LAURINBURG — Chris Parker, owner, and operator of The Computer Hospital of Laurinburg recently moved his technical support business to downtown Laurinburg.
Parker originally started his business in October of 2013 and has moved from two previous locations, most recently a location on West Church Street across from Scotland High School. The repair shop is now at 420 South Main Street.
“I can see this Main Street location being long-term,” Parker said, who believes his presence in the downtown area will make it more convenient for clients to bring in their desktops, laptops, smartphones and tablets.
Not only does Parker fix tech problems clients bring to him, he also said he works with his customers and teaches them how to prevent problems from reoccurring. This can prevent unnecessary future trips, which adds to the value of The Computer Hospitals services.
“I don’t just fix the problem and have them coming back a week later, I try to fix the problem and teach them how to prevent it from happening again.”
After working in the computer industry for five years, Parker went back to school for two years at North Carolina State University and his last two years at The University of North Carolina at Pembroke for his B.A. in Information Technology.
Parker originally gained his experience by working with Phillip Johnson with Tech Support Services in Laurinburg. He also spent two years working at North Carolina State University in the campuses engineering computer labs during his time as a student there.
Prices for services at the computer hospital are also competitive with his competition, Parker said, because he is a smaller business.
“I try to stay below what larger companies charge, I try to stay right under them because I am a smaller company — it is just me,” Parker said. “I’m just as good if not better then a lot of them, just because a lot of them don’t have my experience.
Virus removal is $50, which includes the removal of a virus, malware, adware, spyware, and you will receive an update to your current anti-virus software.
Parker also provides system reformatting for $80, which will restore a computer to a “like new” state by erasing the hard drive and set an operating system backup. For $20, The Computer Hospital will also back up all the files on the computer, such as pictures and documents.
The tech service store also does screen replacements on all devices for a $50 labor fee. This includes smartphones and tablets.
Parker performs business and residential service calls for those who can’t make it into his South Main Street Location. For business visits, there is a $100 per hour charge and for residential visits, there is a $60 per hour charge.
For information about computer services and other technical support, call The Computer Hospital – Laurinburg at 910-384-0203.
