Laptop Issue; What are my Rights?

Mr Jones

Mr Jones

Mr Jones

Soldato
Joined
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Dubai
Hi guys...
Bad news, my (AFAIK) less than 3 year old Acer Aspire 8930 has decided to play up with an annoying fault - The power cord had to be adjusted to get a sweet spot or I'll not be able to charge / power the laptop.

This is currently solved by a rubber band and a constant tension horizontal to the direction of insert.

Anyway, I got this from the Purple shirt down South and I'm wondering what are my Rights to a warranty fix or replacement with them in store up North? I'll need to dig up for the receipt too.

(Bought it in Portsmouth and I currently reside in Hull)

Thanks guys.
 
First check the power supply connector. Is it the type with two prongs inside? These often flex outwards over time, move them back in slightly with a pin, then retry it.

If that doesn't do it, undo the single screw under the power socket and pull the round cover off the end. Undo the two small screws and move the light panel out of the way, then loosen the next two small screws and you can move the power connector around and check for damage. Either the wires have work hardened on the back of the socket (covered with insulation so you can't see it) or the centre pin has come away from the plastic mounting.

Replacement socket is about 3 quid or you can get the entire interior power cable for under a tenner.
 
Less than THREE years old? So between 2 and 3?

I doubt you'll get anything at all - the original warranty has expired and the Aspire is a cheap machine which will be reflected in its build quality and estimated lifespan. Made the mistake of buying one for my sister once - it lasted about 2 years as well before dry joints on the motherboard killed it, seemed like a common issue.
 
Mr Jones said:
Hi guys...
Bad news, my (AFAIK) less than 3 year old Acer Aspire 8930 has decided to play up with an annoying fault - The power cord had to be adjusted to get a sweet spot or I'll not be able to charge / power the laptop.
Click to expand...

I'm having the same problem with the same laptop. It has already been repaired once but because the same fault has occured they will repair it again even though it is out of warranty. I purchased it from somewhere else though.
 
While under the Sale of Goods Act you are entitled to expect goods to last for a reasonable duration (at the courts discretion) having what is a fairly inexpensive laptop for somewhere over 2 years means it has probably fulfilled the obligations on the manufacturer. By all means contact Acer and see if they offer to help out towards repair costs but be aware that it's highly unlikely you'd have any legal rights here so you'd be relying on their goodwill.
 
Sounds like wear and tear to me. I doubt you would get anything on warranty for that. They will provide you a repair cost, but don't expect them to do it for free.
 
Even if they did send it off for repair, it will be sent to plymouth repair centre and will come back with more faults than it went in with. With Acer you're best either trying to find a fix yourself (new power cable?) or binning it and starting again.
 
To me it sounds like the power supply connector is buggered. After constantly using my laptop on uneven surfaces the connector became very broken, exactly the issue you're having with the tension needing to be applied for it to reach that "sweet spot". Go down to an electronics store and see what laptop power supplies they have. It's likely to be the problem, and a much cheaper fix than getting a new laptop, that's for sure.

:Edit: RE: your rights, Acer will probably want you to pay for a new power supply, and in my experience they've always charged a lot more than a 3rd party one costs.
 
Looks like I'm not going to be in luck then :(
Just when I have my holiday booked, issues like these happens.

Will see how long this rubber band can hold before I visit my local PC shot to see if he can fix it for a the cheap... Thanks all!
 
My Grandmother had her Packard Bell laptop break a few weeks ago. After 14 months the motherboard just died and it wouldn't turn on one day.

The big purple high street shop basically told her to get stuffed as it was past the 12 months Packard Bell warranty but through phonecalls to the management she has managed to get half of the money back, about £250.

My dad thinks he could have walked in and demanded a replacement under the Sale of Goods act as it clearly wasn't fit for purpose, but she wanted to sort it out herself.

Should my dad have insisted, do you think they would have swapped it out for a newer equivalent model (as I doubt it was still being sold)?
 
Most common fault/repair done when I worked at a warranty repair center.
But the biggest cause was end user misuse/neglect.

It's something people damage a lot themselves from my experience
Even under warranty, this was not covered by one company at least.
 
Well, definitely not on my part as this laptop is plugged in 99.9% of it's life, it's a Desktop Replacement for me to bring when I go home for Christmas or a fortnight in the Summer :/
 
Robboftw said:
My dad thinks he could have walked in and demanded a replacement under the Sale of Goods act as it clearly wasn't fit for purpose, but she wanted to sort it out herself.

Should my dad have insisted, do you think they would have swapped it out for a newer equivalent model (as I doubt it was still being sold)?
Click to expand...

Entirely depends if your dad was bigger than their security guard :)
 
Wouldn't have made any difference! 12 month warranty's are there for a reason. They couldn't send the laptop back to PB without being charged for a repair anyway so why would they take it out of their own pocket. I used to work at Currys and the amount of customers we told to get stuffed because they've bought back a product after 12 months and it's not working anymore. There's a reason why they sell those extra warranties! Sounds like your dad thought he could have a tantrum in the store and demand a new one back.
 
Get a connector off ebay, solder sucker, 15w soldering iron and a little solder wire. Being a novice it might be a little tricky to take apart the laptop, but with some care it can be done. Usually takes me an hour to 1 1/2hrs per job for a full repair.
 
Semple said:
Wouldn't have made any difference! 12 month warranty's are there for a reason. They couldn't send the laptop back to PB without being charged for a repair anyway so why would they take it out of their own pocket. I used to work at Currys and the amount of customers we told to get stuffed because they've bought back a product after 12 months and it's not working anymore. There's a reason why they sell those extra warranties! Sounds like your dad thought he could have a tantrum in the store and demand a new one back.
Click to expand...

He most certainly wouldn't have had a tantrum about it :p

You could just quite easily argue that if something breaks shortly after 12 months, it isn't fit for purpose.

Surely you have a right to expect something that costs half a grand to last more than 14 months, even if you dont take out extended warranty. Or dont you?
 
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