Computer Connection

The Computer Connection is the campus computer store for the University of Maine and other education institutions in the State of Maine. The Computer Connection offers both computer hardware and software at low educational pricing. While many products are kept in stock, special orders are welcomed for all your computer needs.

Please Note: Web orders are not final until Computer Connection confirms with you final price and availability of products.

Technical services (including repair and support) are offered by the IT Repair Center and the IT Help Center. Please be sure to check our eligibility requirements before you purchase through us. The Computer Connection is available in two locations:

Retail Sales Floor - Student Memorial Union, Orono, ME
Consulting Offices and Warehouse - #6 York Village, Orono, ME

Our hours of operation are 8:30am to 4:30pm.

Eligibility Requirements

The Computer Connectino is an academic reseller. In addition to the University's policies, the manufacturers can sometimes impose other restrictions and terms for our educational customers.

We serve the following community in the State of Maine:

Non-Profit Educational Institutions
Faculty and Staff of qualifying institutions
Students carrying 3 or more credit hours at qualifying institutions
Incoming students with proof of acceptance and semester schedule

Please Note: These requirements do not apply to everything we sell. In the case of some software licensing agreements, as well as other products, there are very specific agreements that must be met in order to purchase them. In other words, if an item has specific requirements attached to it, those requirements take precedence over these requirements!

Individuals associated with a department of a qualifying institution must be ready to provide their institutions ID number and any other documentation requested by the staff of Computer Connection.

Students of non-Orono campuses must be ready to provide any documentation requested by the staff of Computer Connection in order to verify eligibility. This usually only includes a current semester class schedule and/or student bill.

Currently Alumni and some Non-Profit Organizations are not eligible to purchase from us. If you are unsure of your eligiblity as described here, please contact us and let us help you determine your eligibility.

Returns

All sales at the Computer Connection are final after a reasonable amount of time. Most returns are handled on a case by case basis by one of Computer Connection's managers. If you wish to return an item, please contact us and we will determine if we can take a return or not.

We do our best to help customers make informed decisions. Many products are on display at our Retail Sales Floor, or, in the case of software, are available from the manufacturer in trial format. The final responsibility for suitability and compatibility lies with the customer.

Payment

The Computer Connection Retail Sales Floor operates on a cash and carry basis. Our web site operates as a special order system.

We accept the following forms of payment:

From Individuals:

Cash (US Currency only)
Personal Checks (US Currency only; we do not accept third party or business checks)
Visa and Mastercard credit and debit cards
Credit Union or Apple Loans

From Departments:

Interdepartmental Transfer Order (IDO) with authorized signature and charge account number (required before an order can be placed)
We will soon have an electronic system in place to accomodate electronic IDO orders

From Other Education Institutions:

Purchase Orders (required before an order can be placed)

Delivery

The Computer Connection will deliver or drop ship orders invoiced to UM departments on the Orono campus. There is no charge for this service.

We do not offer free delivery for individuals. Orders may be shipped by standard carriers such as UPS (excluding United States Postal Service).

Quotes of shipping costs are available at the time of placing the order.

Warranties

Products sold by the Computer Connection are covered by manufacturer's warranties. The manufacturers set policies the store must follow to resolve the problem for the customer and receive credit from the manufacturer. These policies vary from manufacturer to manufacturer. We try to represent companies which have fair policies.

The general rule regarding warranties is to know the warranty period for the product you are buying, thorougly test the product immediately after purchase, and contact the store as soon as soon as you discover a problem.

There are certain manufacturer's who offer warranty extensions for some of their products. If you purchase one of these, it typically extends the warranty coverage anywhere from 2-3 years.

For most warranty issues, you will be required to get in touch with the manufacturer of the product, not Computer Connection. In these cases, we can provide assistance of who to call and what to do when you call. If a manufacturer is not being forthcoming with solutions, contact us and we will get involved to get satisfactory service for you.

IT Repair is also certified to handle most warranties. At this time, they can repair:

Toshiba
Apple
Dell
Select HP Laserjet Printers
Most portable devices (contact IT Repair for specific models)

Due to varying requirements and warranty offers, you should contact us either via email or telephone to request specific manufacturer warranties. If you have any questions regarding anything about a warranty on a product you intend to purchase or have purchased, please get in touch with us and we will help you determine a course of action.

Sales Tax

The Computer Connection complies with all laws regarding Maine State Sales Tax. Our Institutional customers generally, but not always, are exempt from sales tax. All hardware and software sales to individuals and non exempt organizations are subject to Maine Sales Tax, which is currently 5%. Prices quoted verbally by the Computer Connection are generally academic sales price not including sales tax.

Privacy of Information

Here at the Computer Connection we value and respect all of our customers. We want everyone to have peace of mind when doing business with us. This is why we pledge to you, our customer, not to sell, rent, or trade any of your personal information without prior consent.

Data Use - From time to time the Computer Connection will provide our vendors with aggregated statistics concerning our sales or other related data. At no time, however, is personal information included in these reports.