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Richard of Roseville MI (04/24/08)
The E machine destroyed two motherboards and is sitting on the floor collecting dust. I repair computers. It would be one thing if I could replace the motherboard with one simmular to the imperial board, however the software is so preprietory that it will not work. I have been reading the complaints of this post. I do not own one. The reason is that THEY ARE JUNK. I had many come through my door.
No damage to me however my clients have too buy new a computer and I tell them DONT BUY AN E MACHINE or you will regret it. I reap the benefits of getting the machine to kick around.
Chuck of Columbai SC (04/13/08)
Bought an EMachine T5082 from Best Buy right when Vista came out. Just over a year later (of course) the monitor that came with it now has a very bad blur and everything on the monitor has a shadow to the right of it. I called E Machine to ask about the problems. I may as well have called the desert to ask for water.
They asked me for the date I purchased the machine. I read it to them straight off the receipt and the response I got was that date doesn't coincide with when we released that particular model...Say what? To make a long story short, they wanted me to fax the receipt to them, but the fax number they gave me DOES NOT WORK. This will be my first and last Emachine.
David of Land O Lakes FL (04/11/08)
I bought 2 E-machines in Dec. 2004, in June 2006 one of them wouldn't power up anymore.... just dead! Now today in April 2008 my second e-machine just died. Just dead. No power.... nothing. I guess I'm lucky the second one lasted a littler over 3 yrs compared to what I'm reading here. Never again will I buy an e-machine. I've had a Compaq and a HP for 5 years now and never had a problem. I won't even bother calling e-machine tech support.... I know they won't help. What a pile of crap these computers are.
Keith of Franklin VA (03/29/08)
I bought an Emachines T6420 in March of 2006. I began having problems with the machine some 15 months later. Small problems at first that progressed in to larger ones later. Originally my video would have a blue tint to everything. It would come and go. Very annoying. Later my video problems went from a blue tint to a very white one which made it hard to read anything on the screen. I would have to go in and reset the video brightness to low every time I booted up. This continued for 4 or 5 months. Now my machine will not restart at all and has to be turned on and off 4 or 5 times manually every time to boot up. After it does boot up my video is unstable. The colors are now correct but the video is very jumpy.
Also I cannot run some applications because my CPU usage goes straight to 100% usage and lags the system. During all of this I probably called Emachines support no less than 15 to 20 times. I found out that their support people are in the Philippines. They are completely oblivious to your problem every time you call. They have very little technical expertise and obviously read from a book or pre-generated sheet of processes to try. They are not only useless from a technical help standpoint but will do irreversible damage to your machine from the processes they insist you do.
After many calls to Emachines, I was told on every single occasion to use my restore disk. I did not do so because I was leery of losing information that had taken me several years to collect. I am an entertainer who uses my computer to build websites and design graphics for my musical group as well as others. On my latest attempt to correct my problem with Emachines support I was told to write zeros to my hardrive and start from scratch. With no where left to turn I did so. They assured me this would correct my problem and were very insistent that I do this. It did not fix my problems and I have now lost all of my information.
I have since found out from a friend in the computer business that my motherboard was the problem all along. Emachines told me on many occasions there was no way it was my motherboard. I have since found out from reading many many posts on the web that Emachines motherboards are famous for going bad 15 to 18 months after purchase due to cheaply made boards, underrated power supplies and cooling problems with the case. I believe that Emachines knows and has known this is a problem and continues to sell machines with design flaws. The MS-7202 motherboard is known to fail often and early and Power supplies on almost all emachines are a near 300 watts. This is not enough power for the stock onboard hardware during graphics intensive sessions nor is it anywhere near enough to be able to handle the majority of upgrades they say are available. Also the only Power supply upgrade they offer is a 350 watt supply which will not power 95% of the graphics cards available.
Marci of Pinellas Park FL (03/21/08)
Two years ago, I bought an Emachine t6216 desktop. About a year later I started having problems with it shutting down on its own and coming back on. After that I've changed my power supply like every 2 days to every week. Then my motherboard goes a little after that. So I get a new motherboard installed, and I still have the power supply blowing up every week. I'm tired of buying new and stronger supplies. Why is that happening?
Sherri of Flat Rock MI (03/11/08)
I purchased an EMachine T6216 2 yrs. ago. Last month things started going wrong. First the video and network card, so I replaced them and then all of a sudden, 1 week later, the power supply and motherboard are toast. This is ridiculous, you know the product is not going to last and we are not rich people who can go out and buy another computer and they definitely do not stand behind their product. A computer should last more than 2 yrs. I have bought EMachines ever since I have had a computer and this is a first time I have had a problem. So now I am sitting here with a piece of JUNK and money down the drain because they won't do anything to fix it and then I find out that even though my computer is 2 yrs old, the motherboard is 4 yrs old and they don't make them anymore. So now what? I can't even get a replacement part for it. I think this is very wrong and I won't be buying another EMachine again.
Madonna of St. Louis MO (03/03/08)
I have sent in my computer for repairs three times in the year since I purchased it, and it still does not operate correctly. They told me to send in back in for the fourth time, and they would send me a replacement computer (not new). I called the corporate offices today to find out where the computer was, and a person named Shane was extremely rude with his tone of voice and snippy comments, questioning why it took me so long to send it back in. He would not give me his supervisor's name or the name of the person to address a complaint about him. When I asked who the president was (of the company), he glibly stated, Bush, and I could hear him snickering in the background. (That was from the second person I talked to when I called back named Steve, who I strongly suspect was the same person.)
I have spent numerous hours long distance on my dime trying to get help with this defective computer. I have had to disconnect and pack up the computer 4 times. They are sending me a replacement computer which I fully expect to be another piece of junk. It is not easy for me to bend down, disconnect, pick up and load the computer into a box with my medical condition, four separate times!
Pauline of Cedar Rapids IA (02/09/08)
I bought my emachine 2/4/07 at bestbuy in cedar rapids Iowa. I didn't buy the extended warranty with it and I'm sorry I didn't, but I'm not sure it would even help me. About 2 months after I got it, it started running really slow and freezing up, not wanting to open up the internet. I called emachines and they informed me it was a microsoft issue so I called microsoft and they informed me it was an emachines problem. So I was just stuck not knowing what was wrong. My cable internet provider assured me my internet was fine, I even had it checked with my friend's laptop.
Here's what I finally decided to do after the last 3 months of it running even slower than usual. I had my friend look at it see if we could put xp on it so it might run right like it should but he couldnt because it wouldnt see the hard drive. So I called emachines to see if I could get a XP disk for my T5224 machine and steve at emachines told me there's no xp disk for it and xp couldn't be put on it and since my waranty was up 5 DAYS ago there was nothing he could do for me except don't load up any programs on it as that may be slowing it down. Since I wiped the hard drive and reinstalled the vista disk that came with the machine all I put on it was norton antivirus and the canon printer that came with it. That's all and it's way slow again. I am so disappointed in this company for not standing behind their PCs that I wish I could afford to sue them. As I'm not a wealthy woman, I cannot afford to buy another computer. This was it for our family and we got burned.
Shakieta of Lawrenceville GA (02/08/08)
My husband and I purchased an emachine T3958 almost three years ago and all of a sudden it just crashed. Called Emachines and they said it sounds like the power supply. I purchased a power supply online and successfully installed it. Once installed, my computer still didn't come. As I began searching online there was so many complaints stating the power supply that emachines used in their computer was the worse and once it goes bad it kills and burns the motherboard along with it. Many computer companies online have already figured out this problem but Emachines is not doing anything about it.
Physical damage as I have no computer anymore. It is sad
Dave of Edmonton OTHER (01/22/08)
I bought my eMachine 6 months ago and have had less problem with it than ANY other computer I have ever laid my hands on.
I spent 3 years working as a system administrator providing network and end-user support and I have seen some real junk. This T3522 has worked flawlessly since I got it with no hardware upgrades required and no software tweaking whatsoever. I use it daily and wouldn't hesitate to buy another or recommend it to anyone.
George of Makawao HI (01/17/08)
Contrary to the experience of the other folks, I've had excellent luck with my E-Machine computers. I've owned 6-7 of them... When I buy a new one, I give the old one to friends and family. I use their tech support as necessary, and have no complaints, except the occasional language problems with Indian techs. My wife and I add more RAM,upgrade the power supply, and modify them as necessary. Other than the occasional fan replacement, not much has been needed.
Dexter of Louisville KY (01/16/08)
My wife and I purchased an Emachine PC about 1 year ago and we purchased the extended plan as well. Thank goodness we did because within the year it's been back twice for a defective motherboard. It was replaced at no charge to us, but I can imagine the price if we didn't have the service plan. I'll never purchase another Emachine product. I work in electronics repairing electronic equipment and I know how components can fail for no reason. But to have a new pc at the time we purchase it was one of the top ones. All together it cost up 1500 bucks including the plan. I'm very disappointed in Emachine failure to put out a better, reliable product.
Cheryl of Reseda CA (12/28/07)
Computer locks up, mouse freezes, information booklet with system is poor, to say the least. Not happy with the Vista program. Do not find the system user friendly. If my XP hard drive had not crashed twice in 13 months, I would NEVER have purchased this--and it is only three months old
Not being able to use system, not being able to get through to emachine by phone (after holding FOREVER), poor email response from them.
Ellie of Bristol NH (12/27/07)
I purchase an Emachine computer from Walmart on October 24, 2007. It has only been 2 months and already it is having problems. It's slow, freezes, etc. Since it has been pass the 15 day return policy they won't let me return it. I don't have any money to fix it, what can i do? This is ridiculous, we paid enough for the computer, and the internet services, it shouldn't be acting up 2 months after buying it.
Joyce of Dallas TX (12/22/07)
I am having hardware problems with my cd rom drive. I called emachine on 10-2-07 and spoke with Katie, with Nathan, and mailed mine to emachine for repairs. Emachine received. my system, and they installed the wrong cd drive; they ended up repairing/installing my dvd wrong. I received the system back, and the same problem exists. I called and spoke with supervisor Marybeth who advised me that my regirtra needed to be done. Per Corey, the regirtra applies to the Vista system only. Corey said the will ship out a container so that I can return my system again for repair on 12-22-07. This has been ongoing for 3 months, and I'm tired.
Adam of Melbourne FL (12/10/07)
We bought an Emachine in January of 2006, everything has been great, especially since we have added memory to it and added other things to it. But recently at the end of September 2007, we experienced something we never thought would happen: the mother board fried. Took it back to Best Buy because we have an ESP with them, thank God. But they kept the computer for 3 weeks, got it back knowing that it was the motherboard that had fried. Was advised by a friend who works on computers to have them check the power supply if it occurred again, which of course 3 weeks after getting it back. It fried AGAIN! Now we took it back, they shipped it out, said it was the motherboard again, so they replaced it and then we got it back 3 additional weeks later. Just the other day--a month or so after it was fixed last--it has fried ONCE AGAIN!
We are awaiting to find out what happened this time. We are assuming it is the mother board again, but Best Buy is saying that we have to wait for it to occur a 4th time before they replace the computer. Why should I wait when I have an ESP with Best Buy? Service the computer and protect it like it should be! Build something that is reliable.
Eva of Verdunville WV (12/05/07)
I bought an Emachine from Wal-mart and this machine is junk. The modem is really loud and it won't do anything. I don't even get to use it half the time. It is really slow and it is not my internet service as they have been here 2 times already, so it is the computer. I will never recommend it to anybody. My sister has one and my son with the same problems. I can't download anything as it makes it slower. So now I guess I will go buy a laptop like my other son has as I have to use it now anyways.
Dale of Apopka FL (11/26/07)
I guess I am one of the few lucky ones. My emachine lasted a little over 3 years before the power supply died and took the hard drive and mother board with it. I online chatted with support only to be told it was out of warranty and they would do nothing.
Earl of Las Vegas NV (11/16/07)
I bought an emachine unit in Dec. 2005, and it died in Jan. 2007. I was told by a repair shop it was the motherboard/power supply. When I called emachines, because it was just out of warranty they had no advice for me. One would think with so many people having the same problem they would do a recall. The model is W3107.
Emachines, you took people's money and won't stand behind your product. A new computer should last a lot more than one year.
I have a wife at home with cancer and the computer was her only livelihood. We can't buy another one right now so we borrow her daughter's. Deceit, that's what it is.
Jeffrey of Prestonsburg KY (11/05/07)
I bought an Emachine from Circuit City in the spring of '06, and now it has lost the power supply and the mother board. They won't even talk to me about it. I feel that $1,700.00 American dollars were just given away. Circuit City won't fix or repair the machine. I have been faithful to Emachine over the last 10 years and bought 3 new systems. NEVER again will Gateway get any of my money. Don't spend your money on an Emachine. They don't stand behind their products AT ALL.
Michelle of Goodview VA (10/23/07)
Purchased E Machine model # T6410on 7/19/05. In summer of '07 I kept getting error messages. Spent 6 hours on phone with Symantec and could not successfully reload firewall. Called Emachines about system restore with the disks that were provided to be burned as back-up and was told to pay $20 for their restore disk. I thought something was fishy when they told me this. I paid and waited for several months, not wanting to do a restore because of all I'd lose. Finally I used the disk they sent and all appeared to be good, but the MSWorks is no longer to be found. I'll never go back to Best Buy and I can honestly state that I won't buy emachine products again.
No word processor after restore, paid $20 for a disk that should've been provided upon purchase, for full restores!
Greg of Tampa, FL (10/17/07)
I purchased an Emachine tower case computer model T5082 on April 20th.
Needed a new power supply on June 5. Needed a new power supply in July. Needed a new power supply in August and at that point was returned to the factory for a new PS and motherboard. As of Oct 17, it's dead again.
Ron of Merchantville NJ (10/07/07)
i purchased an Emachine in june of 2006 and just last week the thing went down and after reading what other people wrote about there emachines they all seem to have the same problem some where along the line the power supply craps out and causes damage to other parts of the unit.
i also contacted the company and all i recived was a bunch of lip service and was told the unit is 3 months out of warranty so they dont want to do any thing about it the more i tried to get any kind of help with them it seemed like i was running into a brick wall they could have cared less about the whole thing and now i see why.
Jack of Knoxville TN (06/09/07)
Bought an E machine. Worked great for over a year. Then one day Power Monitor appeared on screen. It did this a few times and died. Put in new power supply & nothing happens. E machines said it was all over. I read the motherboard could be bad, but you have to buy new software with one and the SW is $199. Tower is T 2642.
It died a sudden death.
Deric of West Alexander PA (04/09/07)
Bought an e machine on 1/31/07 put in the upgrade disk they sent with it on 2/15/07. Lost all the e machine hardware. Called and tech support said I had to pay $20.00 for the recovery disk. It is now 4/09/07, still no disk. I was told they were on back order, then told they shipped, then told back order. Have a brand new computer that wont do anything.
Tina of Whitney TX (03/31/07)
I bought a emachine computer in 2004 it was fine for the first two months then i turned the computer off unpluged and the computer would not come back on. I called emachines and they mailed me a box at no cost to me and mailed my computer back fixed and working.two weeks later I had the same problem so I called in again and they sent me another box to mail in my computer to fix.and now we are having a no power at all. and now the warranty is out.
William of Skowhegan ME (03/23/07)
Purchased an e/Machine for over $1,000 and I have had to make continuous REPAIRS, now totaling over $1,700.
Michael of Melrose Park, IL (03/22/07)
All of a sudden my emachine would not power up. No lights, no sound, nothing. The thing is dead and it's only a little over a year old.
Emachine does not answer emails, and completely ignores all inquiries.
Anthony of Flushing MI (03/16/07)
I purchased a emachine in Feburary 2005. The very first time I turned it on and registered it, I began to have problems. My computer has been sent back and forth to the corporate office and also technical support office. My computer was brand new and I could not get them to fix it the first time. Technicians would try to help but I would end up sending it back due to just being a troubled computer. Emachine has all my notes which if read by anyone with a heart would understand I have been treated improperly.
Michael of Sheridan, WY (03/04/07)
I bought an emachine April 15, 2003 and as of August of 2006 the motherboard and power supply went bad at the same time. They told me it would cost me about $500 to have them fix it.
Michael of Sheridan WY (03/04/07)
I bought an emachines computer, April 15, 2003 and as of August of 2006 the motherboard and power supply went bad at the same time. I called the company and they told me that it would cost me about $500.00 to have them fix it for me that also includes sending it to them. Or I could spend $450.00 and fix it myself. They aslo told me that I only had a 1 year Warranty.
Eric of Des Moines IA (03/04/07)
I am in the middle of rebuilding an EMachines computer for my folks and I ran into one MAJOR problem. I replaced the motherboard, processor and power supply. EMachines installed Windows on the machine and did not supply me with a disc. I called the customer support number to try to get a disc from them and the customer service representative would not proceed to send me one.
Glorilyn of Morrisville, PA (01/17/07)
I bought an emachine t2385 desktop computer about 3 years ago. Just recently the power supply went. So I bought a new power supply and realized that my computer was still not working.
The power supply burning out fried my motherboard and now I need a new computer. Curious about this I looked online and found that this same problem had affected many other emachine buyers to the point of people suggesting that as soon as you get an emachine to replace the power supply immediately as it WILL go out and it WILL destroy your computer.
Dinh of Garden Grove CA (12/23/06)
I buy the Emachine (T2542) about 2 years ago, it operate good until last month. The power Supply gone bad. And it bring along with it the mother board.
So I go to the internet to research about the model T2542. Many people have the same problem with the model T2542. When the power supply and motherboard usually gone bad the same time So I went to buy new power supply and new motherboard. Install it completely. But i have the problem with the window XP, So i Call the customer service to see if they can help me to solve the problem or they can provide me the window xp that suitable with new motherboard that i just brought. Because i think it Emachine computer and they have to have responsibility for it. But what they told me is I have to buy a same motherboard that i have before, With is no longer exist, or if Emachine have it, it worth about 100 - 150 buck (i can buy one with 19.99 buck and with the video card 30 buck). Another way is i have to buy the brand new Operating system? Many people have the same problem with Emachine computer
John of Laurens SC (11/01/06)
Computer has been shipped to repair depo in nashville, tn. twice. They sent one part for me to install and now have requested a credit card number to send out part that is under warranty for me to install again. I tried to complain to supervisor at tec support but they keep you on hold til you get tired and hang up.
Donna of Cleveland, GA (10/16/06)
We gave our son an eMachine on Christmas Day 2005. Since then we have shipped the computer back to emachines 10 (TEN) times. They finally told us they would send us a new computer. When we received it, it was refurbished-NOT NEW!!
We purchased a new machine with a one year warranty and they sent us a refurbished machine with a 90 DAY warranty. This is unacceptable!!!
We called corporate office and could not get passed Matt, the guy that answered the phone for customer service. They refused to give us any other phone numbers or the names of THEIR supervisors who might could help us. Their policy says (according to MATT) that they only replace with REFURBISHED computers.
Jaycee of Hopkinsville, KY (10/01/06)
I purchased my emachine in May of 2006 and just before three months of home use, it would not turn on. I called the company. Got a rude young man who sounded like he might be 12 or 14 years old.
When I asked questions, I received a sharp, Yup! or nope! After trying one repair, that didn't work, we were instructed to put the case back together and they would have to send us a power source replacement. When we were asked if we could install that ourselves, I said no, so we were told to send it in for repair.
I asked if I could just get my money back as I only had the computer for less than three months. I was again told, Nope! We sent it in and got it back about six weeks later. They said the power source was replaced as well as the mother board.
It worked another month. Same problem happed. Now, I don't know whether to call and try to send it back or to just chalk up my problem and trash this piece of trash.
Johnny of Seattle, WA (09/08/06)
I spent several hundred dollars to purchase an EMachine. It worked ok for about 3 months, but then it got a so-called virus. Now, I have restored PCs before after they have received viruses and they restore, but not an Emachine. No matter what ,it does not come back and now for no reason it doesn't even want to turn on when you switch it on!!!!!
I called the Emachine customer support for help but to no avail cause they stated that they could not assist me.
Lael of Tonasket, WA (08/26/06)
The computer was purchased in 2004, used three months and then stored. After 2 more months of use the computer repairman told us the motherboard was fried.
The technical assistance people told my daughter that she could not expect a $400 computer to last 2 years. Of course, it did not matter that it had not even lasted 5 months of actual use.
Maria of Hayward, CA (08/20/06)
I purchased my M5309 in Feb 2003. It worked pretty good at first but the 2nd year it started to die on me. I thought it was just over heating or had some virus, so I took it to a computer shop for repair 3 times and each time I paid $80.
The last incident was the power cord catching on fire. Luckily I was able to unplug it before it caused me more damage.
This computer purchase was a dissapointment.
Pamela of San Antonio TX (08/16/06)
I am writing this complaint to voice my disappointment with my eMachine I purchased some time in October of 2000 or 2001, a T2085. I had just a few problems in the beginning and immediately contacted tech support. I received a case id and they worked diligently to try to get the problem resolved. About a year and a half ago my computer just died, nothing was happening. I know a little about computers so I concluded that the problem was the Power Supply. Luckily, I had already purchased a Compaq Laptop in July of 2002 and used it for my University assignments. My desktop computer remained unused for repairs until a few months ago. I installed the new Power Supply, Fan, and Battery. Well, needless to say the computer does not work. It seems as though the power switch/connector is faulty
The consequences are that will will have to purchase another desktop without having full use of the eMachine I purchased and I have not been able to retrieve any of my information from the eMachine. Also, why was I not notified of the serious problems eMachine was having with their products?
Craig of Pocatello, ID (08/13/06)
I have a Emachines M6805 with little use, but had cracks in the hinges that formed. This is a common issue with these computers, as many have identified the problem on the net. Emachines fixed this problem for me in April, however the LCD is now intermittently flickering, another common problem. Emachines determined they are not going to fix this problem, which occurs due to a design flaw in the video interface cable, as the laptop is out of warranty.
The laptop is hardly useable due to the distraction of the screen changing brightness constantly. The laptop has seen very mild use.
Timothy of O'fallon, MO (06/19/06)
In March of 2004 we purchased an eMachines Notebook, and also purchased a $189 3-year extended warranty. In the past few months keys have spontaneously been falling off, and won't stay on if they are put back.
When I called the warranty dept they said to send it in. After holding the computer for over a week, we got a call today that someone had determined that the computer was damaged and that the warranty does not cover it, but if we give them $67 they can fix it.
There was no damage. The keys came off during normal use.
The man at eMachines said that if we don't have the keys fixed it will nulify the warranty, and if something else does not work, then they will not fix it.
Chuck of Sioux Falls, SD (05/12/06)
I purchased an Emachine T6524 in December 2005. It ran okay for a couple of weeks and then the monitor started to flicker and flash. The f&f is less now, but the monitor is a brilliant pink hue. Pink printing on pink background. Pink photos.
Emachine's support is dreadfully slow to connect and quick to disconnect. One of their techs did stay on the line with me long enough to type a few suggestions but all of the suggestions were garbage.
Obviously, the Emachine T6524 is useless and I will need to toss it and buy a decent PC.
Lynn of San Diego CA (05/03/06)
My computer stopped working so I took it in to a computer repair shop to have it repaired. I have owned this computer for about 2 years and it does not have a warranty. The repairman told me that there were 3 other emachines in the shop with the same problem. He said the power supply barely met the had adequate power to run this computer.
The motherboard and power supply blew up. I wrote emachines and asked them for a refund of over $200 to fix this problem because it was a product defect and not my fault.
Marnie of Kingsher OK (04/24/06)
I purchased an emachine in january the power supply blew up but the store exchanged. Within a month of getting the new computer it blew up also. I sent my emachine in to be fixed and they refused to fix it and voided the warranty because they found some roaches in the case. They said roaches in my case were misuse and abuse of my computer. They won't even send me the parts to fix it.
I am out 400.00 that might not be much to some people but that is alot of money to me.
Richard of Dallas TX (02/14/06)
After I unpacked the computer and started it up it locked up. I called emachines technical support. they walked me through many steps to determine if it was a software problem or hardware. I am also a computer tech and both he and I determined that it was most likey a motherboard problem or memory. he put that in the notes and asked them to change the motherboard. I sent it in they changed the dvd drive and sent it back to me.
It continuously locked up again and so I called and went throgh it again. I sent it a second time and they changed the memory. i got it back the second time and it wouldnt boot at all. I called a third time and the gentleman told me that becuase I had had so much trouble they would just swap me out with a new computer to resolve this issue. I sent it in a third time and when it came back it was the same machine and the had swaped the CPU instead.
Each time the tech answering the phone instructed them to swap the motherboard and they did not. I called the fourth time and spoke to a manager. I expressed that I was unhappy with their support and that I had had a computer I could not use for 2 months so far. I asked about the "new" computer that I was supposed to have gotten back instead and he informed me that that was not their policy and that they did not make that claim. The manager was rude and could care less if I got my issue resolved. All he cared about was stating policy to me.
I had to complain and be less than cordial to him to get him to transfer me to their USA technical department. they assured me they would take care of this matter. I have yet to receive the shipping box and feel that this matter is in incompetent hands.
Norman C of Boiling Springs SC (02/10/06)
Purchased an EMachine, model T3958, on 11/26/2005. Since the piracy laws, any new computer purchase doesn't come with hard copies of applications, like Windows XP, Nero DVD applications, Microsoft Suites, etc. So I had to go through EMachine's procedure to make a backup of system's original configurations; hence the Recover CDs. Well, guess what, the procedure failed because it couldn't complete all four blank CDs. In other words, it just kept wasting my blank CDs and DVDs. I called Tech Support, mentioned my problem, and even asked them to walk my through. To me, it seems fair, because I just bought the unit. Well, they walked me through and it failed also. They then, after putting me on hold for 15 minutes, came back to me and said that they'll send me the Recovered CDs for free.
Note these are not blanks. So I asked if there's anything they need from me. "No", since they already have my info and the serial number of the unit. A month went by, by end of December 2005, I called to inquire status of CDs. Operator #71040 (forgot her name), kept putting me on hold on every question. Finally she came back and asked for my credit card number. Why, I asked. Because the CDs are not free ($20). Now normally I would pay for it, but by principle, the unit is still under warranty and I didn't cause the problem. So I argued with her, to which she put me on hold again.
She came back 15 minutes later and said that she checked with her supervisor and there's no such thing as free CDs. I reiterated that I was not the one who originally offered myself the free CDs. And again why should I have to pay? She again put me on hold then came back after 15 minutes. She would not yield. So I brought up the idea of warranty. What if I request a service call and have the unit sent back to them so they can figure it out. Again she put me on hold and came back after 15 minutes. She proceeded to say, to my surprise, that she checked my S/N and it's outside the warranty period. How? I bought it a month ago!
No, she said, there's no proof of that and all she can go with is the build date of the unit which is just over one year. So I asked what is the procedure to proof that I bought the damned thing a month ago. She gave me a fax number and asked me to fax proof. At this point I was furious so I tried one more jab. I told her if it this much trouble for $20, I'll just get my money back. She again put me on hold and came back later. She said EMachine won't do that; I've to bring my unit back to the store I purchased from.
All the above took roughly two hours (long distance call), and my last trial was to request to speak to her supervisor to which she said a minimum of 45 minutes wait. I said "Just let me speak to your supervisor". She put me on hold and I immediately hung up. We all know where this is leading and I decided to not waste my time anymore.
Richard of Chicago Heights IL (12/12/05)
Computer crashed three times in first year. No help from tech support. I had to buy discs to reboot. 16 months old, the power supply went out and took the motherboard with it. Parts are not offered for a 16-month-old computer.
B.j. of Battle Creek, MI (11/28/05)
Purchased a new e-machine from Best Buy about 21 months ago. Model number T2792 S/N QIV3B60500661 Problem...no power in the unit called e-machines they said the power source in the unit is bad. They sold me a new one for $30. I installed and had power but that's all. The unit would still not work although the power light is now on.
I called again, emachine told me a "lot of times the mother board goes out along with the power source". Why didn't they tell me that when I bought the power source? Emachine customer service advise me to call Parts to order the mother board. I did and they informed me the mother board is obsolete. I could not believe I have a computer less then two years old that is junk. I will send back the power source but I'm sure they won't even give me credit for it. I will never but another product made by Emachines.
Steven of Colorado Springs CO (11/22/05)
My eMachine computer quit working early Oct. It was purchsed 2/20/2004 with a 2 year warranty. Initial diagnosis was a bad power supply; they sent a new one, I installed it and it still did not work. I then returned the computer at their request, they diagnosed it as a bad motherboard. Motherboard replaced, computer returned. Case arrived cracked and it would not load Windows XP due to wrong authentication code. It was then diagnosed as wrong motherboard installed and I returned computer.
It has been in their possession now for over 3 weeks. I am unable to find out when if ever I will receive the computer. They say motherboard is back-ordered. I am unable to contact them via chat room, it will not connect. Tech service says I have my computer and give me a FedEx tracking number. ( this was for the first time it was returned with the cracked case and wrong motherboard) They have no addtl info. I was instructed to call back on 11-21 and talk to a supervisor who would be able to give me an ETA for the computer. After waiting for 1 hour on the phone, I was unable to contact a supervisor.
Later in the day I called back and was told a supervisor would call me between 6 and 9 PM MST on 11-22. This has not happened. I am not sure they even have my computer since they send a prepaid box with no tracking nbr. I have no idea what my recourse is other than going back to the retailer (Costco) and seeing what they can do.
Michael of Lake Charles LA (10-17-04):
I cannot restore my daughter's computer from eMachines' restore CD, cannot get assistance from them without paying MORE money -- horrible support system.
Instead of a working computer, I got a useless pile of sputtering wires and a lot of shiny unusable restore CDs. I feel eternal frustration and wish that eMachines would go out of business. I would sue if I could.
Joseph of Cortland NY (10-07-04):
eMachines will not honor 2 year warranty I bought my computer on 12-27-2003. eMachines demanded I buy an extended warranty. I sent many e-mails, but they will not respond beyond the first e-mail.
Now I can't use my computer because it has a defective hard drive. I'm on disability, so I don't have money to buy a new hard drive and hire some to install it. That's why I have a warranty.
Peter of Issaquah WA (08-17-04):
I needed to restore my C1641 emachine, which was out of warranty. One of the restore disks was bad, and after speaking to eMachines, I was told to have a computer store check it out. They told me that the restore disk was defective, and charged me $76.00.
Then, upon calling eMachines, I was told that they wanted $20.00 for the disk. I asked to talk to a supervisor and was told that if I did, that would cost $20.00 more.
No wonder Gateway is losing market share. I buy another computer a least once or twice a year for our operation, and I will NEVER but either Gateway or eMachine PC again. They seem to be hard up for money, but it'll cost them a lot more in future because of their anticonsumer attitude.
Lori of Freehold NJ (07-20-04):
I purchased two computers the week of December 24th 2003 for my two young children for Christmas. There were problems with both computers the day that they were opened. Since I was just past 14 days of original purchase Best Buy would not allow me to return them. eMachines refused to fix unless I bought their warranty program. Otherwise, I had to fix myself and send computer to them.
I have had huge problems with both eMachines, including power supply problems, board problems, an inoperable DVD player, not being able to shut machines off, machines turning on for no reason, scratchy sound and machines shutting down for no reason. Then there's the missing rebate checks, rude staff that hangs up, doesn't return calls and gives you the "run around", then sends back computers claiming they are fixed when they are still broken. I have been extremely patient and cannot believe how unprofessional and deceitful this company is.
At one point they kept my deposit ($75.00) for a bad part that I returned. I exceeded the 14 day "fix it yourself" time frame by one week, and they kept my money. I was never warned about this policy when they took my credit card info.
After numerous problems, I demanded that eMachines take back both computers and fix them on site. I sent out two computers to get fixed. Two computers came back to me and only one computer worked. I connected one of the two computers, but not the other, because I discovered that the monitor was not working. The next day I received another computer, so now I am not sure which of these are mine. Next, eMachines called to tell us that they sent the wrong computer, and whether we could we send it back. eMachines was not aware that I had three machines. They thought I had two.
After determining serial numbers I told eMachines that if they sent me another monitor, I would send them back the extra computer. eMachines sent me back a damaged monitor (plastic in right corner broken off) but it worked. When I connected the computer to the new damaged monitor, however, I discovered that the computer was never fixed and would not even turn on. After numerous calls without a response we finally got some results (or so we thought). My husband asked if the extra machine in the box was new, and if so could we just keep that one and send back the broken one and call it even. The rep said yes. I got on the phone and also questioned the rep. "Are you sure that the machine is new? Because I was told we had someone else's machine and they needed it back." Yes, he said, it is brand new. So he proceeded to change serial numbers in his computer.
The next day my husband ships out our new but broken computer, and that evening after hooking up what we though was a new computer I discovered that we were in posession of someone else's computer!! We contacted eMachines again and were promised repeatedly that it was being handled. A Senior Tech Rep named Sunshine called, and she refused to give me address/phone number of corporate office. She promised a phone call within 48 hours.
When no call came after 4 days I went surfing through the other person's computer to locate her email address. I found it, then sent her a note explaining that I had her computer and maybe we could work together to resolve. Her husband contacted me and gave me corporate's number in Utah.
eMachines contacted me in response to the other family's phone call to them. I last spoke with Christine (corporate office Utah) who wanted me to send out computer while I waited for them to find mine, fix and send back. I told her that I will send back the computer when she sends me mine, fixed. She argued with me and told me that I was hurting an innocent party and was holding their computer hostage. She told me that she wanted to speak with my husband (to whom she had originally presented her offer) and would no longer speak with me. I told her that that would not be possible and she hung up on me. This evening I discovered that the other computer that we thought was fixed was shutting down for no reason, so apparently both computers were never repaired.
Do I have any recourse to get my money back? Both computers were hardly touched because they were always broken. Also, did they break the law by trying to pass off a used machine as new?
Dawn of North Mankato MN (06-22-04):
I bought the M6809 notebook on May17-04 from Best Buy as a gift for my husband to do his online schooling. My husband fell and broke his leg and has not been able to do schooling. So we have been using the notebook to do just basic things e-mail and surfing.
On June 18, 2004 I noticed that the hinges that connect the screen to the base are cracked on both sides. Looking at it you can clearly see that the cracks are stress cracks. So we took it back to Best Buy. They were of no help due to the 14 day return/ exchange policy on all computer related products. They said contact eMachines, so I called them. But they were also no help either, saying that is is a physical problem with the notebook and that the warranty does not cover physical damage.
The first tech referred me to another, only to have him tell me how much it is to have it fixed at MY expense. Now, remember that it has only been a month. The second tech also said that they could do nothing.
We paid $1600 for this machine, and now are stuck with it to wait and see how long it will take for the screen to break due to the cracks. I admit it was my fault for buying the machine and not checking, but I wanted to surprise my husband and did not want to wait.
As of now I will never buy anything to do with eMachines, and I will tell anyone I come in contact with that they are a crap company that does not stand behind their product. And obviously Best Buy is also at fault for having such a bad policy of only 14 days return/repair on computer related products. They must also know what kind of companies they are buying from and do not care. They are out to make a buck from anyone they can at everyone's expense.
Lisa of Omega GA (01-22-04):
Last year my husband and I purchased a new eMachines T-1980 from Circuit City. Our home had recently been destroyed by fire, only 3 weeks after Christmas. My 9 yr. old daughter had gotten a new computer for Christmas which was now gone. We decided that no matter how tight things were, that we would get her a new one.
Well, we did, and only 3 weeks after the warranty was up, I was doing a systems upgrade when it shut down during the process, never to boot up again. We get only a continuous beep. eMachines has been of NO help at all. Nobody at Tech Support will even answer my questions without me paying them $20.00 first, or sending them the computer at my expense.
I now owe $800.00 for a piece of garbage that doesn't work, my daughter has no computer for her homework, and we haven't the money to replace it. And if we let it go back, then it will ruin our credit. We need our credit -- that's about all that we still own. Please don't make the same mistake! Do not purchase an eMachine, period.
Margaret of Portland OR (10/28/03):
I puchased an eMachines computer in October of 2000. I had problems with it immediately, especially on the internet, where the screen continually froze among other problems. After about 30 hours of bungled advice from "tech support" I was advised to take an action which caused it to crash altogether. I sent the computer back to be replaced.
Seven months after I originally bought the computer I got the new one back, after again having to make numerous phone calls to find out what had happened to it, as it was lost in their shipping process. I have had just as many problems with the replacement computer. I considered looking into the $99 upgrade, but have decided it would cost me less in the long run to shell out $1000 for a system from some other, any other company.
I spent several months without a working computer or internet access. I have spent hundreds of dollars on diagnostics and probably 80 hours of my time on the phone with tech support. I would have been much better off without the emachine computer and vehemently discourage anyone I know from buying one.
Yvette of West Richland WA writes (10/24/01):
The third computer I've been sent from eMachines had a defective hard drive. Number one had a defective DVD drive. Number 2, straight out of the box, had a defective sound card AND A: drive. We bought a sound card and kept the computer, thinking that number 3 may be worse even?
So after dealing with this for 8 mos or so, the CD Burner went kaput. I called and was sent a 3rd computer from eMachines. Mind you, these are "refurbished" at this point ... well guess what? The hard drive, instead of purring away like normal, went KAPLUNK KAPLUNK and froze.
I called eMachines. Talked to a VAUGHN there in CA. Told him, this is getting downright ridiculous! I said, we'd put in a hard drive if the company would send us one. He said no, that isn't how we do things but he authorized a $90.00 purchase for a "15 gig hard drive". Well we went shopping at Best Buy and found a great deal on a 40 gig! Since we knew that a $90.00 check was on its way we bought this one, for $119. Then faxed VAUGHN our receipt as he'd instructed. We waited and waited, check never comes. FINALLY we are told, again by VAUGHN that he's mailed it to the wrong address? Someone else got my $90.00 check?
He promised to send out another check. Waited and waited. Mind you, we bought the hard drive on August 2nd. Now its October 24th and a few days ago a check arrives for $75.00! Missing $15.00? So I filled out a complaint form. I get an email today apologizing but "Vaughn authorized only $75.00 reimbursement"! So not only am I out $15.00 but eMachines has once again proven how slimey they are to deal with.
I'm sick of eMachines, their faulty computers, and empty promises. We are out well OVER the $15.00 that got chopped off the "reimbursement". I'd like to sue them for the price of this substandard product.
Janice of St. Paul MN (10/23/01):
Bought emachine 633 in November of 2000. In January of 2001 I had trouble with my computer and had to send it back to the manufactors to be fixed. I got my computer back and it has been acting funny ever since. On October 21,2001 it kept popping up with a serious msg so I contacted emachine support and they told me that i had a refurbished computer and that they could do nothing for me.
I told them that I did not buy a refurbished computer, and that i had bought it brand new from circuit city. I asked the support help if Circuit City had sold me a refurbished computer and he said yes. So I called circuit city and explained to them what had happened and they would look into it for me. Circuit City had found out that when you send your computer back to emachine what happens is that you do not get your computer back that you send them, you end up getting someone else's computer back that has been worked on.
I called and spoke to one of the managers there and he comfirmed what Circuit City had told me. I feel as a consumer that is totally wrong and unethical of them to do. First of all I spent $1200.00 on my computer and only had the computer for 2 months, and I get someone else's back, not my own. The supervisor I spoke with was not at all understanding and was not willing to help me out in no way or form.
John of Kingwood TX writes (7/22/01):
I bought 2 emachines from Best Buy in Humble, TX. One of them I gave to my mother that lives 200 miles away. That computer will not shut down without pulling the plug (she is very old and has trouble doing this!)
I bought PCAnywhere to try to help her diagnose the problems from afar, but that turned out to be useless since the computer "hangs up" on attempting to shutdown and restart. I did some research on the net about the "shutdown" problem. Possible causes included a defective sound file etc. I made a trip to Mom's house ... disabled all sounds, checked drivers and so forth. The problem is now back with again!
After finding this site, I am now convinced that the problem is related to the power supply and other "cheap" components. I guess one could say "you get what you pay for", but on the other hand I am disappointed that a company like Best Buy would put such "crap" on their shelves without first checking it out! They have always been good about taking back defective merchandise and I plan to take this "piece of crap boat anchor" back to them the next time I get a chance to make the 400-mile round trip to my mother's house.
If they don't take it back I will be back here to tell the world about it! Thank you so much for this website. I just wish I had found it before I bought this emachine junk.
Carl of Rogers AR (5/24/01):
5 months ago I purchased a new emachines computer. It had a faulty door covering the CD Rewriteable area. I e-mailed them, they never responded. Today I called and spoke with customer service, they said I have to copy my entire hard drive and send them the whole computer tower unit. All I want is a replacement door, which I can install myself in about 2 seconds. I also wanted customer support for a question I had concerning copying audio CDs and was told that I had to pay $109 before I could talk with a technician.
John of Ocean City MD (5/3/01):
I purchased an emachines computer from Staples in November of 1999. The computer was fine for about the first two months and then all of the sudden it started making a loud humming sound from the tower and also after shutting the computer down for the night it would turn itself back on during all hours of the night. After a while I would literally have to turn off the monitor and then switch the curcuit board off to get the tower to shut down.
Then of course when I wanted to use the computer again I would turn on the curcuit board and the monitor and the computer next and it would go through the scan disk automatically because of not being able to shut down the computer properly. After while I just dealt with the noise, but now while I'm online the computer will completely shut down without warning and go through the whole scan disk again and then I lose whatever work I had not saved.
I am extremely dissatisfied with the machine and having recommended that two of my relatives also buy an emachine and they too have experienced the very same problems, I feel as though I have been sold a LEMON! I didn't use the warranty like I should have, because of the inconvenience it causes and because emachines wanted me to pay all shipping charges. I have an old AST cOmputer at work that is 12 years old and is much more reliable than this Newer emachine!
Wendy of Middletown MA (5/2/01):
Well, it seems I'm not the only one who got sucked into buying an emachine! I purchased the eTower300 Jan. 1, 1999 and since have replaced 2 hard drives and 2 power supplies! Thank heavens I purchased the extended warranty through Staples! By the way, I contacted the Staples store where I purchsed the beast, and asked them why they don't carry eMachines anymore. The manager said they were getting too many returns and complaints. (what a surprise...) I haven't contacted emachines yet, but as soon as my pc is back from the repair shop (again) I will definitely be on their case!
Renee of Woodruff SC (4/17/01):
My parents bought me a computer for Christmas in 1999. Unfortunately, they did not purchase a warranty with it. I had no problems until November of 2000. My hard drive would not work. I called an operator and she informed me that I could not purchase a warranty because my 10 month trail period had expired, but she would walk me through it and help me fix my computer. I thought the call was toll free, but when my phone bill arrived, it was long distance and of course I was charged for it.
Anyway, my computer worked for about a week and then it completely died. The monitor will not come on, the hard drive shuts off and on whenever it feels like it. I feel that my parents were swindled. My parents are not rich and work very hard for their money. My parents know very little about computers, but from this experience they have learned a great deal.
The operator that I spoke with, which was in Utah, admitted that eMachine computers were basically trouble. That's pretty bad when a sales rep for eMachine bashes the company she works. She said she could confess it because I had no warranty and was basically S.O.L.
Yvette of West Richland WA (4/11/01):
I bought an eMachine Emonster 550r last March (2000) and it was defective. The dvd drive did not work. I was sent a new 550r and the sound card was defective. We purchased a sound card rather than send the 2nd computer back. Then realized the floppy drive was defective. We've since been sent a new floppy drive but meanwhile realized that the extended warranty we purchased over the phone did NOT go through so we have no extended warranty!
This is on top of the false advertising Emachines employs, where they advertise upgrade to the latest processesor for $99.00 but do NOT tell you that you must buy eMachines online for 2 yrs. in order to get that upgrade.
I have no faith in Emachines - I would never purchase one again nor would I recommend it to any of my friends. And I've spent untold time and money trying to get the glitches and defective parts fixed.
Annette of Englewood, CO, writes:
We have been in communication with eMachines over the purchase we made last August of their Eone Mac lookalike computer. After numerous power and modem problems they recommended we send the computer to their Fremont, CA office for repair. Machine was sent on Dec. 4th and we have had extremely poor customer service from them. They say they received machine one week, then the next they say they didn't receive it. It was sent insured, and now all we want is to make the insurance claim with USPS and forget about getting another eMachine but they won't send a letter stating they did not receive the computer, so we can't collect the insurance.
The post office in Fremont was very helpful, and are looking into the matter, but they receive over 100 machines a day that are being returned to eMachines.
This computer was to be our daughters college computer, and she has not had use of it since we purchased it. She has struggled through her papers using and waiting for computers in the computer lab. Not to mention that calling this company is a toll call and the wait on hold can be expensive on a college student budget.
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