Broken Laptop...PC World not helpful...Advice Please??

Finian88

hi first time posting on here, hopefully someone can help. I'm a final year university student with a Toshiba Equium L40 laptop running Windows Vista Home Premium.

Ok so to start off I bought my laptop in PC World Galway in Sept 2008 at the start of the college year. Even shelled out an extra €300 on insurance for 5 years just to be safe. Everything went grand to start with, no major problems etc for the first few months, then it all hit the fan. One day while studying for exams the charger seemed to overheat and melt the cable going into the laptop. Immediately the laptop shut down but luckily was in Galway at the time so I was able to get to the store before closing time that day. As I really needed the laptop for the exams, I was told that they could sell me a charger to replace the fried one and then, when I was finished, could bring it back to the shop for it to be fixed.

So I done that, and about 2 weeks later got the laptop back along with a new charger and told it should all be ok. So there I was with an "as new" laptop or so I thought. Sent it in for the free yearly healthcheck at the start of September and was again given the ok. Fast forward a few weeks and I start getting blue screen errors popping up. First of all i think it could be due to new programs I installed, so I deleted all of the ones that had been installed and ran the virus scan thinking that would solve everything. Again I had about a week's peace until it started crashing again, so another visit to PC world was in order. I left it in to them and was told to call back in a few days.

The day I called back to collect it they told me they'd restored the factory settings and it should be working again as normal. However the same story kept happening and being sick of having to go to the shop I restored the factory settings myself, but like the last time it had hardly any effect. I tolerated the errors as they only popped up once in a while but 3 weeks ago i accidently cracked the screen.So as ye can guess I'm pretty much p****d off at that stage so its off to PC World again. This time their waiting list is apparently 3 or 4 weeks for repairs so I'm told to send it off via courier and that'll only take 2 weeks. As its coming up to christmas exams and I've got projects due, I decided that'd be the best option to take.

The laptop arrived at home last monday but seeing as I was in college all week I only got access to it last night. The screen was perfectly repaired but the slider that allows you to open the screen lid is now really difficult to use. So at around half 8 last night I started to download the automatic updates for windows as usual when up pops the Bluse Screen once again!!

First thing this morning I rang customer support and explained the situation. Now I've been told that the crowd that repaired the screen apparently dont solve software errors like the blue screen and I'll have to send it off again for another 2 weeks to have that fixed and the hardware department will have to fix the slider....OR that they could guide me through the restoring process that would last about 45 mins and sounded a whole lot like the system restore I had done myself. Then I asked about what options I had as regards to a replacement and was told that they couldnt give me one themselves and I'd have to go to the shop but even then it would be unlikely.

So my question is: What options do I really have available to me? and what do I do if I'm refused a replacement or refund as opposed to getting it repaired?
I'd really rather one of the first two options as I'm getting sick of constantly being without the laptop and even more-so due to the fact I need certain programs for my final year projects and subjects

Thanks for reading and any replies would be greatly appreciated,

Finian

jor el

Sounds like you've given more than enough chances for them to repair, and they've failed. Small Claims Court for a refund, but this will take time, possible 3-4 weeks, that's if the shop refuses.

dudara

Consumer law provides for repair/replacement/refund. The retailer can offer one, and you can accept.

However, in this case, you have been through the 'repair' routine more than once, and I would say that you are now entitled to seek a replacement of the laptop, or indeed a refund.

Speak to a manager, outlining everything that has happened, and state that this time you are seeking a replacement or refund. Give them a chance to respond. If you do not receive any satisfaction, lodge a complaint with the Small Claims Court

MadMickeyMonk

Hey in the same boat last year. I shelled out 750 for a compaq with all the bits and bobs printer etc. I bought it in 07 for christmas for the mrs and in nov 08 it packed in. Was using it one minute next think i had a black screen so I brought it back to them cos it was within the year but to piss me off they told me the year didnt cover the motherboard :mad: he could tell this by looking at the closed laptop so had obviously seen the same problem.
I took it to a repair shop in town for a second opinion and as soon as the guy in the shop saw me and the laptop he just said to me "PC World, right". He told me that pc world are buying in these cheap models with windows pre installed and just banging them out at cheap prices and promoting them heavily for HP purchacing for christmas and students.
Turns out they have also been selling laptops of all brands with windows vista pre installed but the laptops dont have a large enough hard drive thus a lot of error boxes were popping up and machines running very slow.
I would never go anywhere near them for laptops but they seem to be ok for accessories.

Sponge Bob

PCW are never helpful, they are salespeople .

jahalpin

MadMickeyMonk wrote: »

Hey in the same boat last year. I shelled out 750 for a compaq with all the bits and bobs printer etc. I bought it in 07 for christmas for the mrs and in nov 08 it packed in. Was using it one minute next think i had a black screen so I brought it back to them cos it was within the year but to piss me off they told me the year didnt cover the motherboard :mad: he could tell this by looking at the closed laptop so had obviously seen the same problem.
I took it to a repair shop in town for a second opinion and as soon as the guy in the shop saw me and the laptop he just said to me "PC World, right". He told me that pc world are buying in these cheap models with windows pre installed and just banging them out at cheap prices and promoting them heavily for HP purchacing for christmas and students.
Turns out they have also been selling laptops of all brands with windows vista pre installed but the laptops dont have a large enough hard drive thus a lot of error boxes were popping up and machines running very slow.
I would never go anywhere near them for laptops but they seem to be ok for accessories.

The motherboard is most of the PC, how can it not b e covered by warranty? The only part of a laptop that mightn't be covered by warranty would be the charger, but even this is doubtful. A quick chat to the manager would probably have sorted everything out

As for the guy in the repair shop, it is in his interest to slag the competition as much as possible, so that you will buy his overpriced and outdated products and services.

PC World sources cheap PC's because that is what people want. In order to make a cheap laptop, corners have to be cut.

Almost all PC's come pre-installed with the current version of Windows. The manufacturer is the one who installs the OS onto the system and it has nothing to do with the retailer.

I almost always buy my PCs from Dell and have never had a problem. I also bought a PC in PC World once and had no problems at all with it.

Nody

To be able to buy a laptop that can't have Vista installed due to HDD limitations you'd need a time travel machine or blow the dust of the box (i.e. a HDD below 10GB has not been available since around Win 98 days...).

MadMickeyMonk

jahalpin wrote: »

The motherboard is most of the PC, how can it not b e covered by warranty? The only part of a laptop that mightn't be covered by warranty would be the charger, but even this is doubtful. A quick chat to the manager would probably have sorted everything out

As for the guy in the repair shop, it is in his interest to slag the competition as much as possible, so that you will buy his overpriced and outdated products and services.

PC World sources cheap PC's because that is what people want. In order to make a cheap laptop, corners have to be cut.

Almost all PC's come pre-installed with the current version of Windows. The manufacturer is the one who installs the OS onto the system and it has nothing to do with the retailer.

I almost always buy my PCs from Dell and have never had a problem. I also bought a PC in PC World once and had no problems at all with it.

Ehh no it wasnt covered as I spoke to the manager in the store and had a heated debate if the motherboard was or wasnt covered in the warrenty so as youve not experienced this then I dont think you can say that it is when the manager of the store says it isnt.
And it dosnt matter if they have to "cut corners" to sell "cheap" laptops. If you buy something you expect it to work and last a bit longer than 11 months. Oh and 750 isnt cheap either!
As for the vista being installed this was true as I have spoken to the store about it and they had to remove "certain lines of stock" from their stores. I know windows is pre installed and pc world buys them this way but the main problem was when people decided to download apps and there being insufficent drive space.

Kensington

MadMickeyMonk wrote: »

Ehh no it wasnt covered as I spoke to the manager in the store and had a heated debate if the motherboard was or wasnt covered in the warrenty so as youve not experienced this then I dont think you can say that it is when the manager of the store says it isnt.

Well the manager is feeding you class A bull then. The motherboard is pretty much the computer, since everything connects to it or through it. Either your graphics card has bit the dust or the LCD panel for the screen has. I'd be straight back up to them demanding a repair or replacement. No joy? Small claims court!

MadMickeyMonk wrote: »

And it dosnt matter if they have to "cut corners" to sell "cheap" laptops. If you buy something you expect it to work and last a bit longer than 11 months. Oh and 750 isnt cheap either!

True a laptop should not have failed so soon, obviously something serious has gone wrong, assuming no accidental damage. While €750 is by no means cheap, in terms of laptops it's not exactly high end either

MadMickeyMonk wrote: »

I know windows is pre installed and pc world buys them this way but the main problem was when people decided to download apps and there being insufficent drive space.

Insufficient hard drive space is the result of what another poster already mentioned - cutting corners! You get what you pay for. €750 at Nov 07 prices, I imagine your laptop has a 60GB - 120 GB hard drive in it. Vista takes up a good 20GB at least. Most, if not all, laptops come with discs, or a program to make discs, which would allow you to re-install Windows yourself if you decided to upgrade the hard drive to something bigger yourself.