Notebook Company Tech Support Comparison

by Kevin O'Brien

Computer problems can be one of the most frustrating situations any person can go through, especially if it is your primary computer for school or work. Downtime can cause missed assignments, projects, or worse if you manage all your finances through a computer and can't pay a bill on time. We decided to call up Dell, Toshiba, Lenovo, HP, Gateway, and Apple to who see was the easiest to deal with, and how long the average call was.

For our calls, we scored each company in multiple areas, including menu navigation, how long until you left the menu system, time to service rep, and total call length. The basic question asked to each company was, "Is there a way to manually eject a CD stuck inside my optical drive". The expected answer was using a paperclip in the manual eject hole, but as you might expect, not all companies came to that answer right away. In one case we were offered a brand new drive at first, and in another we ended up being cut off after 35 minutes on hold.

Dell Support Call

For our Dell support call, we used the Home and Home Office contact number listed on the site. This was 1-800-624-9896, which listed 24/7 availability. This number was fairly easy to find using Google, and a bit of navigating on the Dell site.

The first interaction the user gets is a voice activated menu system which was not very difficult to navigate. It took me about 30 seconds to get through the system, and 10 seconds later I was speaking to a service rep. The service representative was very friendly, and as soon as I mentioned my problem he prompted me to find a paper clip and insert it into the small hole on the side of the CD tray. After thanking him for his help, the total time on the phone was 3 minutes and 21 seconds.

Toshiba Support Call

For the Toshiba support call, we used the computers support line, listed as 1-800-457-7777. The website does not display if this is a 24/7 support line on the main "Contact Toshiba" webpage, but it worked for our Saturday afternoon call.

The support line was very easy to navigate, using all phone prompts to navigate the menus. Total time to navigate the menus and be routed to a support representative was 60 seconds. The representative was very helpful, and immediately knew about the pinhole on the side of the CD tray. Total time of the call was 3 minutes and 40 seconds.

HP Support Call

For our HP support call, I used the standard support line, which offered 24/7 availability. The number listed was 1-800-474-6836. Finding this number was very simple, using both Google and a little site navigation.

The HP support line was all voice navigated and the most frustrating to navigate. You are prompted for the type of product, as well as the product model name. In the case of our dv6500t test notebook, it was quite challenging to get the system to understand what I was saying. The voice prompt misunderstood me three times when I said "DV...." and routed me directly to the TV technical support center. On the 4th try, speaking very carefully, I finally got it to recognize what I was saying. After 4 minutes, I had finally made it to a human.

The technical service representative was frustrating to talk with, and would not assist me without a valid serial number. With some poking and prodding, he put me on hold to talk with his manager to find out if he was allowed to tell me how to manually eject a CD without a verified serial number. After 4 minutes of being placed on hold, he came back and thought that a paper clip used on the tray release hole would do the trick. The total time on the phone was 12 minutes and 30 seconds.

Lenovo Support Call

For our Lenovo support call, we used the United States 24/7 support line. The listed number was 1-800-426-7378, with about 200 additional numbers depending on what country you were located. Finding this list was quite simple using the help of Google and minor site navigation.

One quirk that cropped up with the Lenovo support line was when I first attempted to use my Skype VOIP line from my home. When the support number was dialed, the phone just rang and rang with no pickup from the other end. When I switched to my cell phone to make the call, the line picked up on the first ring.

The Lenovo phone system used a combination of voice and phone prompts to navigate the system. It took about 60 seconds to get routed to a human on the system. The representative required all of my computer and personal contact information before he would start, which added a bit of time to the service call.

After 4 minutes, I started to explain the problem, and received a very odd answer. He explained the drive did not have a manual release to eject a stuck CD, but they would be more than willing to send out a new drive for my notebook. While a new drive would be nice, what about my precious CD that was stuck? After additional hinting towards a possible fix, he finally suggested that a bent paperclip might work using the manual tray release hole. The total time on the phone was 7 minutes and 20 seconds.

Apple Support Call

The Apple technical support line was very easy to find, and it was listed as 1-800-275-2273. The Support page did not shot that the line was 24/7, but it worked just great on the weekend when I called.

Let me preface this support call by saying that I did not expect a quick answer for my standard stuck CD question. The MacBook Pro does not have a quick release on the CD tray, and it requires service to fix. I was hoping for a quick answer stating that fact, and hopefully some recommendation on the closest Apple Store.

The phone system used both voice and phone prompts to navigate to the correct area, and quickly routed me to a human in about 60 seconds. The service rep was very friendly, and was quick to help me once I gave him my information. When I explained the problem of the stuck CD, he asked questions about the noises the system was making, and if dragging the disc to the trash bin would eject the CD.

When I explained that the CD never fully clicked into position, he put me on hold to further research the problem. I was expecting a quick return, and explanation that it would require service, but I never heard from the guy again. I was on hold for 35 minutes and at the 39 minute total time mark, was disconnected from the call and routed back to the original Apple technical service menu. If I was real customer I would have gone crazy at that time.

Since the service was so bad the first time, I gave it another shot the next day during normal business hours. Getting through the phone prompts were just as easy as before and this time around the lady whom I spoke with seemed to be more eager to help me out. We went through some of the same troubleshooting steps such as pressing the eject button, restarting the computer, and so on. In the end she decided to send me to an Apple store for further help, and went as far as scheduling an appointment at my local genius bar. Total time was 6 minutes.

Gateway Support Call

Gateway technical support is set up differently from other manufacturers; they have different contact numbers depending on if the system was purchased directly from Gateway or instead, a retail store. The number I called was the retail support line, which was 1-408-273-0808.

The Gateway support line leads you through multiple voice prompts that require you to explain your intentions as well as share your model number. During this call the system did require multiple corrections, but unlike the HP line, never transferred me to a different support area. In all it took about 2 minutes to get through the voice prompts and finally speak with an agent. The support agent was very friendly and, even though I did not have my serial number handy, helped me along with my support request. Without referencing any support material he knew about the manual release off the top of his head, and quickly solved my problem. With a friendly reminder about locating my serial number in the future, I was done with the call in 4 minutes and 33 seconds.

Conclusion

Besides realizing that I have way too much free time on the weekends, I found that simple things can make the technical support experience either wonderful or frustrating. The interactive voice prompts were hands down the worst part of most calls. With HP, I was rerouted to the wrong area multiple times because the computer kept thinking my "DV6500t" model number meant I was saying "TV", which then cut me off and routed me to the wrong system. In others you had to pronounce the category you wanted multiple times before it would understand you. Having a simple "press 1 for computers ..." made the interaction much easier.

Overall, Dell and Toshiba were the best for ease of access and quick resolution. They had the easiest phone menu systems to navigate, fastest times to talk with an agent, and the shortest overall call length. Gateway ranked 3rd, with the phone prompts being the only negative aspect of the phone call. Lenovo was also very good, but a new optical drive isn't always the best answer when you are trying to get work done now. Apple ranked in the middle with Lenovo when you averaged thepoor call experience with the excellent call the next day. HP came in last with the frustrating phone system that was nearly impossible to navigate. While your experience could vary greatly depending on the individual service representative, we hope this gives you an idea of how each company handles support and what to expect from each of them.

 

Heh. I thought Apple would come in first!

 

Nice article. I would have like to see Asus thrown in for comparison, but next time I guess.

 

Nice review. However, if you really feel you have too much time on your hands on the weekend - come on over to my place, I'm sure I can dig a spare broom out of the mess in the basement!

 

I agree, a very interesting comparison. Though I must say, I've never heard of anyone wanting to and passing time calling different tech supports.

 

This is a unique review! Although XoticPC is nowhere to be seen!!

 

I think i know a support thats better than all of these combined, but thats Area-51 material so ill keep it hush hush...lol

 

good job.

now someone else with some time on their hands needs to do the same thing with the same companies.

from my experience, it's usual the individual on the other end that makes the biggest difference. If they truly want to help, they'll get things done.

 

So support that vandalizes your notebook, insults you on AIM, and threatens to steal your notebook if you dont pay a ransom?

 

How about Acer???
But I bet if Sony was put in, they would be last.

 

LOL

 

I picked Apple for last. They wont even answer my queries unless I purchase a $417 AppleCare extension, or pay a $49 escalation fee. Keep in mind the notebook in question was bought in November.

 

I'd think that if Powernotebooks and Xotic PC were thrown in that they would be #1 :]

Even if you just send an email during the week, I have gotten responses within minutes from Powernotebooks.

Tis great.

 

Well, I have faced the same issue when navigating the "intelligent" HP customer support voice menu. It asks for the model no and finds it difficult to decipher my response. After that, we have to be ready for the hundereds of questions asked about the serial no, model no etc.
I had called HP support once for an USB drive malfunction and was on the phone with 2 support technicians(got disconnected in the middle of the call with 1st technician) both giving different solutions(both solutions didn't work and i ended up shipping the laptop to their repair shop).
I heard DELL technicians could remotely take control of your PC and troubleshoot issues, but don't know for sure.

Cheers

 

Totally Agree

 

Wow, Dell no longer has poor customer service?

MOAR!

On a side note, I think that asking about a more troublesome problem might give you a better idea of their tech's competency. Something like bad memory or a bad disc drive and testing them to see how long they would delay before offering an RMA as well as how quickly the RMA is processed. But alas, that is more time consuming .

 

Absolutely!!

 

Great article!

Let me throw a quick idea out - what about making a support review a recommended part of the review? The article reminded me of the days when HardOCP ( www.hardocp.com, under main menu, select "Gaming System Reviews") would poke the fate bear of technical support and test the response for timeliness and accuracy. Problems ranged from simple to complex, but it gave an idea of what owners would expect if they had to make the call. Before the program ended, boutique vendors encouraged HardOCP to test their support, and made changes based on the report. It also allowed vendors to prove to the world that their support staff were top-notch. It was a solid litmus test, and provided some great reading material.

Just a thought...

 

But making up a hardware fault and going through with an exchange would be fraud, and on top of that we would have to have one of each of the brands notebooks on hand to work with. Adds a whole lot of complexity.

 

The problem that comes up these days is almost all tech support is linked to a serial number. If the vendor provides the notebook for a review, how do we know that serial number wouldn't trigger a better support service? We might end up reviewing a better business support contract instead of the standard consumer end.

 

LOL. If you're refering to AW then I agree. All of my experiences with their tech support has been great.

 

I think that accusation is a little unfair without a story to back it up... I have NEVER heard of such a service from AW...

 

Ummmm.... first of all, he was referring NOT to AW, but XoticPC! The secret elite less-popular sorta support service, yet the best! And Kevin made the comment sarcastically about Area-51, not any laptop company!

 

Well that was a fun read. How many people say that? LOL Seriously though, forget tech support just use the NBR forums, the guys on here are way better.

 

lol thats true

 

Inside joke, no relation to Alienware what so ever. He is referring to me and my current repair of his poor shattered thinkpad.

 

Ohhhhh that made my day, Area-51 = top secret information i was not supposed to give out..but kevin spewed it now it seems lol, i think Christopher is on to it now!

 

Dell techs can take control of your laptop using a program downloaded from their support site. It's really awesome and hassle free, you can take back control of your laptop at any time since your commands override the other person's. I let the man do his work while I stayed on the line, ate a granola bar, and watched Oprah.

Just a note-- DON'T call them on Skype when you're troubleshooting. I did that and when when it was time to restart my notebook, the call dropped. They did call me back though but when I realized my mistake, I had a good laugh.

 

Well I use a standalone skype phone. My only mistake with that was calling roadrunner about some problems, and having them remotely restart the cable modem mid-call and cut me off.

 

Good article, good idea. When you have more time on your hands, hehe, you should really put these folks through the wringer. Start with, "Um, my screen has turned this completely blue color..."

Agreed about Powernotebooks. They are in a (good) league of their own.

 

QFT !! And +rep for you!

So is XoticPC The Sager community feels like a family And family is more helpful than company employees!

 

Well said!

 

Being a noob around here does have its limitations.

Kevin, that tracking would happen - it would be in the vendor's best interest to do so! But NBR has a solid reputation with vendors, or do you buy all the laptops reviewed? I can not call up Dell and annouce myself as a review website and have a laptop sent to my house for a review, or else everyone would do so and Dell shareholders would riot!

The way it was done with HardOCP was to negotiate and contract with vendors to allow reviewers to purchase the unit anonymously for the review. The review was completed, and the vendor would then allow for a full refund. It turns the "cherry picked" laptop problem into a cash management problem, as someone would have to put up the initial funds.

The idea is ambitious and would cost money, but when done right can be very insightful, especially for the smaller vendors that have great word-of-mouth but haven't been publicized like the Dells, Lenovos, etc.

Look forward to the conversation, and keep up the good work!

 

Nope,NBR feels like a family!!! NBR FTW!!!!

 

That is true since this is just a very simple scenario, because I am sure if the test was done using a more complex problem the results will be way different and worse from the ones using the stuck cd situation.

 

Me too. It would have been nice to see what he thought of Asus' vaunted customer support relative to the other ones.

 

I was hoping for a tougher question to be asked......the question asked may not be a good gauge, but it's good info!!
I hear fujitsu is real relaxed and efficient, they speak english as well. i guess you can't call everyone.
but again thanks for the info.

 

Ahh no Sony won't be last.

I've had my laptop sent in twice and got it back within a week. I try calling tech support for my friends Macbook that doesn't have warranty. The tech lady refuse to answer any question unless I have the apple care package.

 

good article, I would recommend that anyone having an issue with an HP computer look at the online support pages first, they are very thorough, also if you e-mail them you are guaranteed a response in one hour (on weekdays) and I can say from experience that they do get back to within or shortly after an hour.

 

Amen to that, brotha.

 

This is a pretty dysfunctional family then .

 

Wow, I wasn't expecting HP to be that bad! That makes me glad we have an on-site help and repair desk at our school, in case we every have problems.

Everyone complains about that help desk, but I've always figured: "It's either the help desk or HP's tech support", whenever I (or someone else) complains about that help desk. And that help desks wins by a landslide compared to HP's support, it seems like.

 

Wow! Samir, err... "Robert"... in Anakanapanistan turned in the best support time. Who'dathunk?

 

Good review.

Pretty much mirrors my experience. Which is why we have gone almost exclusively with Dell. While their (sales) Customer service can be quite bad, the Technical support is unmatched.

HP and IBM (now Lenovo) can be rather hopeless sometimes. We have a 2 year old server that IBM said they have no replacement parts left..even when it was still under warranty...we had to wait 3 weeks to get a replacement harddrive...lol.

Bear in mind, we use corporate lvl support so the service is "better". We already get almost 0 'hold' times on the phone (which kinds of defeats the purpose of Dell's Gold support line). More so, the support staff know who we are and when we call in, an RMA is usually in order so things are processed in a very swift manner. However your local regional support might differ from ours.

Which also brings us to the point that the support staff will know that NBR has called and probably doing a review. It might have been a little biased, but I suppose there is not much to be done there.

 

I have to say I'm not surprised by this. They are so into documenting every little event, you'll run around in circles trying to get a generic answer. No serial number? Sorry, we can't give out a standard hardware "secret" that everyone else in the world already knows....

It would be interesting to perform the same call to HP biz support and compare notes.

 

Yikes! HP sounds pretty... bad.

I always use online support though. Too shy to talk on the phone.

 

HP Business support is much better than what Kevin called, and I'm a little disappointed that we weren't able to use it. But we weren't able to get service information for a HP biz model.

Ironically enough, Kevin used my information to do the Dell stuff...and now my D430 just died on me (mainboard's soldered RAM chip went bad). I had to call them myself and they're sending a whole new mainboard now.

BTW Kevin? When you called them and gave them my info, you got routed to the Dell Gold tech support. Dell's Home & Dell's Business support is just as good though, at least I think so, as I've dealt a lot with all three divisions quite a lot.

 

Another vote for PowerNotebooks: knowledgeable, friendly, and while I appreciate the 24/7 800 support number, EVEN better, if you ask me, is that they respond to EMAIL very quickly (must be a buncha night-owls, or something).

 

very interesting. Lol Sony's support is rather odd - when you call them, they just tell you to go to their website... which gives no information.

 

True, the guys usually knew what they were talking about, and hold wasn't very long. Then again, I did half of my support online, the other half by phone.