While we don’t agree with everything Consumer Reports writes, we emphatically recommend to our Charleston customers to think carefully and use common sense when deciding to repair or replace a PC that’s in need of repair.

We often use the car analogy.  If the Kelly Blue Book value of your car is 4,000 and it needs a $3000 transmission, you wouldn’t do it.  The same logic applies.  If the street value of your PC is worth $200, DON’T put a $150 repair into it.

We try to help frugal PC owners “keep the plane flying” by doing lower cost repairs until they can save enough to replace but in some instances we do send potential customers away because we feel the risk is way too great, especially if after running diagnostics, we find problems with their drive or other components.

We tell folks to check craigslist, e-bay or web to determine street value minus cost of the software on it which in “some” cases can be re-installed on a newer PC.  The same thing goes for printers etc. connected to the PC.  Those shouldn’t factor into the equation because they usually go along for the ride but be sure by visiting the manufacturer’s website to ensure there’s support for the new PC.  Of course we can do all this for you for an engagement so call us at 276-6551 to eliminate the headache.

We tell folks If you have a PC that’s older than three years and a repair is going to run at least 51% or more the cost of the street value, it’s NOT worth doing the repair.  Why?  Because a client can pour money into a repair and then a few weeks or months later, the drive fails or motherboard dies.  We’ve seen this too much to know it’s a real risk.