Frequently Asked Questions about Chips

Are you a Computer Store?

We're just east of New I-85 on NC 62 (Exit 113 on the interstate). If you are coming from the south, turn right at the top of the ramp, if you are coming from the north, turn left. Go two tenths of a mile and at the bottom of a small hill you will see the lake on your right. Just follow Woods' Lake Trail by the side of the lake.

Same as the lake, We are open sunup (Usually 6:30 AM) to sundown, Monday through Saturday, Noon till Sundown on Sundays.

Do you repair computers?

Not Really.  We started,working for a retailer.  It was back in the days when nobody knew very much about computers.  Every day, I would see small business people (plumbers, electricians, etc) walk in the door (a copy of consumer reports under one arm, a copy of PC world under the other) and they were ready to automate their office!  Often the client usually walked out the door with a lot of stuff he didn't need and the salesman got a bonus.
 
It occured to me that I was working for the wrong people.  I was paid to sell computers.  And what these customers really needed was someone who knew computers well enough to keep them out of trouble and provide computers and advice as inexpensively as possible. They needed someone who was working for them and not the computer company.
 
No Business can afoard lost time.  we started Chips computer worshop to help clients keep going at the lowest possible cost because every penny counts.  Mostly I find bargans for my clients who don't have the time or the knowledge to find them for themselves.  I know which merchants treat their customers with respect and take care of problems efficiently.    So, when something does go wrong, We can get them back up and running quickly. 

WE also accept a few trade ins during the year, which we go through and make ready to sell as students computers at Christmas time.
 

   

We do, We evaluate them first, then advise our clients on the best way to proceed.  Sometime all that's needed is to clean off Virus, Malware and spyware infestations.  Sometime simply adding memore or hard drive space will buy a client more use from their computer.  Again, the idea is to keep our clients up and running while saving them money.  There's nothing more useless than a piece of equipment that won't work.
If you're not a computer store, how come you sell all that gear?

As I said before, our main job is to consult.  If there is a mistake that can be made on a computer, I've personally made it over the past 30 years!  I know where the bodies are buried and use that experience to help my clients avoid making the same mistakes.  When a customer needs a computer, we go into the marketplace and find the best, most economical way to solve the problem.  Through consultation, a client tells us what their needs are, we evaluate their present computer system and reccomend the most economical way to deal with it.  When the equipment must be replaced or updated with newer components we will find the most cost effective way to handle it.  Our job is to point in you the right direction.
 
By the way, because a piece of equipment needs to be replaced for a given job, that doesn't mean that their equipment isn't good, it just means it isn't capable of doing what the customer needs to do.  Computers that are obsolete for one purpose can make wonderful computers for another purpose like word processors, children's computers or internet computers for families that don't require the blazing speed.  For example, an archetect needs  a very fast computer to design a building becuase the slower a compter is, the longer it takes for him to do his job. 

In order to do what we do, it's necessary to occsaionally take in equipment on consignment from a client  Other times we take some of it in in trade thinking we will have a use for it somewhere else.  Once a year we open Santa's computer workshop so my wife gets back some badly needed space and isn't as put out with me for all the clutter!.   I call that a win, win. 

This page last modified on Saturday, November 05, 2011
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