Video Game 911 — Local services in Denville

Beware!!! Unless you are comfortable with an open wallet policy you will want to go elsewhere for your repair. I was given a 1974 Rogo pinball machine that had'nt been used in many years but worked perfectly when it was put into storage. Since the machine had'nt been used in so long I decided that the first place it should go is to a repair shop to evaluate weather or not it would still function properly without spending a fortune on it.I opted to take the machine to the repair shop since I had to move it anyway and the shop would charge $100 per hour to travel to my home. I felt that I would rather take the machine to the shop and apply the money I would be spendind on the travel time towards having someone take a look at the machine and evaluate if the machine would still function properly. Upon arriving at video 911 I was immediatly treated like the enemy. I didnt have my work order # that I generated on line off the top of my head so I was treated like I didnt make an appointment until I stated that I could look up the # on my phone...then I was told I could bring the machine to the back door. Litterally the first thing I was asked is how much money could I spend.I explained that the machine was given to me and I just wanted someone to look it over and see if it would function again so I was hoping they could look it over for $150 to $300. Well before they even lifted the playing field to visually inspect the condition I was informed it would be at least $800 to just look the machine over! Owner went into a rage about how it would take two days to clean and adjust all the contacts and it would cost an additional $350 to replace the rubber and clean the playing field. I tried to explin to him that I was'nt interested in any cosmetic work that I just wanted someone to look the machine over and see if it would function properly without spending more than the machine is worth. Again I was told that it would be a minnimum of $800 and that was just to see if it would function. I started to tell them that I knew that the machine did work perfectly before being stored and it was my guess that it would probably need some contacts cleaned and maybe adjusted but before I could finish my sentence I was rudely cut off and the owner yelled at me and asked me (What do you know! You tell me what do you Know!!???) At that point I told the owners that I have never been treated as rudely as they were treating me and I felt like they were very unprofessional treating a customer the way they were treating me. His responce was to tell me that I was not a customer and I should get my Fckn peice of st out of his shop! Which he did'nt have to tell me because I was already convinced that I was in the wrong place!!! Long story short... I took the machine home and with the help of some youtube videos I am happy to report that in less than 2 hours I had everything set up and once again funtioning perfectly!!! After I had everything working perfectly I bought a tune up kit that consists of new rubbers a new ball, lube and polish for the plastic and playing field and enough bulbs to replace every one on the game. The kit cost $34 and the whole job took me about 2 more hours. The machine now looks and functions great and weve been playing it every day for two weeks. There are very few repairmen for the old pinball machines so they really take advantage of people because of it. My advice is if you have even a limited electrical apptitude and are willing to do a little research you can save yourself a whole lot of money and frustration dealing with EXTREMELY RUDE people. These machines can appear to be very intimidating when you first look inside them but as I said with a little research and a small amount of apptitude you will quickly realise that although there are a lot of components many of them are repetitive and most funtion very similarly. Even if you dont feel comfortable trying your own repair I would definately NOT reccomend this shop unless money is of no object and you enjoy being treated...

Trying to be fair, after the next sentence I will take emotion out of the review or mark it when present. I had the same feeling going to video game 911 that I do going to a car dealer that swindles me out of money; Con artist ring a bell?

A few weeks ago my Playstation 3 had stopped working completely. It was obvious to me that the power supply was no longer working. After a few quick searches online it was a common issue and even found a YouTube video describing two common causes. I open my system and testing the fuse on the power supply I easily determined it was blown and needed to be replaced. This part though is soldered onto the board and a task I didn’t particularly feel like undertaking. So I searched Google again and found Video Game 911. I figured if they could replace it for under $30 verse me buying the 40 cent part online and soldier it myself, it was a well-made investment. And being a small local business I felt good about making the trip!

Well, they got back to me with a quote of over $100 dollars. I was blown away. I went online and quickly determined the report was unjustified as they stated the failure was due to a sticky substance on the board amongst other issues (strike 1). To be fair, they did state the issue as faulty electronics (useless right?). I had the board out a day ago and saw no such damage. I figured I would give them a chance to explain before jumping to conclusions. Maybe there was just a mix up.

Strike 2, I used their online chat and talked to a representative saying this couldn’t possibly be right. Is there a chance the technician mistakenly wrote the report for the wrong person. I was told flat out no, and asked if I knew what I was talking about. Customer support had already started poorly by directly faulting me.

Already pretty perturbed I figured I would give Video Game 911 a call. Strike 3, their voicemail system kept answering during business hours and upon leaving a message I didn’t hear back for a couple days. When I did hear back I was in a meeting and couldn’t answer. The voicemail left no name besides the companies, no phone number, but did say to use their online comments section (strike 4, their comment section was broken). I called back a number of times and finally got a real person. Strike 5, instead of listening to me while I described why I thought the reasoning was incorrect he consistently insisted on talking over me without letting me complete a sentence. When I asked to speak with the technician about the sticky substance and how that could be incorrect it was replied with, “(Strike 6) No you cannot and these technicians are very busy and often make mistakes.” He updated my reasoning and removed the sticky substance from causes of failure. Ok, I know I’m leaving emotion and assumptions out of this, but couldn’t the technician be mistaking about the failure if he can’t even get a 4 sentence report right?

So question to you Mr/Mrs reader; a new power supply on EBay is $30, the fuse is $2 for a pack of 5 on Amazon, and the fix is $100 or $30 if I choose to not have them do anything and get my PS3 back. [Emotion] I felt they were leveraging the fact that they have the unit to force my hand to over pay either with or without repair.

I’m completely dissatisfied with this company. I could never recommend to my friends, family, or enemies to use this service. The analysis was faulty and they admitted that. Their customer service was impossible to get in touch with and once in touch talked over me and refused to listen. Their website was broken and I could not leave comments/questions. Their pricing is unjust and not worth paying for. This company has no standards when it comes to proper service and if I was Vincent (the owner) I would be ashamed.

I recommend finding another alley in which to repair...

I sent my son's switch in to have the USB C port repaired. I watched several videos on the repair and knew there were two areas of connection to replace the USB C. Online, the Video game 911 website mentioned USB C repair for Switch started at $80. The site mentioned repairs are usually handled within 24 -48 hours.

They received my Switch Jan 25, started diagnostics Jan 27, billed me for $139.95 on Jan 29. I paid the same day though I wondered why the cost was so much higher. On Jan 31 they scheduled repair. There was no date given. On Feb 2 repair began. On Feb 11 they sent the following:

"During the repair process we have found issues with the connections from the original port damage. The connections are compromised and we have some options to offer. We can attach the new port but the unit won't dock and will only charge with charger. If we have to repair the port structure inside at the motherboard level there would need to be additional charges as there would be additional time and materials required. The issues are significant and there may not be a secondary repair option. We can complete repairs with the confirmation that you are ok with it working portably and not docking. We can finalize this way with no additional charges. If you would prefer replacement or other options we can quote you for that if you prefer to pay additional ."

The disconnection of the USB C from the motherboard is COMMON. Replacement of a USB C for a Switch is not easy because there is a hidden set of connectors. That's why I sent it in to a company claiming to be proficient in videogame repair, specifically the Switch, rather than a local company that does all general electronic repair.

Feb 12 they wrote: "We would not be able to cost effectively repair the unit. We can offer a full refund if you prefer that option with a scrap of the machine as it has new port already installed. If you need us to remove the parts and return the unit to you, we can do that for the original estimate fee posted of $29.95 with the return of the non working unit with new port removed."

So they were offering to give me a full refund and keep (a.k.a. "scrap") the Switch, charge me $29.95 to remove the part and return the machine with the warranty voided, or do a basic repair for $139.95 where the Switch would charge and play but not dock and function on the TV. Again, a brand new Switch lite can do that for $199.

Feb 15 they said: "We will look more into this, but it may not be repairable"

Feb 15 I responded: "Are you able to finish the repair so the unit will charge and play even if it will not dock?"

Feb 17 they added: "We are having additional issues with the unit. Currently we have the unit operating normally with all functions, however it will not dock . The unit is working normally in all other respects however the docking issue is beyond repair options. We can return the unit to you in current working condition without any additional charges if you prefer. However the damage is additional inside of the unit and we are unsure if there can be an additional repair option even with additional funds. We are ready to finalize if you are ok with the return as mentioned just reply."

So all in all a "Starting at $80" repair actually cost $139.95 and the unit functions like a switch lite. It will not dock but it will charge. I would either find a different repair service for USB C issues on the switch or just buy a new unit since the repairs are not "cost effective". Their website should really say "We cannot cost effectively...