New ThinkPad T410 arrived - Can't Activate Verizon WWAN WTF

[masterbeat]

I just received my new T410 today. First I'd like to say how impressed I am with the new design and build quality. I've slowly been more and more disappointed as each new ThinkPad has come out over the years, and especially since name change to Lenovo, as build quality as in my eyes continued to deteriorate. I've had virtually every Thinkpad since the first 700 series, through 500 and 600's, T40, 61p, a W700, and a T400 (the worse built so far, with keyboard flex, creaking hinges, flimsy HDD cover, etc) - anyway, the T410 seems so much more solid and seems to be back to the quality of previous IBM days. Maybe I'm imagining it, but it just feels better, and I've got it side by side with the T400 it's replacing.

Anyway, the subject of this post is about a day's worth of frustration trying to activate the darn built in Verizon WWAN. Since every ThinkPad I've had for past 5 years has had Verizon WWAN built in, I usually just call Verizon and give them the new MEID to get it switched over to the new laptop (to keep same account) - so today Verizon tells me this MEID doesn't exist. It's the only MEID that comes up in Access Manager. So then I try to activate with the built in utility, it DOES connect to Verizon, takes me to a new service screen, I set up service, then the order fails with a phone # to call, an order #, and a location ID. I call the #, and get Verizon new service, who then tells me they've never heard of the toll free # that I just called, and that the location ID and order # i'm giving him doesn't exist. (!) So I'm sitting here looking at a Verizon logo, order screen, and three #'s (phone #, order #, location ID) that they basically accuse me of imagining. So then they tell me to call Lenovo activation. I call the # on Access Manager Activation (Lenovo) and they can't activate it either. So they tell me to call the usual IBM SERV tech support line. I'm noow on the phone with a lady who has never heard of an MEID and just wants me to go to Access Connections. She's not geting the concept.

Apparenly this machine may have been made and shipped and no one bothered to send the MEID to Verizon, and no one knows what to do from here.

Anyone else heard of this or have any ideas?

[archer6]

Yes, I have a good friend who took delivery of his T410 yesterday and is experiencing the same issue. Ironically he's an engineer who works for Verizon. I haven't spoken to him today, so I don't have the latest. Yesterday he said that he felt certain it's a Verizon issue, something about the numbers not being registered properly. So I would encourage you to be as patient as you can, they are indeed aware and working on it as we speak. He didn't seem to think it would take long to sort out.
.
Cheers...

[silent200]

Hi masterbeat, what about the screen? Did you see an improvement on screen quality compare to the T400?

[masterbeat]

The plot thickens. After 45 minutes on hold with a southern belle in Atlanta at IBM/Lenovo support, who sure was sweet, but sure dumb as a post (after the first 45 minutes on hold she came back to tell me she had a new MEID for me: 3212. Yep. She was going to just give me a new MEID of 4 characters. I nicely asked her if she knew what an MEID was and that she couldn't just give me a new one.) Then back on hold for 30 more minutes, then she comes back and says after talking to "sales, her team lead, her manager, level two support AND Verizon, they suggest I return the ThinkPad since she can't give me a new MEID and mine is defective." I gave up shaking my head. Because my MEID isn't in Verizon's system, this gal thinks it's defective.

I'll wait a few days and hope it works itself out and maybe someone at Lenovo mfgr. will fax over the list of new MEID's and someone at Verizon will enter them "into their system." LMAO.

As for the screen, i'm sorry to report it actually is just a bit dimmer than my T400 with both on the highest brightness setting. I have the LED backlit in both. I'm not sure if this is the screen or if it has anything to do with the T410 being nVidia and the T400 being ATI cards.

[BrokenArrow]

As for the screen, i'm sorry to report it actually is just a bit dimmer than my T400 with both on the highest brightness setting. I have the LED backlit in both. I'm not sure if this is the screen or if it has anything to do with the T410 being nVidia and the T400 being ATI cards.

continuing the chat with the tech rep. how can you expect the screen to be dimmer because of nVidia??
they use much less shaders than ATI

hope everything works out fine with your cell modem.

cheers

[prince_kassad14]

congratulations for the your T410
how about the keyboard ,the battery life and nvidia card ?
any difference between ATI and Nvidia in performance ?

[masterbeat]

Archer 6 - tried to PM you but not sure it's working - wondering if your friend with Verizon has had any luck getting the WWAN on his T410 activated yet? I'm still getting the runaround.

As for everyone elses questions, I'm happy to report I love the T410 - it seems to be to be light years ahead of the T400 in build quality - seems so much more solid. I like having one solid piece across the front (over keyboard and trackpad) instead of that break they used to make so you could lift up the palmrest. Everything else just seems higher quality - the buttons, covers, plastic, etc than the T400.

The screen and everything else seems to be about the same, except I don't seem to be able to get the screen to go quite as bright as the T400 did - just a minor amount.

[jmshearer]

I ran into the same Verizon activation problem. Verizon reports the MEID is not active on their network and it is a Lenovo issue. After several calls to the Lenovo activation line, an operator confirmed that the MEID issue is a "known issue" and tech support could fix it. I was eventually transfered to Steven Nalley in tech support who told me he was sorry the operator "had lied" but that they could not fix it. Furthermore I had to explain to him what an MEID was and why it is important. That being said, he agreed to send me a replacement card and pointed me to instructions for replacing the card (Google MIGR-71494). Obviously I intend to call Verizon to confirm the MEID is valid prior to installing the card. For what it's worth, Verizon's tech support folks were very apologetic throughout this process and tried numerous fixes to get it working from their end but ultimately directed me back to Lenovo. From my vantage point this is clearly a bookkeeping error on Lenovo's part. I'll try to post an update once I receive the replacement card.

[jmshearer]

Just received word from Lenovo that the replacement Gobi card is on backorder.

[masterbeat]

Unbelievable. Well, here is my progress today - (a) I ordered a new T410 just to be on the safe side. I have an RMA from Lenovo to return this one. Kind of ridiculous that they want to return an entire computer when it's obvious (come on, this is obvious, right?) that someone just needs to get the paperwork turned in? (b) I asked the basic customer service at Verizon to escalate me to higher level tech support, where I got someone who said "we will get this MEID entered into our system and call you back within 20 minutes when it's ready to activate." To which I said (after the runaround of the previous two calls and two days, "are you telling me that within 30 minutes this will be resolved and I'll be able to activate this?" and he said "yes, I'll call you when ready."

3 hours later still no call.

Sigh.

I'll try again tomorrow, but it was promising to have someone act like it could be resolved quickly.

[jmshearer]

I had a similar response from Verizon (they promised to call me back on Tuesday around 3pm, it is now Wednesday night). I agree with your assessment that this is simply a paperwork issue, probably on Lenovo's end. If you get a supervisor in tech support and get "assertive" they will ship you a new Gobi card instead of requiring you to ship the laptop back. That being said, it is probably a safe bet the new card will have the same MEID issue. Since my replacement card is on backorder, I dug up about 20 phone numbers for Lenovo and plan to start calling on Thursday. I love the computer but wish I had gone with a Dell--at least they know how to activate their hardware with Verizon!

[jmshearer]

Here's the latest, Elaine from Verizon called me back to tell me they now have control of the MEID (i.e. it is "on their network") but they could assign it the correct rate plan so they're still working on it. She expected a resolution in 72 hours. She said the problem is definitely Lenovo's failure to provide the numbers to Verizon and the Verizon tech that "fixed" the problem had to contact Lenovo to get them to fix it from their end. Sadly, she could not provide a shortcut to do this and said the problem really should be handled by Lenovo, not Verizon. I'll send an update when the rate plan is correct.