N800 Parts or Lack there of, Nokia lets me down again!
 

For those that have contacted me in the past three weeks, you might have noticed I was not responding. I have been on a trip across USA. In the process of my adventures, my n800 has become a little beat up. I broke my flip stand, and my latch on my back cover. Oh well I figured, I would call Nokia and order the parts I need, it can't cost that much, right? Well great news, Nokia says they will replace it for free, they will send me the parts. Sounds terriffic. Oh but wait, we do not have these parts in stock, call back and check in 2 weeks and see if we have the parts.

I will happily pay for them, but Nokia will not sell them to me. I have asked to be placed on a list to be sent or sold them when they are available. Sorry will will have to just keep calling back.

I continue to press and ask to be sent them when they become available, I am told to search ebay, or call back in two weeks.

WTF -- Nokia continues to disappoint me when it comes to customer service. They have a problem from the top down. I figured the person I was talking to just did not want to do there job, so I called back, and again got the same lines.


What a bunch of crap, should I throw out my 400$ device, because a 5$ part is broken.

Nokia, again you disappoint me with your lack of caring about my problems.

Re: N800 Parts or Lack there of, Nokia lets me down again!
 

Clearly, that is the only way Nokia will learn. :p

Seriously, I can't believe they wouldn't put you on a list.

Re: N800 Parts or Lack there of, Nokia lets me down again!
 

I have to say that mine's gotten a little more beat up over the last two weeks as well.

Re: N800 Parts or Lack there of, Nokia lets me down again!
 

Sorry to hear about your experience, pb, but seriously: if parts aren't available, they're not available. Not just for you, but for anyone. So I realize you're speaking from personal frustration, but there's no vendetta against you by Nokia.

I think we've already established that the reverse logistics for the tablets are horrid. I've been beating the drum for some time now, and was recently given reason to believe the shortcomings are being addressed. So it may be cold comfort to you in your moment of dire need but I have faith the gaps are being filled and will continue to be.

But, some things to consider:

-There haven't been huge stand failure rates (in fact they've been pleasantly small) which may have created certain assumptions inhouse about preparing for such events. I'm thinking that replacement stocks were very low and then depleted very rapidly by a cluster of requests. In addition, repair competes with original supply and Nokia employs lean manufacturing techniques that very likely don't allow for a reasonable surplus of parts.

-The company began a HUGE overhaul in June (I cannot possibly overstate that) which is significantly impacting everyone, especially logistics (where I was just moved). It will take a while for this to settle. It is unfortunate for customers, but it is what it is.

Neither of these points are meant to excuse abyssmal support. However, I'm hoping it will help by at least providing some background.

Be persistent. You will get your parts.

Re: N800 Parts or Lack there of, Nokia lets me down again!
 

Penguin, in the meantime you could get one of those cheap 770s while they last, to carry on the road. They don't get beat up nearly so easily :-)

Re: N800 Parts or Lack there of, Nokia lets me down again!
 

eBay? Either to get one with the parts, or to get money for yours as parts for someone else?

Re: N800 Parts or Lack there of, Nokia lets me down again!
 

yeah... I thought the n800 would be a great thing to view manuals on wile Im "business" trips... Its just not cut out for army life.

Now what I would LOVE to see is a case mod putting the n800 is a 770 shell. I would probably buy a 770 just to do it.

Re: N800 Parts or Lack there of, Nokia lets me down again!
 

Did I really say I thought Nokia has a vendetta against me, no I do not think I said that. My point, which I thought was clear, is that the problem of not having parts is Nokia's problem, why can they not put me on a list and send them when available. Its not a matter of there being a parts shortage, its a matter of how you handle your customers requests. It should be shipped when the parts are available, I should not have to call back and keep spending my time trying to find out if they have parts yet.

some thing to consider, huh?

"-There haven't been huge stand failure rates (in fact they've been pleasantly small) which may have created certain assumptions inhouse about preparing for such events."

Well if you tell the people that call in with failures to call back when there is parts and never make any attempt to record these failures, it does not surprise me parts are not available. The fact that they refused to record the calls and plan for parts seems like a purposeful act to me.

I will continue to call in everyday and ask until they are available and I will continue to think that Nokia's customer service policies suck, because they do, and I completely understand that they suck for everyone, not just me :cool:

Re: N800 Parts or Lack there of, Nokia lets me down again!
 

You might want to relax there a bit before something bursts. I didn't say you said Nokia had a vendetta against you. It was a facetious comment.

And I have acknowledged the reverse logistics problems many, many times and do not excuse them. Again, I simply provided you some background info. That is very, very clear in my post, which you quoted and appear to have read.

Seriously, though, I recommend an herbal sedative. Try kava kava. It'll make you less prone to outbursts and make your wait for parts go by without a care.

Re: N800 Parts or Lack there of, Nokia lets me down again!
 

have you always been such a penis?

Maybe you have to work for Nokia to have such low expectations?

Re: N800 Parts or Lack there of, Nokia lets me down again!
 

Search this forum or Google and you'll find your answer fairly easy.

Re: N800 Parts or Lack there of, Nokia lets me down again!
 

Wow... what... irony.

Here's a thought, pb: take that sedative, and once you're relaxed, try going back through this thread with a tad more objectivity. I think you'll find the "penis" in the mirror. All I did was kindly offer you some background info after your initial rant, and you go on the attack. Nice. I see that the forum's biggest *** climbed into bed with you, too. Comfy?

Amazing how someone can so glibly twist the words of another. But then, given the hostility in your original rant, I'm not surprised. Sheesh. :rolleyes:

Re: N800 Parts or Lack there of, Nokia lets me down again!
 

It's pretty lame that they are out of parts, but I dunno. The fact that they even offer such replacement parts, and for free, seems pretty generous to me. Of course a promise of free parts is pretty meaningless untill you actually get said free parts, but still. I understand customer service frustration, I've had this very strong urge to walk into every at&t store in the miami area for the express purpose of getting a whole bunch of charges of assault and battery brought up against me recently, but at least your tablet is still functional. Then again, I have a 770, slow, but pretty sturdy. And just for the record Texrat, I personally don't feel that you resemble a certain peice of my lower anatomy.

Re: N800 Parts or Lack there of, Nokia lets me down again!
 

Heck, and I was taking that as a compliment... ;)

I just need to get the rules of forum decorum straight. Apparently some people here can be jerks, and some cannot. Sardonic humor is also apparently forbidden. Hey, I'm as slow as Nokia repair people, but give me time-- I'll get all this straight and then I'll be as sweet as can be. :D

Re: N800 Parts or Lack there of, Nokia lets me down again!
 

I will stick with my original analysis Texrat = Richard Cranium

Thanks for playing!!

Re: N800 Parts or Lack there of, Nokia lets me down again!
 

Penguin, I really didn't mean to set you off. My first post was dead serious (and meant in a helpful spirit), you mistook one facetious remark, and so I decided to play with you. A horrible crime, I know, given your obvious propensity toward lashing out. :p

Think what you will. I realized a while back you had developed a bias against me, and that's cool. Can't please everyone.

But can I be the Head Dick instead of just the Dick Head? I'd appreciate it!

Re: N800 Parts or Lack there of, Nokia lets me down again!
 

Funny, I've been thinking of exactly the same thing lately. I've been wondering if it is even physically possible, even after dropping the camera, with the different volumes and placement of the various ports.
Then there would be the problem of the 770's microswitch for the magnet in the cover...

The best outcome would be for Nokia to come to its senses, and design the N900 with the portability of the 770 *and* the capabilities of the N800 :-)

Re: N800 Parts or Lack there of, Nokia lets me down again!
 

I'm with you about the n900. Honestly I think you'd have to fabricate a hardcover for the n800, straight up. If I had one I'd take a crack at it and show it to the industrial design people I know, but alas, my tablet fits in the 770 hardcover.

Re: N800 Parts or Lack there of, Nokia lets me down again!
 

I played around a while back with the idea that the cover could double as the stand. Even had a workable concept. That sort of scenario might have helped penguinbait, too... certainly more than my post did. ;)

Re: N800 Parts or Lack there of, Nokia lets me down again!
 

You can be the head dick or the disk head, I think you are being both. That said, you started the lashing out, maybe you need to go read the posts again. I may have been annoyed by your comments at first, but then you tell me I am going to burst, and I need to calm down, and I need drugs. I am fine, just sick of your crap.

Well my friend I do not need your drugs, nor do I need to calm down. If you want to state your opinions about Nokia thats fine. But when you make statements about me, like I need to calm down and take drugs. Just because you do not like or agree with what I am saying, you do not need to personally attack me, but since you did, F U.

I have teenagers I will not take crap from, I will most certainly not take it from you. So was my response to you talking shat about me overboard, I don't think so, but you are entitled to your opinion. I will make you a deal though, don't talk crap about me, and I won't talk crap about you. But its all free game otherwise, when YOU cast the first stone!!!

Re: N800 Parts or Lack there of, Nokia lets me down again!
 

Holy cow. That wasn't a personal attack, pb, I was kidding you. Miles of difference between mild teasing and an outright attack. But-- no humor on your planet? Okay. I'll just add you to the short list of hypersensitive sorts that I obviously can't reply to and I'm sure you'll be much happier.

Enjoy!

Re: N800 Parts or Lack there of, Nokia lets me down again!
 

I see skies of blue... Red roses too... and I think to myself... What a wonderful world~

Re: N800 Parts or Lack there of, Nokia lets me down again!
 

Okay guys, this is getting old...

Re: N800 Parts or Lack there of, Nokia lets me down again!
 

I'm almost sure this same idea was floated around here in the very early days of the 770, in discussions about alternative case designs.

It does sound natural ; if Nokia wanted to try out a third approach for the N900, it could do worse than give this one a spin.

Re: N800 Parts or Lack there of, Nokia lets me down again!
 

A hardcase/stand would be nice. Or at the very least, better than a stand with no hardcase. The 770 stand always does seem a bit ghetto, but it's been faithful, and hasn't broken, and I havn't had to call up Nokia every day in hopes of getting a replacement peice, so theres always that I guess.

Re: N800 Parts or Lack there of, Nokia lets me down again!
 

My initial complaint was never about the somewhat flimsy back cover and stand or even that I have to wait weeks for the parts. While I think these could have been made better, I broke them and take full responsibility for that. I was willing to even buy the parts from Nokia. My rub is, just take my danm name and send me the parts when available. Why do you want to piss off your customers by making them call you back over and over again. Perhaps if they started compiling a list of people waiting for these parts, they might find out they need to manufacture some more and have them on hand. This seems better than closing your eyes and saying, problem, what problem, I don't see any problem.

Re: N800 Parts or Lack there of, Nokia lets me down again!
 

^exactly...

It is all about customer service. Saying you'll give me something free that you don't have isn't generous, it's "handling me.... Nothing - nothing = nothing.

Not recording and tracking the issue is symptomatic of the bigger problem.

If we don't stay focused and come to some agreement in these threads nothing will change and 1 of 2 things will pro'ly occur.

1. Any company peeps who review user forums will get the notion we are an unfocused, disagreeable lot who do not deserve their attention.

2. Members will come to the same conclusion and stop visiting and contributing.

Re: N800 Parts or Lack there of, Nokia lets me down again!
 

The US Nokia's web site does not have simple things like the stylus available. Their Flagship store in New York City does not sell the stylus. NO stores who carry the Nokia N800 have the stylus (there are only a few stores that I found). Only after crying on emails to US customer service did they mail me a replacement stylus. This is a new item. Their retialers should carry their unique stylus !!

Re: N800 Parts or Lack there of, Nokia lets me down again!
 

I bought a PERFECT case at the local BestBuy @11. The case is sold for the Nintendo DS (the same size as the N800) The only modification was to make a cut out in the plastic holder insert and to put a pair of velcro fasteners (one on the scase and one on the back of the N800). LOTS of protection with a hard face and back and a padded sides with zipper. Also has a belt loop and a zipper pouch for storing an extra stylus and also earbuds

Re: N800 Parts or Lack there of, Nokia lets me down again!
 

Agreed. I still can't figure that one out.

The fact that I saw a huge demand for the 770 slip covers and the N800 faceplates I had tells me Nokia is missing an opportunity.

Re: N800 Parts or Lack there of, Nokia lets me down again!
 

Totally agreed. it's a very bad customer support when they ask the customer to keep calling back until they have what he/she needs. Does Nokia not even have a simple customer-call tracking tool?

Re: N800 Parts or Lack there of, Nokia lets me down again!
 

Don't ask.

Again, not to excuse the current situation, but there are obvious holes. Part of my job is to provide wants and requirements to internal software developers to fill gaps, and I'm unable to divulge just how many and how serious they are. Suffice to say Nokia grew fast, individual applications were developed to fill (then) unique, isolated needs, and now there's an effort to tie all those inlaw and outlaw apps together.

Meanwhile, CARE and tech service folks do the best they can with what they have. I truly wish that customers could understand that. It's appropriate to rip executive management for not taking these needs seriously for so long, but to blame the poor service folk is to shoot arrows at the very people struggling to help (and catching crap at both ends). It's a thankless job.

So to ask these people to call customers back on these requests is asking them to manage the activity at a level and scope they may not be prepared for. If in fact there are system shortcomings that prevent tracking and automatic alerts, then each tech has to manage a manual list of who and what and when and how. Couple that with turnover and other pressures... and well... it ain't pretty.

The best place to aim the ire isn't at the techs, and it isn't in here (though this place is awesome for catharsis and companionship :p)... it's through higher channels.

Re: N800 Parts or Lack there of, Nokia lets me down again!
 

I want to be very very clear, and make sure nobody is putting words in my mouth or anyone elses.

Again I stated Nokia has a customer service problem from the top down. It is policy not people that are the problem. While I have encountered rather rude people in the past when dealing with customer service, it was the policies they are forced to follow that are at the root of the problem. People are people some are a-holes some are helpful, but they all work in the constraints of a broken system and that is the problem.

I think what we are saying as a community is to put something in place to handle the requests that are so obviously needed, and we do not really care how things are currently setup, fix it or risk losing customers.

Re: N800 Parts or Lack there of, Nokia lets me down again!
 

Nokia needs to realize that it either fixes it's support chain issues or it loses customers.
Period. End of fcuking list.

To quote an old Sergeant-Major in the desert right before an operation:
"Get it together, people. This **** ain't hard."

Re: N800 Parts or Lack there of, Nokia lets me down again!
 

Best line of this thread!

http://img377.imageshack.us/img377/4793/bigsmiledl3.gif

Re: N800 Parts or Lack there of, Nokia lets me down again!
 

Agreed. And I realize most people won't care about "setup", i.e., the background info I was providing. I just thought this was a more sophisticated base...

EDIT: at the risk of unintentionally causing further inflammation, that last line didn't come out right. I meant that since this is a more sophisticated user base, that people might be interested in background info. Sorry about that.

Re: N800 Parts or Lack there of, Nokia lets me down again!
 

When I worked for a major cable company, the customer database we use is called ACSR. And there is no way to put a customer in a queue and automatically mail out the item when its available. The database is setup like that you can't change it. The customer service rep can lie to you and tell you he/she has submit your request or he could tell you the true and tell you he can't do anything about it.

Of course, what you really should do is ask for the supervisor and then whine about it, the supervisor probably can fire an email to someone who can actually make a difference.

Or the actual solution that works: dump your tablet on ebay and buy a new one; or even the nastier way: fried your tablet with corrupted firmware so you can exchange it. Whining on an internet tablet forum is lol worthy.

Re: N800 Parts or Lack there of, Nokia lets me down again!
 

I don't know if ill go with a 900 after all this.

Re: N800 Parts or Lack there of, Nokia lets me down again!
 

I understand that. I used to be a support engineer myself so I know what it's like to be torn between the (rightfully) angry customer and the management.

OTOH, customer support personnel _is_ typically the single point of communication between the company and its customers. They are not the decision-makers, but they do represent the company - at least from the customer's standpoint. When encountered with a customer who's been victimized by a bad company policy, the customer support representative should at least acknowledge the problem, explain the situation and ask for the customer's understanding. If the support person doesn't do that and ends up ticking off the customer, as in the case of the OP, then that is the support person's problem, not his company's. (I'm sure you'll agree on this...)

Re: N800 Parts or Lack there of, Nokia lets me down again!
 

I am an support engineer. Hell, I think this board is filled with 'em. Customers do not care if you are a sorry sob that just does what management tells you with the pitiful tools management gives you. YOU are the company for a lot of customers. So YOU get flamed when the company screws up. That's the way people do business.
That your car stalled on the way to work is a shame. But not my problem. Do your job, and if you don't like it, find another. Why should I feel sorry for Nokia support personnel? They sure as hell don't feel sorry for me. And they shouldn't.