Calling Lenovo for non-warranty service/upgrades?

Here's cliffs notes from my last thread:

Made a Craigslist trade for an X200 about a week ago. Machine works fine, has depot warranty 'till November 2011. It has an intermittent harsh buzz from the LCD area(I'm almost certain it's a dying inverter) and moderate cosmetic damage.

I'm considering turning it in for warranty repair, but also am wondering if it would be possible for them to fix the cosmetic damage on the notebook(top LCD lid, palmrest, and possibly the bottom cover) if I paid for it. Also, do you think there might be any chances of them being able to upgrade me to the fingerprint reader palmrest if I paid for the part? I'd normally be ripping this machine apart and fixing things myself, but decided I'd try the 'legit' method first... especially since I can't seem to find the FP palmrest for the X200 available anywhere.

 

Generally, the price Lenovo charges you for such parts/services is out of line with the price you'd pay from a third party who offeres good prices or, even more so, used but good parts from ebay.

If the cosmetic damage involves cracks, they may attempt to blame the inverter on mishandling.

 

Interesting... I didn't think of that. There are no cracks on this system, but the lid damage and etc. are kinda roughly scratched. Judging by the wear and tear on the system and the amount of keyboard shine present I'd say this machine was used very often in the past year and a half... it's probably a reason why the inverter is going south so soon. That might also be a factor to be denied warranty, but I'm not sure.

I have part numbers and approx. prices for everything I'd like to replace/upgrade on this system, with exception of the FP reader palmrest. Is there any resource that I can use to figure out this elusive FRU? All I'm finding online is the palmrest with only the cutout for the reader, and the reader for the tablet.

 

Lots of use, if not misuse, shouldn't mess with your warranty. Scratches shouldn't count as a sign of misuse.
Where are you getting your price from? The guy I buy my parts from (Brad on forum.thinkpads) tends to have way better prices than a place like ACS for example ($75 shipped for a new in sealed box factory 4-cell battery for my X201 EDIT: bad example, they don't sell those, but there was some part I just bought recently that was ~$95 at most online stores and IIRC he quoted me $60 shipped). He also knows enough that I don't have to deal with finding FRUs.

 

Hm. What's his username there, just Brad? I may have to ask him about some quotes. I'd really like to get this keyboard replaced, too. The prices I've been getting are searching on Ebay... about $100 for the LCD and bottom covers, the palmrest is unavailable, the inverter is $10, and the keyboard's around $50.

While there's no cracks and just scratches, this machine suffered a pretty decent drop sometime in its lifespan. that's why I should be worrying a little bit. The LCD lid took the brunt of it.

 

Yeah, it's just "Brad" If the prices you're getting on ebay are for used but like new, those are going to be the cheapest.