My DSE G7503 Freeview box has died after two years. The picture stopped showing last week, but still had sound. Now that's died too. I have taken it back to the shop I bought it from, and they say they can't do anything. Anyone had similar issue? Have looked up Consumer Guarantees Act, and it appears that the device should be covered under that warranty. The device should work for its intended purpose for the expected life of the device - which I would have thought, was longer than two years. Thanks.
Go back to the store with your reciept and tell them that you want this fixed under the CGA as you expect the device to last longer than 2 years. Also point them to the above thread/posts and tell them that this is a common issue with that particular model.
dubdotdash: My DSE G7503 Freeview box has died after two years. The picture stopped showing last week, but still had sound. Now that's died too. I have taken it back to the shop I bought it from, and they say they can't do anything. Anyone had similar issue? Have looked up Consumer Guarantees Act, and it appears that the device should be covered under that warranty. The device should work for its intended purpose for the expected life of the device - which I would have thought, was longer than two years. Thanks.
Take it back again and DEMAND replacement under the CGA! I did with mine as have others on Geekzone. It worked and I found the DSE staff quite easy to deal with. 5 years seems to be a good life expectancy but they seem to commonly fail at 2 yrs.
A lot of us made the comment way back when they first came out that these boxes ran extremely hot. Who knows, maybe capacitors drying out might have something to do with that?...
Thank you for all the advice. I took it back to Dick Smith Queen St on Dec 28, they told me they would send it off for assessment and that would take up to 14 working days, plus more for the xmas break. So I wasn't expecting a response til late January.
However, I got a phone call from them today, and they had decided to replace it, after assessing it. They gave me a new Freeview box, a Sommet SHDNZ3. So, hopefully it goes. Tho I have just read a few other Geekzone users who had problems with them. It seems like a lot of the Freeview boxes are of a poor quality build.
Dick Smith used to have a competent service department in Albany which used to fix things like this, but that building is now vacant.
I remember literally blowing up a customers broken fax machine (bang and smoke) in store one day when I worked there, tripped the stores power :D , and the DSE service department ended up fixing it.
Sad times when a electronics store can't fix electronic equipment anymore.
GoodSync. Easily back up and sync your files with GoodSync. Simple and secure file backup and synchronisation software will ensure that your files are never lost (affiliate link).
dubdotdash: Thank you for all the advice. I took it back to Dick Smith Queen St on Dec 28, they told me they would send it off for assessment and that would take up to 14 working days, plus more for the xmas break. So I?wasn't?expecting?a response til late January.
However, I got a phone call from them today, and they had decided to replace it, after assessing it. They gave ?me a new Freeview box, a Sommet SHDNZ3. So, hopefully it goes. Tho I have just read a few other Geekzone users who had problems with them. It seems like a lot of the Freeview boxes are of a poor quality build.?
I am pretty sure that you could ask for a refund if the fault is 'substantial' under the CGA (eg they can't repair it), and that is your choice. Just tell them you are not happy with that brand, and was not what you originally purchased. WOrth a try anyway. I think they should have replaced it on the spot anyway, as I am sure they know they have problems based on the comments here. 2 years is nothing
A couple of things... Expecting a product to replaced on the spot is a little off the mark, as legally, we're not guaranteed working appliances 24/7 under NZ's law... and retailers have the right to remedy the problem, which may include the option of sending it away for repair.
And re: STB's. If I paid $500 for one 2+ years ago, I'd want 4-5 years out of it. But I'm wondering, with the proliferation of $85-$100 boxes on the market right now, what do people expect? They all just strike me as cheaply made crap, that frankly, I'd be surprised last past their first power on/off cycle... Sure I'm guessing they're meeting the market (people who want to get their 14" Sony in the bedroom working with digital TV, but don't want to spend much at all to do so)... but surely, it has to be a bit of a no-win solution for consumers and retailers alike?
Dunnersfella: A couple of things... Expecting a product to replaced on the spot is a little off the mark, as legally, we're not guaranteed working appliances 24/7 under NZ's law... and retailers have the right to remedy the problem, which may include the option of sending it away for repair.
I agree with that, but in this particular case they were probably aware that there was a problem with these particular boxes, as the problems were widely discussed. Also how often are these things actually repaired. Often the boards are difficult and expensive to repair, and instead the boards are swapped out. If the boards are not available then it becomes uneconomical to repair. But in this case I would have expected them to have said that there was a known problem with those boxes and they would just switch it. Perhaps the reason that didn't happen was because the staff dealing with it weren't aware of the problems with those units. I am a bit surprised they didn't issue a recall if the problem was widespread, and there was a high failure rate.
I have some friends who purchased a wine fridge that dies after 2 and a half years. They had to get the comapny to pick it up for assessment, and they had to pay $90 for pickup and inspection. The company then told them that it wasn't possible to repair due to a component on the board failing and they no longer made parts for it, so it wasn't possible to repair. They were told that it was outside warranty so bad luck, so they left it there. Until they talked to me, they weren't aware of the CGA and that a fridge should last many years, (consumer says 15 years for fridges) and manufacturers were required to keep parts for a reasonable period of time. But because it had happened a month prior they weren't going to pursue it further. A pity.
Are you subscribed to our RSS feed? You can download the latest headlines and summaries from our stories directly
to your computer or smartphone by using a feed reader.
Trusted
ID Verified
