MDG
reviews and complaints

My mom took here desktop in for service because the DVD burner stopped working. They charged her %50 to 'blow out the dust', $150 to reload Windows and $85 for a new DVD burner. It turns out, after I opened it up, the thing is still full of dust bunnies, the new burner is actually 5 years old and they didn't reload Windows. What kind of store could rip off a 79 year old widow on a fixed income?

I own a 17 inch dual core laptop, purchased through MDG online. I am paying on it monthy. My address is 297 Unit C Bluevale Steet North. I am having a problem with the hinges of my laptop. It has already been in for service once, cost me 60.00 to fix the hinges.. Now I am having the same problem. I need to get this fixed, also one of my USB ports, the hard plastic that holds the usb pins in place, came out of the port. No damage, its just came out. Now MDG tells me I can pay again to get the laptop fixed. I called the Tech department and got a frazzled employee who told me this is a wide spread problem and that they still will not fix it unless I pay. I bought the warranty for this reason and sill find myself left out in the rain. I would NEVER buy a laptop from MDG again. A laptop is worthless if you can't open and close it.

I purchased a computer in January 2006 as advertised on TV for just a dollar a day. When I phoned to enquire the computer they told me that my payments would be 58.02 per month and I would have computer paid off in 3 years. According to my calculations the computer would be paid off by at least by March 2009. It is now June and pre-authorized payments are still being withdrawed from my bank account.

I phoned them to enquire as to why they were still taking money from my account. They said that I am still paying for the interest. The computer that I thought was for $2088.40 is now still owing an amount of $1500.00. I was mislead when making arrangedments to purchase the computer that it would be paid in 3 years. I told them if they had explained to me that I would be paying all that interest I would never had bought the c omputer. They said "sorry you were mislead, I will have my supervisor call you."

I still have not heard from their supervisor. This has turned out to be a very expensive computer. Besides the computer is starting to give problems and will need to replaced soon and the payments are not finished for another 2 years.

I purchased a MDG Vision Pro 3700S notebook on payments 02/28/2007 and bought the 3 yr parts & labour extended warranty package (which is worthless) all this cost $1851.82 (which ended up being $3114.61)

Payed religiously for approx. 2 years @ $65.50 a month and then went to pay it out and found out that I owed $1542.61 still! This laptop cost me over $3100 in the end and if I was to sell it I could only get around $700 for it in mint condition!

Thats not the worst part. We have had to send it back in for repairs 3 times and pretty much each time we have had to pay MORE! The salesmen/woman are the most rude and ignorant people I have ever had conversations with in my life and I buy and sell online so I talk with ALOT of people everyday! They lie, cheat and steal your money!

First time it broke was a week after we received it. The hard drive crapped out. Call in and they told us we could either send it back or bring it into the Vancouver store for repairs. We live 1800 miles away from Vancouver but we had planned on a vacation down there in the Summer (which was just a month away) so we waited. While in Vancouver we spend a whole day trying to find the store with 4 kids in our van. MDG had the WRONG address listed on the MDG website so we drove around aimlessly for hours, called the store twice and got East Indians that could barely speak English and were very hard to understand. Well after about 5 hours we finally got a pedestrian to show us where it was...walked in to the store finally and wait in line for another 45 mins only to find out the store doesn't stock the hard drive and we will need to send it in anyways. FURIOUS we left and called our sale rep...ya he was no help and didnt give a damn. When we got home we had to send it in and of course pay more money for the repair (forget just how much). When it came back (like 2 months later) all my important files were gone and everything was changed...horrible experience!

The laptop worked ok for the next few months then the DVD burner died, keys stopped working, speaker would not work and the LCD case and hinges were cracking and breaking. So we sent it back again. This time I sent a nice butt kissing letter along with the laptop and it came back within 2 weeks and no cost to us. We were stoked and thought that MDG must be changing their ways.

Again the laptop worked for a few more months before the LCD case and hinges started to crack again and then the hard drive failed again. I called and got a RMA and sent it back again (with another butt kissing letter) 2 months go by and no word. Finally I break down and call. I was told we will have to pay another $280 for the LCD case, a new (upgraded) hard drive as they do not stock the old one, and battery clips. I fought with the man on the phone about this telling him the laptop was babied and barely used there is no reason we should have to pay for this when we have a gold warranty package. They claim now that all this is our doing...I have yet to call them back and tell them to proceed with repairs or not. I think I am going to file a BBB complaint and demand a refund of my money and if nothing comes of that I will take MDG to small claims court for a full refund on the $3100+ piece of crap they sold/scammed me on.

I could probably write a 10 page letter on MDG and what they have done to us but I will keep it short. Buyer beware with this company! They are scammers and Steve Nash should be ashamed to be their spokes person. They lie, cheat, scam and steal your money then send you garbage. This MUST be stopped!

MDG if you read this I WANT my hard earned money back. You ripped off a honest hardworking family of 7 and it is not right. You have my computer and I want my money back. All $3114.61 of it!

They guarantee you get approved. The problem is, if you have decent to bad credit, They will tell you have to have to make insane payments over 4 months before receiving the product that you are purchasing. So, instead of payments of $30-monthly, they want $34 weekly for 4 months before I ever see the product. I do not beleive it that and I do believe that is against the consumer act of canada. The sales person was extremely rude to me as well.

I bought my computer 3 years ago and have had nothing but trouble with it. First of all I was told I'd get double the memory at no extra charge, this should have been my clue that something was not right. When I called them on it they told me that they gave me a better quality of memory and that it equaled or was better than the double memory I should have gotten. Next I was told that I'd have tech support for the life of my computer, which really only lasted year and then they wanted more money to continue tech support.

My power supply has been replaced 3 times and each time I've had to take it in to their shop for it to be replaced. Not odd you might think? Well for me it is since I was sold a lifetime warranty on all parts and in home service for an extra $499.00 plus tax. Each time I've run into problems they've made me come into their shop and bring the computer regardless of me having this extra warranty. Once again this week, this power supply is giving me trouble. I call them and get the same old story as each other time I've called. "We don't sell lifetime warranty or in home service to anyone". Yet I have this in writing. Now I'm told that the store has changed owners which creates another problem. I've made 4 calls to this store this week and each time I've been given the name of a person to talk to who will call me back the next day, yet nobody ever calls. Yesterday I'm given the name of the owner of this particular store and today I leave two more messages...neither were returned.

This time I refuse to bring my computer in unless someone is going to reimburse me the $499.00 plus tax that I paid for their bogus warranty. And I'm going to be contacting their head office and talking to a lawyer. I paid over $3000.00 for this computer and off all the computers I've owned, it's worked the least efficient and their customer service has got to be the worst I've ever dealt with in any of my dealings. Once again tomorrow I will attempt to reach the owner of this store and then my complaint goes in writing and I deal with it legally. I can't say that it's not right to deal with Canadian companies but whatever you do...DO NOT PURCHASE FROM MDG unless you want to waste your money!

In October of 2008, My laptop which I had purchased through a MDG computers Television ad, had broken. It seems the hinges had siezed. (things that had never worked on the computer was the F3 key which turned the mouse pad on or off, the CD rom stopped working within a month of purchase as well.)When i tried to get service for this computer, they told me i would have to ship it back to them and they would work on it. My business centers around my laptop and could not send it back to them, so i worked with it the way it was, not needing the CD rom and using a piece of cardboard to cover the onboard mousepad. BUT I decided I would give them another shot, I ordered another Laptop computer. the end of November 2008. After going through their paperwork hoops the deal was finally made and apparently the computer had been shipped. and would be in within 7 to 10 days. The package was lost, for weeks. They couldn't find it and refused to resend another one. my husband also purchased a desk top computer from them around the same time as I did. they also lost one of those packages as well. the laptop from november was shipped with a bad AC adapter cord, it makes hissing sounds, when i called them to have it replaced. They told me i would have to ship back the system and they would fix it. Again my business continues to be ran by my laptop. after spend over $5000.00 there in the last 2 years you think they would just send out another adapter and what if the next one they send out also makes the sound? On top of having to speak to them 30 to 50 times since november for many issues concerning both products. the windows activation on the Desktop keeps expiring and I have to keep calling. The salesman for my laptop had such poor language skills that I had to keep getting another agent to help me understand.

When 1 computer is faulty after owning it, then it's a dud, and move on... BUT when you order 3 from the same company and you have problems with all 3 then there is an issue with the company!

I have contacted the company and told them I want to return all the products, they told me it is my choice but they would still go to collections and affect my credit rating.

So as a consumer I can not return the product and get my money back, like a normal business. So I continue to pay for faulty computers with even less Knowledgeable computer support staff.

In the future, I will not buy an MDG computer ever again. But this will in the end cost me thousands of dollars, because I am unable to get my money back or return the items.

(at the same time as I bought these 2 computers from MDG, I bought my children each a DELL laptop and yet to have problems with ANY aspect of those purchases.)

Buying a computer from MDG in 2007 was the biggest mistake of my life.I asked them if it was in home support before I bought it & they said it was.Well it broke down before Christmas of 2007 & I sent it back to be fixed plus I had to Pay $20 dollars for insurance with them in case they lost or broke my computer.Every time you would have to send it back to them the charge was $20.It was the power supply as I expected plus I told them that the dvd burner wasn't working properly.Well got it back a month later & it was the power supply & they also told me the fan wasn't working.So I thought great depending on how long the fan wasn't working for the hard drive will likely be the next to go.Then I go to try & burn & it still isn't working properly so I call them & find out that they never even looked at the dvd burner so they expect me to send it back again to be fixed & then I will have to wait a month again to get it fixed.Also they have a seal on this piece of crap computer & you can't even clean the dust out of it.If you break the seal the warranty is void.This computer has been nothing but a head ache. I called them & told them I didn't want it because it was a piece of garbage & that I wasn't going to pay for it but they wouldn't take the computer back. Now about 2 months ago the screen went & then just last 3 weeks ago the hard drive went. So now the whole thing is sitting in my basement closet. So the whole computer didn't last not even 2 years & I am typing right now on my dell that is like 4 years old. I am so mad at myself that I got a computer form them & they ripped me off & I refuse to pay for a lemon. If you goggle them you will see other people got ripped off by them as well & I so wish I had of goggled them before I got a computer from them. Now my name is in the collection agency & it will stay there for life before I pay for that MDG lemon computer, Please do not get ripped off by MDG like I did.

I want MDG to know I am going to spread the word about their company to every person, friend, stranger I see or come in contact with.

Last year we bought a computer from MDG in Vancouver. The fan is acting up now and I tried calling the number on my invoice as I purchased an extended warranty and the number was no longer in service.

I called the 1-800 number on the website and was advised that there were no more stores in British Columbia. The closest store was Ontario. I advised that I was having trouble with the fan and thought it should be looked at as I have an extended warranty.

He put me through to service who promptly advised me that the tower would be picked up by UPS within 48 hours.

I am more than concerned that my tower will be in a truck going to Ontario and gone for 10 days after reading all the horror stories on the complaints I am sure that it will be damaged and scratched and god knows what else. What a horrible disreputable company to deal with. Shady, working out of backrooms that are shut down and provide poor service and speak to people as though we were sheep for the slaughter.

I think that some sort of consumer protection agency needs to go in and deal with all these complaints and the public are being ripped off left right and centre.

I want my money returned on my extended warranty as I was told when I purchased it that I could bring it in anytime for repairs to the store located only a short drive from my home.

This deal has been dishonoured.

I too have been taken by this company. We purchased a computer in January of this year(2008) at MDG in London. I ordered my computer to have a card slot at the front of the computer for my camera card and they did not install it. I also had upgraded my keyboard and mouse and they sent me the basis one. Because the card slot and the speakers they threw into the deal for being a first time MDG customer were not in stock I said I would come back in 2 days once it would be in. They still did not have my speakers and forgot all about the card slot. To top it all off when we got everything home they didn't inlude a power cord. I called them and they were ever so sorry but thier techs are very busy servicing people and it was an over site on their part. I called them and said I was getting a bad feeling from them about all the missing components and would prefer my money back. It was then I was told no refunds or money back. They had no idea what I did to the computer. I had to remeind them I did nothing as I didn't have a power cord to use it.

I would never buy one from them again and now it is Oct 2008 and I have to look at getting a new computer because the one I purchased form MDG doesn't work at all. I have had to put more ram on it and a new video card in it because what they installed would not support Vista.

Make this a lesson to all. Stay away from them. I have heard good stories but more bad. Anyone I talk to about computers either has experienced or knows someone who has experienced the horror I have gon through.

It is especially disheartening cause I don't know that much about computers nor do I ever want to. I can buy a car and not get ripped off. Why can't I buy a computer and not have the same trust in the sales person?

I bought a new laptop from mdg computers.It had a standard warranty of one year and I was told by the salesperson that if anything goes wrong, they will fix it at their Vancouver store.

However, we my Ethernet connection stop working ( I could not connect to the Internet via Ethernet cable). I took it back to their Vancouver store. The employee at the service desk told me that they will have to send back the laptop to Toronto to have it fixed. I told them that the salesperson told me that they fix them here. He said that if you want to have it fixed, you must leave it here for up to about 7 to 7 weeks.

MDG Vancouver store called me after about 2 weeks to let me know that the adopter on the motherboard is broken and I will have to pay for it. But I told them that it is under warranty for one year, but they said they can have replace the motherboard and cannot fix it for free. I was shoched and talk to the salesperson, but nothing worked and I told them that I cannot pay about $350.00 and want my laptop back. So they took another 2 weeks before I could get my laptop back. I talked to many other stores and they told me that my laptop was under warranty and that MDG was supposed to fix it at no charge.

I really wasted my money and time while dealing with MDG. I hope nobody else will ever do business with them.

I received a coupon in the mail for "Free Premium Anti-Virus Protection Suite", "Free Installation and Configuration" and "Free Updates for One Year". This package is supposed to worth $179 but is free for being an MDG customer and buying their products. All I had to do was call the Hamilton store to make an appointment to have this installed. I called the Hamilton Store and was told all I had to do was bring the computer in and leave it for a couple of days. We took the computer in on a Wednesday.

On Friday, I got a message from the technician stating that my so called "Free Premium Anti-Virus Protection Suite" was going to cost me additional money. Apparently this additional fee was the technician to delete the old anti-virus protection, install new software and then install the new "Free Premium Anti-Virus Protection Suite."

I re-read the letter I received with the coupon and nowhere in that letter does it states there would be an additional charge. It clearly states "Free installation and configuration". Am I missing something in the translation? As well, nothing was mentioned at the store when I dropped off the computer that could be possible hidden extra cost. I decided that I would not pay the extra fee and went down to pick up my computer. When I was in the store, I asked to speak the manager but was told he was on holidays and the technician was the one who was left in charge.

I feel that I have been misled by both the letter which accompanied the coupon, and the technician for not stating that there could be an extra cost involved. I am from out of town so this was an inconvenience to me to have to drive to Hamilton only to be told that it wasn't "free" after all.

Would I buy another product from MDG - no way and I would not recommend them to anyone else either.

I bought a MDG desktop computer with Intel Premium 4 inside in March 2006. The computer started overheating and shutting down periodically within the first 6 months. I would leave it off for a while then I would turn it back on, and it would work well for quite a while and I thought that whatever was wrong was fixed. It started up again in March of this year, but much worse, I contacted MDG technical support and they told me it was either Windows (and I should try re-installing that) and if that didn't work it was probably a hardware problem (I had not installed any hardware, the only parts in the computer were all original from the factory), I wrote back and told them I couldn't get it to stay on long enough to re-install Windows and I asked for the specifications for the model I have so I could take it to a repairman. They told me to download PCWizard... I had already made it clear that the computer would not stay on for longer than a few seconds. I finally got the repairman and when he opened it he found that the computer was missing a fan... Due to this manufacturing oversight I had to buy a new Intel Pentium 4 64B Processor 631 lt - 3.0G/800/2M/5775.

1 Antec 80MM Tricool 20/26 CFM 18/24DBA,
1 Antec 120MM Tricool 39 CFM 25DB.

For a cost of $207.21. The lack of the fan and the resulting overheating had burnt the processor and the 1 existing fan.
I am still paying for this computer and I would like to know if I am within my rights to ask MDG to reduce this cost from my balance.

I am tired of dealing with them directly as they don't seem to want to listen to you when you do explain the problem.

I purchased a MDG laptop as a Christmas gift for my husband. I also purchased a Wireless Optical Mouse (around $50). When I went to pick up the laptop and accessories on December 24th, 2007, I was told that the wireless mouse was out of stock, that I was just to call back after Christmas and when it was available, and I would get one. However, I have phoned twice and went to their store personally - they said I have no proof that I didn't get the mouse when I picked up the laptop - and oddly enough, there is nothing marked on the receipt that it was out of stock. So I should have listened to all the bad rap on this company - totally dishonorable, and cannot be trusted. Stay away from MDG - don't learn the hard way like I did.

On September 13, 2007 I contacted MDG computers to let them know that contrary to what we had been told by their salesperson, the battery life of the laptop computer, Acer 5610Z, even on a full charge, was no where near four hours. The battery life was a key factor in the purchase of the computer, because I use it when I commute and my daughter would be using it at university.

The manager, Alex (no last name was given) indicated that when he spoke to his salesperson, he denied saying it was four hours. I told the manager that as this was a make-or-break factor in the sale, I know the salesperson did say it and my daughter, who accompanied me to the purchase, also heard him say it. I asked Alex if I could exchange it (we'd used it for about two weeks) for a computer that had a four-hour battery, and he said that he doesn't allow returns or exchanges because some people abuse that. He asked me if I had done various things to the computer to help prolong the battery life, and I said we had, such as reducing the brightness of the screen, turning off unnecessary programs, and making sure the battery was completely spent before recharging; basically, the advice given to us by the salesperson. He said that what he would try to do is to order a four-hour battery for my computer model from Acer.

I called back on September 19 to inquire about the progress and was told Alex was not in the office.

I called again on September 29.

I called again on October 2 after he had returned from a business trip and he told me he was still looking into solving the problem.

I called again on October 19, and told Alex I had been waiting for over a month to hear about the resolution. He told me he was doing everything he could to get hold of the battery. I told him as the three-month deferred payment plan would soon be up, I would have to start paying for the computer and needed this problem resolved as the product was not fulfilling our needs as promised by the salesperson. I told him I did not want to be paying for a $1500 dollar product that was not working as we needed. He told me he could try to extend the payment plan but would have to charge me additional administration fees. (Basically, he'd charge me more for a product that we told him was not performing as expected after having it for just two weeks!) I said I did not want that; I would prefer to have the problem resolved. He said he would get back to me.

After not hearing from him again for another two weeks, I called again on November 2nd, twice. I said as I had not heard from him and this was now going on two months I'd been hoping this problem would be resolved, that I would give him until November 6 to fix the issue. He told me that I have been using the computer for three months so obviously it was working. In essence, he completely dismissed my initial concerns and my suggestion that I exchange the computer. He ignored the fact that for a two-month period out of the almost three months that we owned the computer I had called his store six times to have the problem resolved. I basically told him that I was disappointed to realize that he had simply been stalling, rather than actively trying to solve the problem. I told him that he obviously had no intention of solving the problem from the beginning and was simply delaying for as long as possible until I had to start paying for the computer; basically I would be stuck with the product and would be paying for it. I repeated that I wanted the problem resolved by November 6 or that I would have to contact his supervisor. He told me that if I was going to give him an ultimatum, he wouldn't bother continuing to try to solve the problem (as if he had ever!), that I should contact customer service. He gave me the number 1. 877.466.3634.

I immediately called the number he gave me, which turned out to be technical support. They transferred me to customer service. My first contact was with Stephanie. I explained all that had transpired between Alex and me and told her he said I should contact them to deal with the problem further. She said she would speak to him and try to get more info. She called me back that day and said that basically he had told her he was trying to get me a battery, but, quite conveniently, in between the time that I had spoken to him and she had contacted him -- approximately 30 minutes -- he had found out that Acer did not have four-hour batteries for my computer. I told her it was rather interesting that he did not tell me that in my phone call with him earlier that morning, and that it took him seven weeks to discover this. She suggested that what she could do is contact her warehouse to find out if they had a regular battery for my computer and ship it out to me. She said it was unfortunate that we hadn't spoken earlier because she could have had it shipped that day. She told me she would take care of it.

On November 19 I called MDG customer service again because I had not received the battery. I spoke to Alison, who told me that Stephanie was away that day. She said she checked my file and had spoken to her supervisor, who said that Stephanie had ordered the battery and it hadn't come in yet. I told her that was strange as Stephanie had told me she could have had it shipped on November 2 when I first spoke to her. She said that it would have had to been ordered, because they don't stock the batteries for my computer, and that Stephanie even had a waybill on her desk, but they couldn't guarantee when the battery would arrive and I should keep calling back to check.

On November 27 I called Stephanie, who told me that "a product" had been shipped out on November 6 to my apartment building. I asked her to what apartment number and she said there wasn't any. I told her that I had given her my full address, as I live in an apartment building, and that it was even on my MDG customer file. She repeated that there was no apartment number and that the package had not been returned to them. I told her if UPS had not delivered it (and how could they with no apartment number?!) then they would have returned it to them. Besides, you can't deliver a courier package without a phone number, and no one from UPS ever called me! She said she had no record of the package being returned, and she would have to resolve that with them. She said she would contact her warehouse again to see if they had a battery.

A few minutes later, she called me back and said they didn't have the battery and they were not going to order it and there was nothing else they could do. She suggested I go back to the James Street store in Hamilton, where I'd first been given the runaround, to see if they would give me a store credit. I told her that after having been given the runaround for two months by the store manager, why would she think they would do anything further and that he had passed the problem on to them. She told me there was nothing else she could do because I had bought the product at a store, not at MDGDirect, their online store. I told her that she had left me no choice but to contact the Better Business Bureau.

I have all the logs of when I made the calls to MDG. I have now been paying for a $1500 item which does not work properly, and which the store manager prevented me from exchanging at the outset, and for which he promised to get the proper part to fix the problem. I have been treated with an absolute lack of integrity and honesty by this store -- starting with the salesperson saying that the computer had a four-hour battery life on a full charge. The complete contradictions and changed stories indicate to me that neither the MDG store manager nor the customer service reps had any intentions of resolving this problem to begin with. The Better Business Bureau tried to intervene on my behalf, and MDG did not respond. What a surprise!

Over the past seven years, I have bought three computers from MDG, totalling close to $8000. They seem to think that they are getting the better of the customer in this situation by not resolving the problem and not responding to the BBB. They are profoundly wrong. For one thing, I will never buy another computer from them, so they certainly will never get another $8000 from me. But it doesn’t stop there. I have told everyone I know about my situation and have encouraged them to buy their computers elsewhere. By the time, they spread the word as well, MDG will have lost untold thousands of dollars. All because they wouldn’t solve a problem that would probably have cost them a couple hundred dollars. I guess the next time they think they can screw over a customer, they should think of the real cost to their bottom line.

I go to the IBT (International Business and Technology) program at my high school here in Canada; it has a focus on (obviously) business and technology. As part of the program, we were forced to buy a laptop through the school, these were Durabook models. Let me first tell you the price and specs: $1800 for a Core 2 1.73 Ghz processor with 1 GB of RAM, a 120 GB hard drive, Intel Integrated Graphics (low end, can't find exact specs), 2 batteries (one 9 cell, one 6 cell) and 3 yrs of in-school warranty (on a weekly basis). Yes, $1800, and all we got was XP Pro with Word, Excel and PowerPoint (plus InfoPath and Access) 2007. For $1800, we were given such a useless computer, I could have gotten a better model (I checked) from Dell for around $800 with 3 yrs. of next-day, in-home support. After getting the computer, many people had hardware problems; my keyboard never worked from day one, almost everyone's screen has something wrong with them, and, well, that's just the good side.

I want to make one thing clear before I continue: we were given a Windows Vista Business key, but no installation CD. I called Microsoft, and they said this was illegal. But the worst part is that the copies of XP we have are PIRATED, none were able to activate, so MDG used a USB drive with a crack or something similar (same one for everyone) to skip activation on the computers. Of course, I contacted Microsoft on the matter, they said they would look into it.

Now, let me tell you the blatant lies they told us. They said we'd be getting two 9-cell batteries with 5 hrs of battery life, we instead got a 9 cell and a 6 cell with 3 hrs and 2 hrs of battery life, respectively. They said we'd be getting a 160 GB hard drive, but we lost 40 GBs for no reason. They also promised 2 GBs of RAM, a better processor, and 'lots' of preinstalled software. The laptop itself has the fan on the bottom for some reason, and it gets incredibly hot after little under an hour of continuous use, so does the charger. The core temperature of the processor is, on average, over 60 degrees Celsius; its maximum temperature is about 100 degrees. It spikes to over 80 degrees in less than 2 hrs sometimes. The laptops are also unusually heavy; the battery alone is about 2 lbs.

I could go on forever. There are no buttons or sliding things to open the lid, instead, we have to just pull it open. There are clips that keep it closed, these often break, for a while, MDG refused to fix them, saying we were abusing our laptops; only after multiple complaints from parents did they start fixing them. They only come once a week to our school, we have to fill out a paper form and put it in a box to get a repair. And even though we have to sue these laptops for four years, they only give us a three-year warranty.

Let me end by saying DO NOT BUY FROM MDG, they WILL scam you out of your money and refuse to fix their shoddy computers, many others share my view (just search complaints.com for 'MDG'), and I hope that MDG will never sell another computer. They lied to us, refused to fix our laptops, used pirated software, and took our money. And you know what? Our school is now going to allow any brand of laptop for people to bring next year. Unbelievable how a company can scam students and leave once they've made a quick buck. Or a couple hundred thousand.

I made the same mistake of wanting to buy Canadian. I went to the MDG store in Newmarket and was sold a system by a student. We got the system home and noticed that there was a white “speck” on the flat screen monitor. We called MDG and were told, “not to worry” because that often happens with the flat screens. Usually there are four or five of these dead pixels and we were lucky we only had one.

A few months later my computer crashed and I took it back to MDG for repairs. I told them that it was a business computer for three businesses and one business was an international health charity where patients depended on us for information, support and referrals to specialists in their area of expertise. I didn’t want them to think that we only used it for e-mail and computer games. We were told that they would give us same day service for an extra fee. We paid the fee and got the computer back within a few hours. Even though that was a nice turn around time, we live out of town and had to sit in a Tim Horton’s for two hours while the computer was being fixed. Anyhow, I should not complain.

Over the past weekend I had intermittent problems getting on line. I checked to see that my firewall and virus programs were up to date and were running. They were. I did a virus scan, registry scan, pest control for cookies, Counterspy, and Ewido (anti-spy program), then I did a disk clean up and defrag. The defrag program would not run and would freeze my computer. I figured that this was beyond my expertise and called MDG for an appointment. They said to just bring it in. I said that I needed a fast turnaround.

I brought the computer in around noon on Monday and spoke to the Techie. He began telling me what was wrong with the computer without even looking at it and everything was my fault and was going to cost me. He said that we didn’t have a virus program (we did) and then he said that it was a free program (it wasn’t). We told him that we had the paid version, which gave us some extra perks, and he demanded to know what those perks were. That is when I started losing it. He also told us that defragging the computer was a waste of time and that it did nothing to speed it up. I told him that on the contrary, I found it made quite a difference.

Two days later (yep, we told him that we needed the computer fixed immediately) my husband checked on the computer and the techie told him that someone had installed and old modem. We told them that they had built the computer and if anyone had installed an old modem, it was them. By Thursday we were getting fed up, then MDG called and I had hoped by that time that they were calling us to come and pick up the computer. Not the case.

Now the techie is telling me that my virus program is out of date and my computer was probably filled with spyware and viruses and he would have to sell me his virus protection software at a cost of $100.00 but that he was waiving all inspection fees and cleanup. First of all, all computer companies clean your computer when it comes in for repair. This reduces the risk of foreign objects coming in contact with computer parts. Second, the computer is just over a year old and I had an extended warranty so I should not be paying for anything. He became obnoxious and condescending and continued blabbering on about the out-dated virus freeware I had. Now I am mad and I shouted at him (something I am not proud of but he was really pushing my buttons) I told him that the virus program was a PAID version and it updates automatically every two days. I also told him that I do not take my computer online unless I see that the virus program logo (which is visible at all times in the tray) is brightly coloured indicating that it is up to date and is running in the background. I told him that of course it was out-of-date because the damn computer hadn’t been turned on in four days and the program was automatically trying to download and update the virus protection as it is set to do.

That is when he became surly and said that he would only fix the modem since I was so sure that was the problem. That is when I hung up on him and called MDG head office.

The head office was supposed to have my computer picked up from the Newmarket store and delivered to a competent repairperson at their Head Office and then returned to a store near me. I told them not to make it the Newmarket store because I was never going to go back there. Newmarket is 45 minutes from me and the next closest store is just under two hours. Nice, when you have three businesses to run and have to shut everything down to chase down computers.

We had this conversation with MDG around 4:30 on Thursday. It is now 2 p.m. on Friday and still no word about my computer. I am trying to work with a laptop computer and my backed up files. As we all know, laptops are not made for long hours of work and it is throwing off a lot of heat. MDG’s ineptitude could easily cost me two damaged computers.

Would I buy from them again? Not a chance.

After owning an MDG computer previously I decided after a major house fire last year and losing everything we owned to go to MDG to replace the computers in our home. A KIOSK had been put into the Staples Store in Belleville Ontario. We went a couple times to see what the prices were like (students going back to school etc) and found they were very reasonable. I convinced my partner that she should stick with MDG versus going to Dell again (who she was VERY happy with). So we picked out the machines, two desktop systems and a Notebook. 6000.00 in computer equipment and I paid "CASH" for them due to the insurance money being in my hands to replace the machines. We even upgraded the machines we wanted with extra funds of our own to get the stuff we really wanted. So now comes the issue... the Notebook's Power Adaptor blows up. Thank God it wasn't plugged into the notebook at the time. So she calls for warranty service. The technician was extremely condescending and rude. He was insisting we had to drive to Kingston to get "warranty" repair. Now a point about my partner... she WAS a technician in a call center and has extensive computer background. She was freaking out and handed the phone off to me. Now my background... I have been involved with computers since 1982, building AND using... have had my own business so I "know" what I am talking about when it comes to computers (including maintaining an 8 system lan in our home). I get on the phone and this guy starts YELLING at me... Well thats an issue cause I currently work in law enforcement so of course he's going to get yelled at right back. "click" he hangs up. SO I call back and ask to speak to a supervisor... "nope no supervisors on I am the boss right now". SO again the stupidity and yelling and "click" again. I call back he hears my voice and simply hangs up again... I try again and get a different guy. So I start all over again. Well buddy is coaching him in the background cause I can hear him and this guy now claims that he is in charge. I hang up and am I ever po'd. The next day someone from MDG calls me... very apologetic and wanting to deal with the issue because I made threats of the better business bureau as well as going to the media. A new power adaptor will be shipped etc etc no you don't need to go to Kingston. So we wait... 4 days later (on a thursday) it comes in... Problem... they sent a desktop power supply... So we refuse it and return to sender. I call back and advise them that we refused the package cause they sent the wrong item. Well when we get it back we'll send you the right one... 4 days later I call... still haven't received it back and they won't send anything till that happens. Ok this is ###ed... I call the Kingston Store and get the run around... manager on days off no idea. need to bring it in etc etc etc... Now this is 6000.00 of equipment and they won't ship? I bought a freakin HP laptop at WALMART for when I travel simply to be able to use messenger to talk to my family and THEY sent me a box fixed my unit and sent it back within 3 days during the same time period! Anyhow I digress... I get a call on last saturday almost three weeks into this crap and its "supposedly" the manager from MDG in kingston... dunno what we can do was a head office issue blah blah blah... Ok you need to hear me Mr. Manager, I WILL go to the BBB AND the Media if this isn't resolved by monday. "Nothing I can do for you etc etc". Hangs up. Now I am steaming mad sitting at my store having just endured some of the worst customer service over the last almost three weeks and a "manager" tells me suck it up and deal with Main Office... Suddenly an hour and a half later i get a call... Oh the item was shipped out thursday (this is on saturday) from the warehouse and gives me some tracking number... I go to UPS (cause thats who brought the first WRONG power adaptor) and guess what... FAKE! No such tracking number... So Tuesday (monday was a holiday) my partner calls MDG head Office... no such tracking number and it was supposedly sent via canada post. Today UPS pulls up and delivers a box to our store. My son signs for it... its brought home and I look at it and immediately state (wait for it) "Its the WRONG FREAKIN ONE AGAIN". Can people at this company NOT look at the records and make SURE the right damn part is sent? So I call again and I am "tryinbg" to be pleasant... 4 phone transfers later I get someone claiming to be a technical support manager but "oh the warehouse is closed so I don't know if we have a power adaptor" and they want us to send in the NOTEBOOK for them to match the adaptor up... ok... lets see... why not send us a box for the BROKEN ONE and then make sure it matches that and send the NEW ONE to us? They do not NEED the notebook! it was working fine till the battery completely died! Just send us the damn adaptor. At this point I am preparing to go to the media because the delays, excuses, poor service, condescending attitudes and rudeness are not WORTH my money. We "had" recommended MDG to others... NEVER again! In fact my partner is so disgusted with them if it were not for the fact this was a 2200.00 machine she'd throw it out and turn to dell or ANYONE else. Personally I do not believe this will be resolved any time soon as I could tell i was simply being placated. We'll see what occurs within the next 48 hours. Monday May 28th if we have not gotten this resolved with some sort of apology "at a minimum" I guess I will have no choice but to go to the BBB and the media. I will not accept two or three day waits and the wrong parts any more either. If they want to impress me they need to load their own tech with one of every power supply and send him down in a car and resolve this. Again I have to look at the example given by HP for a 700.00 notebook and they went above and beyond! MDG you really need to have someone a) teach your tech support people not to be condescending and rude b) make sure your warehouse sends the right parts when sending parts and c) get a better WARRANTY program that INCLUDES services as HP does. If you want to compete and be compared to them as a leader then you need to start doing business "better". you have my name, you have my email. If you check my name the one in Trenton Ontario is the one you want... The clock is ticking. Up to you how this goes. For me its done and I am prepared to move on this as a consumer that recognizes my rights in Canada and specifically Ontario with respect to poor service and shoddy warranty.

I was dealing with MDG to get a TV and laptop.. I was told by Rob that he just needs to get the paperwork to me, I sign it, fax it back and he will do the rest and that I will receive the products within a week... I called him to make sure that this was going to happen. I couldn't get a hold him.. The employee had no clue of who he was and said "we can offer you the product upon that you pay $39.99 for 16 weeks before you receive the products".. I said "no bloody way.. I expect to receive what I am paying for immediately". She told me that that is not how they work. She also told me that even though I haven't signed anything yet, I would be charged $500 for any cancellation so she couldn't cancel the order that hasn't been processed yet... I was pissed about it. I asked to talk to a manager, she said that "no manager is available, but, I am a manager so you have to deal with me". I told her "I will not pay $500 for something that hasn't happened yet" and she told me "you have no choice in the matter". She told me that "if you want to complain about it, email feedback AT mdgdirect.ca and they will get back to you within 24-48 hours".. Well, 1.5 weeks later, no response. I also put a request in the email for a receipt to show that they opened the email... It hasn't happened. This company does not care about customer service or the customers. They only care about trying to make money. If i was to ever get anything from them, they are going to have to prove to me that the product is top notch quality at a top notch price I receive it in timely matter with no BS non of this payments for 16 weeks crap before you receive the product and way better customer service than what you get when you call... They are lousy at treating customers.

Ryan Tomlinson,
Delta, BC.