Replacing a Broken Key - Acer's Racket

Okay, here's my first (and hopefully only) experience with Acer "customer service":

I bought an Aspire One netbook in January. Good computer, no complaints. Last night, I left the computer open on my kitchen table, my dog jumped up on the table and dislodged the "N" key with her paw. The key is adhered to the keyboard with a two-part clip, which unfortunately, I have been unable to locate. No problem, I thought....it should be easy enough to get a replacement key from Acer and snap it on.

Well, think again. I initially went to Acer's home page and started a support chat with a tech rep. This person told me that, since the dislodged key was a result of "negligence", it was not covered under my warranty, and that I would need to pay $99 plus shipping for them toe completely replace the keyboard, and wait 7-10 business days for the keyboard replacement. I told this person that all I needed was a replacement key, and that I could replace it myself (really....it just snaps into place). The CSR told me that Acer doesn't sell individual keys for their keyboards, and that the only option was to cough up the C-note for a new keyboard (keep in mind this is one third the cost of the computer, just to repair ONE key). This was not acceptable.

So I called Acer's tech support number, and got another CSR who told me the same thing. He also said that I would be hard-pressed to find an individual replacement key, since nobody sells them, not even their parts supplier, which was my next call. I contacted the parts supplier that Acer uses, and was told by them that the only option was to purchase a new keyboard for the netbook, but I couldn't even do that, because Acer had not authorized them to sell the keyboards. Once again, my only option....pay $99 to replace what amounts to probably a 50-cent part.

I decided, against my better judgment, to give this one more try. This time I called Acer's main number and explained my dilemma to a very nice operator, who put me in touch with commercial tech support. This person told me that he was willing to waive the $99 repair fee, but that I would still have to pay shipping, and wait two weeks to get my computer back. Somehow, I knew there was a better way.

I did a little Googling (which is what I probably should have done in the first place), and found the following website:

http://laptopkey.com

What do ya know? I clicked on my make, model and key color, and there they were....replacement keys for my Aspire one. I picked the letter I wanted printed on my key, paid these fine folks 6 bucks (including shipping), and my replacement key was on its way. Isn't it amazing that the manufacturer of the computer couldn't do this for me? In fact, Acer claimed that they didn't even stock individual keys, and when I asked if they knew of anyone who did, they said I wouldn't find them.

This is quite a racket that Acer has going....$99+ and two weeks to replace one little key that anyone can snap into place with a plastic clip. And I almost fell for it....almost. I know....it's just a piece of plastic, but it's things like this that tell me what a company is made of, and how far they're willing to go to help....or not help....their customers. In this particular case, I can tell you that this will be the first and last Acer product that I will ever purchase. This company tried to rip me off, and I remember things like when I'm in the market for merchandise. My experience with Acer has not been a pleasant one, and I would advise others who have purchased Acer products that the "service" offered by this company is dismal at best. Thank goodness we have search engines.