iPAQ service rant

[bljarv]

I've just got to blow off some steam to sympathetic ears. :x

I sent my handheld in to HP for service last week because my 3765 and a 3600 ROM on it (dont' know how long it was that way). I was excited that my repair only took 3 days. When I got it back, I was anxious to get back to work and quickly powered on my iPAQ to find that it was still the old ROM.

I called the folks at tech support and they said, "Oops! Why don't you send it back in..."

Well, I conceded and sent it back in and now it appears to be lost. Airborne doesn't know where it is and neither does HP. I'm still waiting to hear back what HP is going to do about it, but I just couldn't sit still any longer (I didn't think yelling at the nice person at HP was very fair). I am hoping that posting this message will be a mild form of anger therapy.

Are there any other service horror stories out there?

[Janak Parekh]

bljarv, politely tell the HP Support rep if there is some way to escalate the situation, that you're in desperate need of the iPaq, etc., and that the Airborne guy signed for it and as far as you're concerned it's now out of your hands and is in theirs, since they sent the Airborne guy, etc.

In my case, I had to send the iPaq back 3 times over the period of a month before they actually managed to fix it; they would fix a problem but open up other problems. I was told that if I had to send it back again I could take it up with their next tier people and negotiate a solution; I've heard, on webboards, in those extreme cases people are sometimes given a new iPaq.

Good luck.

--janak

[pjerry]

As soon as you get the chance ask to be transferred to customer relations. I had a Compaq Proliant 7000 server that came from the factory a lemon. It took some time but I got it replaced for a brand new server. You just have to be consistent and put on pressure. :)

[seanturner]

I think thought that neithyer Airborne nor HP is responsible for the loss unless you insured the package in which case Airborne has to pay for it.

[Janak Parekh]

Interesting, because HP never asked me on any of my 3 pickups if I wanted insurance. :)

--janak

[seanturner]

Interesting, because HP never asked me on any of my 3 pickups if I wanted insurance. :)

--janak

Oh yeah, HP does their own pickup's via airborne express don't they... They might pay for insurance, but, I suspect with the amount of shipping they do they figure it is probably cheaper to replace the unit themselves than buy insurance...

Actually, come to think of it when I got my iPaq 3835 fixed, it was damanged in the box and HP ended up relacing the unit with a 3850. Whether they were reimbursed by airborne for the damange I don't know but it was all transparent to me...

[bljarv]

Thanks everybody for the suggestions/info. I'm still hoping that I will get my iPAQ back - I only thought I knew how much I used it before it was gone!

These things ought to come with a Surgeon General's warning about being habit forming!

[vincentsiaw]

so how any news for your ipaq now?