Seriously unhappy with N900 and Nokia.
 

Hi I'd like to share a couple of things here.

I live in Brazil and have, in February and after much consideration and comparison with others, acquired in the US a N900. It has been a wonderful phone and beyond, and answered almost all of my expectations.

I use it mainly for work, which involves constant and full internet access on the go, email, pictures, videos and others.

in that aspect I've had no problems whatsoever. Note I am MAC user and as such, encountered some incompatibilities in synchronizing phone and computer, which have been (thankfully) sorted out in different threads in this community. Once again, thank you all for your support!.

I had a couple of good programs installed and none have given me any problems, including an overclocked (through Kernel) to 500 - 850 MHz.

All good so far. Last week, Tuesday, I unlocked the screen to access emails (by using the side switch) and when I clicked on the email icon on 01 of my desktops, lines appeared on my screen, both vertical and horizontal, as if something was interfering with it. I shut down the phone and when I powered it up again, the display was completely dead.

I heard the nokia sound but no display came up or lit, though I could feel (screen vibration) that the screen was responsive. I connected the AV cable and all worked fine on the big screen, but still my display was dead.

Not having much time to investigate any further, I took, on the following day, my phone to the authorized NOKIA CARE centre where I live. here a couple of things happened:

1- They did not recognize my phone. (It appears this phone is still not available for market in Brazil).
2- They did not acknowledge WARRANTY on the phone either (I will get back to this later on).

Anyway, I left the phone there to analysis and they would give me a quotation on how much it would cost to repair it in a couple of days. Immediately I contacted NOKIA in Brazil inquiring as to why my phone was denied WARRANTY by their specialized centre.

The answer I got was "NOKIA is not responsible for NOKIA phones purchased outside the country".

After 5 days trying, I finally managed to get a hold from NOKIA centre on how much it would cost to have my phone back, I was already sorrowful for it. And to my amazement, the answer I got was even more appalling:

"NOKIA will not provide any parts to repair your phone, as it is not one of the range of phones distributed in your country".

The funny thing is I can get it listed on the NOKIA Brazil webpage for support.

So now I am stuck with a half dead phone (still connects AV and works fine) and don't know what to do. I have tried, as a last resort (willingly knowing that the chances of it working were dim), clearing all user data and restoring to factory default (though all programs I installed are manually there).

I did not find a wiki on reflashing using a MAC, and don't have enough time (or patience for that matters, to try and doing it using XP), and also, I don't quite think this would work either, as I suspect it is but a case of a burnt-out display that needs replacement.

Trying to send the phone to a NOKIA centre in the US is non-productive (taxes to export, contacts in the US, and how to get it back home) and time ineffective, though is proving to be the last resort ever.

Sorry for the long thread and thank you very much for listening.

Any input shared is much appreciated.

Best regards,

Re: Seriously unhappy with N900 and Nokia.
 

People here don't like it when they read negative things about the n900. They get REALLY defensive and throw away common sense and comes out with emotional outbursts instead.

I wish you luck.

Re: Seriously unhappy with N900 and Nokia.
 

Hello.

The best course is to talk to the people you bought the N900 from in the US, though do beware that technically you voided your warranty by overclocking the phone.
They might be able to talk to Nokia in Brazil about repairing it for you.

Re: Seriously unhappy with N900 and Nokia.
 

Well you do know that most companies won't recognize international warranties?

You have two options:

1) buy a screen from ebay and fix it yourself.
2) Send it to the US to get fixed.

I'd choose option 1.

Re: Seriously unhappy with N900 and Nokia.
 

My US-bought N900 is also not protected under warranty in Europe. It's a risk we take unfortunately. Nokia's warranty applies only in the region you bought the phone in.

Re: Seriously unhappy with N900 and Nokia.
 

Sounds to me as though the LCD connector cable has come loose. It's a relatively easy fix and wouldn't take you more than a couple hours with the right screwdriver.

Re: Seriously unhappy with N900 and Nokia.
 

I think his problem is not with the N900 itself but with the policies of Nokia service. I can understand why he'd be annoyed with Nokia, although companies often have policies like that to try to limit the "grey market". It sucks, but isn't uncommon.

Some suggestions:

1. There are web sites that sell Nokia parts. Maybe he could buy a screen from one of those and find a local technician to install it.

2. Buy another N900 on EBay. Either use it for parts as above or just use it as a replacement device.

Re: Seriously unhappy with N900 and Nokia.
 

Every single phone i have had with a sliding screen has suffered this problem.

it is caused by the constant movment of the ribbon that connects the screen to the main unit.

It is probably as simple as the connection has come lose & at worst will require a new ribbon.

I suggest pulling it apart

Re: Seriously unhappy with N900 and Nokia.
 

Many companies don't provide international warranty, and for those that don't, you take the risk by buying a device in a country you do not have easy access to.

When I buy devices in a country I don't live in or visit often, I consider the risk. E.g., in the case of my Canon DSLR (exact same model is available in my home country, but AFAIK Canon only respects warranty on DSLRs *actually* sold in your home country), I bought a 3rd-party international warranty.

Some companies are better about this, some have limited international warranty (e.g. Acer I think), but this is definitely not only Nokia, and not only smartphones.

You may want to see if a 3rd-party is able to fix your device for a small fee, or at least identify the exact problem, if you aren't able to, or don't have the equipment, to do it yourself. I did this once with a different Nokia phone (that wasn't supported by Nokia as in the country the network operator provides Nokia support, and the handset was replaced by insurance after the original device was stolen).

Re: Seriously unhappy with N900 and Nokia.
 

Nokia Care is one of the worse parts of Nokia (or pretty much any other company) pretty much anywhere in the world.

But international warranties tend to be an issue regardless of brand.

If you don't feel confortable messing with the hardware yourself, see if a local mobile phone repair shop would take the challenge and how much they are gonna charge you; last year i had to replace the keypad of my N73, the only Nokia Care shop was on the other side of town and it would probably have been a nasty experience leaving my phone there and then waiting for them to eventually do somthing about it (somthing that probably wouldn't have been the best thing for my case), instead i went to a repair shop near my bulding, they had ran out of the keypad in the right color, but in the very next day i went there and like half an hour or so later it was done, costed me about 70-90 Reais i think, but it was well worth not having to travel across São Paulo and then waiting some unpredictable amount of days for a likely less than ideal result.

Re: Seriously unhappy with N900 and Nokia.
 

No "people" dont...

But "people" also dont like this kind of posts being related to a forum where discussion about a platform takes place. This is not Nokia care forum and I do understand why "people" might get annoyed.

My take in this is: Instead of coming here and talking to deaf ears (no one here really cares and/or will solve your problem) so take your energy applying it against Nokia.

My only suggestion is you using it combined with the TV out to your tv. Nothing else can be done.

This is why I dont like to buy products in other countries. I bought once a HP laptop in France and the same thing happened.

Re: Seriously unhappy with N900 and Nokia.
 

This thread contains a similar experience.

Short answer: buy screen from third-party (e.g. ebay) and fit it yourself or pay someone to do it for you - and probably do the job better & sooner than Nokia

Re: Seriously unhappy with N900 and Nokia.
 

This is not exclusive to Nokia so although it seems Nokia are being a pain, it's just most international corporations who do this.

Secondly, Why are you unhappy with the N900? you initially say you really like it - but because it has a fault you're unhappy with the whole device as a whole? things go wrong with gadgets all the time. That does not qualify as a reason to say you dont like that specific product.

Lastly, as someone has already mentioned buying things internationally runs you the risk of this situation exactly. It has happened to me and i've learnt from it. Good luck resolving it, and oh remember this Forum really isnt a place where Nokia come to see who is displeased with them. Its a great community for people to discuss and help each others but isnt a Nokia support portal.

Re: Seriously unhappy with N900 and Nokia.
 

i would suggest to dissassemble it and try it yourself.but DONT TRY TO OPEN IT WITH WRONG SCREW DRIVER IN hoping it can open it with little more pressure. I did that with n82 and now that particular screw can't be opened by any driver, don't know how to solve it, probably destroy the screw head which I tried but seems like its too hard to destroy.

Re: Seriously unhappy with N900 and Nokia.
 

Unfortunately the N900 in not really supported by Nokia and definitely not pushed by them in any way, probably because it never was released as a finished product (thus, unfortunately, it and its spare parts are unavailable in many countries) and only now somewhat getting there.

Support has been relegated to the community, which is actually doing quite a good job at it (probably a better one than what we could expect from companies like Nokia, Apple or Google).

So here is my advice for flashing the N900: Download the Ubuntu Live CD and boot from it. Then follow these instuctions: http://wiki.maemo.org/Updating_the_t...firmware#Linux
Haven't tried it myself yet, but I can't see why it wouldn't work.

In any case, the N900 is and will remain not for the faint of heart. Using the device is a learning experience. For some people that's a turn on, for others it's a turn off.

Btw, you might have already voided the warranty by overclocking (which has been made tantalizingly easy), though obviously that shouldn't bar you from purchasing spare parts. I think I saw a link to a website that sells spare parts somewhere on this forums though.

Re: Seriously unhappy with N900 and Nokia.
 

Thanks for help all. Tried disassembling it and putting screen back in place but it still does not work. Will see if I can get a new screen on ebay or have someone else do the work.

Regards,

Re: Seriously unhappy with N900 and Nokia.
 

Off topic:
Take a small drill and drill off the head of the screw, once there is no head, there is no pressure on the thread, you should then be able to wind it out by hand. If not, cut a small slot in the top of the screw and use a small instrument screwdriver to extract the screw.

I've done this more times than I can remember on everything from engines to watches.

Re: Seriously unhappy with N900 and Nokia.
 

unfortunately, this seems to be your best bet.

look at this thread for example. this canadian user also was unable to get his N900 repaired in his own country, and had to send it to the US.
if you bought it in the US, that's where you have to claim warranty.

(although in your case Nokia should make an exception IMO. the N900 is officially available in Brazil, it's just that your IMEI identifies it as US-bought. Nokia can't make the excuse that there are no "qualified technicians" available or whatever...)

Re: Seriously unhappy with N900 and Nokia.
 

Hope this help: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pDQ81cahD1c

Re: Seriously unhappy with N900 and Nokia.
 

Dude...no one force you to get N900...go get some other phones..they are plenty out there to suits your need

Re: Seriously unhappy with N900 and Nokia.
 

How on earth is that gonna fix a broken screen?!?

Re: Seriously unhappy with N900 and Nokia.
 

Many companies don't provide international warranty, and for those that don't, you take the risk by buying a device in a country you do not have easy access to.

When I buy devices in a country I don't live in or visit often, I consider the risk. E.g., in the case of my Canon DSLR (exact same model is available in my home country, but AFAIK Canon only respects warranty on DSLRs *actually* sold in your home country), I bought a 3rd-party international warranty.

Some companies are better about this, some have limited international warranty (e.g. Acer I think), but this is definitely not only Nokia, and not only smartphones.

You may want to see if a 3rd-party is able to fix your device for a small fee, or at least identify the exact problem, if you aren't able to, or don't have the equipment, to do it yourself. I did this once with a different Nokia phone (that wasn't supported by Nokia as in the country the network operator provides Nokia support, and the handset was replaced by insurance after the original device was stolen).

Re: Seriously unhappy with N900 and Nokia.
 

i would rather get a screen from ebay than drive only 20 miles to my nearest nokia care point, mainly because i would be without the phone for 30 ish days if i let them fix it