Gateway, Inc

After buying this Gateway product, it did not work straight out of the box. Gateway refused to take it back and tried giving me every excuse they could think of why they didn't want to give me a refund and take the computer back. They told me all I could do is take it in to have it fixed. What's worse, and I still can't believe the rep on the phone told me this, his excuse was, "Sometimes our products don't work, that's what the warranty is for.". Do yourself a favor. Steer clear of Gateway. You have been warned.

 I would not shop here again

Here’s the scenario:

1. First, I have bought six computers from Gateway in the past five years; their service used to be great, but no more.
2. Last fall, I ordered a battery for my laptop. Web site said “In Stock”.
3. Received an email saying the battery was on backorder.
4. Checked the website, still said “In Stock”. Called customer service, was told the website was wrong. Cancelled the order.
5. Tried to order again last week, except I asked their rep “Austin” to make sure the battery was in stock, or I would not order it. He verified it was in stock.
6. Ordered the battery and received the backorder email again.
7. Called Gateway, same story. Asked for a supervisor. Gateway rep said supervisor would not talk to me. Told me to send them an email. Told him to cancel.
8. BTW, their website still shows the battery in stock.

Telling the truth and customer loyalty mean NOTHING to these idiots. I will not buy another product from them.


 I would not shop here again

I had a good experience with Gateway in resolving the 'free' shipping come-on. They did advertise 'free' shipping on Roxio Photosuite and when I started purchase order I was charged shipping. After chat with Wallace at Gateway, I got free shipping. I told Wallace the ad was misleading and unfair - this is an issue that Gateway must address (misleading ads)if they want to stay in business. Buyer should not have to 'press' for free shipping when it is advertised.

 I would not shop here again

My experience with Gateway was a blunder-filled mess that still haunts me to this day. I am almost one year out from having a bought and paid for a Gateway laptop (which performs marginally at best) and still the company continues to make errors in   Read full review...

 I would not shop here again

I purchased a Gateway E6500D for my small business on 8/2/05 using the on-line store. I was trying to replace a Gateway E-4200 that has never had a problem and worked great for over five years. Placed order, and computer arrived on time, but when I   Read full review...

 I would not shop here again

I purchased a Gateway DS 400 notebook in Sept. 03 that now (Aug.05) requires a replacement AC adapter as the charging has become rather intermittent. Gateway service promised to ship a replacement on Jul.25, ETA-Aug.3rd. On Aug 5th I phoned them, only to find out that the order had been cancelled, but would be re-instated. On Aug.11th, I was told that the part was placed on back order. On Aug. 17th, I was told that the order had been cancelled again I am beginning to suspect that Gateway is trying to delay the shipment until after the computer is out of warranty.

 I would not shop here again

Gateway advertises free shipping on an Antec Performance Plus AMG PlusView 1000AMG Extended ATX Full Tower Case. I was ready to purchase this item. I went to the "Buy Now" screen and found that, in reality, there was a substantial shipping cost involved. After reading several negative reviews regarding Gateway's shipping practices and sales practices I decided to go on their chat. I chatted with someone named Virgil. My question was simple. Is there free shipping on this item or not? After a long delay, I was informed there was free shipping on select Gateway computers. That did not answer my question. I asked it again. I was offered $10.00 shipping. Since, in my mind, this is false advertising and their ad is simply a come on to get one into their site, I terminated the chat. Gateway uses a "bait and switch" technique to get one into their site. "Bait and switch" can refer to shipping costs as well as to the purchase of the item itself. I will not do business with stores that use such unethical techniques and until Gateway changes, I will purchase NOTHING from them.

 I would not shop here again

My 816gm is terrible. Easy to talk to a rep who will do nothing for you. Reps are knowledgeable but limited to actually fix a physical problem. I purchased a Gateway 816gm and it began failing after 2 hours. I used the included restore cd to reinstall the factory software but after the cds copy to the hard drive, they will not expand and it gives disk errors. The process leaves the computer without an OS. Their customer support suggested that the cds were defective but as yet they will not send replacement cds after 3 weeks of waiting. Later, one post on a web site suggested that there is a bios issue that prevents restore from occurring. In other words, Gateway sells a computer with restore cds that won't restore leaving you with a dead computer. This seems like a poor business practice. I will likely have to spend lots of money and time to replace the motherboard myself and buy Windows media center to actually get the problem fixed since gateway will do absolutely nothing to fix a problem.
DONT BUY GATEWAY. BOYCOTT GATEWAY!

 I would not shop here again

I've been dealing with Gateway for 7 months and have learned a lot. I hope this review helps. In January '05, I purchased the M320x. The initial buying experience was great. I started out looking through the site, then chatted, then called a rep. He   Read full review...

 I would not shop here again

Beware of this vendor! I ordered a NEC multimedia projector. I was promised by the salesman that 2 were in stock and paid for overnight shipping because I am leaving the country on a business trip. I then received an email saying shipping would be delayed until after I left for my business trip. I then called and asked to have the ordered canceled and was told they could not cancel the order. It was a mess. I would avoid Gateway for any future purchases.

 I would not shop here again

In a word, Terrible. Somehow they got my credit card info messed up and would not process an order for a 17" LCD monitor. Didn't make a difference that they sold me a similar monitor three weeks prior. No less than 20 e-mail exchanges with several customer service reps could not get them to sell me a monitor unless I paid them in advance, IN CASH. What a bunch of jerks. Will never do business with them again.

 I would not shop here again

There are absolutely NO words which can adequately express the disdain that I feel for Gateway. I have purchased two Gateway laptops over the past one and a half years and neither one of them have worked to my satisfaction. The first laptop has gone through no less than three hard drives and my new laptop has just killed off its original hard drive. I thought that I had purchased an extended warranty for the older laptop only to discover that the idiot who processed the warranty order used the wrong code, making the extended warranty expire ten days after I purchased it... For an additional $180.00, I can purchase a new extended warranty and Gateway will refund the original extended warranty price. I am having a somewhat difficult time trying to figure out why I should pay double for something that they should have gotten right the first time? So, at the present time, neither one of my laptops are working. I will NOT purchase anything through Gateway again... and Gateway Customer Service should be renamed Gateway Customer Disservice! I am NOT a happy customer.

Sincerely,

Loyal TOSHIBA customer...


 I would not shop here again

Tried to purchase Belkin Cat5e 14ft cable from them.

They advertise with Shopping.com as having free shipping on this item.

Once you get to the gateway site you are charged 5 dollars shipping for this item. There is no free shipping.

I went with a different site.

 I would not shop here again

Ordered a computer November 04. After 6 days on the phone with numerous Customer service people trying to fix obvious quality problems I called to send it back within the 15 day free return period. To make a very long story short, Three computers later, they still had not sent the computer I had originally ordered. At every turn I received what might have seemed like courteous assistance. But every time I called, everything that was delivered was wrong. In the end, due to the confusion and frustration and customer service people who didn't know what they were doing, I sent the final computer back in February with all software. Of course they claimed I hadn't sent everything back and held on to 339 dollars of the original price. Even though the software they claimed I kept was only worth 40 dollars. Just last month I called my credit card company to dispute the rest of the money and as far as I know this nightmare is over. Gateway has become a very bad company. Don't buy anything from them.

 I would not shop here again

Purchased two 1GB PC3200 ddr memory sticks for $125. I saw the price in the web and called their Sales 800 number to confirm the pricing. Sales Rep checked with her manager and confirmed the price and asked me if I wanted to place an order. When I recieved the memory it was 256mb sticks. I called and complained and Gateway is sending me return labels to ship back. They refused to honor the price I was quoted over the phone. They screwed up the pricing of the item and decided to send me something other than what I had ordered. Customer service is terrible !!

 I would not shop here again

Bought a Gateway 5200XL and love it after returning a Dell with inferior parts and a long and hard fight. For those of you who wish you had bought a Dell, here is something to chew on.

I just bought a Dell four months ago and returned it! Dell USED TO BE a great computer, but no longer is. Cheap components that do half of what they are supposed to do. The modem speed was half of what they claimed and they sent another one even though they claimed it was my provider. I then swapped modems with the original 6 year old computer and found it was not the provider at all, but the worthless modem that Dell is now making to cut corners.

You think Gateway's Customer Service is bad? Try calling Dell's and when you find an accent on the other end - ask where you are calling. You're calling India, Dude! Dell is really a mess to deal with, and Gateway has been nothing but professional. With Gateway, you'll at least be dealing with Americans in America (for now anyway).

 I would shop here again

Computer arrived in record time in early December 2004.
Unfortunately, the network card was not functioning.
After many hours on the phone and a few dozen emails I still do not have a functional computer.
I was told three weeks ago that they would be contacting me within two days to arrange for a refund.
My inquiries regarding the refund are met with:
“Please be advised that permanent return request is still being handled and reviewed by the appropriate department. We will inform you as soon as we gather new information”
As of today, February 6, 2005 I have yet to have any resolution.
I have owned 9 Gateways over the years. This one will be my last.

 I would not shop here again

These guys are morons. No wonder their corporate logo is one of the dumbest animals on Earth. I ordered a video card about one month before xmas as a gift for my son. When I ordered it, the web site said that it was "In Stock". When the video card   Read full review...

 I would not shop here again

Gateway customer service is the worst. 46" plasma had to be replaced with/in 1 year. Gateway will not extend warranty for some reason. Gateway will not back there own product. Will never buy anything from gateway again.

 I would not shop here again

My wife ordered a Gateway 7200XL from Gateway December 10, 2004. With high hopes to have it delivered before Christmas. The sales rep assured her it would arrive before Christmas (December 22, 2004, should have been the arrival date). She specified it   Read full review...

 I would not shop here again

Ordered my PDA case on Wednesday at 11:30 Am and had it on Thursday by 10 AM. How is that for fast service. Thanks Gateway.

 I would shop here again

I have a 600 series notebook still under warranty. Last fall the battery failed. I have been attempting to order a replacement battery since Sept. Despite numerous conversations with Gateway (and hours of wasted time), I have been unable to obtain one. At one point, a tech promised me a refurbished replacement to use in the interim. After waiting for two weeks, I called and found out that not only would I not be receiving it (another dept cancelled the order because the battery itself was no longer under warranty), they also took it upon themselves to cancel the order I had placed for the new one in Sept.. Since Sept., they have promised 3 different estimated delivery dates, and a quick check of my order today revealed that they now claim they will not be available until mid January (last estimate was December 12). Bottom line - do you really want to invest in a laptop that is functionally obsolete before the warranty is even up?

 I would not shop here again

Things started out great, I got the laptop I wanted for a good price and it arrived slower than I would have liked but on time. The computer was working fine for 7 days and then it quit. Tech support was helpful and we got it going again the same day.   Read full review...

 I would not shop here again

The shipping process went really well and I love my new laptop, but this thing has NO battery life. I admit I am a rather heavy user, but I still should not need to recharge every time I get near a plug. Besides this problem, I really like Gateway and have had no problems with them.

 I would shop here again

My recent (last 10 months) experience with Gateway has been a nightmare. Tech support is usually a time consuming process with absolutely no resolution after endless hours of explanations and descriptions of what my computer is doing or not doing. They   Read full review...

 I would not shop here again

Sorry to hear some of you having troubles. I bought my first Gateway pc in June/July 2000, now own 3 Gateway's, two desktops and a notebook. And am about to purchase my fourth. I've always had a great experience with sales and tech support. And always a speedy delivery.

Well to be honest sales and tech support have slipped some in the last year or so, but still over all really good. The few times something come up (twice actually) cd drive once and power supply the other time, Gateway took care of me by replacing both in short time.

 I would shop here again

I bought a top of the line Gateway computer because I'd heard they'd really Improved the quality and performance of their product(s)..so far not many problems.I was very Impressed because the Gateway store "Was" located very close to where I live and all I had to do was put It In my car and drive It down for service which I did 4 times.I just found out today that they closed the store and If I ever need service/repair I'd have to send It to who knows where.I'm sure they're not going to pay S&H charges for a computer that weighs a ton.NOT TOO HAPPY GATEWAY!!!!!

 I would not shop here again

Just to put another nail in the Gateway coffin, my first experience was also my last with Gateway. When their stores initially opened up, I approached the store with an advertisement in my hand. The personnel told me that the specific computer was not available and showed me another computer—packed with a higher price. After some convincing, I agreed to the new higher priced item and said I would return with the money. The next day, I was informed that the computer I had agreed to purchase was no longer available. After speaking with a manager, he personally wrote out an agreement listing the options and the price of a third computer. Again, coming back with the money, I was denied the computer at the price that was quoted. Now that I am a law student, I realize that they broke several provisions of the Uniform Commercial Code and I could have sued them on several different grounds. Luckily, their reviews on this website is proof positive that they have gotten what was coming to them.

 I would not shop here again

Bought a top of the line digital camera that broke within 1 month. sent it back to gateway, it took them 4.5 months to send a replacement, and now claim i never sent them the original one (surprising that they would claim to have sent out the replacement camera before receiving the broken product!!). It took over 13 hours of phone calls to customer service to get my address right. The Gateway corporation is incompetant. The entire chain of stores had gone out of business (every single one in the country), but they still persisted to send out the camera back to the closed store 4 times!!! You would think a company might know if their entire chain had gone out of business! Supervisors hang up on you. All in all, gateway very well may be the worst company I have ever encountered.

 I would not shop here again

I ordered a 42" plasma television from Gateway on June 24,2004. I was enticed to order from them because the product has a good reputation, but I will never make the mistake of ordering ANYTHING from Gateway ever again. Today is July 22,2004, and there is still no shipping information available for my order. I've spoken with a CSR every day this month, and I'm convinced they have no idea what they're talking about. I've emailed customer support, and I have literally received the same cookie cutter response over 20 times. They state there has been an "unavoidable delay due to low inventory." On the contrary, this delay is NOT unavoidable, if they kept adequate inventory levels, I would not have to wait for over a month for a $2500 television I paid for in advance. Do not buy anything from Gateway, trust me.

 I would not shop here again