Customer Reviews

Averatec AV6235-EE1 15.4" Laptop (Mobile AMD Athlon 64 processor 2800+, 512 MB RAM, 60 GB Hard Drive, DVD+/-RW Drive)

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4 star:		(1)
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1 star:		(1)

 

 

My husband got this laptop overseas while serving our country in Iraq. Well needless to say he brought it home.. used it... went on another deployment overseas 5 months after he returned from the first, and the lap top will not work for him at all. If you get it ... get a warrenty!! He failed to do so.. I don't think it was offered over there anyhow. But now I have to take it to a store and get everything fixed on it. What a waste of over 1,200 dollars!

I bought this laptop back in November 2005 on sale for $799. At that time, a computer with these specs at this price seemed like a great deal. I was skeptical at first about buying a brand that I had never heard of, but the sales clerk assured me that averatec was a name that you could trust and on top of that there's a one year warranty. Here's my experience with this computer.

Not even two months after I bought this computer the problems began. Out of nowhere one day it wouldn't boot up (possibly a hard drive failure). I called customer support and they agreed to repair it although I had to ship it back to them at MY OWN EXPENSE. It was almost a month and a half before I got it back only to discover even more problems with this machine.

-It runs hot, too hot. Especially when the CPU is at 100%. The computer will automatically shut itself off when it overheats.
-The built-in wireless is one of the worst I've ever seen on any laptop. Even if you're right next to the router you'll still get a low to very low signal that loses connectivity every 10 mins.
-Forget trying to play most 3d games on this machine. The graphics card is poor. 2d engine games should work okay.
-Low battery life. I was told 2-2.5hrs but the battery actually lasts for about 50-60mins.
-The sound is weak. I hope you have some high-quality headphones or external speakers because that's the only way you'll be able to hear your movies or music unless you're in a noise-free enviroment.
-The design is flimsy and feels cheaply built. The edges of the screen get dead pixels very easily so now my screen is covered in them at all edges.
-Everytime I boot up my computer it takes me to the setup screen where I have to reset my date/time settings and I get a low battery message even though the battery is full and the AC adapter is plugged in! Now that I'm past my one year warranty, Averatec offers no help with this problem.
-Customer support is terrible. Averatecs clerks don't seem to know anything about their product. For even the smallest problem they'll tell you to send the unit back to them for repair. You'll pay all shipping costs for repairs and after the one-year warranty you're on your own.

-The one good thing about this laptop was the DVD burner. At the time it was one of the cheapest laptops that featured a DVD burner. That's pretty much all I use it for these days and since DVD burners are almost standard these, this laptop is worthless.

This computer may seem like a bargain but trust me and save your money for a more reputable name brand. Spend the extra $200 or $300 because with this machine you really do get what you pay for. I will not be buying anymore Averatec products again.

I got this laptop for about $775 in 4/05, it has been a great laptop, fast cpu, dvd-rw, only complaint it that feels a little cheaply made, but if you take care of it there is nothing to worry about.