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Microdrive users BEWARE!!! (long)

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Scooter,

Keep trying. Work your way up the supervisor chain. Eventually you will find someone with the authority to authorize a new RMA.

Find someone that can testify your Microdrive was completely broken prior to shipment. Get them to sign a statement saying so and have a notary witness and notarize the signature. Make sure this is legit because your next step may be to take it to small claims court and they could get in big trouble if they did not truely witness the failed drive.

Fax this letter to the support supervisor and see how they react. I predict they will issue you another RMA. If not, take them to small claims court.

The terms of your warranty are the determining factor here not the e-mail they sent you. If you can get someone to witness and testify that your microdrive was dead then you can prove your warranty claim was not caused by the shipment.

Jay
Scooter said:
and the folks at the tech center, who literally agreed with me that
I had a right to be annoyed at the lack of info given to me up
front, told me that once a warranty is voided, it's practically
impossible to get them to change that (the Warranty Department is
apparently very strict).

I told the supervisor that I strongly suggest that in all fairness,
the customer should be given a heads up about the packaging thing
on the phone. He agreed and also agreed that that info should be
one of the first things stipulated in the RMA e-mail. I can't
knock the guys on the phone, they were very nice and apologetic.
They seemed very sympathetic to my situation... but they couldn't
change it.

Thanks for letting me air this out. It sure was a shock.

yer pal™,
Scooter
Click to expand...
 
Why would I, having only had the device for a few weeks, want to go two weeks without a storage device? Why would I send a perfectly good device in?

Oh well, what's done is done. :-)

yer pal™,
Scooter
 
Jay Bean said:
Keep trying. Work your way up the supervisor chain. Eventually
you will find someone with the authority to authorize a new RMA.

Find someone that can testify your Microdrive was completely broken
prior to shipment. Get them to sign a statement saying so and have
a notary witness and notarize the signature. Make sure this is
legit because your next step may be to take it to small claims
court and they could get in big trouble if they did not truely
witness the failed drive.

Fax this letter to the support supervisor and see how they react.
I predict they will issue you another RMA. If not, take them to
small claims court.

The terms of your warranty are the determining factor here not the
e-mail they sent you. If you can get someone to witness and
testify that your microdrive was dead then you can prove your
warranty claim was not caused by the shipment.

Jay
Scooter said:
and the folks at the tech center, who literally agreed with me that
I had a right to be annoyed at the lack of info given to me up
front, told me that once a warranty is voided, it's practically
impossible to get them to change that (the Warranty Department is
apparently very strict).

I told the supervisor that I strongly suggest that in all fairness,
the customer should be given a heads up about the packaging thing
on the phone. He agreed and also agreed that that info should be
one of the first things stipulated in the RMA e-mail. I can't
knock the guys on the phone, they were very nice and apologetic.
They seemed very sympathetic to my situation... but they couldn't
change it.

Thanks for letting me air this out. It sure was a shock.

yer pal™,
Scooter
Click to expand...
Click to expand...
 
Many return a hard drive that is not defective (software, computer, or camera problems etc.) and not the manufacturers fault. If it is not properly handled and packaged a delicate hard drive is almost always defective. Makes a biig difference.

Rich
DavidP said:
I guess I'm having trouble figuring out exactly HOW they get burned
if somebody returns a drive improperly packaged. Presumably it
was defective, or it wouldn't have been sent in, right?
Click to expand...
 
Can you post the URL from the EMAIL message that leads to the information about the packaging requirements? I'm just curious as to exactly how they expect people to ship these things? Your bubble wrap description sounded OK to me.

Mike
 
Yeah, OK. Protecting themselves from the idiots of the world.

I was trying to figure out how somebody could use this to take advantage of the company . . . that's where I was coming up empty-handed.
RichW said:
Many return a hard drive that is not defective (software, computer,
or camera problems etc.) and not the manufacturers fault. If it is
not properly handled and packaged a delicate hard drive is almost
always defective. Makes a biig difference.
Click to expand...
--
The Unofficial Photographer of The Wilkinsons
http://thewilkinsons.crosswinds.net
Photography -- just another word for compromise
 
Where exactly would one procure an "esd bag" and/or a "wrist ground strap" (whatever that is)? Should I have been wearing one anytime I removed the drive from the camera?

yer pal™,
Scooter
 
All,

If Scooter is unable to get a new RMA then I saw we start a phone campaign in which everyone on dpreview, robgalbraith, fred miranda and all the other forums calls IBM support 3 times a day until they authorize a new RMA for him.

Who's with me?
Scooter said:
If you have an IBM Microdrive and you EVER have a problem with it,
please read this.

And please note, I have reviewed this post three times to make sure
it is as accurate as possible, considering the lesson I learned
with embellishment this week. :-) But dang it, I’m very angry with
IBM. Please read on and forgive the length.

I got a 1 gig Microdrive about two months ago. Within a month it
started acting up and eventually failed completely. I called the
Customer Service number and spoke with a really nice guy who gave
me these specifics: 1.) Your warranty is valid, 2.) Go on-line
and establish an RMA Number (something to do with the replacement
request), 3.) Ship to this address and 4.) Be sure to include
your RMA number, part number (which is wrong on my Microdrive and I
had to get the right part number from the rep. Apparently IBM
mis-labled many microdrives) and serial number. Do NOT forget the
RMA number in your letter THAT IS MOST IMPORTANT! (He reiterated
that).

I followed those instructions, carefully packed the microdrive in
two layers of bubble wrap, placed in a durable envelope, taped it
secure and as far as I was concerned, I did exactly what I was told.

This to me is THE most important point. In the e-mail I received
once I requested the RMA number, this line appears: “Please be
aware that you may experience a delay in receiving your
replacement disk drive based on stock availability. If product is
available, your replacement order will be processed within 14
working days after the receipt of your defective disk drive.”

That tells me that typically, IBM will opt to replace the item
rather than attempt to repair it.

Well, I got a card today telling me that I had to go to UPS to pick
up my package from IBM. They ignored my shipping address. I
simply had to drive across town and pick it up. Okay, no problem.
And then, I open the package (an envelope with MY original bubble
wrap, not a box). Included is the original microdrive and this
note: Your drive failed to meet the IBM packaging requirements,
therefore, the RMA has been REJECTED and your entitlement to a
replacement drive has been VOIDED. PLEASE DO NOT SEND THE DRIVE
BACK TO US BECAUSE THIS DRIVE IS NO LONGER UNDER WARRANTY AND IF
YOU DO, WE WILL RETURN YOUR DRIVE AND YOU WILL BEAR ALL SHIPPING
COST. We will not send you a replacement drive.

Folks, please note the word "replacement"!

I’m out some $350.00 because the dead drive that I was sending in
wasn’t packaged correctly. Now, I look at the e-mail I originally
received, at the VERY BOTTOM is a note about packaging and a link
to a site that apparently will tell me what "proper" packaging is.
I fully acknowledge now, that I didn’t do this properly. But, this
is what really angers me. The returned drive? It was shipped to
me the EXACT same way I shipped it to them. They shipped it in a
paper envelope, in the same bubble wrap. The very curt letter
never uses words like, “we regret to inform you” or
“unfortunately”. It just says, basically, “we gotcha”.

Yes, I should have read EVERY SINGLE WORD of the e-mail. But am I
crazy… if they are saying that the way they will fix this problem
is by sending a new microdrive, and the fact that I took pains to
package this carefully, am I crazy for feeling a little screwed?
Couldn’t the customer service rep have given me a heads up about
the danger of improper packaging? Wouldn’t this have been a
little kind? Couldn’t the e-mail have mentioned this at the
beginning or at least emphasized this? If my packaging is the
equivalent of their packaging, is this a way for them to get out of
a certain percentage of warranties? What if I might be able to get
someone to fix this thing but it got screwed up because of they way
THEY sent it back?

I blew it, I see that now. But I feel like I was given as many
possible opportunities to blow it and IBM hoped I would. I will
NEVER do business with them again. EVER! I am so mad about this.

Folks, read EVERY SINGLE WORD when it comes to warranties, even
when it applies to “reputable” companies like IBM. If there is any
possibility of getting out of their responsibility, they will.

Ugh. Thanks for reading.

Yer pal™,
Scooter
Click to expand...
 
Oh wait, I already did. :-)

DO IT DO IT DO IT! IBM should realize that a lot of people are like me, we don't know much about high falootin' gadgetry and how to ship 'em! God Bless yuns!!!

yer pal™,
Scooter
 
Hard drives for laptops and desktops come with the ESD bags. I always hang onto them for just such circumstances. Memory chips are the same way. None of my microdrives came packaged that way.

Where would you get one? Probably your local computer store.
Scooter said:
Where exactly would one procure an "esd bag" and/or a "wrist ground
strap" (whatever that is)? Should I have been wearing one anytime
I removed the drive from the camera?
Click to expand...
--
The Unofficial Photographer of The Wilkinsons
http://thewilkinsons.crosswinds.net
Photography -- just another word for compromise
 
My Iomega 1 GB failed after about a month. It was manufactured by IBM and packaged and sold by Iomega. I went to their website and put in the serial number. The website said it was still in warranty (that was Saturday, June 29th.) Monday morning (July 1) I called Iomega. The rep asked for the serial number and said it was out of warranty. Guess it expired Sunday night!

I gave him my purchase date and they accepted the drive under warranty. They took my credit card number for a guarantee and shipped a new drive July 5th. When I got it, I took the new drive out of the box, put in the bad drive, put on the supplied label, and called FedEx to pick it up. Too easy.

Sorry your experience with IBM did not go that well. What surprises me is that the Iomega and the IBM are teh exact same drive, so why can't the service be the same. Iomega doesn't even handle microdrives anymore, but they still honor the warranty.

Try IBM service again. Hopefully they will honor it anyway. Good luck.

--

-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Maybe my D60 meters correctly and it is me that is overexposed???
 
My microdrive came in a conductive plastic case that helps to eliminate static. I am sure yours did too. CF cards come in a similar case.

Rich
DavidP said:
Where would you get one? Probably your local computer store.
Scooter said:
Where exactly would one procure an "esd bag" and/or a "wrist ground
strap" (whatever that is)? Should I have been wearing one anytime
I removed the drive from the camera?
Click to expand...
--
The Unofficial Photographer of The Wilkinsons
http://thewilkinsons.crosswinds.net
Photography -- just another word for compromise
Click to expand...
 
Make sure that it says explicitely in YOUR WARRANTY how an RMA must be packaged. Just because they threw a link up with a loophole in it isn't your problem. Not everyone has internet access, and if they try to hold you to info contained on their website, but not in your warranty, it won't fly. Your warranty is their contract to you, not a website, not an email. Good luck getting this fixed.
DavidP said:
Malcolm Bader said:
How about giving them a taste of their own medicine.
Return the drive under another name and if you need a receipt
dummy one up.
Click to expand...
--
The Unofficial Photographer of The Wilkinsons
http://thewilkinsons.crosswinds.net
Photography -- just another word for compromise
Click to expand...
 
I'm digging through everything trying to find the original packaging and warranty. I'm going to fight to the end, by gum!!! :-)

yer pal™,
Scooter
Eric Sterns said:
DavidP said:
Malcolm Bader said:
How about giving them a taste of their own medicine.
Return the drive under another name and if you need a receipt
dummy one up.
Click to expand...
--
The Unofficial Photographer of The Wilkinsons
http://thewilkinsons.crosswinds.net
Photography -- just another word for compromise
Click to expand...
Click to expand...
 
contacting your state's Consumer Affairs Department, particularly if this packing requirement was imposed by IBM after the fact rather than in the original warranty language. Follow up with a complaint letter to the state agency, copying IBM. That might be enough to shake them loose.

Nill
 
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