Vario III - screen broken already :(

[Guest jpwjpw]

Oh dear. I've only had my Vario III 4 days, took it out of my pocket and tapped it with the pen this morning and a small crack appeared in the middle of the screen which is growing in all directions. The LCD display is fine but the touchscreen doesn't work around the cracks.

Am really annoyed, I had my Vario II for over a year and never had any problems. Any idea on if this is repairable? Gonna call T-mobile tomorrow and ask ;)

I had applied the plastic screen protector as well :wub:

Edited October 9, 2007 by jpwjpw

[Guest sc0user_75]

I'm certain mate that the phone will have some kinda waranty on it. However, Im not too sure what the situation would be with a broken screen.

If tmobile say no, then try HTC... and be ultra polite to the person you speak to ;)

[Guest Paul (MVP)]

It'll be a chargeable repair at a guess!

P

[Guest FloatingFatMan]

This is why, when my PDA is in a pocket, it's in my shirt pocket, unshared with anything else that could damage the screen, with the screen against my chest!

Though you do have to remember not to bend over too far, especially over water... ;)

[Guest jpwjpw]

Ah well, its a company phone so hopefully I'll get them to repair it. Just one of those annoying things.... I'd never carry around that awful massive leather case that they give you with it.

[Guest Shuflie]

I t-mobile can prove that the crack was caused by you then they can charge for it, otherwise you can get it repaired under the sale of goods act. Remember, its up to t-mobile to prove you did it, not to you to prove that you didn't. If there's obvious signs of something banging into it then its a fair bet that you'll be required to pay, but occasionally screens do crack without any intervention, either a weakness in the screen itself or incorrect assembly.

[Guest jpwjpw]

I t-mobile can prove that the crack was caused by you then they can charge for it, otherwise you can get it repaired under the sale of goods act. Remember, its up to t-mobile to prove you did it, not to you to prove that you didn't. If there's obvious signs of something banging into it then its a fair bet that you'll be required to pay, but occasionally screens do crack without any intervention, either a weakness in the screen itself or incorrect assembly.

I do suspect that the screen must have been weak as i've had plenty of pda's over the years and never had this happen.

[Guest dolbe666]

I t-mobile can prove that the crack was caused by you then they can charge for it, otherwise you can get it repaired under the sale of goods act. Remember, its up to t-mobile to prove you did it, not to you to prove that you didn't. If there's obvious signs of something banging into it then its a fair bet that you'll be required to pay, but occasionally screens do crack without any intervention, either a weakness in the screen itself or incorrect assembly.

I went through that with a screen that broke for no reason with my SE P910i. they would not believe it was a fauolt in the phone even when the phone was in prestine condition with no scratches at all. even when i complained to Sony Ericsson Uk they would not admit it was their fault. even when i had an independent reapir firm check it out. they stood by the first repair centers claims. As a result i dont buy from Sony ericsson anymore.

moral of the story. Its not upto the company to prove anything, if the repair center they use say its accidental breakage then you cant change that decision.

you are best to just claim it on your companies insurance and get it fixed

Edited October 8, 2007 by dolbe666

[Guest knonist]

I went through that with a screen that broke for no reason with my SE P910i. they would not believe it was a fauolt in the phone even when the phone was in prestine condition with no scratches at all. even when i complained to Sony Ericsson Uk they would not admit it was their fault. even when i had an independent reapir firm check it out. they stood by the first repair centers claims. As a result i dont buy from Sony ericsson anymore.

moral of the story. Its not upto the company to prove anything, if the repair center they use say its accidental breakage then you cant change that decision.

you are best to just claim it on your companies insurance and get it fixed

after reading your post, I have decided to get my VIII covered!!

but 9 quid a month!! a bit dear!

[Guest dead_beat]

If there's no excess to pay then £9 a month is nothing!

When i was with 3 i took my contract out via phones4u and i was insured using whatever insurance company phones4u push on you. Long story short i dropped a lamp on my Motorola A1000 and shattered the screen. I rang up the insurance people and i was told i'd have to pay £50 excess. I told them i got the phone for free so they can F off with their request for 50 quid and i cancelled the policy.

I then rang up 3 knowing that they have call centres in india which in this case is an advantage. I rang up 3 and said "I have a problem with my phone. I turned it on and the screen doesn't work". The person on the other end said "oh, your phone is in warranty, we'll have a replacement handset with you in the morning". Job done... Prob solved! lol

[Guest knonist]

If there's no excess to pay then £9 a month is nothing!

When i was with 3 i took my contract out via phones4u and i was insured using whatever insurance company phones4u push on you. Long story short i dropped a lamp on my Motorola A1000 and shattered the screen. I rang up the insurance people and i was told i'd have to pay £50 excess. I told them i got the phone for free so they can F off with their request for 50 quid and i cancelled the policy.

I then rang up 3 knowing that they have call centres in india which in this case is an advantage. I rang up 3 and said "I have a problem with my phone. I turned it on and the screen doesn't work". The person on the other end said "oh, your phone is in warranty, we'll have a replacement handset with you in the morning". Job done... Prob solved! lol

got a excess of 30 pounds to pay for lost, damaged,and stolen phone.

you must be a highly valued business customer to 3 then? how can they not check your phone before collection?

[Guest dead_beat]

got a excess of 30 pounds to pay for lost, damaged,and stolen phone.

you must be a highly valued business customer to 3 then? how can they not check your phone before collection?

I've been with 3 for about 4 years. Not all that valued i think... It's just the customer support isn't "with it" coz they aren't based in the uk. It's easy to "forget" details when calling them up and they don't think to probe further.

[Guest Deathace]

I had the same thing happen to my MDA Vario and at the time I was paying £6 to phonesafe for insurance. When the screen cracked I phoned them up to claim and they asked me various questions and at the time i had my orange sim in the phone and basically phonesafe wriggled out of paying for my phone to be fixed because i didn't have the sim card that the phone was bought under (t-mobile one) which badword me off no end and I had to send my phone to HTC Europe and pay £100 to get it replaced. So I cancelled my insurance, I had paid insurance for 7 years and never claimed and the one time i genuinely needed to i was badword over so I dont bother paying for insurance now.

Russ

[Guest ror100]

The external speaker on my SPV failed about 5 weeks ago, called Orange as I pay them £5 per month for insurance. I had a £15 excess to pay, and had a replacement delivered same day. Excellent customer service.

[Guest]

My lcd is broken also, the touchscreen is still working.

Went back to the t-mobile shop, I had the phone just 10 days.

I hope it will be repaired by t-mobile.

[Guest Mitul Parmar]

New member here...my first ever "smart" phone was a Sony Ericsson P800i...where I had dropped the phone and the screen got cracked. The phone was only 2 months old and I took it back to Carphone Warehouse who had it repaired for free under the Sales of Goods act. Depends on how you come across and what you say to them ;).

I'm hoping my Vario III screen doesn't crack or anything though. Have been pampering the phone so to speak.

[Guest joemailey]

Kinda sounds like, If you keep the fone in ur pocket it will break haha.

Bit crap ;)

but then you have this quite a bit about other fones to, guess its just on how well you protect it.

[Guest Swampie]

Kinda sounds like, If you keep the fone in ur pocket it will break haha.

Bit crap ;)

but then you have this quite a bit about other fones to, guess its just on how well you protect it.

Exactly, my Vario lasted 20 months perfectly fine using the supplied holder - never carried in anything else. I once had a phone which I put in my pocket without a case - ended up with a scratch on the screen the very first time I did it - never done it since. My new Vario III will be always carried in it's case as well.

[Guest jpwjpw]

Exactly, my Vario lasted 20 months perfectly fine using the supplied holder - never carried in anything else. I once had a phone which I put in my pocket without a case - ended up with a scratch on the screen the very first time I did it - never done it since. My new Vario III will be always carried in it's case as well.

My Vario II has lasted 14 months in my pocket without the case. The phone is big enough without that awful leather thing. Anyway, its away at HTC now, hopefully hear back soon.

I've gone back to my vario II with WM6 whilst I wait and I must admit, seems like the Vario III was probably the wrong choice for me. Apart from the GPS I don't think there is any difference.

Edited October 18, 2007 by jpwjpw

[Guest dazultra2000]

The day I got my M2000 I went out.

I had the phone in it's leather case that it came with, in my top pocket, as I thought it'd be the safest place for it. Screen against my chest.

As I left my house, I tripped over a tree root that had broken through the pavement, landed flat on my front, and crushed the phone beyond repair.

Orange picked it up the next day and then began the Orange M2000 fiasco which was covered on this very forum back in 2004/5. Several long weeks later I finally got my M2000 back and it's still intact to this day.

All I can say is insurance is utterly worth it on these devices, even if you do have to wait several weeks for a replacement ;)

Edited October 18, 2007 by dazultra2000

[Guest Tothotspur]

is insurance not available to buy after you have bought the phone/upgraded....

[Guest dazultra2000]

I don't think so, but I imagine they may get a bit suspicious if you bought it and then called up 5 mins later saying your phone is broken.

I've bought insurance mid-contract before.

[Guest Tothotspur]

i am sure if your phone broke a month or so after then they have to fix it

[Guest whos-rog]

i dont think you can claim in your first 3 months if you take it out after your contract. That was the terms for mine anyway.

[Guest Swampie]

The day I got my M2000 I went out.

I had the phone in it's leather case that it came with, in my top pocket, as I thought it'd be the safest place for it. Screen against my chest.

As I left my house, I tripped over a tree root that had broken through the pavement, landed flat on my front, and crushed the phone beyond repair.

Orange picked it up the next day and then began the Orange M2000 fiasco which was covered on this very forum back in 2004/5. Several long weeks later I finally got my M2000 back and it's still intact to this day.

All I can say is insurance is utterly worth it on these devices, even if you do have to wait several weeks for a replacement ;)

Usually though, mobile insurance is a complete waste of money.

Look at it this way - £9 per month, for 18 months (many people's minimum term) = £162 (£108 per year). Add onto that the, was it £30 excess to pay - that's close to £200 you're paying on the small chance that your handset will be broken/stolen etc - that's almost half the price of a brand new SIM-free handset, and over twice the price I paid to upgrade.

Then, add the fact that many people will already have insurance cover through their home contents insurance. My home insurance is < £200 per year, has £50 excess and already covers me for mobile damage, theft etc.

Instead, put £9 a month into your savings account. Most people will never claim off insurance (which is why insurers make so much money). In the small chance you do need to repair/replace the device, then pay out of the account and top up with spare money - but in the most likely situation, you'll have spare money left to upgrade at the end of your minimum term.

I do agree though, if you're careless, throw your mobile around, have habits of dropping them down toilets, then maybe these insurances are okay - but realistically, they're overpriced, and not worth it. Additionally, in the case of Orange, if you have a fault on your original handset during warranty, they'll push you to make insurance claim (possibly without you being completely aware as it's called Orange Care), thus charging you the excess/admin fee, and meaning if you take out insurance in the future, you'll probably have to inform them of this claim, even though it should have been a warranty repair/replacement.

Personally, I only take out insurance for buildings, contents, car and life (to cover mortgage). Any other extended warranties, insurance policies etc are usually over priced, under specified, too many caveats, and often already included in other insurance/statutory rights.

Incidentally, in the case you described above, I would suggest you had a claim against the owner of the tree (likely the council if, as you say, it was on a pavement) for replacement of the phone, plus any real, honest injuries you sustained. I'm not one for making unfair claims against people (I tripped and grazed my knee but was fine a few days later type claim), but if you damaged a significant value item because of their failure to maintain a tree/pavement, I think it would be legitimate.

Edited October 19, 2007 by Swampie