TigerDirect and Biostar Motherboard Experience

I spent about $200 at TigerDirect in May for a PC case, Biostar motherboard, Corsair memory, hard drive and a few other things. The memory had a $20 rebate, which I never received, although I returned all of the documentation that was requested.

The second part of this nightmare began less than 90 days after the purchase when the Biostar motherboard failed. I called TigerDirect to report the problem and they said that I needed to call Biostar since the 30 day return period had passed. I should have known then that I was screwed. Regardless of who manufactured it, if you sell it, you should stand behind it for a respectable period of time. Thirty days is legitimate for an exchange or refund due to buyer's decision, but is very insufficient when pertaining to the life of a product. Furthermore, TigerDirect made it clear that I was their customer as long as I was spending money with them, but they had no use for me when I reported a problem. They are only interested in the sell and not the repeat sells that follow good service.

So I called Biostar and was issued an RMA. I returned the faulty motherboard, which was purchased new for just under $50. Almost one month later, I received what I thought was a new replacement motherboard. However, no letter, note, nor any other type of communication was included in the box or in email explaining to me what action had been done to resolve the damaged board. After closely reviewing the board, I realized Biostar had replaced my new motherboard with a USED one. How did I know? Thermal paste was all over the edges of the socket.

In an email to Biostar, I explained that it appeared a used board was sent to me, but there was no information in the box to explain. I received a simple one line email from Biostar's "customer service" that read, "It is used but it works."

I called Biostar to make sure we understood each other and they confirmed that their policy, regardless of how new a product is, is to replace with whatever they have lying around.

I called Tiger Direct to let them know how their vendors were treating their new customer, and they said that this was a situation between me and Biostar.

Both of these companies have screwed me as a new customer. Service after the sell is not practiced at Tiger Direct. Biostar sells cheap, defected components as new ones, and then replaces them with used ones when they fail.

Please do not make the same mistakes that I did. I will never purchase another Biostar product. Furthermore, I will never purchase from TigerDirect due to their unethical practices. All they want is to be paid and do not take care of their customers afterwards.