BIG NAME, BIG BOX STORE, HOW THEY
WORK AND TUNE-UP verses DIAGNOSTICS!
What is a Free Computer Tune up?
Submitted by
Rich on 02/19/2019
The term Tune-Up normally is
associated with automotive repair. A
tune-up is something that gets done
on your automobile at regular
intervals or when it’s not running
right. Most of the time the later is
true. Many people, including myself,
put off regular maintenance to their
automobile and don’t start thinking
about it until it stops running or
stops running well. Because of this
association many industries,
including computer repair, have
picked up the token phrase
“Tune-Up”. The idea is to express to
the customer that once they are
finished the product will function
correctly.
The reason I am writing this is
because many companies in the
computer industry are using the word
tune-up in a way that’s quite
deceiving. When you bring your
computer in to get a tune-up you
expect to pick it up fixed, or at
least running better. However, some
big box stores are using the term
tune-up rather then diagnostic. A
diagnostic is when a computer
technician looks at a problem a
computer is having and suggests the
best course of action to correct the
problem without actually fixing it.
Everyone
has seen the banners that say “Free Tune-Up” in front of many big
box stores. Have you ever wondered what they mean by tune-up or have
you just taken for granted that your computer will run better when
you pick it up? Well it won’t and here’s why. What they are doing is
not a tune-up at all. It’s a diagnostic. Also they use a program
that automates the diagnostic so the technician does not even have
to be experienced to perform it. Basically this is an automated
program that finds problems with the computer and prints a report.
Based on this report the technician can advise the customer what it
will take to fix their computer. By definition this is a diagnostic
not a tune-up. Finally since the technician does not have to have
any experience they really don’t know what’s wrong with your
computer they are just reading a report. These reports are very
general and many times miss diagnose a problem.
By definition a
tune-up to a computer should be similar to a tune-up in a car since
that’s where this term originated. Let’s go over a list of what’s
included in a tune-up at CyberCPU Computer Repair.
-
Malware/Virus Removal
-
System
Updates
-
Clean up
temporary files
-
Defrag
-
Remove
unnecessary startup items
-
Verify or
add security software
This is just a
basic list. A tune-Up should actually be a Tune-Up. Before I do a
tune-up I do a diagnostic, which is free. This diagnostic will cover
the improvements that a tune-up should provide. Other problems like
bad hard drives, low memory, or any other problem will be brought up
then.
Finally many
big box stores are only approved to use a limited number of tools.
The amount of tools available to technicians is amazing and 90% of
these tools are not available to the technicians at big box stores.
This is due to the fact that many of these tools can cause major
harm if not used by someone experienced. Because many big box stores
hire inexperienced techs, most of the time just savvy sales people,
they don’t have the proper experience to handle most complex
problems.
In closing many
people believe that computer repair by a large company is the right
way to go. However, most large companies are more interested in up
selling products. Technicians have sales quotas that they have to
meet, their job depends on it. Because of this their diagnosis on
many problems is based more on the up sell then the repair. Is this
the best for the customer?
Contact us
Bombos Computer Repair or a local technician for your computer
needs!