography and require good graphics and a fast machine. Whether you are just starting out with your first computer or need a big bang PC, this company will not dissapoint you. I would give them 5 -stars but I know there is probably a shop somewhere in the country that is better. Just haven't found it yet! read more