Path: utzoo!attcan!utgpu!jarvis.csri.toronto.edu!mailrus!iuvax!rutgers!apple!usc!elroy.jpl.nasa.gov!cit-vax!tybalt.caltech.edu!gjh From: gjh@tybalt.caltech.edu (Greg J. Hiscott) Newsgroups: comp.sys.mac Subject: Everex WARNING. Keywords: Everex,Propoint,Abaton,trakball Message-ID: <11305@cit-vax.Caltech.Edu> Date: 18 Jul 89 20:19:14 GMT Sender: news@cit-vax.Caltech.Edu Reply-To: gjh@tybalt.caltech.edu (Greg J. Hiscott) Organization: California Institute of Technology Lines: 162 I am posting this for a co-worker, please reply or post to me. I'd like to inform you of a very frustrating experience in trying to deal with the warranty department of Everex, one of the supposedly respectable brands of equipment. The following three letters will give the details of the interactions I had with a nonresponsive, noncaring company. What isn't said is that all of the contacts ended with the company representative dropping the ball and not following through with their stated actions. If you're thinking about buying any of the Everex or Abaton products, look this over carefully. If you've had any similar experience, please reply. EVER for EXcellence 48431 Milmont Drive Fremont, CA 94538 Re: Your Return Authorization Number 31485-E, your customer code LAR036 Dear sirs: What's in a name? EVEREX, and the slogan behind it, are a commendable policy to claim, and a tough one to live up to. To always uphold a standard of excellence requires knowledge, wisdom, resources, and the continuing commitment to perform at your best. I'd like to suggest some areas needing your attention, on a management level. Last November, I received a Abaton Propoint trackball from a mail order supplier, Telemart, of Phoenix, AZ. I wasn't able to try it out until December 12, when my Mac II finally arrived. You can probably imagine my disappointment when the cursor froze on the monitor during the first evening of operation. When I took the Mac II back to my dealer for repair, it needed a new logic board: the dealer replaced it under warranty; they would not check out my trackball, since it was purchased elsewhere. On December 14 (after seeing proper operation at the dealer's), I hooked everything up and tried it again. This time, the cursor was frozen from the start; later inspection at the dealer revealed the new logic board was damaged. Actual damage was likely a $1 fuse, soldered in place (!) which, according to Apple policy, is not field replaceable. Apple would not cover the replacement expenses under warranty, as they felt the damage was not caused by their equipment. Due to the fact that my dealer did not have a second spare board and delivery was ordered over the holidays, the second repair was not made until a new spare was received from Apple, on January 16. My cost for the repair was $237. Using only the Apple mouse, operation after repair was normal. In the meantime, I had telephoned your service number on December 17, 19, and 29, attempting to get a return authorization number so that I could get the trackball checked out. Your 8 am-5 pm hours on your "hot line" and lack of a toll-free number make it difficult to communicate. It's tough to have to call from work; when the phone was answered by a recording, and I got put on hold for what seemed to be an inordinate period of time (at California's high business hour rates), I lost what little respect I had for the name, "EVEREX". I finally did make contact (after sending a letter), received a RA number from Ramona on the 29th, and shipped the unit back (complete with letter, box, and paperwork) on December 30. I received a replacement trackball on January 31, with no report of what you found. Worse yet, the replacement trackball was shipped without its original box or paperwork; it looks suspicously like someone else's reject. When I got around to trying it out on February 1, my fears were confirmed: after only 10-15 minutes of operation, the cursor started "sliding" down the page in jerks. I tried to quit the application and shut down, but could not adequately control the cursor. The switch on the back of the Mac II would not shut the unit down, and I pulled the plug to power down so that I could remove the trackball. Upon restart with the mouse, operation was back to normal and has been since. I do not want to keep the trackball: I demand a refund of my cost of $85. I would be happy to ship it back, along with copies of whatever documentation you need to confirm the facts. I also would like for you to consider reimbursing me for my costs of replacing the logic board. I feel that I have been patient with your system, and you have not performed. I have access to Usernet, and would like to point out that your name is on the line. Sincerely, Larry K. Jones EVER for EXcellence March 20, 1989 48431 Milmont Drive Fremont, CA 94538 Re: Your Return Authorization Number 31485-E, your customer code LAR036, my letter to you of 4 February, 1989 (attached) Dear sirs: It has been six weeks since I sent the referenced letter to you, and I have not received any word that you have received it. Assuming that you did not receive it, I am enclosing an additional copy and will delay any action in small claims court for two weeks while awaiting your response. Judging from past experience, I believe that you probably have received my letter and are ignoring it, but I'll give you the benefit of the doubt. EVER for EXcellence? You've got to be kidding; I've yet to see any evidence of interest from you in your product's performance or your customers' satisfaction. Sincerely, Larry K. Jones Office of the Attorney General Public Inquiry Unit PO Box 944255 Sacramento, CA 94244-2550 17 July 1989 Subject: Complaint of treatment by Everex Systems, Inc., regarding their Abatron Propoint trackball (computer curser control) Dear sirs: The attached letters from last February and March will give you background information on my complaint. Instead of pursuing any small claims action, I again tried telephone contact in early April, talking with Mosella Harris, the assistant manager of customer service, and Ramona Coletta, of technical support. Ms. Harris informed me that since I had not purchased the trackball directly from Everex, they could not reimburse me for the purchase. Telemart, the dealer I purchased it from, has a policy of no warranty service. EverexUs warranty service (for products purchased from a dealer) is limited to replacement, which was very poorly done, in my case. I was placed in a Catch 22 situation, being sent (apparently) someone elseUs reject, which nearly caused a repeat of the logic board failure. Ms. Coletta does not appear to be interested in solving the technical problem; she has not asked the basic questions of what models of keyboard and monitor were being used, and admitted that no tests were made of the unit I sent back. To me, this is not a valid warranty response, but is a fraudulent practice. Can you give me any hope for satisfaction? Short of that, I would at least like to inform the rest of the world of the dangers of purchasing Everex products. To that end, these three letters are being published on "Usernet", a nationwide electronic mail network of commercial and collegiate computer users. Thank you for considering my case. +-------+ Greg Hiscott gophers = gophers - 7; +-------+ |+-----+| gjh@ligo.caltech.edu |+-----+| ||[===]|| Phone:(818)356-2974 ||[===]|| |+-----+| USPS:Caltech, 102-33, Pasadena, CA 91125 |+-----+| +-------+ FAX:(818)304-9834 +-------+