not-so-easy-serve

[ernie cohen <ernie@bellcore.com>]

I'm breaking a three-year posting silence to share the saga of my futile
attempts to get my 760CD serviced. Considering that the machine came 5.5
months after its first promised delivery date, I think this is my last
ThinkPad.

Near the end of May, my machine suddenly stopped working. I called it in
and was told it needed to be serviced, either by easy-serve or by the
local service place. Since I live on this machine, I took it to the
local service place to save time (!). He immediately diagnosed the
problem as needing a new cpu board. He called this in to IBM, but was
told that he couldn't get a replacement part without a printed purchase
order. (Never mind that every 760CD ever produced is still under
warranty for several months.) After trying in vain to get a copy from
the IBM distributor, the repair guy decided to send it directly to
easy-serve as the path of least resistance.

So it sat at easy-serve for about 25 days; every time I called, there
were dozens of cpu boards due to come in within a couple of days. (For
the final week, the boards were unable to clear customs (!?) ). Since I
had to travel on business, I made specific arrangements with them to
call me to get an address to ship to when the machine was repaired. In
the middle of the trip, I checked voicemail to receive a message that
the machine was fixed and that I had two hours to give them a different
address to ship to or they would ship back to my home. Of course it was
too late to stop delivery, so it sat there for a week waiting for me to
return.

When I arrived home and opened the box, I discovered the machine in
pieces. Apparently, the two batteries shipped in the machine had somehow
broken through the front panel of the base. I called IBM, figuring that
they would want FedEx to inspect the box, but they said no, just send it
back. I am now informed that the machine needs not only a new base but a
new system board ($1200 or so total), which they want to charge to my
company (since their QA department says that it is impossible for the
damage to have been sustained in shipping). And of course it's not fixed
yet.

Just a little reality counterpoint for those waxing rhapsodic over IBM's
legendary "service".