T42p EZServ Experience

[andyli]

I have a circular spot on my screen (upper right) that shows up darker when there is a bright background. The pixels are not "dead", they just appear "stuck" on the second-highest LCD brightness setting, but is annoying and can be seen.

I have the IBM ThinkPad Protection and a 4 Year Limited Warranty through EZServ. However, I'd rather not send it in, and would rather get someone on-site.

(1) If I were to send it in, could I remove the HDD and send it in without a HDD? Is this recommended?
(2) Can I upgrade to On-Site Support? I'm in the NYC area, and I've heard that the techs are pretty good and friendly. Does anyone know the pricing?

I tried the link for Warranty and Service Upgrades on my Warranty Page, but it directed me to a Ad-Popup Website. Here's the link it is sending me to:

Code: Select all

http://www-307.ibm.comhttp://www-132.ibm.com/webapp/wcs/stores/servlet/NavCode?storeId=1&catalogId=-840&langId=-1&q=W876

Also -- my battery won't go above 99% charge. I'll post specifics later, but when a battery beging to lose charge, will it still reach 100%, just draw down to 98-95% faster?

[redsb3]

http://forum.thinkpads.com/viewtopic.php?t=1689

This will answer you HDD question. As far as upgrading, yes you can but it will be from the date of purchase. Lot of money simply to avoid sending your Thinkpad in. If it is just a display replacement, turnaround will likely be only 3 or 4 days at most.

[andyli]

I just purchased the unit back in early January 2005 (ship date), so I would not be loosing too much time with purchasing the warranty.

Thanks for the link

Also, based on past experiences, what are the chances that I'll get back a LCD that was reconditioned/used? How about a working monitor with no dead pixels? I'm really nervous about sending it in... although is it true that IBM is still doing the servicing?

[andyli]

Well -- I filled out the Online Service Request on Sunday and they told me I would get a call on Monday morning, but in reality, I got a call back on Sunday night. The rep just had me verify that it was not occuring on an external display.

I have a box on it's way to my house, which should arrive tomorrow. I'll update as I find out more.

EDIT: DHL has managed to screw up and my box didn't make it out of their CT facility before the truck left to the Rockland regional center (where I live). Should be here tomorrow.

[andyli]

I have the box now.

The documentation inside the box refers to Hewlett-Packard PC repair, not IBM, but it is shipping to Soletron.

Should I be worried that it came with HP Laptop documentation?

EDIT: I just spoke to EZServ and they are sending me a new box, hopefully with proper instructions. Should arrive tomorrow (delayed 3 days now...) Hopefully this is not a sign of things to come.

EDIT 2: New box arrived and my laptop is off to Solectron for repair (scheduled to arrive Monday). Hopefully I'll have it back mid-week and will be able to report that my repair went well. Does anyone know if they use "Serviced" LCDs, or if they just replace them with a new LCD?

Update 5/24: They opened the box yesterday and started the repair. I called again today and they told me that the LCD replacement was "billable." Apparently, they seemed to have lost the fact that the repair is covered by ThinkPad Protection. I'm not sure how I messed up that screen so much.

[andyli]

Has anyone had the problem where the repair center wasn't aware that the unit was covered by ThinkPad Protection?

I just called and they didn't know that TPP was on the unit, and from what the rep told me, they don't get any indication by IBM/Lenovo that it is under TPP.

Just a communication problem that doesn't usually occur?

[boberonicus]

Also -- my battery won't go above 99% charge. I'll post specifics later, but when a battery beging to lose charge, will it still reach 100%, just draw down to 98-95% faster?

My understanding is that the BIOS won't allow the battery to charge if:

The laptop is not plugged in and battery capacity is at 95% or greater and you plug it in. So, try letting it drain to under 95% before you charge it. Apparently this avoids exploding battery problems...

[andyli]

Thanks... that was probably it. I also recently tweaked the charging in the settings, so I know what it is doing now (Battery Health).

I was told by this person at the depot that they would call me back today, but I didn't get anything by 7:30 p.m. (when I left my office) and nothing on voicemail after that.

I'm thinking about e-mailing SJP (the CEO I think?), but I think I will wait until I call the depot tomorrow morning to find out what they say this time. It simply escapes me as to why they need three days for the tech to put in an billing order for a LCD (they know what's wrong already) and probably another day for the billing department to verify TPP on the unit.

This is turning into a horror story.