Tech: Acer Redux

As I mentioned beforehand, I did get a new laptop earlier from Acer, but it came with something else undesirable: a pixilation issue that caused for discoloration of colors, namely blues. This problem was immediately visible when I pulled the laptop out of the box, and accessed the laptop, so I considered
the laptop to be a DOA. Calling Acer, they immediately agreed to repair the laptop, and after a bit of strong-arming, I convinced them to pay for shipping as well, making me hopeful all my problems were over.

I was wrong, of course.

So, I called up Acer about a month later when the problem started to occur again, and complained, this time I wanted compensation, but they convinced me otherwise, and after a week of waiting I received the laptop back, in the exact same condition it was sent to them as. No replacements, nothing.

Hell had no fury…

So, I call up Acer as soon as I see the colossal failure that they deemed as “repaired” and demanded they fix it immediately, and they apologized. Again. This time I was elevated to Corporate Customer Care, the big CCC: their highest support. I got my account “red flagged” to show that I had been having lots of problems, and they sent my laptop to the deluxe repair shop, with next-day shipping. Another week, another repair. Much to my dismay, I opened the laptop and scrutinized it, the problem was 99% gone, but still present.

 After reformatting my hard drive 3 times, replacing my LCD, updating my drivers countless times, getting a new motherboard, spending countless hours on the phone with representatives, Acer still could not fix a laptop. I needed it though for classes, so I stuck it out until finals were completed, and I thus began my next spar with Acer, which has just finished.

I called Acer a couple days ago, and told them that I wanted a new laptop, and to be given a better one, due to not only my lost time and usage, but overall loss of productivity. I by no means blame the representatives I spoke to, in fact I’ve found that most of them have bent some rules to help me with my horrible pilgrimage to laptop repairdom, but I was tired with the continual repairs. Once again with Acer’s CCC, I got an offer that gave me 2 more gigs of RAM, a 120 gig SSD along with the 750 gig HDD, and a slight change from a 640M to a 650M. It worked, and was nicer, so I’ve accepted.
Now I wait for this new laptop. I have mixed feelings with Acer now, although the bureaucratic running of its help system is horrible beyond belief, I’ve found that its upper levels have people who do care, and will try to help—as much as possible through the convoluted world of company policies. I will give this laptop another chance. There is still hope for Acer, but I will never be able to say that I recommend them. When you look for a laptop, look for a company that gets things right the first time, not after a horrible slew of incidents.

--Santa  

Update: Graduation & Xbox One

I'm not that interesting of a guy, so I won’t bore you with the reason of my break, part II, except busy-busy life. I did however come back at a time perfect for a Soapbox moment, and that is one you shall receive today.

Oh, how you have forsaken me.

For those of you who have read my content before, I used to be a major Xbox user. I really got into PC gaming as my love for TF2 grew, and now I’m almost exclusively on there (minus the fact the laptop I’m using hasn’t been fixed successfully in 3 attempts by Acer, which I will talk about in my
next entry) but I still love my 360. I bought it for Halo 3, but ended up with a love for gaming that is hugely with me, even if I have changed systems. So, when I heard that Xbox’s big reveal was coming up, I got excited.
I shouldn’t have been.
From what we know right now, the new Xbox ONE will need to be connected to the internet, at some point of time, once a day. To use any pre-owned or used game, Microsoft will hit users with a fee, which could be as much as the original copy, ruining the point of borrowing from friends, or GameStop’s sly money-making machine. I could nearly forgive Microsoft for all of this, but somewhere along the way of the El Grande reveal, there wasn’t a true mentioning of games—but there was a big focus on Kinect, the NFL, and a NEW Halo TV show!
This can’t be happening.
Microsoft, if I remember correctly, the Xbox originated as a gaming console. I can understand and can almost empathize with the online and fee requirements you’ve put on this system, which completely isolates your main community of people who love to play video games.
Microsoft, you’ve turned your focus to being an “All-In-One” system. A system meant to be cute, but not to game. I am a gamer, I don’t care about Kinect, or TV when I play video games.
Why would I buy a console that gets away from this?
Microsoft, as a fan for quite near 5 years now, I hate to turn my back on this relationship that I’ve bought into. I just can’t accept this glorified DVR as a gaming system though. I don’t care what specs. You put into it, this device isn’t gaming AND other features, its other features AND gaming. You’ve moved your focus from your hardcore-gaming community, all within the goal of appealing to a more neutral audience, in which I think you may succeed. You have however isolated a huge fan base which has been loyal since the release of Halo on your new console back in 2001, and you give us this.
We aren’t being hard on you. You have betrayed us.
I won’t buy an Xbox One unless I see something that truly changes the way games are played today, but I don’t really see that happening. Your reveal was glorified by Steven Spielberg and Kinect, which was already a failure in the eyes of nearly all old-school gamers. This new culture is a new embrace, a new direction. I get that, but I will have no part in it. Godspeed in your new gaming universe Microsoft, I think you may see an overall change in your constituents, not just me.

--Santa

The Next Gen: Ideas on What Happens to Games

This is your future—don’t worry about the console itself.

I've done a post over my hype of the next generations of consoles. However, the announcement of the PS4 pushes us into closer into the next generation, we are starting to say goodbye to the 7^th generation.  However, rumors are floating around that the next set of consoles may not allow for backwards compatibility, or for the playing of used games. This of course, can be quite concerning to some of us gamers. I buy games with the idea that I can continue to play them. I loved SSBB because the Wii brought over the Gamecube controller slots. I loved my Gamecube because I bought the adapted that let me play GBA on it (which led to many playthroughs of Mario & Luigi Superstar Saga). The 7^th generation has also seen a high influx of “casual” gamers. Phones have become a source of enjoyment, and Flash games are beginning to edge into markets. We have entered an era of microtransactions. This makes me curious as to how games will continue to evolve.

Some more speculation in the mix.

Personally, I want to see backwards compatibility and used games to continue on. Although I personally don’t buy used games, I do, on occasion, borrow games from friends. It’s a way to expand your experiences and play a game before buying it. Backwards compatibility of course is nice since I don’t always have my consoles hooked up. Gamecube games are already not playable on the Wii U, and I still love to revisit Luigi’s Mansion and even Sunshine on occasion. I do believe we will see everything phased out from the 6^th gen. but I think that at least the Xbox will keep compatibility for 360 games, like the Wii U has for the Wii. Gamers still like their old games, and want to be able to play them without swapping out consoles. Yes, HDMI and RCA cords are becoming more common on TVs, but that does little to change the fact that having 4 consoles hooked up to a TV becomes bothersome and a dust trap.
The other big change I believe we will see is accommodations for casuals. This doesn’t mean that we’ll see a full-on revolution towards the market, but probably more towards what Xbox is doing currently: bringing Hulu and Netflix and other things onto the console as an added extra. Consoles, in a way, are adapting to be more like PCs. The ability to do more than play games is becoming more and more lucrative, and is a big reason why I’ve become a big PC gamer (other than hats, of course.) This will also go hand in hand with cheaper games with microtransactions. Gamers are more likely to pick up a game that’s cheap, and not likely to think very much of an occasional $1 powerup. It’s another way to make money; it’s another way to nickel & dime gamers.  
The future of gaming still looks promising, but as always an ever-changing empire; this is not a bad thing, but more of an evolution. Yes, at this point it is a lot of speculation and gathering of rumors, but there is a precedence that can be seen. When the Wii came out, both Sony and Microsoft responded with the Move and Kinect. Both of them may not have been good, but they saw it as a strategy. The gaming market now has a growing demographic of people who want more than just games—the market will eagerly meet these people with new options. However, don’t fret children. The true gaming market is still steady and strong. We will continue to see new, exciting FPSs and strategies; just expect there to be some new people in the market.

--Santa