Your Opinion please on repair center

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scottjames84

94 posts

Master Geek

#108236 27-Aug-2012 15:31

Hi fellow Geeks.

My HTC Sensation which I brought September last year went in for repair 2 weeks ago because of a power button issue; the issue being that the button appears to be stuck on the on position; couldn't turn the screen on or off using the power button and once and awhile a screenshot would be taken when I press the home button.
The only way I could get the screen to turn on would be if I put it on the charger.

I had another issue in December last year with the phone rebooting when i would receive a phone call or a txt message and some times an email so I did some research and it appears that quite a few people had the same problem and it could be solved by putting a little bit of cardboard at the top of the battery giving the battery a better contact with the battery terminals on the phone; problem solved :-)

I only took the phone in because of the power button issue; I wasn't going to void the warranty by messing with the insides of the phone to fix it myself so I had no choice.
I also let them know about a bit of dust inside the LCD which has been bothering me since the first week I had the phone and let them know about the battery issue.

I have had custom roms on this phone since day 4 with this phone and have had no issues with bricking my phone (or partial brick) I installed a ICS rom on my phone when it was released and have kept current with the updates and as far as I know there was no issues with the roms.

After the 5 business day mark I rang telecom to find out progress on my phone and was told that it was fixed and that they had shipped it that morning and that they had fixed the battery terminals and power button, cleaned the dust off the LCD and found that my software was corrupt so they 'updated it'

Rang them after lunch today to see if my phone had arrived in store to pick up and was told that the phone had NOT in fact shipped on friday morning like what was told to me and that the power button and battery issues were back and they are blaming 'Unauthorized software' for causing all my issues.

I did a factory restore before giving them my phone to repair so it wiped all my apps so the 'unauthorized software' they are referring to must be the ROM but I am not sure how a corrupt piece of software can cause the power button issue because even when I pull the battery out of the phone and put it back in; before the problem started I had to hold the power button to turn on the phone but now the phone automatically turns on.

In my opinion both issues are hardware related; i fixed the battery issue with a piece of cardboard and have had no issues since doing that and have installed quite a few roms on the phone since then.
The power button is also hardware related in my opinion because of the fact when I pull the battery and replace it the phone automatically starts.

Do you think the repair center is just trying to blame my rom because they cant figure out the problem?

I just hope they don't try to charge me for fixing my phone; the guy at the telecom shop said they would ring me if it was going to cost so i could authorize it but no one called me.

Telecom have only just released the ICS update for the Sensation; why would I wait that long? Jelly bean came out before telecom finally released their official copy of ICS.

oxnsox

1923 posts

Uber Geek
+1 received by user: 138

#677696 27-Aug-2012 16:27

It's unclear to me whether you are ringing the store or the repair centre.

But it sounds like you should be having a polite conversation with the repair centre, talking about the hardware issues (button, battery, dust). Just avoid getting into a discussion about software/firmware. If you get nowhere with the tech try working up the chain to 'discuss the hardware problem'.

It's usually pretty clear what is a hardware issue and what isn't.

uglyb0b

335 posts

Ultimate Geek
+1 received by user: 19

#677699 27-Aug-2012 16:31

Regardless of whether the software has caused the issues or not, manually flashing roms voids the warranty. Whether this is ethically just or not is another subject entirely, but all guides to flashing roms will usually specify that the process voids your warranty.

The problem with the repair centre isn't that they don't know how to fix the problem, or what it is, but simply that the repair cannot be done under warranty as the warranty is void from flashing a different rom.

You may be able to discuss this with the manufacturer or repair centre, but they will generally stand by this as a rule, regardless of whether the fault is actually caused by the software or not.

scottjames84

94 posts

Master Geek

#677717 27-Aug-2012 17:04

I have been in contact with the telecom store not the repair center; the guy at the telecom store has been reading the repair notes to me.

The fact that on friday the issue was fixed after they apparently changed the power button and fixed the battery terminals only to have it fail today even though they updated the software is strange to me.

They have already replaced the software according to the notes which was done last week so that would have over written the ROM that I installed so any corruption is their doing and not mine.

As far as I am concerned the problem is hardware and not software related; they 'fixed' the hardware and reflashed the official telecom ROM. If 3 days later there is still a problem then it obviously is stemming from issues they haven't figured out with the hardware because they flashed over the 'corrupt & unauthorized Rom' so the repair center coming back and saying it still has software issues is odd to me because I didn't have these software issues before I gave it to them.

nzgeek

619 posts

Ultimate Geek
+1 received by user: 52

#677853 27-Aug-2012 22:05

Running custom firmware is always a pain when it comes to repairs. Pretty much all of the major cellphone manufacturers state that your warranty is void if you install custom firmware. Even if the reason is a hardware failure that could not possibly have been caused by the firmware, they'll use it as a reason not to cover the repairs.

The first thing that you need to do work out exactly what has and what has not been done to your phone. I wouldn't be surprised if the "it's fixed and on its way back" status was completely bogus.

Getting the repairer to honour the warranty should be possible. Here's a quick set of points to that will help make your case:

Any custom firmware is stored in the phone's flash memory and executed on the phone's CPU.
Neither the CPU nor the flash memory receive any power while the phone is turned off, otherwise it will drain the battery. Without power, no code can run.
Pressing the power button completes a circuit, which powers on the rest of the phone and starts the boot process.
If the phone is turning on as soon as the battery is inserted, it implies that the circuit has been completed.
The firmware code is not running at this point and cannot affect this circuit. The problem therefore has to be something else.
Given that the power switch is the sole mechanical component in the circuit, and that the owner has complained of that switch not working as expected, this is almost certainly the cause of the problem.
According to section 7(4) of the Consumer Guarantees Act (1993), the use of custom firmware cannot nullify the warranty if that firmware was not a factor in causing the problem. The firmware can't affect a mechanical switch, so the warranty must be applied.

Make sure you write down that bit about the Consumer Guarantees Act, as there's a damn good chance you'll need to quote it before they'll back down and do the repair. It should do the trick for you though.

Here's the full text of section 7(4) of the act, for reference:

7 - Meaning of Acceptable Quality

(4)Goods will not fail to comply with the guarantee of acceptable quality if—

(a)the goods have been used in a manner, or to an extent which is inconsistent with the manner or extent of use that a reasonable consumer would expect to obtain from the goods; and

(b)the goods would have complied with the guarantee of acceptable quality if they had not been used in that manner or to that extent.

In this case, installing the custom firmware is the 'inconsistent' bit for (a), and should not have any bearing on the operation or usage of that switch, satisfying (b).

scottjames84

94 posts

Master Geek

#677863 27-Aug-2012 22:15

Thanks NZgeek; I didnt actually know that about the NZ guarantees act so now I have that under my belt.

They have had my phone for almost 2 weeks; the loan phone they gave me is a POS; cant wait to get my sensation back.

scottjames84

94 posts

Master Geek

#678442 28-Aug-2012 21:50

The telecom store called me up today to inform me that my phone is fixed but it will cost me $145 because I 'voided' the warranty by putting unauthorized rom on the phone; I even told the guy as part of the consumer guarantees act they cant charge me because it had nothing to do with the software.

So now I am stuck with a $145 bill before they will give me back my phone; I just hope they didnt reflash my phone with the official telecom rom and relock my bootloader and not actually fix the actual problem...

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nzgeek

619 posts

Ultimate Geek
+1 received by user: 52

#678484 28-Aug-2012 22:57

In which case I'd tell them that if they don't cover the repair under the CGA, you'll take them to small claims court and they'll have to pay out anyway. It's only a $30 filing fee, and if they lose they have to repay that too.

With any luck they'll realise that there's no way they can win this one, and just give it to you.

scottjames84

94 posts

Master Geek

#678486 28-Aug-2012 22:59

nzgeek: In which case I'd tell them that if they don't cover the repair under the CGA, you'll take them to small claims court and they'll have to pay out anyway. It's only a $30 filing fee, and if they lose they have to repay that too.

With any luck they'll realise that there's no way they can win this one, and just give it to you.

I will threaten them with small claims court; I hope they fall for my bluff as I don't have time to mess around for $145 fee as I am going to America to live in a few months so working lots and dealing with immigration issues.

nzgeek

619 posts

Ultimate Geek
+1 received by user: 52

#678527 29-Aug-2012 00:09

scottjames84: I will threaten them with small claims court; I hope they fall for my bluff as I don't have time to mess around for $145 fee as I am going to America to live in a few months so working lots and dealing with immigration issues.

In which case, I wish you the best of luck.

If you're not dealing directly with the store manager, ask for him/her. Make it clear that if you do end up in small claims that you are going to win, and that the whole mess will be a waste of both your time. Most people will find their time more valuable than the dollar cost, and just give in.

scottjames84

94 posts

Master Geek

#679700 31-Aug-2012 12:54

I thought I would update you all.

Got my phone back today; they replaced the mainboard which fixed my battery issue and power button issue as well as dusting out between LCD and the LCD cover, they also replaced the LCD cover so now I have no scratches.

I could not be bothered arguing for $145 since we are flat out at work and I am going through US immigration's at the moment.
I am pretty sure if I had of replaced the ROM my phone had when I gave it to telecom to repair with a stock telecom rom which I have a back up of then I would have been okay with warranty but alas because of hardware issues I could not get into the boot loader to do that.

Phone is working quick; not sure if the issues are actually fixed but will find out with time; I'll give it a week before installing a custom rom (hopefully by then the JB Rom will have most of the issues fixed)