Did Micro Center screw me?

ScretHate

[H]ard|Gawd
Joined
Jun 5, 2001
Messages
1,889
I bought a motherboard from Micro Center today. I was stupid and didn't check it before I got home. When I opened the box for the first time, this is what I was greeted with:

Nrd5q.jpg


Note the SATA cables removed from their bag. It is also missing the IO shield and driver disk. This was advertised as a BRAND NEW board. Does this look BRAND NEW to anyone here? It sure doesn't to me.

Now my only recourse is to spend my time and gas money to drive an hour back there and maybe get a replacement that's actually new.
 
or call them and explain to them why they should overnight you a new one with a return label. offer your cc as insurance against you ripping them off.
 
Not sure why anyone goes to Micro Center if it's an hour+ drive away. Time + gas isn't worth it to me IMO. Amazon just seems like a better solution for next time.

Nothing that Frys sells new is new. Would be hard to believe that Micro Center was any different.

I've seen a shrink swap machine at the Bestbuy customer service desk. They just take in the return, wrap it up and put it back.

I had to take back a defective screen protector for my phone the other day. They got into a fit with me because it was a disposable product. I'm thinking to myself, who cares, it's defective and you have no policy against this.

FYI I have heard of people getting used items off Amazon as well. But at least since it's a AAA e-tailor they will pay shipping the item back. Much better than a 1hr drive, although you may be out of the item for 1-2 days as they cross ship.
 
Yeah, you live about the same distance to MC as I do. My MC is a little over an hour away too.

Anyways, to answer your question, yes it looks like they took someones return and put it back on the shelf without actually looking at it. Kind of odd...

I am not sure what you can do other than driving back there. I personally just had to drive to MC to return/exchange a mobo myself last week due to getting some blue screens. The girl who helped me said they get tons of returns on mobos.

Missing the IO shield kind of sucks. The install disk, probably everything can be found online for that but still kind of sucks not to have.

Id first try what the previous member said and call them and see if they will send you a new one and have a return label with it before having to drive back.
 
TBH I doubt there is anything wrong with it MOBO's at microcenter all sit on the shelf and are not sealed to begin with that way you can look at them before you buy them.
 
TBH I doubt there is anything wrong with it MOBO's at microcenter all sit on the shelf and are not sealed to begin with that way you can look at them before you buy them.

I dont think that is the issue though. Its missing the install disk and IO plate....


On another note, let me know how you like that mobo as i was considering getting it for a cheap solution.
 
I'd bring it back and ask for something to compensate for the time and gas -- maybe a fancier motherboard or an additional discount.
 
Micro Center is usually pretty good about fixing screw ups...at least in my local Silicon Valley store.
I've really only had one bad experience. It was at their Rockville Maryland store.
On the last day of my east coast vacation a few years back, the motherboard in my nephews computer went belly up.
We hopped into the car and drove 40 minutes to get a replacement of correct size. I figured while I was at it, I'd just do a full update (board, proc, RAM etc...). On returning home, we found no IO shield in the box.
I immediately called and explained the issue to the salesperson who assured me they had more of that same board. I explained the pressing nature of time (my flight was at 4 p:m) and I still had to pack.
I went ahead and configured the board, loaded Windows then took the box and receipt and headed back to get the IO as discussed with the salesperson.
That was where it all went wrong. I got a "customer service manager" who seemingly did not know the meaning of the word. She insisted on having the original board despite us producing the box and receipt and telling her the board worked fine.
She simply would not budge. He was nice and very polite about it...despite the time wasted.
All he wanted was the IO he'd paid for.
She just kept saying no. It was really annoying to me. Returning the original board would have caused the same action (i.e... they'd have taken it in and had to give him a new board, then fill out a report for the missing part). Why not simply remove one from a new box and fill out the same report.
In the end they made him purchase another board. He was a bit irritated by that point. He simply, bought it, took it out to the parking lot, remove the IO he'd paid for and return it. I don't think he's ever gone back there. It represented too bad of an experience...for no good reason.
 
stupid is as stupid does :eek:

Yes you should have checked it before going to the checkout, but there was also NO reason for the "CSM" to treat you like sh*t either, based on what you posted here.......

Did you call their corp office & complain ? If you had, you most likely would have gotten this issue resolved in 2 phone calls....... 1 to them, 1 from them back to you......

If you didn't, then read the first line again :D

As a customer, you do N O T have to put up with this nonsense. Stand up for yourself & MAKE them do right by you NO IFS, ANDS OR BUTTS !!!!!!!!!!!

sorry if this sounds kinda harsh, but it's the truth....... and this is from someone who managed retail stores for over 20 years :p
 
Wow that is pretty bad and definitely not exceptable when you look at how many online retailers actually create a section on their website to sell opened items at a discount rather than just trying to sell them as new. Hopefully they'll be able to work something out for you or else that is really shitty. I'll definitely take this as a warning to visually inspect what I buy from Microcenter before leaving...and how come Microcenters are always an hour away lol?
 
Update:

Called and talked to a human today. They wouldn't ship me a replacement. I begrudgingly drove back up there and got it replaced with a new board. I wasn't able to get any compensation for my gas or time wasted. In fact, the store manager--an obese, bitchy woman--didn't even understand the problem with selling me a used motherboard as new. She pretty much told me I was lucky to get a replacement at all.

This was my first and last time shopping at Micro Center. I advise you to shop their with caution and realize that it's very likely that the item you're paying full price for is actually what a reputable retailer would call refurbished, open-box, or b-stock.
 
This is why I suggest checking any computer parts you buy at the store, preferably in site of an employee, so if you are getting ripped off you can call them on it immediately. People have gotten bricks in their video card boxes before. Be careful.

Also, Amazon.
 
Sorry to say this and don't want to sound like a ass but you screwed yourself when you didn't look in the box at the store. None of the mobo's they sell are plastic wrapped. If I buy anything new I open the box in front of a employee and make sure everything is there. My microcenter is about 45 minutes each way so I feel the pain on that for sure. That sucks man best of luck to you
 
Fry's is notorious for this kind of crap as well. Not sure about Micro Center, but I know for a fact that Fry's has no problems whatsoever with taking someone's return (which they are returning because it is defective), shrink-wrapping it, slapping a 5% discount on the price, and selling it as new. You really do get what you pay for. Sure, you might save a few dollars on your purchase, but your chance of getting screwed goes up at least 50% IMO. This is part of the reason why I stayed away from those stores when I used to live near them.
 
Update:

Called and talked to a human today. They wouldn't ship me a replacement. I begrudgingly drove back up there and got it replaced with a new board. I wasn't able to get any compensation for my gas or time wasted. In fact, the store manager--an obese, bitchy woman--didn't even understand the problem with selling me a used motherboard as new. She pretty much told me I was lucky to get a replacement at all.

This was my first and last time shopping at Micro Center. I advise you to shop their with caution and realize that it's very likely that the item you're paying full price for is actually what a reputable retailer would call refurbished, open-box, or b-stock.

MicroCenter is a reputable retailer, and it consistently offers the best prices on CPUs and motherboards. It would be foolish to spurn it (or any other retailer) because of one bad experience.

The real lesson is to ensure your items are satisfactory while you are in or near the store. And in my experience, MicroCenter has never had a problem with my opening items to inspect them before I make a purchase.
 
MicroCenter is a reputable retailer, and it consistently offers the best prices on CPUs and motherboards. It would be foolish to spurn it (or any other retailer) because of one bad experience.
Yeah they do offer some of the best Mobo/CPU combos but I think it is just natural to feel really betrayed and cheated when anyone or anyplace gives you service that you wouldn't consider satisfactory. Then again some people like abusive relationships, but other people would just rather to choose to pretend the place doesn't exist rather than to face the possibility of going through that debacle again. To some sense yes it is foolish because the same thing could happen at pretty much any store and one Microcenter could definitely better than another. I know for a long time I had refused to shop at Best Buy and even now I still don't like going in there even for the occasional good sales price(though I think the hate for BB is much more universal.)
 
Fry's is notorious for this kind of crap as well. Not sure about Micro Center, but I know for a fact that Fry's has no problems whatsoever with taking someone's return (which they are returning because it is defective), shrink-wrapping it, slapping a 5% discount on the price, and selling it as new. You really do get what you pay for. Sure, you might save a few dollars on your purchase, but your chance of getting screwed goes up at least 50% IMO. This is part of the reason why I stayed away from those stores when I used to live near them.

i have shopped at frys many times and seen that 5% sticker many times. and if you read it, it does state that it was a customer return. so how are they selling it as new?
 
Yeah, I love MC. I got my 2500k, + Motherboard for only 200$. And It's OCed to 4.5ghz with no problems.
 
i have shopped at frys many times and seen that 5% sticker many times. and if you read it, it does state that it was a customer return. so how are they selling it as new?

I probably should have said "slap a 5% discount sticker on it OR sell it as new". I've seen them do either of these options, but not both. Either way, buyer beware.
 
You have a problem with a Manager's customer service? You call their corporate offices. You automatically assume that everyone that works at a Micro Center is technologically inclined; They aren't -- You should have opened the box when you grabbed it from it's shelf.
 
Not sure why anyone goes to Micro Center if it's an hour+ drive away. Time + gas isn't worth it to me IMO. Amazon just seems like a better solution for next time.

Nothing that Frys sells new is new. Would be hard to believe that Micro Center was any different.

I've seen a shrink swap machine at the Bestbuy customer service desk. They just take in the return, wrap it up and put it back.

I had to take back a defective screen protector for my phone the other day. They got into a fit with me because it was a disposable product. I'm thinking to myself, who cares, it's defective and you have no policy against this.

FYI I have heard of people getting used items off Amazon as well. But at least since it's a AAA e-tailor they will pay shipping the item back. Much better than a 1hr drive, although you may be out of the item for 1-2 days as they cross ship.

You are so wrong dude, before they shrink wrap it... The geek squad OPTIMIZES IT!!! NOW IT IS EVEN FREAKING BETTER THAN NEW.
 
Does it work? if it does get over it? Looks like one cable wasnt wrapped in plastic big deal.... Its a sata cable. Board is still in plastic right?

No offense but the Last thing id do is post it on a forum...
 
Microcenter is hit and miss, some of their locations (like the one here in KC) are pure awesome but people tell horror stories about other locations. I guess it all depends on the manager / employees.
 
Or should have just opened up a box in the store and grabbed another I/O shield lol.

Or you could have just contacted the manufacturer and they probably would have sent him a new I/O shield.

Have bought a few open box motherboards over the years with no accessories and the manufacturer's had no problem sending a free I/O shield. Sucks that the box was open but if it works not worth driving all the way back.
 
Microcenter sells stuff that is missing parts in a clearence section. I do not think they purposely resell open returned items. If the motherboard was not sealed in the box you should open it up. Not entirely your fault but B&M retailers do not really cater to people who travel long distances. It is just the reality of traveling a long distance to get something you want to make sure you got it. They will certainly take care of you just as home depot or walmart would. I have bought items from any one of those places and opened them to find out they were incomplete. I do not know if someone stole it, or it was never in the box, or a dense return clerk sent it back, but I do try to double check if I travel far for this very reason.
 
Yeah, If you live an hour away from MC as I do, personally, I would have just tried the mobo first rather than driving all the way up for an IO shield. It really doesnt make much of a difference other than blocking some dust and maybe making some ports easier to locate. You just paid $20 in gas probably just to feel better about a possible fully functional mobo and to get an IO shield. I find it kind of odd they almost didnt allow an exchange on the mobo but......You should have just said its faulty and they wouldnt be able to say anything. :p

All in all, I almost never shop at MC, mostly cause of how far away they are, but partly because of the fact they have among the worst return policies on mobos/cpu's. Id much rather shop at Frys, at least they allow returns. If MC didnt have their unbeatable mobo/cpu combo deals, id never go there.
 
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Or should have just opened up a box in the store and grabbed another I/O shield lol.

Right? Hell, I was asked by a MC employee why I was opening the motherboard boxes and didn't have any problems with it once I said "To make sure that the accessories are here". People are always irrational and blow everything out of proportions. *RABBLE, RABBLE* THERE'S NO I/O SHIELD IN HERE, IT'S NOT MY FAULT THAT I DIDN"T CHECK IN A STORE THAT'S AN HOUR AWAY! :eek:



Ugh.
 
Just bring it back and get a replacement.

But first, make sure that the SN on the mobo is the same SN on the box. One of my buddies bought a DOA board and tried to get a replacement. The SNs didn't match and they told him he was SOL. Also, the mobo boxes come unsealed from factory. If it was sealed it was done at the store. I always look inside the box for all included parts and matching SNs.
 
You have a problem with a Manager's customer service? You call their corporate offices. You automatically assume that everyone that works at a Micro Center is technologically inclined; They aren't -- You should have opened the box when you grabbed it from it's shelf.
I didn't grab it from the shelf. I reserved the items online. They were ready for me when I arrived there. I've always heard good things about Micro Center, so it didn't occur to me to need to make sure that I wasn't being sold a used motherboard. It was stupid of me, I know.
 
You gotta check and see if the stuff is there and or damaged. When I went the other day I looked thru 3 boxes before I picked my board. The first one was missing sata cables, the second had been rummaged thru and nothing was in the plastic, not even the board. I showed the rep and he sat them to the side then I found a good board.

I dont care where I go to buy something if it isn't plastic wrapped I open it up to prevent stuff like this form happening, especially if it is somewhere a hour away
 
MicroCenter is a reputable retailer, and it consistently offers the best prices on CPUs and motherboards. It would be foolish to spurn it (or any other retailer) because of one bad experience.

The real lesson is to ensure your items are satisfactory while you are in or near the store. And in my experience, MicroCenter has never had a problem with my opening items to inspect them before I make a purchase.

I think this is part of the problem. At the Microcenter in Boston (Cambridge), people just open shit up and check it, then poorly repackage it and stick the boxes back on the shelf. I think due to this, the employees are also fairly lenient on taking customer returns and then just popping them back on the shelf like nothing happened. Also MC customers at that store appear completely incapable of ever putting something back on the shelf where they took it from. Goods are just scattered all over the store. Some items like SSDs are kept behind a counter, but motherboard, power supplies, video cards, RAM, and cases are out in the open where anyone can dig through them.

The biggest problem I have at MC is that I keep running into situations where the scanned prices do not match the tags or advertised prices. Then when I bring this up during checkout, the employees are always like, "That's impossible!" and it takes them 10 minutes and a manager to fix the price.

For me it is a 2 hour drive to MC, so normally I won't go unless I also do something else like check out a Red Sox game or get a group of people together to go buy cheap hardware. Before we walk out of the store, we triple check the receipts and open up all of the boxes to check the contents.
 
Also MC customers at that store appear completely incapable of ever putting something back on the shelf where they took it from. Goods are just scattered all over the store. Some items like SSDs are kept behind a counter, but motherboard, power supplies, video cards, RAM, and cases are out in the open where anyone can dig through them.

people are like this at all stores, I think some microcenters just do not push their employees to keep it up through out the day. That is just the way things are in retail. Customers mess it up all day, and you grab what you can and put it back as you see it.

I certainly am not saying MC is great, they are just often the only place in 300 miles for alot of people that has all the computer stuff you can go and browse through.

One time I went around black friday and I was late in the day. Well the store had not closed yet and they had taken down ALL the prices for the day because they were getting ready for the weekend prices. I am sure they lost sales that day because I could not see the prices on anything.
 
I don't see the "this is on him" view.

Knowing that Micro Center regularly practices repacking returns and doing so wrongly is learned knowledge, not common sense. I wouldn't have thought to open a box in a retail store when I'm already expecting to buy a new item, unless there is a sticker or otherwise stating that it's not "new." I say give the guy a break.

Also, the Fry's I visit attaches stickers to every returned/used item. In fact, in the process of returning an item to Fry's, they place the sticker on the box or bag right in front of you.

To the op, I would really suggest making a phone call to report your experience. If my understanding is correct, Micro Electronics Inc. is the corporation that owns the Micro Center brand. This is their website, but I don't have any further details on how to contact them.

http://www.microelectronics.com/
 
I've had no problems with Microcenter here in Dallas but when I lived in NY, the Yonkers location was run by idiots. I purchased AMD processor that came with a Gift Card, they would not let me give the Gift Card to my friend to purchase the same item. I should have been able to do whatever I want with Gift Card. Also gave me problems with CPU/MOBO bundles. I ended up reporting the manager to corporate, Probably didn't do anything about it but I tried. Did it all at the New Jersey location with no problem. Wasted damn gas and toll money just to get deals :(
 
One time I bought a mobo from Frys and got it home and someone put their old board back in the box for a refund.. Fry's did take care of it though..
 
The Santa Clara, CA Micro Center is probably the best general PC store in the SFBA when it comes to service. The store is clean, well lit, and doesn't smell like the Palo Alto Fry's. The salespeople are relatively knowledgeable and well-kept individuals and they offer a much better selection on DIY components than Fry's. Have you seen Fry's PSU selection? Corsair and Antec, and then a bunch of terrible brands like Raidmax, Coolmax, etc. As well I can get the specific TIMs, fans, heatsinks and other boutique items there.

Central Computers in the bay area is also okay for the most part, but the staff is generally less engaging.

I buy parts online for the most part, but feel fortunate to have a Micro Center nearby.
 
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