Tiny computer

sarah_2-2

Why did I buy this laptop? I got it 14 months ago, and the problems have just started to kick in. The whole point of a laptop is that its portable- but my battery wont retain any power- it has to be plugged into the socket for it to even start, and will turn off if I remove the power, like a normal computer.

One of the reasons I bought it was because it was advertised to be able to 'watch TV on your laptop' but while it came with what appears to be the right hardware, I cant get it to work despite phoning up and asking customer service several times.

I'm paying £15 a year for 'customer help' (its not included) so I called them, they sent out a BIOS CD that might've helped, but it hasnt, and have told me I therefore need to buy a new battery as the battery warranty is only 6 months. Tiny have since gone into recievership.

Is there anything legally I can do about getting my money back or anything? And do you think I should buy a new battery (about £70 I think?) or just salvage what I can and try and build my own laptop from bits and bobs (I've only got basic 'fiddling about with PC hardware' experience). Any advice would be appreciated!

thewizard

£70 for a battery, I wouldn't think they were that exspensive. Make sure that the battery is in firmly and correctly before you order anything. And I dont know about the 6 Month warranty but I thought that all electrical Equipment has a 12 Month Warranty although this still wouldn't help you.

The problem you have with watching TV on your laptop is that it would drain the battery very quickly aswell. So even if the battery did work dont expect it to last for much more than 45 Mins.

To help your new battery survive longer when you one, drain it completely when you use it on battery dont use it for a while then give it short charges then run it on battery again as this damages the battery and seriously effects the length of its life.

Sorry I cant help on the customer service part, but I would expect a battery to last longer than 14 Months.

amcluesent

>build my own laptop from bits and bobs <

Not really feasible, IMHO, as there are very few laptop 'kits' about and much trickier to put together than a desktop PC. Tiny may have been selling the older NiCad technology batteries which did get progressively poorer at holding a charge (hence the 6 month guarantee). A laptop bought today should have a LiON battery which doesn't have a 'memory' effect.

£$&*"($£&(

Tiny had a reputation for poor computers and poor service which is one of the reasons they went bust and so your stuck as there's no one to pursue. A six month battery warranty was probably illegal. Batteries certainly cost that much and it's either a case of buying a replacement, if a suitable one is available, putting up with only mains use or getting a new one entirely.

The_Geek

If Tiny hadn't gone bump then you'd have been able to claim a new battery as I think it would be fair to argue that a laptop battery should last longer than a year.

Personally if you can afford it, I would draw a line under it and get yourself a cheap dell laptop instead. Alternatively keep an eye out on eBay for people selling a compatible battery.