Lenovo Customer Service Won't let me return unopened package? help?

Would you rather pay more? Would that add more mystique/value?

 

ocellaris...add another zero

 

thanks icky for the pdf....in that case instead of dragging in the BBB (already did though), hope Lenovo would void the restkg fee so I could order a T61 w/ sim spec, but now a .2 lbs light and .2" slimmer...yeah!!

 

icky...I can see y u responed with "Would you rather pay more? Would that add more mystique/value?"
It's admittedly a subtle issue...hard to explain...
but to answer you, I already said I love discounts a few posts earlier...

 

FWIW, if there was any decent cost savings involved, I would have just gotten a R61 anyway. When I purchased the difference in my config was like $25 so I want with the T61.

 

ocellaris, prior to today, same spec t61 was 300 more...but today same spec t61 is only 50 more than r61...now would I shell out 50 extra just to get a .2 lbs lighter and .2" slimmer notebook...? definitely

 

Yeah $50 more is not too bad, only problem for you now is dealing with Lenovo's notoriously tough returns.

 

It was a rhetorical question, you didn’t have to answer.

That Tabook is dated January 2008, so it’s the most current version. There are some 41.1” XGA’s with 1024x768 resolution, but all of the 14.1” WXGA’s are listed as 1280x800 resolution. I’d be mad also getting conflicting information. Lenovo is really bad at communicating with the customer. You could be right, but I hope not…it goes against all the other information out there.

 

yeah..I'll let BBB handle that...but my order of the t61 is dependent on the voiding of my r61's restkg fee.....

 

Hope you get out of it - it's a stupid policy.

 

good discussion guys...got to go

 

Funny how things change. ThinkPads used to have the best return policy, 30 days no questions asked. Now barring some act of god you'll get socked with a 15% restocking fee. This is the cost of paying a lot less for your notebook.

 

And people used to not order multiple systems at the same time, play with them for a few days, pick the one they liked best, and then send the rest back in an open box which couldn't be sold as new.

 

I worked a short stint as a Dell Customer Service "call escalation specialist" for an outsourcing company. The amount of system that get returned for reasons like this was insane. Also people would come up with clever things like "I just can not figure out my banking website" and "I am going to return this and buy one with more RAM, since I do not want to open the PC myself" Dell has a 30 day money back return policy for any reason, and I would basically sit there and eat calls like this all day so we could setup returns for them...

 

wow..after little more reading around the web, the "mystique" of a non-IBM Thinkpad is gradually wearing off...
check out the 3 member (sound legit) reviews on this site:
http://www.pcmag.com/article2/0,2817,2127459,00.asp

 

Also, now I may have to postpone my T61 order...mostly I want the technology in thinkpad's engineering, esp. the cooling sys. and roll cage....but now I'm tempted to lean towards the HP DV2700 w/ T9300, 160gb, 2gb, 128 8400gs spec costing only 30 more than a T61 w/ T8300, 120gb, 1gb, 128 quad nvs......and the HP has hdmi
(both are 14.1" wxga)

 

MR2

"Another year, another Intel launch, and another Editors' Choice awarded to the Lenovo ThinkPad T61 Widescreen. Its main appeal is the outstanding performance ThinkPad users have come to expect (just be sure to upgrade your battery when you order a system). Overall performance and this laptop's usability will keep businesses coming back for a long time."

It received the editors choice. What on earth is your complaint?

 

There's no question people abuse the return policy. It's the same reason Costo no longer has an unlimited return policy. The returns were probably a lot easier to stomach when the price points were higher, but since ThinkPads no longer are a small part of IBM, it couldn't continue. You can probably point to examples on either side where the policy was abused or more recently where someone had a legitmate gripe, but wasn't allowed to return without paying the fee. I personally tend to think the abuse far outweighs the legit gripes after having spent time here. People tend not to think about what they lose when paying less.

 

Renee,
Post #65 is a culmulation of my previous posts, no doubt why your reaction and your response to my post are out of context.
Look briefly through my previous posts, then you'll see that post #65 is not as negative as it by itself appears to be.

 

Also, what is so unclear about this: "...mostly I want the technology in thinkpad's engineering, esp. the cooling sys. and roll cage...." from post #66? (quoting myself).
A few negative reviews about Lenovo's service and I will turn away from their products? Of course not. Worksmanship is worksmanship, service is service.

 

bravo ZaZ...good point.
But I think that return abuse thing is exaggerated.
For example, a few persistent abusers, due to their persistencies, tend to magnify this abuse that much more, so that half of costco customers are seen/perceived as potential abusers, which is quite absurd.

I was once a costco member for about 3 wks, simply because the city banned plastic bags and I only bought about 3-4 small items per visit (costco is only a mile away from me) and carrying my items bagless was, at that time, an out-of-this-world concept that I decided to cancel my membership....which is good though since costco simultaneously offers Great prices and a Great path to poverty...exaggerate a bit, but very true.

 

The HP is nice however its in a completely different league from a Thinkpad. Not saying its better or worse, its just a difference of a one being covered in bling/flash, and the other one is like a black brick.

If you compare on specs alone, you can normally do better than a Thinkpad from many other companies. I went with a Thinkpad because I liked the keyboard/Ultranav/rollcage and the overall look and build of the unit.

Side note: I totally dropped my Thinkpad about 3 feet onto a hardwood floor while moving a couch. It landed on the edge of the screen, no damage. Your experience may vary

 

I agree, and with recent sales+xx% off coupons, Thinkpads are very reachable.

Also HP is a 14incher, very solid, the 15" is little "flimsy"....as for the flash, I configured it with the "verve" imprint black/copper instead of the more common black/silver....seriously, if you've seen dell m1330 and hd dv2700, handled them both, you'd be equally impressed w/ their build quality.
The only knock against the dv2700 is that its fan vent is only 1/4 of its fan and my current OD dv2718us has amd x2 tl62 and the fan runs constantly (a non-roll-backable bios).
add hdmi output and T61 is heaven

 

...wow....ordered it on Friday, shipped on the 3 and R61 is just now in my possession.....3business days delivery WITH the free shipping option
"Your experience may vary"

Again, I was impressed with their build time, now I'm even more impressed with their shipping time
and to be fair, their customer service is good, from the company's perspective...but from the customer's perspective? well, depends on if you're the type who love company's "textbook" response.

The R is here, open it, open it not? open it, open it not?...the temptation!!!

 

one more thing about the shipping (maybe also a testament to thinkpad's build quality), Lenovo shipped it in its (thinkpad's) box, compared to OD shipping the HP inside a larger OD's shipping box.
Is that normal? The laptop/assessories inside are not all that tightly packed, I can roll the box LT and RT and there seems to be 1.5" give.

 

Mine shipped in the Thinkpad box and my friend got one also shipped in the Thinkpad box. I got a Dell Vostro 14.1 notebook shipped in a box that large enough for a desktop and ad 2 LCD monitors I think you would find that smaller more effecient packaging protect contents better than larger air filled double boxes, unless its double boxed and the two boxes are exactly matched, then you just have a little more crush resistance. Almost all of the damaged packages we receive at work are in larger boxes.

The Thinkpad will be pretty secure in the box (its foam packed in a seperate compartment from everything else). The battery and AC adapter had some slack in my package, thats probably whats moving in yours. I had some manuals and stuff floating making noise too, no big deal.

And if I was you, I would open it and enjoy the goodness inside with its x800 resolution screen (I still feel very confident about this) Its almost impossible to get the absolute best deal when dealing with technology, so some buyers remorse is common. I had no regrets once I opened my package and held the Thinkpad for the first time. It is definitely a fine piece of hardware.

 

I had the same problem with Lenovo. They wouldn't accept a return / exchange on an unopened Thinkpad. I could've sworn the policy was full refund for unopened packages within 21 days, but I guess that changed. Anyway, the manager wouldn't even budge. They stated that even their competitors (i.e., Dell and HP) wouldn't accept a return on unopened laptops. I could swear that HP offers a full refund.

shame on Lenovo.

 

Yes, HP does in fact offer full refunds, even on OPENED laptops (providing it's with the 21 day return policy. I just returned my hp dv6700t a few weeks back, with no problems at all. Just called the 1-800 number, and explained the to CS rep that I simply wanted to return it for a refund (laptop was 3 days old at the time). He then offered me an extra $90 off the computer, which I declined, and then gave me via. E-mail a Fed-Ex shipping label. I printed that out, boxed the laptop back up, and was gone in 24 hours.

 

i just made 4 orders r61, feb. 20 - a card mistake (dont hv enough credit), so i made another feb. 21 using correct card then after several hours 2 emails came saying the 2 orders got rejected. i thought maye the second one got rejected since my card hasnt been activated yet so i activated my card then made another order again (3rd one) feb. 21, after several hours my husband received a call saying my orders got rejected (dont know which one) so i assume maybe also the 3rd one. so i made another order again, using a diff card and this time i saw a cheaper deal and add a wireless 49... after 2 days feb 24, i received an email saying my 3rd order got shipped (wow i was surprised considering that it says that shipping would be around march 19 plus it has blu-ray burner, bt, etc) so i emailed them saying that i thought it was cancelled etc.. sent about 7 or 8 emails to cs and even 1 on the lenovo site. monday, feb 25 my second order got shipped so i got 2 r61 on the way. by monday or tuesday i received an email saying there is a 15% restocking fee etc. so i just emailed again and said i made the 4th order thinking that the rest of my orders were cancelled. also i said that i updated it and the last order is more expensive by not much though. then someone sent me to verify that i really want to cancel the 3rd one i said yes and i also would like to request for rma, full refund (no restocking fee), and a shipping label back. i also told them that i am excited to get my updated order etc. the yesterday they sent me an rma, and a shipping label back. today the r61 arrived and all i did was accept it then put the shipping label and i sent it back. now i assume that they will give me a full refund since they gave me everything i requested. if they dont then i will just make a chargeback from my credit card. anyway, i never talked or called them, just email, and i talked to them nicely. i will give an update if they credited back the full amount. i hope so since basically i really didn't have a hard time talking to them, they even shipped the r61 fast and expedited came here from china in 4 days. that's fast!

 

And so does Dell, not just on laptops, but on other product. I've seen people do it with laptops; I myself returned a 20" 2007WFP display so that I could get a 24" 2407FPW instead. Dell has a 21-day complete satisfaction guarantee. Returned merchandise is generally sold through the Dell Outlet.

In the case of the original poster, I still believe that you're responsible for reading the fine print when you order, so just deciding it's not exactly what you want (esp. when it's a custom build), is an issue. I know myself that I'm having a bit of buyer's remorse over the choice I made of WiFi cards, but I'm going to have to live with that. At the same time, it's clear that Lenovo's whole ordering process seems a bit clunky compared to the Dell Small Business process I'm used to, and Dell's Sales/Customer Service division has been topnotch for me. From everything I've been reading in this forum, it looks like Lenovo really has some work to do in their sales+customer service departments and policies. It also seems like when things go right, they really go right, but when they go wrong, they can go spectacularly wrong.

I'm hoping my ThinkPad arrives without problems --for those that get one that's done right (probably most folks here), I think things work out great. It just sounds like Lenovo may not measure up to Dell when it comes to problem resolution or warranty service, and if that is true, then it worries me a little.

 

Lonewolf...maybe Dell has had LOTS more experience with problem solving. [g]

I also have to say, that if Lenovo's policy is to charge a 15% restocking fee on 'custom' orders, regardless of whether the box is opened or not, just live with it. Own up to the decision you made, take responsibility. Put yourself in the position of Lenovo and what are they going to do with that machine now? Make it a better world. Either keep the T61 or pay the fee.

adam

 

it has a packing list outside.

 

I agree that the best way to do things right is to do it the first time.

That said, the measure of a person/vendor/company is often made by what they do when things go wrong, since things going right 100% of the time is a statistical impossibility. What if a company got it right the first time 95% of the time, but in the remaining 5% where it broke down, the customer was left high and dry with no resolution every time?

Also, it's about the perception of what is right. I'll give you and I the benefit of the doubt here and say we (as individuals) are usually on an even keel regarding whether a company has done right or wrong by us, according to policy. However, we both know plenty of consumers who firmly believe the customer is always right, even when the customer is wrong, and that as your market-share grows, you have more of these consumers as customers. I think a portion of the gripes against Dell are made by consumers who aren't informed enough or don't understand enough about computing in the first place.

I deal with Dell from a business perspective. I'll admit they haven't always been perfect --their decision to outsource to India several years back led to extremely poor service and a huge business customer backlash, causing them to reverse and send business support back to the U.S.. Since then, they've been kept on their toes by HP's sales numbers as well, it has caused them to really work at listening to their customers. I think they're doing well. When I have had an issue, they have taken great pains to make it right.

P.S. I have now received my ThinkPad T61. After some initial concerns, I'm really liking it. Hopefully I won't have to rely on their service --but if I do, I hope they're as good as or better than Dell.

 

By the way, I finally got my full refund from Lenovo today. After 1 week of them receiving the laptop. i think as long as you prove that it's their fault. but you can also try talking to them really nicely and i think as long as you have a replacement that will make it easier for them to give a full refund. hope this helps.