Toshiba laptops - DPChallenge Forums

Canon PowerShot Pro 90 IS

02/25/2004 07:35:22 PM · #1

Don't waste your money on a Toshiba laptop. On a less then 1 year old $2000 laptop the little pin inside the AC connector broke off. No problem, get it fixed under warranty, right? WRONG! From what ever country their customer relations is outsourced, they were magically able to determine that I broke it, thus it is not covered under warranty without ever even seeing the laptop!
Obviously I must have stuck a screwdriver in there just for the fun of it...

The AC connector is connected to the board, and they can not replace just the connector, so they have to replace the whole board, which of course is a $1,000 part. Horrible engineering, horrible warranty and horrible customer relations...

jab119

02/25/2004 07:48:07 PM · #2

i know what you are talking about.... my girlfriends laptop is in the closet because it will cost $850 to replace the Mother board and processor, since it was not covered under warranty

James

coolhar

02/25/2004 10:12:06 PM · #3

The first laptop I bought was a Compaq that had the same type of design (broken connector equals replace motherboard). In three years of warranty coverage the board was replaced three times at no cost, along with a new LCD panel, a cd-rom drive, a keyboard, and two hard drives. It made so many round trips to the repair facitity in Houston that I could have gotten a new one from it it's frequent flyer rewards. The guys at the place where I took it had my phone number memorized. I'm on my 6th laptop now, a bottom of the line Toshiba that is about 20 months old and has been flawless. Pick your poison. You can have a generous warranty and be missing your computer about a third of the time, or you can have a quality machine that works all the time. Lots of people think Toshiba builds the best laptops available. I have no idea what their warranty service is like, and probably never will.

Why did you stick that screwdriver in the slot?

Canon PowerShot Pro 90 IS

02/25/2004 10:51:49 PM · #4

Originally posted by coolhar:

Why did you stick that screwdriver in the slot?

I thought it would make a great photo!

I've dealt with Compaq customer service before and they were very fair. Pray that you never need to contact Toshiba customer support... Seriously, I've never experienced that level of service from a company of Toshiba's size. I'll never buy anything Toshiba again. They are now on my short list with jack in the box and the maytag repairman.

coolhar

02/25/2004 10:59:33 PM · #5

and Sony digicams? Next time you go to a store that carries several brands of laptops ask a clerk which brand comes back for repairs most often. Then try the same thing at a place that sells several brands of digicams.

faidoi

Pentax K10D

Pentax DA 18-55mm f/3.5-5.6 AF

02/26/2004 12:54:54 AM · #6

Originally posted by coolhar:

Some stores will sell you the extended warranty and because of the policy people will take advantage of it and return there item for repair (Wink, wink) a couple of times and when the newest model comes out the store will final replace with the newest model.

I know a lot of people that takes advantage of this.I work retail so I don't condone this.

Message edited by author 2004-02-26 00:55:25.

tfaust

Canon EOS 80D

Canon EF 100mm f/2.8 USM Macro

02/26/2004 09:27:04 AM · #7

The biggest problem here is that it is a $2000 laptop, less than 1 year old and has a faulty part. (We know of someone with a Toshiba laptop with the same exact problem). It should be designed to have the plug taken out and put back in over and over again. Toshiba, with no questions asked, will not support their product. They say it's not covered under warranty and when asked what is covered under warranty they say 'Hardware problems'. Isn't this hardware!?!?!?!

I'm not mad that my laptop is broken, I'm mad that Toshiba won't stand behind their product and their customers.

sonnyh

Canon EOS-7D

Canon EF 28-135mm f/3.5-5.6 IS USM

02/26/2004 11:44:08 AM · #8

Some stores will sell you the extended warranty and because of the policy people will take advantage of it and return there item for repair (Wink, wink) a couple of times and when the newest model comes out the store will final replace with the newest model.

That used to be the case but stores have caught on to the scam. I just had to return an Epson 2200 printer (for a real problem) and I had the extended "replacement" warranty. However, when they gave me the new Epson I was told that the extended warranty was a one shot deal.

Flash

Nikon D700

Nikon AF-S Nikkor 17-35mm f/2.8D IF-ED

02/26/2004 12:07:43 PM · #9

Originally posted by sonnyh:

Some stores will sell you the extended warranty and because of the policy people will take advantage of it and return there item for repair (Wink, wink) a couple of times and when the newest model comes out the store will final replace with the newest model.

That used to be the case but stores have caught on to the scam. I just had to return an Epson 2200 printer (for a real problem) and I had the extended "replacement" warranty. However, when they gave me the new Epson I was told that the extended warranty was a one shot deal.

Sonnyh......You're back. Been sending you notes trying to understand the root cause of your 2200 problem. Can/will you let us in on what the real printer problem was? Software? Interface cable? Set up profile? 2nd bad printer?

Nazgul

Canon EOS-20D

02/26/2004 02:44:49 PM · #10

well being a laptop repair man i get these cases on a daily basis and can tell you that your laptop being a Toshiba has nothing to do with it breaking.

I understand your frustration but dont be so naive to blame it on Toshiba!

We repair several brands of laptops and every single one of them has a AC connector that breaks from time to time.

Even some Toshiba laptops have a connector that is separate from the mainboard so if it breaks you dont have to replace anything but that connector.
That I havent seen on any other laptops but Toshiba!

Good Luck

p.s you should have got an insurence on that thing the minute you bought it;)

Message edited by author 2004-02-26 14:46:09.

02/26/2004 03:44:22 PM · #11

Do other companies cover this type of repair under warranty?

My complaint isn't so much with the laptop itself. My complaint is with Toshiba's lack of warranty coverage and their remarkably horrible customer service. You can not elevate a call beyond a customer relations rep (they say they have no manager!), and they do not have authority to do anything other then say no.

ARRRRG!!! BBB here I come!

Nazgul

Canon EOS-20D

02/26/2004 06:39:06 PM · #12

Well we service Fujitsu Siemens, Compaq, Toshiba and Medion and none of them covers this kind og repair under warranty!

Canon EF 70-200mm f/2.8L IS USM

02/26/2004 10:50:38 PM · #13

So this happens often and I can't really see how it's user abuse since most people can put a plug in and take it out like a pro, yet it's not a warranty item?
Sounds like the bean counters knocked it off the warranty list when they found out the engineer had their head up their butt when they made a $1,000 part a piece of garbage if a $.75 connector breaks.

wewillexplore

Canon EOS-1D Mark II

02/26/2004 11:13:02 PM · #14

I have had NOTHING but great luck with Toshiba. They replaced my sound card when I DID break it and said "oh you must not have" and I shipped my puter out and had it back like 2 or 3 days later. It was miraculous!! I love toshiba and I'm typing this on my second toshiba laptop in a row.

M

Nazgul

Canon EOS-20D

02/27/2004 05:25:50 AM · #15

The problem with these AC connectors is that it often has a cord hanging out of it (When Charging and using) and it is not strong enough to withstand brute force! for example when people walk on it, kids jerk on it and whatever accidents that may happen.

I just had to say something against this simply because Toshiba is one of the manufacturers i love the most:D

Canon EF 100mm f/2.8 USM Macro

02/27/2004 01:19:53 PM · #16

Well then, if anyone knows of a customer service person at toshiba that is authorized to make a decision and cares about their customers please PM me their contact info because I have yet to find one.

FYI: Toshiba America has 3 listing with the BBB. Two of them are currently negative and one is positive (for now).

Also, do a google search on +toshiba +sucks and you'll find a lot of unhappy people. Most not because of the product, but because of the customer support. I suppose if you did that same search with just about any company you'd find something though.

pitsaman

Canon EOS-30D

Canon EF 50mm f/1.8 II

02/27/2004 07:34:47 PM · #17

check this one :

tfaust

Canon EOS 80D

03/02/2004 09:45:44 AM · #18

Originally posted by Nazgul:

We don't have kids and the laptop stays in one place with the cord tucked away. I'm sure this could happen as abuse in many situations, but it wasn't abuse in ours and we just wanted it fixed.

tfaust

Canon EOS 80D

Canon EF 100mm f/2.8 USM Macro

03/02/2004 09:53:13 AM · #19

Just wanted to update everyone. After sending an email to a couple of Toshiba Corporate email addresses detailing our situation and giving them the web address of a site I put up about this issue, they have agreed to fix the lap top under warranty. In the end Toshiba did stand behind their product and their customers.

Keep in mind - I have not been upset with Toshiba's product - it's been the customer service that was the big problem. Their Customer Relations Reps went so far as to tell me that they are the end of the line with Toshiba, there is no one else to speak with and the folks at Corporate don't talk to customers so there is no other phone numbers. She also told me after I refused an address to write a letter and asked for a phone number that I must not be understanding English and she hung up on me.

Oh, thanks for the picture Pits! That's great :-)

coolhar

Canon PowerShot Pro 90 IS

03/02/2004 11:40:25 AM · #20

Glad to hear your laptop is getting fixed. Maybe you could PM louddog and guide him thru the hoops.