Individuals who build PC's and then sell them

[JTrader]

Hi

I am just wondering the following with regard to Individuals who build PC's for people and then sell them - as a sideline -

Would they buy the parts from a place like www.ebuyer.com, or are there more economical suppliers? if other sources tend to be more competitively priced, please enlighten me!

Once the components have been bought from a source like www.ebuyer.com and system has been built, how would the individual person go about providing/be able to provide a one year parts and labour warranty for the systems they built? Would they just be able to claim against a one year guarantee that the individual components came with, or would they be able to have/need to have a more developed policy? How is it likely to work?

ps. I'm not about to start building PC's - as always I'm just curious!

Thanks a lot

jtrader.

 

[jklondon]

jtrader you must be deperate if your thinking about this ..sorry mate just kidding but I have a friend who tried to do this and got nowhere intially. ..DELL has to a large extent killed this market. The margins are very very small ( <5%) even if you do manage to soruce from the cheapest suppliers (not ebuyer but probably a trade account with someone like aria).

With regards to claiming warranty, you could by all means claim against the retailer but I think the better approach is to have a policy in place since it will be cheaper to administer.

What my mate did end up doing is running an "whitelabel" site selling "souped" up PCs i.e. the high end stuff with lights in the case etc (pretty crazy but appeals to some). He doesnt build the machines but is just responsible from driving traffic to the site and pre-sales.

Hope this proves insightful

 

[ChartMan]

People will always pay more for a good ,decent, honest personal service. I built a good business selling/building PC's that way, and I didn't have to work on 5% margin.

 

[JTrader]

jklondon - With regards to claiming warranty, you could by all means claim against the retailer but I think the better approach is to have a policy in place since it will be cheaper to administer.

Thanks chaps.

What kind of warranty policy could a PC builder have in place - and who would they have it with - an insurance company?

I bought my current PC 22 months ago for £495 - which was a good deal, (and turned ouit to be an even better deal than I'd expected when the company that built it had to replace everything after nine months, in the tower except the case and floppy drive - when it was subjected to a power surge without adequate surge protection.) .........................
Anyway - I know that prices for components do come down with time - but I looked on ebuyer, selecting components that were at least equal to or better than my components. I managed to get an Athlon XP 2200 as opposed to my Athlon XP 2000, and I managed to get a 128mb graphics card - as opposed to my 64mb graphics card. I could have bought these parts and had them delivered for £350 - so a £145 profit does not sound bad at all!

Again, I am not about to start buiding systems - but will certainly build my next system when this one needs replacing. My CompTIA A+ course is coming in very handy!

Cheers

jtrader.

 

[Mr. Charts]

Chartman,
It's a great shame you are not still building and installing systems for people - I would come to you immediately for my new set-up.
Richard

 

[oatman]

.........but whom do you go to when something goes wrong?
This happened to me.The service was crap so I had to start learning how PCs work.Not much fun when you crash and you're running a position

 

[JTrader]

Hi Oatman

I agree. The ability to diagnose and solve problems and maintain a functional computer is a valuable ability for a trader - who relies heavily upon the Information Technology at their finger tips - especially self employed traders who have no help-desk to call upon. With time and experience my understanding and competences have grown, but I still have had lots of questions that I needed answering. Therefore, I would recommend to any trader who feels that they need to increase their IT awareness - to do a CompTIA A+ course which I am presently doing at night class - funded by the ESF. I have learnt a lot in 5 weeks and there are 10 weeks still to go. The course is straightforward, though quite intensive in terms of out of class reading, and covers hardware and software technologies - giving you a history of the last 25 or so years up until today. It is very hands on, involving stripping down and re-assembling PC's many times.

I want to know as much as I need to know about IT - (and a bit more). For me, being an active trader and knowing little about how the IT resources that I rely upon work, is now a scary thought . Being comfortable with and being able to manage and maintain the IT side of things is perhaps equally as important as the trading side of things.

Cheers

jtrader.

 

[TheBramble]

.........but whom do you go to when something goes wrong?
This happened to me.The service was crap so I had to start learning how PCs work.Not much fun when you crash and you're running a position

Not sure you'd be any better off with a big name in that instance either Oaty.

Neither DELL nor my PC man live next door to me, but my PC man can (and does) get here within 30 minutes.

PLUS

If your platform does go down - you still have a phone...EXIT!!!

 

[Trader333]

I have heard that there is a new cover for PCs called "Whatever Happens" which is a pay as you go service from the Dixons group so it applies to PC World, Currys, Dixons and The Link. From what I have heard it is pretty good as there are no large up front payments and you can be covered for 5 years. Normally you would get a visit within a couple of days at the latest but they also solve 85% of all problems by telephone.

I know that most people are quite cynical about this type of cover but this does appear to be a step away from how it has been in the past and you can cancel payments at any time.


Paul

 

[TheBramble]

Sounds like a useful step forward in support from the retail chains.

I still prefer having a 'local' (almost) on hand.

 

[JTrader]

Hi chaps

Just to try and get an answer to this question again (if anyone has any ideas) -

Regarding independent PC builders - What kind of insurance policy could the PC builder have in place to cover the customers one year warranty? - and with what type of insurer could they have such a policy with?

Cheers

jtrader.

 

[rossored]

I'm not sure about insurance - most of the things I put together come with the a manufacturers warranty on the various components - if they were to go wrong, I'd then go back to the manufacturer or supplier of that component (not that they ever seem to go wrong - touch wood)

 

[ChartMan]

He would have to cover warranty issues out of his own pocket..... No other way. If he goes under/stops/does a runner, so does your warranty............

 

[JTrader]

Thanks chaps

the only reason why I have reservations about the idea of claiming against the warranty on the individual parts of a PC, is because of what happened with my PC. A power surge meant that everything bar the floppy drive and case had to be replaced. If one fault causes all the components to stop working in this way - could you claim for all the components. Another example - the processor only blew because the cooling fan fell off it. Would the processor manufacturer be obliged to replace the processor in this instance?

ChartMan -
He would have to cover warranty issues out of his own pocket..... No other way. If he goes under/stops/does a runner, so does your warranty............

Hi ChartMan

by "he" do you mean the customer buying the PC of the one man computer assembly team?

Cheers

jtrader.

 

[oatman]

Sounds like a useful step forward in support from the retail chains.

I still prefer having a 'local' (almost) on hand.

OK 'til he goes on holiday

 

[TheBramble]

He has a couple of staff...but a valid point.

However, I'll leave it to the statisticians to work out the probability of one of your PCs going down while he's away. (Sod's Law not allowed....)

 

[Trader333]

In 2004 there were a large number of PCs that had component failure because of unusual storms causing spikes etc. In the case of PCs that were less than 1 year old, and therefore in warranty, I know of one company that replaced all damaged components for every customer. They also have an agreement with the suppliers of the parts that if items fail and it is not through deliberate damage then the supplier has to replace the failed item FOC. If the PC is out of warranty then this does not apply but then the customer would have to pay for the repair so it would not affect his profitability.


Paul

 

[JTrader]

Thanks Paul

When my PC blew in December 2003 meaning that everything but the floppy drive and case needed replacing, the company that built it recommended i buy a good surge protection unit - so i bought a Belkin 8 Way SURGEPro AV Surge Protection socket thing - no problems so far. However the PC man said that if the same thing were to happen again, it's doubtful that they'd be able to cover the repairs under the warranty.

jtrader.

 

[Trader333]

James,

It is good advice to buy a UPS as this will prevent spikes but also ensure that the power supplied to your PC is constant without any fluctuations and if you get a power failure then you still have enough time to close any trades and shut down your PC before losing all power. I would never consider trading without this myself.


Paul

 

[Directional]

i'm surprised you got the components blown by a surge replaced. A warranty normally only covers replacement of defective parts - if you failed to protect your system with an appropriate level UPS system then its user fault if you connected your system to raw mains power with all the associated risks. The manufacturer cant be expected to accept liability for this.