T-Mobile Color Deception? - G1 General

The story begins on October 26 (maybe a bit after). I go to the T-Mobile store in hopes of buying the ever-so-advertised White T-Mobile G1, but when I arrive they only have Black and Brown/Bronze. The representative at the store informs me of a "flaking" issue with the White they used on the phones, so they were being pulled. After some discussion we agreed that I can return at a later date, when the white G1 was available, and have my phone exchanged.
Some time near thanksgiving the white g1 was released, and I go to the store. the manager refuses to exchange my phone "simply over the color". I continued to explain that I was promised by a rep a white one, and he continues to ignore me (very professional )
After I arrive home, furious, I call 611 and ask them about exchanging. They inform me that it is not possible to exchange colors past the 14 day grace period (which was impossible considering the date I made my purchase.)
In conclusion, I am now stuck with this ugly black G1 and T-Mobile refuses to follow up with THEIR mistake.
I've emailed [email protected] the following email (somewhat just to bother them for being such dicks)
To whom it may concern,
My family and I have been loyal customers to T-Mobile for well over 5 years now. We still hold and cherish "antique" Voicestream sim cards from the days of our first cell phones. We constantly use, and love, every last bit T-Mobile has to offer. My brother and I have recently purchased the new T-Mobile G1. As a developer I am thoroughly enjoying the phone, and T-Mobile's great knowledgeable customer service of any question I may throw at them. I've enjoyed ever last moment with my G1 other than one slight defect. When I went to purchase my device, within the first or second week of the G1's release in Florida, they were advertising black, bronze/brown, and white. I inquired about the white devices, seeing how none were out for display any more as they were in a previous entrance, and was informed that due to a "flaking" issue with the paint that the white devices will be held and released at a later date. After thanksgiving, when the devices launched, I tried to go back to the store and get my black G1 exchanged for the delectable white beauty, and to my dismay was shunned by 3 different representatives. After becoming infuriated, I gave a call to T-Mobile customer support in hopes that someone may be able to resolve this issue. But alas, the representative informed that out of the 14 day grace period I had no chance of swapping my device for one of another color. This is insanity, why should I have to keep this dreaded disgusting device simply because of an unwritten rule that seems to be
holding me from my desire. If someone can please contact me about this issue and have it resolved please use the information provided below to do so.
Thank you,
Steve ***
Cell: ***
Home: ***
E-Mail: [email protected]
Account Owner: *** ***
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If anyone has any information, or is willing to trade / buy a G1 to help the cause, please post here or PM.

Gotta love brick and mortar employees. I would be surprised if that email does anything for you. This is exactly why I always ask for printed documentation for any non standard request granted by a business.

Wait....
You got lied to buy a sales consultant making almost min wage? Say it ain't so....
Should have gotten something in writing by a manager...

I doubt you will get much response, especially considering how long ago you purchased the phone.
The deal really was too good to be true- I don't know of any retailer that would encourage you to buy and use an item only to return it in used condition in exchange for the same model in new condition only in a different color.

^^im with you on that. But i have heard of the insurance company sending out different color g1's. so maybe if you lose it or something like that you might get lucky. Anyways you should have waited buddy.

Hey you never know. I got a bait and switch happen with xbox support one time. I sent back a media center remote and got back a DVD remote for the original xbox. They said that they dont have the media center one anymore. So I *****ed that the DVD remote was like 20 bucks and the MC one was a lot more. Well they agreed to send me 2 full games, and I could return them to a store to get my money back, so I agreed because they had no other option. Then they sent me the games in a cardboard sleeve. Boy was I pissed. I called back, and they said to bad. thats what you go. All the way up the support line. This went on for almost a year no less. From the time I sent my remote until they sent me the wrong game back. And the smart ass support manager was like if you dont like it you can contact Bill Gates. So I did, with the guys name. I sent a nicely worded letter to Bill Gates, and I got the full retail version of the games in a over night package. So big companies do tend to listen when you go to the boss.

Guess your stuck with the dreaded disgusting device i have lol

Well guys got a call back from corporate today and I'm getting my phone exchanged
They're shipping my device today, but charging my account. When I get my new device, I send my old one back and get the money credited back to my account.

Related

HTC said they would fix it but didn't

Because my Nexus one had a dead/stuck pixel, I called H.T.C. and requested a repair. I sent it to them, and a few days later they said that they had examined it and determined that I needed to pay for the repair. I asked them why, and they replied that it was scratched and cracked.
Well, when I sent it to them, I had an invisible shield (a full body one, mind you) on it, and there nary a blemish on the screen. I told them this, and after a few days (and a couple more telephone calls), one of their managers had a technician examine it, found that it was fine, and said that they would fix it for free.
I received it on Monday, but didn't touch it until Wednesday because I was busy at work and waiting for the new invisible shield that I had ordered. When I used it, I noticed that they had removed the invisible shield, which I expected, but they hadn't fixed the stuck pixel! (Besides this, I had returned it to them with the original box, which they didn't send back to me)
So I called them last night and requested another repair. The representative asked me if they had charged my account for the shipping, and I answered truthfully that no, they had not charged me at all. I suppose that I am fortunate that they didn't, considering the other things they did. So now I am sending my Nexus One back two weeks after I returned it to them the first time, hoping that they will fix it properly, and without any argument.
HTC never charges you for return shipping. You only have to pay to ship it to them.
I am sorry you are having these troubles!
I successfully swapped my Nexus One due to a dead pixel within 3 days! I made a call on Day one at 11pm and by Day 3 at 8 am I had my replacement phone.
uansari1 said:
HTC never charges you for return shipping. You only have to pay to ship it to them.
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That's a bit crap, in the UK they email you a pre-paid shipping label.
I live in the U.S.A., and they sent me a prepaid shipping label. I'm just ticked off because I sent it to them, argued with them for four days, and they didn't even fix it, and two weeks later I need to send it right back. Plus it cost me another Invisible Shield.
Swap method is always better, faster, and easier. Plus, you get a new phone. Who doesn't love that?
They said that they couldn't swap it because it was too far (a few weeks) the purchase date. Maybe the person I spoke to didn't know what she was talking about. That's sort of my impression of the support division of the company, though I know I'm probably having an unrepresentative bad experience.
keet said:
They said that they couldn't swap it because it was too far (a few weeks) the purchase date. .
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I think this is BS from HTC. I swapped my N1 after almost two months. They will put a hold on your credit card; if you can live with that the replacement is much faster than the repair.
I'll consider that if they don't fix it properly this time. I didn't want to swap it because of my engraving and the full-body invisible shield that I put on it, but if they don't fix it this time, I probably won't be willing to trust their repair department again.
I had much better customer service from Apple when I had my iPhone ..I'm getting really annoyed with HTC ...especialy with that multitouch issue..
I have a question. Did they release $28 after you got your 'repaired' phone?
bobdude5 said:
I had much better customer service from Apple when I had my iPhone ..I'm getting really annoyed with HTC ...especialy with that multitouch issue..
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I had a dead easy time with apple and my wife's 3G and her 3GS ... you walk in with the broken phone, they demand £150 (ish) for the repair which is always your fault. They then do an estimate and if its expensive (ie > £150) they turn round and say it's BER (beyond economical repair) and offer to sell you a new one. If it's a cheap fix (ie cracked glass) they repair it and pocket the £150.
Now that is customer service!
Other issues such as the 3G problem on the iPhone where it cascades from 3G to Edge to GRPS to No Service and the only way to get it back is to either power off or switch to airplane mode and back. Took it into two phone shops and then the Apple store in London and their solution? Turn off 3G.
Although their best to date is a macbook which I hardly ever use stopped charging. Rang up and they said bring it in to the Genius Bar in 2 weeks. I did, they then said it's warranty expired yesterday (13 days after I reported the fault) and refused to touch it. Demanded to see the manager said they would do me a favour and look at it for free as it was only 1 day outside warranty. They checked the battery and it had been charged 37 times in a year. The guy said this was quite heavy use and was a years worth and I would have to buy a new battery! Queue one massive kick off in the Apple store, resulting in them begrudgingly fitted a new battery!
Or the iMac 24" ATI I bought that crashed all the time, they gave me 3 units before I read on the internet that it was a software issue. I started running XP and voila ... sorted. Apple rolled out a fix quietly without telling anyone a month or so later.
Yes Apple support rocks!
All modern companies support sucks in some cases ... get used to it. Sell a million units and if you get 99% satisfaction you will get 10000 unhappy customers. Give them a platform to shout on and voila!
I bet not everyone gets Apple support like I do, some people probably can't believe how good they are.
Anyway, enough ranting, I wish google would fix the screen calibration issue although I only need to dab the power button and unlock it to fix mine.
keet said:
They said that they couldn't swap it because it was too far (a few weeks) the purchase date. Maybe the person I spoke to didn't know what she was talking about. That's sort of my impression of the support division of the company, though I know I'm probably having an unrepresentative bad experience.
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HAHAHAHAHAHAHA!! Having worked in multiple call centers let me be the first to tell you that it's hard to find intelligence or common sense in them. I work in a call center for AT&T right now and I do work for the Vice President and Assistant Vice President because nobody else knows what they're doing. As soon as they realized that I had common sense and knowledge of technology they took me off of the phone, gave me a raise and converted me from Contractor to Employee. I asked my Director "Why do you let the managers hire people who are so ignorant" His reply was "I'm paying them $17/hr, I don't expect them to think. We have the information and tools set in place to think for them. If I wanted them to think then I would hire people with a higher intelligence and I would pay them more. Instead, I have people like you come up with tools and other things to think for them"
So this is why I hate when people say "I called T-Mobile and they said..." because that means nothing. You can get a different answer every time because most of them don't know the answer because your questions are above their level of intelligence. Now, I'm in no way saying that every person who works in a call center is an idiot. I'm saying that a large percentage of them do not understand anything about what they're troubleshooting.
I was reading a survey in P.C. Magazine about customers' ratings of the service and product quality from companies such as Apple, Toshiba, and Hewlett-Packard. They rated things such as the frequency with which hardware was found to be faulty soon after purchase, how easy it was to have it replaced, and other such topics. Apple did rank first overall, and Toshiba ranked second. This doesn't surprise me, since I have a ten year old Toshiba Tecra 8100 that still runs fine, though I've fixed the screen hinges.
H.T.C. was not in their listing, and I had never dealt with their support before. I replaced my X51v's screen myself after having it for three years and getting some water damage (I also replaced the backup battery later), and that's working fine now. I'm kind of nervous now -- I half expect my Nexus One to come back with real scratches on the screen, or more dead pixels, or some other problem that it didn't have before. After they already accused me of damaging it last time, I sort of wonder what they might damage to do with it this time -- something worse than sending it back unfixed.
jin1207 said:
I have a question. Did they release $28 after you got your 'repaired' phone?
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Yes, they did; they didn't charge me any money.
dumbestcrayon said:
HAHAHAHAHAHAHA!! Having worked in multiple call centers let me be the first to tell you that it's hard to find intelligence or common sense in them. I work in a call center for AT&T right now and I do work for the Vice President and Assistant Vice President because nobody else knows what they're doing. As soon as they realized that I had common sense and knowledge of technology they took me off of the phone, gave me a raise and converted me from Contractor to Employee. I asked my Director "Why do you let the managers hire people who are so ignorant" His reply was "I'm paying them $17/hr, I don't expect them to think. We have the information and tools set in place to think for them. If I wanted them to think then I would hire people with a higher intelligence and I would pay them more. Instead, I have people like you come up with tools and other things to think for them"
So this is why I hate when people say "I called T-Mobile and they said..." because that means nothing. You can get a different answer every time because most of them don't know the answer because your questions are above their level of intelligence. Now, I'm in no way saying that every person who works in a call center is an idiot. I'm saying that a large percentage of them do not understand anything about what they're troubleshooting.
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dwl, classic!! Are you also saying any one with great talking skills can get the job as customer rep too?
keet said:
Yes, they did; they didn't charge me any money.
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Thanks, buddy. I can let mine go to repairing.
Hope you get what you expect
I sent it back to them last Thursday, of course, and received a message on Monday saying that they had received it. Today, I received another message saying that they had completed their diagnostics, and guess what my option was? Pay for repair, just like last time! I sent a response asking why and called them, but all the morons in their customer service department could do was 'escalate' it, so I just sent a complaint to the Better Business Bureau.
bobdude5 said:
I had much better customer service from Apple when I had my iPhone ..I'm getting really annoyed with HTC ...especialy with that multitouch issue..
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I would be careful saying anything pro apple on this forum, lol.
I have been pretty lucky with both of my htc products so far. My N1 is great and so was my G1.
keet said:
I sent it back to them last Thursday, of course, and received a message on Monday saying that they had received it. Today, I received another message saying that they had completed their diagnostics, and guess what my option was? Pay for repair, just like last time! I sent a response asking why and called them, but all the morons in their customer service department could do was 'escalate' it, so I just sent a complaint to the Better Business Bureau.
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By chance did they answer your question? or at least tell you the results of the diagnostics and how much they charging?

WOW - Exchanging phones with sprint is a nightmare!

Okay, so 3 evos bought from sprint.com on launch day.
3 all have light leakage; mine is really bad and also sounds like they're talking though a kazoo!
Called sprint 1800, they said that a sprint store had to put a note on my account.
Went to the closest store they told me could put a note on my account, that store said they couldn't for the evo as it was to new, so they sent me to another store, which was just like the frist one, and the second one sent me farther up the road to the corp store. The corp store said that since we were new custs, we didn't need a note on our account that they should have just sent up 3 new phones without questions, but they put a note just in case.
Came home, called sprint back up, the guy said that they couldn't send 3 new phones out to us because they didn't have any in stock, and to call back when sprint.com had more in stock.
Sprint.com has them in stock, so I called back first thing this morning (2.5 weeks later) and the guy is ready to send them to us, but then he says oh, you have a new account, you have to take them to the store and get new ones because until you're a cust for 3 months we can't bill anything extra to your card.
They sure have some dumbasses working for them.
I want one of the new ones from sprint.com, not the old ones from the sprint store.
Called the sprint store and they said that they have a huge waiting list for when they get more phones in and to call back and get a different person on sprint 1800. :|
I think someone should look into HTC's QA procedures..
Mine has light leakage too, but for 3 of them? Super bad batch lol.
TBH though, it's hard enough to get 1 of these phones.
Did you really think you'd be able to show up at sprint and replace 3 of them at once??
topdnbass said:
I think someone should look into HTC's QA procedures..
Mine has light leakage too, but for 3 of them? Super bad batch lol.
TBH though, it's hard enough to get 1 of these phones.
Did you really think you'd be able to show up at sprint and replace 3 of them at once??
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No, I expected sprint.com to send me 3 new ones like they said they would. They said (over 2 weeks ago) to call them back when sprint.com had more phones in, well this is the first time they have in weeks, so I called back and the guy said that since we were a new customer, that wed have to exchange them at the sprint store.
:|
Hrshycro said:
No, I expected sprint.com to send me 3 new ones like they said they would. They said (over 2 weeks ago) to call them back when sprint.com had more phones in, well this is the first time they have in weeks, so I called back and the guy said that since we were a new customer, that wed have to exchange them at the sprint store.
:|
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Im sorry to hear about your issue, try and call in to account services and demand replacements or cancel. Worst case is and I do know that it would be easier said then done but CANCEL. If you can get them from RS or BB, you would end up saving some money too. I called in and spoke with Tech Support and they sent me a replacement without the fussed.
I bought mine from Radio Shack n my phone has a faulty camera. I've been trying to exchange mine for two weeks n it's been a nightmare for me too. I called sprint customer service n they told me that anyone who demands a replacement now will receive a refurbished phone and to cancel my account with RS n order from Best Buy... So I called BB n of course they said they have no available pre-orders left. So my only option now is to cancel my acct with RS n wait til new Evos will be in stock everywhere (in 3 years lol). Waaack
similar
same thing happened to me. mine has minimal backlight leaking under the home key (now its starting to shine under the other three soft keys) anyway...i went to the corporate store so they could note my account. then for a so called "device exchange" (online orders support) sends me an exchange kit, in which i am to mail my current device when i receive the new one, wich could go past my 30 day thing, wich became irrelevant because the "note" on my account ment that even if the device is on backorder as soon as it becomes available it gets shipped out to me at no cost (LIE) in order for online sales support to send me out a new one i have to pay for it so bassically i return the first device they credit my card back this is also called a refund in most cases. but they call this an "exchange". after paying another $350 they would send out the replacement.
at that point i told the rep, cancel everything because im not paying another $350 so they could send me a device when it becomes in stock. i told her i would contact htc and have this taken care of under the manufactures warranty free of charge. she said she had to check with her supervisors. which she did and she agreed. case closed, i will wait past my 30 day probably around september ill contact htc and have them replace my evo for a mint one because of screen separation from improper manufacturing.
realKURE said:
I bought mine from Radio Shack n my phone has a faulty camera. I've been trying to exchange mine for two weeks n it's been a nightmare for me too. I called sprint customer service n they told me that anyone who demands a replacement now will receive a refurbished phone and to cancel my account with RS n order from Best Buy... So I called BB n of course they said they have no available pre-orders left. So my only option now is to cancel my acct with RS n wait til new Evos will be in stock everywhere (in 3 years lol). Waaack
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actually sprint dot com gets batches every week(dont quote me). as soon as the warehouse gets them in stock they ship out to those who are put on the so called "list"
Oh god. >.<
I started this process today and am already getting the shaft/run around.
Corporate stores is near me so I'll go there directly, and I've been a customer for well over 3 months, and I don't mind waiting for a new batch to come in, so I should have no problem right?
Well I'm going to call back tomorrow until I get someone that knows what the hell they're doing.
If nothing works, will cancel, or I'll threaten to cancel and cause them more headache in the end. I want a new phone and if they don't give me 3 new ones, then they're worse than att.
I'll email the prez office and start *****in.
The corp store said that since we were new custs, they didn't even need a note on the account in the first place. So the people are order support are either dumbasses or don't want to exchange them, so they give you the run around.
To all the forum readers. First off this is my first post so b kind please. A friend of mine had a similar problem with Verizon. He tried and tried to get his problem resolved with them directly. After having no luck, he called the consumer protection agency. They in turn contacted verizon. After a week, they filed a lawsuit against verizon and within a week verizon had his problem resolved. I dont know if this could help you guys out but thought i would throw it out there anyway. Hope this helps. Unguided
I would just cancel while you're in your 30 days. Obviously the local Sprint stores in your area suck and have terrible customer service..
Don't be stuck with 3 phones you find defective. at the point you're at now i dont even think i would try to exchange anymore. i would just walk in and cancel.
maybe its a blessing in disguise and you will end up with a nicer phone a little later on.
Ok guys.. I've been on the same boat for the past 3 weeks... I got my evo from RS on launch day. I've had dead pixels and screen separation. I finally got a call from store manager today saying that Evos are still on backorder but Sprint has released a few for new customers with issues... cmon guys you have to understand that Sprint is dependant on HTC for these devices..HTC is to blame here. We shouts get Consumer agency on their arse. This QA is really hurting their pockets too. I'd rather wait a month and get a fully repaired evo, instead of a crappy fast fix... Look at the bright side at least we don't have to hold our phones a certain way in order to make a call... lol
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The sprint store I went to offered me a refurb or said i need to go out to one of the sprint repair centers. (went to return the evo because of the light leak and screen lag)
Called sprint tech support, explained the situation. He put me on hold while he called the store, then came back on the phone and said the store manager has a new one for me I could pick up before they close.
Anyway, as I was walking in he opened the cabinet and pulled out a new one and set in on the counter, then set it all up and I did the exchange
The sprint store people there are not very personable. They don't strike me as the best type of people to be giving support.
Anyway, I'm happy yet again
The one I got is an 003 novatek, doesnt have light leak yet . The other line we got on launch day is an 003 epson (i think it's an epson because it looks very different from mine, although i haven't actually checked dmesg) - and that has no light leak issues like mine did.
Just offer to make the sprint guy one of those badass carbon fiber covers you're pimpin maybe you get a nice discount code thrown on your account too

Beware if you buy parts from Global Direct Parts

Anybody looking to buy parts from Global Direct Parts .com beware of them, it's a scam.
I placed an order for 4 ribbon cables for HD2 phones on a sat. The next monday I wanted to add something the said it was already processed, so I had to place another order and pay shipping.
They FAQ says they can reduce min quantities if I buy at least $ 125 of parts, so I add a LCD and place order. They cancelled since now they want $ 149 min. They also went over and changed their web site, so I cannot prove anything.
After 2 weeks my parts are not here, so I call and a wiseguy said I still have to wait until the next 2 days since it was still processing.
The next day they email me they lost my package.
I reply demanding they ship another with Express delivery to make up for the poor service.
They decline and want to issue a refund, and guess what, price on items has gone up (what a coincidence).
I emailed today asking where is my refund (paid with Paypal) and they stated it takes 2 BUSINESS days to issue it.
I placed a claim on Paypal and they emailed back threaten me to stall refund indefinitely unless I remove the claim.
Sorry for this long rant, but such a poor customer service place shouldn't be allowed to do business. I invite anybody NOT to use this place.
They also falsely claim they have all the parts in USA, while they actually dropship from China, Taiwan, and Hong Kong.
Beware guys !!!
Wow. That sux
Sent from my Ally using XDA App
I will agree. Terrible customer service. They say they have new or "a" stock.... the "a" stock are used parts, including damaged and unusable. the others are just in poor shape. then there's the problem with them making you pay to ship their junk back, even after it has been determined to be their error. that's just shady. then the total bs they call customer service... if your lucky to get someone, they are uneducated and clueless about anything going on. good luck trying to get answers or some management to reply to you. i own a repair shop and have spent (wasted) thousands of dollars with these losers.
BEWARE AND AVOID!!!!!
thanks will know
I bought 10 Ffc and no problem I'm sorry you had pRoblems with them
Sent from my SGH-T959 using XDA App
I bought a Samsung Captivate housing almost a year ago and it took about 5 days to get it. Part was new with no scratches at all.
Had no problem with them
I have bought some FFC's from them before and didnt have any issue. Good to know though if I do anything through them in the future!
I bought some. Speakers for an evo 4g about 8 months ago and all went well. About a month or 2 later I got emails from them saying that they had a major employee leave and not to trust emails coming from a. Similar company.
I had a great experience with them and the parts were perfect
Hi All,
It seems that this company went through a bit of a struggle at some point. Being a business owner myself I know that dealing with the public is not always easy especially when you have employees that are not the right fit. You can only do your best and learn from your mistakes and successes.
I just purchased tablet frames from them and they were perfect, the customer service was perfect and I am going to their website now to purchase more. I found some really hard to find products in new condition and at a great price. Personally my experience was great and I would highly recommend them. Definitely NOT a scam. They delivered.
Lance
Clay333 said:
I bought some. Speakers for an evo 4g about 8 months ago and all went well. About a month or 2 later I got emails from them saying that they had a major employee leave and not to trust emails coming from a. Similar company.
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I think it is true that maybe a competitor is trying to sabotage them. I saw the same exact review plastered across several different review sites. I just got parts from Global Direct Parts recently. While I can't say the parts are so good, the customer service was very rapid and good. Apparently they sent an aftermarket that was suppose to be OEM. The customer service agent said the Huawei OEM parts are hard to come by and they usually get it out of refurbished phones now and some might have been refurbished before with aftermarket parts that they didn't end up catching. They immediately refunded me saying since the OEM parts is hard to come by, there is a good chance I'll get another aftermarket.
The other 3 parts they sent are good and as described. I would definitely do business with the company again.

Verizon rant...

This is sort of a long story. Sorry, I just had to put this in writing to get it off my chest, I am beyond frustrated with Verizon...
I bought a Galaxy 10.1 4G LTE from Verizon Wireless online back in July. I got and love the crap out of it. It is awesome. Then I got the dreaded newton rings, and read through the epic thread here on XDA and decided to get it fixed or replaced. I walked into a Verizon store (which are becoming more common that McDonald's around me) and told them my problem and asked for a replacement. This was 9/22/2011. He said since I ordered online they have to order the replacement online and I would have it in two business days. Great. I would rather have the thing right now, but I can deal with that.
Two days later, I get an empty brown cardboard box. I call Verizon 'customer care center' and they say to wait another day or two to get the new tab and put my old tab back in the box and ship it back. They at Verizon never want their customers without a device, so make sure to wait until you get the new one, then you have 10 days to return the old one. Okay.
Two days later, still no tab. I call Verizon again. Their system says the tab is on back order, and as soon as they get one in stock they will ship it out. Okay. Another week later, I call back, same response. Another week later I call back, same response. WTF? How can a product be on back order for that long if you are still selling them in the store?
Finally (11/4/2011) I called and wasn't going to buy their back ordered story, and the lady was pretty helpful. She kept me on the line and conferenced in someone from the technical center. This lady said in a condescending tone that I had the return box, why didn't I return it to them. They can't process a new tab until they get the old one. They have 700 of them in stock, I just need to send them my damaged one and they will ship out a replacement or repair it in 1 to 2 business days. She was kind of rude, like why did I wait this long. Whatever. I boxed up my tab and shipped it off to them on 11/7/2011. FedEx tracking confirms they receive it on 11/9/2011. Nice. Maybe by the end of the week I'll have my new tab.
Nothing. I call again on 11/16/2011. Customer care rep says hmm, they are showing back ordered. I said I've heard that one before, call tech support. She calls tech support. The lady at tech says that she sees they received my old tab, but there is no note or pending shipment for the new one. She will put that order in right away and overnight a new tab to me, so I will have it on 11/17. Good, finally I might get my tab by the end of this week.
Today, 11/18/2011. I get an empty cardboard box with instructions on how to ship my tab to them for repair. I call customer care. Hmm, system says they are back ordered. Call tech support. Tech support guy says, nope there are plenty of them in stock. He sees that the order was placed on 11/16, but has no idea why they haven't sent me a new tab yet. He is going to initiate an investigation, which could take a few days. He does send me his e-mail info and contact info for his supervisor, so now at least I have someone to call direct at tech support.
Almost two months since I first initiated the repair order, two weeks without my tab, and Verizon has no clue what is going on. Great. Maybe next week...
I should have bought the WiFi version.
May I suggest finding a better Vzw store to deal with. I work with the largest indirect VZW dealer and have helped 2 put 3 people swap there's with no issues. I really hate to hear the run around you are dealing with. I would be livid. Hope this is resolved soon for ya.
Sent from my DROID BIONIC using xda premium
Get in touch with me
I work as a consultant at Verizon Wireless, I forwarded your post to my boss, I will do my best to help you. Send me a private note and I'll be in touch.
Jim
Thanks for the replies and the help. The guy handling the investigation called on Friday night and said that his records showed that the replacement was shipped and delivered to my office. Since I was at home, I couldn't confirm that, but suspected it was the empty cardboard box I got. I checked this morning, and it was. The tech did send me his e-mail and his supervisors direct number, so I left a message with the supervisor and will keep trying to get this resolved! Everyone I talk to seems like they want to help, but nobody is quite sure how to get things done. They have different policies for the tablets than their phones, and nobody seems to know how to handle the tablets.
DMMCD -
Email sent to the parties involved, along with their boss. Hope it does something....
Jim
Thanks for helping, Jim. Yesterday there was a lot of back and forth e-mails between people within Verizon, which Jim was kind enough to keep me updated on. I did get a voice mail on my work phone from a tech support supervisor last night around 6:15 pm, but I just got the message this morning. I left him a message with the information he requested (tracking number for sending my old tab back, which I gave to two different tech support reps previously). Hopefully today brings resolution. It would be nice to have my tab for Thanksgiving holiday.
I would file a complaint through your State Attorney Generals website in regards to all of this. Then VZW's Consumer Government Affairs department will research the matter and are required to respond to your complaint and to the Attorney General.
Put a little heat on them. Get as many eyes on this as possible. That's absolutely ridiculous. Unfortunately, as with most companies, the CSR's are limited to notes and what's on an account. They can tell you things all day long and try to help you but they're limited to what's in front of them.
EDIT:
For Pennsylvania the State Atty General Consumer Complaints can be found here:
http://www.attorneygeneral.gov/complaints.aspx?id=451#
Here is the form you can submit the complaint with online:
http://www.attorneygeneral.gov/complaintforms/bcp_form.aspx
Again it's all just a suggestion, you're not penalized for doing it, it's your right as a consumer. You're not suing them, you're not taking them to court or anything. You're just making a formal complaint that they have to recognize and address, then they have to identify steps they took to resolve your situation to the Attorney General.
Hopefully it won't come to that, but we'll see...
I thought things would happen today, but so far this morning I have left two messages with a tech support supervisor, along with a message for a different supervisor yesterday, and e-mailed the original tech support rep with no replies at all. The only info I had that things were happening at all were from the e-mail traffic that Jim (tommydorsey) was kind enough to forward on to me.
I don't like being left in the dark. I would like a call from somebody, even if it is to say that no progress has been made. Why can't I just walk into a Verizon Wireless store and have them hand me a new tab? That would have ended this insanity two months ago, and I would be a very happy customer.
I ordered mine online and got an in-store replacement for the Newton's ring issue. And used the opportunity to upgrade it to the 32GB model. Their are allot of Verizon "Premium Retailers' that have are pretty poor in my experience. I stay away from them and only do business a with Verizon owned store. Those experiences have all been excellent.
The store I went to is a large Verizon owned retailer. It seems like a lot depends on the particular sales rep that you have the fortune of speaking with.
I did finally get a call back from the tech service rep. He said the warehouse claims they sent the Tab to me last week. We checked the tracking number, and I confirmed that what they thought was a Tab was actually an empty cardboard 'recovery' box with that tracking number on it. I offered to take a picture. So he is in communication with the warehouse to see why they sent a recovery box rather than a tablet. The saga continues.
Okay, I got a call from the tech supervisor around 5:45 pm who said "headquarters" shipped out a tab and I should get it tomorrow. I'm crossing my fingers and hoping that it is not another empty cardboard box...
dmmcd - I hope this works today. Fingers crossed.
Yey, I finally got something. Of course the name on the label was Don and I am Dan, so it was given to the wrong person in my company and I had to track it down. But I got a "new" tab.
Which bugs me a little, it is a "certified like-new replacement". I really hope I don't have any problems with it. I guess at this point I am happy to have anything. I also lost my screen protector when I sent my original tab back to them.
The screen is different than my original one, and has the SAMSUNG logo on the bottom of the screen. I hope it stays free of the newton rings.
A tech support supervisor texted me to make sure I got it. Still not really blown away by this customer service. It took over two months to get to this point, and the last 2 1/2 weeks I was without a tablet. The last week seemed like intense negotiations just to get anything out of them at all. Too much confusion within the company. I still think they should have honored my exchange at the physical store and avoided all this mess.

Bad Samsung Repair Experience

I purchased my Galaxy 2 7" Tab right before Memorial Day. It worked perfectly for the first 35 days. Then it would just die and the only way to revive it was to plug it in, wait 5 minutes, unplug it, then hold the power button for 60 seconds. It would come back to life but the first time the screen turned off it would not come on and the above procedure had to be performed again.
I emailed Amazon and was pretty much told "Talk to the Manufacturer" OK, fair enough. Despite the fact that my family spends thousands per year at Amazon, I understand. Samsung phone support asked me for a detailed description of the problem. I stated exactly what I had to do to get the device to work. They assured me it would be noted and sent me a return shipping label. About 2 weeks later I get an email that says my device was repaired. The issue was noted as "Dead (Intermittently)" and that was it. The repair...."S/W Upgrade (External Factor)". I thought, WTF, no way that was software.
The device was returned today with numerous scratches and what look like pry marks on the rear cover. The device was PERFECT when sent in. So I fire it up and the screen shuts off and the device is doing the EXACT same thing it did before I sent it in. I called Samsung back and kept getting put on hold and was eventually told I had to send it back yet again. I asked why as obviously they did nothing to fix it the first time. They said that if it comes back again with the same issue I *might* be able to get a new device. I also asked why my device was cosmetically damaged and as you can expect, the CSR gave me some BS about how careful they are. Really? They pried my back off, scratched it, nicked it, and that is what they call being careful? To top it all off, it was shoved into a box with absolutely no packing material and was banging around in the box. Even if they do actually repair it, what are the odds it makes it back again without being damaged further?
All in all I'm very frustrated with Samsung support. I understand electronic devices fail, but they should actually be able to fix the device on the first return. Especially when the problem is so obvious. It's like they don't even care. I will certainly think twice before buying another Samsung product.
I certainly can sympathize but you know they all pretty much are the same. I've had similar experiences with HP, Dell, Toshiba, and Sony over the years and that's just with electronics. My latest was with a IKEA desk I purchased which showed up damaged sent back just so they could send me another damaged one. We can only blame ourselves and parents who passed on buying products and services from reputable companies to buy from the low price companies. Its become so standard practice that they all pretty much operate this way now. Costs too much too care and we the customer don't buy from companies who care. Plus its all about the shareholders.
With that being said. Thank you for sharing your story. It just may make a difference when I purchase my next device. Damn, who am I kidding. It will make a difference. I don't want to deal with companies like that.
You're right. I usually buy my electronics from Best Buy. I have always had great customer service, especially when I get Best Buy Corporate involved. I purchased 2 Asus Prime tablets at Christmas last year. One for me and one for my son. The GPS never worked but we kept waiting for the magic firmware fix that never came. WiFi was also weak. I sent an email to Best Buy Corporate and within hours I had someone call me, called my local store, and allowed me to exchange both for the TF700's. Some 8+ months after purchase. I buy a lot of stuff at Amazon but not typically electronics. I made the mistake of purchasing this at Amazon as I had a gift card I wanted to use. They have great prices but come day 31, forget about returning it for an exchange let alone 8 months later. I did send an email to Samsung NA headquarters so maybe they will make sure it is fixed or replaced the second time around. One can always hope...
Mike02z said:
You're right. I usually buy my electronics from Best Buy. I have always had great customer service, especially when I get Best Buy Corporate involved. I purchased 2 Asus Prime tablets at Christmas last year. One for me and one for my son. The GPS never worked but we kept waiting for the magic firmware fix that never came. WiFi was also weak. I sent an email to Best Buy Corporate and within hours I had someone call me, called my local store, and allowed me to exchange both for the TF700's. Some 8+ months after purchase. I buy a lot of stuff at Amazon but not typically electronics. I made the mistake of purchasing this at Amazon as I had a gift card I wanted to use. They have great prices but come day 31, forget about returning it for an exchange let alone 8 months later. I did send an email to Samsung NA headquarters so maybe they will make sure it is fixed or replaced the second time around. One can always hope...
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Click to collapse
I should email best buy and raise hell about my tab. Maybe I could get a new one or allowed to upgrade to a 10.
Thanks for sharing. I love my three Samsung devices and I'm upset for you. They should treat us, the customer a lot better. I've spent a lot of money on my toys. We all have. Assholes.
I refuse to buy something like this online. I use the power of the receipt to its full potential.
OK, so as is my usual practice when I am unhappy with service a company is providing, I did some research and found the email address of the CEO/President of Samsung NA and sent a nice email. I did that last night and got a call from the office of the President of Samsung NA this morning. The nice woman reviewed my case and within 3 minutes said "We will replace your unit with a brand new unit". She asked if I had already sent my old unit back for repair. I told her it went out this morning. She said the day it is received I will get a new, unopened P3113 shipped via overnight to my home. She apologized multiple times. She then sent me an email with all her contact information and told me to contact her if I have any further issues or questions. As I have discovered, it's all about getting to the right level of support.
While I am still unhappy that Samsung was unable to fix my device the first time, and did cosmetic damage, I'm extremely happy with the way this was handled in the end. Samsung will keep my business in the future.:good:
That's awesome! I'm happy for ya bud. It also makes me feel good that they stood behind their product and took care of the most important person. The customer. Kudos for you as well for taking the time to do this right. Sometimes I forget we the customer have to make the effort to handle these kinds of issues correctly.
Mike02z said:
OK, so as is my usual practice when I am unhappy with service a company is providing, I did some research and found the email address of the CEO/President of Samsung NA and sent a nice email. I did that last night and got a call from the office of the President of Samsung NA this morning. The nice woman reviewed my case and within 3 minutes said "We will replace your unit with a brand new unit". She asked if I had already sent my old unit back for repair. I told her it went out this morning. She said the day it is received I will get a new, unopened P3113 shipped via overnight to my home. She apologized multiple times. She then sent me an email with all her contact information and told me to contact her if I have any further issues or questions. As I have discovered, it's all about getting to the right level of support.
While I am still unhappy that Samsung was unable to fix my device the first time, and did cosmetic damage, I'm extremely happy with the way this was handled in the end. Samsung will keep my business in the future.:good:
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Click to collapse
Gotta note also that first device was just plain bad luck.
Sent either from my p113 (gtab 2 7.0) or i997 (Infuse)
Ryanscool said:
Gotta note also that first device was just plain bad luck.
Sent either from my p113 (gtab 2 7.0) or i997 (Infuse)
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Click to collapse
Yup, I realize this happens. I suspect if I had not gone this route the device would have come back still broken and they would have probably made good anyway. I just saved a step or 2. I've been fairly lucky overall with electronic devices.
I just wanted to follow up on this. I did receive a new unopened Galaxy Tab 2 via UPS on Monday 8/27. The outer box was destroyed and the inner box was damaged but the device was perfect. I have been using it heavily all week and it has been performing well. While not the best service experience, at least Samsung made it right with a single email to the right place.
My advice to anyone experiencing poor customer service, with any large purchase, is to do a little searching and find the corporate directory and with any luck you can find the CEO/President's email address. These addresses are typically monitored by high level CSR's that can do things other CSR's cannot do. I have used this trick multiple times with multiple vendors and it has always gotten me great service. A well written email can do wonders. Good luck!
Glad it worked out well in the end Mike and thanks for the "tips" hopefully i will never need to use them.
:good:
Kudos to you Mike ! If we all do like you did standard of Customer Care will get raised to great heights.
Would you like to share your email so it might serve as a template/sample for others ?
Thanks !
Sure, in fact I will share both the email I sent to Samsung and the email sent to Best Buy about the Prime TF201.
Samsung:
Sent to Samsung NA CEO and President. IT was someone from the president's staff who called me the day after this was sent.
Hello Yangkyu-san,
My name is Michael SXXXXXXX and I have been a long time Samsung Customer. I have 4 Samsung HD TV’s, a Samsung Galaxy Nexus and a Samsung Galaxy 2 7” tablet along with multiple other Samsung products. I’m writing to you as I’m very frustrated with the service I have received on my defective Galaxy 2 7” tablet. The device was purchased at the end of May from Amazon. Right after my return period expired, I started having problems with the device. It would just die and the only way to restart it was to plug the cable in, unplug it and hold the power button for 60 seconds. I called Samsung and they took all my information and said I needed to send the unit in for repair. I clearly explained the symptoms in detail and the CSR said he made all those notes in my repair order.
After 10 days, I received an email stating that my unit was repaired. The Issue summary was simply “DEAD Intermittently” and the fix was “S/W Upgrade (External Factor)” The Service ticket number is 4115XXXXX. The unit was returned today and within 5 minutes was exhibiting the exact same behavior. I again called Samsung service and was told I needed to return my unit yet again. The new ticket number is 411XXXXX.
I am very frustrated that despite sending this unit in for repair once, I need to send it in yet again and be without my device for another 2 weeks. I understand electronics break but what I don’t understand is why I need to return it again after sending in for repair once. I asked if I could just get a new device since it appears to me that the repair center is unable to repair it. I was told that if it comes back again unrepaired, I *may* qualify for a new unit.
I use this device for work and cannot afford to continue to be without it. Now I must wait another 2 weeks before my unit comes back hoping it is repaired properly this time and if still broken then I may be able to get a replacement? Adding additional time to my wait for a fully functional device. I honestly expected much better from Samsung support. It should also be noted that my device was in perfect cosmetic condition when sent in. When returned there are scratches on the back and what looks like pry marks on the back cover. I did not expect to have my device damaged cosmetically along with it not being repaired properly.
Please let me know if there is anything Samsung can do for me. I am returning the Tablet tomorrow, again leaving me without a major work tool for yet another 2 weeks and hoping it is actually repaired and not damaged further. Thank you for your attention in this matter.
A lifelong Samsung customer,
-Michael SXXXXX
[email protected]
[email protected]
215-xxx-xxxx
I received a call the next day and a follow-up email is below:
Mr. SXXXX,
As per our phone conversation, my contact information is below.
Thanks,
Heather XXXXX
NAHQ CSD VOC
Samsung Electronics America, Inc.
85 Challenger Road, 7th Fl
Ridgefield Park, NJ 07660
[email protected]
O: 201-373-XXXX | M: 973-590-XXXX | F: 201-329-XXXX
Office of the President: 1-888-480-XXXX
Below is the email I sent to the CEO of Best Buy regarding my defective Prime tablets:
Dear Mr. Mikan,
I’m sorry to bother you but I feel I have to report issues I’m having with products purchased at Best Buy back in December of 2011.
I purchased 2 Asus Prime tablets for Christmas. One for my son and one for myself. We have had nothing but issues with these tablets. The GPS does not work on either tablet at all. Even after getting the free GPS dongle we cannot get GPS to function. We also have horrible WiFi. I spent hundreds of dollars to upgrade my wireless thinking that would help the WiFi issues. That did not help.
Recently, I started reading where many people are having the exact same issue that I am having. I understand these are design defects in the Asus Prime TF201 and cannot be fixed. Many have returned their ASUS prime tablets in exchange for the newer TF700 table at Best Buy. Even those having their Prime’s longer than I have had success. I tried to do this but was basically laughed at and told “No way”.
I have been a loyal Best Buy customer for years and spend several thousand dollars per year at Best Buy stores and at Best Buy online. I’m just asking to be allowed to return by 2 defective TF201 tablets and get full crdit towards 2 new TF700 tablets. My understanding is the design flaws of the TF201 were fixed in the TF700. Below are my 2 order numbers. Anything you can do to assist a long time customer would be greatly appreciated.
BBY01-4355XXXXXXXX
BBY01-4322XXXXXXXX
Regards,
Michael SXXXXX
215-XXX-XXXX
[email protected]
On this request, I received a call about an hour after I sent it and the woman I spoke to asked which store I wanted to return my items to. Since it was after hours, she promised to call my local store and "see what she could do". The next day at 11:00 AM she returned my call, gave me the managers names and told me to take my 2 Prime's and dock in for full credit towards 2 new TF700's and the TF700 dock. I was in and out of the store in 10 minutes.
You have set a good example.
May be you could also guide us on how to find these "Premier" e-mail ids as i was once trying to reach Head of LG but could not find any Contact info
Thanks again
Bon-Joon Koo is the CEO of LG. From what I can tell, the email address format lg uses is last name first initial at lge.com so I'd try [email protected]. I found this by searching for less than 5 minutes. More diligent searching may find the exact email address. If you get a rejection keep trying different combinations.
silentvisitor said:
You have set a good example.
May be you could also guide us on how to find these "Premier" e-mail ids as i was once trying to reach Head of LG but could not find any Contact info
Thanks again
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
LG was good regarding my 6 year old tv.
Basically, the power board went out, and I was unable to purchase the repair parts.
They gave me a prorated refund of 300 bucks ( would have been more I'd I had receipt) almost enough to buy a new tv.
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