Consumer Reports: Samsung won't support defective S7 Actives

[FLTimmyB]

And there lies the Rub, to find out if you have a "Problem device" you need to break it. which imo is a terrible way to do business, ATT knows when everyone bought the phone and they know how to contact them..(cause you know that bill comes every month) they could set up a very organized way to swap out phones for known good units and make everyone happy...

 

[Kelly Kearns]

If you are going to do that, you need to do it now while they are admitting a date.

BUT...

That means you need a phone to use while yours is being evaluated, which could take up to a month unless you know you can get a replacement from the correct time frame. The longer you get out of the time, like waiting 6 months, the bigger chance you have of something happening and the warranty replacement being denied.

Personally if I had an AT&T warranty center in my city and I didn't want to fight, I would keep dunking them since Samsung admitted a problem, until I got one outside of the time frame.

Problem with something like this and it isn't just Samsung, with an issue they admit fault, most companies will make it very difficult for you to exchange a product.

 

[jlczl]

And there lies the Rub, to find out if you have a "Problem device" you need to break it. which imo is a terrible way to do business, ATT knows when everyone bought the phone and they know how to contact them..(cause you know that bill comes every month) they could set up a very organized way to swap out phones for known good units and make everyone happy...

I bought my phone during the "time before they found out there was a problem". Guess what, it's been in water several feet deep and it's fine. Not all phones manufactured before a certain day are defective. Why would they replace all phones if just a percentage are defective?

I really don't understand why the warranty they have gone on record with isn't enough for everyone to use their phones as they originally planned to. Some are saying because they will be out of a phone for x number of days. Is it really out of the ordinary to pay $15 for 2 day shipping? You guys have an $800 phone, do you really not have access to a burner phone to use as a backup for a couple of days? Some will say, "I shouldn't have to", we'll guess what? You may not have to because your device likely isn't defective. You're just scared to try it because others have failed. NOT ALL S7 ACTIVES MANUFACTURED BEFORE A CERTAIN DATE ARE DEFECTIVE. Use it like you always meant to. If it gets water damaged use the warranty to get a replacement.

That's how all cell phones work except now you have the manufacturer going on record publicly that they will cover this type of damage.

 

[FLTimmyB]

I may try the 611 option first and ask for a retention team member and see where that goes first, I think I have a warranty center a hour north of me but cant tell for sure, does anyone have a idea on how to find the warranty center locations...I keep getting a local AT&T store popping up as a warranty exchange location...which would be a dream come true if that was the case.. Once again, I would like to thank everyone who has participated in this conversation, I really think its been positive. One other question maybe someone knows the answer, if you get a replacement do you keep the remainder of your original warranty or do you suddenly drop to 90 days?

 

[Kelly Kearns]

I bought my phone during the "time before they found out there was a problem". Guess what, it's been in water several feet deep and it's fine. Not all phones manufactured before a certain day are defective. Why would they replace all phones if just a percentage are defective?

I really don't understand why the warranty they have gone on record with isn't enough for everyone to use their phones as they originally planned to. Some are saying because they will be out of a phone for x number of days. Is it really out of the ordinary to pay $15 for 2 day shipping? You guys have an $800 phone, do you really not have access to a burner phone to use as a backup for a couple of days?

If Samsung told me they have a problem, I wouldn't pay $15 and I would want it the next day.

Samsung didn't fix my phone correctly, when it came back, I refused to allow two day shipping to Samsung and I wasn't paying the cost for overnight. They screwed it up, they needed to eat the cost. Samsung has gotten a ton of money off me, they can pay for their screw up and inconvenience me as little as possible.

I could get free overnight return, but I had to push and push hard to get free overnight shipping in.

Sometimes when you are angry about something like this and little things have happened and you feel like you are being pushed, there is a point it becomes something little but important. If Samsung said they found something wrong, and looks like they have and corrected it, owners shouldn't be out a dime and it should be handled immediately.

I won't pay TMO extra money because they made a mistake. If you are already upset and feel like they aren't trying to resolve it, then there can be a minor thing that just pushes you too far. I understand it, I'm there myself with Samsung right now. But until they get my entire issue resolved, they better not make a single human mistake, something dumb could push me over the line and make me walk. They don't want me to walk.

 

[Kelly Kearns]

I may try the 611 option first and ask for a retention team member and see where that goes first, I think I have a warranty center a hour north of me but cant tell for sure, does anyone have a idea on how to find the warranty center locations...I keep getting a local AT&T store popping up as a warranty exchange location...which would be a dream come true if that was the case.. Once again, I would like to thank everyone who has participated in this conversation, I really think its been positive. One other question maybe someone knows the answer, if you get a replacement do you keep the remainder of your original warranty or do you suddenly drop to 90 days?

Well you can call a local store and ask. I could always Google and find the phone number for the one in my city. Now here, our warranty exchange center wasn't a store at all, exchanges, reflash, flash am upgrade, etc. 611 can tell you if there is one in your area, they are the ones that told me that we had one.

With Samsung you might even have a longer warranty than purchase date, but AT&T used to complete the warranty from the original date. Verify that in this case though.

 

[ric2001]

I still maintain my opinion that I posted last month that Samsung should extend the warranty to THIS specific issue for 2 years. After that, I can upgrade if I do hit a problem. I'll be SOL if it happens to me one year from now. And really, why do I have to go through the hassle of testing and replacing it if it does affect my phone?

Outstanding customer service would be AT&T calling or sending me an email saying something like, "Samsung has acknowledged a possible issue with your S7 Active phone in regards to the IP68 rating when being in the water. We don't want you to worry about that and want to eliminate any risk. Therefore, we would like to exchange your phone for free. Please visit any retail store or call us (free shipping) to get a new S7 Active at your convenience."

I can dream, right?

 

[Kelly Kearns]

Yeah that outstanding customer service that we got the first year we switched to AT&T, disappeared after every new contract we signed and is why I left lol

 

[bkrell]

If Samsung told me they have a problem, I wouldn't pay $15 and I would want it the next day.

Samsung didn't fix my phone correctly, when it came back, I refused to allow two day shipping to Samsung and I wasn't paying the cost for overnight. They screwed it up, they needed to eat the cost. Samsung has gotten a ton of money off me, they can pay for their screw up and inconvenience me as little as possible.

I could get free overnight return, but I had to push and push hard to get free overnight shipping in.

Sometimes when you are angry about something like this and little things have happened and you feel like you are being pushed, there is a point it becomes something little but important. If Samsung said they found something wrong, and looks like they have and corrected it, owners shouldn't be out a dime and it should be handled immediately.

I won't pay TMO extra money because they made a mistake. If you are already upset and feel like they aren't trying to resolve it, then there can be a minor thing that just pushes you too far. I understand it, I'm there myself with Samsung right now. But until they get my entire issue resolved, they better not make a single human mistake, something dumb could push me over the line and make me walk. They don't want me to walk.

Thank you Kelly! This is exactly what I've been saying! Why should we be out time, a device, money, or anything for a phone we JUST bought that has an acknowledged defect? We shouldn't have to be on the phone with 13 different reps between Samsung and AT&T, pleading our case over and over, finding someone who just MAY give us what we want if they are having a good day. I don't care if other companies do things that way. I don't care if the Vatican does it that way. It's not the way to own up to an admitted problem with a product you manufactured.

I still like Samsung, my phone, Android, whatever. I just want this handled better.

 

[FLTimmyB]

Well said...and to steal a quote from Blazing Saddles... "Harrumph"

 

[bkrell]

Yeah that outstanding customer service that we got the first year we switched to AT&T, disappeared after every new contract we signed and is why I left lol

I've been with AT&T since 2001 when it was old AT&T that then got bought out by Cingular that then got bought out by SBC that then rebranded it AT&T again. On top of that, I'm a DirectTV customer AND still have a landline through AT&T. I always try to remind them of my loyalty when I have a problem. It's still hit or miss. I had some crazy international charges recently because of my own ignorance with international travel. I called and complained, pleading ignorance. First rep didn't care and said too bad. When I called back to complain about issues with the web order of my Active, the rep I spoke with gladly deleted $165 worth of charges when I brought it up.

 

[jlczl]

I've been with AT&T since 2001 when it was old AT&T that then got bought out by Cingular that then got bought out by SBC that then rebranded it AT&T again. On top of that, I'm a DirectTV customer AND still have a landline through AT&T. I always try to remind them of my loyalty when I have a problem. It's still hit or miss. I had some crazy international charges recently because of my own ignorance with international travel. I called and complained, pleading ignorance. First rep didn't care and said too bad. When I called back to complain about issues with the web order of my Active, the rep I spoke with gladly deleted $165 worth of charges when I brought it up.

Honestly this sounds as sort of an entitled way of thinking. Any product can have a defect and when that happens, unfortunately it is a pain but, we do have to go through the process of getting things exchanged. I would have an issue with them if they refused to do so but if they don't, I really don't see the problem. I can start to see that there is some people that expect to be treated like if they were royalty even to the point of being reimbursed $165 for something that was not even the company's fault. So at this point you have $165 in your pocket that you really shouldn't. Why not just see that as recompense for you having to pay for 2 day shipping $15. Really guys? Talk about entitled. SMH.

The real world isn't littered with golden apples, this is the way it works.

 

[Kelly Kearns]

Thank you Kelly! This is exactly what I've been saying! Why should we be out time, a device, money, or anything for a phone we JUST bought that has an acknowledged defect? We shouldn't have to be on the phone with 13 different reps between Samsung and AT&T, pleading our case over and over, finding someone who just MAY give us what we want if they are having a good day. I don't care if other companies do things that way. I don't care if the Vatican does it that way. It's not the way to own up to an admitted problem with a product you manufactured.

I still like Samsung, my phone, Android, whatever. I just want this handled better.

With Samsung admitting a problem, that changes things a lot for me. I get where you are on that.

We aren't talking a $5 Trac phone. Samsung said they identified the problem. Samsung doesn't have the market share in the US (does international). Customer Service is a huge part of business, that can keep a lifetime customer or run off new customers or run off customers that have spent tens of thousands on your products.

If Samsung wants the US market share also, then they have to improve that customer service issue. You hope you never need customer service, but when you do and it is their fault, each inconvenience they add to you, makes you more and more angry.

I was traveling a lot when my phone started having problems. I had to come home for jury duty. I picked that time to send my phone, explained I needed it back, it was escalated. They were late on getting it finished, which also meant I had to drive an hour twice a day going to the office. I don't have to do that with my Note. I was using my Nexus 5 while my phone was at Samsung.

It cost me money, time, inconvenience, because they screwed up on the escalation. Then when I got it, there were problems not there in the first place and then the same problems showed up in a couple of weeks. I just wasn't where I could do without the phone again.

I have a Note 5 from TMO, but Samsung has gone way over the time frame this time. They screwed up with the ticket number and my phone sat there. No one looked up the ticket number and called me. I found out because I hadn't heard and it was getting time me to hear.

That was the final straw for me.

It has cost Samsung extra now, my phone has to go to a higher level to have the repairs fixed. It has also cost Samsung a Note 7. Not cost them in I'm not getting one, Samsung is giving one to me to try and keep me.

When you have had it, you have had it. Even though they admitted all their screw ups they weren't willing to send me a phone to use. And that is when I decided I would walk and told them. Of course right now, TMO keeps sending me a text to remind me to send my phone back. They just want a Note 5 back. They don't care which one I send them. But the screw ups and delays in that last ticket just did me in and I would walk before being inconvenienced another time. Sometimes a little thing is just one step too far. Isolated, it doesn't seem big, but dropped on top of everything, it can be they final thing that is too much.

I totally get that here with the info you guys have added. Sometimes you just have to take a stand.

 

[jlczl]

Thank you Kelly! This is exactly what I've been saying! Why should we be out time, a device, money, or anything for a phone we JUST bought that has an acknowledged defect? We shouldn't have to be on the phone with 13 different reps between Samsung and AT&T, pleading our case over and over, finding someone who just MAY give us what we want if they are having a good day. I don't care if other companies do things that way. I don't care if the Vatican does it that way. It's not the way to own up to an admitted problem with a product you manufactured.

I still like Samsung, my phone, Android, whatever. I just want this handled better.

Does your phone have the defect? Mine was one of the first ones bought in the store on the first day and it has been thoroughly soaked and dunked and it does not have the defect as of yet. Have you been refused replacement or repair?

 

[Kelly Kearns]

Honestly this sounds as sort of an entitled way of thinking. Any product can have a defect and when that happens, unfortunately it is a pain but, we do have to go through the process of getting things exchanged. I would have an issue with them if they refused to do so but if they don't, I really don't see the problem. I can start to see that there is some people that expect to be treated like if they were royalty even to the point of being reimbursed $165 for something that was not even the company's fault. So at this point you have $165 in your pocket that you really shouldn't. Why not just see that as recompense for you having to pay for 2 day shipping $15. Really guys? Talk about entitled. SMH.

The real world isn't littered with golden apples, this is the way it works.

Maybe you don't get it because you haven't been a very loyal customer to someone that has screwed up some big things, promised to fix them, you file complaints about the same issues continuing and nothing changes.

Loyalty is supposed to go two ways. So not only do we have loyalty, we pay a lot of money for the products and the service.

 

[jlczl]

I still maintain my opinion that I posted last month that Samsung should extend the warranty to THIS specific issue for 2 years. After that, I can upgrade if I do hit a problem. I'll be SOL if it happens to me one year from now. And really, why do I have to go through the hassle of testing and replacing it if it does affect my phone?

Outstanding customer service would be AT&T calling or sending me an email saying something like, "Samsung has acknowledged a possible issue with your S7 Active phone in regards to the IP68 rating when being in the water. We don't want you to worry about that and want to eliminate any risk. Therefore, we would like to exchange your phone for free. Please visit any retail store or call us (free shipping) to get a new S7 Active at your convenience."

I can dream, right?

I would love a 2-year replacement guarantee as well. I don't think that is asking for too much either.

As far as the rest of your post yeah you are dreaming LOL. Why would they replace phones that haven't proven to be defective? Just because there was a defect detected in there manufacturing doesn't mean all their phones suffer the same defect.

 

[PLaBar]

If it ain't broke don't fix it. If you never get it wet and it still works in ain't broke.
Some people worry too much about things that don't matter.

The issue with that um "logic" is if the phone does get wet on day 366 you may be SOL.
Samsung is saying the exact opposite of what you stated. Samsung is saying "If it is not broke, break it, within 365 days or live with the result".

Let's try it this way...
Looks like you have a nice truck (big one). Lets say it's designed to hold 10k lbs.
What if after you purchased the manufacturer told you some of the trucks have a defect. Some will totally break and have 0 value if you put more than 5klbs on it. If you do have a bad one, send it back and 2-3 weeks we'll send you a new one. After 1 year we won't replace it.
So, I ask you...Do you "test" it that 1st year? What if you don't have a need to move over 5klbs the 1st year (your logic, it's not broken - ie: don't get wet - ie: don't load more than 5klbs)?
Then on day 366 you get a job to move 6klbs... it fails and your truck is worthless. Do you think you got what you paid for? Are you a happy customer?

Bottom line, Samsung knows some of their customers own defective Galaxy S7 Actives.
Samsung should be doing everything in it's power to get the defective units out of their customers hands and replace them with NON defective units.
PERIOD!

 

[jlczl]

Maybe you don't get it because you haven't been a very loyal customer to someone that has screwed up some big things, promised to fix them, you file complaints about the same issues continuing and nothing changes.

Loyalty is supposed to go two ways. So not only do we have loyalty, we pay a lot of money for the products and the service.

I read your story and I feel for you and I agree with you being upset. That's not what I'm talking about here. What I have seen is that AT&T is willing to send out a replacement within two days for a fee of $15. Everyone's upset about $15!? Even the guy that has $165 in his pocket that he shouldn't!? That is plain out ridiculous.

 

[Kelly Kearns]

I would love a 2-year replacement guarantee as well. I don't think that is asking for too much either.

As far as the rest of your post yeah you are dreaming LOL. Why would they replace phones that haven't proven to be defective? Just because there was a defect detected in there manufacturing doesn't mean all their phones suffer the same defect.

Because Samsung said "we identified a manufacturing defect and we fixed it on day xyz".

I had a Logitech remote that had issues. Mine didn't but mine was in the group and it was new. Logitech told me to send it to them and they would replace it.

When a problem has been admitted and said to be fixed, they shouldn't have to wait until something happens. Like being at the hospital for days with a suddenly sick family member and then the phone has the problem. Or traveling alone, isolated areas and your car breaks down and then the phone dies because it is raining when you get out of the car.

That is hoping people won't have a problem before the warranty runs out, then it is their owner's problem, not the one that made the mistake and admitted it.

 

[jlczl]

The issue with that um "logic" is if the phone does get wet on day 366 you may be SOL.
Samsung is saying the exact opposite of what you stated. Samsung is saying "If it is not broke, break it, within 365 days or live with the result".

Let's try it this way...
Looks like you have a nice truck (big one). Lets say it's designed to hold 10k lbs.
What if after you purchased the manufacturer told you some of the trucks have a defect. Some will totally break and have 0 value if you put more than 5klbs on it. If you do have a bad one, send it back and 2-3 weeks we'll send you a new one. After 1 year we won't replace it.

I wouldn't accept a one year end date for that warranty fix on that truck because the standard warranty is longer than that. I would request whatever the standard warranty would be whether that's 3 years or 5 years or 7 years or 10 years. That's exactly what is being done here, the standard warranty of 1 year is being honored. That's why I don't have a problem with one year even though I would prefer two as stated above.