AVERATEC: The worst brand EVER!

I used to have an Averatec lappy until sometime ago...


It was SOOO DAMN BAD that after a lot of headaches because of it, I made 2 wise decisions at once:


1) Bought myself a brand new ASUS G1S

2) Ripped that freaking thing apart and gave it to my dog, Tauro (a "cute" 2 yrs old American Staffordshire Terrier), as a biting toy!


Anyway, perhaps some of you've been facing the same "issues" I went through with my former notebook... but I can tell you that when it comes about Averatec laptops, nothing would make you feel better than a big and sharp axe plus some sweet sense of revenge! In other words: just rip it apart and be haapy!


Cheers my friends!

 

GREAT POST!!!

How about you start a thread on the HP forum bashing HP computers, the Sony forum bashing Sonys, or - if you dare - the Apple forum bashing OSX.

Don't troll. No one likes it.

 

Lithus, I only started this thread cause I HAD an averatec lappy... and I'm still mad about that freakin' brand...

I wouldnt talk anything about the other brands cause that would be quite silly... However, ppl considering to buy ANY Averatec product might read my thread and reconsider this BAD decision... and if only ONE person avoid this garbage brand because of my "sweet" comment, I'd be VERY happy!

 

Your post is still completely flamebait. You offer absolutely no reason to what computer you owned or why it was bad. It's completely generalizations that can't be refuted. Calling a brand "bad" is just stupid.

 

A few reasons to stay (far) away from Averatec products:

1) Extremely MEDIOCRE performance, cause most of their products are made of budget CPUs and onboard Video...

2) Overheating !!! If you don't mind getting BURNED from time to time and/or having your notebook turned off several times because of the ultra high temperatures it reaches...

a) You're crazy;
b) You live in Alaska/Greenland/Siberia and actually NEED a warm laptop to keep you alive while you're camping outside in the bushes or something... hehehe

3) NO DRIVERS !!! This brand is so crappy that it won't even CARE about realeasing new drivers only a few months after they put a new product in the shelves... When I bought my lappy, I remember it was right in the middle of the XP SP2 realease and guess what: NO NEW DRIVERS for it at their website!!! I patiently waited and waited... and... waited... until the day I ripped it apart and bought a new notebook.


Those were only a few reasons NOT to buy ANYTHING from this freakin' brand...

However, I'm pretty sure that Lithus, as a good Averatec employee, would probably say something different... that I ain't being fair, that I suck, bla bla bla...

(Lithus, I know u don't really work for Averatec... I was just massing w/you... Even cause you seen to be a smart guy... and IF Averatec had more ppl like you working for them, perhaps their products wouldn't suck so much! )

 

Fanboi much? Asus really isn't that good either. For instance, at least mine still gets much better battery life than those 12" Asus laptops. =D

Good job, you just summarized the collective hatred for Averatec that has been permeating throughout this forum subsection.

Even I said it in my review, you're buying for one reason or another but it's definitely not for the legendary Averatec customer service. You are your own technical support.

 

Hey, you should just have sent the notebook to me, why did you have to give it to your dog

 

Simply cause my dog had made a better use for it than you ever would...

However... how sharp are your teeth? (just kidding, lol)

 

I'm aware Asus ain't perfect either...

However, it's not a matter of being a fan of the brand or anything like that...

The thing is, anyone who reads some notebook's forum threads from time to time and/or changes his laptop model often, has probably realized that there're only a few brands out there who can really combine a good product with a nice technical support, and althought Asus deliver one of the most solid, well designed and with awesome performance/$$$ ratio notebooks... their support kind of suck. There're no other words for it... it's a little bit better than Averatec's (which must be certainly the worst support service in the world...) but still, it's quite bad.

In the other hand, Dell has a great customer support (the best I've been aware of), nice design and average craftsmanship, mixed with an interesting performance/money ratio (although their performance aren't topnotch).

Before I bought my Asus G1S, I'd spent a lot of time reading reviews and even considered to buy a Dell XPS for me instead... but... what can I say, I like performance!


My only regret is this FREAKIN' Vista x64... I REALLY hate it!

Hehehhee...

 

I had an averatec 3270 EH1, that thing worked ok for like 8 months. Kinda slow performance wise. Couldn't play ANY games on it.
Anyways, it was sent in for overheating like 3x. It would get so friggin hot it was amazing. Finally, the power adapter plug stopped working, I think all it needs is resodiered.

 

Averatec 7100 Series going strong. XP works great with all my programs and hardware just like it does on my other computers. I did extended the warranty one year after reading all the neg. posts about Averatec products.

 

as much as you might disagree with the guy he is 100% spot on. I has an averatec for about 2 weeks and was truly amazed how crappy it was.

I think that the poster actually did a great service to possible averatec buyers because it shows what he thought of it. When I bought mine
I scoured the forums and all I found were people saying how fantastic it was, I think this is a acceptable post and more importantly 100% spot on.

 

My Averatec 6130hs is nearly 4 years old and it still works. It does get hot because it came with a desktop P4 3ghz CPU. I was playing Half Life 2 episode 2 on it the other day and it ran the game fine. I think with any computer if you take care of it it should last along time.

 

The computers are fine. The company sucks. Big time.
My opinion, your mileage will vary.

 

I'm going to be honest here. Would I ever buy another Averatec? No. I have a 7100 that went through Averatec warranty hell for two months but now that I have it back, and I almost really hate to jinx myself, it has performed flawlessly since. I am happy with it especially since I put another Gig of memory into it. Came very light at 1/2 a Gig, especially when video memory ate up 75 megs or more of that. Many progs died on the vine. Now all is well.

The reason I wouldn't buy again is Averatec's support. Their products, at least the one I have, ain't too bad. Still in all, lot's of problems from many users and very little recourse from the importer/manufacturer. They appear to be sliding faster and faster down the dumper of no return. No big box retailers would touch them with a ten foot pole now.

Rick

 

Buying an Averatec is taking a chance. Some units seem to be satisfactory out of the box. Others are defective and Averatec does not honor the warranty.


You are making a purchase "as is" with a new product.

susan

 

Actually it's more like "gambling"...

Except that IF you win, you would still get a crappy laptop (well, at least a working one)...

However, as in every kind of gambling, odds are.. you're gonna lose and ended up being stuck at AVERATEC's Hell (a.k.a their consumer support center), where it's easy to enter and VERY, VERY, VERY difficult to leaveeeeeeee !!! Muahhhhhhhhhh !!!

I'm sorry about the sarcasm... I just couldnt help it...

 

My 7100 works fine, I use it practically every day, as a desktop computer. XP is probably the reason it works so well. The extended warranty which I purchased from Averatec was refunded because the the warranty company which handles it "Service Net" has as Averatec sales puts it declined the application. They claim it was their own fault in the way they handled it. Averatec reminds me of the Daewoo automotive company I used to work for that eventually went under. I think this information shows that Averatec is not long for this world.

 

Rest in Peace Averatec... Fortunately, it won't be missed when it's gone...

 

though I may be feeding a troll...

I got an averatec for my dad, and 3 years leater is is still running strong adn with good battery life, firm keyboard, etc.

so, just a positive opinion here.

 

Wow... I've seen one of these in every single computer forum. Who cares? Everyone has problems. I can say the Asus G1S sucks because I couldn't turn it on. Okay?

 

You're right. There was another extremely long rant earlier today which I only glanced at because there are so many of these sorts of threads. Too bad people have problems, but if we took the advice of all the who post such as this, there would be no company left considered worthy of our business.

 

I'm curious why a couple of non-Averatec owners would take the time to "diss" an entire thread in the Averatec piece of the Notebook forum. It's pretty obvious that Crimsonman and bmwrob have never had to go through months of warranty hell with Averatec or watch as a relatively new laptop worth hundreds of dollars becomes an unrepairable paperweight. Also you have never had to launch complaints with the BBB or the State of California Attorney General just to get your warranty unit repaired and back in use. I, as well as hundreds of other Averatec purchasers, have had to do so.

There are good reasons why this rant exists on Averatec not only in this forum but many other Averatec only forums. You would be hard pressed to find any big box retailer, or even an online distributor, carrying Averatec anymore. There are very good reasons for this.

My suggestion to both of you, since you are both prolific contributors to this forum, is to read before you leap.

Rick

 

Well, I'd suggest that you read around the forums at the posts which "diss" the various companies that Crimsonman and I mentioned. And I've never experienced this, huh? Well, with my being so prolific and all, I suggest that you read some of my own posts if you're going to comment on them. Obviously you haven't bothered, because I've had the same sorts of problems that the OP here, and that other people in other threads have had with their lemon machines. And because you mentioned the hundreds of dollars lost, try comparing those dollars to the thousands I lost on two crap machines from Voodoo, and another from Apple. I just didn't post a ten thousand word dissertation warning the World to avoid these companies.

And the point that Crimsonman and I were making wasn't that people don't have problems with Avaratec. It was that with all these "warnings" and discussions of the "worst brand ever," that no company would see any business if these warnings were followed.

So, likewise, my suggestion to you is to read and attempt to comprehend before you leap.

 

Okay, I'm going to go through this one more time and then drop it, at least as far as I'm concerned.

First, if you read my post, I never said you didn't have your share of problems or had lost money as all of us with any time in the business have. I made specific reference to AVERATEC. And, you are correct that any company has their share of lemons or dropped balls with their products. What is key is that this thread IS about Averatec, and they have a horrible reputation for CUSTOMER SERVICE of which there are literally hundreds of horror stories.

If I were researching buying an Apple or Voodoo, I would go to the threads about those companies. I would appreciate all input, rant or not, to understand the all important thing - How do they treat their customers when difficulties arise. I certainly would not go on one of those threads and make a comment like "Hey, all companies experience lemons or lapses in proper service. That's no reason not to buy one". I couldn't make that comment because I've never owned one and have no experience with them.

So anyway, when I do decide to replace my Averatec, I hope that I do run across the good ,bad and ugly concerning the product I'm researching in order to make an informed decision. Maybe I'll see some of your posts then. In the mean time why don't you just look up Averatec at the Southland BBB (Southern Cal.) and notice the 250+ complaints almost all related to, yep you guessed it, Customer Service. I believe Averatec themselves has earned the "worst company ever" title. And, no, I would never buy another one even if I could find one and would hope I and my fellow users have convinced any potential customer to beware.

Nuff said as far as I'm concerned.

 

Also my last post on the matter. Have a nice day.

 

So you bought the thing knowing there was very few suppliers, eh? Wow, with that logic, I'd expect a rant. Except it comes to the point, of what did you expect? You took the risk okay? Someone has had the same problem that you have with all of the notebooks, so you're nothing new or anything special.

Sorry you had such trouble, but I don't want to hear it.

 

Fine. Don't read this thread. Crimsonman, please take your flame war elsewhere. The rest of the users of this forum are not dissing fellow users as you are. Nothing constructive comes from this poor behavior and wastes other readers time. If this behavior doesn't cease, I won't perpetuate the problem, but will contact the moderator.

Thank you.

 

Thanks Jim,

I agree whole heartedly. There's flamers in every forum. That's probably how he got so many posts in such a short time. Oops, almost continued the flying insults and he's distinctly not worth it. Case closed.

Rick

 

well you should think it b4 give it to your dog..
at least you can turn it upside down and make it into a portable frying pan..no GAS needed..only a 220volts power source for couple minutes.
think about omelletes..yum!

 

My wife had a 3270-EH1 laptop for 3 years. The power module went bust as predicted and got it replaced once. Then after the 3-year warranty went out it went bust again...the laptop now gets really hot and shuts down after 20 mins of use. Apart from the high temperature and bad power jack it worked pretty okay.

 

That sounds like the fans are clogged.

Oh, BTW, I'm still here, LALALALALA

 

Oh Man, that was one of the happiest days of my life!!! Actually, of both lifes (cause my dog seemed to had enjoyed the "exotic meal")...

Besides, how many ppl in the world can say they've already feed their dog with a crappy notebook?

Don't you have nothing better to do than keep flaming threads?

 

Hey Moonyguy,

Sounds like you have either a clogged or non-operational fan. Earlier models of Averatec made kind of a design error in that their cooling fans were placed directly over a major open louvre set. Worked great but ended up sucking evrything on the table, lap, whatever in to the fan. Didn't take too awful long before the low-powered fan couldn't overcome all the stuff. Later models of Averatecs put a sticker inside the case directly over those louvres and prevented the fan from doing that thing. It instead then sucked air from all the other openings. Almost as effective but less dust filling.

If you're still using this beast, you may be able to easily access the fan (or maybe not) and use canned air or just careful use of a toothpick to clean it out. Caution on using too much air pressure and spinning the fan with it. They also can act like power generators and screw up their circuitry. Just do the best you can and then power it up with the cover off to see if it cranks up OK.

There's a pretty nice free utility that, among other things, detcts all the available temps in the lappy. It's called Speedfan and leaving most the other stuff it does alone, watch the "Core" temp and check out the health of your harddrive. It's free at http://www.almico.com/speedfan.php.

Most of us agree that, when they worked and didn't have to end up in Averatec warranty hell, the units were pretty decent for the buckolas. Too bad one of their corporate goals ended up being horrible customer service.

Regards,

Rick

 

Hi Rick

Thanks a lot for the information. My wife loves that laptop since she needs only word processing. RIght now it has three issues. First the AC power jack is loose. I opened it and resoldered it but it didnt help. I can get a new power module and simply replace it for 45$. Then the battery is completely dead I got an OEM battery from Ebay but it turned out to be the wrong one. New ones are about 100$. I am wondering if I should put in this money in a 3 year old laptop to fix it or just sell it off for 200-300 bucks (not sure if thats reasonable price) and get a new laptop. Your thoughts on this would be welcome. I am a student so money is hard to come by so I prefer to fix it if I know its going to work for sure.
Vishnu

 

ExiledDuke
So you think G1SNoodle looks like a troll, well maybe a little bit?

 

Well, with limited funds and a couple of things wrong, I'd certainly consider a new one. There's some pretty good values especially in the Toshiba line. The key is to research the net on existing users to see if there's any really detrimental ratings and especially bad customer service experiences, especially if there's many. Doubt you'd get $200-300 bucks for it. Laptops, and computers in general, are improving (and cheapening) at a fantastic rate. Doubt you could get anyone to buy it except possibly for parts. Even then, doubtful. Best to consider it a writeoff for that purpose. You can try, but don't be disappointed otherwise.

The power jack should probably be replaced. If you got to it to resolder, it should be also reasonable to replace. Can't say since I don't own one. The overheating issue was outlined in the previous post.

The battery was something you should have gone back after the ebay seller for. Most good sellers will allow an exchange/refund. However, if your wife is mostly using it as a desktop word processor, then it wouldn't make much sense to go out and spend mucho bucks on a new one if that's "doing the job". I'd wait until you couldn't make do with the old, needed max portability and needed more functionality and power. Your call.

Rick

 

Duh... that was really stupid...

 

I had a staff named Tyson. He died right before the new year at almost age 10. He had moderate arthritis. One day he jumped up in excitement and landed bad. next day his elbow was double the size. vet gave anti inflamatory meds and no antibiotics. He died in my arms 2 nights later. I suspect he either had sepsis or a blood clot. Take my advice and give your dog anti arthritis meds before he starts suffering from it. I "replaced" (irreplaceable) him with a small dog a jack russel terrier named Toby. The funny part out of this whole story is me digging a grave in a nearby wildlife preserve (there is one in brooklyn). A guy walks past and asks "what are you digging for"?. I said "i am digging for gold". He looked at me and then walked away the same way he came. Staffs are great dogs. Its unfortunate his whole life he was confused for a pitbull which they are nothing like.