T61p On Site Tech visit - not a great expereince- solved

[danny_isr]

Ok , my monitor went bad. had that vertical line going on.
I called Lenovo they said they will send on site tech , so far so good.

Tech was suppose to call me on Friday to schedule the visit , nothing ...

i called Monday to Lenovo again , they said they will call the tech and tell them to call me.
Lenovo then called me back few times to ask me if the tech called , i said no , no one called.
Then Lenovo said ok we will call the Tech supervisor . after few minutes i got a call from the Tech saying "Hey i talked to you this morning and told you that the parts are not here yet.."
i told her ,look maybe you talked to someone else but i never got a call today from anyone regarding this.

then Lenovo called again, and i told them this, they said ok tomorrow first thing they will be in your place....


Tech showed up today at about 11:00. she brought anew monitor same as i had (TMD- Tomshiba with a converted as well). she took apart the laptop and installed the new one.

i checked it while she was still here , one of the mouse pad (the one near the space button) was stuck. so she fixed that.
then i notice the monitor bezel on the right side is loose.
i showed her, and then she said ha yeah i saw that , i wasnt sure...

she totally forgot some metal part that holds it. ok disassamble again.

i went for a phone call i came back , she was finishing , but then she showed me that she cannot fix it completely. because there was original adhesive that is not there anymore.
so she said you got two options , or to order a new part or to put some glue there.
i said , i want new. it's 2 weeks old laptop. i'm not gluing anything.

then she made few calls and order the part.
while she was doing this , the fan kicked on. i notice a buzzing sound that was never there before.
i told her about it. she said , well call Lenovo , i came for the LCD this is different problem

well after she left i played with the LCD angle and that buzzing sound showing up ONLY on specific angle of the monitor.

So i called Lenovo , i said i want to send it in, fix everything ...this is just starting to be too much .

not to mention the clicking noise that i have in the HD ....(i just got a new HD from them today)

Note : the Tech is not a Lenovo employee , it's sub contracting company
and another annoying thing , the hard drive i got and the T43 that came back a week ago from service as well went to a wrong address.
they attempt to send it to my old street address with the new City .
So i called yesterday and said, hey you guys have the wrong address , i want to update it. they guy told me the address he got on file and it's the correct address .

today when he told me which address he is going to send me the box for this T61p service . AGAIN the wrong address.
i think i called them about 5 times about fixing the address and they still have the wrong one.

[erik]

Note : the Tech is not a Lenovo employee , it's sub contracting company

it's always going to be a subcontractor unless you live near an IBM/lenovo facility or own a thinkpad reserve edition.

sorry about your bad experience.   judging by your account above, it's definitely the subcontractor's incompetence and not lenovo's.   unless this is your only thinkpad and you absolutely cannot go without it for a few days, i'd recommend using depot service.

[lophiomys]

.... judging by your account above, it's definitely the subcontractor's incompetence and not lenovo's. ...

I wouldn't want to second that.
It is a conscious decision by Lenovo's management to outsource this
tasks which can be crutial for customer satisfaction.

As similar cases are reported elsewere I do assume that the outsourcing
is done with minimum salaries and with minimum training and that QA in
Service&Support is missing out big time.

I have just seen exactly the same thing happen with the subcontractor
service man, who should repair our electronic fence door recently.

If Lenovo is failing via their subcontractors, especially when you need them most,
then they are simply destroying their own reputation.

[danny_isr]

hmm i have now a dead pixel in the center of the monitor.
i called Lenovo , well first he was reading my address ..and guess what ...again the old one. what a joke.

So now i'm still on hold on the phone with them will see. (just got off the phone , he said to write down a note with all the problems.)

if they wont fix ALL the problems , i will fight till they will take it back.
and keep my T43.

i had one problem before the Tech came (except the HD clicks) and now i have 3 new : Dead pixel, Bezel , and Fan buzz ...FUN !

[erik]

one pixel might not be enough.   but, since it's in the center you might be able to get it replaced again.   let us know how that turns out.

[Pascal_TTH]

Ok , my monitor went bad. had that vertical line going on.

...

i think i called them about 5 times about fixing the address and they still have the wrong one.

[censored] ! When I read this, I prefer do it by my self... How such a person is called a *Tech guy* ? Any one taking time to read the HMM can dismantle a Thinkpad and rebuild it. It can take a day first time, but it will be done right...

The small sticker can be replaced back without glue (if you drop them on any plastic part/film). How is it possible not to know it ? How is it possible to forget parts ?
F.E.A.R. the third parity lenovo tech !

I'am gonna open a lenovo sav point ! When I dismantle a laptop, it's impossible to see it. I work with surgeon thin gloves not to leave fingerprind on parts and I never ever forget any screw a scratch a part. For fun, I have completly disassemble all the Thinkpad I have owned (more then 10).

[danny_isr]

i called lenovo on monday to ask the status.
they said the LCD is billable ..i asked why. they said one pixel only. we are not replacing the LCD for one.
i said, but it happened after on site tech visit. i didn't have any dead pixels before. so they asked for the tech work order number.
and then she told me they WILL replace the LCD.

i got it today, and everything is fine new LCD and bezel .
i think a new fan. seems like new again , no issues what so ever.

i'm happy again !

[erik]

awesome!   glad to hear that you got everything worked out and back to normal.

[ryengineer]

Perhaps you should go to your 1st post and edit the title to let everybody know about your positive experience with lenovo.

[danny_isr]

Perhaps you should go to your 1st post and edit the title to let everybody know about your positive experience with lenovo.

i update the status , but as for the tech visit itself , it was horrible.
and that is what the topic is about.

[DAH]

i called lenovo on monday to ask the status.
they said the LCD is billable ..i asked why. they said one pixel only. we are not replacing the LCD for one.
i said, but it happened after on site tech visit. i didn't have any dead pixels before. so they asked for the tech work order number.
and then she told me they WILL replace the LCD.

i got it today, and everything is fine new LCD and bezel .
i think a new fan. seems like new again , no issues what so ever.

i'm happy again !

So just so I'm clear you paid a premium for in home service, the 'tech' came to your home at least twice and each time left your T6x in worse shape than when he found it, and the final 'solution' was to return it to Lenovo? In effect you didn't get what you paid for. And Lenovo couldn't or should we say wouldn't provide it??? In home service.... Total time 8 days.

[danny_isr]

no , the tech came only once and under warranty. i didn't pay for anything.

sorry for the confusion .

[steveg47]

no , the tech came only once and under warranty. i didn't pay for anything.

sorry for the confusion .

You most certainly paid. You paid for onsite service in your service contract and didn't get it.

[danny_isr]

it sounded from them like its part of the warranty i got ....??

[erik]

You most certainly paid. You paid for onsite service in your service contract and didn't get it.

please understand that the onsite service contract provides lenovo the right to return the unit for depot service if they see fit.   therefore, danny got exactly what he paid for per his service agreement.

quoted verbatim from the onsite contract:
"Lenovo reserves the right to determine if the location is suitable for performing on-site repair service. Requests for onsite service for machines not located in a selected on-site location at the time of service will receive express repair service. At Lenovo's discretion, if a machine cannot be fixed on-site, Lenovo may choose to perform service at an IBM service center."

[steveg47]

You most certainly paid. You paid for onsite service in your service contract and didn't get it.

please understand that the onsite service contract provides lenovo the right to return the unit for depot service if they see fit.   therefore, danny got exactly what he paid for per his service agreement.

quoted verbatim from the onsite contract:
"Lenovo reserves the right to determine if the location is suitable for performing on-site repair service. Requests for onsite service for machines not located in a selected on-site location at the time of service will receive express repair service. At Lenovo's discretion, if a machine cannot be fixed on-site, Lenovo may choose to perform service at an IBM service center."

I guess your definition of the word "service" is different then mine.

[DAH]

no , the tech came only once and under warranty. i didn't pay for anything.

sorry for the confusion .

You most certainly paid. You paid for onsite service in your service contract and didn't get it.

That is also my perspective. In fact not only did he pay for onsite service, he paid a premium for next business day onsite service, and he accepted offsite, ten days later service! That simply lessens the value of onsite service to everyone else, and confuses the meaning of what next day business service really is.

Personally IBM doesn't pay me directly or indirectly, and I fail to see anything positive in this experience, I fail to see how any of the issues in the original post (about service) where solved! Yes I'm glad he has a working computer now. I'd like to think that IBM/Lenovo would be proud enough of their products to exchange a brand new computer that fails this soon, indeed I'd like to think that they are burned in for a while. But to expect a new owner who has paid for onsite service to ship a new unit back to them and wait, and fight to get his display fix correctly..... is just not acceptable in my opinion.

[erik]

I guess your definition of the word "service" is different then mine.

this has nothing to do with your or my definition of service.   i'm simply pointing out what the contract states since many lenovo customers are unaware of their service terms.   please argue with lenovo on contract details, not me.

[steveg47]

I guess your definition of the word "service" is different then mine.

this has nothing to do with your or my definition of service.   i'm simply pointing out what the contract states since many lenovo customers are unaware of their service terms.   please argue with lenovo on contract details, not me.

I don't want to make an issue of this but when you included "therefore, danny got exactly what he paid for per his service agreement." you were stating your personal interpretation of the service agreement. Since the essence of this service agreement is "Service" it should be reasonably obvious (at least in my opinion ) that danny did not receive the "Service" for which he paid. I intuited from your response that you were defending Lenovo which I felt was unjustified considering the poor onsite service that danny received.

[erik]

I don't want to make an issue of this but when you included "therefore, danny got exactly what he paid for per his service agreement." you were stating your personal interpretation of the service agreement. Since the essence of this service agreement is "Service" it should be reasonably obvious (at least in my opinion ) that danny did not receive the "Service" for which he paid. I intuited from your response that you were defending Lenovo which I felt was unjustified considering the poor onsite service that danny received.

my statement was intended to be made matter-of-fact and without emotion.   perhaps my wording could have been better and i apologize if it was taken the wrong way.

if danny wasn't satisfied with his onsite service due to an unqualified third-party technician then he should complain to lenovo so that things improve in the future.   arguing online about the morality of a black-and-white contract does nothing to help the situation since the root of the problem was an unqualified third-party technician.   lenovo's depot service clearly left danny satisfied.

[steveg47]

Just one more comment and then I will say no more.
For the record I was never arguing just pointing out the obvious.
and
There really is no such thing as a "Black-and-White" contract as any contract lawyer will be pleased to point out.

[erik]

There really is no such thing as a "Black-and-White" contract as any contract lawyer will be pleased to point out.

a contract lawyer would also be pleased to point out that lenovo's contract does not guarantee emotional satisfaction (a gray area), only physical service to be performed by an on-site technician and/or depot service if required (the black and white).   clearly the third-party technician dropped the ball but lenovo upheld their end of the contract by resorting to depot service -- and that's exactly what the contract allows whether you agree with it or not.

i'm only attempting to point out what the contract says and where the confusion may be.   not many customers understand that onsite service can also include depot service.   unless you live in a major metropolitan area with an IBM service center nearby (and not a sub-contracted service provider), i always recommend against onsite service.   if you're over 100KM from the closest authorized service center then you'll have to use depot no matter what service plan was purchased.   regardless of a sub-contractor's training, there's always the chance of getting a rookie who doesn't have the assembly prowess required to replace FRUs to factory perfection.   cheap third-party labor is unfortunately the norm today and no amount of contract arguments will ever fix this fact.

[DAH]

a contract lawyer would also be pleased to point out that lenovo's contract does not guarantee emotional satisfaction (a gray area), only physical service to be performed by an on-site technician and/or depot service if required (the black and white).

Now just hold on here. IBM established that depot service was not required, when they shipped the original replacement display they established that this did not require depot repair. IBM supplied the technician, Danny did not choose the technician, that the technician was not adequately train is not the customers responsibility! Lenovo fail in may ways, and to pretend otherwise does not help Lenovo in the long run. To focus the blame on the technician who did not contract with Danny to provide "Nation wide onsite" service doesn't help.

You appear to be suggesting that Lenovo is creating an illusion that it has no intention of providing. Nationwide onsite service IMHO does not equate to service within a 100 KM of selected locations, nor does "depot service if required" equate to at Lenovo convenience. Just my two cents not that any one cares...

[gotconsultants]

The funny thing is that parts of Lenovo's service contracts are illegal in the very consumer friendly State of California...

I ended up doing A LOT of research into this because of problems I had with my Thinkpad (and the problems the untrained technicans caused)...

The problem Lenovo has is that some of their people care about customer service and others do not. I had a great experience of response time from William, but his underlings really didn't seem to care about the customers...

Unfortunately, I am still in the process of trying to resolve my issues with my notebook. I ended up having to buy a second laptop because I could not depend on the technicans to show up when scheduled, repair the machine, or even be trained. The 3rd party company here in California is QualixServ and they don't pay their techs squat.

[SkiBunny]

Now just hold on here. IBM established that depot service was not required, when they shipped the original replacement display they established that this did not require depot repair. IBM supplied the technician.

IBM has nothing to do with it.
This is a Lenovo laptop and a Lenovo issue.
He paid for and got Lenovo quality, not IBM quality.
As different as apples and oranges.

[gotconsultants]

Now just hold on here. IBM established that depot service was not required, when they shipped the original replacement display they established that this did not require depot repair. IBM supplied the technician.

IBM has nothing to do with it.
This is a Lenovo laptop and a Lenovo issue.
He paid for and got Lenovo quality, not IBM quality.
As different as apples and oranges.

Yea technically... Funny enough though...

IBM holds the service contract for Lenovo...
IBM outsourced the onsite service contract to QualixServ...

Even if you bought a "IBM Thinkpad" from IBM, you still get the same QualixServ technicians... The same techs that service Lenovo/IBM Thinkpads, also service Dell notebooks...

The thing that really drives me nuts is that Lenovo is well aware of issues users have with the onsite technicans... Heck they even troll these forums...

[carbon_unit]

Calm down guys. Take a deep breath. Here is a suggestion:
If you guys don't like the wording in the Lenovo service agreement I suggest that you:
(a) listen to someone who is trying to explain how to "work" their term to your advantage or
(b) contact someone at Lenovo and explain your dislike to them.
Arguing in a "User Forum" which carries no absolutely weight with Lenovo will not produce any good results. You are spinning your wheels by debating the points of the agreement here.
Spend you energy getting results.

[erik]

You appear to be suggesting that Lenovo is creating an illusion that it has no intention of providing. Nationwide onsite service IMHO does not equate to service within a 100 KM of selected locations, nor does "depot service if required" equate to at Lenovo convenience. Just my two cents not that any one cares...

illusion of what?   lenovo's intentions are clearly spelled out in their onsite contract.   the third-party technician dropped the ball and lenovo decided (at their discretion) that depot repair was the solution.   if danny didn't want the thinkpad sent in then he could have refused but then would have risked another incompetent technician.   it's my opinion from experience that depot repair was the better way to go.

Now just hold on here. IBM established that depot service was not required, when they shipped the original replacement display they established that this did not require depot repair. IBM supplied the technician, Danny did not choose the technician, that the technician was not adequately train is not the customers responsibility! Lenovo fail in may ways, and to pretend otherwise does not help Lenovo in the long run. To focus the blame on the technician who did not contract with Danny to provide "Nation wide onsite" service doesn't help.

lenovo established this over the phone before an incompetent third-party technician screwed up.   you need to realize that these third-party technicians are not IBM and lenovo is not IBM.   skibunny hit the nail on the head...

IBM has nothing to do with it.
This is a Lenovo laptop and a Lenovo issue.
He paid for and got Lenovo quality, not IBM quality.
As different as apples and oranges.

and this is exactly correct.   many of us here miss the "big blue" way of doing things.   unfortunately lenovo is not IBM, nor will ever be IBM, and these third-party technicians are not IBM, nor will ever be IBM.   so, lenovo's contract is what it is and onsite repair no longer means that a nice technician from big blue will personally come out and fix your thinkpad.   you'll get a sub-contracted third-party technician who may or may not be competent and if they screw up then lenovo's contract says they can resolve it with depot repair, like it or not.

[wackydan]

..and IBM was outsourcing their onsite service before the sale of the PC division....

Lenovo may not be enforcing the SLA's with IBM in regard to the quality of service, but don't point to the sale as the true start of these issues.

[gotconsultants]

You appear to be suggesting that Lenovo is creating an illusion that it has no intention of providing. Nationwide onsite service IMHO does not equate to service within a 100 KM of selected locations, nor does "depot service if required" equate to at Lenovo convenience. Just my two cents not that any one cares...

illusion of what?   lenovo's intentions are clearly spelled out in their onsite contract.   the third-party technician dropped the ball and lenovo decided (at their discretion) that depot repair was the solution.   if danny didn't want the thinkpad sent in then he could have refused but then would have risked another incompetent technician.   it's my opinion from experience that depot repair was the better way to go.

First off, I can verify here in California, Lenovo IS responsible for any and all actions of their contractors regardless of what they blab on for 10 pages in their "SLA". I have extremely reliable information that there are parts of the SLA that they (Lenovo) can not legally enforce, and consumers have additional rights that are not outlined.

Secondly, there isn't anything in these notebooks that a "trained" technician shouldn't be able to repair in a reasonable amount of time. Further on that, IF Lenovo can't provide service to an onsite contract, they should send out a replacement laptop. In my case, I could not believe that they ALLOWED a technician to spend more than 5-hours repairing a notebook onsite.

If a company offers NBD service, they need to provide NBD service. If a call is received by 5pm local time (normal end of business day) they need to provide service the next day. Not only are the onsite technicians undertrained, CSR's can and should be able to tell you if a part is on backorder. I have personally had technicians not show up, and NOT CALL because they didn't receive a "screw kit". Dell has a VERY DETAILED policy in place to address this.

California has a wonderful law on the books stating that when you place a service call, any company employing more than 25 people MUST provided you with a 4-hour window of service. IF the company does not show up within those 4-hours, and you do not receive a phone call to reschedule for a "reasonable" reason, the company providing the service is LIABLE. Lenovo has their technicians making appointments, not the CSRs. Their technicians have a bad habit of trading appointments and therefore dropping the ball.

Don't get me wrong I love my ThinkPad, but they really do have some serious service issues. Although some cases may be overblown by the consumer, they do have some serious problems with their contractors.