The point is that he should not have to pay for an hour's labor. He bought a new saw. It doesn't work.
It's not his fault the saw is defective.
The issue is whether or not he should have to send it back for warranty repair or get the local dealer to do it.
Mail order has been around for decades. The internet is just enhanced mail order. It's not going to go away.
What I want to know is whether the dealer has a contractual obligation to the manufacturer to repair a product purchased elsewhere.