We do not recommend buying HP computers. Here's why:
How much time did you spend setting up your computer when you took it out of the box?
If you are like most people, you plugged the computer into the wall, turned it on, and pressed the enter key a couple of times.
Did you notice which software CD's came with your computer? If it was an HP computer, there were not any CD's. Why?
- CD's cost money. To minimize the price of the computer and maximize the profit, hard copy manuals and software installation CD's are typically not included with HP systems.
- One of the pieces of cardboard that you probably did not read indicated that you needed to make a Recovery CD Kit for your new computer. Such a kit would enable you to restore your computer if the contents of the hard drive ever are corrupted and need to be reloaded.
A backup for your computer's files is written to CD. Typically this means 10-12 CD's; the process takes a couple of hours. If you did not create a Recovery CD Kit, and your computer crashes, you will not be able to restore your computer to the way it was when you removed it from the packing box.
If you did build the kit and need to restore your computer system, is everything going to be ok?
Not necessarily. If you bought an HP computer because it had features such as the TV Tuner, the Recovery CD Kit will not reload the driver for this component. The HP website will not have the driver for you to download. More than likely, you will be unable to find the driver and will have to buy a new TV Tuner to replace a perfectly good TV Tuner to get a software installation CD that works.
What do you do if you did not build a Recovery CD Kit and your computer needs to be reloaded?
You will need to repurchase the Operating System in order to rebuild your system. An Operating System Installation CD is $150 - $300. If your computer is a desktop computer, you are rapidly approaching the point at which buying a new computer ($400-$600) may make sense.
