Shafted by BestBuy! I NEED ADVICE - Page 2

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Wow, you're better than us.

Since that is true, why don't you explain the mechanics of how damage to the LCD screen could cause overheating problems? Especially since the OP never said whether the over heating started before or after said incident?

Thx

OK, the OP punches his laptop LCD that’s a given. Most laptops I have had apart have the Video card or chipset close to the center of the laptop's keyboard right around the area of the laptop "mouse". This is where the OP states the discoloration from heat is. When he punched his laptop the LCD could have shorted out causing damage to his video chipset/card.
If it started before the LCD assault took place, he had a lemon. By damaging his LCD in a fit of youthful rage he has compromised his ability to prove this.

Basically I told him to bend over and take it, learn from his mistakes and shop elsewhere. Look at the number of problems people have had with BB's psp. If it is on file that he damaged his laptop "accidentally" with his fist, does he really think his psp contract is still valid? Those morons at BB probably will throw his laptop on a shelf and call him in 2/3 weeks to come and get it. The only thing they will do is "clean" the dust off of it.

Yea, he should have an adult go with him. It's probably best not telling a kid with a known violent streak to make threats in a department store. Are you trying to get him zapped or arrested…?

Basicaly anything P4 based was never meant to be in a notebook.... (I dont care what anyone says, sure they work within the thermal limits when new but get some dust in that little heatsink and watch the fun !)
Also I believe when a CPU overheats it has a tendancy to overheat again even with proper cooling (I need to do some research one this thoery lol)

As for punching his LCD, Heh I dont blame him defective pixel policies back in 2004/5 realy sucked ass some of them wouldnt replace an LCD unless it had like 30 dead pixels LOL

He has a lemon but Sony and Best Buy will not tell him he has a defective machine... If he was to call Sony on the phone he would get the run around even if he directly asked "Is there a thermal issue with my machine ???"

Have you searched google for other people having the same issues ?
Do a search for what model of computer you have and "Thermal shutdown issues" see if some one else has the same issues (I would bet my last dollar thats a huge yes...) You may be covered under a extended warrenty you know nothing about directly from Sony, but you would have to call them directly and ask alot of questions, explain to them that your having thermal issues. (They mayyy have a redisigned heatsink/fan that can actualy fix the issue, also a BIOS update can sometimes help with thermals.)

The squeaky wheel always gets oiled IMO....You jus have to be pre dam sqeaky .

LVDS wires send and receive, and connect to the video card/chipset. They can be shorted. The OP states it loves to shutdown during game play, usually a gpu intense activity. He has taken it back twice for an overheating problem, both times thermal paste/grease has been reapplied. His CPU could be fine, his GPU sounds like it is the problem.

First off. He broke it as per discreetly recommended by Best Buy, therefore it is absolutely not fraud. Furthermore, when he broke the screen it was not in a fit of rage, it was done for a purpose, thus it is fair to conclude he did it carefully with the laptop shut off without the battery inside of it. But you never thought of that did you? Since you clearly didnt read what he said, you only assumed he was some hyperactive spoiled brat with a 3000.00 laptop you wish you had (when it was new) that got mad once and punched the screen! If thats the first assumption you make on someone you know nothing about, than you're a straighup ass.

You are really reaching on that one, LOW voltage is just what it says, it is LOW voltage and rediculously low amperage, therefore it would be impossible to damage a GFX unit by something thousands of times weaker than a static charge. Plus, if he had the system off, there would be NO electricity, therefore completely negating your retarded comment (look it up, you really are using retarded logic).

Thus far you have offered no help, but have only made yourself out to be an ass because you believe you are better than him because you never did that. Lets see whats on your HDD if you're so honest and prudent. You can't pick and choose ethics so you can judge someone else. We're all guilty of breaking the system, but in this case, based on this scenario, this man is a victim. He's only 17, and was 14 when he bought it! FFS man, how much spare cash could he possibly have to just suck up a 3000.00 loss. THATS WHY HE BOUGHT THE PSP IN THE FIRST PLACE! To protect his purchase because he cant afford to replace it!

What is rediculous is you taking Best Buy's side, google "best buy psp issues" and you'll get 6,290,000 results!

1-The kid did what he had to. NOT because he threw a fit at his laptop, but because it was the only way to have his LCD changed. A calculated move. I'm sure that he was informed by staff at BB, or by reading his policy, that the monitor would be replaced in case of accidental damage.
$3000 for dead pixels?? I would be next in line to do the same.

2- For all we know this issue could have been a result of faulty repair and\or handling of the laptop when the monitor was replaced.

3- We don't really care WHY his laptop is damaged. He has an extended warranty with BB that he paid for. He's entitled to have it repaired\exchanged in compliance with the warranty.

4- Troll elsewhere.

So...........you punched your laptop............ Was this before or after the overheating problem?
It sounds to me like you have some issues. Grow up, and quit whining. To blame a crap big box store for an "extended warranty problem" that you where stupid enough to buy in the first place and then tell us you are so immature you "punched" your laptop, WTF is wrong with you? You have just nullified your whole "lemon" argument, methinks you are the lemon.
Yo dumbass, sensitive electronics and fists do not go well together.

you need to frickin calm down. the issue at hand is not that he punched the screen but that his laptop overheats. If you don't have anything constructive to say then find a different forum to b*tch at

The light source is high voltage....i mean HIGH voltage. Now if that went into the laptop there would no longer be a laptop.

Do you know how much it takes to fire up a CCFL bulb? it varies from light to light but we are talking 900 - 5000 volts of power(in most if not all cases). if that went in to the video card the laptop would be DEAD.

Hey theres a good way to get your third repair they can't fix that

Wow, all this crap for GhostDragon when he is the only one here sane... amazing.

Well, I know he does not work at BestBuy. How? Because I do, and I circulated a memo asking if anyone going by the name "GhostDragon" was on THG Forums talking to a kid about his Laptop PSP. Maybe the dude never reads Talkback or his email, but Im pretty sure I would of had some response since I posted this immediately on Ghostys comments date.

Anyway, here is the problem: the PSP specifically states the any replacement of the product is to "equivalent technology." That is, they will not replace a P4 computer with a Core 2 Duo. If no equivalent computer exists, then they have to give the OP a computer that is closest in tech to his current machine. Likely that will be an cheapo AMD machine, but still better than his current rig.

Eric54, stop acting like some legal badass. You are not a lawyer, you are not even employed as CS at a big box! I know you can read wikipedia, but so can we all.

To the OP: stop taking everyone's advice, I suspect some of them are just either anarchists or the people who blame corporate anything for their problems.

To get your machine fixed, realize a few things:
they will not replace your machine with a brand spankin new one that is far better
punching that LCD was not a wise idea, because the PSP does not cover damage related to user mis-use (defined in the policy as the user physically damaging the computer by his/herself).
The reason you have not had anything fixed yet is because you kept asking for repairs, not replacement.
You will not win in court against BestBuy. Do you think their lawyers, you know, the students that were better than the State Attorney in school and are now the ones who are higher paid, would allow an insurance document to be drafted with the loophole that you can sue them over this? They too have proof they have done work on your computer, and btw to Eric54, the fact that the OP was out of a computer for any amount of time while under service does not constitute anything that can be legally described as "loss of business," or any other term that says the OP was negatively effected by the time of service. After all, it was the OP who asked for service and besides, Sony is technically the one responsible for the lemon product. BestBuy cannot be responsible for a computer going bad and not being able to magically make it work when in the PSP it says that it may have to go to service and be away from the OP for a while.

So now the steps you, the OP, can take:
1. Go directly to customer service, skip GeekSquad altogether and say you would like an exchange based on your purchase of the Service plan, and that the computer is not working.
2. When they say they will try and fix it, show that it has been in attempt to fix it in four previous incidents. I will ignore that you broke the screen and defrauded BestBuy.
3. At that point, a replacement product needs to be furnished if this attempt to fix it fails. That is the only time in your instance legal action could be taken if they attempt to return the computer to you, unfixed. Because to all my knowledge of the Service Plans, if it cannot be fixed in four instances you get a new one of equivalent technology for free. The PSP money will not be refurbished to you, after all you HAVE taken advantage of the PSP.
*Note*: I am not sure if the new computer will come with a PSP on it by default, due to your owning one that led to the current computers exchange.

And now for some personal baggage, as everyone seems to unload theirs at BestBuy, I will do the same.

BestBuy should stop offering the PSP, and stop offering that stupid 30 day return policy. Right now if you buy something at BestBuy you can return it for any reason in 30 days(with the exception of unopened software and some other items, which have 14 days).

The problem is customers who think because BestBuy is some huge corporation that it will "take care of them" in ways small stores would not. Take last week:
A woman purchased a TV stand and it did not come with all the correct parts (it had to "5" parts instead of a "6" and a "5" ). She contacted BestBuy and asked if WE would replace it. Why would BestBuy replace it? Its not our fault that the manufacturer did not put the right parts in the box!

Anyway, we told her that she can call the manufacturer and they will send her the right part for free, that is straight from the user manual. Or she could return the whole thing and we will give her a new one (we can send the old one back for service and either get compensated by the manufacturer or get the problem fixed). But no.

She wanted to build the stand "today," so she would not bring it back. She wanted BestBuy to take the fall for what the stand maker, Bush Industries, had done. Now why we would take the fall for someone else, why BestBuy would lose money just because of someone elses mistake, I do not know.

But we ended up doing it anyway because she bitched enough.

Or another example: A man bought a JVC head-unit for his car, and we installed if for him. Well when we fired it up, the unit smoked and burned out. So we gave him another one, free of charge, and installed it, free of charge (we were going to bill JVC for the faulty unit, which had not left the store yet). Then we installed the next one, and IT burned up. Shoot, what? So then we gave him a THIRD unit. Thats right, number three, and IT burned up.

So we said to him "listen, this is a product problem, they are new, and we have never had this problem before." So our services manager went above and beyond by giving him OUR FLOOR UNIT, of a better model! The customer had paid $150 for the unit but he was going to walk out the door with a $220 unit from Pioneer! Ipod ready! The unit worked grand (Pioneer brought tears to our eyes with its ownage), and he was happy, we were happy, hell the installer was near orgasm (he did the install the same as the JVC units and it was not his workmanship after all).

Then the dudes wife came in. And hell opened up. She claimed we had sold her husband a stolen unit (because there was no box). After an hour of "talking" to her (more like us trying to be civil and her cursing, yelling, and driving fingers at our chests), we offered to refund all the money, even the install. But we'd take all of our stuff back, the head unit, the mounting bracket, everything. And we would reinstall all the stock stuff.

Nope. Not good enough for this bitch. She wanted us to refund her money and she was keeping the head unit! Why this would ever happen in the world, where she got the idea that any store would refund the money without repossessing the goods, is beyond me. We told her this.

So then she goes outside, grabs some cardboard and writes "BestBuy ripped me off" on it. She proceeds to stand on our property and yell that to everyone that passes by. Well she cannot protest on private property, but she has all rights to do so from the street corner, as that is public. Nope, she would not do that. So we called the cops and she then took off. A few days later I saw her post on bestbuysux.com

WTF is wrong with people like that? Worse, I have to deal with them every day. I work in the Home Theater department in Liberty, MO. And everyday someone thinks that BestBuy should reward him/her for either their own neglect or we should take a shot to the leg because of something that went wrong with a TV when its the manufacturers fault. I had one woman on Thursday complain that a TV she purchased 8 months ago was not working and BestBuy would not take a return. Or sure, lets just let everyone use the TV for a few months, return it and buy another one. BestBuy would not make a dime if that was possible.

Hell, years ago there was no such thing as a return policy on a TV. You bought it and any trouble was between you and the manufacturer. There are still smaller stores in existence with this same policy: you buy it, its your problem unless WE break it while putting it in your car. People should be happy BestBuy is different AT ALL from those guys.

I really hate the people who think they buy a TV and they should get money off the sticker price, even if its already on sale. A little truth for ya: its been decades since a TV was made in China for $20. And that is especially true about Plasma and LCD tvs. Want to know how much we make on the TV?

I'll give it to you straight: the most any TV in the whole company actually makes us is $750. Thats on the Sony XBR line, and only on the larger TVs. In LCDs, the average is $257, and on Plasmas, the average is $300.

There you go, there are BestBuys margins. "Your still making $300!" you may say. Well I will tell you to go f!ck yourself if you think we are fleecing you then. We are a BUSINESS, businesses have to make money. And that $300 is not AFTER expenses either: that is just the difference between what we buy it for and what it sells for. Everyone in that store needs paid, so do the truckers who bring us the stuff and the people in the offices (the vast majority of which are NOT millionaire CEOs). We have to advertise, to market and to pay taxes.

BestBuy also offers lots of benefits, TONS of them in fact. It has to pay for employee stock purchase: if an employee buys stock in Bestbuy, the company will (at the time of sale) knock 15% off the purchase price out of its own money. So if I buy stock at $50 and then 6 months later (the maturity date, Bestbuy is not going to let you just buy and sell immediately), even if the stock only went up say a dollar, Bestbuy will refund me 15% of $50. ALL employees can take advantage of this.

It also offers 50% matching on a 401k for ALL employees up to a few thousand dollars, then 8 cents on the dollar after that. That is FREE MONEY BestBuy gives its employees for retirement.

It also offers full time employees at ANY LEVEL health benefits, including dental (ever wonder why the people in our commercials have such good teeth?). Oh yeah, thats another thing: all our commercials are produced internally, the people you see there are actual Bestbuy employees, either studying at the Minnesota Campus OR actual retail level people.

$300 a TV does not sound like a lot anymore huh? No, its not. Bestbuy makes money attaching services like our installs (which while valuable to the consumer, only cost us hourly labor) and accessories like cables or DirecTV service. And just because we make more money on the cables does not mean they are not worth it: ask anyone who has ever had Monster cables and they will tell you its worth the money. Compared to Acoustic Research, Rocketfish (our own instore brand) or anyone else for that matter). DirecTV and cable companies pay BestBuy to sign you up for their service as well: you may get $150 off a TV for DirecTV (getting the same programming and pricing DirecTV would give you directly), but BestBuy gets a $250 kickback.

All of that and remember: we do not sell 15 of these a day. More like 2 or 3.

And just try buying it for less at a smaller store. Online stores notwithstanding, some people still argue that small stores have better deals if you buy it all at once from them. Wrong. I've done the comparisons myself. Sure, BestBuy maybe will not give you a package deal, but small stores prices are higher to start, then they take off the extra money and it usually comes out roughly the same as Bestbuys lower prices already were or its HIGHER! Only in two cases in the KC area have I found small stores that would sell me the exact same stuff at a lower price for buying it all there at once. Two. Both of them only after tons of haggling.


.....

Wow, that rant was absolutely huge. Sorry, I guess I had a lot of venting to do.

Thank you, that was both fun to read and full of useful information.

Personally I enjoy buying stuff from BestBuy (and its smaller brother FutureShop - in Canada they are the same company) and I never had a bad experience with them.

I agree they should stop selling PSPs. Lots of personal finance books recommend that customers refuse them anyway because:

a) a good product won't need it because it won't break - do some research instead
b) you can't enforce it because there's too much small print

The OP has my sympathy and I hope things work well for him, but nevertheless he can't expect a full $3000 refund for a computer that would be worth $400 or less these days even if it were perfectly good and brand new. Maybe BestBuy should offer to buy back the computer from him for whatever the fair market price is now for those specifications (just guessing, $400?). For example I spent $3000 for a Pentium 3 computer in 2000, I still have it, it still works, but I doubt I could sell it for $3000.

The screen was already replaced two years ago, I don't see how the screen has anything to do with a computer overheating two years later and for that matter i will not have the laptop in my hands for another two weeks, so thank you for everyone who was trying to give advice other then flame like retards. As for my laptops battery, it is not on the recall list.

Lol. I'm not a legal badass, and I never used wiki as a source. I used real lawyers, and other in-the-know people, as well as forums to get my fact. Though in retrospect, wiki probably would have been easier, i'll give you that one. However, if you need to demean me to further your point that BB is a victim of its own kindness, thats fine by me.

Those stories, true they might be, are one in a very small batch of customers. The vast, VAST, vast, majority of customers do get screwed over by PSP's because its nearly impossible to use them. The no-lemon policy is complete BS, by its own defning characteristics it contradicts what it actually is meant to do. If you actually get a lemon, you're still going to get shafted by getting a new "equal" product, which is never what they say when they sell it to you for. Fact is, the no-lemon policy is what the sales rep use to sell the stupid PSP in the first place. They are often told that if the product breaks they will replace it with a newer model if that model is not sold there anymore. Never have I ever heard them say, "yeah, if you buy this, you'll get some leftover piece of crap hardware that we cant sell because in a couple years your computer will be worthless and the hardware will likely cost the same as the PSP itself, not to mention, you will have countless repairs, almost no uptime because they will fail to fix the product, and in the end, we will still be a dime ahead because we managed to delay the use of the no-lemon clause a full year".

You make BB sound like a saint. You should work for all of those "saintly" drug companies, and while you're at it, work for those "great" HMO's. They need people to make them sound good while they make billions ruining people lives.

The courts are full of insurance companies being sued by their own customers because they chince-out on their own policies. BB is not going to ever be immune to this plague until they rid the PSP from their stores forever. Until then, everyone and anyone who has a PSP should make an active effort to ensure BB loses as much money on those policies as possible, that will be the only way to end this crap. Greed, masked by misleading marketing is what started it, so the only way to fight it is to take as much money away from the greedy bastards as possible.

Lol. there's actually a site just for people's complaints about BB? Thats hilarious, even if half are legit, that means BB is screwing people over left right and center.

BTW. I have gotten nothing but trouble when trying to get them to support anythign they claim. In canada they match and beat any price another store advertises for a product they sell by 5% (of the difference). BB is closer than memoryexpress so and they are always cheaper than BB, so I use this policy to get a better deal.

I bought a D-link DGL-4300 router at BB for the sole reason it was more expensive there than at memoryexpress, meaning I would save a few bucks by shopping at BB. So I grab the box, amid absolutely no help or input from any of the 5-10 reps doing nothing at the time, and go to the customer service desk. I tell them its 169.99 here and memoryexpress has it for 144.99. First girl says, "sorry we dont match memoryexpess because they are a distributor". I say "no, they are not, they are a store just like this one, and i've had them match prices before without an issue". She goes away, talks to who I assume is her manager. Comes back, says, "Umm, we do match prices from there, I was told we didnt from someone else, but the boss says we do". Of course i'm a bit annoyed because i literally just bought something a week before without any trouble. What she does next made my blood boil. "We will match the price but since they are a distributor we wont beat their price by 5%". "they aren't a distributor, they are a store just like this one with the same access to distributors you have. If it was a distributors price you would have had to submit the distributor a business license before they would let fill out your name. You're policy states in plain english that you match any retail store (not online) and beat the price by 5% of the difference." Then she makes me wait a solid five minutes while talking to only what I can assume is an incompetant boss. Eventually she comes back and says, "I can match the price but I'm not able to beat it by 5% of the difference".

This entire situation took a solid 45 minutes, the outcome, best buy beat the dam price by 5% of the difference, which was about 3 dollars. What was supposed to be a quick run to BB so my sister can have access to the net so she can finish her university project, took a round trip of over an hour.


Just as a side note, memoryexpress matches prices too, my 226bw was cheaper at Futureshop so I went to memoryexpress. Each clerk has his own computer, so it was just a matter of her checking futureshops price, matching it, and that was that. The clerk only asked how to match the price, not if, since she was still a trainee.

I'm going to start a thread titled "Best Buy customer service" with a ranking. Lets see what the people of toms have to say about BB customer service. Here is the link to it.

HAHAHAHA. I was there the week ealier with a friend who wanted advice on a mouse, I was not shopping there for myself. That point aside, I hate their PSP's, and their service, outside of the section manager, is unbelievably bad. Anyway, it saved a few bucks to go there and have them match the price of another store.

DGL-4300......I think i love you eric54! That is like one of the best routers period! No Pre-N or N BS router!

Where you from? (I'm not gay,or trying to pick you up, just curious)

PS. Yes, Best buy is great with benefits. They kepted only like 5 full-timers at my store, and had about 45 part-timers working full-time hours so they didn't have to pay benefits.

Best Buy can suck on my balls!

just wanted to say a few things. I do work at best buy, and Best buy didnt start offering the ADH (accident damage from handling) until january 2006. If you bought your computer in 2004 this was not offered... which is interesting. If you punched your screen because you were an immature noob who has no sense of money, thats not accidental damage from handling, even in 2006 when it was first offered. Secondly, the general manager of the store has no say in what is replaced by PSP. Best Buy uses AIG insurance for their replacements- therefore the unit MUST be sent off for them to approve a replacement.

Eric, It seems like you have some anger managemnet issues towards Best Buy and any body who defends them in any way. I also like how you just make up 'facts' to support your rants. The OP even admitted that punching his screen was immature when he made a point of saying "I was only 14 at the time". Also where did he say that the dead pixels were just shy of being covered? I like how you just made that up to make it sound like Best Buy was being overly strict in trying not to replace the screen. The real 'fact' is that the number of dead pixels per square inch required for a LCD to be covered is ridiculously high and screens almost never get close to it. It's not Best Buy's fault and the manufactures make it fairly well known. It's simply something you deal with if you own a LCD. And punching it is not how you deal with it. Even if you're trying to get a replacement punching your $3000 laptop is a stupid thing to do. You could hurt your self or even worse damage your laptop (besides the screen) in a way that wouldn't be covered. It takes very little to damage a laptop screen enough to require replacement (a little pressure in the corner with your thumb would be more then sufficient). Also another 'fact' you try to manipulate is the issue of accidental coverage. The OP did not have it and it would be 'grandfathered in'. Which means that by replacing the screen Best Buy went beyond what they were obligated to under the service plan(yes that does happen, and quiet a bit more often then you'd believe). You can't even remember your own 'facts' from a few post above. You post a couple paragraphs about buying a router at Best Buy and even point to past shopping experiences there. Then two post later you claim to have only been there with a friend. And where did you get that 5% price match policy? Best Buy simply matches competitor prices, but doesn't give an additional 5% off. If you're getting that then it sounds like Best Buy is being pretty generous to you.

Best Buy, when it came to Canada, adopted its little brother's (Futureshop) policy of not only matching any competitor’s price but beating it by 5% of the difference. So, if someone else had x product for 100.00 and Best Buy has it for 150.00, they will match the 100.00 price and subtract an additional 2.50. That is its policy in Canada. Anybody who lives in Canada can verify that. I don't have anger management issues, and certainly not towards Best Buy. It has been my experience that PSP's are a complete rip-off and fall under the same category as Bank and insurance companies, both of which, I do hate, with great passion. When someone sells a product that is designed not to be used and when people try to use it, get a huge hassle, I have a problem with it. I've purchased a PSP for a minidisc player, which over time stopped working, I took it in to get fixed and they said something along the lines of the PSP doesn’t go into effect until the 1 year manufacturers warranty expires. No problem, I waited the two weeks, came back, and they said I had to GO to the warehouse where they sent their repairs. So I go to said warehouse, he tells me that he can't repair it because only Futureshop can send products to him. So I go back to Futureshop, get a manager, and finally the bastards take my broken minidisc player for repair. Well, about 20 days later, I call them and they inform me that it has been sitting around for about a week. When I finally come to pick it up they tell me that it wasn’t repaired because it "looked to be damaged by me". Now, tell me how a bent the battery flap cover makes the minidisc player unable to read minidiscs? The only damage on the unit was abrasion from my jeans, nothing that was outside of the norm. The whole scenario took well over a month; I paid 129.99 for the PSP and got absolutely NOTHING from it. Just so you know, the minidisc player was 600.00 new, and didn’t even last a year, so suffice to say, I absolutely despise PSP's. Worst of all, Sony's warranty was actually better than the PSP I bought, but as they told me, I had to go through Futureshop because of the PSP. I know some of this doesn’t add up, so some blame goes towards the employee's there, however, it was their reluctance to honor the PSP that exhibits my point.

The real issue isn't whether he abused the policy he purchased, but whether or not Best Buy is actively trying to get out of replacing the OP's laptop. Anything they have done in the past is irrelevant. If Best Buy doesn't grandfather accidental damage than yes, Best Buy made some effort to appease their customer. Since nobody has proven otherwise, I stand on my conclusion since it's the only logical reason they would fix it.

The OP explains later that he only broke the screen after he found out it was the only way to get a new screen. Given he was "only 14" at the time, he probably took more enjoyment out of breaking it than he should have, or maybe, it was the entire action itself that he chalks up to being young and naive. I'm just tired of people accusing him of breaking the screen in some kind of petty childish rant.

It was these forums that recommended to other people in the same boat to break their monitors to get a new one. So it anything, we all share the guilt on that one.

Point and case. Best Buy screws person X buy selling PSP to them, said person then screws Best Buy over, end result? Justice.

Just to make it clear Accidental Damage coverage would not be grandfathered in. It's something you have to pay extra for(as I did when I purchased my laptop there last fall). The original PSP wasn't changed just a new one is also offered. Eric and the OP are classic examples of how Best Buy's PSPs get a bad rap for no good reason. The OP seems to have benifited greatly from his PSP. He got a new screen and his AV jack fixed, neither of which would be considered defects or flaws in the machine. The screen was broken by the customer and a loose jack is normal wear and tear. So now that his laptop is having problems and Best Buy is trying to help him out he's screeming "I got shafted!". What about the $1000+ in repairs you've already recieved?
Then to Erics PSP experience. Just curious as to when you paid $600 for your minidisc player at Future Shop? Best Buy didn't buy Future shop until late 2001. Also remember many of Future Shops policys carried over for a while even after Best Buy took over (like you getting 5%). Be careful to distinguish who you're bashing. If your talking about Future Shop, then say Future Shop. We're all smart enough to know who owns them, but there are differences between the two. For example I work at a Best Buy in upstate NY and we have problems trying to service products under FutureShop PSPs. As somebody who claims to be a business student you should understand that two branches of the same company in different countrys are different.

They did quote in the press in the US something along the lines "If the PS3 was a cradboard box with the Sony badge on it people would still buy it"

Sony arrogance makes my blood boil

Just because I said I was 14 does not mean i was immature, it just means that the stores did not take me seriously so i handled the issue myself myself, and for the av jack it is covered by any psp plan because it is considered a wear and tear issue. Oh and woah they spent "$1000" on my laptops repair, my psp plan cost me almost $400 and you don't want to know how much crap my parents have bought in their store so i am pretty sure that the $1000 is more like 0 dollars. And as for shafted by best buy i don't scream that in the store i used it as a thread title because it attracts attention and i need advice, as for my current status my laptop is still in repair (taking awhile so i guess they are replacing the mobo).

Ok, the final update about my laptop is a happy ending .
Today i was left a message on my house phone saying that my computer was thrown out (junkout) and that they would replace it at the store. I went to the store and the guy that i have been talking to from geek squad through out this entire situation (an asshole ) told me that i could get a computer but it had to be equal specs and sent me over to customer service. At customer service the computer salesman was called over and luckily their where only two laptops with 17" lcd screens and he hooked me up with the best laptop they had in store that was $2800, finally i also got a docking station because my old laptop included one that was $250. So i walked out of the store with $3050 worth of merchandise and a smile on my face. Also i didn't have to be an dick like mr. geek squad. Only problem is, I have to rebuy a psp plan ($450) because my old one is considered fulfilled, but i think i walked out with a fair deal so thanks to everyone who gave me advice and the salesman at bestbuy (if your reading this) .

Grats on getting your situation resolved in such a positive manner. I work for the Geek Squad also and don't know why the guy you spoke to was such a dick, but I guess thats just the way some people are whether they be employees or customers. I cant speek for every Best Buy but I know where I work if a product is replaced under PSP you get the price you paid towards a new item. The term 'technology equivilant' does not mean that you only get a replacement as good as what you originally had. It means that you can only replace a laptop with another(only 1) laptop. You can't for example say "well I have $3000 to spend so I'll spend $1000 on a new laptop and $2000 on a TV". The reason it's worded the way it is, is because sometimes something being replaced is far more expensive then the most expensive replacement. It happens a lot with LCD monitors where somebody spent $600 a couple years ago for a 20" but now can get a 24" for $400, they don't get the $200 difference towards anything else(including a new PSP). As far as Best Buy is concerned they want you to get the most expensive replacement. The exchange doesn't hurt the store, but the more expensive replacement you get the more you'll spend on a new PSP. Anyways glad to hear everything worked out for you and I just wonder whether you'll unjoin the Best Buy haters club?

I have a very large foot to remove from my mouth. I suspect it will come with some humble pie and plenty of salt. Glad to hear everything worked out! It's good to see that Best Buy was able to do so much for you. And off the record, my name is no longer on the bestbuy haters club.