My Good Doctor, I am sorry to see you are having such grief. Although my current and past HP laptop purchases never had problems like the kind you are reporting, it does cause me to take pause when pondering my next laptop investment. Here is why:
1) a car dealer client & friend of mine got one of HP's top-of-the-line desktop replacement oversized "laptop" machines last Xmas (I recommended against it due to size alone), and had nothing but grief with the power on-off switch activating on its own. HP eventually replaced the machine for him in April 2007, but only after he badgered the heck out of the Tech Rep Manager about how HP could deal with him straight-up, or with his bank with the Visa charge (he purchased directly via HP Online Store). HP upgraded him to a newer machine, but it has Vista Home, and the dealer HATES Vista. He will likely never get another HP machine, 2) An employee of the same dealer got an HP laptop for her daughter the other week, a less punchy model, and has the same problem with the power switch activating on its own, at random, turning the laptop on or off at any time. So far neither the reseller or HP have offered to do anything other than reformat the hard drive and reinstall the software, at a fee as she added some apps (Office, Norton AntiVirus). I told her that was bullshit, and to give the reseller and HP the same option her boss did with the old, "deal with me or Visa, you choose" option. She also has the reseller's extended service contract, but since the manufacturer contract is in force the extended contract reps advised they will not do anything for her! So much for the, "We will overnight the covered item out for you, and back" claim - as that apparently is only AFTER the basic mfg warranty expires. 3) I recently found my own HP ZE2000 laptop has a known problem with its USB v-2.0 ports. They do not output enough current to work with many external hard drives, requiring me to get a powered external USB hub to use with many of my larger USB Hard Drives, or get a PCMCIA USB 2.0 card (I did both). I am out of basic warranty, and do feel it is a huge issue in my case, but I will rethink who I choose for my next laptop builder. For me this is not a huge problem, but it is aggravating I had to spend more to get some add-on devices just to get the functionality I was expecting to have built-in with the laptop. Otherwise it has been a fine laptop. The problem I face is deciding who to go with next time I get a laptop (likely 2-3 years from now, I tend to replace them every 4-5 years). Compaq laptops have the same USB low power situation on many of their newer models, I am not interested in Acer, Dell is a contender just because I have had great luck with my Dell Servers, IBM is not an option as I have an associate who has perpetual problems with both of his IBM notebooks (they fix it, but he always has to send it in, all kinds of issues), and I have not heard anything lately about Toshiba lighting the world on fire like they had in the early days of portable computer design. So, if you are within a warranty period, and HP is not handling the problem for you, perhaps the old, "Okay, you can deal with Visa then" approach may be your best recourse. Unfortunately it often hurts the reseller who may be innocent of wrongdoing. But it will likely get you some attention on the matter that you otherwise would not get. As an aside, many Platinum/Gold Visa or MasterCard issuers offer an automatic extension to the manufacturer's warranty up to one additional year. It may be worth going down that path if you are out of basic warranty. I could have done that with my laptop, but again, I have decided I can live with the situation. I hate it when folks have problems with technical equipment and are ignored/abandoned by the manufacturer and reseller. These companies are so fast to take our money, and can be so slow in helping when help is needed. If a consumer does not know his/her (cost effective) alternatives and options, or opts to not use them when they are available, that person just becomes another casualty/victim in the world of retail sales. I stopped being a victim a long time ago. I try to be decent when seeking a resolution to a problem, but I am also firm with whoever I am dealing with re: knowing my next step options. Finally, document all communication via eMail whenever you can, just in case you do have to go the Visa/MasterCard resolution route. The more documentation you have, the better. Dates, times, who spoke with whom, the subject of discussion, what the vendor suggested, etc. Good Luck! Gil > -----Original Message----- > From: [EMAIL PROTECTED] > [mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED] Behalf Of Charles Hart Enzer, > M.D. > Sent: Sunday, August 05, 2007 8:37 PM > To: [EMAIL PROTECTED] > Subject: Re: [NF] HP Fails to Support Customers > > > Thank you, Pete. > > Since the machine has only 2 USB ports, the WLAN adaptor and the > mouse would limit me. > > I have a USB Hub, but it slows transfers signicantly. > > Sadly, our IT at the university told me never buy HP. > At 02:18 PM 8/5/2007, you wrote: > >Hi Dr. Charles! > > > >Looks like you got the belkin card to work. If it continues to > work, is there > >any reason you can't go with that? That plus never buying > another HP if they > >never play nice? Sometimes rich people have no morals. > >-- > >Regards, > > > >Pete > >http://www.pete-theisen.com/ > > > -- Charles -- > Mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED] > Website: > <http://homepages.uc.edu/~enzerch>http://homepages.uc.edu/<http:// > homepages.uc.edu/~enzerch>~enzerch > > > [excessive quoting removed by server] _______________________________________________ Post Messages to: [email protected] Subscription Maintenance: http://leafe.com/mailman/listinfo/profox OT-free version of this list: http://leafe.com/mailman/listinfo/profoxtech Searchable Archive: http://leafe.com/archives/search/profox This message: http://leafe.com/archives/byMID/profox/[EMAIL PROTECTED] ** All postings, unless explicitly stated otherwise, are the opinions of the author, and do not constitute legal or medical advice. This statement is added to the messages for those lawyers who are too stupid to see the obvious.
