Background information:
I have been a Samsung user for the past 12 years. It started with the A800, then the pink rectangle flip phone (which my dad is using now), a Samsung Omnia, a Galaxy S and now a Galaxy S3. From the chain of Samsung phones I have, I think you can tell that I am quite a huge fan of Samsung. But why wouldn’t I?
I changed my A800 out of vanity. My pink rectangle flip phone is still working awesome! Omnia is also working fine (though laggy). Galaxy S is with my brother.
Plus, the Samsung Service Centre was always awesome. There was once my Omnia speakers was faulty for an entire day but when I was at the service centre, it started working again! I related my experience to the CSO and she still insisted on taking the phone in. When I collected the phone, not only was the speakers changed. They found out that some other parts of Omnia was failing so they changed it for me too. Best part was…I didn’t have to pay for the other parts (but I paid for the speakers).
The Samsung Galaxy S3 incident
It started sometime after CNY. I realised that my S3 was started freezing more and more frequently. I had to force reset it all the time. Sometimes, I have to take out the battery cos it just wouldn’t respond. After much googling, I did a factory data reset. Painful but if it helps, why not.
3 weeks after the factory data reset, the phone started freezing again. And this time, it will restart itself too. I would know cos I have the Home Button application on. Once, I woke up at 6am to find that S3 restarted itself during the night. I started the Home Button app again and went back to sleep. At 7.30am, the Home Button was gone.
Worried, I called the Customer Service Hotline. You can read about the incident here.
At the Service Centre
I brought my hp down to the PS branch today for servicing as advised by the CSO who called me after my Facebook post above. I went with the impression that S3 will be given a new motherboard cos of all the comments and feedback by fellow S3 on my FB post.
Collected my temporary phone and stuff. Was served by an awesome lady called, Medly (I think).
At 4+ in the afternoon, I was told that my hp is ready for collection.
When I went down, I was told by a CSO (Jamie) that they only did a software upgrade for me. I asked her how that would help solve my problem since I update my phone whenever I was prompted. She went to the backroom to check and came back a minute later. She said that a software upgrade is different from a software update. When I asked how is it different, she went to the backroom again. One of her colleague, Kenneth, tried to be helpful and said that a software upgrade removes bugs while an update just updates. Okkkaaaaayyyy. So I asked the next natural question, “Why is it that the bug occurs 9 months after I bought the phone?” Both of them went to the backroom to ask.
Jamie came back and said that their technician believes it is a software problem. I repeated my story of how a data reset didn’t help and how fellow S3 users with the same problem resolved their issue with a change in motherboard. Jamie couldn’t answer and went to the backroom AGAIN.
When she came back she told me, “The technician couldn’t find anything wrong with your motherboard.” My next question was…What are the steps that the technician took to check my motherboard? Because, I really dont think they even check it.
She went to the backroom again. When she came back, her answer was, “Why not you just take your phone back, monitor it for awhile. If the problem persists, you can come back and insist on a motherboard change.”
At this point, I was beyond boiling point. If you are so sure that my motherboard has no problem, why would you even say that?
Jamie went to the backroom again.
When she came back, “It’s not your motherboard problem. If software upgrade doesn’t help, it’s probably your battery.”
OMG. I was ready to bite her head off.
If it’s a battery problem, my hp won’t hang. If it’s a battery problem, it will be sudden death. All my symptoms DO NOT point to a battery problem.
I was being smoked. DO I LOOK LIKE A BLIPPING BIMBO TO YOU?
I told Jamie to help find out what the technician did to check my motherboard. She went to the backroom again and didn’t come out for a long while. When she came out, her manager was with her. The manager went, “Hi Ms Wu, I don’t know what our technician did to check your motherboard but…”
Not wanting to hear any more excuses, I cut him off, grabbed my hp and left.
Seriously.
I am going down to the service centre again tomorrow (I think). The phone hanged so many times while I was setting up my Facebook and Whatsapp. The usual suspects tried to help me but it hung so much….Sigh.
I took some video of the hp hanging that I am going to show to the CSO tomorrow. Let’s just hope that my problem will be solved soon.
I am really not unreasonable. I just don’t like to be fobbed off. If you don’t know, say you don’t. Don’t give me some lame excuses that doesn’t even make sense (uninstall your whatsapp! it’s your battery!).
So Samsung, one last chance.
life of a clumsy sotong - as if being a sotong is not bad enough. 