Central Computer

Category:	Computer Store
Address:	837 Howard St, San Francisco, CA 94103, USA
Phone:	+1 415-495-5888
Site:	centralcomputers.com
Rating:	4
Working:	9AM–7:30PM 9AM–7:30PM 9AM–7:30PM 9AM–7:30PM 9AM–7:30PM 10:30AM–6PM 10:30AM–6PM

Location

Photos 64

Reviews 11

A Private User

What I like about this place is they expect a certain level of knowledge and theyre not really sales people. However, if you have a problem, they will do what they can to help, and they have a repair service for more serious issues. I sent a co-worker who is not very knowledgeable there because I knew they wouldnt bullsh** her and try to sell her something she didnt need. They are more the type to tell you your options and let you decide - not pressure you to buy this or that. You can wander around the store, and no one will offer to help you - generally, everyone is busy - and thats fine with me. I trust that the advice they give is honest - not trying to sell you something just because theyll make more money on Product A vs Product B. They dont have a huge selection of computers for sale, but they have a huge selection of peripheral stuff - if they dont have it, youll probably have to get it from the internet. However, buyer beware on some of the stuff -- you can get the cheapest no-name stuff from whatever supplier, or you can move up the quality scale. Ive bought a few things that I later returned due to them being pretty crappy. Some people would be happy to get those items for such a low cost, but the items below my quality standards were accepted back for full refund - you might ask before you leave the store if the item you purchase can be returned.

A Private User

Its a mixed bag. The people know their stuff and their repair prices are better than most. They have an extensive mixture of quality and cheap stuff. They have the best selection of cases and drives on sale I have found, often better than Newegg, Tiger and HR. A good place for motherboards. Sometimes all you need is cheap. As a matter of fact, depending on what I am looking for, I just ask for "crappy cheap" and they oblige. They have great sales and fair prices on laptops. As for other stuff, check your prices on Tiger or Newegg first. Not everyone speaks great English, and there are definitely some opportunities for culture shock, but on the whole its a very useful place with parking (5th & Mission) nearby. This is not a shop for beginners. Its for people who know what they want and need. The staff is usually swamped by pros seeking upgrades and may at time be curt with the clueless. Their policies are occasionally bone headed and frustrating, but its pretty probably that those are reactions to experiences. As for checking bags..have you looked at the location? A block from the drug center of SF..of COURSE they check bags. On the street tough and has the meanest meter readers. If they moved, it would be extremely distressing.

A Private User

I dont know why people have had bad experiences with service here. I usually have a good experience. A tip: sometimes when the store is really crowded you have to flag someone down instead of just standing around and waiting for help. But thats no big deal to me because when I get someones attention, theyre always friendly and know way more stuff than people at the chain stores. They carry a ton of stuff that other stores dont carry like cables that I dont even know the name of. And their prices are also way lower than any other retail store. Parking can be a pain but Id rather deal with that than deal with high prices and crappy service at a big box store.

A Private User

My Dell Inspirons charger wore out (too much pulling destroyed the cable), so I went there to purchase a new one. They sold me one for 50 dollars, to my amazement, after assuring me that that is the official Dell price. I look now and it is difficult to find one for more than 20 dollars. Anyway, I used it, and for a while it worked fine. I started noticing that it would sometimes stop working in certain outlets that everything else, including my old charger, work fine in - the green light wouldnt turn on and so on. And then eventually it just simply died. They are a rip-off, unprofessional, and their products are unreliable.

A Private User

Dont expect an iota of help here, and dont even think about returning something. They simply will not take anything back with or without receipt... buy it and its yours forever. And yes, even if the "clerk" who helped you told you what to buy to solve your problem, and it was not the right item, THEY WILL NOT TAKE IT BACK. Their prices are competitive for cables and component parts, but not very competitive on hard drives and processors. Sadly, when you can buy it at DumpUSA (ok... CompUSA) youre usually better off.

A Private User

They kept my laptop for a month, to see what was wrong with it. I called twice and spoke to the technician who both times took my info (reference no) and asked if he could call me back-no calls. When I finally got the manager on the phone he called me the next day and complained that I had never returned his call (placed 5 afetr 5 weeks with the computer)-an absolute, bald faced lie. When I asked what had taken so long he had no response, I asked what diagnostic tests he had run-a memory test, yes a 5 week memory test

Manuel Witrago

Costumer service depends on person, it can go from friendly and helpful to snarls or one of those looks that mean "why are you here wasting my time." On the technical side they know their stuff, such as when a person(me) realized computer case was to small for a nvida 780 ti card, and decided to improvise(tore case to fit card.) Well one can see what came next, a specialist was needed, enter Computer Central paid for needed parts plus effort and simply picked up a working running computer... hurrah...

A Private User

They have had my computer for 2 months. Told me it was done 1.5 months ago, only for me to take time to go see them and then they told me it would be ready the following week. My persistent calls are answered by someone that doesnt seem to have time for my call or any valuable data about what is happening with my machine. To top it off it took them more than 30 days just to agree with my assessment of the issue with the system.

A Private User

The staff is totally unknowledgeable, unhelpful & obnoxious to boot! Never mind the fact that the guy behind the counter sold me a "USED CLEANING TAPE!!!" Who the HELL sells merchandise as new when its been used ESPECIALLY A CLEANING TAPE that only has 20 uses on it. (2 of which have already been used as marked on the label). And thats if you trust that whoever used it last marked how many times it was used. USELESS STORE!!!

A Private User

I went to this place where they barely speak English and I bought $50 worth of merchandise including a DVD burner. When I told them that I needed 4 screws for the DVD burner, they gave me a bucket with thousands of screws and told me that I had to dig to find the screws I needed! They also had the guts to charge me for those screws! Avoid this dump full of chinese rats!!!

FOESAD 5150

this place has everything u r lookn 4, plus an over the top attitude that makes the employees unaproachable & unfriendly in general. if u wana b treated condesendingly (howevr u spell that word), just ask for peter, he is the worst service agent i jave come across in quite some time. he really made things as difficult as possible & has an awful disposition to boot!