[chconline]

So I was having issues with my T400 again. I just can't stand the amount of keyboard imprints on my screen, and there's about a week left of warranty so I decided to call in and see what they can do. Following what happened last year, I really didn't expect much from them since this is kind of like a 'wear issue' rather than defective (But also a design problem, although I never really heard anyone complain about this)

Therefore I called in today, and someone, who does have a slight accent, picked up a phone really quickly. I can clearly hear him speak though, and was extremely polite the entire time, unlike the previous incidents of me with Lenovo support.

So I complained that I have permanent marks on the LCD screen, but I didn't state what I wanted them to do. The guy was extremely polite and after a quick hold he got a case number for me and said that he would get them to replace the LCD screen for me I told him to note that there might be loose things under the keyboard that MIGHT be pushing the keyboard into the LCD, so it's important that this doesn't happen again so I wanted the tech to check if all the cables and components are fine underneath the hood. So he put me on a quick hold, and not only that, he said that he would get the keyboard replaced as well as getting everything checked out to make sure it's fine. Talk about being helpful! (I did tell him my keyboard is just fine, and wanted to just check if the stuff underneath the keyboard is not dislodged since I travel with my T400 a whole lot)

He also gave me the option of whether I want to ship it into the service depot or drop it off to a local outsourced service person, which I never got last time. I asked him which one is better, and he patiently outlined everything and the details along with ship dates and stuff. I said I wanted to ship it in and he doesn't have a problem with that, and like Dell I don't need to pay for shipping either since they will get me a box via Purolator

We'll see how this works out, but generally speaking my impressions are changing for the better.

If they do it right this time, I would not have a problem buying a Lenovo again -- my T400 is solid stuff. The Samsung screen is crap, but hey, fingers crossed I would get an LG this time If not, I got nothing to lose.

[redeemed]

Woah Kinda restores your faith in Lenovo, eh? Anyway, it's nice that it worked out well in the end, and that you finally have a nice experience (so far) with Lenovo's customer service

[chconline]

Yeah, haha. I had to admit my T400 despite its screen fault is by far my favorite laptop of all times. It's subtly beautiful, and doesn't attract attention at all. Yet it has excellent processing power that surprises many by its 20 year old classic Thinkpad look It's relatively slim and light, feels amazing, and has incredible battery life. Most laptops would send you wanting for a new one after a year or so. I think I will keep this one for at least 1 or 2 years.

Here's a picture of the screen mark problem:



It's especially evident when you're watching a movie with dark scenes or something with pure white background.

[shc-boomer]

Good to know Lenovo support has improved. Well at least in this experience.

[redeemed]

Yeah that looks rather annoying haha.

And yep lol, gotta love the classic stealth/under-the-radar Lenovo stylings

That's a nice change by Lenovo, willingly fixing a wear issue (i.e. not an original defect), as opposed to screwing up the LCD replacement in the beginning Let us know how it goes, yo.

So, on the basis of your experience, would you generally recommend Lenovo to people? (I mean the whole thing, from warranties to build quality to customer service; the whole experience)

[chconline]

I always have -- I buy laptops for their excellence, and not necessarily for their warranty ALL the time... I rather have a laptop that works rather than something that breaks all the time and gets good warranty. Plus I never pay for extended warranty so I want it to last.

Time to pick up some Pentium III stickers I'm going to use my Dell Inspiron 1501 for the time being, haha. I slapped a series of upgrades from my dead Inspiron 6400 since it has mostly all the same parts anyway.

[TL6MT]

Sounds like great support. Hope you get the LG panel.

Looks like Dell quality support - hope you get a LG.

[chconline]

Sure is. I got the box yesterday as promised, along with a sheet that you can fill in that you can highlight what the problem is (In addition to the case number put in by the tech support). So I put a note down saying if you can put the LG panel in with the X part number it would be nice, if not that's fine. Anyways I removed the hard drive, battery, and AC adapter and it's going to be on the way. I just upgraded my Dell Inspiron 1501 to Windows Vista since I got a whole stack of extra licenses along with some leftover parts from my dead Dell Inspiron 6400 -- which uses the same chassis by the way -- to make it perform better.

[Big Bang]

I wouldn't be able to stand that Screen either, but knowing Lenovo I'm pretty surprised they actually covered that under Regular Warranty ... let us know how the rma goes.

[chconline]

I shipped it today via Purolator Air. It should take around 1 to 2 days to get to Toronto. Hopefully they'll repair it fast and I'll get it back next week

[shc-boomer]

Let's hope it doesn't get bogged down at the depot. Obviously nothing will happen today, but maybe you can get it back by Monday or Tuesday.

[chconline]

Let's hope they have Dell level service

Actually speaking of which, it's shipped to a company called Flextronics... which I believe is the same company that handles Dell repairs, and they're very fast last time.

[TL6MT]

Oh I never knew they outsource repairs. Think you can still get your LCD replaced with LG?

[chconline]

It depends what Lenovo provides them with. It's probably just pure luck. Anyway I hope I get it back by tomorrow

[TL6MT]

I would bet that you miss your T400 a lot by now.

[chconline]

Pretty much haha. Rather than going through 15% battery in each lecture section with WiFi on and max brightness, now it's 50% with my Inspiron 1501.

[chconline]

Update: Got it back today. They delivered it at 8:13pm

Still the Samsung panel, but at least it's fixed. No keyboard replacement though, and they didn't even check under the hood. Lazy techs.

[shc-boomer]

So, sounds like the same old case eh? Great phone support, then in-house and/or outsourced service is fail.

[chconline]

Meh, maybe the tech didn't even put it down. So I just checked underneath the keyboard and retightened all the screws. Still a solid laptop as always, you won't believe how much I missed it when I was using it at school. The clean screen (Now calibrated with Windows 7 for MUCH better color, for some reason my previous calibrations made the Samsung screen still ugly), the excellent keyboard, and the performance, plus the smoothness of Windows 7. And all my files. I love my Lenovo T400.

[Big Bang]

It's good enough, speedy service is awesome - the chc can look under the Keyboard himself it's nothing that he cannot do.