[vox] Re: vox digest, Vol 1 #768 - 10 msgs

[Charles McLaughlin]

> On Wed, 2003-07-16 at 20:46, Charles McLaughlin wrote:
> > The little plastic latch on my laptop that holds the screen shut keeps
> > breaking.  The laptop is under warranty and Dell has replaced the part
> > once, but I'd like to add some strength.
> 
> Hi Charles,
> 
> I'd like to point out another option: get Dell to replace it again.  If
> it breaks, do it again.  Lather, Rinse, Repeat.  The root cause is not
> that the latch is made of plastic, it could be that the latch is
> misaligned (due to some flaw in the laptop body or the LCD cover area)
> and could use a product or QA review at Dell.  By Dell replacing it,
> they can be notified of the problem and see if it's an issue worth
> looking at on a bigger scale.  Or they can discover that your LCD cover
> is misaligned and fix it.  By opening the cover, you could or probably
> are voiding your warranty (if you have any length of time left).
> 
> Unfortunately, the first option requires Dell to have your laptop for
> 3-5 days, or whatever.  And one home end-user may not have as much clout
> as a huge mega-business partnership (if that indeed is how you have your
> laptop).  But it could help you on the quality of your next laptop if
> you get it from Dell.
> 
> On a side note, I sent my Dell Inspiron in for repair at Dell when it
> was under warranty, and it came back misaligned.  I have to push the LCD
> towards the back of the laptop in order for the lid to close.  Since
> then, one of the LCD hinges has busted, and I took the LCD out, using an
> external monitor instead.  It's warranty ran out about 2 years ago, btw.
> 
> Anway, hope this provides another viewpoint.
> 
> Jeremy
> 
> -- 
> Jeremy Turner <jeremy@linuxwebguy.com>
> LinuxWebGuy
> 

Jeremy,

Thanks for the different perspective.  I just had Dell fix the part
around a month ago and it broke again.  I'm going to call them to get
the part repaired again, then take the part off and have some one
fabricate a replica made from steel.

I have on-site service, by the way, so I'm not concerned about losing my
computer for a few days.  I just don't want this darn thing to continue
to break.  My laptop (a dell sub compact) has already been discontinued
and there is a newer model, so maybe Dell has already corrected this
design flaw.

Thanks again!
Charles