Topic: Microsoft showing their true colors once again.

[Kairon]

I swear that Golden Phoenix will never talk to me again after this:

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XBOX 360 - Micromart has now withdrawn from offering a Repair Service for the dreaded 3 Red Lights fault.

This problem is endemic on the XBox 360 console and the volume has made this repair non-viable.

Other repairs to the XBox 360 are still being supported.

That "dreaded" line sounds out of place though. Did someone hack this corporate web site?

[BlackNMild2k1]

[vudu]

Quote
Originally posted by: thatguy
1500 a day, 365 days a year, means that in the UK, half a million 360s break a year.

UPS doesn't ship on Saturday or Sunday.

1,500 a day x 260 weekdays/year = 390K units per year

[Ceric]

Vudu beat me to it.

Anyways, what are you guys doing with your DS Lites?  I mean I play my first revision bought on launch day DS all the time and the screen is barely scratched at all.  The only thing wrong with it is that the paint is being rubbed off from use and carting it around.  

[denjet78]

My sister beat the hell out of my DS touch screen. She played Nintendogs for about 3 months strait for several hours a day. I kept telling her that all she needed to do was barely touch the screen but every time I turned around there she was grinding into it. Of course some of the games really do seem to want you to do that. When the action gets frantic it's hard not to lean into it.

[Mashiro]

Denjet I agree, Nintendo has an outstanding service department.

I will never forget when they fixed my SNES. Sometime around 1998 I noticed SNES started to no longer display games in color. It was very weird and replacing cables and switching TVs didn't help. I didn't play the system all that much (N64 and all) but around a year later (1999) I decided to see if I could get it fixed.

I called Nintendo (mind you this is around 7 to 8 years after I got the system) and told them the issue and wondered how much it would cost to get fixed. I think I gave them some number on the system, then they asked me some questions (like how many games I owned and such, lol). Apparently it was a known issue with a few of the early SNES' and they would be happy to fix it for FREE and they just told me to have the system ready to ship.

Got it back a few weeks later good as new =)

Even though it was a known issue, I was still amazed that after 7 or 8 years of owning it that they would still fix it free of charge.

[denjet78]

Wow... That's um... They really did that???

It was probably because they felt you were such a loyal customer that it was the least they could do. When my SNES finally died I never even thought about contacting Nintendo about it as, like you, it was well into the N64's lifetime when it happened. I eventually found an original SNES in near mint condition that I stole, heh heh, for some $15 at a local thrift store. I keep it in a very safe and very secure location. All of my SNES games had gotten ruined over the years before that though, stupid relatives who don't know how to keep their claws out of anything. In a few years when I'm more able I'm going to start building up my SNES library again.

Best. Console. Ever.

[Spak-Spang]

Yeah, I think Nintendo would do that for anyone if you told them you spent over $200.00 a year on just Nintendo published franchises...which most of us do.

[Mashiro]

Haha yeah they did indeed really did it. Truth be told it's actually the ONLY time I had to contact Nintendo for a hardware fix but it was enough to make me say they have outstanding customer service. What other company would do that?

Also you're probably right about being a loyal customer and such. Gotta love Nintendo!  

[UERD]

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Denjet I agree, Nintendo has an outstanding service department.

They fixed my GBC countless times before it finally, mysteriously disappeared somewhere beneath the car cushions one day.

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<re XBox 360 issues>

I don't know how bad the XBox's general technical issues are, but the disc-scratching problem was apparently of magnitude enough to compel the European Commission to launch an investigation. But to play the devil's advocate, MS has never done hardware on a scale like with the XBox and XBox 360 before, while Nintendo and Sony both have plenty of experience with complex consumer electronics.

[Adrock]

I know other people who have had great dealings with Nintendo Customer Service. A friend in junior high called Nintendo about his Rumble Pak not working and they sent him a new one. Another, last year, had a Wii die. Nintendo not only replaced it at no charge, but gave him a free 512 MB SD card to back up his saves since he lost all of them (Zelda and Wii Sports). Here's a list of other stuff Nintendo gave him just for having a bum Wii, copied from another forum I go to (where he described his experience with Nintendo Customer Service):

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-Mario Party shot glasses (hey, I don't like Mario Party either, but shot glasses? That's a Mario Party I can get behind)
-An adorable stuffed Yoshi
-Wii Play shirt
-Nintendo beanie with "Nintendo" written in Japanese across the front
-A golden Triforce pin with the Japanese characters for Courage, Power and Wisdom on each triangle
-Triforce of Courage arm band

I'll give Nintendo credit for making generally sturdy hardware and peripherals. However, I absolutely cannot endorse their customer service myself (further details in this thread).  

[denjet78]

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-A golden Triforce pin with the Japanese characters for Courage, Power and Wisdom on each triangle

*runs out to buy a Wii and break it*

[Ceric]

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Originally posted by: Adrock
I know other people who have had great dealings with Nintendo Customer Service. A friend in junior high called Nintendo about his Rumble Pak not working and they sent him a new one. Another, last year, had a Wii die. Nintendo not only replaced it at no charge, but gave him a free 512 MB SD card to back up his saves since he lost all of them (Zelda and Wii Sports). Here's a list of other stuff Nintendo gave him just for having a bum Wii, copied from another forum I go to (where he described his experience with Nintendo Customer Service):

Quote
-Mario Party shot glasses (hey, I don't like Mario Party either, but shot glasses? That's a Mario Party I can get behind)
-An adorable stuffed Yoshi
-Wii Play shirt
-Nintendo beanie with "Nintendo" written in Japanese across the front
-A golden Triforce pin with the Japanese characters for Courage, Power and Wisdom on each triangle
-Triforce of Courage arm band

I'll give Nintendo credit for making generally sturdy hardware and peripherals. However, I absolutely cannot endorse their customer service myself (further details in this thread).

I feel so jipped now.  They gave me NOTHING for my Wii that broke just a week after launch.  I lost 20 hours worth of Zelda gameplay, a few medals in WiiSports, and lost all my data from RRR...  

[Adrock]

If it makes you feel better, he was a walk-in. He had just moved to Washington (from Australia) so he went right to Nintendo of America headquarters in Redmond. Since they had to deal with him in person, they probably felt more obligated to keep him happy. Anyone can be a rude bastard on the phone, but in person, you can be identified easily. Not that they were being rude, I'm just saying that they're more likely to be nicer to someone face to face.

[NinGurl69 *huggles]

Fan returns his 360 twelve times

separate reader testimonial:

"I thought I was was bad, I'm on my 7th Xbox360.

4 of them have suffered red rings of death, 1 was fauly on return from repair, 1 is simply dead, and 1 fails to read disks.

In addition, I have had 3 game disks scrated by the console..

I have since sold the last replacement, which did work for at least 2 weeks, I have kept the cash, and will buy a PS3 when the price drops a tad.

David Geaves"

[Nick DiMola]

My brother's 360 just died a couple days ago and his warranty is supposed to expire in August. I called Microsoft for him and they told me that the system's warranty expired in May and they won't do repairs on the system. Unfortunately my brother's receipt was printed on heat sensitive paper that faded over time and now he has no recourse whatsoever to get his 360 fixed. While I was on the phone with customer support they didn't care at all that I had no intentions of doing business with Microsoft as a result of this and tried to give me some BS line that my brother must've mishandled the system in order for it to break. When I called him out on the BS, and told him that the system was constructed faultily, he pretty bluntly told me it was not their problem and that he was not interested in doing anything for me. I've never experienced such terrible customer support, or a situation where the system's registration was done improperly. According to the representative from Microsoft, it's entirely possible that the system was bought and returned and the registration was never updated when my brother had bought the system. The call infuriated me because the system was a) broken because they constructed the system poorly b)they improperly keep warranty information and c) didn't care in the slightest that my brother would be SOL with his Xbox and wouldn't even have the ability if he wanted to endorse the company.

Sorry for the sort of rambling rant, but I find it despicable that the representative of the company showed no care whatsoever over the situation. I'm glad Nintendo has some more sense than Microsoft and knows how to properly deal with a customer. I think Adrock's experiences are anomalies, I've never once had a problem, and after they look up my My Nintendo account they kiss my ass because I buy so many Nintendo products.

[oohhboy]

This may seem like a slight de-rail, but how strong are your consumer laws over there in the US? I find the laws here in NZ regarding that pretty good and that is me speaking from both sides of the fence (Ex-Retail). Here, it is a basic understanding that anything must last at least a year or more. It don't matter what the warranty period is on the box, it is at least a year. Also from what I have gathered so far, 360's seems to the be the only item ever that you can't go directly through the retailer to get fixed. You always seemed to be bounced off to a MS number. Everything else is, bring it in, test, check receipt, exchange for new one off the shelve. Shop RMA's the sucker back for credit. I don't know what happens to the item, but I think most are destroyed or autopsied. I have never seen a "new" item that is actually refurbished. Besides, if an item wasn't new was being sold as new, well, crap hits the fan.

[Smash_Brother]

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Originally posted by: Mr. Jack
My brother's 360 just died a couple days ago and his warranty is supposed to expire in August. I called Microsoft for him and they told me that the system's warranty expired in May and they won't do repairs on the system. Unfortunately my brother's receipt was printed on heat sensitive paper that faded over time and now he has no recourse whatsoever to get his 360 fixed.

Don't they scan serial numbers at the PoS of a system for exactly this reason?

Apple didn't need to see a receipt to know when I purchased my MacBook so I'm confused as to why MS would...

[KDR_11k]

Perhaps it was returned before and they didn't deregister it or the store just scanned the serial whent he thing arrived at the warehouse.

[Nick DiMola]

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Originally posted by: KDR_11k
Perhaps it was returned before and they didn't deregister it or the store just scanned the serial whent he thing arrived at the warehouse.

Exactly. The only reason I would need the receipt would be to back up my claim. Someone somewhere screwed up and now I guess my brother is forced to pay the consequences. Unfortunately they have my brother's information on file now, so he couldn't get away with buying another 360 and dumping the broken one in the box without getting caught (not that I would condone this in any other situation). It's just a frustrating situation and it's completely unfair that the consumer is left to pay the consequences of multiple errors on Microsoft's behalf.

[vudu]

File a complaint with the Better Business Bureau.

[NinGurl69 *huggles]

Who's 360 is next?  GP's or Bill's?

[Flames_of_chaos]

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Originally posted by: Professional 666
Who's 360 is next?  GP's or Bill's?

Phew Pro666 left me off his radar of doom oh shi.....

[SixthAngel]

While not confirmed if you don't want to be be the next to have your system die you should avoid Forza.

[Kairon]

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Originally posted by: SixthAngel
While not confirmed if you don't want to be be the next to have your system die you should avoid Forza.

That's chilling.