my toshiba nightmare
February 12, 2011

I'd been limping along with a Dell XP machine that never seemed to be as fast as I hoped. I decided to try a new brand. I picked out a souped up Toshiba satellite A660 with 6 gigs of ram. Cost me about $1300.00 with the warranty and docking station.

It arrived on December 7. It took me hours and hours to get my software and data transferred. And then, within a week, it started crashing. The hated blue screen of death. I had paid extra for a very fancy two year warranty. I called Toshiba service. After waiting on line for 20 minutes, I finally got some person with barely passable english who insisted that I needed to reformat the machine. This person made no effort whatsoever to find the problem. "That's the only thing that works for the blue screen of death, " she said. Redo all 20 plus hours of work to install everything? Without any guarantee that it would work when I was done?? No thanks. Over then text few weeks I decided to try various software tuneup kind of things, like Glary Utilities, Norton, etc. None of them worked. more blue screens of death. so I tried calling Toshiba again. I insisted on a tech support supervisor. after being put on hold interminably I was told there were none available, but one would call me. yeah, right.
Being the eternal optimist, I waited. I got a call. From customer relations. Not a tech person. I explained my problem. I want someone that will actually try to help my fix my computer, not some b.s. answer like reformat everything.
customer relations: I can't do that. I'm not a tech person
me: why did I get you? I wanted a tech support supervisor.
customer relations: I don't know, but I'll submit a full report.
me: what good will that do me?
customer relations: no good at all.
me: can you get me a tech support supervisor?
cr: hold on, I'll transfer you.

After waiting about 10 minutes on hold, I got a new person. A tech support supervisor? Of course not. Another customer relations person. I got the same non answers, except this one told me there are no tech support supervisors. I did learn that my fancy expensive warranty might be useful if I wanted to drive the computer about 60 miles to a third party repair shop.

So I tried finding someone at Toshiba who would care that the company sucked. I couldn't find anyone to call or email at any kind of headquarters. I finally started sending emails to the anonymous e-service@ toshibadirect.com. I sent this anonymous address a running commentary of my problems.

I got a call!!! someone actually monitors those emails. A nice lady named Jenny. She promised to try and help. got me to (are you ready) another customer relations person. But this person was different. He's a geek. he told me unofficially to run a chkdsk and let him know if the problem was fixed. I did. It wasn't. Jenny called me and told me that they would send me a new computer. GREAT. Problem solved.

So I was contacted by Lauren Pxxxxx. She promised me a new computer. "send back the old one, and you'll get a new one about three weeks later" She sent me an RMA.

Um, you want me to spend 20 hours transferring data from the broken computer to where? wait 3 weeks for a new one, and then spend another 20 hours transferring the files to the new computer? No thank you

I wrote to her:
From: Daniel F... [mailto:daniel@email address.com]
Sent: Wednesday, January 19, 2011 3:17 PM
To: Pxxxx, Lauren
Subject: RE: Exchange

Lauren,

I received an email today with an RMA number. Perhaps I am confused. Are you expecting me to send in the current computer now and wait two weeks for the new one? That will be difficult for me. Even though it crashes on me I’m still using it. I thought I would keep this until the new one arrives, transfer the data, and then send back the old one. If you are expecting me to send in the old one now, that means I have to transfer everything twice. That is a very time consuming process, and normally does not work perfectly under the best of circumstances. I normally use pcmover which costs me about 50.00 for each transfer.

I would prefer to have to do it only once and only pay for one pcmover license.

Please let me know what your expectations are.

Lauren agreed. She sent me an email on January 19.

Hello Daniel,

So they are currently building your computer ~ that way you’ll have it in less that 2 weeks about ten days instead of 3 weeks. You should have your computer before you have to send it back. On the off chance that your new computer doesn’t arrive in time, you can also save all of your files on a cd or external hard drive that can be transferred onto your new computer. Once again, I apologize that you are having to go through this and am doing everything I can to get you the replacement faster.

I continued to limp along with one or two crashes every day. on January 31, I wrote to Lauren again.


Dear Ms. Pxxxx,

I have been limping along with my faulty laptop since you promised to send me a replacement. On January 19 you told me it would be 10 days. It’s now January 31 and my computer just crashed again. This time I can’t get it restarted.

Where is my new computer?

I got no reply.


I wrote to Jenny, my original savior: I copied Lauren.


Hi jenny,

When you first promised me a replacement computer I was very optimistic things would work out. Even though I would have to spend hours transferring everything from the current computer to the new one, and even though I would have to pay for another pcmover license, I figured that was good enough.

My optimism has faded because the new computer has not arrived. My RMA for the old computer has expired. The computer I have still crashes all the time, assuming I can even get it booted up. I sepnd a lot of time looking at the windows startup repair screen.

The last I heard anyting from Toshiba was lauren pxxxx's promise of jan 19 that I would have the computer in 10 days. I wrote to her yesterday or the day before and haven't gotten a reply.

What are you going to do to fix this?


No reply from jenny, either.
I think I wrote one more, got no response, and then this ultimatum on February 7.


Let me make this as clear as I can. I want a full refund or my new computer here by Friday. I don’t care where it comes from or how it gets here. If mine isn’t ready, send me a better one off of the shelf at no additional charge to me. I am tired of losing my work because this thing crashes.

If it is not here, I will sue Toshiba and I will contact every lawyer that I can (which clearly numbers in the thousands given the list servs I am on) as well as everyone on linked in, all technology websites, etc, and tell them how inept you are.

It’s astonishing how poor your service is, how much you lie, and how you don’t care about your customers.

NO response.

yesterday, Friday, at 2:06 I wrote this to Lauren and jenny:

I don’t see a computer or a check here. Do I take it that you are just going to ignore me and that I should start preparing my complaint?

Finally I got a response:

From: Pxxxx, Lauren [mailto:[email protected]]
Sent: February 11, 2011 2:28 PM
To: daniel@email address.com
Subject: RE: computer

Good afternoon Daniel,

Per the return label information that was emailed to you, that label was never used. So unless you used your own shipping to return the computer, we have not yet received it. Did you use your own shipping and if so, what was the tracking number? The only way for us to issue the return credit OR to reissue you a new laptop was if first you returned the computer. Per our original conversation, I said I could book it as a new order to speed up the process if you wanted to do that and you declined.

At this point we need to the rather the tracking number for your return or, I can have a new return label set up to process you a full credit.

Am I crazy???? Didn't she promise to send me a new computer on january 19? This is my reply:

From: Daniel F... [mailto:daniel@email address.com]
Sent: Friday, February 11, 2011 12:45 PM
To: Pxxxx, Lauren
Subject: RE: computer

No. wrong. You said you would have the computer to me in 10 days before my RMA expired. We specifically talked about this and I’ve already sent you a copy of your own email confirming this. You have then ignored the two emails I sent you within the last week asking about this.

Are you telling me you never even started my new computer?
Send me a full refund today. Don’t give me any garbage about needing the computer back first. Your company screwed this up repeatedly, don’t put responsibility on me for your screwups.

If you can’t fix this, find someone who can. TODAY


And this is hers at 5:29 p.m:

I’ve received two emails and responded to both of them, before that the last one I received was on 01/19/2011. I saved a file with your information in it. I could only start building a computer for you with a credit card which is why I left you a voicemail before I went out of town on 01/19/2011. I’ve already requested a return label for your computer so you can be issued a full return. The only way for that to be processed is for you to return the computer. I’ll see you get that as soon as possible to ensure a faster credit. They will not issue you one without returning your computer first.

I apologize that your entire experience has been so negative and had only hoped to make it better per our first conversation. Since that is not the case, I will watch the tracker for your returned computer to ensure you are credited as soon as the factory receives it.

Lauren Pxxxx
Toshiba Direct Sales
877-586-8584 ext 35242
Fax 480-467-6440
________________________________________

so now I've sent her the emails that she claims she never got. And I'm keeping my promise. I'm letting as many people as possible know that Toshiba sucks. The sad thing is, I like the computer. if only it wouldn't crash once or twice a day.