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View Full Version : Why I can't buy HP PPCs any more


karen
08-06-2004, 08:46 PM
I can't buy from them any longer.

4 weeks ago I was so excited that my HP zd7000 laptop arrived - on my birthday no less! A really sexy machine, I'll tell ya...

Much to my chagrin, after using it for about 2 weeks, the keyboard started having hardware problems. About 6 keys, all contiguous, started sending odd letters and Window commands. As the days went by, it got worse.

So the first thing I think of is a virus or other malware. Didn't find anything with several types of SW. So then I try other diagnostics - external keyboard, no problem. Windows virtual keyboard, no problems. Checked every setting, no problem. Vacuumed the keyboard with an official keyboard vacuum. Rebooted a hundred times.

So I cringed at the thought of having to call tech support. I'm still on the phone with them while the tech support person keeps trying to figure out what bios settings I need to change to make the keyboard work. She even asked me to unplug and plug the keyboard (shhhh...it's a laptop lady) :roll: ...

Now it's better...they want $150 to fix the keyboards because keyboards aren't covered under warranty. WTF?????

This techie girl is accusing me of having spilled something on the keyboard. This keyboard is virgin. There isn't even dust on it (which reflects it's relative lack of use).

$3000 for a beautiful 17" Brightview laptop with Media Center and the keyboard can't last a month. What a POS. Will I be asked to pay $150 every month?

The final kicker? My extra $200 for 3 day service will only get me the laptop returned by 15 August, maybe longer. How is it that HP calculated 3 business days = 9 calendar days? Do they have extra secret holidays that we don't know about?

This is obscene stance is almost as bad as when they lost my ipaq and tried to tell me that they aren't responsible for lost items sent in for warranty work, even if they successfully received it and lost it after it was fixed and before it could be returned to m. WTF?

:evil:

Why would I now go and buy a $1100 HP PPC these days?

And why would they think I would consider buying HP anything for the 2000+ retail store servers I manage? Or for our current project to put 10,000 PPCs into our stores? The 2000 kiosks we are deploying? The 4,000 printers we'll be buying this year? Or even the large format printer I'm replacing this year at home?

I can't believe that a company wants to treat their customers this way...or have me tell a couple hundred thousand people about their lack of confidence in their own products.

Ripper014
08-06-2004, 10:36 PM
Sounds like HP has lost a customer...

karen
08-06-2004, 10:53 PM
Sounds like HP has lost a customer...

Make that 4 customers - 2 of my clients for which I have input in their hw evaluations, my company, and me personally.

I hope they can afford this revenue loss over $150 because their keyboard is fubarred.

karinatwork
08-06-2004, 10:57 PM
That might be a stupid question... but have you tried to call the service number again and talk to someone else? I usually do that and it works. That whole "keyboard is not covered by warranty" seems like that lady doesn't know what the heck she is talking about.
Give another service lady a try.

Good luck!

K.

karen
08-06-2004, 11:37 PM
That might be a stupid question... but have you tried to call the service number again and talk to someone else? I usually do that and it works. That whole "keyboard is not covered by warranty" seems like that lady doesn't know what the heck she is talking about.
Give another service lady a try.

Good luck!

K.

Of course I did. He said that most keyboard problems are due to consumer abuse and that keyboard problems are natural wear and tear. He said that once the repair folks receive it, they will find out the cause a may consider given me a discount.

I'm thinking that since the laptop is only about a month old I'll be talking to my CC company about disputing the charge. Maybe if I do that HP will think of fixing it for me with no questions asked. I wonder what happens if you dispute a charge and still have the broken item?

K

karinatwork
08-07-2004, 12:01 AM
It was worth a try. If it wasn't so sad, I would find it hilarious that the keyboard of a laptop computer is not covered by the same warranty as all the other parts.

Sometimes I feel that there are too many 'duds' around. Very often you're lucky and you get a good item, but too often you get an item that is defective, doesn't work properly or doesn't work at all, and then you're SOOL.

With my last laptop (HP, btw) I went through 3 before I finally was happy with the one I got. Actually, with the first one the battery turned up dead after 3 days of use (which was funny because I had only used it for 5 minutes unplugged). The second one was a Compaq because I didn't want the HP's anymore, but it got so hot underneath I almost burned myself, the third one (HP again) had a dead pixel 5 days after buying it. The last one (the one I kept, HP) was a floor model, and it has not let me down for the last 2.5 years. Sometimes I think when you buy a floor model and they still work at the moment you buy them, they're somewhat "tested and approved by the masses" :D

Anyway, I was lucky and all these things happened BEFORE the 1 month return policy expired. After that, I don't know what I would have done.

Best of luck with your problem, I hope it turns out ok for you.

K.

ironguy
08-07-2004, 09:30 AM
Most credit cards will cover your purchase with an extended warranty automatically. Call them and ask.

I've found in my many years of dealing with customer service that it really depends on the person you get a hold of. Call again.

Last time I called HP (my iPaq 2215 SD slot failed), I got an intelligent service rep. I told him my SD slot had failed. I told him I soft booted, tried multiple SD cards from different manufacturers, and even did a hard reset - all to no avail. After I told him these things, he promptly gave me a service number and said my new unit would arrive in two days. I was on the phone less than 10 minutes.

Of course, there were other times...

chunkymonkey75
08-07-2004, 02:12 PM
I used to be a Laptop Hardware Tech. where I work. We even serviced HP laptops...then later Dells. The keyboard is by far the most likley to fail. It is NOT true that most failures were due to customer abuse. I supported over 2000 laptops over the course of three years. Plus, where do they get off charging $150 for a new one?!? Don't say it's the labor...I can switch one out in 2 minutes. One of things I remember about HP was the ridiculas costs of replacement parts. A replacement DVD-ROM drive was $700!!!

I also had bad experiences with them in the phone as well. I called them about a laptop (4150b) and gave them a serial number and everything. He told me that that laptop did not exist. We argued back and forth about that for at least 10 minutes.

I've got to the point where if I every have to call and they don't have an American accent, I just hang up and call again. I have NEVER had a good experience getting help from someone overseas. Your getting help from programmers not IT support staff. Programming and supporting customers are two very different things. No offence to programmers out there, but they usually lack customer service skills.

Sorry, I ranted...

:soapbox:

I'll get off my soapbox now

mrkablooey
08-07-2004, 02:14 PM
Of course I did. He said that most keyboard problems are due to consumer abuse and that keyboard problems are natural wear and tear. He said that once the repair folks receive it, they will find out the cause a may consider given me a discount.

normal wear and tear after a month? good grief. :roll: and the first clown wasn't much help--i could see a keyboard from a desktop pc not being covered but a laptop keyboard? one of the keys on my ibook came off (after a year and a half) and i called apple. the next day i had a new keyboard, thanks to applecare.

i have a hp 2215 and i've been really happy with it, though my grips are loose and the SD slot is acting up (reading/not reading). i've got 2 mos left on the warranty. going to get myself a dell and send this puppy in to have it fixed and sell it. btw, i could care less about the 2003SE upgrade or not, just these horror stories of hp are making me nervous. i'm actually nervous about the SD slot being repaired, which is why i want something else now anyway.

i'm glad my last printer purchase was an epson, and i hope you get your issue resolved. please keep us updated! :D

mrkablooey
08-07-2004, 02:17 PM
Last time I called HP (my iPaq 2215 SD slot failed), I got an intelligent service rep. I told him my SD slot had failed. I told him I soft booted, tried multiple SD cards from different manufacturers, and even did a hard reset - all to no avail. After I told him these things, he promptly gave me a service number and said my new unit would arrive in two days. I was on the phone less than 10 minutes.

ok this is going to be my case, i hope. i bought a new memory card figuring my panasonic had just died. used the new lexar and it started having issues. several hard resets, reflashing the rom, not installing the sdio update, etc. and it seems like its working ok now though its still flaky. the first time all it did was freak me out cuz there was NOTHING on my sd card. :!:

anyhow, hp's service leaves a lot to be desired if karen's call is any indication. :?

dh
08-07-2004, 03:34 PM
All I can say is that HP used to be a good company, but the current managment are killing them.

Where I live, in the Boston area, I know a lot of people who worked for DEC, then Compaq and now HP. I can say that HP, not only treat their customers like sh1t, they do the same for their employees. I work with serveral ex DEC service guys. Looks like Compaq, then HP, believe service is not needed because they basically closed the department.

Who was the family member who said the merger would be a disaster? Walter Hewlet? Anyway, looks like he knew what he was talking about.

Just out of interest, does anyone buy HP laptops or desktops (other than Karen)? I just don't see anything compelling in their product line. I always cringe when I see some BestBuy sales guy telling some innocent victim that they should purchase this cheapo HP laptop that is chained down to the shelf.

Kati Compton
08-07-2004, 07:15 PM
Just out of interest, does anyone buy HP laptops or desktops (other than Karen)? I just don't see anything compelling in their product line. I always cringe when I see some BestBuy sales guy telling some innocent victim that they should purchase this cheapo HP laptop that is chained down to the shelf.
Well, the Evo line is nice, and you get *business* service, which is MUCH better than the service they provide for individuals. One of my cats chewed through the AC adapter cord (after it was converted to DC), and I called to order a replacement, but they just sent one out for free. (Husband's laptop).

As for the customer service rep, I'm really hoping that first one was just confused. Like the other poster said, I can understand them not covering a "normal" keyboard for a desktop. The fact that she asked you to unplug it makes me think she was just following the wrong script.

But the second rep confirming it... I would have asked for a manager. I mean, if you SPILLED something on it, it'd have *sticky* keys. Not random letters.

jkendrick
08-07-2004, 10:45 PM
If you purchased it with a credit card notifiy your credit card company right away that you are disputing the charge. Make sure you follow their instructions properly but if you do that you will get HP's attention through the reseller.

No one should accept a $3000 anything that fails in the first month. Disputing it requires your CC company to remove the charge until the seller proves otherwise. Good luck with it.