Specifications

PlumChoice
By Terry Currier
I must admit I never heard of PlumChoice before I
met with them at CES. PlumChoice provides 24/7
PC support services for home, home ofce and small
business customers. Just as you’d expect, their people
are all trained and ready to help you x problems
with your computer. They can help you with anything
from printer problems to getting onto the Internet.
If need be they are able (only with your permission)
to log onto your computer. They see what you see.
During the session, you are in control the whole time.
You can end a session by simply closing the support
window on your desktop. Further still, you are always
in control of your mouse (cursor). During your session
you will see the technician using your cursor to locate
and x problems. At any time, you can override mouse
control by simply moving your mouse. PlumChoice
support has received Editor’s Choice Awards from
both Laptop and PC Magazine.
So what is the cost?
Well rst off they will provide a preliminary free
consultation to the customers. You describe the
problem, and they’ll walk you through what needs to
be done to x it. They will also provide you with an
estimated quote prior to performing any work.
Service prices range from $25 to $129.00. Many
of the services are priced at a at rate, including PC
set-up, PC tune-up and spyware and virus removal.
They offer a monthly subscription package for
$24.95 a month for continuous, unlimited service and
maintenance. I had a friend bring over a laptop with
spyware on it. Bestbuy’s Geek Squad quoted him $250
to x it.
They can work with 374 software and 17 hardware
platforms. Some of the services include:
locate and remove viruses and install and •
congure anti-virus software
stop pop-ups, remove adware/spyware and •
install/congure anti-spyware software
install home and small ofce networks •
(including wireless networks)
x email and software problems •
x printer, scanner, digital camera and other •
peripheral problems
help with MP3 players (iPod), PDAs and other •
mobile devices
speed up your computer and increase •
performance (PC tune-up)
perform standard maintenance, Windows •
updates/patches
install, congure and train you on new •
software and hardware
assist in data back-up processes, transferring •
data from one PC to another
set-up secure wireless networks •
provide training, or take you shopping online •
to nd the right product that meets your needs
x error messages or frozen screens and much •
more!
If they can not x it on-line they can send a certied
technician to your home or ofce anywhere in the
continental United States. Most service requests are
fullled within 24 hours. ‘Physical’ onsite computer
support fees are $119/hr, and $59.50 for each
additional 30 minutes.
New at CES they announced a new remote PC
support capabilities enabling consumers to receive
on-screen alerts about critical security, backup and
disk health problems, along with instant technician
assistance. The PlumChoice SAFElink™ platform
can display on-screen alerts that warn users about
changes in their virus and spyware protection, protect
a customer’s data by providing timely backup status,
and alert users to changes in a computer’s disk health.
Examples of disk health alerts are high fragmentation
levels, low free disk space, and hard disk error
conditions indicating that the hard drive is in danger of
catastrophic failure.
PlumChoice technicians then offer immediate
assistance to get rid of viruses and/or malware that
may have been caused by the security exposure, and
reestablish the correct protections.
www.plumchoice.com or call 1-888-PLUM-HELP