Brand new Sony Vaio Laptop screen broken internally!?

[MMostafa]

I have bought a Sony Vaio Laptop (model VPCEH1L8E/B) from PC World online website on the 31^st October 2011 for the amount of £479. On the 28^th December, I finished working on the laptop, shut it down and closed the lid. I woke up the next morning, switched on the laptop and the screen was blurred with white, green and blue lights showing a clear issue with the screen.

I called Sony support who got the repair centre (operated by Flextronics) to pick up my Laptop. The next day, the repair centre called me to say that the cost of fixing the laptop is £355 (!?) and that if I need it to be sent back to me without fixing, I have to pay £65 to get it back on fixed. The repair centre claims that there is internal breakage inside the laptop screen and despite the fact that there are no external cracks, dents or breakage on the outside of the screen, the centre is claiming that I should pay for the repairs costs.

When I spoke to technical support they said it could be that someone have applied a very small amount of pressure on the screen and this is enough to crack the screen internally!!! and it means you have to pay for fixing it! No one applied any pressure on the laptop but even if this happened, how can Sony Vaio laptops be so fragile that if the slightest pressure is applied to the screen it breaks it internally (without any signs of external damage or dents)?!?!

According the Sales of Goods Act 1979, products need to be in good condition and continue to be in good condition for a reasonable time. Since I have only had this laptop for less than 2 months and the fault in the laptop and I have not damaged the product in any way especially that there are no external damage or cracks on the screen, I hereby give you notice to repair the laptop, replace it or refund back the amount of £479 by the 21^st January 2012.

Unfortunately, if the response I will get from you is similar to the response I got so far, I will be left with no choice other than: 1) taking the matter to court and I mean it, 2) speaking extensively to the media about the shameful aftersales support and service I got so far and finally 3) writing an official complaint to the industry regulator asking to apply penalties for the unacceptable customer service and product support you provided (or have not provided) in addition to the very bad quality of Sonvy Vaio laptops.

I am very disappointed in Sony Vaio Laptops, their customer service and Sony in general.

[vijayananjalees]

Hi my name is vijayan and my lapton is 10 month old. I too face the exactly the same issue like you.

On the 3rd August 2012 night, I finished working on the laptop, shut it down. I woke up the next morning, switched on the laptop and the screen was blurred with white, green and blue lights showing a clear issue with the screen. I have contacted the sony uk repair center but they told that its because of physical damage. But 101% i am sure it is not because of any physical damage. Kindly suggest me what u did after that to get the issue fixed.

I thought of taking the issue to ombudsmand and citizen advice bureau.

[MMostafa]

For those who are asking me what I have done regarding my laptop (and the original post). I managed to get my complaint up the hierarchy at PC World. I finally got contacted by a specialist complaints team @ PC World who got my laptop screen fully replaced for a negligible fee. I have to say PC World response was much better than Sony who wanted to charge me £355 to fix a screen for a 2 months old laptop I bought for £479.

I got rid of this Sony laptop now and bought a different brand.

Hope this helps

[Abbylou]

I also have had the "exact" same problem as you! I bought my 17year old daughter the Sony vaio in December , and she was doing homework for collage and needed to put it down on her bed to finish off her work, and she put the lid down..when she opened the lid again the screen was all blurred . I sent the laptop back thinking there's Fault with it , and the repaire center phoned me back the next day saying that theres a brake inside the screen?  They told me that if there's pressure when she's putting it down it could damage the screen..? I agree with you how can they be so fragile? And if I wanted it fixed, it would cost me nearly £400 to fix screen, it seems to me that there is a common fault with the Sony vaio reading your exact same problem as mine. And if I wanted her laptop back I would have to pay £65 ,without fixing , i was not told about any charge over the phone, and am Realy disappointed in Sony vaio laptops, and my 17yr old daughter is even more disappointed. And I will be taking the matter further .

[jansmoney]

I also have just had the same thing happen to mine! I was even doubting myself because I could not believe it had happened without me dropping it or having some sort of accident. I have still to call Sony as it only just happened and I wanted to see if anyone else had experienced something similar.

[AndreasA2012]

Exactly the same happened to me last year.

I used to be a happy owner of the VAIO Z12 laptop. Now I am deeply disappoint and frustrated by the bad service of Sony.

The laptop was send to service under the warranty because of screen error precisely as described by the other users above. Over the next two weeks I was given six conflicting messages about if and when the laptop would be repaired. But in the end Sony said it was my own fault and it wasn't repaired.

I find both the service and the handling of the case unacceptable and fare below what could be expected from Sony and a top business laptop priced almost $5,000!

I use to have HP and Leveno laptops and they both have special service for their business laptops. If you buy a $5,000 laptop you don’t want to discuss/argue with support trying to convince them that you are telling the truth (on what seem to be a common problem). And you don’t want to wait over half a month to get your computer back.

My point is that Sony need to reconsider the level of service they are providing - especially on their business laptops. Flying business class is not just about leg space – it’s about service too. I have been very happy with

my laptop but I would never buy Sony VAIO again because of this experience - and advise anybody else against it too.

[warrendsmith]

i also have this problem.

my daughters 3 week old laptop.

she placed it down on her desk.

next day opened it and screen is broken

not a scratch on the case or screen. not a mark anywhere and i know she took very good care of it.

the only possible cause i can think of is the cat stepped across it. not saying it did because i never saw it, but it is the only possible way 'pressure' could have been applied to the screen.

even so, a closed laptop should be strong enough to withstand a good deal of pressure, certainly more than a cat walking on the case. seems lots of people are having this issue, which leads me to believe there is a design fault with these laptops where the case is not offering any protection at all.

i contacted support via email. then sent a picture. they diagnosed it as accidental damage and out of warranty repair based on one small picture. i have asked for an inspection to be carried out, the least that sony should do FOC.  i am waiting for a response.

not happy with the laptop or the customer service so far.

[warrendsmith]

i have given up on Sony repair.  Even though i believe i am within my rights to challenge that this problem is due to part failure or design fault, i dont have the time to enter into a long dispute and the laptop is needed for schoolwork. Their stance on screens is totally inflexible. I think a FOC inspection is the least they should offer in these cases. But they wont and im not paying £65 for them to deny any fault when i can get it repaired for £90 anyway.

Add me to the ever growing list of dissatisfied sony customers.

[warrendsmith]

Sony have since contacted me direct by phone and apologised for the service i received. I dont think they will be changing their policy on broken screens, but did offer to look at my laptop FOC. Which i would have been happy with had i not already got the screen repaired with a local pc shop. Credit to Sony tho, they did reimburse me partially with a voucher to use on their website. Better good service late then never.

[kalinta]

I had the same problem with a 3 month Sony vaio bought for my daughter. She closed the computer and the next morning the screen was damaged - half black with lines. Sony were unbelievablly unhelpful and said it was her fault. Luckily amazon.com were more understanding and refunded the money. The Sony computers are clearly defective.

[shshett]

Exactly the same problem. I have been exchanging emails and letters since last month but no luck. I have also written to the CEO in Japan 2 weeks ago but no response

Same thing - shut the previous evening and next morning lines appeared. It was just 3 months old. Customer Case reference - 8370678. Initially they refused to return unrepaired without me paying courier charge but later did.

I unfortunately did not buy from amazon but from currys/pcworld - they put the blame squarely back on Sony.

I looked everywhere to check if there is a warning "fragile laptop - do not open and close every day" could find none. I fail to understand why Sony products have become like this.

I have been advised to take it to small claims court which I will in 2 weeks unless I hear