Do Not Deal With Best Buy, Geek Squad, or Precision Camera!!!

Best Buy, Geek Squad, and Precision Camera...

My worst issues with these services came since last year. They have lead me to protest the services provided by these three entities and to provide a warning to any that choose to use them.

To catch up on the current situation please read my earlier blog written November 3rd of last year.

http://dvdeluxe.blogspot.com/2011/11/geek-squad-is-worthless-sometimes.html

In that blog you will read that I had a fairly positive first experience with Best Buy's Geek Squad but suffered from a very poor second and third attempt at having my camera properly repaired. Eventually I did receive my camera and the issues I had afterward were too negligible to write about. Sadly 5 months after that experience I am forced to write, again, about the poor service I have received on the part of these three services.

Last month, I almost suffered a major loss as my camcorder began making very loud whirring noises, right before I was to film a wedding. After a few on/off attempts, and lots of prayer I was able to get through the evening. I immediately went to Best Buy the next morning to explain my problem.

This was to be my 4th visit for this camera and under Best Buy's "no lemon" policy, my camcorder should have been replaced. To my surprise, however, I was told they're was no record of my initial visit and that this was on record as being the third attempt. Since I was assured that computer NEVER make mistakes, as well as the employees that use them. At this time i'd like to quote my last situation in November 2011;

"I called the number and using the service order number given to me I was told that the device had been repaired and sent back to me back in 2009! upon further inspection they discovered that the same number was referencing a older camera I had repaired in 2009 and that they had no record of my current camera."

This was a losing battle on my part and I was more concerned with getting my camera back as soon as possible as it was my primary source of income, so I conceded, let my camera be sent out for repairs once again. This all occurred on April 15, 2012. The expected return date was April 27, 2012 as noted on my service contract. So I waited, and waited, and waited...

This is the ONLY praise I can find with Precision Camera, the business that the camcorder was sent to for repairs. They kept in touch! The 27th came and went, and I was very frustrated that I would have to go through the same ordeal that plagued me in 2011, but then I started receiving calls. I was being regularly updated by Precision Camera on the progress of my camcorder. This meant the world to me, and gave me the there extra patience needed to wait for my camera to return. It was my understanding that the delay was because of the wait on parts that were ordered. That's understandable to some degree. At the very least, it was a huge step from what I went through before.

Fast forward to 26 days later...

Today, May 11, 2012, I went to pick up my camera. They brought it out and I looked over the paperwork. According to the service papers,  only the lens and bottom housing was replaced. I was very impressed with how different those two things made my camera look until I checked the files within my camcorder and realized that in actuality I was not holding my camcorder but someone else's.

It is no exaggeration to say that I have spent hundreds of hours recording with my camcorder and that I know every scratch, scar, and label on it. For Geek Squad to force me to believe that this is my camcorder is like a daycare provider trying to convince a parent that a child they never saw before is theirs.

Very coldly I was told, again and again, "I don't see what the problem is." Here are the 2 major problems.

1. If this is, in fact, my camcorder, you performed unauthorized, unnecessary, and undocumented work to my product. The hard drive DID NOT need to be replaced. I was offended by the speculation that was made that I was lying about the contents of the drive.

"We don't check the hard drive. How do we know that footage wasn't already there?," they said.

Well allow me to use, only the information on hand at the time, to explain why that speculation is near impossible. The events of last year, that they have in their computers, show that the reason for my visit in October of last year was due to failed hard drive. They have, on record, that the drive was replaced. That would mean that any information found on the drive would have to start from the date that I got my camera back from Best Buy. Therefore it is impossible for this camera, if it is indeed mine, to contain footage taken from December 27, 2009 all the way to April 30th, 2012!

This means that I have gone from a hard-drive that was newly replaced, to a 3 year old drive that could go up at any time.

2. If my hard drive did need to be replaced, quality assurance was not taken in assuring the privacy of the contents of digital media. I find the repair and reuse of digital storage media an unsafe practice, compromising the privacy of customers. Especially when care and thought is not taken in making sure the contents of these devices are not thoroughly erased. In my camera I have this persons name, his wife's name, his children's names, where he went on vacation, his children's sports activities, his job and workmates. No one else should have access to this! And if I have his hard drive, who has mine!?

Geek Squad's response?

"What do you want us to do about it? Precision Camera is not going to replace your camera."

I want to know that my privacy is being protected went I intrust my hard earned equipment to you.


I want service to be performed in a timely fashion that merits the additional $200+ i give you for "Premium Black Tie" Protection.


I want to be respected when I have a grievance and consult you with the utmost respect.


I want written policies to be honored.

What I want, I cannot get from a company that has distanced themselves so far from the people they serve that I can't even be supplied with a higher contact to seek further resolution.

This camcorder, with it's extended warranty that expiring in 2013, is the final tie I have to this pitiful excuse of a company, after which I will never do business with again.

I don't normally beg for comments but I'd love to know if anyone else is going through this below.
Take care of yourselves...

Geek Squad is Worthless Sometimes

OK I'm seriously disgusted with Best Buy, Geek Squad, and Precision Camera right now...

Why?

I share my  abbreviated complaint with you below:

I bought a $1,200 camcorder a few years ago with a black tie premium plan. I've been a loyal customer with best buy since 2002 and I ALWAYS get the extended warranties. Sometimes I end up needing them and I've been impressed with the service for the most part.

Last month, however, I needed to use the camcorders service plan for a repair and it's been a NIGHTMARE. October 5th I took my camcorder in because the internal hard drive was having problems and I kept cutting off. That was the only problem at the time. I was extremely concerned with the timing of this problem because I record weddings and in a little over a week I was going to be recording another wedding. Geek Squad assured me that within 7 days they would hear back from Precision Camera (the company handling the repair) on whether the camcorder would be repaired or if a replacement was in order. Also of note is that this is the second time i have had to go to Geek Squad for this problem on this camcorder. Well they took the camcorder and I waited. 7 days later (October 12th) I received a email from Geek Squad saying my product "was in good hands". Upon using the service order number given to me I discovered that the only entry was that the device was checked in and awaiting shipment on October 5th!

I called Best Buy and Geek Squad assured me that the device had been shipped and gave me the direct number to Precision Camera to see for myself. I called the number and using the service order number given to me I was told that the device had been repaired and sent back to me back in 2009! upon further inspection they discovered that the same number was referencing a older camera I had repaired in 2009 and that they had no record of my current camera.

I went to Best Buy in person to explain the entire situation and Geek Squad sent a "Escalation" to find out what happened. Two days later the site updated and said that on The 14th my product was received. The same day It was assigned to a tech.

In the mean time I had to borrow money to buy a temporary camcorder to film the wedding and a $500 camcorder cannot compare to a $1200 model.

On the 18th the site updated with the status "Final Inspection, Awaiting Shipment" followed by "Picked up and Closed" and I immediately became panicked because I received no phone call and did not pick up anything. I went to the store and they told me that in they're system UPS delivered it to my house, a delivery that I DID NOT ask for. They then noticed that the delivery was post marked for the same day and that it would be impossible for a Texas to Baltimore MD delivery that quick, so they found a tracking number to give me. The next day my camcorder came in the mail and it was in worse condition than when sent. the LCD screen flickered badly and from the looks, the hard drive was worse too. With another event days away I was VERY irritated.

I took it to best buy and Geek Squad said all they could do was send it back out. They said they would escalate it and it would be their the next day to get repaired.

I had to once again buy another camcorder and pray or the best. According to the website it was shipped on the 19th and Received on the 24th (not next day as promised.) On the 25th it was assigned to a tech and as of November 3rd I still wait.

I have a larger event this weekend and no decent camcorder and I have lost all trust in Best Buys protection plans.

Don't get me wrong Geek Squad seemed very helpful but they can care less about the fact that you are without a product that you invested long and hard for over a month, and that they're only solution is o come up with more money to buy a temporary solution. If I was that rich I'd already own 2 thousand dollar cameras!

Rant over... update to be posted whenever this is resolved...

FIX IT!

Ok any of my regular readers should know by now that my release schedule for blogs changes at the drop of a hat. But I have a excuse this time, honest!

It would appear that chicken noodle soup and keyboards just don't mix (big surprise). In a sloppy attempt at self medication, alongside playing "catch up with video editing," I spilled some soup on my keyboard...

Sucks I know...

I thought I avoided the worst but in the end it appears my "T" and "F" buttons are not very responsive anymore. They DO work but it's hit or miss. You can imagine how hard it is to try and type long sentences when you constantly have to check whether or not your t's and f's went through.

AKe a look a a sample o how bad yping on a broken keyboard could look if I don' consanly check behind mysel... Very ime consuming indeed...

But never fear that's what I have a iPad for. I'll just open up Blogpress and keep it moving right?

...

Right?

...

Well apparently Blogpress doesn't want to work for me either, and chicken soup had nothing to do with it this time. While I'm not 100% certain I'm fairly sure the problem stems from the recent iOS 5 update. Blogger has recently update their site but I doubt that would affect the app itself. As soon as it opens it crashes, not a good look for a paid app. What this means for now is that I don't have access to the rough drafts of a few of my blogs.

Sadly this is not the first issue I have had with a app not working with iOS 5. While free apps can be a nuisance if they don't work with iOS 5 paid apps are a little more serious because you paid money for something that you no longer have access to.

Welcome to the FIX IT blog!

I hope this will prove to be a beneficial segment for apps that don't work properly on iOS 5. Consider it a stop sign for those who updated and are interested in certain apps, or a warning for those that haven't updated to the new Os in fear of incompatible older apps.

In order for this to work well I need reader participation. In the comments below feel free to post problems you have had with PAID applications in iOS5. As for me I'll be updating with issues I find as well as when said apps are fixed.

• Update #1 November 2, 2011

Blogpress 

As I mentioned earlier, this app won't even start. Fortunately the people behind this app are pretty good with updates so I don't think this will be a issue for too long...

X-Men Arcade 

When I went in the app store and saw the X-Men Arcade game for 99 cent I knew it was a "download now!" unfortunately this game freezes midway through the first level and crashes on iPads with iOS 5.
"But Dennis! That's probably just because you have a first generation iPad and that game needs the faster processor of the iPad 2." not true. This game was also tested with a 4th generation iPod touch with iOs 5 and the same problem persists. KONAMI FIX THIS!!! Till then, don't waste your dollar...

That's all for now but as a final note, be a smart shopper. Check the reviews. Remember that these are NONREFUNDABLE purchases so do your homework before shelling out cash, unless of course you got money to throw away, and if that's the case, I could use some help with these bills...

See ya next blog!

Sellers Beware of SMITH SANTIAGO

Ok so I got a lot to cover so I'm gonna get straight to it...

Recently I attempted to sell my computer on Craigslist. The next day I was happy to receive a reply to my post saying;

"I will like to know whether this item is still avaialble forsale . And also i have a Moving Company that will handle the pick up of the Item from you place."

Umm ok... well let me just reply to this and get some more details. The reply was this;

"Hello,
Thanks for your prompt responds, However, i will need your name and address for payment,As am only able to make payment by Cashier check, at this time b/c i am away on assignment. It will be nice if you can send me more pictures.It will take some days for the payment to get to you.As per pick-up,And the rest funds on the check will be send over to the movers inorder for them to come over for the pick up.So i will send the payment which will include the pick up charges, in which you will make payable to the mover via money gramm/Western union immediately after you have receive the payment and you will be compensated with $50 extra for your running around to the money gram/Western union outlet to avoid the delay..Please take the posting off Craigslist today and consider it sold to me, Include your phone number.
Expecting to hear from you soon.
Regards......."

Ok something sounds fishy here. Spelling and grammar aside they're red flags in these messages. Why is that your only way of payment? Ever heard of PAYPAL? Why do you need "movers" for a computer? This isn't the Bat Computer we're talking about. Just a normal PC. USPS, UPS, DHL. Any of these ring a bell? Sounds like a typical case of check fraud to me. But maybe I'm being overly cautious. Well lemme ask for some more details...

Its $2,225 so you are to deduct your asking price from it and make out the rest funds to the movers once the check gets clear with your Bank.Expect the Tracking number soon.

Um, No thank you! I must be in the wrong business if it costs over 2000 dollars no move a computer! Yep typical FRAUD.
But what's the harm in attempting to cash a check like that. Either you get the money or you don't right? WRONG!

Here's the deal, the payee’s bank credits the seller’s account before the funds have actually arrived from the paying bank. Therefore, it looks like the funds have cleared and everything is ok. If the check turns out to be a fraud then YOU are held accountable by law!

Sellers, don't fall prey to this kind of shady dealing. keep these warning signs in mind:

A buyer wants to purchase a product and will use a cashier’s check.
For whatever reason, the buyer has a check made out for an amount in excess of the purchase price.
Then, the buyer wants the seller to accept the full amount and send the extra money (either back to the buyer or to a third party).

What it will come to in the end is common sense so keep your guard up as you try to make a few extra dollars this holiday season and avoid the scammers... See you next blog!

This message was brought to you by the scammer SMITH SANTIAGO "smiththenice01@gmail.com" (give it a google if you don't believe they were dumb enough to continue to use the same FREE email address for scams.)