Question:
Fujitsu Siemens Amilo D 1840 Laptop nightmare
hi everyone,,, The following is the history of my laptop.. i sent this off to F.S in the hop that they could finally fix my laptop. It has been in for repairs on more than 1 ocassion and im still having the same problem.
Currently the machine is in for repairs (6 weeks)
Fujitsu Siemens Amilo D 1840 Laptop
Laptop History
Purchased laptop in August 2004 and laptop has been working without fault until July/August 2005. In July 2005 I purchased Windows XP Professional upgrade and also upgraded the RAM to 1GB. RAM was installed by a computer shop.
Fault problems.
There are two faults on the laptop.
Since using the laptop from around July time (approximately) I had have an intermittent problem that causes the laptop to freeze when using Microsoft XP Professional. It affects the computer when I am both online and offline and when I doing a multitude of different tasks. It happens randomly; sometimes I can go without hours or days of it happening, other times it will happen within 5 – 10 minute intervals.
I developed a second problem where by the laptop wouldn’t boot up. I would turn on the power, the LED would flash for the hard disk a few times, the fans would turn but the screen would not light up and nothing else would happen. I tried booting from the CD, the LED would flash for the CD drive and nothing else would happen. The laptop wouldn’t boot to the BIOS.
I have tried a series of steps on my own to remedy the problem and with technical support from Fujitsu Siemens and Microsoft. All of which have been unsuccessful.
Repair History
I contacted Fujitsu Siemens and Microsoft about these two problems and both suggested among other things, that I did a clean re-install. I carried out each suggestion that they both made. At the time the computer did boot up so I could do a clean install. The laptop worked without a problem for a few weeks after the clean install. Then the two problems started to reoccur again (in the above order).
I contacted Fujitsu Siemens again and sent the laptop to customer repairs. They did extensive tests on each hardware component and successfully booted up the machine 40 times without issue. They also cleaned out the fans and did a clean install of XP.
Continued Problems
They returned the laptop after a month of looking at it. Within an hour of using the laptop back I noticed that the computer froze while using XP. There was no third party software on the computer and I had just been browsing the internet.
I turned the computer off and when I restarted some minutes later it worked fine. I didn’t have another problem that day. However the freezing problem did start to occur again more and more frequently.
Power Investigation and technical support
Having got the laptop back I was almost certain that the problem was not a hardware one since Fujitsu Siemens did run a number of tests. I checked the power cables in the room where the laptop is used in case there was a fault there but everything was ok.
I spent several hours on the phone to Microsoft to try to identify the problem which was causing the laptop to freeze. Eventually after trying numerous steps they said that they have nothing else to try and thought it was a hardware problem because of the lack of any error message.
One step which I carried out was disabling the NVIDIA 128Mb Graphics card and disabling all the USB connectors. The laptop did work without problem and when I re enabled them again it froze almost instantly. Microsoft said that this didn’t narrow down the problem.
As a last resort Microsoft suggested I download the latest BIOS and carry out a repair installation and record future problems. I was 10 minutes through the repair installation when the computer froze and wouldn’t boot up. I couldn’t get the laptop to start since. Fujitsu Siemens suggested I removed the battery for 24 hours and then try to restart. I did this on 3 occasions and couldn’t get the laptop to boot.
I left the laptop into a computer repair shop and the technician thought that it was a hardware problem. He removed the hard disk to try to get the laptop to boot but it failed. He was unable to repair the laptop and suggested I return the laptop to the manufacturer for repairs.
So after all of the above I left the laptop in for repair with F.S. Thats 6 weeks ago now. They had to replace the following and it has taken them 6 weeks to do it :mad:
A new screen
A new inverter (connects screen with motherboard)
new hard disk
new mother board
new DVD drive.
The only thing that hasnt been replaced is the memory and outer case..oh and the graphics card. Is this usual low quality for F.S computers ?
If I new that my machine would be in for repairs for 10 weeks i wouldnt have bought a F.S. Im really really angry :mad: :mad:
What should I do now ? they are getting the DVD drive in the next day or so and they probably have the 2 day tests to do. Do you think I will have continued problems when i get it back ? the warrenty is up in August 2005.
Answer:
Re: Fujitsu Siemens Amilo D 1840 Laptop nightmare
Wow, that's terrible luck. If it's still bad when you get it back, I'd demand a replacement.
Answer:
Re: Fujitsu Siemens Amilo D 1840 Laptop nightmare
I replaced the memory myself so its one completely usless computer bar the graphics card. I wont be surprised when i phone them in a few days that they say they need to order in a new graphics card.
The whole process would break your heart. I am just hoping that I get the laptop back in the next week or so (highly unlikely) and when i do get it back i wont have any more trouble.
Is this common for a Fujitsu Siemens or have I been really unlucky.
Plus do you really belive the Fujitsu Siemens technical support when they are telling you that they are replacing the above parts (or are they just telling me that on the phone while they machine is sitting on a shelf somewhere doing nothing) ?
Answer:
Re: Fujitsu Siemens Amilo D 1840 Laptop nightmare
Im still waiting on this dvd drive. what a nightmare... did anyone else have the same problems ???
Answer:
Re: Fujitsu Siemens Amilo D 1840 Laptop nightmare
Can someone tell me if XP Professional caused all these hardware components to fail or is it just a co-incidence of hardware failure on their own???
Answer:
Re: Fujitsu Siemens Amilo D 1840 Laptop nightmare
Be very wary of the structural integrity of the unit when you get it back. I had on-site service for a multitude of repairs to my S7020 unit and the unit began to look like it was several years old and tossed around within a few weeks. Every component creaked, the hinges were loose, stress cracks developed, keys popped....and all the repairs didn't solve the problem either :-(. I am assuming you meant to write the warranty is up in August of 2006, so I'd go over the unit very carefully to make sure it still feels durable.
Answer:
Re: Fujitsu Siemens Amilo D 1840 Laptop nightmare
They told me that there was only a 1 year warrenty with the laptop so its up in August 2005. Im not really looking forward to see the state of this laptop when it gets back. But they did say on the phone that I would have another 6 - 12 months warrenty with the new parts.
Its a complete nightmare.. I need this machine for work. I could have bought a Dell and had proper reliablity.
Answer:
Re: Fujitsu Siemens Amilo D 1840 Laptop nightmare
What is a 6 to 12 month warrenty??
one or the other .....or?
Stu
Answer:
Re: Fujitsu Siemens Amilo D 1840 Laptop nightmare
JA typo....
its either 6 OR 12 month. The technical support didnt know which
Answer:
Re: Fujitsu Siemens Amilo D 1840 Laptop nightmare
Ask em for a 2 year one !! Sounds like thats what you need
Stu