Computer Concepts — Local services in North Creek

First off, let me say, when I write a review, I am very honest and critical. I'm from NJ and don't hold back. I also tend to be VERY observant.

If I could give this store more than 5 stars I would. I'm an A+ certified PC Technician, but I had eye surgery and my close-up vision is no longer what it was.

I have never had a liquid cooled system before and was worried about leakage, overheating and damage. William was honest and said that early systems, especially home-built ones did leak but the new AIO coolers were factory sealed. He took the time to explain the technology to me. He built and tested the new system. I asked him if I could use my own case, and he said he would have to see it. It turns out I couldn't. So, new case. Not only is the system well built, it's quiet. So quiet it's a bit unnerving. I'm used to fans whirring. My original PC, an AMD FX-8150 was approaching 15 years old, and I'm not one to change something if it is working correctly. Well, the old system started overheating and rather than just fix it, I figured it was time for a new system. I settled on the AMD Ryzen 7950x. The system I got was well built, cable routing was perfect.

I worked for a small PC shop decades ago, and based on my older knowledge, his shop is efficient, well organized, clean, and well stocked. The staff is friendly, courteous, technically knowledgeable, and don't try to push you into a purchase. If you bring a PC in for repair, rather than getting a new build as I did, you won't be sorry.

While I was dealing with William, someone had come in and was talking to another technician. That technician gave the person their full attention, listened more than they spoke, didn't try to bore the customer with "technobabble", explained exactly in layman's terms what was needed and why. They did not "talk down" to the customer, treated them with respect, addressed their concerns and didn't try to sell them something they didn't need. (Did I say I was VERY observant?)

It is said that doctors make the worst patients.

As a PC technician myself, I can say this PC shop is well run, organized, and geared to providing a positive customer experience.

It's a place I would be...

I went to computer concepts when I first moved to Everett. My review is belated but truthful with helpful information to those who can relate to what I needed done or are simply considering this business for the services they provide.

I bought a pretty nice XPS 8950 Dell Desktop from Costco. Out of the box it’s a 12th Gen Intel(R) Core(TM) i7-12700 2.10GHz processor.

With 32GB of installed RAM and a RTX 3060 Ti video card, it’s not a bad workhorse computer but definitely not as good as a custom build. And one of its drawbacks aside from having the dell-specific motherboard and limited PSU was its small case and pathetic fans.

I wasn't happy with the factory supplied Air CPU cooler, so went on a quest to find the best Air Cooler I could fit in the 8950 chassis. The cooler height is the biggest problem, you have to stay under about 145mm otherwise you cant fit the side cover back on. In the end, I found the Be Quiet Dark Rock TF2 to not only fit, but it offers significantly better cooling for both the K and non-K CPU's. However, this cooler may still be a bit small for the i9-12900K, but still better than the Air Cooler from Dell.

Computer concepts helped me make it happen. Charles was very helpful and accommodating to me because I had limited options with my DELL. He also warned me that I would have the BIOS error every cold start up with my computer but I just need to hit control alt, delete and it bypasses that to the login page. Which I do that everyday and it’s no problem.

Computer concepts provided good customer service and I ended up installing a 1Terabyte Hard drive as well as the 2 fans and CPU cooler and the labor was very reasonable.

Check out my photos of the invoice, texting with Charles about my plans for the Dell and of my computer. I also included a video of me bypassing the BIOS error and the fan noise. Temps are nice and low now even when playing Red Dead Redemption 2.

Thank you guys! Compared to the computer places I used to go to in San Diego, it was great having you work on my computer. And I will be back! Happy...

I have had some really unique problems with computers over the years. Often, I have heard "never seen that before" upon presentation of the problem computer for help. I am a senior citizen and in my career I taught school for seven years. "A's" were hard to come by and still today "10's" are. I rarely write reviews for anything. My evaluation standards are high; frequently I grade my own performance on tasks with those same standards in place and for me - a "10" is nearly impossible, a "9" extremely rare. As to Computer Concepts compared to other shops I have done business with in thirty years of intensively and extensively relying on computers for what I do, these are my evaluations on a scale of ten:

10 for helpfulness 10 for reasonable charges 10 for reliability (things are timely done and done right) 10 for honesty "9" for competence (only reason that is not "10" is that CC does not have upper tier first line research and technical resources that Apple, McAfee, Dell, Lenovo, or Google may have to offer in house and can bring to the problem solution table. Furthermore, if CC does not have a solution they research and are completely up front and honest about the status. Then their charge reflects actual repairs. There is a reason they are rated so...