American Tech Berkeley – Computer & Laptop Repair — Local services in Berkeley

I was excited when I took my computer in to be repaired as they had one of the best rates available. Other places wanted to charge double the rate. This shouldve been my first clue that the service would be shotty. I brought my computer in, they repaired it and talked me into paying for an extra heat coating to keep my computer from overheating. The issue I was having was the power connection on my dell laptop, of which these laptops are notorious for having this problem. In any case...the computer seemed to work when I got it home, but I noticed if I even just lightly moved the computer the power connection would fail...the same problem I brought it in for. I called american tech and left a couple messages....they never called me back. I tried calling several other times and they didnt answer. I figured they just blew me off so I didnt bother calling them again after a few days. Then, just today, the power connection cut out completly, rendering the computer useless unless I prop the power cord up so its pushed tight into the socket at the back. I called them back several times, and FINALLY got a live person who told me I shouldve brought the computer back to them within 14 days of the original repair....and now Id hafta pay them again to fix it. Its rediculous! They claim no knowledge of getting ANY messages or calls from me. Stay away from them. They'll rip you off and youll lose your money and get...

I took in my laptop which was constantly blue-screening which led to it not being able to log in due to a critical process error.

Pros: Sam was able to fix the critical process error by replacing the SSD Sam was very reasonable in offering money back for being unable to fix certain issues The price was very cheap compared to other repair shops around Berkeley

Cons: Kept trying to replace new parts to try to fix blue screening issue to no avail, which kept raising the price, until he offered to replace the motherboard, which combined with all the other parts would essentially be the price of the laptop A screw was missing and marks were left on the exterior of the laptop Took over 3 months to repair laptop, with little communication throughout

Overall, Sam was very knowledgeable and kind throughout the whole process. Took a very long time and couldn't fix one of my laptop's issues but was understanding and gave me some money back. Granted, after going to 2 other repair centers and calling official customer support from the manufacturer, my blue screening was still unable to be fixed, which is why I'm giving 4 stars despite my issue not being resolved. I would recommend this place to anyone looking for a cheap repair place with a non-motherboard issue, and a device that...

Incompetent technician. I went there to clean up my fans to solve my overheating problem. When I got my laptop back, the case was improperly closed, and the fan remained the same (covered by dust). I asked him about the dust, and he told me that it was just the fan. (He also told me that the pc is hard to open.) I ended up using a screw to reopen and close the case for it to fit, and use a knife to get some of the dust out. Couple weeks later I went to another repair shop, and they told me they saw no sign that it was cleaned just weeks before. My guess is, this guy tried to open my laptop, failed and ended up just popping a few screws and covers for several compartments, and then closed it and used compressed air to clean my keyboard. Cannot believe that took one day. Also, because I did not see him do his job (if he did it at all), it is essentially his word against mine. Go to other shops where technicians are more capable. I guess you can go there if you have a more obvious problem (like a virus or fail-to-boot), since it would be easier to see if they actually do their job, but why save around 50 for the risk of not getting the full...