Linux or Windows: Most hardware support plans are worthless

Recently, a user who had replaced Windows on his netbook with Ubuntu Linux discovered that, as far as Best Buy was concerned, he had voided his warranty. For all practical purposes, he had.

In The Consumerist, the disgruntled netbook user reported, "My four month-old netbook's touchpad and power adapter all stopped working. I took the machine into Best Buy for service under the Geek Squad's Black Tie Protection Plan on Saturday, and demonstrated its problems. The manager of the Geek Squad informed me that installing Ubuntu Linux on my machine voided my warranty, and that I could only have it serviced if the original Windows installation was restored."

In the end, he did restore Windows and that didn't get him any service either. The manager said, "'Look at the last page of the warranty. We can refuse service for any reason we want, and based on our conversation yesterday, I will not service your computer.' He alerted security and ordered me to leave the store."

The tech. support manager was clearly a jerk and deserves to be fired for the holidays. But, think about it, 99% of all vendor support don't have a clue about what to do with a PC with Linux. Even if they wanted to help you, chances are they can't do a thing for you.

As an Ubuntu Linux user, faced with a touchpad problem you'd probably go to the Ubuntu Forums or LinuxQuestions for an answer. Do you really think your ordinary tech. support person has even heard of these sites? I think not.

If you really want real technical support for a Linux system, but one from Dell, system76, or another vendor that sells and supports Linux systems. Expecting support from a chain store or a vendor that doesn't pre-bundle Linux with their systems is just a waste of your time.

But, in my experience, it's not a whole lot better even if you're using Windows. I'm not saying all consumer tech. support is bad, I am saying that there is a lot of awful support out there and that it's not worth paying extra money for.

For example, in just the last few weeks I've had to help several people with their home networks. They tried to get help for their Wi-Fi routers, but the technical support that they had paid extra money for couldn't walk them through connecting it with their DSL and cable modems, never mind setting up basic WPA (Wi-Fi Protected Access) security.

The only questions most Windows consumer support staff seem able to deal with are the simple-minded ones that can be addressed in scripts. If you have any complicated problem, they're helpless.

Now, they're not all that way. I know some really bright people at Best Buy, and other retailers and PC vendors, who do know their stuff and are willing to go the extra mile to help people. Unfortunately, they're the exception and not the rule.

Besides, I think spending money for extra support is a waste of money for most home PCs. For that matter, I feel the same way about all home electronics. In my years of working with electronics--and besides computers I know my way around high-end stereo equipment and HDTVs-if the equipment works well for the first 48-hours of use, it's going to stay working for years. Your basic warranty, which comes with anything you buy, should keep you good for at least a month and that's all you'll need.

Of course, it's a different story if you're looking at business technical support. But, there your contact with the vendor, system integrator, or value-added reseller should spell out exactly what they will, or won't, help you with. Its extra-cost consumer support contracts that I think isn't worth the paper it's printed on.

The stores try their best to sell you this extra support, because it's an easy way for them to pick up some cash. They know as well as I do that if your PC, speakers, or what-have-you don't break immediately, the chances are they'll never have to spend that money on supporting you.

There is, I should add, one exception to this. Apple's AppleCare is worth the money. Apple's support people, far more often than not, actually can answer the hard questions, and will do whatever is needed to get your Mac working again even if has seen a lot of wear and tear. But, for Windows and Linux users, forget about paying extra for generic hardware support. You'll be wasting your money.