Gateway

[John81]

Hope im in the right forum, i bought a computer back in November from Gateway.. remanufactured, came in good condition and all but as I'm finding out now it's just not meeting my needs, it dont run many of the popular games and thats what I bought it for, I talked to customer service and even though my same as cash plan isn't over on it (meaning I haven't payed it off yet) they say there is NO way I can return it for a better system, they say I'm stuck with it since the return period was 15 days,and I'm not going to pay $2000 for something that I will have to keep permanently and for what!, is there some organization I can speak to about this and help me out or am I really stuck with it, what can I do?....thanks.

I Live in Texas.

 

[zappy]

you dont have any choice, you own it you have to pay the bill.

NEXT time i would suggest that when you buy an expensive item, you do it just before you take your paid vacation, Then STAY HOME, so that you have a week or two to use it before the return period expires.

 

[cur7is]

zappy, get off this forum. It's obviously not for you. What are you, 15 or something? You certainly sound like it.

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There really isn't much you can do about the computer. You agreed to its purchase, and despite it not meeting your needs, it isn't the company's fault that you didn't look into the product better before agreeing to a contract to purchase it. Unless you sell it to someone else for the amount that you owe on it, you're stuck with it. Next time you purchase a computer, I highly recommend you tell someone what you want the computer to specifically do. At Gateway, they always have sales representatives around that can answer all your questions and tell you what each computer can and can't handle. If you tell them you want a computer to play games on, they'll show you a computer that is highly compatible for that purpose.

 

[FarmerJ]

You realise that if your machine has more ram added that might be all you need to allow games to play more easily .

 

[John81]

so there's no way to force a return of the computer?, what if I just decide not to pay it, besides getting bad credit wouldn't they have to take it away from me?

 

[FarmerJ]

If you dont pay it they arent going to want it back instead likely they will take what ever steps they need to do to collect. then they could eventually hire it out to a collection firm who could get a judgement . Once a Judgement is in place it could pile on more interest while you are still refusing to pay it . Also a judgment can get you denied for credit apps , Insurance , and sometimes employers also do credit historys before hiring . so is the risk of the other expenses thatyour refusal to pay up might be worth it ?? decide for your self how hard you want to work at repairing your credit later on . or just keeping any good history you allready have .

 

[cur7is]

You realise that if your machine has more ram added that might be all you need to allow games to play more easily .

Hey, he's right. Get more RAM. We used to have 128 MB RAM in this computer and it ran slowly. So we upgraded to 512 MB RAM. Now it runs nicely. Perhaps that's all you need in your computer.

 

[John81]

I had added more ram, the max of 640mb but it wasn't that.. it's the cheap 8mb video card that is integrated..I just find myself now in this loose-loose situation and it really ticks me off because I'm paying too much money for a computer that won't run many popular games, I bought this PC for my Teen Son and it is so sad for me to see him anxiously wanting to play the games his friends run on their computers, I wasn't computer literate when I first got it but as the days progressed I come to find out that 8mb of video memory is not even the minimum of the requirements many of these games need, oh well...thanks alot guys for your responses.

 

[FarmerJ]

ALso you know the way that computers keep changing it seems like one cannot keep up since 1996 I have had 7 computers the last one is the one that I will try to get 5 yrs use on now . I finally found out what i like to do best with the net and that machine I had built to suit my needs if you add more ram and later if you need larger HD you should be set for a while .

 

[cur7is]

You can very easily get a different video card. The most expensive can go over $200, but you don't need an expensive one to get a good one. Go to a computer store and speak to a representative. Tell him what you're looking for and explain the situation. He'll help you out. All these computers they out nowadays need something replaced so that it works properly for the user. The nice thing about them is that they CAN be replaced. All you need to do it get the proper parts.

 

[John81]

That's the problem...I can't, according to gateway the video card my pc has is soldered on or integrated as they call it.

 

[zappy]

John:

why is your son spending all his time in front of a computer playing games with guys?

sounds fishy or swishy to me.


Maybe he should actually learn how to use this to further his education..and meet women.

 

[cur7is]

John:

why is your son spending all his time in front of a computer playing games with guys?

sounds fishy or swishy to me.


Maybe he should actually learn how to use this to further his education..and meet women.

You're disgusting and at this point, I think you need psychiatric evaluation.

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As far as the video card goes, it can always be replaced. You just need the installation software in order to hook it up completely (which, of course, comes with any video card you purchase). Otherwise tell them that since you can't change the video card, they welcome to. Otherwise they shouldn't be selling a PC that can't have parts replaced when they're not working properly.

 

[mortyrb]

I know what you mean

I bought a computer with an intergrated vid card and was unhappy with the performance. I bought a 32meg vid card, installed it in a PCI slot loaded the software and it works great now. the intergrated card does not have to be taken off the motherboard to add a video card. after you install the vid card, load the software go into the control panel, systems, device manager, and disable the integrated vid card. this worked for me... hope that helps Morty

 

[BobOki]

AT the VERY most, you would have to change a jumper on the motherboard that would disable the integrated video. This is nothing more than a little tab that you might have to move... and its clearly labeled.

You will, however, need to find out if the computer as an AGP slot. If it does not, you will need to buy a PCI video card. This is very important! You will waste good money if you don't do a little homework.
simple cheap video cards are EASY to find... the geforce4 MX series is a VERY cost effective card, and should run ANY game currently out....

I personally own a huge MONSTER video card.. but I would not invest too much money into it unless you plan on building your own computer as your next pc.

You may be screwed on the comtract... but with computers, you are almost NEVER screwed with what you have