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Best Buy and eMachines warranty

post #1 of 55
3/28/04 at 10:57pm
Thread Starter 
I went to Best Buy today, to look at the M6805, and a sales person there told me that "yes, it does have a 1 year parts and labor warranty, but the screen backlight is not covered for more than 90 days". I questioned this, and then he brought me the eMachines warranty in a book, and said "this is about the most vague warranty I have seen" followed VERY QUICKLY by:
"we have extended performance plans that will cover the notebook" to which I wanted to reply "NO SHI$" but instead was a little more polite.
So, my only question is: is there any shortcoming in the eMachine's 1 year warranty, and is there anything other than abuse, dead pixels that is not covered? I guess I have been spoiled by Dell's Complete Care warranties. With Complete Care, ANYTHING other than theft is covered. You can spill a Coke in it, you can run it over with your car intentionally!! As long as you have the pieces in a paper bag, you get another one. Their warranty is second to none, unfortunately, I am having a hard time picking a Dell notebook that I really want to own next.
Andrew
Austin, TX
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post #2 of 55
3/29/04 at 2:09am
Personally, I don't like the typical "extended warranty pitch". I think he is trying to cast shadow on the emachines warranty in order to sell you their extended service plan. I don't know what he showed you but my warranty card was pretty self-explanatory. They will cover defects for one year and the exclusions are the obvious things like physical and liquid damage, non-qualified personnel "fixing" your computer, failure to follow the manual, etc...

I read no limitation of 90 days on the LCD backlight. I think he's looking for an ESP sale and fails to realize that there are regulations like, the Magnuson-Moss Warranty Act, that requires manufacturers and sellers of consumer products to provide consumers with detailed information about warranty coverage. If they are altering what they are showing a customer in order to sell their own product I would consider that a serious ethical issue and would take my money to a different store.

If you purchase and Emachine, they include a card for 2 or 3 year extended service plans, including tech support and LCD repair or replacement. Both are less than $200.

Hope that helps.
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post #3 of 55
3/29/04 at 1:06pm
The BB ESP is the only one that covers battery. The way I understand it, I can get one new replacement battery every year. Three years ESP means you can get 3 batteries. With $120 per battery, it more than cover the cost of the ESP. On top of that, you get 3 years coverage on everything else. I think it's worthed.
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post #4 of 55
3/29/04 at 1:15pm
I can't say whether or not the 90 day thing is true about the eMachines notebook..however I do know from working as an electronics technician that respectable percentage of consumer electronics these days, even though it may say "1 year warranty" on the product card or description or whatever actually means 90 days service and 1 year parts. So they will give you a replacement part, refurbished mind you, but after 3 months they will charge you between 90-120 dollars an hour to do it..pro-rated!
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post #5 of 55
3/29/04 at 1:29pm
Thread Starter 
I am sorry that Best Buy talked you into buying one of their warranties. If it is less than 30 days since you bought it, personally I would ask for a refund on it. What did you pay for it...$300???....so you just prepaid for your first 2 batteries and part of your first repair??? I think that is rediculous personally.
Andrew
Austin, TX

Quote:
Originally Posted by Dugdug
The BB ESP is the only one that covers battery. The way I understand it, I can get one new replacement battery every year. Three years ESP means you can get 3 batteries. With $120 per battery, it more than cover the cost of the ESP. On top of that, you get 3 years coverage on everything else. I think it's worthed.
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post #6 of 55
3/29/04 at 1:31pm
Thread Starter 
I am sorry, but that would be a violation of Federal law. "1year parts and labor" HAS TO MEAN 1 year parts and labor. Any exceptions to this have to be in writing, listed as exclusions. There can't be any variation from this.
When you buy a new car, it is the same way. They can't tell you that 5 years or 50,000 miles really means 1 year for the transmission unless it is in writing. A warranty is a contract. Sorry, but you are not correct.
Yes, warranties like you describe are common, but they are "1 year parts and 90 days labor". A warranty must specify the warranty period for parts and for labor. It can NOT say "1 year warranty." That is not allowable by law. A warranty must be either full or limited.
Also, that is NOT the warranty on an eMachine notebook.
Andrew
Austin, TX

Quote:
Originally Posted by Element
I can't say whether or not the 90 day thing is true about the eMachines notebook..however I do know from working as an electronics technician that respectable percentage of consumer electronics these days, even though it may say "1 year warranty" on the product card or description or whatever actually means 90 days service and 1 year parts. So they will give you a replacement part, refurbished mind you, but after 3 months they will charge you between 90-120 dollars an hour to do it..pro-rated!
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post #7 of 55
3/29/04 at 1:36pm
I didn't say that was the case with this emachines product..however you are right and wrong..yes the 90 day part has to be in writing which it is...however...in basically every retail store out there the physical size of the product pricing tags doesn't allow room to fit "1 year parts and 90 day labor" so they just put "1 year parts and labors". I know as a fact there are products that have this displayed on the store tag but in reality they only have 90 days service...

I think it stems down to a marketing versus reality thing. Basically, companies market warranty features that are perceived to be of value...but in reality there are as you said' exclusions. And unless you as a consumer ask for a written copy of the warranty and read it in it's entirety, which I think a small small percentage of people do, then you are putting yourself at risk. For example, I purchased a Hyundai two years ago and was happy to have that 10/year 100,000 mile warranty. But to my surprise, I found out it only came standard with a 7 year 70,000 mile one, and within that there are basically mile numbers for every major component of the car with decreasing coverage per component as the potential cost to the manufacturer due to replacement/service arises.
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post #8 of 55
3/29/04 at 1:42pm
Thread Starter 
If I was in a store that displayed warranties that way, it would only be for a few minutes. I can find honest merchants to do business with.
Andrew
Austin, TX

Quote:
Originally Posted by Element
I didn't say that was the case with this emachines product..however you are right and wrong..yes the 90 day part has to be in writing which it is...however...in basically every retail store out there the physical size of the product pricing tags doesn't allow room to fit "1 year parts and 90 day service" so they just put "1 year part and labor". I know as a fact there are products that have this displayed on the store tag but in reality they only have 90 days service...
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post #9 of 55
3/29/04 at 1:42pm
Where have you ever seen a product tag that stated a manufacturers warranty included "1 year parts and 90 days labor"?
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post #10 of 55
3/29/04 at 2:18pm
Thread Starter 
This is all that I am going to say:
1.) eMachines notebooks all have 1 year parts and labor.
They are NOT 90 days parts!!!!! PERIOD!!!!!
2.) I don't care about "product tags". I only care about the printed warranty that is in the box with the product.
ANY WARRANTY STATEMENTS THAT ARE NOT IN THE BOX ARE NOT RELEVENT AT ALL. THEY DO NOT MATTER.
3.) I opened this thread to discuss a Best Buy employee trying to "sucker" me into an extended warranty by telling falsities about the manufacturer's warranty. Basically, to paraphrase what the guy told me it was like "this is a pretty lousy warranty, wouldn't you like to buy one of our lovely $300 warranties"?? To which I replied (again, paraphrased "not if I lived to be 300 years old!!"
That's it,
Andrew
Austin, TX

Quote:
Originally Posted by Element
Where have you ever seen a product tag that stated a manufacturers warranty included "1 year parts and 90 days labor"?
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post #11 of 55
3/29/04 at 2:22pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by Dugdug
The BB ESP is the only one that covers battery. The way I understand it, I can get one new replacement battery every year. Three years ESP means you can get 3 batteries. With $120 per battery, it more than cover the cost of the ESP. On top of that, you get 3 years coverage on everything else. I think it's worthed.
sounds good to me
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post #12 of 55
3/29/04 at 2:27pm
Regardless of eMachines offering a 1 year parts and labor warranty on their product, the Best Buy service plan far surpasses it because of but not limited to the following reasons:

- Replacement parts are OEM NOT REFURBISHED (standard warranties replace your stuff w/ refurbished)
- Battery coverage
- Zero dead pixel policy
- Same week return for service (platinum warranty). Have fun with month long turnaround through eMachines..and paying shipping to boot!
- No lemon policy (3 major problems and on the 4th time you get a new notebook)
- Surge coverage (No need to deal with insurance claims when it gets fried)
- Geek Squad and Geek Squad level expertise
- etc. etc. etc.

Easily worth the money imho...
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post #13 of 55
3/29/04 at 4:46pm
Smells a best buy employee in this thread......
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post #14 of 55
3/29/04 at 4:58pm
Buying warranty depends of your tolerance to risk. The fact is electronic stuff breaks. Most of the time it breaks within first year. That's why 1 year warranty is all you need. BB warranty just give you more coverange on top of the original warranty. Whether it's worthed for you is another question. I'd like to have total peace of mind when it comes to a laptop that I use everyday. If something breaks, I just bring it back to local BB and I'll get it back in a week or so. Throwing in the battery coverage, it just become a no brainer for me. And, no, I don't work at BB.

Dugdug
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post #15 of 55
3/29/04 at 5:01pm
Thread Starter 
HOW LONG HAVE YOU WORKED for Best Buy?????
Andrew
Austin, TX

Quote:
Originally Posted by Element
Regardless of eMachines offering a 1 year parts and labor warranty on their product, the Best Buy service plan far surpasses it because of but not limited to the following reasons:

- Replacement parts are OEM NOT REFURBISHED (standard warranties replace your stuff w/ refurbished)
- Battery coverage
- Zero dead pixel policy
- Same week return for service (platinum warranty). Have fun with month long turnaround through eMachines..and paying shipping to boot!
- No lemon policy (3 major problems and on the 4th time you get a new notebook)
- Surge coverage (No need to deal with insurance claims when it gets fried)
- Geek Squad and Geek Squad level expertise
- etc. etc. etc.

Easily worth the money imho...
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post #16 of 55
3/29/04 at 5:14pm
lol I didn't say I worked for Best Buy..I've just purchased multiple computers over the years in particular notebooks and it pays to know the ins and outs of "warranties" whether from manufacturer or retailer or online retailer...that's the whole point of this thead is it not...knowing the details of the "warranties"? I actually just bought a HP ZD7010US from Best Buy and paraphrased those points from the service plan brochure...

I guess to be fair I should paraphrase what they don't cover which includes but is not limited to:

- Purposeful or accidental damage
- Software
- commercial usage
- "no problem found" diagnoses
- third party repair fees
- lost or damaged data
- viruses

Also, regarding the comment about if something is going to break it's going to happen in the first year..that's the greatest fallacy a consumer can believe. As an electronics technician I saw every type of product from every type of manufacturer at every stage of it's lifetime with every type of problem...there is no such fact as if something is going to go wrong it's going to happen within the first year...look at LCDs and Plasma TVs..those are products that WILL have problems and it definately won't be within the first year..it will be within 3-5 most likely...
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post #17 of 55
3/29/04 at 7:06pm
Go easy on Element, folks. [and no, I'm not any employee/consultant (or even affliated) with any manufacturer or retailer].

It pays to review both the manufacturer warranty along with any retailer extended warranty (plus extended warranties offered by the manufacturers). Any extended warranty purchase should be based solely on risk assessment and cost of repair. Technically, all extended warranty purchases are pointless since failures typically occur near the end of the product life. Most laptops have a 3 year life depending on portability and usage. If you are willing to replace notebook or fund repair more than 2.5 years after purchase, the money saved on extended repair could offset loss.

On the other hand, if you use your laptop with great frequency and expose it to possible failure via daily transport or variable environments (outdoors and coffee shops/food joints), then it is probably advisable to invest in an extended warranty.

Finally, if you intend to use laptop as print server, music server, internet browser etc. after retiring unit from daily service, I would seriously advise for extended coverage that offers battery replacement or screen protection...

I've been purchasing extended warranties since my first laptop back in the mid 1980s (Toshiba ). [now if feel old]. Reason? I've lugged them around and subject them to drops, bangs, kicks, etc. Consequently, I'm always activating the extended warranty for repairs. In fact, I just had by Toshiba 3003 motherboard and xga card replaced twice due to equipment failure via my Toshiba system guard extended warranty. The cost of each replacement? -> $300+ vs total cost of extended warranty $300. Over the years, I've replaced a variety of components due to wear and tear so it is worth it (for me) to purchase extra coverage.

Is it worth it for others? Depends again on usage and available funds for replacement. I use my laptops for business primarily and games secondary (though my Toshiba is primarily for business with 5.5 lb travel weight). If you have the money to repair or buy new unit, go with the latter since a new one necessarily includes upgraded features.

Conclusion: Read the fine print and if you are risk adverse or have a history of damaged goods, purchase coverage. By the way, I'm an attorney and some of the fine print is almost mind boggling and I always wonder if non-legal folks actually understand the terms....

Quote:
Originally Posted by Element
lol I didn't say I worked for Best Buy..I've just purchased multiple computers over the years in particular notebooks and it pays to know the ins and outs of "warranties" whether from manufacturer or retailer or online retailer...that's the whole point of this thead is it not...knowing the details of the "warranties"?
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post #18 of 55
3/29/04 at 8:27pm
Thread Starter 
I didn't really think you worked for BB, it just sounded like you were pushing the merits of their warranties, which is fine. Actually, the point of my thread was the Best Buy employee "playing down" the true strengths of the eMachine manufacturer's warranty, so that he could sell me on a BB warranty in the same breath. That was my real point. I realized that I brought up a question of eMachines actually offers, I am quite sure that is this:
http://www.emachines.com/support/lim...anty_tandc.pdf
Now, here is a question for our lawyer, silentwind:
Is this "about the most vague warranty (you) have seen"? (those were the words of the BB employee yesterday.)
Again, just joking about you being a BB employee, not trying to be offensive.
Andrew
Austin, TX

Quote:
Originally Posted by Element
lol I didn't say I worked for Best Buy.....that's the whole point of this thead is it not...knowing the details of the "warranties"?
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post #19 of 55
3/29/04 at 8:41pm
Thread Starter 
I agree with you 100% on this one. A component will fail whenever its life is done. Some of them are "nice enough" to fail in warranty, and some are not. If an LCD panel dies after 15 months, you may wish you had bought extended coverage (provided that the extended coverage covers the LCD panel.) My main problem with extended warranties have always been that I don't want to "prepay" for repairs before they happen. I guess you just have to decide how much you want to spend in advance for "peace of mind." A notebook PC might be the only product that I would ever consider buying extended coverage on.
Andrew
Austin, TX

Quote:
Originally Posted by Element
...Also, regarding the comment about if something is going to break it's going to happen in the first year..that's the greatest fallacy a consumer can believe...
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post #20 of 55
3/29/04 at 9:44pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by aamsel
I realized that I brought up a question of eMachines actually offers, I am quite sure that is this:
http://www.emachines.com/support/lim...anty_tandc.pdf
Now, here is a question for our lawyer, silentwind:
Is this "about the most vague warranty (you) have seen"? (those were the words of the BB employee yesterday.)
Is this the only warranty description in your computer box? I looked at EM's website for the standard warranty language and only located your link. Is it vague? Yes. Is it meaningful? No. For example, what does "dead pixel" mean? Just the same, I doubt the link represents the limited warranty (and BB should know this). I believe the computer documentation includes the full description of the limited warranty.

I'm more interested in the dead pixel extended warranty provision. Toshiba and IBM (plus Texas Instruments when they made laptops sooo long ago) have pretty restrictive terms so beware!
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