FAQ

The single most important difference is our custom built computers contain no proprietary parts, that is, parts that are unique to the specific computer. The name brand computer companies use a non-industry standard chassis when they assemble their systems, and thus many of the parts that become part of that chassis have to be custom designed to fit that chassis. The functionality is exactly the same as our custom built systems, but without the proprietary nature.

As mentioned above, the functional use is identical, however should it become necessary to replace one of these proprietary parts, then you are limited to the inventory the manufacturer may or may not have available. Dell, Gateway, HP and other major manufacturers are known to discontinue parts, sometimes sooner than we would like. If you have one of these computers and need to replace a proprietary part, you may encounter an availability issue. Keep in mind that proprietary parts usually cost more than the industry standard part.

Dell, Gateway, HP and other computer companies don’t manufacture their systems any different then we do. They purchase hard drives, motherboards, DVD drives, etc. from the manufacturer and then assemble the systems where they put their name on them. Our custom built systems are built the same way, but we choose our components differently.

All of the components used in our systems are top shelf, high end parts. Our computers are built for quality. The name brand computers first objective is price, then quality. While our systems are assembled using the finest names in the industry, you’ll be pleasantly surprised to see how competitive we really are.

Our very own technicians support each and every system we build. This support is provided right out of our office and service center in Northbook, IL. We do NOT contract out support to India, Costa Rica or anywhere else.

You should buy a Dell or other name brand computer if you are the type of user that needs technical support at 2:30 am, as we do not staff our service center 24 hours a day.

Each and every one of our clients that purchases our custom built system enjoys priority service (a $75.00 value) should the system ever require repairs. This priority service gets your computer up and running with a minimum of downtime. In most cases we get it done in 48 hours or less!

Good question, and when shopping the big companies, be careful. Recently many of them dropped their standard warranty to 90 days parts and labor. Our custom desktop and network servers come with our standard full 1 year warranty covering all parts and labor.

Yes we do, in fact you can get an optional 2nd year, or an optional 2nd & 3rd year warranty. Even our extended warranty is handled the same as the standard warranty. The major computer companies frequently resell an extended warranty where the service is provided by another company, usually an independent warrant administrator.

As a registered computer manufacturer with Microsoft, and an authorized Intel processor reseller, each of our systems utilize only genuine licensed product. In addition, we provide you with each CD for the operating system, drivers and any software that you order. Be careful with the big companies, frequently they don’t provide you with the original installation media, and that can cause big problems when service is required.

Typically desktop and notebook computers are ready in 5-7 days, network servers generally are complete in 10-14 days.

NO! You must trust who you order your custom computer from. Many companies, or your neighbor’s friend who knows all about computers, use whatever parts they can come up with and frequently use pirated software. We’ve been custom building computers since 1994 and constantly attend training events with Intel, Microsoft and other major manufacturers.

The honest answer is, unless you are in the computer business, it’s virtually impossible to compare 2 computers to each other. The reason for this is simple. 512MB or RAM is not just 512MB, because it can come in different speeds, one piece, two pieces, dual channel mode, error correcting or non-error correcting and on and on. Other specs differ with hard drives, CPU’s and motherboards, so unless you know how to compare the details you won’t be comparing apples to apples.

We’re not knocking the big companies, but want to make you aware of what you’ll be dealing with and options available to you. Watch out for shipping charges, and sometimes they can be excessive. Also, the free item that may be included with some promos. Listen to what your mother taught you, nothing is free. You get what you pay for, there’s really nothing magic about it.