John had read here on Consumerist dazzling “Above and Beyond” stories about out-of-warranty Canon cameras that the company had fixed for free because of a mechanical defect. He had a camera that was mostly functional, but didn’t work in extreme temperatures. He sent the camera in for warranty repair, and learned that it wasn’t eligible for a free repair, but they could fix it or send him a refurbished newer model for $170. Too bad. John already has a second camera, though: could they send it back to him? No. Could they apply that same “customer loyalty program” discount to a more expensive model so John could stay with Canon, but upgrade? No. [More]
warranty and repair
T-Mobile Keeps Replacing Defective Phone With More Defective Phones
By 8.31.11
Some months ago, Elliot upgraded the phone on his T-Mobile plan. He chose the Motorola Defy, which turned out to be a poor choice. At least, it was for Elliot, who enjoys having a phone that actually works. T-Mobile has cast him into smartphone replacement purgatory, where he will be stuck until he gives up and changes carriers, or his warranty expires and he pays for a new phone. [More]
Toshiba Considers Using Your Laptop Mouse 'Abuse'
By 8.24.11
Even though his Toshiba laptop is less than a year old, Toshiba won’t repair the touchpad of Justin’s computer. He doesn’t think that he’s done anything out of the ordinary with the machine, but Toshiba insists that the button won’t work because of “accident, misuse, abuse, neglect, improper installation, or improper maintenance.” They’re happy to sell him an extended warranty that will cover the repair, though. [More]
I Would Like To Use My Year-Old Electrolux Stove To Cook Some Meals
By 8.24.11
Electrolux seems to think that Bridgette wants something completely unreasonable. What she would like is for her sleek stainless steel Electrolux range, an induction stove and oven that she paid more than $3,300 for less than a year ago, to heat up and cook food on a regular basis. It doesn’t. The burners stop working, for weeks on end, seemingly at random. She didn’t drop more than three grand on a stove so she could end up using a hot plate in her own home. [More]
Line Your Samsung Oven With Aluminum Foil, Void Your Warranty
By 8.22.11
Do you line your oven with foil? Rae does. She always has, and her parents always have. It’s such a normal thing to do with an oven, it didn’t occur to Rae not to do it. She lined her oven with foil, then popped a frozen pizza in there on the first night after it was delivered. The foil melted the interior oven surface, and now Samsung tells Rae and her husband that they’ve voided the warranty. [More]
Dyson Fixed My 5-Year-Old Vacuum For Free Without Receipt
By 8.16.11
As anyone who ever looked at the price tag on a Dyson knows, the vacuum cleaner company charges a premium for its devices. But for Consumerist reader Matt, his recent customer service experience with Dyson has him believing the high sticker price was worth the investment. [More]
Dell: Prove To Us That Your New Monitor Isn't 10 Years Old
By 8.4.11
Did you know that Dell has been making one particular model of 24″ flat panel HD monitors for a decade now? G. didn’t. That’s why he was surprised when he contacted Dell to find out the warranty expiration date for his monitor (manufactured in March of 2011) and they couldn’t provide him with that information. Worse, the confused customer service rep was convinced that the monitor was, somehow, ten years old. [More]
Fisher-Price Replaces Broken Bouncer, Shocks Customer
By 8.4.11
When the Fisher-Price Bouncer that Allison had received as a gift for her son stopped vibrating, Allison contacted Fisher-Price to see whether she could have the item repaired or replaced. Instead, the company turned around and just sent her a new one, no questions asked! [More]
Reader's EECB Persuades HTC To Actually Open Phone And Check Moisture Sensor
By 8.3.11
Katherine’s HTC Hero smartphone was only four months old and still under warranty, but the company wouldn’t repair it, claiming that a moisture sensor had been tripped. She knew that she had never dunked the phone, and was determined to fight HTC’s decision. But how? She turned to the Consumerist archives for answers. [More]
We Lied, Your Watch Is Out Of Warranty: Now Give Us $106
By 7.27.11
Richard received a Casio Pathfinder digital watch as a gift. First its satellite time-syncing superpowers failed, and he called the company for help. They opened a case and assured him that since the case had been opened before his warranty expired, it was fine if he sent the watch in for repair at a later date. Then other functions started acting oddly. He sent the watch in for repair, and Casio determined that the watch was out of warranty and he’d have to pay more than a hundred bucks to get his superwatch back. [More]
Alienware Sells Marine $6,000 Paperweight, Shrugs
By 7.18.11
The Alienware Aurora ALX is a pricey, awesome gaming computer that sort of looks like a blue Cylon. Except in Drew’s home, it looks more like a giant $6,000 paperweight. No matter how many extra parts Alienware/Dell try to sell him to fix the problem, the glorious beast still won’t work. Drew is a Marine, and he, his family, and his computer are now stationed in Okinawa, Japan. That means transferring the warranty to Dell Japan if he wants to keep trying to get the damn thing to work. What’s Japanese for “lemon law”? [More]
Sony Sends Technician To Your House To Break Your Computer
By 7.7.11
A functioning touchscreen is an important feature of a touchscreen computer. Yet the Sony VAIO desktop that Frank purchased at a Microsoft store and had shipped to his home on the other side of the country had a faulty touchscreen. Since he was on vacation when purchasing the computer, It was too late for a store return, so he had to deal with Sony. They very helpfully sent someone to his home to fix the computer, but the technician instead broke his VAIO even more, then didn’t show up for the return visit where he was supposed to actually fix the darn thing. [More]
Take Your Jewelry To Kay For Repairs If You Never Want To See It Again
By 4.26.11
Consumerist readers may fault Michelle for patronizing a chain jewelry store, but she and her family have a solid relationship with their local Kay Jewelers store. Such a solid relationship, in fact, that when her boyfriend’s pocket watch needed repairs, she brought it back to the store in her hometown when it needed repairs. This turned out to be a mistake: she would have done just as well putting the watch under her mattress. [More]
Kay Jewelers Sends Wedding Rings To China For Repair: Will They Ever Come Back?
By 3.16.11 — Updated: 9.15.13
Jennifer and her husband bought her diamond wedding ring set in 2006, and the anniversary band to go along with it in 2007. They also bought an extended warranty for the rings, which was either a great idea or a terrible one, depending on how you look at it. It was a great idea because her rings seem to be defective. It was a terrible idea because she ultimately sent the jewelry off to the vendor in China for repair, and now Kay representatives are ducking her questions. She fears that the rings have been lost. [More]
Flying Wiimote Trashes TV, Discover Makes Loss Less Painful
By 3.2.11
Stephen broke his new LCD TV the old-fashioned way: his 6-year-old son flung a Wiimote into it. Oh, well, sucks to be him, right? He called around looking for some way out of paying to replace the set, a 46″ Sony Bravia that cost more than $900 with tax. Homeowner’s insurance? Nope. He didn’t buy a warranty from Best Buy when purchasing the TV, and a Geek Squad warranty wouldn’t have covered this damage. Time to just go buy a new TV? Not so fast! One of his Facebook friends was savvy enough to tell Stephen to check with his credit card company. [More]
Sorry, No Parts At Asus: Guess You'll Just Have To Buy A New Computer
By 2.25.11
As consumer electronics become lighter and tinier, and are assembled on the other side of the planet, we’re more inclined to replace something than to repair it. Mike’s experience takes the “ending is better than mending” phenomenon to a new level: he’d be happy to replace the unbearably loud fan on his Asus Eee PC himself, but the company doesn’t sell parts. Asus could accept the machine for repair, but no one knows how much the repair would cost, or if it’s even possible. [More]
eBags Happily Replaces Worn-Out Laptop Bag
By 8.20.10
James writes that he bought a great laptop bag made by eBags.com in 2008, and it has served him well all of that time. When some of the stitching came loose and the zipper fell apart, he contacted the company about a repair or discounted replacement. eBags went beyond what James expected, instead offering him a refund for the bag’s full purchase price to buy a replacement. [More]
