Rogersville City Schools says no to Gateway Tablet PCs

It turns out that bad customer service actually has big ramifications.

According to an article in the Rogersvile Review, Rogersville City Schools (RCS) had signed a contract with with Gateway to provide every student from sixth to eighth grade with a Gateway Tablet PC. Under the terms of the warranty, Gateway was to handle repairs and maintenance by the next business day.

Brandy Shelton, RCS technology director, said that two tablet pcs distributed to faculty last September have not been returned or repaired yet, thus raising a major red flag for their students who are often much rougher on a computer than adults.

According to the board, having a delay in repairing a unit would cascade to academic problems for the students. Thus, the school board met last Tuesday and voted to return the not yet distributed tablet pcs and terminate their contract with Gateway. On Friday, the board voted to accept a bid from Technology Express to supply 267 Fujitsu LifeBook tablet pcs.

Wow! I applaud RCS for holding Gateway’s feet to the fire. I hope other OEMs are watching this story and taking note.