Google Nexus Cracker Screen (not dropped) warranty help

cevans411

Hi guys, would really appreciate peoples thoughts and advice on an issue I'm having with a Google Nexus (2013) tablet with a cracked screen.

I had the tablet for about 8 months before the screen broke. I was going to the library at uni and put the tablet in my bag. The bag was packed reasonably tightly with books and notes but by no means was rammed and stuffed. Before leaving I took the tablet out again to quickly check my emails but found that the tablet had broken. I should add that at no point was the bag dropped or banged.

I have always taken extreme care with the tablet (one of the reasons this is so annoying), it has always lived in a case and, other than the cracked screen, is in immaculate condition. The crack formation is symmetrical, originating from a point in the centre at each side of the screen (rather than from a corner which would be typical from a dropped device). My conclusion is that the tablet must have undergone some slight torsion in the bag, twisting and leading to the glass giving in.

I've had a lot of back and forth with John Lewis about getting it fixed under warranty. They say they will pay for none of it (because Asus, the manufacturer, won't cover it and say it's accidental damage). I think this is completely ridiculous because I have used the product how it is meant to be used, I don't see how I could have prevented this and I have taken the utmost care looking after it. I've said to them many times that the sale of goods act states that a product must be of suitable quality and fit for purpose. In my opinion if a portable computing device can't go in a bag without breaking then neither is fit for purpose, nor is it of sufficient quality; if the case is so flimsy that under slight pressure is twists and doesn't hold rigid to protect the screen then it's badly designed. I was told that since it lasted 8 months then it is actually fit for purpose and there is nothing that can be done to protect the screen properly as glass is just so fragile. The issue is that obviously this isn't a common form of damage to their tablet so they must assume that I was subjecting it to excessive force.

What does everyone think? Shall I hand in an official complaint and pursue this further. I feel like John Lewis should at least pay for some of the repair (especially since they're known for having such good customer service). Or is this a lost cause and I should accept what's happened?

Many thanks in advance guys and sorry for the longer recount of the story!

Callum

marliepanda

Your post describes accidental damage.

No tablet comes with a disclaimer saying 'you can pack this in a bag with heavy books and it will be fine'

You have absolutely no case sorry.

visidigi

cevans411 wrote: »

Hi guys, would really appreciate peoples thoughts and advice on an issue I'm having with a Google Nexus (2013) tablet with a cracked screen.

I had the tablet for about 8 months before the screen broke. I was going to the library at uni and put the tablet in my bag. The bag was packed reasonably tightly with books and notes but by no means was rammed and stuffed. Before leaving I took the tablet out again to quickly check my emails but found that the tablet had broken. I should add that at no point was the bag dropped or banged.

I have always taken extreme care with the tablet (one of the reasons this is so annoying), it has always lived in a case and, other than the cracked screen, is in immaculate condition. The crack formation is symmetrical, originating from a point in the centre at each side of the screen (rather than from a corner which would be typical from a dropped device). My conclusion is that the tablet must have undergone some slight torsion in the bag, twisting and leading to the glass giving in.

I've had a lot of back and forth with John Lewis about getting it fixed under warranty. They say they will pay for none of it (because Asus, the manufacturer, won't cover it and say it's accidental damage). I think this is completely ridiculous because I have used the product how it is meant to be used, I don't see how I could have prevented this and I have taken the utmost care looking after it. I've said to them many times that the sale of goods act states that a product must be of suitable quality and fit for purpose. In my opinion if a portable computing device can't go in a bag without breaking then neither is fit for purpose, nor is it of sufficient quality; if the case is so flimsy that under slight pressure is twists and doesn't hold rigid to protect the screen then it's badly designed. I was told that since it lasted 8 months then it is actually fit for purpose and there is nothing that can be done to protect the screen properly as glass is just so fragile. The issue is that obviously this isn't a common form of damage to their tablet so they must assume that I was subjecting it to excessive force.

What does everyone think? Shall I hand in an official complaint and pursue this further. I feel like John Lewis should at least pay for some of the repair (especially since they're known for having such good customer service). Or is this a lost cause and I should accept what's happened?

Many thanks in advance guys and sorry for the longer recount of the story!

Callum

They don't anymore due to proposed claims like yours.

You have no case.

anmarj

As it is over 6 months it will be up to you to prove it is inherent faulty, by a way of a report, should the report find in your favour then John Lewis will have to pay you for it.

4743hudsonj

This must be a joke.

Ask yourself this, If you had left the tablet on the table in the library do you think it would have cracked? No, because screens don't just crack. You must have done something to make it crack. You describe the perfect scenario for as you say, torsion to be applied.

Suck it up as a life experience (one of many you will have at uni) and next time carry it in its own case.

mattyprice4004

Would you pack a mirror amongst heavy books? An LCD is glass, so the weight of the books moving around could easily crack it.

A tough lesson learned, entirely your fault.

SuperHan

The thin flimsy cases are to stop the screen getting marked and scratched if it's laying around.

To be carried in a bag with heavy, solid objects a more robust case would be more suitable.

Claiming on your home insurance is a more appropriate course of action in this scenario

cevans411

Ok, thanks guys

whitegoods_engineer

Well, actually, I had the same problem with the old model of the same tablet.

Like the op, it was in a case and carefully used.

One day, I picked it up from a shelf and found a crack right along the screen.

I can't say whether it was inherently faulty, nor can I categorically say that somebody in the house couldn't have picked it up or dropped it but I feel that this was a stress crack due to the build quality.

I did research this and found many, many people complaining of cracks seemingly appearing without warning.

Again, it is not entirely possible to explain build quality as the issue in my case but I believe that the tablet did indeed crack upon picking it up from the shelf.

Of course, the tablet had been in bags in the past with other items, and may have been put under slight pressure, but I'm quite sure I placed it on the shelf working, and picked it up broken.

Impossible to prove either way of course, and I simply put it down to experience.

I was fortunate enough to get the new version Nexus 7 using a newspaper offer for £85 a few months ago, so quite pleased I now have a working tablet.

George_Michael

whitegoods_engineer wrote: »

Like the op, it was in a case and carefully used.

Personally, I wouldn't say that a tablet with a glass screen being put in a bag that was "packed reasonably tightly with books and notes" would be classed as using it carefully.
Glass is generally very brittle and it doesn't take much torsion to cause it to crack, something that the OP has now discovered.

whitegoods_engineer

George_Michael wrote: »

Personally, I wouldn't say that a tablet with a glass screen being put in a bag that was "packed reasonably tightly with books and notes" would be classed as using it carefully.
Glass is generally very brittle and it doesn't take much torsion to cause it to crack, something that the OP has now discovered.

Maybe so but presumably, since a tablet should be reasonably designed to cope with being carried around in a student's bag or maybe a briefcase, It could be deemed to be of poor design should it fail to cope with 'real world' use!