ARGH! Repair frustrations

My A500 is slowly dying, and Sprint is doing nothing for me. The other party
sometimes receives choppy sound from me (either due to malfunctioning
microphone or poor signal - I don't know which), my phone reboots itself
every 1 out of 3 times after I close the flip, battery life has degraded by
several hours, and the antenna is slowly coming out of the little port.

I've brought my phone in to my local Sprint PCS store for servicing 3 times
now, and every time they've done nothing but upgrade the firmware/PRL, and
tell me that the phone was working according to specs.

Surely there must be a way to get justice? I can't really live with a broken
phone, and the price of a new Sprint phone is, well, you've seen the prices.

"Alex Song" <song0330@_removeme_comcast.net> wrote in message
news:GXCbc.172840$Cb.1674188@attbi_s51...
> My A500 is slowly dying, and Sprint is doing nothing for me. The other
party
> sometimes receives choppy sound from me (either due to malfunctioning
> microphone or poor signal - I don't know which), my phone reboots itself
> every 1 out of 3 times after I close the flip, battery life has degraded
by
> several hours, and the antenna is slowly coming out of the little port.
>
> I've brought my phone in to my local Sprint PCS store for servicing 3
times
> now, and every time they've done nothing but upgrade the firmware/PRL, and
> tell me that the phone was working according to specs.
>
> Surely there must be a way to get justice? I can't really live with a
broken
> phone, and the price of a new Sprint phone is, well, you've seen the
prices.

Get justice? SPCS doesn't do phone repairs at their stores. They only have
the capability to load up firmware & PRLs. They don't have the parts, nor
the tools to do any repairs. If the phone is still under warranty, and it
fails the diagnostic tests, they will replace the phone. From the
description above, it sounds like you've treated this phone pretty hard ...

As for new phones, if you've had this phone for 18 months and on the same
number, you might qualify for a rebate on a new phone. I don't know whether
SPCS is still offering this deal though. You might check with CS on that.

You can also check out the prices on phones offered through eBay. Before
buying one there though, make sure to get the ESN on the phone, so that you
can check it through SPCS CS to make sure there are no problems, like the
phone was stolen, or there is a prior balance due on the account that phone
was used on.

Bob

Alex Song wrote:

> Surely there must be a way to get justice? I can't really live with a broken
> phone, and the price of a new Sprint phone is, well, you've seen the prices.

I know this is hard to get through to them, but tell them your problem.
Point out their "specs" obviously don't test for this problem. Do what I
did, go to a non-service store and complain to them several times. Since
they have no testing facilities, they might just accept your word that
the phone has problems and needs to be replaced.

In article <GXCbc.172840$Cb.1674188@attbi_s51>,
"Alex Song" <song0330@_removeme_comcast.net> wrote:

> My A500 is slowly dying, and Sprint is doing nothing for me. The other party
> sometimes receives choppy sound from me (either due to malfunctioning
> microphone or poor signal - I don't know which), my phone reboots itself
> every 1 out of 3 times after I close the flip, battery life has degraded by
> several hours, and the antenna is slowly coming out of the little port.
>
> I've brought my phone in to my local Sprint PCS store for servicing 3 times
> now, and every time they've done nothing but upgrade the firmware/PRL, and
> tell me that the phone was working according to specs.
>
> Surely there must be a way to get justice? I can't really live with a broken
> phone, and the price of a new Sprint phone is, well, you've seen the prices.
>
>

There have been postings here that the A500 is one of the phones with
"known issues" that does get replaced upon request, it will not roam
properly. Use that to complain. I have a friend who that was done for.
Either try another store (if one is available) or call Executive
Services 1-866-519-5698. If its still under warranty and Sprint won't
help write to your State's Attorney General with a copy to SprintPCS HQ
in KC.

"Robert M." <rmarkoff@msn.com> wrote in message
news:rmarkoff-9495B9.13010803042004@news6.west.earthlink.net...

>
> There have been postings here that the A500 is one of the phones with
> "known issues" that does get replaced upon request, it will not roam
> properly.

Telling him to lie won't help the problem- he mentioned nothing of roaming
problems.

>Use that to complain. I have a friend who that was done for.
> Either try another store (if one is available) or call Executive
> Services 1-866-519-5698. If its still under warranty and Sprint won't
> help write to your State's Attorney General with a copy to SprintPCS HQ
> in KC.

If it is still under warranty, it is the manufacturer, not the service
provider, who sets the terms of that warranty.

"Scott Stephenson" <scott.stephensonson@adelphia.net> wrote in message
news:6NCdnacmdMJwl_LdRVn-sA@adelphia.com...
>
> "Robert M." <rmarkoff@msn.com> wrote in message
> news:rmarkoff-9495B9.13010803042004@news6.west.earthlink.net...
>
> >
> > There have been postings here that the A500 is one of the phones with
> > "known issues" that does get replaced upon request, it will not roam
> > properly.
>
> Telling him to lie won't help the problem- he mentioned nothing of roaming
> problems.
>

The only roaming problem I have is that the battery is drained quicker
during roaming, but I'm not sure if that's really a problem or not.

> >Use that to complain. I have a friend who that was done for.
> > Either try another store (if one is available) or call Executive
> > Services 1-866-519-5698. If its still under warranty and Sprint won't
> > help write to your State's Attorney General with a copy to SprintPCS HQ
> > in KC.
>
> If it is still under warranty, it is the manufacturer, not the service
> provider, who sets the terms of that warranty.
>
>

Do you know how long the A500 warranty is? I've misplaced my A500 box and
documentation somewhere in here...

In article <9yEbc.61814$gA5.796526@attbi_s03>,
"Alex Song" <song0330@_removeme_comcast.net> wrote:

> Do you know how long the A500 warranty is? I've misplaced my A500 box and
> documentation somewhere in here...

One year, if purchased with a Gold MasterCard or Visa, you may have a
2nd year of warranty through the CreditCard.

"Robert M." <rmarkoff@msn.com> wrote in message
news:rmarkoff-9495B9.13010803042004@news6.west.earthlink.net...
<snipped>
>
> There have been postings here that the A500 is one of the phones with
> "known issues" that does get replaced upon request, it will not roam
> properly.

Absolutely incorrect and and one more lie from Phillipe.

> Use that to complain. I have a friend who that was done for.
> Either try another store (if one is available) or call Executive
> Services 1-866-519-5698. If its still under warranty and Sprint won't
> help write to your State's Attorney General with a copy to SprintPCS HQ
> in KC.

Phillipe, when did you upgrade to the 3 blade Gillette blade? Must be a lot
more smoother to your right palm by now.

Bob

"Alex Song" <song0330@_removeme_comcast.net> wrote in message
news:9yEbc.61814$gA5.796526@attbi_s03...
> "Scott Stephenson" <scott.stephensonson@adelphia.net> wrote in message
> news:6NCdnacmdMJwl_LdRVn-sA@adelphia.com...
> > If it is still under warranty, it is the manufacturer, not the service
> > provider, who sets the terms of that warranty.

> Do you know how long the A500 warranty is? I've misplaced my A500 box and
> documentation somewhere in here...

As far as I know, all Sprint phones carry a 1-year warranty, and Sprint is
the warranty provider who both sets the terms of the warranty and fulfils
it.

In article <kUIcc.3804$lC1.1928@newssvr31.news.prodigy.com> ,
"Lawrence G. Mayka" <lgmayka000@ameritech.net> wrote:

> As far as I know, all Sprint phones carry a 1-year warranty, and Sprint is
> the warranty provider who both sets the terms of the warranty and fulfils
> it.

I thought Tech Geek said that was all determined by the manufacturer.

"Lawrence G. Mayka" <lgmayka000@ameritech.net> wrote in message
news:kUIcc.3804$lC1.1928@newssvr31.news.prodigy.co m...

>
> As far as I know, all Sprint phones carry a 1-year warranty, and Sprint is
> the warranty provider who both sets the terms of the warranty and fulfils
> it.
>
>

Sprint may provide the warranty service, but the manufacturer guarantees the
product. If you look at the User's Guides for each of the phones, one of
the last sections is titled "Manufacturer's Warantee".