WSOD - Advice needed
 

Hi folks,

Q1. I'm pretty sure my 3 week old Nokia 770 has just suffered the dreaded White Screen of Death but could someone just verify it for me?

http://i15.tinypic.com/4pbs1fa.jpg

Q2. From reading previous topics/posts on the subject here I assume there is *nothing* I can do?

I thought the WSOD usually happens at some time during the first 5 - 10 reboots and assumed I'd safely passed that with my 15+ reboots. Alas it was not to be :( .

Q3. Since the 770 is an end-of-life product now do Nokia still repair them after a WSOD?

Q4. Again from reading topics/posts here on the WSOD it seems that units that suffer from one WSOD go on to suffer another and another at some stage afterwards. Am I better off just taking a refund (assuming I can get one)?

Thanks in advance.

Re: WSOD - Advice needed
 

Verified

http://i13.tinypic.com/6bwi1ky.jpg

Nope, unfortunately there is nothing you can do. Generally it happens within the first 10 reboots, but it doesn't mean that it won't happen after that. I've seen people get it after using the 770 for over a year.

Yes, they will repair it as long as it is still in warranty.

I don't believe that is true anymore. I think when Nokia was first fixing them, that was a problem, but have since figured out why the problem was happening and now I believe the repaired ones are fine after being fixed.

Re: WSOD - Advice needed
 

Thanks for the response bac522 :) .

If that's accurate then it's certainly encouraging.

Re: WSOD - Advice needed
 

I bought mine from Expansys and they've just got back to me saying they're going to refund me as they are unable to repair or replace it.

I'm not sure if that means that Nokia no longer repair them or whether expansys consider it less hassle to simple refund :confused:.

Re: WSOD - Advice needed
 

I think they (expansys) have cleared all their remaining stock of 770s

I think I got one of the last few too (3rdAUG)

nice device, I'm sorry to hear you had probs

Re: WSOD - Advice needed
 

My guess unable to replace it because expansys don't have any stock, and I doubt expansys would have repaired it themselves so that was never a likely option (probably just a stock response).

If you want to try getting Nokia to repair it, try submitting a request to this URL: http://www.nokia.co.uk/A4222232

Note that it's for the UK - not sure if you need to find an Ireland specific equivalent.

When my N800 had the touchscreen fault I submitted a request via that URL and had Nokia Helpline get in touch within a couple of days to arrange pick up and repair - I had it back after 5 weeks (which wasn't great, but better than nothing).

I would suggest you at least try and get your 770 repaired under warranty, as cheap 770's are becoming pretty scarce now. I think they're finally extinct. :(

Re: WSOD - Advice needed
 

Thanks for the suggestion Milhouse. I hadn't thought of that and I'd prefer to get the unit repaired if possible as I was quite enjoying using it.

I rang up Nokia Care here in Ireland and they referred me to my local repair centre. Unfortunately when they put the serial number into their system it showed up as "out of warranty" as the units were originally shipped to the US and presumably expansys bought the backlog of stock in bulk (which explains why it shipped with a power adaptor for Irish/UK mains).

Seemingly when the unit crosses international borders the warranty doesn't follow it. I didn't think to enquire how much it would cost to fix anyway but I assume that it would be prohibitively expensive.
Anyway I may keep an eye out for a unit on ebay but I'm in two minds about dipping my toes in the water again.

Re: WSOD - Advice needed
 

That's interesting, I wonder what your local trading standards would have to say as I don't think Expansys made it at all clear they were selling products without any warranty.

Also note that the WSOD is due to a *known Nokia design flaw* and to the best of my knowledge, design flaws are exempt from warranty time limits - ie. the manufacturer is always liable for remediation irrespective of time constraints.

I'd check with your local trading standards to see where you stand on this, if there are others in Ireland/UK with the same fault (likely) you may be able to save everyone a lot of grief. :)

Re: WSOD - Advice needed
 

I find this hard to believe for a global organisation such as Nokia - let's say you lived in the US where you bought the 770, then recently emigrated to live in Ireland... would Nokia Ireland seriously refuse to repair their Nokia product bought in good faith and expect you to ship it all the way back to a Nokia US repair centre? That's just insane, and incredibly stupid on Nokias part - talk about an easy way to lose a customer.

And if Nokia don't like Expansys flogging off their old gear, then Nokia should punish Expansys and not the unwitting consumer.

Re: WSOD - Advice needed
 

Well Nokia were happy to sell a device with applications that crash quite regularly :p. (joke)

Anyway they offered a refund without any quibble so I guess most people will be happy with that and I imagine many of those who purchased it would be aware that it can suffer a WSOD.
AFAIK the trading standards demand that an item be of merchantable quality and is either repaired or replaced if an issue arises or else a full refund is offered.

Now I just have to sell off my 1GB RS-MMC card........