Hello all,

I am writing this in somewhat belated follow-up to some posts of mine from last year regarding Nokia's support system. Let me write a small resumé of my experience back then.

Back in October 2006, I bought a Nokia 770. After about a month and a half, I got the dreaded WSOD -- for those of you not in the know, this is when the chip controlling the screen literally destroys the screen. This being an identified factory fault, Nokia was generally replacing the screens without any hassles. At the time, I lived in Malta where the official local Nokia distributor didn't even know what the 770 was, but lucky for me my brother lived in London. After a few overseas calls to the UK support line, I was told to repackage the 770, and all its accessories, in the original box and ship it to my brother (I had to pay the not-unsubstantial postage costs myself, obviously), who would subsequently call Nokia and have it picked up.

I did exactly as I was told, and let a few weeks go by. Not having heard a peep from Nokia, I started calling the UK customer support line -- almost daily -- to see what was going on. Then, after several more weeks, my brother finally told me that the 770 was returned to him -- minus all its accessories, battery, etc. Needless to say, I was furious, but I was glad that at least one item was returned to me.

Not knowing where to turn, I contacted one of the local EU institutions, which told me that they would try and get my case solved. A number of seasons passed, and my 770 stopped working again (!), but I was repeatedly assured by this EU unit that my case was being dealt with.

Then last week, out of the blue, I received an email from a person at Nokia telling me that he is handling my case and asking me for an explanation of exactly what happened. I obliged, and he called me up offering to replace my 770 with a refurbished unit, minus all its accessories. I complained slightly that I would prefer to have all the accessories that Nokia had never returned from me. Without a moment's hesitation he asked me whether I would consider the case closed if he sent me a brand new, boxed N810. I was elated, relieved, and very grateful.

So, why am I writing this? Well, anyone who's been here for more than a few months knows what a problem dealing with Nokia support was in the past, and how much (merited, unfortunately) bad publicity Nokia received on this very site back then. I hope that this post will set the record straight: Nokia really have listened to us. It may have taken three years, but they seem to have finally gotten their act together.

I also hope that whoever is thinking of buying a Nokia Internet Tablet and stumbles upon this post will have a tad more peace of mind

Thanks for listening!

Lucky you !

I single-handedly gave Nokia so much bad publicity early last year that I wouldn't be able to sleep at night had I not posted that!

PS: Yes, I know I am incredibly lucky

Hey convulted, have you actually received the promised N810 unit from Nokia yet?

Yes, last Monday (it was promised to me the Wednesday before).

Ah, late even to their redemption.

You seem to be a very forgiving person, though... it did take them 3 years.

Two years
Plus, I got a N800 as a gift from my gf when my 770 stopped working, plus I started a PhD ... so I didn't really have time to concentrate on my woes!

Um... this story isn't making me feel particularly redemptive towards Nokia.

They should have dealt with the issue within two months, not two years. Just 'cause they threw you a new N810 just to get rid of you doesn't make their Support team a good one. Especially since the penultimate offer was a reconditioned unit that was two years behind the times (and, oh, still no accessories even though you followed their request when they told you you had to send back to them with the defective model).

And now I'm pissed with your Malta-based Nokia guy. Who *cares* if he'd never seen a N770. It's a *NOKIA*, he's a *NOKIA* dealer, he should have dealt with the NOKIA problem.

Great... the Seattle Mariners are going absolute crap against the New York Yankees and now I'm indignant about a product I never bought... .

It actually took almost a year for the Maltese EU unit to locate who it has to speak to in the UK EU unit and almost another year for the UK EU unit to get a move on. Nokia was contacted about two weeks ago.
So it's not all that bad

About the Nokia dealer in Malta: I fully agree. However, the contract they have with Nokia specifically says that they will only deal with phones.

It seems Nokia's customer service works...

...just very s l o-o-o-o w l y.

Good to see you back to report the resolution, convulted. Good luck with your research!