Subject: New Iron & Warranties

From: [email-masked] (Joe Golab)
Date: Fri, 17 Feb 1995 08:33:54 -0600

A quick note on purchasing new workstations (if you're like us, it
is time to replace old iron with new).  Make sure the warranty on
the new machines is one you can live with!

For example, Silicon Graphics (which makes excellent computer
equipment - consider the r8000 [if you can get them to deliver one])
has a standard 90-day warranty BUT it is a "factory exchange"
warranty.  This means that (depending on the problem) you will have
to ship the unit back to the SG factory in CA - without the internal
hard disk, memory, floppy, etc. - BEFORE they send out a new system.
For a small amount of money (compared to the purchase price) one can
obtain a "PARTS CARE" warranty that extends the 90 days to 12 months
AND allows for "advance replacement" (which means that you get a new
machine before you have to send the old one back).

Not all computer makers operate like this.  IBM, for example, has
the typical 12 month "we do not ship defective products" warranty
(which means if there is a problem they are so embarrassed that they
have a tech come to you and fix it).  And Cray helps you set the
equipment up (or used to do so).  Can't beat that!

Anyway, please take this as the reminder it is intended to be as we
all enter the natural cycle of replacing "obsolete" workstations with
more advanced ones.  Don't assume that the warranty that comes with
your new machine is the same as the one that came with your old one -
even if the company is the same one.

-- 

:Joe
 [email-masked]
 (708) 961-7878  <SOCON 8 231 7878>

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