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Review 8/17/2010
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Yeah, you read that 1 star right. I would have given GATpro 4 stars based on the fact that they were able to fix my 60GB Backwards Compatible PlayStation 3 pretty promptly the first time. However, it broke a week later and I had to send it in again (Postmarked July 19th, 2010) to get it repaired a second time, this time under GATpro's 90-day warranty. That isn't why they get 1 star however.
To make a long story short, GATpro never sent back my PS3. They are also apparently out of business too! If you want further details, read below.
I got a call from a guy named "Chip" on July 23rd (according to my phone records), who told me that they had received my PS3 and that they were sorry that I had to send it in a second time. They diagnosed that while they applied new solder to the Graphics chip, they hadn't applied it to the CPU, thus causing this second malfunction. Chip told me that they would be done with it by the end of the day and that they would ship it off to me in the next business day or two.
I thought that these guys were pretty professional, so I wasn't worried. I should have been. At the time, I was visiting my parents in Hawaii, so I was running on faith that it would be back by the time I returned to Los Angeles a few weeks later.
Fast forward to August 14th, about 3 weeks, and I notice as soon as I step into the doorway to my apartment that the PS3 still has not arrived. It was a Saturday, so I had to wait until the next business day. When I try to call the next business day, no one answers. I try to check out the company website and it has been taken down.
HOLY CRAP.
So there is no way to get a hold of them. Unbelievable. I try calling every number I can find related to GATpro, but every one of them either rings forever or goes to a voice message. I even sent an email to the originator of the work order, and I still have not received a response.
As a last ditch effort to make sure that I am not going crazy, I take the hour drive to visit their reported office in Tustin (where they are located), and I find it completely empty and ransacked, with only a mini refrigerator left.
So here I am, writing this review, heartbroken to find that my backwards compatible PS3 is nowhere to be found. How can a listed business just pack up and leave like this without returning a customer's property? That pretty much amounts to theft. My late grandma bought this as a gift for me after it dropped in price to $499, so it was both expensive AND sentimental to me.
This brings up a few questions:
1. Why choose GATpro?
Well, because it was cheaper than Sony, which would have charged $180 to attempt to repair your system, or send you a refurbished unit. GATpro charges $120. GATpro was also based in Tustin, CA so I figured the turnaround time would be A LOT shorter.
2. What did I learn?
I learned that even if it is expensive, get your console fixed by the manufacturer. I thought I would save myself $60 since I was recently laid-off, but it actually cost me A LOT more. $20 shipping for 2 mail-ins + the $120 repair fee = $160. For $20 more, I would have gotten peace of mind and my BC PS3 back. Now, I am out my PS3 ($499) AND $160. Oh, and let's add $299 + tax for a new PS3 + a new PS2 ($99 + tax), since the Slims aren't backwards compatible anymore. So the grand total for not going with Sony = $1050.
Un-freaking-believable. Thanks GATpro for screwing an honest man over.
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