# Samsung's warranty service - worse than you ever could possibly imagine



## stuff_it (Aug 26, 2015)

Three weeks of failing to get back to me or do anything, only to find that they hadn't updated my number and wouldn't deal with the awesome level of malware it's now bed infested with because it's their "policy" to force me to pay £110 for a new camera lens cover. 

The lens pretty much spontaneously exploded on a hot day = something I hear is common for Samsung to refuse to repair.


----------



## bi0boy (Aug 26, 2015)

Your camera is infested with malware because they forced you to pay for a lens cover when the lens exploded


----------



## Ted Striker (Aug 26, 2015)

No wonder - You've bought a fake - The real deal will have their products labelled 'Samsung' HTH


----------



## wtfftw (Aug 26, 2015)

They popped round and repaired my Samsung TV for free when it was out of warranty.


----------



## editor (Aug 26, 2015)

*thread title edited


----------



## Johnny Doe (Aug 26, 2015)

editor said:


> *thread title edited


Ted Striker 's post rendered weird


----------



## sim667 (Aug 26, 2015)

Everything I've ever read about samsung customer services has said its just terrible.


----------



## Johnny Doe (Aug 26, 2015)

sim667 said:


> Everything I've ever read about samsung customer services has said its just terrible.


I heard Smasungs's is even worse!


----------



## sim667 (Aug 26, 2015)

Harry Smiles said:


> I heard Smasungs's is even worse!



Just out of interest, why are you choosing to be a dick about a typo?


----------



## Johnny Doe (Aug 26, 2015)

sim667 said:


> Just out of interest, why are you choosing to be a dick about a typo?


Just in a silly mood  - was mucking around rather than trying to piss you off. 

Apologies!


----------



## sim667 (Aug 26, 2015)

Harry Smiles said:


> Just in a silly mood  - was mucking around rather than trying to piss you off.
> 
> Apologies!



No probs.... but you may want to consider that there may be dyslexic users etc who can't help their spelling, and making multiple posts about a basic typo is a bit off..... One post as a joke maybe..... pointing it out more than once..... nah.


----------



## Crispy (Aug 26, 2015)

Also, Pickman's already has that job and he's got a very good union.


----------



## editor (Aug 26, 2015)

sim667 said:


> Everything I've ever read about samsung customer services has said its just terrible.


They can't be worse than Sony, can they? 

Their guarantee reads: in case of a problem we shall just shrug our shoulders repeatedly until you go away. Via a premium line. Have a nice day.


----------



## Johnny Doe (Aug 26, 2015)

sim667 said:


> No probs.... but you may want to consider that there may be dyslexic users etc who can't help their spelling, and making multiple posts about a basic typo is a bit off..... One post as a joke maybe..... pointing it out more than once..... nah.



Good point. Will consider in future.


----------



## sim667 (Aug 26, 2015)

editor said:


> They can't be worse than Sony, can they?
> 
> Their guarantee reads: in case of a problem we shall just shrug our shoulders repeatedly until you go away. Via a premium line. Have a nice day.



I think the last sony thing I bought was a walkman


----------



## krtek a houby (Aug 26, 2015)

I've had my model for less than 2 years and since last week I have to charge it up every day. It was at 100% at 8.30 this morning; it's now at 80%


----------



## sim667 (Aug 26, 2015)

krtek a houby said:


> I've had my model for less than 2 years and since last week I have to charge it up every day. It was at 100% at 8.30 this morning; it's now at 80%



Thats reasonably standard for a smart phone isn't it?

Im on 71% after taking my iPhone 6 off charge at 8.30....

Ive been using it quite a bit.


----------



## Manter (Aug 26, 2015)

krtek a houby said:


> I've had my model for less than 2 years and since last week I have to charge it up every day. It was at 100% at 8.30 this morning; it's now at 80%


As its a recent change I'd check your apps. Eg Twitter has turned auto play back on recently if you've turned it off.


----------



## krtek a houby (Aug 26, 2015)

Manter said:


> As its a recent change I'd check your apps. Eg Twitter has turned auto play back on recently if you've turned it off.



I don't do apps or use the internet on my phone; I could - but I choose not to.



sim667 said:


> Thats reasonably standard for a smart phone isn't it?
> 
> Im on 71% after taking my iPhone 6 off charge at 8.30....
> 
> Ive been using it quite a bit.



I haven't used mine today. I might use it to make calls two or three times a week, max. And texts maybe one or two a day, max.


----------



## editor (Aug 26, 2015)

krtek a houby said:


> I've had my model for less than 2 years and since last week I have to charge it up every day. It was at 100% at 8.30 this morning; it's now at 80%


Can you not just change the battery? They all start to lose their charge.


----------



## FridgeMagnet (Aug 26, 2015)

Given that Samsung do make Android cameras it would technically be possible for one to get infested with malware.

I've not heard of this happening because of the lack of a lens cap but, you know, maybe that's where the viruses get in.


----------



## editor (Aug 26, 2015)

FridgeMagnet said:


> Given that Samsung do make Android cameras it would technically be possible for one to get infested with malware.
> 
> I've not heard of this happening because of the lack of a lens cap but, you know, maybe that's where the viruses get in.


It depends where you place the lens hood.


----------



## krtek a houby (Aug 26, 2015)

editor said:


> Can you not just change the battery? They all start to lose their charge.



Yeah; guess I didn't expect it to happen so soon. It was fine and then it wasn't. If I go to my local service provider will they have batteries or do they have to order them in, do you think?


----------



## FridgeMagnet (Aug 26, 2015)

editor said:


> It depends where you place the lens hood.


Plus you should use an AV filter of course.


----------



## Blagsta (Aug 26, 2015)

Manufacturer's warranties are pointless. Sale of Goods Act is what you want, take the issue up with whoever sold it to you.


----------



## sim667 (Aug 26, 2015)

editor said:


> It depends where you place the lens hood.


especially if its on backward


----------



## editor (Aug 26, 2015)

krtek a houby said:


> Yeah; guess I didn't expect it to happen so soon. It was fine and then it wasn't. If I go to my local service provider will they have batteries or do they have to order them in, do you think?


Batteries cost fuck all on line.


----------



## beesonthewhatnow (Aug 26, 2015)

stuff_it said:


> Three weeks of failing to get back to me or do anything, only to find that they hadn't updated my number and wouldn't deal with the awesome level of malware it's now bed infested with because it's their "policy" to force me to pay £110 for a new camera lens cover.
> 
> The lens pretty much spontaneously exploded on a hot day = something I hear is common for Samsung to refuse to repair.


If it has malware on just do a factory reset, surely?


----------



## Ted Striker (Aug 26, 2015)

Blagsta said:


> Manufacturer's warranties are pointless. Sale of Goods Act is what you want, take the issue up with whoever sold it to you.



^This. I don't think I've ever relied on a manufacturers warranty tbh.


----------



## Mojofilter (Aug 28, 2015)

Sorry if I'm being dense but what has paying for a lens cover got to do with being infested with malware?


----------



## Tankus (Aug 28, 2015)

I like Samsung stuff....!


----------



## stuff_it (Aug 29, 2015)

They won't deal with the malware or look at why it keeps locking me out because the camera cover is broken. Broken spontaneously on a hot day - a problem that has occurred with s5's and s6's.


----------



## mauvais (Aug 29, 2015)

What phone is it? I haven't got my mitts on anything past an S4 but on this and its predecessors it's not that difficult to fix both problems yourself. Obviously that would void warranty.


----------



## FridgeMagnet (Aug 29, 2015)

There is a vanishingly small amount of malware on Android. I don't think any of this is to do with malware.


----------



## stuff_it (Aug 30, 2015)

FridgeMagnet said:


> There is a vanishingly small amount of malware on Android. I don't think any of this is to do with malware.


Three layers of screens on top of one another constantly popping up then hidden versions of Skype changing my passwords etc...

Surely the point of having a brand new flagship model is they are meant to deal with this shit for you?


----------



## existentialist (Aug 30, 2015)

stuff_it said:


> Three layers of screens on top of one another constantly popping up then hidden versions of Skype changing my passwords etc...
> 
> Surely the point of having a brand new flagship model is they are meant to deal with this shit for you?


Anyone who's spent any time in the computer biz over the last 40 years will know different 

I think we forget just how hideously complex these things are, and when you start getting interactions between different bits of 3rd party software, it gets pretty close to emergent property territory.

So yeah, perhaps the point of having a brand new flagship model *is* that this shit gets dealt with. In practice, they're probably only 2 pages further ahead in the book than you are, and equally flummoxed by what's going on. All you can do is live with it.

And do what I do, which is to stay a fair way back from the bleeding edge - I bought my Galaxy S3 when they'd been out for a year or two, and I'm still using it now. I like shiny new things, but not enough to a) be prepared to pay early adopter prices for them, or b) put up with the teething troubles.


----------



## Chz (Aug 30, 2015)

I've owned enough Samsung items over the years, so I feel I can offer a general opinion of them overall.

1- Samsung makes good hardware. Sometimes, even great hardware (their tellys are certainly better than most at the price). Even the crummy, bottom spec stuff is put together reasonably well.

2- Samsung makes awful software/UI. Whether it's their android skin or the remote for their BD players, it seems like no-one tested it on the public before finalizing the design. (To be fair, Sony is the fucking master of making useless telly remotes though)

3- Samsung after-sales support is... Well, fairly average in the Consumer Electronics space. No-one will listen to you. They will run through a script, and you will have to jump through its hoops. But then all is said and done, if it's still broke they'll usually repair/replace it. At an inconvenient time, probably make you pay some shipping, but again that's standard in the CE space these days. 

Taking 1 and 3 into account, just buy from a reputable shop that will handle this bullshit for you. I bought the Samsung telly off Amazon. When the remote died, Amazon said "We don't stock spares. We can pass you on to Samsung, or we  can give you £50 credit to just buy another one." Replacements cost £20. Problem solved.


----------



## magneze (Aug 30, 2015)

That pretty much ties up with my experience too. Generally very good hardware but their software is some of the worst I've encountered and that seems to go all the way through their productlines weirdly.


----------



## existentialist (Aug 30, 2015)

magneze said:


> That pretty much ties up with my experience too. Generally very good hardware but their software is some of the worst I've encountered and that seems to go all the way through their productlines weirdly.


I only started buying Samsung phones again (after a disaster of a pre-smartphone) because Android wasn't Samsung software. They have an incredible record in shit software.


----------



## magneze (Aug 30, 2015)

existentialist said:


> I only started buying Samsung phones again (after a disaster of a pre-smartphone) because Android wasn't Samsung software. They have an incredible record in shit software.


Can you avoid Kies though? Last time I bought a Samsung Android phone that awful piece of crap was still around. Never had one since.


----------



## existentialist (Aug 30, 2015)

magneze said:


> Can you avoid Kies though? Last time I bought a Samsung Android phone that awful piece of crap was still around. Never had one since.


Kies won't run on Linux. I don't run Windows 

I think it has raised its ugly head a couple of times, but I ended up not needing to use it.

Kies was, when I looked at it, truly shit. Even by standards of truly shit Windows software, it was the basket case of clusterfucks, shit software-wise.


----------

