Sony’s Scams Continue
We all remember the PS2 launch, the hundreds of thousands of broken systems in the first year, everyone being forced to pay $99 to get them fixed for an admitted problem, etc. You might have thought that would have ended with the class action lawsuit that was slapped on Sony a few years later, where Sony settled out of court and offered to pay each owner with problems $25 and also give them a free game from a specified list, and (of course) the reduced cost repair or replacement (at SCEA’s discretion) of the damaged system. Not that great, but it’s a start.
The PS3 excells at collecting dust
When the PS3 came out, and the official PlayStation boards were flooded (and continue to be flooded) with threads of broken systems (which are deleted with lightning speed) you would have thought Sony would do anything they could to appease people in an attempt to avoid more legal trouble, especially after they were almost taken there for all the problems with the PSP, you would have thought wrong.
From the respected AVSForum.com -
Just got off the phone with Sony Support. Because I have a generic brand of component cables, instead of officially licensed Sony components, Sony has voided the warrantee on my PS3 and will only replace it for $150 dollars!
Their product fails, yet they wiggle out of responsibility. Yeah Im sure that component cables can kill a system, and even if that were the case, what does that say about the system if it can be killed so easily? So now my system boots up and sits there with a blank screen.
Thank god I kept the receipt. Target allows for exchanges for 90 days or full refund.
My hats off to Target for sticking with their policy. My middle finger to Sony for shirking theirs.
Figured a warning to all of you. If you have issues. LIE! Tell them everything is licensed Sony accessories.
A lot of people like to purchase high-end cables for their high-end video game systems and home theatre set-ups. Some component cables cost as much as $70 from well-known brands like Monster, and I can guarantee you that the quality in their cords is equal to Sony’s or Microsoft’s, if not better. This is just one of the many excuses Sony will use to weasel out of their obligation to fix their problematic system. Let’s turn the aim at Microsoft for a second. When you call 1-800-4MyXbox with a problem, they just tell you to send it in, and most of the time send you a box to send it to them for free, even if you don’t have a warranty. Microsoft has also extended the warranty to a year on any and all Xbox 360’s, and that warranty is void of any loop-holes or excuses like the one we see above. Microsoft would also never ask you if you use non-official controllers or anything like that, because it affects nothing. Sony’s policy is baseless and pathetic.
This has been Sony’s policy towards 3rd party accessories from the first days of the original PlayStation. use a 3rd party controller, cable, memory card, etc and your warranty will be voided. unless it’s officially licensed, Sony wants no part of it and will do everything in their power to ensure that if a problem arises they blame it on the accessory.
Obviously you can lie to Sony when you call with a problem, like the guy suggested above, but the vast majority of people calling won’t think twice when they are asked by Sony what kind of cable they are using or what kind of controllers they use, etc. So now if you use any third party accessories for your $600 system, and it breaks, you’ll be paying another $150 to fix a system Sony won’t stand behind with a real warranty.
January 17th, 2007 at 8:01 pm
Like the dozens of people who insist they are on their 6 or 7th 360 and are LYING, these people could be lying too. As bad as Sony has been to void a warranty due to the use of non-official cords is ludicrous. The 360’s launch units may have broken (a lot) but at least MS stood behind their warranty, as short as it was (at the time)…
January 17th, 2007 at 8:26 pm
I won’t pretend to be on my 6th or 7th PS2, but my PS2 recently died as a result of the plastic screw drive the laser is mounted on that Sony used in its PS2 optical drives, which seems somewhat odd, considering that all the replacement parts you can find are made of metal. Kinda screams “cheap” to me…
January 17th, 2007 at 9:11 pm
The pic is about what I would expect with the limited amount of decent games Sony still has. As for the warranty thing, yeah, I would expect that too.
January 17th, 2007 at 10:11 pm
8004MYXBOX really is quite cool. You never have to press any buttons to navigate through their menus either. You just speak to the machine what issues you’re having and it determines what you need for assistance. If you have a serious problem, you get a person in no time flat. The guy that handled my case a couple days ago (Nick) was very nice (how much?
), patient, knowledgeable (something xbox reps aren’t known for), and quick. I told him the issues I was having. The only 3rd party device he asked if I used was the power supply (understandable) and if I used anything like an intercooler. No to both and he immediately put in an order for a repair/replacement. Total call length: maybe 5 minutes.
January 17th, 2007 at 11:48 pm
These people aren’t lying, this is Sony’s actual policy.
January 18th, 2007 at 12:59 am
Technically, if the warranty policy states that only approved cables are to be used, they don’t have to honor anything.
Sony is a failure this generation, that is without doubt….but the image posted????? Come on, the user of this unit shouldn’t be allowed to own anything electronic. Where is this unit kept? in a DOGHOUSE??
Don’t people vacuum?, dust?, keep their environment clean?……my god, sony could make a posterchild out of this owner for NOT selling electronics to certain people.
I can see it now:
This warranty applies to people above a certain class of citizen, those citizens this warranty applies to are of the caliber we feel keep their houses clean. If you have warranty issues, please include a photo of your actual unit inside your dwelling, if your dwelling resembles a CAVE, do not call us, we’ll call you.
January 18th, 2007 at 1:01 am
Just thought I would add that my xbox 360 recently died
The good news is that even though I’m technically out of warranty (beyond even the 1 year warranty) The guy on the phone told me that all I have to do is ship it to them myself (did recently) and they’ll fix it and send it back for FREE. Microsoft tech support kicks ass.
If sony could be HALF as good as that they might get somewhere. Sadly it seems that they never learn.
January 18th, 2007 at 1:10 am
Holy Crap,
I understand if it is their policy and all, but that just means their policy is crap. I can understand something like the intercooler or certain products causing a void in warranty but some freaking video cables. That is a bit ridiclious.
January 18th, 2007 at 1:17 am
Yeah DQ, there’s no way the video cables should do anything to the system unless it’s the worst made console.. EVER. Sony’s just full of shit and trying to get out of paying for the repairs any way they can.
January 18th, 2007 at 2:40 am
I never said they WERE lying just that they might be. I believe them myself. I’ve called 360 support a few times and it wasn’t very good. The language barrier was an issue as was the quality of the sound AND their customer service skills weren’t up to snuff. But I got my 360 replaced for free so who can complain? Me, that’s who!
January 18th, 2007 at 2:48 am
I’ve no complaints, bummer ciros
January 18th, 2007 at 10:58 am
That PS3 picture is actually from just a couple days of sitting in a normal house. The thing actually attracts dust.
January 18th, 2007 at 11:08 am
This has been Sony’s policy for some time.
My brothers PSx died a few months after we got it. Kept freezing. So, we call up Sony’s support line. My parents get the location of the nearest replacement center. Turns out it was nearby so instead of shipping it, my parents went themselves… only to be told that it was becuase we used a 3rd Party controller. We had to pay 80 bucks to get it replaced.
Mind you, in big letters across the top of the controller, it said “SONY”. It was, as far as I know, a licensed product, but it wasn’t a “Sony” product in that it was made by them. So, no dice, no warranty
January 18th, 2007 at 3:48 pm
I would have to say this comes as no surprise at all. Sony is horrible to its customers.
Like I’ve said before, my 360 died about 10 months after I purchased mine (and thus 9 months removed from the warranty). I spent 10 minutes on the phone with Microsoft and the customer service agent essentially gave me a new replacement for free, including shipping. No sweet talkin’ or fighting words or anything, either. Now THAT’S customer service.