T500 Problems and experiences with Lenovo's technical support / EZServ

Question

After some issues and numerous calls to Lenovo's Technical Support, I just thought I would share my experiences here.
First off, I currently own a ThinkPad T500, which was designed to be a replacement for my older ASUS laptop.
While the ASUS laptop is still running okay, I have had a hard time trying to get the company to properly warranty the laptop. (they would make falsified claims that nothing is wrong with the laptop, so that they would not have to replace any parts - and when they do replace parts, they would simply create another problem and totally ignore the described problem.) The experiences were so stressful and disgusting such that I am sick of arguing with the company any further. My decision on the ThinkPad was based on that IBM/Lenovo is designed to serve business class customers and theoretically should have "business-class support". For this very reason, I have added the best warranty service they was offered to me at the time (3yr onsite + accidental). I am just guessing at that time I just wanted to get away from small companies and go to a company that would back their customers' laptops.
As soon as I got my hands on a T500, however, I have noticed that something is wrong with the card reader. Apparently the reader on the machine would not read SDHC cards (it does read SD cards, however.) This is a problem because I only use SDHC cards and the machine was not able to read any of them. As the card reader controller is manufactured by the same manufacturer (Ricoh) and my older ASUS laptop was able to read SDHC cards, I thought something odd was going on with my machine. This was also based on the evidence that other T500 owners were able to read SDHC just fine.
In addition to the card reader, I was also having troubles in which the machine would freeze whenever Nero Burning ROM (a CD/DVD authoring software) is used.
My first support call to Lenovo was not that pleasant, given that I was placed on hold for 20 minutes when the rep was looking up specs for SHDC compatibility. The rep also said that they would not troubleshoot 3rd party software and would not help me on the issue. I was also told that I should also call back during "regular business hours (apparently until 5pm EST, or 2pm PST (my time)" (despite that the technical support hotline is open 24/7) so that a supervisor can handle my case. This makes it very difficult for me to get to someone with any authority as I am usually busy throughout the day until late afternoons (~4pm PST -> 7pm EST).
Nevertheless, my second call to Lenovo was much more pleasant. The rep handled my case in a timely fashion and promptly provided replacement parts indicated by my problem. (Onsite motherboard replacement for the card reader, and a separate shipment for the DVD-RW drive). Turns out that the motherboard replacement did fix the SDHC issue, although the freezing problem was not caused by hardware failures, but rather a faulty driver that was corrected after Lenovo released an update months later on the Intel SATA controller drivers.
Five months later, after having to use a broadband WWAN card for my work, I also started to notice there is something wrong with the broadband WWAN card. The card used is the Ericsson F3507g card (or the AT&T broadband WWAN option). Not only would the connection be very flaky, it would also drop connections fairly frequently. It seems that a SIM card pull to another card would result in a perfect connection and ever since I have been using an addon card instead to use the Internet. When I confronted Lemovo with the problem, the experience was worse than the first one. I have made at least six service calls to Lenovo and everytime the reps will waste my time with basic troubleshooting which I told them repeatedly that I have already done (I have even reinstalled the OS but it seems that it does not matter to the reps). Here are some things that are repeated over and over:
1) Can you uninstall the Power Manager Driver and the Wireless WAN drivers and reinstall them?
2) Can you go on to our website and download the WWAN drivers (document ID: MIGR-70000 - I even remembered this number since it was repeated so many times) - and the Power Manager Driver and reinstall it?
3) Can you go to Device Manager (the rep would go step by step to it even though I told him I already know how to get there), and see if there are any "bangs" (exclamation marks) on any of the devices?
4) Since you were able to connect to the AT&T network, then from the hardware standpoint there is nothing wrong with your card. This indicates there is a software configuration or a driver problem. (I have been trying to acquire the latest drivers but what I have was already the latest)
5) Since your card could connect to the network, you should contact your provider for help. (AT&T blames it on the card)
6) I'm sorry but there is nothing I can do to help you. You should contact your provider about the card (despite that I acquired the card from Lenovo and not from them)
7) Are you sure that your card is activated properly? It doesn't show in our systems that the card has been activated properly. You will need to call both AT&T and the Lenovo activation hotline (whatever this is) to have your card work properly. (I have never heard of this before)
Despite telling these reps I have an addon card that works perfectly and that I have done all the basic troubleshooting already, none of them are really willing to give me a replacement card. They would either request that I send my computer back to the depot (which I do not want to do since I use this laptop everyday and that's why I have onsite warranty), fail to help me, or transfer me to someone else that makes me do all the troubleshooting all over again. (Every call I made to Lenovo can be said to be composed of at least 20 minutes of basic troubleshootings with the end result of not being able to help)
After having the case escalated to a team leader, I was told that someone would give me a call within a few hours since their team leader is with another customer. Result? No callbacks. Not within a day, nor two.
Called Lenovo again, they apologized, but samething happened - supervisor on the line - promised another callback by a supervisor - but nothing, nada!
Called Lenovo a third time - was again told the same thing, but I am not falling for that anymore - the rep finally agreed to give me a replacement, as well as as to send out a technician that would fix the LCD cover that is starting to get loose on one side.
At that time, I was so frustrated and this reminds me of the pain I have went through with my old ASUS laptop and their grumpy customer service. It just seems to me that it has to be that difficult to have anything resolved or fixed. (What is especially frustrating is that the basic reps do not have any authority to make any decisions, 90% of the time I will need to be transferred to a supervisor of some sort before my case can be handled successfully - which is hard at times given that I only have until 2pm PST to call them)
Received replacement, but did not fix issue. I have noticed that the GPS (which was part of the WWAN card) also has problems getting adequate signals for a 3D Fix. I have once again called Lenovo, this time raising the concerns with the GPS and seeking for help. Along with the basic troubleshooting, here is what Lenovo has to say about the GPS issue which frustrates me even more:
1) uh, G..P..S? what GPS? (most reps I call say this, shows me that they either don't know what a GPS is or know that there is a dedicated GPS builtin on the Ericsson module. Perhaps they don't even know that ThinkVantage GPS existed)
2) You will need to have active service in order to use GPS (I do have active service, but nevertheless that statement is false since a 3D fix can be successfully acquired with a dummy card - I guess the rep has no idea what he/she was talking about)
3) That's a software issue - you need to call AT&T and tell them about the problem (Again, I guess the rep has no idea that the GPS is not linked to AT&T's networks - there is a dedicated GPS on the card that allows the ThinkVantage GPS tool to acquire proper GPS signals) (Also, why would AT&T troubleshoot a tool that Lenovo made called ThinkVantage GPS? - I don't get it)
4) You need to uninstall, and then reinstall the Power Manager driver and also the latest WWAN drivers. (I did that, did not work - I have told them I even reinstalled the OS from scratch)
5) You need to go uninstall, and then reinstall the Wireless LAN drivers (although I am talking about wireless WAN, not LAN)
6) There are two wireless adapters in your laptop? Are you sure about this?
7) LAN, or WAN? What are you referring to? (I guess some reps are not aware what WWAN means)
After dealing with the numerous reps that have no idea what I was talking about, I have decided that I would just take the machine into depot, which would give me a chance to explain the other issues I have with the machine as well.
Here are some of the issues I am having with my T500 right now (please comment if you have the same issues or perhaps have a possible solution/workaround for it)
1. The left side of the LCD cover has a pressure point, which causes the cover to dislodge from the rest of the panel slightly when pressure is applied from the back side of the cover. (Could be caused by closing the lid, for example) - IBM technician applied some adhesive to the inside, which helped it from dislodging, although the left side is still a little filmsy compared to the right.
2. This error randomly pops up at infrequent intervals: "Display driver igfx stopped responding and has successfully recovered."
The latest GFX driver is installed and all updates have been installed. OS has been reinstalled but problems still occurs infrequently.
3. This error also pops up at infrequent intervals: "Active protection is not functioning as system detected the abnormal sensor status. To diagnose the sensor device, run PC DOCTOR DOS - HDD Active Protection Test and if it still shows, contact Help and Service for repair." The only problem is, my laptop only came installed with PC Doctor 5 for Windows and when I run it"
I ran a sensor check in DOS using the diagnostic CD and the sensor checked out okay. This error seems to happen mostly after I changed a setting in the Active Protection System software. (ex. changing the suspend time, etc)
4. By default, the internal microphone does not work. In order for the internal microphone to work, the Advanced multi-stream mode must be enabled in the SmartAudio control panel. If both redirection options are enabled, the internal microphones and the speakers would then work normally. However, the hotkey controls on the ThinkPad would not control the right device when headphones are plugged in (since headphones are classified as its own device when the Advanced stream mode is enabled) - Mute and volume controls thus only controls the internal speakers' volume, and have no control whatsoever when headphones are plugged in.
5. The brightness on the T500 is rather dim. I am not sure if that's how the monitor is, but I can hardly see anything unless the display brightness is close to the max setting. I have the 1680x1050 matte screen.
6. The WWAN card does not make a stable connection to the network and ThinkVantage GPS does not acquire a 3D Fix even when under direct sky for >20 minutes. What is interesting though is that if I turn off the monitor screen (Fn+F3) or close to lid, the WWAN connection will be very stable and GPS will function normally (acquire fix usually within 2-3 minutes). If the monitor/screen is turned back on after a GPS Fix is acquied, the signals will quickly deteriorate and the updates will either become delayed/inaccurate or a fix will be lost. The brighter the screen, the harder it is to get a fix or a stable connection. (At the max setting it is almost impossible to get a fix while at the lowest brightness a very weak fix can be acquired - this is the case even many sattelites have been detected) Perhaps something with power consumption? Or the LCD drawing too much power?
7. Although it does not happen very frequently, pressing Fn+F3 to turn off the display might cause the LCD to flicker on and off non-stop.
8. This used to happen more with the older version of the Lenovo Fingerprint Software - but sometimes the software tends to get stuck at the welcome screen after returning from sleep/suspend/standby mode. The screen will remain at Please Wait forever and a hard restart will be required to get back into Windows.
9. At frequent intervals the sound from the internal speakers would stop working and only the headphones would work. The sound might, however, come back if I leave the headphones plugged in long enough and unplug them. Restarting the Windows Audio service will temporarily restore audio but the same issue tends to happen again soon after that. Driver issue? (I am not sure if it's relevant, but I tend to put my computer to sleep instead of shutting it down)
I have explained all of these issues on a piece of paper that I have included in my shipment to Flextronics. I have also included in big letters to make sure that they do not send the laptop to the address where they originally sent the "box" to. This is because I am only at that address a few days during the year and I don't plan to be there most days during the year.
On the first day, it seemed that the status changed from "Machine being repaired" to "Hold for customer information".
Apparently I missed a call from a number with an area code of 901 (which is Memphis, TN - I assume this is Lenovo's support center, since this is where the package was sent to). No messages were left on the voicemail. Called the number back, but was however told that I dialed the wrong number and no one has ever called me on this number (the lady on the phone was quite rude too) I then called the 800 EZServ number instead, turns out that they wanted one of my passwords which I gave them.
The evening after I saw that the machine was successfully repaired and that it is being shipped back to me. However, no tracking number was provided. (There still isn't a tracking number on the EZServ status page)
Hoping that my machine was repaired in good condition, I took a day off so I would be able to wait for UPS to deliver my laptop.
Such that I have something to work with, I called the EZServ # and see if they had a tracking number for my shipment. At the same time, I asked what components were replaced and/or what components were installed to the system. To my surprise, they reimaged the whole system and I was not even informed about this at all! (I do understand I checked the Yes box in the problem description page, but I felt that it was important that the repair center let their customers know before their data will be destroyed - luckily I imaged my laptop right before I shipped it out so I have a copy of my data) In addition, it also seemed that they did not read any of the pages I enclosed in the shipment since nothing about the WWAN card was ever mentioned, despite special emphasis placed on this when I called Lenovo to have my computer sent back. It seemed that the rep only recorded one of the problems I listed above, which was unsatisfactory.
The repair process was disappointing, as I have included in my problem description that I have previously tried reinstalling the whole OS from scratch and the problems did not go away. Reimaging the system will also probably have no effect on the problems I have described in the problem description.
What is more surprising to me though was that they totally skipped the notation I put on to have the notebook shipped to an alternate address relative to the box address. To make this impossible to miss, I miss drew a big * and circled it many times so that anyone would see it if they were reading the sheet. I found out shortly after checking on the UPS website that the city the package was being shipped to was that of the wrong address, and not the city of that of the alternate address. I was horrified after knowing that the package would not arrive today but yet I still took a day off work. (How disappointing?!)
Again and again, I called EZServ to see if I can have the package intercepted so it can be delivered to the right address. An intercept was placed on the package, although I received a call 30 minutes later from UPS saying that the intercept failed since the package has already been delivered. UPS also told me there is no way the people living there can simply return it and continue on with the intercept. Not happy with what I am hearing, I called EZServ and see if they can set up a pickup request to have the package delivered to my address. The first rep hanged up on me shortly she answered. The second rep called UPS, placed me on hold for more than 20 minutes, then hanged up on me. The third rep called UPS, and told me that they have esculated the case and that "UPS will handle everything", whatever that means. (she refused to disclose any more details). She told me that I would be receiving a call from her shortly on the details on the upcomings and promised that I would be receiving my laptop back. As with Lenovo, I didn't receive any callbacks. I called EZServ once more, and all they would say is tell me to wait. Sick and tired of waiting and calling and not getting anywhere, I drove 100 miles to where they shipped my laptop and picked it up there. I just don't know whether to trust the EZServ people anymore....
As far as the laptop goes, I didn't have time to open the box or to test it yet. But I will let you all know once I have taken a look at the results.
While the past experiences have been painful, I haven't lost all hope in Lenovo yet - although I really think that the customer service can really improve on certain levels.
Please give me advices on what to do next!
Thanks for reading this!
Message Edited by swg0101 on 04-04-2009 11:02 AM

Answer 1

Swg0101
Thanks for sharing your details - it seems like we should focus on recovery of your system at this point.
I've sent you a PM - I'll look for your private message response with your contact information and case details so we can look into this and get you some help.
Best regards,
Mark
ThinkPads: S30, T43, X60t, X1, W700ds, IdeaPad Y710, IdeaCentre: A300, IdeaPad K1
Mark Hopkins
Program Manager, Lenovo Social Media (Services)
twitter @lenovoforums
English Community   Deutsche Community   Comunidad en Español   Русскоязычное Сообщество