Laptop Woes, Sick as a Dog

Quick update on the never-ending computer saga, or here's a better idea, a quick summary.

• Nov 2006: I buy a new, HP DV 9000 17 inch widescreen laptop with Windows XP Media Center installed. Happy camper.
• Late-Jan 2007: The sound blows out on my HP laptop. It goes in to HP Support for the first time via Best Buy. Annoyed camper.
• Mid-Feb 2007: The laptop comes back from HP Support to Best Buy - unfixed, despite it having been sent back as fixed. Very-annoyed camper.
• Mid-Feb 2007: HP Laptop goes to HP Support second time, this time directly through HP Support because I called during one of our Ohio snow storms, and they sent me a Fedex box. Anything less than a Hummer wouldn't have gotten me to Best Buy during that storm. Impatient camper.
• Late-Feb 2007: Still haven't heard from HP. Livid camper.
• March 2007: Call HP until I finally get to someone who tells me my laptop will come back to me fixed Late-March. My position: Unacceptable considering I've been without my laptop for six weeks. Twilight Zone Camper.
• March 2007: I finally reach a 'case worker' who sets me up with a replacement notebook - it'll come with Vista Ultimate (XP wasn't available)! Ooohhhh.... Ahhhhhh.... Happy camper returns from techno hell.
• Late-March 2007: Replacement HP notebook arrives, with Windows Vista Ultimate. Great except they sent me the 64-bit version. For those of you not familiar with 64-bit, it would be like Chevrolet sending you a flying Corvette to replace a busted one: Really cool and definitely the future, but not practical in the day and age we're living in because the technology to support it hasn't arrived yet. In my case, crucial software doesn't run on the new machine. Numb camper.
• Currently: I've paid HP $18 to send me a 32-bit Vista Home Premium recovery disc. So, to summarize, I've paid HP money to send me an inferior operating system to Vista Ultimate that SHOULD run my software. Ripped off camper.

In conclusion, it's now been 8 weeks since my laptop crashed and burned, and I'm still not up and running yet.

Oh yeah, and I'm sick as a dog.

I'll be in Amish country for the next, oh, 6 years if you need me.

But seriously, it makes me think back to my previous post on what I would do if the technology left me. I've realized it wasn't just hypothetical, it can happen. Check it out here.

Comments

[Cathy Cole]

Greetings,

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Again thank you very much.. Cheers

Best Regards,
Cathy Cole
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[lea Go]

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[Jon]

I bought myself an acer aspire 9800 laptop (20.1 inch widescreen) and the vendor i bought it from has an "Instant Product Replacment" warrenty... They try to fix the problem, if they cant within three days, they replace the product on the spot, and then theyre stuck sending the thing back to its manufacturer to get it fixed... Check if any stores in your area have that sort of warrenty

When your product comes with a manufacturers warrenty, often it will say that the product will be fixed or replaced in a reasonable timeframe... well reasonable for me is about 2 hours, where reasonable for the manufacturer could be 2 years. So when you buy your warrenties, make sure you know what kind of downtime you may have if things go bad... It may be worth the extra $300 on the $2600 laptop to get that sort of warrenty (thats what it cost me, i already replaced this thing once, raid didnt like me)

If you have no definate timeframe, it may be worth it to just keep the product as it is... minor problems as they are...

And every HP laptop i have seen thats older than 6 months has had bad sound. laptop speakers are like, 1 inch speakers. They are not made to last.