Since we talked about Dell last week, perhaps it's a good time to visit with another hardware vendor whose former sterling reputation for customer service has been sadly tarnished in recent years. As my readers keep reporting, Hewlett Packard's support staff doesn't seem to be inspiring an awful lot of customer loyalty these days.
"HP All-in-One printer support has been horrible," one reader wrote recently. "If you experience any problem at all, there used to be a long script, with which you had to -- shiver -- edit the Registry! How many users messed up their machines with that one? Finally, they did improve the process and scripted it from their web site. But it doesn't always work. After spending hours on the phone trying to reinstall the drivers, I did a little sideways searching and found the same problem I was experiencing, but indexed under a different model printer. So while I was on interminable hold, I tried the fix and, lo, there was great light. I tried to explain to the tech that I had fixed the problem and what the solution was. He told me that would not work. Wasn't in his script, most likely. Sheesh."
Another reader found that HP is not above pinching paperclips, or something very close to it. "In an usurious twist of the classic blades/razor-cartridge/printer issue, HP insists I arrange to have my printer shipped to some maintenance depot and have it worked on for perhaps a couple of hours at some exorbitant rate to replace one ink-cartridge plastic retention clip," the reader wrote. "As someone with thirty years maintenance and repair experience on computers and such, one would think I'd be able purchase this clip, even at a 1000% markup, and replace it myself. Uh, nope. After I politely, but firmly, expressed my feelings of disbelief and unacceptability at this arrangement, HP 'graciously' offered to accept my $150.00 paperweight as a 'trade in.' Such a deal -- I'd still be paying well over $100.00 for a 50¢ part."
I guess there's at least some virtue in the fact that computer and printer customers seem to hear the same consistent refrains from HP. "I have a Pavilion that's now in the third year of an extended warranty I purchased from HP," another reader wrote. "Last year, the CD-writer died. After 45 days of 'we don't have your warranty on record' and 'your order got cancelled because we're out of stock,' they finally got a new one to me and it took five minutes to replace it. Well, the replacement CD-writer died last month, and it looks like I won't be getting my replacement. The reason why is that, according to the HP rep with whom I understandingly got rather indignant, in the last year of an extended warranty the system must be sent back to HP in its entirety for the part to be replaced. So, HP finds it perfectly acceptable to inconvenience a customer for possibly several weeks just to replace a part that takes a few minutes to replace. I can't say strongly enough to people to just stop buying HP."
So HP or Dell -- which do you think has fallen further? Post your comments about this story here and read what your fellow readers have to say, or write me directly at Foster@gripe2ed.com.
12:30:17 AM 
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