Another CGA question - Note 8 stylus not covered by warranty?

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Lizard1977

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# 254379 9-Aug-2019 16:42

Apologies for yet another CGA question.

The top of my Samsung Galaxy Note 8 stylus came off yesterday. This is now almost completely useless. While it still works, it can't be reinserted into the Note 8 because once it goes back in, it can't be removed.

I put the question to Samsung, and they have said that the warranty for accessories is 6 months (even though the phone itself is 24 months - phone is currently 23 months old), so it's not covered and I have to buy a new one ($50).

As we all know all too well by now, there is often a gap between what a manufacturer considers under "warranty" and what is covered by CGA. I wanted to check with the GZ community whether a faulty stylus substantially affects the phone such that it should be considered as covered by the CGA as it would if say, the screen developed a fault, or some other aspect of the phone was rendered less than useful.

I would argue that the stylus is a key feature of the phone (some would say almost unique). It's not a third party feature, it's quite literally integrated into the phone. While the phone is still quite clearly useable without the stylus, it's functionality is downgraded.

Worth the fight?

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# 2293100 9-Aug-2019 16:46

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for something like a stylus at 23 months old i would be hard press to see the CGA covering it. even though the phone is the same age.

its a high use bit of kit and a lot more fragile than the phone.

IMO not worth pursuing

tripp

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# 2293104 9-Aug-2019 16:57

not worth the fight, you will waste more money in time than just buying another one. Unless you can no longer buy them then it will be worth it :P

Handle9

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# 2293106 9-Aug-2019 17:00

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Jase2985:
for something like a stylus at 23 months old i would be hard press to see the CGA covering it. even though the phone is the same age.

its a high use bit of kit and a lot more fragile than the phone.

IMO not worth pursuing

Given its a key part of the Note experience why would that be? It should be of similar durability to the phone - it's sold as part of the phone, not as a separate accessory.

Push it, Samsung will roll over as they don't have a leg to stand on.

Journeyman

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# 2293108 9-Aug-2019 17:05

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IMO, the stylus is designed to be used with the phone and therefore should last the lifetime of the phone. You ought to at least go to the retailer and put your case to them.

In the meantime, can the sylus be glued back together or is the part that fell off missing?

Lias

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# 2293377 10-Aug-2019 09:15

I'm with Handle9.. Push them on it. Virtually every company like this tries to discourage people from enforcing their CGA rights, because it helps improve their bottom line. I've never quite figured out if they don't appreciate just how much power consumers have under the CGA, or if they do know and just base their business models and pricing on only a small percentage of people actually asserting their rights. I suspect the latter personally.

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Brumfondl

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# 2293379 10-Aug-2019 09:29

Did you buy it direct from Samsung? If not then try approaching the reseller and see what they say.

Lizard1977

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# 2293382 10-Aug-2019 09:48

It was purchased from Spark. I've tended to avoid Spark in the past as they tend to send things away to be tested, and I'd prefer not to have to deal with that hassle. But that shouldn't be needed here - the damage is obvious and there's nothing to test. The only issue here is whether they will dispute whether the damage is deliberate or negligent (spoiler - it wasn't, it literally came off in my hands when I pulled it out).

networkn

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# 2293425 10-Aug-2019 10:05

There is no question it's part of the phone and should be covered. It's the point of difference between this and many much cheaper phones so absolutely it will be covered. It's really about how hard you want to push it to ensure your rights are met and whether it's worth it for you.

raytaylor

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# 2293426 10-Aug-2019 10:19

Its a consumable - the tips wear out hence why they sell replacements.

There are also some dodgy sellers on trademe - im usually pretty good at spotting a fake but i definitley got fooled. The fake styli dont work as well for accuracy as the real thing.

Ray Taylor
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Lizard1977

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# 2293427 10-Aug-2019 10:22

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I just finished a live chat with Samsung. They confirmed their position - it's an accessory, warranty is six months, I have to purchase a replacement. I pushed back, quoted section 8 of the CGA, specifically - that the goods are reasonably fit for any particular purpose for which the supplier represents that they are or will be fit. I take the view that they make such a central feature of the stylus in all their advertising, that this is an integral feature, not an accessory. I would class an accessory as something like the included headphones, or the charger - they tend not be prominently associated in any marketing material (more so than any other model of phone). However, the stylus is a unique feature of the Note class, evidenced by their own marketing.

The chat rep said that even if the stylus is broken, the phone still works. I reminded her that even if the screen is damaged, the phone still works, but we would still accept that as a manufacturing fault justifying replacement.

They are escalating it to warranty claims. I'm prepared to fight this - I've got my gander up! - but I think my read of the CGA is correct. Admittedly, it's not a huge cost, about $50, but I feel like there's a principle here. Plus, if the stylus isn't that expensive to purchase, it's likely a damn sight cheaper for Samsung. I'm hoping they don't believe it's worth the hassle for a few dollars.

Lizard1977

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# 2293428 10-Aug-2019 10:25

raytaylor:

Its a consumable - the tips wear out hence why they sell replacements.

There are also some dodgy sellers on trademe - im usually pretty good at spotting a fake but i definitley got fooled. The fake styli dont work as well for accuracy as the real thing.

It's not the writing tip. It's the push button at the top which lets you pull it out of the phone. That mechanism has failed and even when I push it back in, the hole is now too wide to hold it in place. Without that push button, there's no practical way to pull the stylus out of the phone.

Lizard1977

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# 2293429 10-Aug-2019 10:27

Journeyman:

IMO, the stylus is designed to be used with the phone and therefore should last the lifetime of the phone. You ought to at least go to the retailer and put your case to them.

In the meantime, can the sylus be glued back together or is the part that fell off missing?

I had a close look when it came apart, and I think if I tried to glue the button back in place it would interfere with the push in/out aspect and render it useless. The stem which connects the button to the body of the stylus is only about 1mm wide. It would take an extraordinarily precise application of something like epoxy to hold it in place, and I could see it going bad quite easily.

raytaylor

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# 2293451 10-Aug-2019 11:22

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Sorry i should have been more specific - the whole thing is a consumable.

However if it hasnt lasted 12 months then i would take it back to the retailer.

In NZ consumer law doesnt require you to talk to samsung - you are only required to talk to the retailer. Some supplier/retailer agreements will have the retailer offload their support obligations to the supplier but if you dont get a satisfactory outcome, the retailer is the one ultimately responsible.

So i cant understand why samsung is saying it has a 6 month warranty. If its an accessory/consumable it should still have a reasonable life expectation (more than 6 months)

But as its a consumable its not worth the effort - just buy a new one.

Ray Taylor
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Morgenmuffel

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# 2293524 10-Aug-2019 14:18

Lizard1977:

I've got my gander up!

not to be a pedant but the term is normally dander in that phrase meaning Anger or Vexation

Not gander which is a Male goose or having a look at something

As regards the stylus if the advertising makes it to be a major part of the whole phone experience, then i'd say give it a go with trying to get a replacement, the thing is its a cheap item relatively speaking and they do wear out, if it was a dearer item i'd push it, but to be fair the replacement cost isn't excessive

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mattwnz

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# 2293606 10-Aug-2019 17:03

raytaylor:

So i cant understand why samsung is saying it has a 6 month warranty. If its an accessory/consumable it should still have a reasonable life expectation (more than 6 months)

But as its a consumable its not worth the effort - just buy a new one.

IANAL. I looked at their world warranty, and it does say that inbox 'accessories' have a 6 month warranty. However one could argue that the pen is an essential part and characteristic of this particular device over other device, and when you get it, it is already installed in the device. So prior to reading that, I thought it was covered by their normal 24 month warranty on the device. So not separate as an accessory like the headphones. They probably need to make that more clear when people are buying these. Plus manufacturers warranties can't override the CGA. It is a lot cheaper for the manufacturer to replace it than the consumer, as it would possibly only be a few dollars cost price for the manufacturer, while in NZ, it looks to be about $50 if the consumer was to buy it in NZ. Vs $US15 in the US. We seem to pay a lot more for these types of things here. \I am wondering what would have happened if the pen was stuck on the phone, because you do need the clicky end thing to pull it out of the slot. Would it be covered by warranty if you couldn't get it out of of the phone, because the clicky end has come off? Mine does seem pretty flimsy for what it is, probably would have been better to make it out of metal.

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