For the past few days I’ve been cleaning my Gardner store in anticipation of completely remodeling the main showroom. Cleaning at my shop generally means reorganizing parts, breaking out the vacuum, and wiping down surfaces. This go-around cleaning means filtering through boxes of collected parts dating back fifteen years or more.
I’ve spent most of the last couple days sifting through old parts that we’ve kept on-hand for businesses and repeat customers. Some of the parts are no longer available while others have a known history of failure. I have tried to keep an inventory of obsolete and hard-to-find parts available as a just-in-case scenario. But like everything else, sometimes we just have to part ways with the old.
While I was sorting through the old, I started reminiscing about the worst classes of computers and laptops that I’ve seen and serviced over the years. Some machines were so notorious I still remember model numbers and the contact information to resolve the issues.
Probably the worst machine in history was the Toshiba 6000 Pro which was produced around ten years ago. It wasn’t uncommon for the computer to stop functioning and completely die with no warning. The problem was caused by a faulty chip in the power circuit of the machine. Even with the chip replaced, the computer would sometimes work intermittently. Toshiba resolved the problem by extending the warranty for several years; however, they failed to notify customers.
Another Toshiba product falls in a close second; the M35X was one of Toshiba’s first 15.4″ widescreen offerings. Toshiba sold a ton of them and almost just as many were repaired or replaced by Toshiba. A faulty ground under the left speaker caused the laptop to fail and sometimes not restart. One of the technical bulletins initially published by Toshiba suggested installing a piece of Scotch tape near the speaker inside the laptop.
Hewlett-Packard made the DV2000, DV6000, and DV9000 series of laptops around five years ago and most failed within the first 18 months. Most of these died due to an undersized fan and poor ventilation. After repeatedly heating and cooling, the video chipsets on these laptops separated rendering the laptop useless. HP ended up in a class action lawsuit with the plaintiffs claiming HP knew these faults existed.
Compaq made the mistake of purchasing one of its models from Acer and private labeling the product line. Though it’s not so much a product failure as much as it’s kind of funny, all the components inside the machine were Acer model numbers. In other words, HP model numbers are generally XXXXXX-001 and Acer model numbers are formatted XX.XXXX. The first time I needed to order parts I was completely stumped.
Dell had one machine that sticks out as being riddled with little flaws that should have been fixed prior to being released. Dell must have been in a hurry to release the 1100 and 1150 series because they were plagued. One of the Dell service bulletins required the technician cut a small piece of plastic from one of the access doors to prevent it from contacting the motherboard. Another required the machine be disassembled to install thermal compound.
Most of the repairs I make are to computers and equipment that fail due to owner negligence so certainly the manufacturer isn’t to blame. However, I also see a fair number of repairs the manufacturer is slipshod in either making the customer aware there is an issue or they simply deny fault. Most manufacturer warranties are one year and most issues are discovered within the first three months. With these stories it’s no wonder I’m not asked to many cocktail parties.
(Jeromy Patriquin is the President of Laptop & Computer Repair, Inc. located at 509 Main St. in Gardner. You can call him directly at (978) 919-8059) or visit www.LocalComputerWiz.com.