I just want to share my sad story with you. I've been on xda for 7-8 years but I didn't want to use my other account. Hope you understand.
Mobicity, The Silence of the Lambs
original article by Mislav Bušić, via mob.hr
Last year, soon after the launch of Nexus 6, I ordered this device from a highly reliable British webshop called mobicity.co.uk.
At the time, they were taking preorders, and due to certain discounts, I managed to buy it at a considerably lower price than in any other store.
I had to wait for almost four months to receive the device I had ordered. To put it mildly,
I was impatient and angry – both at Motorola and at mobicity – mostly because of the lack of information I was getting from them.
However, I had no other choice but to wait patiently.
Finally, I got hold of Nexus and I immediately started a detailed inspection of the device. I ran an out-of-the-ordinary unboxing,
compared it to its main rivals, Note 4 and iPhone 6 Plus, and I wrote my review. My dear editor was so pleased with everything that he,
at the very least, wished for his own copy of the device.
In the meantime, we tested various other devices, and I used the Nexus 6 along with my Note 4. At the end of May,
there was a period of three weeks during which I completely stopped using Nexus. Due to circumstances at the time,
I was travelling a lot, so I placed the Nexus back into its original packaging, because Note 4, with its far better camera and battery life,
was simply a better choice when going on a trip.
Since I wasn’t using the Nexus, I decided to pass it along to my editor. Who doesn’t love “the smell of a new smartphone in the morning”?
Since I do backup of all my smartphones almost on a daily basis, I took the box and went straight to the post office.
At the counter, in the post office, I decided to double-check if everything was in place. What followed was utter shock and disbelief.
The battery of Nexus 6 was inflated like a pack of the cheapest crisps. The cover/lid came off and there was no point in sending the device at all.
In the pre-cardiac condition, I called Krešo, my editor, to explain the whole situation. I don’t know who was in a greater state of shock, him or me.
He, because he wasn’t getting his new toy, or I, because I had it and was now left without it.
Since unfortunately, Motorola doesn’t have a representative in Croatia at all, and mobicity offers no European guarantee,
I had no other choice, but to contact more-or-less all domestic service centres in the hope of finding someone who could repair my Nexus.
I decided to log on to mobicity’s webpage to contact their customer service, and I was again confronted with another unpleasant surprise.
My account, which I had used to buy dozens of other devices, had been deleted because it had been a couple of months since my last log-in and/or purchase.
At this point I was furious. I managed to get their customer service email address and I finally managed to explain my problem to them.
What followed was a dozen of emails during the next fortnight in which I tried to explain that the device was kept in a box, in a room, at room temperature,
away from the sunlight, turned off, with no contact to moisture or cosmic dust. In a nutshell, the conditions were more than perfect.
Finally we reached the conclusion that it wasn’t my fault that the battery got inflated.
During the following fortnight we exchanged yet another dozen of emails in which mobicity very politely explained that it would be best if I could find a service centre in Zagreb that would fix my device.
The biggest problem was the non-existence of a telephone contact with the personnel at mobicity so that I could explain the situation more efficiently and quickly.
Unfortunately, their support service is as prompt and effective as the Croatian judiciary system, so you have to wait for a reply sometimes even for a week.
Weeks went by and mobicity kept on insisting on issuing a €50 voucher which would, according to them,
make up for the mental pain and the cost of battery replacement as well as possible broken motherboard or whatever.
No matter how much I insisted on sending my Nexus directly to them to have it serviced, they persistently refused to accept it.
The main excuse was the somewhat strange ban on sending inflated batteries by plane across the European Union.
This sounds logical – the battery might explode and take down the entire plane.
After a few more emails, I came to understand that this ban applies to all types of postal services, not just air mail.
After I had realised that we cannot come to an understanding, I directed mobicity’s customer service to mob.hr, the web portal I work for.
mob.hr actually attracts 200,000 unique visits a month and we cover an area of around 20 million people and, in fact,
we are the highest rated daily blog on mobile telecommunications in ExYu.
Mobicity took this as a threat and almost refused any further cooperation.
Then I politely explained that a threat would mean writing an article in English about their customer treatment and sharing this article on all leading world web portals,
including those in the USA as well as those in the UK, featuring a whole lot of pictures, attached emails and a video in English ready to be uploaded on our YouTube.
Eventually we reached an understanding. They apologized and decided to accept my Nexus 6 and service it if I agree to remove the battery before sending the phone.
That is exactly what happened. I managed to remove the battery (which meant taking the whole device apart), and I sent the device to Great Britain.
I was patiently checking the tracking number and I saw that the package had been delivered on July, 23.
I thought that maybe they would contact me upon receiving the package, and since this didn’t happen, I decided to contact them.
It turns out that if I hadn’t contacted them, my Nexus would remain there for weeks without them knowing about the whole situation.
Didn’t worry about this too much as they assured me that the device would be serviced in a few weeks’ time, so I decided to wait patiently.
Days went by and the only contact I had with the service centre was the “well-organized” customer service. I kept reminding them and sending them emails once or twice a week.
Weeks went by, and so did the first month since they received my device, and mobiycity’s customer service still had absolutely no information about the status of my device – what’s its status,
are they still waiting for parts, did they notice some other misfunctions apart from the missing battery… as if they hadn’t received the device at all.
I kept sending them emails on a weekly basis until they finally responded. Six weeks after they had received my phone,
they replied that the device was being inspected by their technicians – which actually means that they were staring at it wondering where the battery was.
I was furious, but I managed to calm myself down and I contacted the European Consumer Centre (ECC). They informed me that, since the English are involved,
I can do nothing but wait. They were kind enough to offer help and they contacted some of their colleagues in London who might call mobicity and ask them to speed thing up.
In case mobicity turned them down, the story would end here since, legally, there is no time constraint regarding the servicing of the device!
After two weeks I was informed that the battery had been replaced and that the device was being further tested.
In translation, the servicer’s son got hold of it for free for another couple of weeks or even months to play games, and,
in case the battery doesn’t get inflated again after the kid tries all possible games on Android, I will be given my device back.
After 4 (!) months, I received absolutely no news about my Nexus. Dozens of emails, complaints and status requests went by practically unnoticed.
Mobicity sent me generic emails such as “soon”, “we still don’t know”, “we’re waiting for our repair centre to reply” and so on.
At this moment I wasn’t sure if I was ever going to get my device back or if it had been given to someone else as a wonderful Christmas present.
If someone did something like this in Croatia, we would be accused of being backward, uncivilised and incompetent. Since all of this took place in the UK,
the cradle of civilisation, it is perfectly clear that there are plenty of incompetent, uneducated and lazy people outside Croatia. Maybe if I hadn’t been cheap,
and if I had offered that PR person at the other side of the email some £10 bribe, maybe he would have checked where my Nexus was and would have told his colleagues to fix my phone.
At least, that’s how it works in Croatia, where you need bribe even to get your driving licence.
About 3 weeks ago, I threatened mobicity with negative feedback article, and gave them deadline till friday to repair my Nexus. Within 24 hours,
they said my device is repaired and waiting to be shipped. Guess what? They still haven’t manage to ship it!
So, to sum up, having a warranty is a wonderful thing without which you shouldn’t buy a device because you could easily have an accident as I did, no matter how careful you are.
Be careful where you buy your device and what kind of warranty it comes with. Well-known webshops are sometimes considerably cheaper than the local retail,
but they come with certain risks involved which you have to be prepared for. Your device will most likely be taken to be serviced,
but be prepared wait for it for a couple of months or even to lose it altogether. All things considered, we do not recommend buying from the mobicity.
This is the risk you run with all sites like this.
Also Admitting to having more then one account is an easy way to have both accounts banned.
Thread closed.
Related
I purchased my Galaxy 2 7" Tab right before Memorial Day. It worked perfectly for the first 35 days. Then it would just die and the only way to revive it was to plug it in, wait 5 minutes, unplug it, then hold the power button for 60 seconds. It would come back to life but the first time the screen turned off it would not come on and the above procedure had to be performed again.
I emailed Amazon and was pretty much told "Talk to the Manufacturer" OK, fair enough. Despite the fact that my family spends thousands per year at Amazon, I understand. Samsung phone support asked me for a detailed description of the problem. I stated exactly what I had to do to get the device to work. They assured me it would be noted and sent me a return shipping label. About 2 weeks later I get an email that says my device was repaired. The issue was noted as "Dead (Intermittently)" and that was it. The repair...."S/W Upgrade (External Factor)". I thought, WTF, no way that was software.
The device was returned today with numerous scratches and what look like pry marks on the rear cover. The device was PERFECT when sent in. So I fire it up and the screen shuts off and the device is doing the EXACT same thing it did before I sent it in. I called Samsung back and kept getting put on hold and was eventually told I had to send it back yet again. I asked why as obviously they did nothing to fix it the first time. They said that if it comes back again with the same issue I *might* be able to get a new device. I also asked why my device was cosmetically damaged and as you can expect, the CSR gave me some BS about how careful they are. Really? They pried my back off, scratched it, nicked it, and that is what they call being careful? To top it all off, it was shoved into a box with absolutely no packing material and was banging around in the box. Even if they do actually repair it, what are the odds it makes it back again without being damaged further?
All in all I'm very frustrated with Samsung support. I understand electronic devices fail, but they should actually be able to fix the device on the first return. Especially when the problem is so obvious. It's like they don't even care. I will certainly think twice before buying another Samsung product.
I certainly can sympathize but you know they all pretty much are the same. I've had similar experiences with HP, Dell, Toshiba, and Sony over the years and that's just with electronics. My latest was with a IKEA desk I purchased which showed up damaged sent back just so they could send me another damaged one. We can only blame ourselves and parents who passed on buying products and services from reputable companies to buy from the low price companies. Its become so standard practice that they all pretty much operate this way now. Costs too much too care and we the customer don't buy from companies who care. Plus its all about the shareholders.
With that being said. Thank you for sharing your story. It just may make a difference when I purchase my next device. Damn, who am I kidding. It will make a difference. I don't want to deal with companies like that.
You're right. I usually buy my electronics from Best Buy. I have always had great customer service, especially when I get Best Buy Corporate involved. I purchased 2 Asus Prime tablets at Christmas last year. One for me and one for my son. The GPS never worked but we kept waiting for the magic firmware fix that never came. WiFi was also weak. I sent an email to Best Buy Corporate and within hours I had someone call me, called my local store, and allowed me to exchange both for the TF700's. Some 8+ months after purchase. I buy a lot of stuff at Amazon but not typically electronics. I made the mistake of purchasing this at Amazon as I had a gift card I wanted to use. They have great prices but come day 31, forget about returning it for an exchange let alone 8 months later. I did send an email to Samsung NA headquarters so maybe they will make sure it is fixed or replaced the second time around. One can always hope...
Mike02z said:
You're right. I usually buy my electronics from Best Buy. I have always had great customer service, especially when I get Best Buy Corporate involved. I purchased 2 Asus Prime tablets at Christmas last year. One for me and one for my son. The GPS never worked but we kept waiting for the magic firmware fix that never came. WiFi was also weak. I sent an email to Best Buy Corporate and within hours I had someone call me, called my local store, and allowed me to exchange both for the TF700's. Some 8+ months after purchase. I buy a lot of stuff at Amazon but not typically electronics. I made the mistake of purchasing this at Amazon as I had a gift card I wanted to use. They have great prices but come day 31, forget about returning it for an exchange let alone 8 months later. I did send an email to Samsung NA headquarters so maybe they will make sure it is fixed or replaced the second time around. One can always hope...
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I should email best buy and raise hell about my tab. Maybe I could get a new one or allowed to upgrade to a 10.
Thanks for sharing. I love my three Samsung devices and I'm upset for you. They should treat us, the customer a lot better. I've spent a lot of money on my toys. We all have. Assholes.
I refuse to buy something like this online. I use the power of the receipt to its full potential.
OK, so as is my usual practice when I am unhappy with service a company is providing, I did some research and found the email address of the CEO/President of Samsung NA and sent a nice email. I did that last night and got a call from the office of the President of Samsung NA this morning. The nice woman reviewed my case and within 3 minutes said "We will replace your unit with a brand new unit". She asked if I had already sent my old unit back for repair. I told her it went out this morning. She said the day it is received I will get a new, unopened P3113 shipped via overnight to my home. She apologized multiple times. She then sent me an email with all her contact information and told me to contact her if I have any further issues or questions. As I have discovered, it's all about getting to the right level of support.
While I am still unhappy that Samsung was unable to fix my device the first time, and did cosmetic damage, I'm extremely happy with the way this was handled in the end. Samsung will keep my business in the future.:good:
That's awesome! I'm happy for ya bud. It also makes me feel good that they stood behind their product and took care of the most important person. The customer. Kudos for you as well for taking the time to do this right. Sometimes I forget we the customer have to make the effort to handle these kinds of issues correctly.
Mike02z said:
OK, so as is my usual practice when I am unhappy with service a company is providing, I did some research and found the email address of the CEO/President of Samsung NA and sent a nice email. I did that last night and got a call from the office of the President of Samsung NA this morning. The nice woman reviewed my case and within 3 minutes said "We will replace your unit with a brand new unit". She asked if I had already sent my old unit back for repair. I told her it went out this morning. She said the day it is received I will get a new, unopened P3113 shipped via overnight to my home. She apologized multiple times. She then sent me an email with all her contact information and told me to contact her if I have any further issues or questions. As I have discovered, it's all about getting to the right level of support.
While I am still unhappy that Samsung was unable to fix my device the first time, and did cosmetic damage, I'm extremely happy with the way this was handled in the end. Samsung will keep my business in the future.:good:
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Gotta note also that first device was just plain bad luck.
Sent either from my p113 (gtab 2 7.0) or i997 (Infuse)
Ryanscool said:
Gotta note also that first device was just plain bad luck.
Sent either from my p113 (gtab 2 7.0) or i997 (Infuse)
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Yup, I realize this happens. I suspect if I had not gone this route the device would have come back still broken and they would have probably made good anyway. I just saved a step or 2. I've been fairly lucky overall with electronic devices.
I just wanted to follow up on this. I did receive a new unopened Galaxy Tab 2 via UPS on Monday 8/27. The outer box was destroyed and the inner box was damaged but the device was perfect. I have been using it heavily all week and it has been performing well. While not the best service experience, at least Samsung made it right with a single email to the right place.
My advice to anyone experiencing poor customer service, with any large purchase, is to do a little searching and find the corporate directory and with any luck you can find the CEO/President's email address. These addresses are typically monitored by high level CSR's that can do things other CSR's cannot do. I have used this trick multiple times with multiple vendors and it has always gotten me great service. A well written email can do wonders. Good luck!
Glad it worked out well in the end Mike and thanks for the "tips" hopefully i will never need to use them.
:good:
Kudos to you Mike ! If we all do like you did standard of Customer Care will get raised to great heights.
Would you like to share your email so it might serve as a template/sample for others ?
Thanks !
Sure, in fact I will share both the email I sent to Samsung and the email sent to Best Buy about the Prime TF201.
Samsung:
Sent to Samsung NA CEO and President. IT was someone from the president's staff who called me the day after this was sent.
Hello Yangkyu-san,
My name is Michael SXXXXXXX and I have been a long time Samsung Customer. I have 4 Samsung HD TV’s, a Samsung Galaxy Nexus and a Samsung Galaxy 2 7” tablet along with multiple other Samsung products. I’m writing to you as I’m very frustrated with the service I have received on my defective Galaxy 2 7” tablet. The device was purchased at the end of May from Amazon. Right after my return period expired, I started having problems with the device. It would just die and the only way to restart it was to plug the cable in, unplug it and hold the power button for 60 seconds. I called Samsung and they took all my information and said I needed to send the unit in for repair. I clearly explained the symptoms in detail and the CSR said he made all those notes in my repair order.
After 10 days, I received an email stating that my unit was repaired. The Issue summary was simply “DEAD Intermittently” and the fix was “S/W Upgrade (External Factor)” The Service ticket number is 4115XXXXX. The unit was returned today and within 5 minutes was exhibiting the exact same behavior. I again called Samsung service and was told I needed to return my unit yet again. The new ticket number is 411XXXXX.
I am very frustrated that despite sending this unit in for repair once, I need to send it in yet again and be without my device for another 2 weeks. I understand electronics break but what I don’t understand is why I need to return it again after sending in for repair once. I asked if I could just get a new device since it appears to me that the repair center is unable to repair it. I was told that if it comes back again unrepaired, I *may* qualify for a new unit.
I use this device for work and cannot afford to continue to be without it. Now I must wait another 2 weeks before my unit comes back hoping it is repaired properly this time and if still broken then I may be able to get a replacement? Adding additional time to my wait for a fully functional device. I honestly expected much better from Samsung support. It should also be noted that my device was in perfect cosmetic condition when sent in. When returned there are scratches on the back and what looks like pry marks on the back cover. I did not expect to have my device damaged cosmetically along with it not being repaired properly.
Please let me know if there is anything Samsung can do for me. I am returning the Tablet tomorrow, again leaving me without a major work tool for yet another 2 weeks and hoping it is actually repaired and not damaged further. Thank you for your attention in this matter.
A lifelong Samsung customer,
-Michael SXXXXX
[email protected]
[email protected]
215-xxx-xxxx
I received a call the next day and a follow-up email is below:
Mr. SXXXX,
As per our phone conversation, my contact information is below.
Thanks,
Heather XXXXX
NAHQ CSD VOC
Samsung Electronics America, Inc.
85 Challenger Road, 7th Fl
Ridgefield Park, NJ 07660
[email protected]
O: 201-373-XXXX | M: 973-590-XXXX | F: 201-329-XXXX
Office of the President: 1-888-480-XXXX
Below is the email I sent to the CEO of Best Buy regarding my defective Prime tablets:
Dear Mr. Mikan,
I’m sorry to bother you but I feel I have to report issues I’m having with products purchased at Best Buy back in December of 2011.
I purchased 2 Asus Prime tablets for Christmas. One for my son and one for myself. We have had nothing but issues with these tablets. The GPS does not work on either tablet at all. Even after getting the free GPS dongle we cannot get GPS to function. We also have horrible WiFi. I spent hundreds of dollars to upgrade my wireless thinking that would help the WiFi issues. That did not help.
Recently, I started reading where many people are having the exact same issue that I am having. I understand these are design defects in the Asus Prime TF201 and cannot be fixed. Many have returned their ASUS prime tablets in exchange for the newer TF700 table at Best Buy. Even those having their Prime’s longer than I have had success. I tried to do this but was basically laughed at and told “No way”.
I have been a loyal Best Buy customer for years and spend several thousand dollars per year at Best Buy stores and at Best Buy online. I’m just asking to be allowed to return by 2 defective TF201 tablets and get full crdit towards 2 new TF700 tablets. My understanding is the design flaws of the TF201 were fixed in the TF700. Below are my 2 order numbers. Anything you can do to assist a long time customer would be greatly appreciated.
BBY01-4355XXXXXXXX
BBY01-4322XXXXXXXX
Regards,
Michael SXXXXX
215-XXX-XXXX
[email protected]
On this request, I received a call about an hour after I sent it and the woman I spoke to asked which store I wanted to return my items to. Since it was after hours, she promised to call my local store and "see what she could do". The next day at 11:00 AM she returned my call, gave me the managers names and told me to take my 2 Prime's and dock in for full credit towards 2 new TF700's and the TF700 dock. I was in and out of the store in 10 minutes.
You have set a good example.
May be you could also guide us on how to find these "Premier" e-mail ids as i was once trying to reach Head of LG but could not find any Contact info
Thanks again
Bon-Joon Koo is the CEO of LG. From what I can tell, the email address format lg uses is last name first initial at lge.com so I'd try [email protected]. I found this by searching for less than 5 minutes. More diligent searching may find the exact email address. If you get a rejection keep trying different combinations.
silentvisitor said:
You have set a good example.
May be you could also guide us on how to find these "Premier" e-mail ids as i was once trying to reach Head of LG but could not find any Contact info
Thanks again
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LG was good regarding my 6 year old tv.
Basically, the power board went out, and I was unable to purchase the repair parts.
They gave me a prorated refund of 300 bucks ( would have been more I'd I had receipt) almost enough to buy a new tv.
Sent from my HTC Sensation 4G with Beats Audio using Tapatalk 2
TLDR summary: Sent a Razr MAXX HD in to Motorola to have a cracked screen repaired with a guarantee that it would be done within 5 business days. For over the next month, I am continually lied to that I'd get a phone back within the next 1-5 days (depending on who I talk to), before they finally reimburse me for a replacement, well over a month later.
Full story:
I'm a huge fan of Motorola phones. My first cell phone after High School was an old school Razr, and outside of a brief dalliance with a BlackBerry Storm (my first smartphone), every other phone I've had was made by Motorola. I got a Droid X soon after release in 2010, loved it, and replaced it 2.5 years later when it was showing it's age by getting a Razr Maxx HD on release day. Totally happy with the Razr Maxx HD... until it accidentally fell out of my pocket onto a rock in a parking lot and cracked the screen. Phone was totally functional still, including all portions of the touchscreen, but it had spiderweb cracks on it so I figured I'd get it fixed.
I was excited to see Motorola offers repair services for things not covered by the warranty. motorola-global-portal.custhelp.com/app/answers/prod_answer_detail/a_id/91148/p/30%2C6720%2C8579/kw/ said it would only be $100 and they can do the lens replacement in (at MOST) 5 business days. It's such a routine repair that they had a separate price set up explicitly for it. So on Friday 04/19, I open a case, give them my credit card details, get an RMA number, and ship it via USPS the same day. I pay a few dollars extra to guarantee it gets there by Monday (4/21) morning (and to get tracking), figuring it should be repaired by that Friday (04/26) and I'd have it soon after that. Meanwhile, I reactive the almost 3 year old Droid X.
Then the problems start.
Monday, 04/22, USPS tracking confirms that the phone is received at 9:50am. I get an email from Motorola reminding me to send it in at 2:50pm, 5 hrs later. I figured it hadn't been processed yet. Tuesday (04/23) afternoon, I manage to check the status of my repair (with difficulty) at their website, and it shows it hasn't been received yet. Their website ( globalrepairtools.motorola.com/serviceandrepair/device/index/en-us/trackrepair/ ) has a LOT of problems, working extremely inconsistently, hanging in multiple browsers and sometimes even putting me through and showing me the status of a repair COMPLETELY unrelated to mine (even though I made sure to copy/paste my own RMA number). Wednesday (04/24), it still showed that my phone hadn't been received, so I called Motorola support (for the first time). After checked the tracking details, the representative confirmed it had been received, but had not yet been logged into the system, and said that the original 5 business day timeline was still likely going to happen. Friday (04/26), still no progress.
Monday 04/29, I call back, they note that according to their system the phone was received on 04/27, five days after it had been delivered, and that the 5 business day cycle actually only starts after it's logged into their system. I was assured that because they had records of talking to me on 04/23 and the phone had already been received then, they'd expedite the repair and I'd hear from them soon after with a tracking number for the shipment. Fast forward a couple of days with the same story (promise of an expedited shipment), on 05/03 I call back again and get told that, Lo and Behold, they were having some further "technical difficulties" at their repair facility but the phone should 100% be done by 05/08 (13 business days and 17 calendars days after it was initially received by Motorola), and I'd get expedited shipping from there. They said they'd send me a bluetooth headset for my trouble (something I don't particularly need). I emailed in a complaint to Motorola at this point, and whoever responded to the email simply said "I could see here that you already spoke with one of our agents from our Repair Team. They assured you that you will get your phone by May 08. We'll just have to take their word for it. I'm sure that they will expedite the repair from here. Our system is doing some updates that is why this happened."
Fine. 05/08 rolls around and I still haven't gotten any details... So I call back, pretty early that morning. They tell me (AGAIN!) that they had some problems at the repair facility and now have no ETA whatsoever when my phone might be done (they don't have any idea what's going on with it. My personal theory is they lost it), but they can send me a replacement Razr Maxx HD. I was OK with that option, but the rep says it will take 3-5 business days until I have the device, though he said it was more likely to be 3 than 5. That puts us at 05/15, right around when I had my family coming in for some big personal events, and I didn't want to be dealing with this then (and I wanted a phone with a functioning camera, while the one on my Droid X was broken).
05/10, I get an email that the order for my replacement Maxx HD was being processed. There was no tracking information in that email, though it did say there would be tracking information forthcoming. Now, for the bluetooth headset they mailed me the previous week, I got the email with the tracking # two days after the headset arrived, so I figured this would be a similar story so I should call in for a tracking # (so I could be home to meet the device when it arrived). Monday 05/13, call and there's no details. Still haven't received any email by Tuesday morning, 05/14 (4-5 business days after my conversation early on 05/08, depending on how you count it), so I call again to see if I could get a tracking number, and actually get a representative who says the phone is in a box at the warehouse ready to be picked up by FedEx. They say a tracking number would only be generated once it was picked up (which sounded strange to me). I call again near the end of business on Tuesday and get much the same story, where a second representative gives me the same story about it being in a box.
05/15 (5-6 business days after the replacement was ordered, 18 business days after Motorola received my original phone for repairs). The representative I get this time says there was some kind of mistake the previous day because of technical difficulties at the distribution warehouse and my order was in a status called "booking", but should be shipped within the next few days. I will admit I got angry at this point, but the agent assured me he had contacted the warehouse and it would only be a day or two till they got through the back orders. Note that at this point, they set some kind of flag so every time I call I start out at level 2 support. Which would be fine, except level 2 support has a minimum of a 35 minute hold time throughout the day, so I'd already practically memorized the entirety of Motorola's hold messages. The representative promises to call me back that day no matter what he hears from the warehouse people to give me an update. No call was ever received.
05/16 (25 calendar days after Motorola received my phone): I call again, get told that the phone was through "booking", was actually "picked", and was in a box and ready to be shipped that day. I call in between spending time with my family (who I see rarely) and different events I have to go to. I ask whether they actually talked to someone at the warehouse and got a confirmation that it would be shipped. That representative says she doesn't have any contact information for the distributor against an email address (say what?) but she'd be happy to send them (yet another!) email. She offers to escalate me to their "executive support", but it's already 4pm so they've gone home. I get a promise I'll get called back the next day.
05/17 AM: I call again, get told that it was still "picked", but would DEFINITELY ship that day. I ask if anyone has heard from the warehouse, the answer is no. I inquire as to possible Saturday delivery because it's getting dangerously close to when I'm actually leaving the state/country on a trip that I will need a phone for (because I've paid for a micro-SD card that I'll use abroad and it's my only planned way to keep in touch with my responsibilities back home), and get told by the representative it's probably not possible but I'll definitely get a call back later that day. I have some events planned that evening where I can't touch my phone, so he says he'll leave a VM or an email with details of any updates.
05/17 PM: I get a call from Motorola somewhere around 6pm and they leave a voice mail saying they saw I talked to someone that day already so they don't have anything to add. (say what?) Then I get an email from Motorola that has one word in the subject (HOTDELAY), and it basically says "please call us" and a different number than the one I'd been calling. So I call that number as soon as I'm able, get through to a supervisor for the repair team. Oh my, apparently the distributers warehouse was having further technical difficulties! Amazingly, that phone that I had been assured four (or was it five?) separate times would be shipping "that day" all week, wasn't actually in stock! They won't be able to ship me a phone until late June at the earliest. Needless to say, I flip out, saying that's completely unacceptable. So the supervisor says she'll call corporate and get back to me on Monday (05/20), since they'd already gone home and wouldn't be in on the weekend. She promises she'd call me by 1pm on Monday.
05/20 early PM: Wow. Supervisor actually manages to call me back around 1230pm and gives me the offer that Motorola will give me a Droid 2 as a loaner phone until they get the Razr Maxx HD back in stock. That's right. Not a Droid 4. Or a Droid 3. Or a Droid 2 Global. But the phone that is FOUR MODELS out of date and as old as my Droid X. Needless to say, I tell her that that is not an acceptable option, and the only thing that I'd accept at this point is for Motorola to reimburse me in full for the cost of a phone. She says she'd look into it.
05/20 later PM: I get a call back from the supervisor. Corporate has agreed to reimburse me for a phone. Hallelujah! I ask a few questions. It goes like this: "Will they reimburse me for the full value of the phone?" "Yes." "Will I be reimbursed all taxes and fees?" "Yes, of course, we will reimburse you all taxes". I should have gotten details of all this in writing, but I didn't think of it. I almost cry from joy to finally get this resolved. I go to Best Buy (because they don't have a charge to return phones and at this point, I'm skeptical until the check is sent) buy a phone for full price (because I obviously don't have an upgrade available for myself yet), fax them the receipt with my case number, name, and address written on it, and move on my merry way. I figure I'll call them later the next day to make sure the fax was received and the reimbursement is being processed. I was so excited because I was leaving for my multi state/country traveling on 05/22, and I was relieved to get this huge monkey off my back.
05/21 (the 1 month "anniversary" of Motorola receiving my phone): I get a phone call back from supervisor lady. She is incredulous that I somehow thought they'd reimburse me for a brand new full priced device. Apparently she meant they'd only reimburse me for the purchase price of the original device, so they want my receipt back from October and will only reimburse me for $250 (and for none of the VZW subsidy that I got by signing a new 2 year contract). I can only respond that I never agreed to such an absurd deal and that there is absolutely no way I'd accept 1/3 of the value of the phone that I sent in to be repaired as reimbursement. She says that's the maximum they'd consider reimbursing me, and that me buying a replacement phone myself was my own problem and that I should return it. I request to speak to her supervisor and eventually get forwarded to their corporate consumer advocacy office. Talk to someone from consumer advocacy who says they'd look in to see what they could do for me and we'd talk again later that afternoon.
05/21 PM: Individual from consumer advocacy calls me back. Says there is no way anyone would ever agree to reimburse me the full value of a replacement device, just the subsidized price I paid once. He acknowledges that the device is valued at much higher than that and that I only got that price through a subsidy I (for all intents and purposes) pay back through the contract I'm still liable for, but he says that is irrelevant for their purposes. I tried to escalate to an even higher level of support and get this resolved, but he refused, saying there is no one higher and that I had to take what he offered or leave it. When inquiring about another option (compared to getting reimbursed a fraction of the cost of the device), he changed the story regarding their stock of phones once again and says more will be in stock on 05/22. He also personally guaranteed that mine would be the first one out the door from that shipment. When I said I didn't believe him, he said that given my case history he wouldn't believe himself either, but I had no other choices. He said they'd ship it to where I would be on 05/22-05/23. After numerous complaints from me about the absolutely abhorrent service so far, he (begrudgingly) attempts to offer me another bluetooth headset. After my frank refusal of that, he finally offers to ship me a $100 google play card. All this time, he just patronizes me with "I understand your frustration", and no real apology on behalf of Motorola.
05/22: I get a call back from consumer advocacy. It turns out that no, in fact, there was no stock that came in that day. They offer to send me a Razr M until they can get more HD MAXXs sometime later the following month. I refused, and say (again) that the only option I'll accept at this point was reimbursement for a replacement device, because it's been a month and I'm leaving the country for a few weeks and don't want to deal with this. He says it's not possible. I ask who could make it possible and get told this is a policy of their finance department. He refuses to let me speak to the finance department, but puts me on hold and (lo and behold!) he says that he spoke with them and got approval to send me a check to reimburse me for the replacement. But because they're paying the full amount, I will not get a $100 google play card for my trouble or any other reimbursement. I should be thankful that they deign to pay me back for the device I sent them (and they lost somewhere). I make sure to get this offer sent to me in writing later that day.
05/30: They mail the check. Only took a week. I was amazed. I got it a few days later.
Lessons learned: NEVER utilize Motorola for any kind of repair services. A repair that I could have easily done in 30 seconds (if I could have reasonably gotten ahold of the part without having it shipped from Hong Kong over a period of 2+ weeks) was not only never completed, but ballooned into a whole saga.
I've considered filing a complaint with the Better Business Bureau, but I don't think they could do anything. I don't know what else I can do, so I'm also spreading the story to all the forums I know so people can be warned to not use their repair services. Would have done it earlier but I had the international travel and then a whole bunch of work to do when I got back.
Legal action for my time (I estimate I spent >20 hrs on hold/talking to Motorola) wouldn't be worth it, given that any attorney would charge more per hour than Motorola would ever offer me. To be honest, I'd have been satisfied if they had ever offered me a sincere apology, an honest update on the situation, or maybe even that (paltry) $100 that they had considered offering me but in the end took the offer back. I was over a month without a normally functioning smartphone.Instead, all I got was patronization, dishonesty that I'd get a phone back "soon", and a bluetooth headset.
If any of you are stuck down the motorola black hole, the biggest advice I can give is to call the consumer advocacy office. Insist you be transfered up there if you have to. They are also less than honest and less than useful, but they seemed to at least be able to contact the people that could do something. If they tell you something is not possible, don't trust them. Insist to find out who can make it possible, because it probably is. I'd post the number myself, but I don't know how much I'm allowed to.
Yup, this is exactly why I try to repair stuff myself instead of sending it in.
But thanks for sharing.
That's why I get the best buy warranty. 10 bucks a month but this is my 3rd phone. Each one has been free and taken no longer then a week.
Sent from my PACMAN MATRIX HD MAXX
That's why I take care of my electronics.
Not our finest hour...
Raryn said:
TLDR summary: Sent a Razr MAXX HD in to Motorola to have a cracked screen repaired with a guarantee that it would be done within 5 business days. For over the next month, I am continually lied to that I'd get a phone back within the next 1-5 days (depending on who I talk to), before they finally reimburse me for a replacement, well over a month later.
Really sorry to hear it. We (Motorola Support) are just recovering from a rough patch in repair, and looks like you had one of the worst experiences. It's not typical of our performance and we are working hard to get 100 percent back to our quoted turnaround time.
Again, sorry you had such a crummy experience.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I was going to say I've read elsewhere of delayed repair times.
I am utterly shocked and devastated they were only willing to reimburse you for the subsidised amount! Who says you have an upgrade or access to one?!!
I am even scared to write about screen issues. My insurance company has a hard enough time keeping my model in stock and I can't afford to have $700+ temporarily out of commission.
Legal action... Maybe small claims court?
I would always remember never count on anyone for anything. You're bound to be let down and stressed. I can tell by the girth of your story you mean what you say.
It looks like Motorola read this. I'm shocked they didn't send you a free accessory or something to help compensate you.
I love this phone and its battery life and laugh every time my friends are tethered to an outlet. But all in all its just a cell phone and luckily you were even offered a loaner to begin with.
Fortunately this is not a story we hear every day and hopefully some xda members will chime in with their positive experiences.
Motorola please port webtop to this device!
Sent from my DROID RAZR MAXX HD
That is by far the worst experience I have heard of so far, and by all means if the customer has paid for the device and can prove so, should be entitled to a full refund or at least give the original phone back so the person can find other less stressful means of repair. That is simply unacceptable and Motorola should be held fully accountable if they are going to brand their name on anything. This story makes me upset even gees.
Razr HD
Eclipse V 1.3
Who said you were guaranteed to get it back in 5 days? Their website says 7-10 days after receiving it.
My experience with Moto service was OK. Not great. Just OK. I did get it back quick, 5 business days in fact. Their website and tracking are a pathetic joke for sure.
Like you, USPS indicated that my phone had been delivered but their system didnt show it. I contacted them and they gave me the same spill about the system having problems. I can accept that software systems can have problems sometimes so I wasn't to upset. I figured id give it a few days.
A few days passed and my phone still showed it hadn't been received. I called them and made sure (in a very respectful way) that i was very unhappy that they were having problems. They escalated my case and i talked to a new person. The new person gave me about the same explanation as the first person but assured me they would have it to me a max of 10 days from receiving it. Frustrated I accepted their excuse.
The next day it sowed as received in their system and that they were repairing it.
Two days later it showed as shipped. Funny thing was the "Shipped", emphasis on the "-ED", was for that day at like 1:00 pm. I got the notification that it had "shipped" like at 8:00 am. In addition to the fake ship date there was "NO TRACKING". I was thinking that those as shats marked it as shipped to appease me.
I was about ready to call them again but gave them a chance to make good. Then the next day it showed up all nice and shiny.
They did a good job repairing it. They replaced the whole frame, not just the glass. I know because there was a noticeable scuff on the top right corner that is no longer there.
This was actually for my sisters phone. She borrowed mine because here work requires here to have a phone. Anyway, she might not get it back. :cyclops: Ive quite enjoyed it the last few days.
That's horrible!
Good thing I saw this, I'll keep your experience in mind for if I ever need to get anything on my phone repaired. I can't believe you went through that much trouble. I quite am disappointed with Motorola at this moment.
DIY Motorola Repairs
My company, Simple Phone Trade, specializes in Moto repairs. If anyone else breaks a Moto device send me a message if you want a link to our manuals (XDA won't let me post URLs yet) or need direction with parts and tools.
We don't sell parts or tools and are unbiased/agnostic concerning wholesalers (not to mention experienced and knowledgeable).
Hello all,
Just wanted to share my experience with you all on how long it will take to get a Xperia Z3 TC model SGP 621 fixed/repaired.
When I purchased my tablet, since it is an international model, I had to buy it from the only shop in the NYC area that offered it. Which in itself is hard to believe since you can pretty much find anything in NYC, but in this case, only one shop had it (which shows how hard it is to obtain the Z3 with LTE capability).
So I purchased it and all was well. Was loving it, and using it, till one day, it just stopped working. I was using it fine, checking email, and reading news online, put it down, and when I came back about 30 mins later, it wouldn't turn on. I tried everything. Holding the power button for like 10 seconds. Power + Volume up button for 10 seconds. Connected the power cord. Everything. No response. Heck, even the charging light wouldn't come on, but the Z3TC would get warm to hot when plugged in.
I called Sony care from the number on their website, and explained to the tech what was going on. He emailed me a link to recovery software, and installed it on my Mac, and still, no response. Eventually, he determined I had to send it in to be evaluated/repaired. (Use this day of reference as day zero)
Here's were things go really bad. They told me they would send me a FedEx email label to have it shipped. After almost a week, still no email. I called, they said I cancelled my repair request (which I hadn’t), and then after complaining, he said he was going to get my label expedited. I actually got it the next day, and shipped the tablet out to them the next day. (Day 7)
I used the tracking number, and confirmed that they received it on day 11. I waited an extra week to hear back from them if they started working on it. Nothing. Waited another 5 days, nothing. I finally call them, and they inform me that they haven’t received nothing, but since their repair services has been closed for almost 2 weeks due to the holidays, they have a huge backlog and it’s probably in there. So now I wait again. Finally on around day 30 (after calling, because they don’t contact you), I am told that it has been received, and they are going to work on it. After about another week, I call back. They say there is a problem, and waiting for the parts, but to be patient. I wait another week.
I call again, they say they repaired it and are awaiting final paperwork. I am really happy. I ask what the problem was, they say they have no information, but that it was fixed, and that they are going to ship it back to me as soon as the paperwork is ready. I say ok, and wait another 4-5 days. Finally I call back, and the guy says that they haven’t done any work to my tablet, and were waiting for me to call them back and let them know what I wanted to be done.
*PAUSE*
By now, it’s been like day 49 since my tablet stopped working. It’s going on a month and a half. Note: this is my phone. It’s now been in repair more than twice as long as I’ve had it. I am beyond livid at this point, and believe I have been MORE than patient and understanding in being given the run around.
At this point, and having a verbal back and forth with the 6 or 7th tech I’ve talked to in the past 6 weeks, he suggests I speak to his supervisor.
I start speaking to his supervisor Jerry in customer relations, and we started going at it too. The long and short of it was this. He said they couldn’t give me the same tablet I own, (the SGP 621) because it is an LTE/international model. So what they could do is offer me the U.S. variant (the SGP 612) that was only WIFI capable. I told him this is unacceptable It would be like me buying a premium version of a car, it stops working, I go to the dealer, and they offer me an inferior model, even though I paid heavily for the premium one. After more going back and forth, he told me in order to get it serviced, I would need to contact United Arab Emirates, because that’s apparently where my phone was imported from.
After going back and forth, I asked him why I wasn’t told that in the first place, instead of wasting almost 7 weeks on back and forth with Sony North America? He informed me that, “As a starting point and courtesy, Sony North America has to try to fix and it first.
I was flabbergasted. I was shocked on why they would even need to attempt to fix something, they knew they could never fix. He again repeated it was a courtesy. After this circular argument, I told him FedEx me my phone back. I want it on my desk by tomorrow. Now that I have wasted all this time. At this point I was very angry. And he said he would try to get it back to me by the next day, and he had to call the repair center and bla bla bla. I told him to call them, and we hung up.
The next day, expecting to see my tablet, there was nothing. I was going to call back by the end of the day, but instead Jerry called me back. He informed me that there was good news. That Sony had found the parts, and were going to fix my tablet for me and ship it back to me.
Finally! Good news! I was very happy and pleased by this point. And he told me I should get it soon. I waited about 4 days, and finally a package from FedEx arrived. When I opened it, to my amazement, it was a brand new Sony Xperia Z3 Tablet Compact SGP 621. Shockingly, it was a demo U.S. variant!
First off, I didn’t even know Sony made U.S. Variants of international devices, but this one was totally legit. I was sooooo happy. I tried to write him a letter to give to his boss and team, but unfortunately, I never heard back from him. I told him to send me his email address, and I would have gladly sent a letter for him and his staff to be recognized for their efforts.
After almost 2 months (8 weeks) since this whole debacle started, I finally had my phone/tablet back.
I left out a lot of parts to this story, but this is the jist of it. The long and short of it is this. If you buy an international model of their products, and it breaks or something goes wrong, be ready to wait for it to be serviced (if it can even be serviced). It’s very possible, and likely, that Jerry went above and beyond the call of duty by contacting people high up in the food chain, to get me a rare demo unit that is not available (if ever). In general, if you buy a phone/tablet/whatever from another country, be ready. It is going to be EXTREMELY difficult, if even possible.
In the end, I am very grateful to Jerry, and his efforts. But I think that Sony should have a better system in place for getting you to the right people you need soon, in order to get you back up and running. If it wasn’t for Jerry, I’d still be in limbo trying to find a way to call UAE, and most of all, overcoming the language barrier and even trying to set up a method or way for them to service my broken phone.
Wow, almost 2 months. I would have thought US had better customer support for such things. In my country if they can't get it fixed in 1 month you can ask your money back or a new product.
You were very patient with them, I probably would have called every 2 days.
I had a similar experience in getting my xperia z2 repaired last year for a broken magnetic charging port. It was 2 months of me calling them every week. At first it was waiting for parts, then it was repaired and awaiting paperwork, then it was they cant fix it because its a model intended for taiwan. Finally after a lot of escalation they sent me a an international model replacement. Whole process took 2.5 months when they quoted 8 business days originally. And Yes I gave them my IMEI on the inital phone call and verified with the person that sony USA could service it. Sort of a bitter sweet exp overall, mostly bitter
Sent from my HTC One_M8 using XDA Free mobile app
tonysunshine said:
I had a similar experience in getting my xperia z2 repaired last year for a broken magnetic charging port. It was 2 months of me calling them every week. At first it was waiting for parts, then it was repaired and awaiting paperwork, then it was they cant fix it because its a model intended for taiwan. Finally after a lot of escalation they sent me a an international model replacement. Whole process took 2.5 months when they quoted 8 business days originally. And Yes I gave them my IMEI on the inital phone call and verified with the person that sony USA could service it. Sort of a bitter sweet exp overall, mostly bitter
Sent from my HTC One_M8 using XDA Free mobile app
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Was it fixed under warranty? Was your product an import?
Sent from my SGP621 using XDA Free mobile app
Yes it was an import. Bought off ebay. And eventually they agreed to replace it under warranty. Took quite a few angry phone calls though
Sent from my HTC One_M8 using XDA Free mobile app
AirBruce said:
Hello all,
Just wanted to share my experience with you all on how long it will take to get a Xperia Z3 TC model SGP 621 fixed/repaired.
When I purchased my tablet, since it is an international model, I had to buy it from the only shop in the NYC area that offered it. Which in itself is hard to believe since you can pretty much find anything in NYC, but in this case, only one shop had it (which shows how hard it is to obtain the Z3 with LTE capability).
So I purchased it and all was well. Was loving it, and using it, till one day, it just stopped working. I was using it fine, checking email, and reading news online, put it down, and when I came back about 30 mins later, it wouldn't turn on. I tried everything. Holding the power button for like 10 seconds. Power + Volume up button for 10 seconds. Connected the power cord. Everything. No response. Heck, even the charging light wouldn't come on, but the Z3TC would get warm to hot when plugged in.
I called Sony care from the number on their website, and explained to the tech what was going on. He emailed me a link to recovery software, and installed it on my Mac, and still, no response. Eventually, he determined I had to send it in to be evaluated/repaired. (Use this day of reference as day zero)
Here's were things go really bad. They told me they would send me a FedEx email label to have it shipped. After almost a week, still no email. I called, they said I cancelled my repair request (which I hadn’t), and then after complaining, he said he was going to get my label expedited. I actually got it the next day, and shipped the tablet out to them the next day. (Day 7)
I used the tracking number, and confirmed that they received it on day 11. I waited an extra week to hear back from them if they started working on it. Nothing. Waited another 5 days, nothing. I finally call them, and they inform me that they haven’t received nothing, but since their repair services has been closed for almost 2 weeks due to the holidays, they have a huge backlog and it’s probably in there. So now I wait again. Finally on around day 30 (after calling, because they don’t contact you), I am told that it has been received, and they are going to work on it. After about another week, I call back. They say there is a problem, and waiting for the parts, but to be patient. I wait another week.
I call again, they say they repaired it and are awaiting final paperwork. I am really happy. I ask what the problem was, they say they have no information, but that it was fixed, and that they are going to ship it back to me as soon as the paperwork is ready. I say ok, and wait another 4-5 days. Finally I call back, and the guy says that they haven’t done any work to my tablet, and were waiting for me to call them back and let them know what I wanted to be done.
*PAUSE*
By now, it’s been like day 49 since my tablet stopped working. It’s going on a month and a half. Note: this is my phone. It’s now been in repair more than twice as long as I’ve had it. I am beyond livid at this point, and believe I have been MORE than patient and understanding in being given the run around.
At this point, and having a verbal back and forth with the 6 or 7th tech I’ve talked to in the past 6 weeks, he suggests I speak to his supervisor.
I start speaking to his supervisor Jerry in customer relations, and we started going at it too. The long and short of it was this. He said they couldn’t give me the same tablet I own, (the SGP 621) because it is an LTE/international model. So what they could do is offer me the U.S. variant (the SGP 612) that was only WIFI capable. I told him this is unacceptable It would be like me buying a premium version of a car, it stops working, I go to the dealer, and they offer me an inferior model, even though I paid heavily for the premium one. After more going back and forth, he told me in order to get it serviced, I would need to contact United Arab Emirates, because that’s apparently where my phone was imported from.
After going back and forth, I asked him why I wasn’t told that in the first place, instead of wasting almost 7 weeks on back and forth with Sony North America? He informed me that, “As a starting point and courtesy, Sony North America has to try to fix and it first.
I was flabbergasted. I was shocked on why they would even need to attempt to fix something, they knew they could never fix. He again repeated it was a courtesy. After this circular argument, I told him FedEx me my phone back. I want it on my desk by tomorrow. Now that I have wasted all this time. At this point I was very angry. And he said he would try to get it back to me by the next day, and he had to call the repair center and bla bla bla. I told him to call them, and we hung up.
The next day, expecting to see my tablet, there was nothing. I was going to call back by the end of the day, but instead Jerry called me back. He informed me that there was good news. That Sony had found the parts, and were going to fix my tablet for me and ship it back to me.
Finally! Good news! I was very happy and pleased by this point. And he told me I should get it soon. I waited about 4 days, and finally a package from FedEx arrived. When I opened it, to my amazement, it was a brand new Sony Xperia Z3 Tablet Compact SGP 621. Shockingly, it was a demo U.S. variant!
First off, I didn’t even know Sony made U.S. Variants of international devices, but this one was totally legit. I was sooooo happy. I tried to write him a letter to give to his boss and team, but unfortunately, I never heard back from him. I told him to send me his email address, and I would have gladly sent a letter for him and his staff to be recognized for their efforts.
After almost 2 months (8 weeks) since this whole debacle started, I finally had my phone/tablet back.
I left out a lot of parts to this story, but this is the jist of it. The long and short of it is this. If you buy an international model of their products, and it breaks or something goes wrong, be ready to wait for it to be serviced (if it can even be serviced). It’s very possible, and likely, that Jerry went above and beyond the call of duty by contacting people high up in the food chain, to get me a rare demo unit that is not available (if ever). In general, if you buy a phone/tablet/whatever from another country, be ready. It is going to be EXTREMELY difficult, if even possible.
In the end, I am very grateful to Jerry, and his efforts. But I think that Sony should have a better system in place for getting you to the right people you need soon, in order to get you back up and running. If it wasn’t for Jerry, I’d still be in limbo trying to find a way to call UAE, and most of all, overcoming the language barrier and even trying to set up a method or way for them to service my broken phone.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Yup, had something like this with the z ultra. It wouldnt charge at different angles but they said since it was imported, they arent responsible for it (think i had something like this with a samsung device too). This is why I have insurance with worth ave grou o(google them, legit, i've legit used the warranty for some very expensive repairs and they've always come through just read the fine print carefully) they wont fix mechanical breakdown but they do cover accidental damage so...
Motherf... well, as well as Sony has learned from Apple's pricing, they could certainly learn a little fruity customer service too.
What does surprise me is that they actually try and repair those gadgets. I think it'd just be cheaper for any manufacturer to simply ship a new/refurb one to you after confirming a shopstopper defect and be done with it.
Hello my friends!
I haven't been posting on XDA for quite a long time but I thought I had to share this with you. About a year ago, I bought a OnePlus One and I was happy with the device itself and CM 11 and 12 as well. However, this summer in July, the microphones of my OPO stopped working during calls.
I started to do some research and found a few threads on the OnePlus forum and on XDA from users complaining about the same problem. The microphone suddenly stopped to work during calls and the person on the other phone could not hear anything. The only workaround is to switch to speaker mode. Some other users also posted workarounds and potential fixes for the well-known issue. I tried all of them but none of them worked. Here are links to some of the threads I am referring to:
OnePlus Forum
XDA
reddit
So as you can see, this is quite a common problem and therefore probably known by OnePlus. Since none of the mentioned fixes helped
and flashing different ROMS did not improve anything I started to get in touch with the OnePlus customer support. Before owning the OPO I had several HTC and Nexus devices and I already had to deal with the HTC support twice because of two hardware failures. The HTC support was surprisingly friendly and simple to deal with, so I figured, contacting the OP support would not be a big deal. I would be proven wrong in the next weeks...
I first contacted the OP support on the 16th of July. I provided them with a detailed error description, a few pics of my device with a timestamp to provide proof of ownership and the request to repair or replace my phone since it was still covered under the 1 year warranty. Shortly after, I received a reply from the support staff in which they asked me to provide a few more details (OS and Android version, CM or Oxygen, etc) which I did instantly.
Then I was forwarded to a "OnePlus tech specialist" who gave me instruction to flash a version of Oxygen OS and to run a microphone test, which of course I did as well. Like I expected, the issue did not disappear magically and I got a reply that a "OnePlus level 2 tech specialist" would have to connect himself to my PC via a secure software and try to fix my phone. They called this remote session. I had to book an appointment for this remote session.
By this time I was already getting quite angry at Oneplus, since it seemed like they were ignoring my actual issue and my request for a warranty covered replacement or repair. I told them that I did not expect that this remote session would help, since I was quite sure that it was a hardware fault. However, they insisted that I had to book this remote session, which turned out to be quite difficult. There were no free slots for the next two weeks. Luckily a slot was suddenly available in the next week when I checked the booking reservations for the tenth time and I managed to book it. Since the time slot was 11AM I had to take half a day off my work to make it to the appointment. A few minutes before the session should have started; I got an email from support to download the necessary software for the session, which turned out to be Teamviewer! I thought this was a bad joke. Teamviewer was their idea of a secure remote session software. I downloaded it anyways (what other choice did I have?) and waited for the level 2 tech. And I waited. After half an hour I wrote to the support that no one showed up yet although my time slot was already almost over. After almost 30 more minutes the tech finally connected herself to my PC. I told her, that she was not allowed to do anything on my PC without my permission since there was confidential data of my clients stored on the PC, to which she agreed to. The session however was a pure joke. After installing some Qualcomm drivers and rebooting my PC and plugging in and out my device about 100 times, she said that my device was indeed broken and that I would now be forwarded to the RMA department.
Almost three weeks, many pointless arguments with the support and this joke of a remote session, after I started contacting the support, I was finally granted an RMA repair/replacement. I thought that it would now finally be over and I would get back a new or repaired device. WRONG. But more to that later.
I got instructions to prepare the package to ship it to the 1+ repair center in the UK. I was told I would have to fill out an online form for DHL since they would come to my house and pick up my device. I filled out the form and was expecting a phone call to fix a time where they would come by as promised by 1+ and DHL. Well, I was at work on a Monday morning and suddenly without a phone call or any notification, a DHL delivery guy showed up at my house. Luckily someone was at home who gave him the package. However, the DHL guy asked for an address, which the person at home did not know, so they called me. Now I had to explain to the guy that I had no idea what the address was because I never got one from 1+. They said that DHL would have the address. So after around half an hour, I was notified that the DHL guy took the parcel with him after with him after he got a call from DHL who said that they knew the address.
The next day, the same DHL guy showed up at my house again (again w/o calling) because he got another order to pick up my phone which he did already yesterday...
After around a week of silence, I was notified from support that they received my package and ran it through a first stage inspection where they detected a water damage. They told me, they would send it to a secondary inspection to verify if it is really a water damage. I could not believe that my phone really had a water damage because I am very careful with my devices and I knew that I never exposed my 1+1 to water or some sort of steam or extreme moisture in general. A few days later they sent me the second inspection report which of course confirmed the water damage and thus my warranty covered RMA was denied. I told them that this could not be possible because I couldn't imagine how my device would have gotten anywhere near water. The next weeks I was arguing with several support members (they changed their names randomly and I had no idea who would reply anymore). I was basically given 2 options: pay 213€ for a repair or pay 45€ of shipping costs to get back the defect device.
After around 3 weeks (they often ignored me for days) I was so frustrated with the company and the way they treated me that I just wanted to get back my device and hence I paid the horrifying 45€ shipping costs (UK-Austria normally costs 12-20€ for a package of this size).
During those three weeks I was doing some research about 1+ RMA denials and look what I have found:
here: reddit
and here: reddit #2
and here: reddit #3
and here(!): reddit#4
So apparently, many users got their RMA denied because of water damage although they never exposed their device to water. There seem to be two water damage indicators (little white stickers that turn red when they are in contact with water) inside the 1+1, one in the headphone jack and one at the bottom of the phone underneath the buttons. Some people were smart enough to take photos of their white indicators before shipping the device off to RMA repair and received an inspection report with a photo showing red indicators, when they got their RMA denied. So these indicators *somehow* seem to have turned red.
After finding this, I was relatively shocked. I mean, I was mad at 1+ for their incompetent customer service but I couldn't believe that so many people had the same struggle and some even have proof that they were falsely accused of being responsible for the water damage. Unfortunately, I was not clever enough to take my phone apart and take pictures of the water indicators but I cannot imagine that they were red when I shipped the device off. Unfortunately I cannot proof anything.
After talking with two lawyers, we came to the conclusion that pursuing further legal options would be very difficult, considering that the law in Hong Kong where 1+ is located is probably completely different. Furthermore it would cost too much and my chances of winning wouldn't be high since I did not have any evidence except many reports of other people with the same problems from the internet.
Now after more than 2 months of arguing with the support I decided to pay the 45€ shipping costs and I'm probably going to sell the defect device but you can be sure, that I'll never buy anything from this company again. I can't proof anything but their warranty denials seem.... shady.
Now, I really hope that you never have to deal with the 1+ customer support because it is simply horribly. They have no idea what they are talking about, they just send copy and pasted replies and often they don't read your replies at all, they ignore you for days, their procedures are extremely complicated and they deny warranties in many(!) cases without a proper reason. Sometimes even, although there is proof that says otherwise.
If you consider buying a 1+1 or 1+2, be warned because the same thing can happen to you. It happened to many people and it will probably happen again.
If you are going to ship off your device to RMA, be sure to take as many detailed, high-res photos as possible of the outside AND of the inside of the device. Be sure to check the water damage indicators and take a good picture of them. Also write today’s date and your name on a piece of paper and photograph it with your phone so that you can proof that the pictures are yours.
TL;DR
Microphone doesn’t work during calls; contacted 1+ customer support; complicated and pointless tries by 1+ to fix phone w/o RMA; after weeks: RMA granted; shipping difficulties; RMA denied because of water damage; many other users also got RMA denied because of water damage despite of proof that there was no water damage; 1+ RMA denials seem shady (see links);
Yeah they tried to rip me off to. Sent me an invite for OnePlus 2.. I saw the timer only had 3 hours left so I ordered. I started reading about the 1+2 and heard about how many problems they were having. I immediately sent them 4 emails over a day and a half (no later than one hour after order was taken) to cancel. I did everything by their book to cancel the order. I do a PayPal claim and 4 days later they said since the funds were frozen my money was coming back and the order would not be shipped. 10 days go by and it's the last day, so I'm supposed to get my money back from PayPal. The idiots sent PayPal a tracking number to PayPal to stop the claim and showed it as delivered to an old address that I didn't even provide on the order. It was the apartment I stayed in for my first OPO... Someone signed my name a day later and forged it. I am a notary, so I give my notary number to PayPal, they see the forged signature and give me my money back. A week later a guy drops off the OnePlus 2 package at my real address. OP tried to get me to send it back to them and I just did screw you and sold of and made $410. They had so many chances and they withheld my money for two weeks, because they didn't want my order to be canceled. In the end they lost, I don't feel sorry for them one bit, and since PayPal settled it, there's nothing they can do. Should have just canceled instead of ignoring me. They reek of desperation.
Sent from my A0001 using XDA Free mobile app
Wow. This really suprises me. I was actually considering of swapping my S5 or just buy a second phone wich would be OPO, but this cleared my mind a bit. Thanks.
welcome in the club !!!
I will never buy anymore a branded OPO smartphone.
I didn't want to RMA the device (the tales spooked me out of it), so I got the microphone flex on ebay for € 24 . when I proceded to install it, I saw the sticker close to the USB port that had colored red, so at least I knew I saved myself some unecessary stress by doing it myself. those stickers go red easily, I never got my phone out of it's case and didn't even use it once under the rain. But on the other hand, oneplus has no other way to tell who is messing around and who is being honest with RMA requests, all manufacturer do it (except Apple who are known to turn a blind eye on your first RMA if you use their own warranty extention plan)
Its really annoying when u does nothing to u r phone and it get damaged and u have to pay half money of that price of phone
$366 for purchasing and 166$ for repairment for broken screen which i doesn't broke with any fall or damage
It just got automatically when it was in pocket whole day at work
What a quality of hardware it is its crap
Never buy this if u then u will NEVER SETTLE
http://forum.xda-developers.com/oneplus-one/general/1-10-settle-t3197005
Hello Guys,
I am an android buff just like other members of this forum and I have a LeEco Le1S phone which I bought after getting impressed by what the company managed as configuration for such a meager price.
The phone is configured really well and no doubt it is a very good phone to have. I was wondering how a company can manage to give phone for that price when even other Chinese competitors are selling at 2-3K higher price and let's not even talk about the global players.
But my misconception got shattered when unfortunately my phone's screen color got fade off from one side and I had to meet the reality of submitting my first ever android phone to a service center on 21st May 2016. The unprofessional attitude that started from there has not ended yet (almost 2 months later).
When they asked me to submit the phone, I was skeptical about the time they would take to replace since I had a much-awaited trip lined up in 15 days and I wanted to use my Superphone to capture all the moments. So, even before submitting I asked service center guys and also called up customer care to verify about it and all of them assured me that I will get a replacement within 10 days (7 working days). I told them that if it is going to take more time, please let me know so that I will submit the phone after returning from my trip, as a little faded off screen wasn't harming me at all. Trusting the brand and their people, I gave my phone for replacement.
When I did not get the replacement or any update for 7 days, I started trying to expedite it and then escalated the issue on 1st June 2016. Even after multiple escalations, not just I did not get my replacement of phone, the unprofessionalism was such that they didn't even care to keep me updated on escalation and I had to myself call up. Every time they would tell me that we will get back to you in 24 hours and rest assured, you will get your phone before the trip, but even after 2 days I didn't used to get any update and when I call back, the same thing was repeated.
So, I gave in, invested in a new phone for the trip and came back. Even after that long time there was no update, so I took up to twitter. Tagged their handles to make them aware of my issue, but looks like delaying and unprofessionalism is part of their team's training, so they behaved in similar way. Even they would not respond to my updates or expedite the process. (the whole twitter trail: https://twitter.com/agarwalhimanshu/status/750310707153993728)
All I have been hearing is that the process is escalated. Escalation means expediting the process and figuring out the root cause and simultaneously keeping the customer in loop but for LeEco, it looks like "escalation" is just another word for a normal complaint. Basically, they might have degraded the levels of words, Complaint: Nothing, just a normal feedback.
Escalation: OK, a complaint received, let's think whether we should resolve it
And there is no word which might mean escalation.
Even after multiple times tagging their handles, there is no outcome. Today when I called up their service center, I am informed that I will get my phone tomorrow, but surprise surprise, yet another time they lied. I am not going to get a replacement, but a repaired phone.
They made me wait for 2 months in the name of replacement and "out of stock" story and in the end they giving me a repaired phone after 2 months and such a painful tracking period? Did it take them 2 months to replace a screen?
So, my intention of writing this post is this: The phone is awesome, the customer facing people are third class, with no professional attitude. They cannot hold upto their words and they can't resolve the issues on time. Customer respect has reached a new down by the way they have responded to me on my escalation.
Save yourself guys, buy any other brand but this.