Geek Squad is the biggest scam in gaming

[Robert1986]

They've obviously had a lot of call for it to get the promotional material together.

You know, I'm pretty sure if you call Sony and ask them you are having a hard time setting up a psn account, they'd guide you through it on the phone right there and then.

Most people that feel intimidated by todays technology usually have children to set up their stuff for them anyway. If I found out my parents paid someone to set up their pc, I'd be fuming... and also my feelings would be hurt.

 

[Robert1986]

OH jeez.

 

[Demon]

As bad as it sounds (and it is bad), a paid service for noobs is actually not that bad an idea.

My sister in law spends £10 to get all here photo's transferred from her digital camera to a CD.. £10!!!!! for just copying the files from the memory card to a blank CD!

I showed her how easy it is, but it's still well above her head.. she can use the camera (just), and can open a CD to view the photo's.. but anything else and it's above her.. she can't even set up e-mail on her PC, and paid a well known high street store to set it all up for her..

Since most plumbers/sparkys etc charge £50-£100 call out fee to change a tap-washer or fuse etc, this just seems par for the course..

 

[nitr0uk]

A good idea for the average person, but also a con at the same time

 

[Demon]

A good idea for the average person, but also a con at the same time

It's not a con as such is it..

£80 for someone to drive to your house, spend about an hour setting up the console/cables/internet connection, accounts etc, drinking cup of tea etc.. Is the going rate..

It's a rip-off in the same way a plumber changing a tap washer for £80 is a rip-off if you already know how to do it..

 

[CliffyBiro]

Saw this on Kotaku yesterday. Can't believe they get away with that.

 

[SKaRT]

I really don't understand why so many people are outraged by this? I mean sure, it's overpriced, but the service wouldn't exist if there wasn't a demand for it. If people are prepared to pay that price then it will be done, if they sell none of those installs due to the price they'll reduce it.

Edit: On a secondary note, Geek Squad is part of Best Buy, nothing to do with GameStop.

 

[SiD the Turtle]

A fool and his money...

 

[Tefal]

£80 for someone to drive to your house, spend about an hour setting up the console/cables/internet connection, accounts etc, drinking cup of tea etc.. Is the going rate..

An hour?

Who is thier man stephan hawking? :/

 

[Margaret]

Best Buy wanted me to let Geek Squad set up some stuff on my notebook for me, for a hefty cost.

 

[atpbx]

A good idea for the average person, but also a con at the same time

But we are all "average people" much as the members of this forum like to think to the contrary, we are all very much average people here.

If you cant understand an instruction manual for a games console, you are not "average" you are ******* retarded.

 

[Robert1986]

I really don't understand why so many people are outraged by this? I mean sure, it's overpriced, but the service wouldn't exist if there wasn't a demand for it. If people are prepared to pay that price then it will be done, if they sell none of those installs due to the price they'll reduce it.

Because they are charging you something that you already get when you buy the system. The manual is more than enough to guide you through each process.

Who is this service for anyway? Who is buying a console and is so ill informed that they need to pay half what the console cost just to get it set up?

 

[SKaRT]

Because they are charging you something that you already get when you buy the system. The manual is more than enough to guide you through each process.

Who is this service for anyway? Who is buying a console and is so ill informed that they need to pay half what the console cost just to get it set up?

You cannot seriously be that misguided? The whole point of the service is for those things to be done for you without you needing to look at the manual. Almost every set up service in existance could be done with just looking at the manual but people still pay for it because they don't want to have to do it themselves.

Nothing about the service is a con at all, it quite clearly lists what they do. If they listed things on there and then didn't do them then it would be a con, as it is it's just an expensive service aimed at a niche market of people who have the money spare but want things done for them. I wouldn't buy it, neither would you, neither would probably anyone on this forum. The thing is though, it's not a service aimed at people who are technically sound with electronics, it's aimed at people that aren't and don't want to learn.

 

[orderoftheflame]

The thing is though, it's not a service aimed at people who are technically sound with electronics, it's aimed at people that aren't and don't want to learn.

It's not though is it. They've set out to make setting up the console sound as technically scary as they can, trying to trick people that would have no problem plugging in a few wires and flicking a switch into thinking it's above their skill level.

Plugging a PS3 in and getting it running is no more difficult than a DVD player they've just made it sound like it is, and if your not technically minded enough to set up an online account, I'm willing to bet you wouldn't even want to use one.

 

[Tefal]

But we are all "average people" much as the members of this forum like to think to the contrary, we are all very much average people here.

If you cant understand an instruction manual for a games console, you are not "average" you are ******* retarded.

You don't even need to open the manual it says it all on the screen

 

[Robert1986]

You cannot seriously be that misguided? The whole point of the service is for those things to be done for you without you needing to look at the manual. Almost every set up service in existance could be done with just looking at the manual but people still pay for it because they don't want to have to do it themselves.

Nothing about the service is a con at all, it quite clearly lists what they do. If they listed things on there and then didn't do them then it would be a con, as it is it's just an expensive service aimed at a niche market of people who have the money spare but want things done for them. I wouldn't buy it, neither would you, neither would probably anyone on this forum. The thing is though, it's not a service aimed at people who are technically sound with electronics, it's aimed at people that aren't and don't want to learn.

Its a con. I don't buy that anyone is too lazy to read a manual. If someone can save $130 just by reading a few pages in a manual, I'm sure they would take the plunge and actually read it. Since the economy is to **** right now, who in their right mind is going to pay for something that takes 5 minutes?

I don't think anyone in this day and age is that dumb. Everyone has a mobile phone and using one of those is probably a lot more complicated than using a game console for most people.

The Geek Squad are just trying to swindle you out of your money.

 

[McManicMan]

it's no different than people who buy flat pack furniture and get someone else to put it together.

 

[Robert1986]

it's no different than people who buy flat pack furniture and get someone else to put it together.

Yes it is.

 

[Red and White]

how is it a con/scam? clear as day what you are paying for, yes its vastly over priced and they are taking advantage of people who cant plug in a few wires, old people etc but they arent exactly tricking anybody.

 

[McManicMan]

Yes it is.

no it's not .