Oh, I don't know. I've heard some horror stories about both Gateway and Dell about both proprietary components and poor quality components. Admittedly, Dell's laptops seem to be top notch at least.
Granted, as far as horror stories go, I've heard a LOT more about Packard Hell and Compaq than any other company. Heck, as far as system failures go, I've heard more Compaq horror stories than all other OEMs combined. And as far as proprietary and cheap arsed components go, Packard Hell takes the cake.
Granted, this is just me in my little neck of the woods. Maybe somewhere else the ratios are different. However, since I have friends and relatives who deal with this on a regular basis in Wisconsin, Illinois, South Carolina, Washington DC, and Alabama, well, it's a pretty good area coverage.
I will agree that consumers should educate themselves before looking for a new computer. If they just aren't smart enough to, they should at least bring along a friend/family member who IS educated on computers and can really push a salesperson to their limits of knowledge.
That said, it still should be the salesperson's job to find the best computer for the needs of their customer. Not to rip them off. I think Radio Shack is probably the worst example of this I've ever seen. I've never heard more lies, deciet, and pushing things that people don't need than I have walking through Radio Shack. Newbies, avoid that place like the plague.
Tech support from Compaq, well, of all major OEMs, I've heard of the worst stories about them. Strangely enough, usually they deal with either CD ROMs or modems. [shrug] Go figure. When it's a CD ROM issue, you have to hassle them constantly for a replacement. When it's a modem issue, good luck ever getting a driver that works. Strangely, I've heard of this from friends and family for years. I almost felt like I was home hearing the same things in this thread.
So while I agree that someone in the market for a new computer but not knowledgeable on how to fix them should go for a major OEM, of all OEMs Compaq and Packard Hell are the last two I'd EVER suggest to people. I'd say go with Dell. Maybe there will be upgrade problems, but if you're an unknowledged person looking for a new computer, you're not likely to be worried about upgrading anyway. Gateway is okay-ish. They're a lot more talk and hype than reality though. Maybe they used to be a much better company when they were smaller, but now they're no better than any other major OEM.
And if you're a skilled PC technician, put a bloody system together yourself. It's cheaper, you always get exactly what you want, if you go retail on all parts then everything has a long standing warantee (if you're not overclocking that is), and you don't have to worry about killing your warantee for messing around trying to fix it on your own. Plus you always know exactly what is in there and hence what drivers to get and where to get them.
And ZaNtHeR, if you can say ONE SINGLE good thing about Compaq <i>other</i> than they look wiz or that the company is no worse than any other major OEM, I'd like to hear it, preferably without pointless flaming of course.
-THG isn't AMD biased. They just turn Intel mobo reviews into AMD vs. Intel debates for fun. Yeah.