Computers

[Farangdanny]

? BUYING ELECTRONIC EQUIPMENT ?

If you are, my experiences with Hewlett Packard will help.

I bought a new HP Pavilion with me to Thailand two years ago. After 12 months, it needed a new keyboard. I took it to HP Service center in Chiang Mai. They promised to have it done in 5 days. It was ready after 2 weeks. I took it home and discovered all the leetters were in the wrong places and it typed different ones to the keys I hit. Back to HP Service center.They said that they couldn't get the right one (despite the part number being on the back), so fitted a local one !! I complained to HP USA. I got a phone call and email and was told that they would get me one. Nearly 3 months later, it arrived and was fitted, I had to pay again and no refund for the incorrect one. They got their own back on me because 3 months later, the computer stopped working completely. I went to a local repair shop. They told me that it needed a new chip which they could not do because they didn't have small enough soldering equipment. Back to the dreaded HP Service. They said quote would be ready in 5 days. Nearly 5 weeks later, I got it. 45,000 Baht !! New computer is 38,000 Baht !! So I told them to stick it. I stupidly bought a new HP Pavilion in May this year. Pavilion because I was familiar with it. I unpacked it 3 weeks later. Very good, but after 2 weeks and about 3 hours of use, it took control and typed any letters it felt like, and some of them hundreds of times, completely random. Back to the shop, they told me to take it to HP Service center, OH NO, not again ! I did. They told me it would be ready in 5 days (the magic number). After 3 weeks, I lost patience and sent a fax to CEO, HP in USA. I got no reply, but I did get an email from HP, Bangkok. Eventually, they agreed to give me a replacement. Sent me a document to take to ZOOM Technologies (where I bought it) to collect the replacemrnt (happy now). Sorry, can't replace it, out of manufacture ! So HP Bangkok told me to go back to ZOOM, as he had authorised them to give me a better model for 2,500 Baht extra (happy again). ZOOM said 'NO CHANCE' you get no new computer here. If you bring everything, including the original box here we will refund money. So, next day I took it all back, for refund. When I asked for it, they said 'NO CHANCE'. But you promised a refund said I. But we didn't say when,did we ? We will send it back to distributor and IF they give us SOME refund, we will give you SOME. That was 3 weeks ago. Now HP Bangkok are ignoring my emails !!!

BE WARNED.

[Drew Aitch]

You might want to try and put the occasional paragraph in your post Farangdanny. It just makes things a bit easier to read

My experience in Thailand with things like this, is buyer beware. After Sales service is usually presented in a very pleasant manner, but often with little overall satisfaction to the customer, especially with costly gripes. I'm not saying you shouldn't be entitled to an exceptional after-sales experience, but to expect it sometimes is wishful thinking based on personal experience. That said, i might have just been unlucky Sometimes it's better to just let stuff like this go for the sake of your own sanity.

I bought and all-in-one HP Printer, fax machine, photocopier, scanner etc, for 17,000 Baht. I hadn't even got through my first black ink cartridge and it packed up displaying some kind of an error message in the LCD. The moment i complained (around 5 months after purchase), i was told that this particular model had been discontinued and so support was no longer available for it. I won't bore you with the weeks of headaches that followed that, but to cut a long story short, i eventually slung the bloody thing away, and felt a great releif.

Similar experience with an 85,000 Baht Sony Vaio. In less that a year and still under warranty, all the characters were coming off the keyboard. The silver paint was fading fast from the palm rest, and the manufactures stickers had curled at the edges and eventually came off too. About this time, the screen started to get shiny blotches across the bottom. I was told by the Sony service center that in general Farang's sweat too much and should only use these products in a cool and dry environments to avoid premature wear and tear. I refused to accept this, and just sat in the chair without making a fuss, but refused to leave.

They eventually agreed to replace all 3 parts so long as i freed up the counter area and sat in the coffee corner. Some 2 hours later i went away a happy camper. Just 4 months after that the keyboard characters began to fade again, the palm rest became 2 two-tone (blotchy), and 6 months after that, the shiny marks began appearing again behind the screen. Oh, and the CD ROM no longer recognised CD's, so it packed up too.

Off back to the service center only to be told it was now out of warranty and any repairs had to be funded by me. They also pointed out that this model was no longer being produced and so Singapore might not be able to get hold of the requested spare parts. I dragged this out for months and nearly went mad in the process. I wrote to HO in Europe and the USA in desperation, but each time i was told i had to channel my complaints to the country of purchase! Eventually, this VAIO started crashing too, so I finally discarded it and brought a cheap ACER at a third of the cost, which i've had ever since.

I don't think these companies are using fake parts, but i can't help but wonder if they might assemble them sometimes with factory rejects which are simply parts that would normally fail to make the grade during quality control. I have friends who swear by both Sony and HP products, none or which were bought over here.

There are probably more success stories than gripes in general, but I don't always think it's a good idea to buy the best of the best in electronics here in Thailand - just in case

Aitch

[Donnyboy]

my experiences with HP differ from yours FD/DA

Ive had my HP pavillion for just over a year with no problems (touch wood), bought it from Chi Chang in Airport Plaza. Nice set up with wireless k/board and mouse.

Previous computer was an Acer Laptop which gave out after 2 1/2 years.

Im sure the power supply we have in LOS isnt good for electronics in general, with spikes and surges and power outages & brownouts whilst the computer chips are running. Will have to get an UPS one of these days.

[jackr]

Yep, HP are generally not very good. Really best off sticking with Acer/Asus out here... cheap and good (particularly Asus) and service is spot on.

[cmsally]

After the "joy" I have had with my HP laptop , my next laptop will be a Macbook.

[thrilled]

It sounds like i'd better stick with Dell. I'm wondering if they have service centers in thailand.

I do know with electronics,if they don't stay cool,theres problems

[Bolo]

It sounds like i'd better stick with Dell. I'm wondering if they have service centers in thailand.

I do know with electronics,if they don't stay cool,theres problems

I've not heard any bad things about Dell. I think they must at least be fairly solid. On the other hand, I've heard nothing but bad about HP. Personally I've always just built clones but those are desktops and never had problems because they never had any added crap they like to add to sell you something all the time.

Soon I will need a laptop for travel and I dread having to buy it. Can you build clones on these or due to the small size you have to go with what they have?

[ignis]

Not only Computers...

Bought a brand new model Fax 5 in 1 HP Office Jet J3500, worked fine the 3 months, HP Service Center sent it back and 3 weeks later received another Brand New one, this one started going crazy before 3 months, same again and was replaced with another Brand New one, so far this one is fine but it is only 2 months old...

I wish I had the old one repaired, but throw it away because it had 2 minor problems, it was a Panasonic and 8 years old.

Edited September 5, 2009 by ignis

[Dustoff]

~

These kinds of things go on in ALL countries and are not necessarily an indication of the quality of a particular manufacturer.

I just retired an HP Pavilion which served me nearly flawlessly for six years. I had a key fail so I ordered a new keyboard from CM HP Svc Cntr who had it in two days and I installed it myself - five minutes with the instructions supplied by HP on their website.

My very new laptop is also an HP Pavilion and I am very happy indeed with it but I never buy in Thailand. There are those who will yell about this but the computers you purchase here are NOT the same as you purchase from a retail outlet in America or the UK. And even in America, if you purchase a computer (or anything else electronic) from huge discount houses like Walmart, Costco, K-Mart, et al., you are NOT getting the same equipment offered in retail outlets even though it carries the same model number!

The thing is that these outlets are so huge and do so much business that they have even major manufacturer's set up completely separate assembly lines to build a cheaper product. This is done by using components of lesser quality and are an ideal place to dump those 'refurbished' and 'seconds' components that didn't make it through the primary assembly line. What the hey, if you buy by the trainload, you can make any deals you want. Even old stand-bys like Kodak make sleezy deals with these outlets.

In places like Thailand where literally everyone is looking for cheap, don't expect quality goods. And the manufacturer knows immediately by the serial number exactly where the item was purchased which is why HP would direct warranty questions to their facility in Bangkok.

I was a private computer tech for many years and I recall so many times calling a manufacturer's tech support and having them immediately tell me what discount chain sold the unit. I also had several techs tell me that if my customer wants a 'real computer', don't buy from Costco (K-Mart, et al.).

You get what you pay for and WHERE you buy it makes all the difference in the world...

[Donnyboy]

Im sure the warmer ambient temperature doesnt help, as thrilled has said. My old acer laptop used to die if it got too hot. It helped if I proped it up to allow airflow under it, and didnt engage the battery when on mains power.

No problems with my desktop, with the added room, ventilation & larger fan.

[diks]

Last year in June I decided to go Mac and bought an iMac with the biggest screen available in Chiang Mai. Sounded a bit pricey at the time but I had had it with Windows in any case.

Earlier this year just a little less than one year later the screen became very blotchy. At that time I took it to the Pro Shop service and they mentioned they would have to check it. That annoyed me a bit, because it was plain to see. However they said, they would get back to me in a few days. Sure enough about three days later they confirmed that the screen needs exchanging and it would take about two weeks to get the part. I thought that was a bit long but at least it was going to get done.

Low an behold about one week later they called, it was ready for pick-up. No charge, everyone including me was smiles and they have a happy customer. Since then I have bought a Mac mini as well and the iMac just keeps purring along.

[ozzydave]

? BUYING ELECTRONIC EQUIPMENT ?

If you are, my experiences with Hewlett Packard will help.

I bought a new HP Pavilion with me to Thailand two years ago. After 12 months, it needed a new keyboard. I took it to HP Service center in Chiang Mai. They promised to have it done in 5 days. It was ready after 2 weeks. I took it home and discovered all the leetters were in the wrong places and it typed different ones to the keys I hit. Back to HP Service center.They said that they couldn't get the right one (despite the part number being on the back), so fitted a local one !! I complained to HP USA. I got a phone call and email and was told that they would get me one. Nearly 3 months later, it arrived and was fitted, I had to pay again and no refund for the incorrect one. They got their own back on me because 3 months later, the computer stopped working completely. I went to a local repair shop. They told me that it needed a new chip which they could not do because they didn't have small enough soldering equipment. Back to the dreaded HP Service. They said quote would be ready in 5 days. Nearly 5 weeks later, I got it. 45,000 Baht !! New computer is 38,000 Baht !! So I told them to stick it. I stupidly bought a new HP Pavilion in May this year. Pavilion because I was familiar with it. I unpacked it 3 weeks later. Very good, but after 2 weeks and about 3 hours of use, it took control and typed any letters it felt like, and some of them hundreds of times, completely random. Back to the shop, they told me to take it to HP Service center, OH NO, not again ! I did. They told me it would be ready in 5 days (the magic number). After 3 weeks, I lost patience and sent a fax to CEO, HP in USA. I got no reply, but I did get an email from HP, Bangkok. Eventually, they agreed to give me a replacement. Sent me a document to take to ZOOM Technologies (where I bought it) to collect the replacemrnt (happy now). Sorry, can't replace it, out of manufacture ! So HP Bangkok told me to go back to ZOOM, as he had authorised them to give me a better model for 2,500 Baht extra (happy again). ZOOM said 'NO CHANCE' you get no new computer here. If you bring everything, including the original box here we will refund money. So, next day I took it all back, for refund. When I asked for it, they said 'NO CHANCE'. But you promised a refund said I. But we didn't say when,did we ? We will send it back to distributor and IF they give us SOME refund, we will give you SOME. That was 3 weeks ago. Now HP Bangkok are ignoring my emails !!!

BE WARNED.

As a consultat in the IT industry I would be avoiding the models designed for home use! Generally they are not what I would consider fit for purpose - possible exception is ASUS (which I do not personally use).

There are some brands that I would never consider, in particular the cheaper brand originally owned by Michael Dell. Unreliable and incompentent service / repair capability. Not just once, but on every single until we purchased. This is one brand I would advise stay WELL clear of. They are cheap, for a reason.

These days many of the no name brands can be assembled from quality products, if you choose carefully you end up with a reliable system at reasonable price.

Sorry I can assist with a solution, but it would be interesting to know the location this 'dealer'.

[Donnyboy]

As a consultat in the IT industry I would be avoiding the models designed for home use! Generally they are not what I would consider fit for purpose - possible exception is ASUS (which I do not personally use).

There are some brands that I would never consider, in particular the cheaper brand originally owned by Michael Dell. Unreliable and incompentent service / repair capability. Not just once, but on every single until we purchased. This is one brand I would advise stay WELL clear of. They are cheap, for a reason.

These days many of the no name brands can be assembled from quality products, if you choose carefully you end up with a reliable system at reasonable price.

Sorry I can assist with a solution, but it would be interesting to know the location this 'dealer'.

i think the shop in question is Zoom Tech Airport Plaza

[jackr]

It sounds like i'd better stick with Dell. I'm wondering if they have service centers in thailand.

I do know with electronics,if they don't stay cool,theres problems

I see some of the Dell's come with Ubuntu (Linux) as standard, but don't think the service is much cop out here for them.

Just retired a 6-7 year old Toshiba Satellite... gave it a serious amount of use/abuse and it just kept running and running. Hinges shot, random keys missing, insides attacked with soldering iron. What a bit of kit.

[Drew Aitch]

You get what you pay for and WHERE you buy it makes all the difference in the world...

See my post above Dustoff on the 85,000 Baht Sony VAIO. That said, i actually bought a VAIO on recommendations from 2 other guys i know who swear by them, but once again, they were not purchased here. Might have just been bad luck, or bad sweat if the service center supervisor is correct

Aitch

[BlueSmurf]

Good thread thanks..good info which just confirms what I've been thinking.I have a HP pavillion entertainment laptop.nearly 2 years old which I bought in the Uk at Currys electric store.They are cheaper in the Uk than here and I would think that they are the model with all the proper parts that should be in them .All loaded programs are real not copies and works like a dream. I will not if avoidable buy one here in LOS unless my back is up against the wall.

[mnbcm]

I bought a computer from HP with a 1 year warranty. The power cord broke. I took it in to the service center on Chan Klan Road and they said it would take a week. It took 3 days. No questions. No hassles. No reformatted hard drive. No problems.

Having said that, I've fixed computers for 7 years and the vast majority of the problems are HP computers.

I've always been a die hard PC fan, but bought my first MacBook Pro this year. I run Windows XP (and Linux) in VMware Fusion 2 for those times when I need to do something on Windows, but I couldn't be happier. I haven't run into any problems and the Mac is so easy to navigate and manage my massive photo collection with. Windows is dropping the ball on video/photo management. As more and more people get bigger and bigger photo collections, the ability to easily label, search, and organize is more important. Picasa is helpful, but iPhoto is priceless for me. The battery life is also amazing. My HP laptop is down to 20 minutes battery life on the lowest power settings after about a year. My mac is 6 months old and I get a solid 4-6 hours depending on how much I'm using it. The new models are even better. That's my 2 cents.

[Donnyboy]

I bought a computer from HP with a 1 year warranty. The power cord broke. I took it in to the service center on Chan Klan Road and they said it would take a week. It took 3 days. No questions. No hassles. No reformatted hard drive. No problems.

Having said that, I've fixed computers for 7 years and the vast majority of the problems are HP computers.

I've always been a die hard PC fan, but bought my first MacBook Pro this year. I run Windows XP (and Linux) in VMware Fusion 2 for those times when I need to do something on Windows, but I couldn't be happier. I haven't run into any problems and the Mac is so easy to navigate and manage my massive photo collection with. Windows is dropping the ball on video/photo management. As more and more people get bigger and bigger photo collections, the ability to easily label, search, and organize is more important. Picasa is helpful, but iPhoto is priceless for me. The battery life is also amazing. My HP laptop is down to 20 minutes battery life on the lowest power settings after about a year. My mac is 6 months old and I get a solid 4-6 hours depending on how much I'm using it. The new models are even better. That's my 2 cents.

thats good to hear, how hot do the macs run? There was no way i could have my Acer on my lap after about 20 mins. Might give mac a go next time round.

[cmsally]

My HP laptop has a major heat issue which I think is why it keels over every few months.

Quite a few (Thai)people I know have been ordering Macbooks online from Singapore, not buying in Thailand. I'm wondering whether quality of Thai products is becoming a major issue.

Macbook can be serviced at any of their suppliers here and you can buy additional insurance after a years warranty runs out.

My next one will be a Macbook

[Dustoff]

~

A huge number of heat issues with laptops are user caused.

The very name "laptop" gives the impression that you can flop it on your lap and surf happily away for hours but skin and clothing blocking the air vents in the bottom will cook your computer. Unless your laptop vents air in and out of the sides of the unit, which would be very unusual, you have to make sure the the bottom is away from anything that could block airflow like soft furniture, blankets and sheets, pantlegs, et al..

Something flat and firm is preferable, necessary actually, and if it is not large enough to fit under the little feet of the creature, it will begin to sweat. And those little nubs on the bottom raise the unit up a bit to allow airflow but that is minimal and sometimes not enough clearance on a really hot and still day.

Remember that your laptop needs to breathe every bit as much as you do...

[Donnyboy]

looks like macbooks have heat issues as well

[Donnyboy]

~

A huge number of heat issues with laptops are user caused.

The very name "laptop" gives the impression that you can flop it on your lap and surf happily away for hours but skin and clothing blocking the air vents in the bottom will cook your computer. Unless your laptop vents air in and out of the sides of the unit, which would be very unusual, you have to make sure the the bottom is away from anything that could block airflow like soft furniture, blankets and sheets, pantlegs, et al..

Something flat and firm is preferable, necessary actually, and if it is not large enough to fit under the little feet of the creature, it will begin to sweat. And those little nubs on the bottom raise the unit up a bit to allow airflow but that is minimal and sometimes not enough clearance on a really hot and still day.

Remember that your laptop needs to breathe every bit as much as you do...

you can buy laptop cooling pads, saw some in Pantip for about 150 baht

[cmsally]

Strange thing is, laptops I have bought in UK seem to handle the heat better than the ones bought in Thailand, you would think the opposite would be true!

[mnbcm]

I bought a computer from HP with a 1 year warranty. The power cord broke. I took it in to the service center on Chan Klan Road and they said it would take a week. It took 3 days. No questions. No hassles. No reformatted hard drive. No problems.

Having said that, I've fixed computers for 7 years and the vast majority of the problems are HP computers.

I've always been a die hard PC fan, but bought my first MacBook Pro this year. I run Windows XP (and Linux) in VMware Fusion 2 for those times when I need to do something on Windows, but I couldn't be happier. I haven't run into any problems and the Mac is so easy to navigate and manage my massive photo collection with. Windows is dropping the ball on video/photo management. As more and more people get bigger and bigger photo collections, the ability to easily label, search, and organize is more important. Picasa is helpful, but iPhoto is priceless for me. The battery life is also amazing. My HP laptop is down to 20 minutes battery life on the lowest power settings after about a year. My mac is 6 months old and I get a solid 4-6 hours depending on how much I'm using it. The new models are even better. That's my 2 cents.

thats good to hear, how hot do the macs run? There was no way i could have my Acer on my lap after about 20 mins. Might give mac a go next time round.

Right now, CPU is mid 130'sF. Apple told me not to worry unless it gets up into the 170's and 180's when I went to the Mac store. It can get a bit warm for my liking, but if I have the A/C on or fan blowing nearby, it instantly drops in temperature with a light breeze on the keyboard. It does make my legs sweat if I'm on the couch but it's not too hot.

[mnbcm]

you can buy laptop cooling pads, saw some in Pantip for about 150 baht

I've bought a couple of the cheap models and they didn't do anything for my Mac. However the cheap clear one I bought makes a really nice small stand to prop up my computer to the height of my 2nd monitor.

[mnbcm]

I cleaned out my HP laptop fan a couple months ago after it was a year old. I pulled out a dust ball the size of my thumb and the temperature of the computer dropped 30 degrees Fahrenheit instantly. I encouraged 2 friends with HP's to do the same and they had the same results so you might want to check your fans if your laptop is hot. Usually it's as easy as pulling out two screws and lifting the keyboard. HP has good manuals for each manual that show how to do it.

[Farangdanny]

? BUYING ELECTRONIC EQUIPMENT ?

If you are, my experiences with Hewlett Packard will help.

I bought a new HP Pavilion with me to Thailand two years ago. After 12 months, it needed a new keyboard. I took it to HP Service center in Chiang Mai. They promised to have it done in 5 days. It was ready after 2 weeks. I took it home and discovered all the leetters were in the wrong places and it typed different ones to the keys I hit. Back to HP Service center.They said that they couldn't get the right one (despite the part number being on the back), so fitted a local one !! I complained to HP USA. I got a phone call and email and was told that they would get me one. Nearly 3 months later, it arrived and was fitted, I had to pay again and no refund for the incorrect one. They got their own back on me because 3 months later, the computer stopped working completely. I went to a local repair shop. They told me that it needed a new chip which they could not do because they didn't have small enough soldering equipment. Back to the dreaded HP Service. They said quote would be ready in 5 days. Nearly 5 weeks later, I got it. 45,000 Baht !! New computer is 38,000 Baht !! So I told them to stick it. I stupidly bought a new HP Pavilion in May this year. Pavilion because I was familiar with it. I unpacked it 3 weeks later. Very good, but after 2 weeks and about 3 hours of use, it took control and typed any letters it felt like, and some of them hundreds of times, completely random. Back to the shop, they told me to take it to HP Service center, OH NO, not again ! I did. They told me it would be ready in 5 days (the magic number). After 3 weeks, I lost patience and sent a fax to CEO, HP in USA. I got no reply, but I did get an email from HP, Bangkok. Eventually, they agreed to give me a replacement. Sent me a document to take to ZOOM Technologies (where I bought it) to collect the replacemrnt (happy now). Sorry, can't replace it, out of manufacture ! So HP Bangkok told me to go back to ZOOM, as he had authorised them to give me a better model for 2,500 Baht extra (happy again). ZOOM said 'NO CHANCE' you get no new computer here. If you bring everything, including the original box here we will refund money. So, next day I took it all back, for refund. When I asked for it, they said 'NO CHANCE'. But you promised a refund said I. But we didn't say when,did we ? We will send it back to distributor and IF they give us SOME refund, we will give you SOME. That was 3 weeks ago. Now HP Bangkok are ignoring my emails !!!

BE WARNED.

As a consultat in the IT industry I would be avoiding the models designed for home use! Generally they are not what I would consider fit for purpose - possible exception is ASUS (which I do not personally use).

There are some brands that I would never consider, in particular the cheaper brand originally owned by Michael Dell. Unreliable and incompentent service / repair capability. Not just once, but on every single until we purchased. This is one brand I would advise stay WELL clear of. They are cheap, for a reason.

These days many of the no name brands can be assembled from quality products, if you choose carefully you end up with a reliable system at reasonable price.

Sorry I can assist with a solution, but it would be interesting to know the location this 'dealer'.

Dealer was ZOOM Technologies, Central Airport Plaza.

[Donnyboy]

I cleaned out my HP laptop fan a couple months ago after it was a year old. I pulled out a dust ball the size of my thumb and the temperature of the computer dropped 30 degrees Fahrenheit instantly. I encouraged 2 friends with HP's to do the same and they had the same results so you might want to check your fans if your laptop is hot. Usually it's as easy as pulling out two screws and lifting the keyboard. HP has good manuals for each manual that show how to do it.

i have a handheld mini vac (a gift from the bank-pity they dont pay interest!) that i use to sucky-up dust n fluff in and around the computer vents, great also for the crumbs in the keyboard

on a different note, careful when moving your desktop computer if its not grounded/earthed properly. You might get a nasty zap if you dont unplug the computer. You gotta love the Thai electrical system-NOT

I used to get a nasty bite from my acer laptop as well on the metal bits where you plug in the cables at the back

[cmsally]

A warning to anybody buying HP laptops (and maybe others I am not sure).

Cnet - Nvidia chips series 8

The problems I have been having with my laptop have been due to this and it is basically now useless and unfixable.

A brief summary:

1. At no time did the supplier in Chiang Mai tell me about this inherent problem. I found out about it in a conversation to a friend who told me that could be the problem.

2. Hey presto, when I mention it to the supplier, they know all about it.

3. I mentioned that HP in USA had extended the warranty for effected models to 2 yrs. They said HP Thailand wouldn't do so for models already fixed. Well seeing as the average machine with this chip only takes about 3-4 months to peg out then they basically won't accept any responsibility at all as all machines probably fixed for something by now.

So it seems HP Thailand are prepared to lose all their customers, good for them.

Has anyone else had a laptop with this problem, as I will be contacting HP Thailand as well as HP abroad to see what can be done.

I am one very unhappy customer!

[Farangdanny]

A warning to anybody buying HP laptops (and maybe others I am not sure).

Cnet - Nvidia chips series 8

The problems I have been having with my laptop have been due to this and it is basically now useless and unfixable.

A brief summary:

1. At no time did the supplier in Chiang Mai tell me about this inherent problem. I found out about it in a conversation to a friend who told me that could be the problem.

2. Hey presto, when I mention it to the supplier, they know all about it.

3. I mentioned that HP in USA had extended the warranty for effected models to 2 yrs. They said HP Thailand wouldn't do so for models already fixed. Well seeing as the average machine with this chip only takes about 3-4 months to peg out then they basically won't accept any responsibility at all as all machines probably fixed for something by now.

So it seems HP Thailand are prepared to lose all their customers, good for them.

Has anyone else had a laptop with this problem, as I will be contacting HP Thailand as well as HP abroad to see what can be done.

I am one very unhappy customer!

None of HP's agents in Thailand were willing to do anything to solve my problem. So, I sent a copy of my original post to their CEO in America and told him that I would do all I could to see that they sold less computers here.

He didn't reply, but two days later, I recieved a call from HP Bangkok. They told me I could have all my money back and I now have it. So now I have to find a GOOD Computer shop, especially one that speaks English.