The Nvidia Defect Forum

Dear all

I have just been made aware of a problem with my Granddaughters laptop and looking for solutions came across your forum.

It's an HP G6030EM s/n C NF736293P and seems to have the same type of problem.

The laptop was bought in November 2007 as a Christmas present.

If there is an inherant problem I will take the matter up with Comet.

Any help would be warmly appreciated.

Kind Regards

Mike Turner

Hello Mike and welcome to our forum.

What problem is your granddaughter experiencing? If you can let me know I will advise further on that.

Regarding your laptop, your model has the Nvidia 6100 GPU and is one of the defective chips. Looking at your serial number I can see that your laptop was built in China in week 36 of 2007 which was slap bang when all the defective GPU's were being used.

How did you pay for the laptop?

If it was by credit card then you will have extra protection as the card company are as liable as the retailer in situations such as this.

Please let me know the above and I will advise further.

Best wishes

Paul
The Admin Team

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Hi Paul

Thanks for getting back to me.

I paid for the laptop by a Coutts Mastercard although in 2008 I changed banks and no longer have this card, I do still have the original receipt for the laptop.

First problem Carrie had was that the laptop was running very slow and she couldn't get a wireless connection, the local repair shop said it was not repairable and it was a known problem with HP, he gave her a wireless adaptor to plug in a USB port. This was September 2010.

This worked for a few weeks but now the laptop would not turn on, same repairer has said the motherboard has failed, again he told her it was a known problem,and said it's not worth repairing.

Regards

Mike

Hello Mike,



The fact that you no longer bank with them is irrelevant. At the time you purchased the laptop you did and so even though you have closed the account they still have to comply with their obligations to you.

The wireless problem that Carrie experienced is one of the manifestations of the defect and is a precursor to complete failure of the laptop.

I would now contact Comet to to start the ball rolling. I would tell them that your laptop is inherently defective due to the Nvidia GPU.

They will probably tell you that you are out of warranty. You should tell them that the warranty status is irrelevant as you have six years to take action when the goods in question are inherently defective.

They may then tell you to contact HP. You should tell them that you purchased from Comet and not from HP so it is up to Comet to resolve the situation.

They may then offer a chargeable inspection. You should tell them that due to the reverse burden of proof it is up to you, the customer, to prove the inherent defectiveness of your laptop and that you will provide an engineers report to prove that your laptop is indeed defective.

There is a step by step guide on this forum that will help you reach a positive resolution and that is here:- post13.html#p13

If you follow my advice in that guide then you will be successful.

If you have any questions or if you need any help then please let me know.

Please keep us updated on your progress.

Good luck and best wishes

Paul
The Admin Team

_________________
=======================================================
Calculate the minimum refund that you would be entitled to.
FAQ's
Why you should not accept a repair
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What is the Nvidia Defect?
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Do you need an engineers report?
=======================================================

If you like what you see on this forum and would like to help then please post links to this forum in other forums or blogs. The more people we can help the better.


Please note that I am not legally qualified and I only offer my own personal advice. You are advised to seek professional legal advice for formal clarification of advice I give.

Paul

Many thanks.

I will certainly keep you informed.

Mike

Paul

Just an update.

I intend to send the following to Comet Mon or Tues.

Dear Sir

Further to my letter I November 2010 regarding the problems associated with my HP laptop G6030 s/n CN F7362 purchased from Comet 3 November 2007 I have pleasure in enclosing the Engineer’s Report requested by your office 4 November 2010.

It is evidential from the Engineers Report that the Laptop had an inherent fault at the time of purchase and also that it was not fit for purpose (Laptop could not be used as a Laptop)

The report also shows that the fault with the NVidia Graphics Chip is well documented.

Furthermore, “Running a DVD the temperature reached a dangerous 105°C at which point I terminated the tests”

This suggests the laptop was also unsafe and could be a risk to health and safety.
(My granddaughter has always complained that the laptop runs too hot to be used on her knees.)
This has seriously deprived her of enjoying the benefits of the Laptop.

Therefor I request that you sort out this problem without any further delay.

I require a replacement to the same value as my original purchase along with £65 being the cost of the report.

Unfortunately a repair is not an option due to the problems highlighted in the report.

I appreciate that Comet would not knowingly sell me a defective laptop but the report indicates that the manufacturer HP was aware of the problem before offloading the laptop onto Comet after “tweaking” the mother board.

The Engineer’s Report states:-

“I have seen brand new motherboards that have been tweaked by the manufacturers in order to resolve the potential for a catastrophic failure of the Nvidia chip. This tweak involves the use of red epoxy glue that is run around the edges of the GPU chip.
The board in your laptop has received this “tweak” either at the time of manufacture or shortly after. The idea behind this is to prevent the chip from rising up from the mainboard due to the extreme temperatures being generated.
What actually happens is that as the chip cannot rise up around its edges so instead the chip bows in the centre causing a similar kind of failure.
This is evidenced by the fact that the GPU in your laptop has failed even after this “tweak” has been applied”.

So, basically, HP knew of this problem and tried a fix to prolong the laptops life past the warranty period knowing that it would ultimately fail.

This is completely unacceptable practice and I expect you to make immediate amends.

I’m sure that you will take issue with HP bearing in mind the number of faulty machines involved and the effect upon Comet’s reputation.

Comet are aware of the evidence that can be found at http://www.nvidiadefect.com and the various links that can be found on this forum, Nvidia-090512 is particularly interesting as it details the reasons for failure and points to a number dubious and allegedly illegal practices carried out be Nvidia.

I can confirm that I would be agreeable to mediation and would consider any other system of Alternative Dispute Resolution in order to avoid the need for this matter to be resolved by the courts and would invite you to put forward any meaningful proposals in this regard.

Should you decide to defend any action I confirm the laptop would be available for your inspection at your total cost. It would be conditional that no attempts were made to repair the laptop. For your convenience I would be quite happy to leave and collect the laptop at your Lakeside, Scunthorpe store. Otherwise you would need to organize a courier to collect and return the laptop, again at your expense.

I hope we can resolve the matter amicably. However I do assure you that should I not receive an acceptable resolution from you within seven working days then I anticipate that I will have no option but to issue a small claims procedure against yourselves, (for £414) plus all additional costs, without further reference to you.


In this matter time is of the essence.



I am quite looking forward Comet's response


Mike

Hello Mike,

Fantastic letter and hopefully it should prompt the response that you require.

Though I fear that Comet being Comet you may have to proceed to the small claims court.

Fingers crossed that it doesn't come to that and that Comet adhere to their obligations under the Sale Of Goods Act.

Good luck and best wishes

Paul
The Admin Team

_________________
=======================================================
Calculate the minimum refund that you would be entitled to.
FAQ's
Why you should not accept a repair
Links to evidence
What is the Nvidia Defect?
Step by step help to getting a refund
Do you need an engineers report?
=======================================================

If you like what you see on this forum and would like to help then please post links to this forum in other forums or blogs. The more people we can help the better.


Please note that I am not legally qualified and I only offer my own personal advice. You are advised to seek professional legal advice for formal clarification of advice I give.

Paul

Just an update to keep everyone informed.

I had a phone call from Comet offering a repair FOC. I stated that I wanted a number of assurances which prompted my letter.

"Dear Sir

I refer to my telephone conversation with Carly Garmston 22 November 2010 regarding my HP laptop.

The offer of a replacement motherboard would under normal circumstances be perfectly acceptable.

Unfortunately the evidence available online does not give me any confidence that a successful repair is possible.

It is recorded that motherboards have been replaced a number of times and still failing because of this defect.

However I do realise that should I not be able to accept this route then I need to show that I have not been unreasonable in rejecting your offer.

In order for me to make an informed decision as to whether a replacement motherboard is an acceptable solution I would kindly ask Comet to provide to following.

1) The part number of the new motherboard

2) Whether or not the replacement motherboard will contain the BIOS update that switches the fans on 24/7


3) A written guarantee from Comet that the replacement parts will be 100% free of the Nvidia defect.

4) A turnaround time for replacing the motherboard

I am aware that these reasonable requests have been made by other customers who have suffered the same problem with other makes of laptops and HP in particular and I can only assume you will fail to give the information requested as this will suggest to a court that you have fulfilled your obligations under the SoGA once I have refused a repair in which you have failed to give me any confidence.



I’m sure we agree it would be a complete waste of time to replace the motherboard if we have no confidence it is free of this defect.



In order to settle the matter I also need confirmation that Comet will refund the cost of the Engineers Report.




Should we agree to the motherboard being replaced I have no problem in taking the laptop to your Lakeside Scunthorpe store.


Yours Faithfully




Mike Turner"


Comet rang me again as the letter was in the post and said that HP would not give them the serial number of the new motherboard but Comet would refund the cost of the engineers report. I asked them to wait for my letter and then respond. Not heard anything to date.

I will ring them Monday before I enter a claim.

By the way I have a Compaq nx7010 and it has been perfect for the 6 years I've used it.

My wife ,god bless her,decided my laptop needed upgrading and bought a Toshiba C660-125 for £300 from Amazon on their Black Friday deal. Looks a good machine so hopefully I can keep it before my granddaughter claims it!

As far as I am aware the above machines don't use Nvidia GPUs

Promise to keep you all informed how I get on with Comet (Carly seems very professional and hpoefully can come to some compromise)

Mike

Paul

Quick update, Spoke to Comet Monday. They have sent my leter to HP and they (Comet) are chasing resolution. I'll call them Friday and then get things moving.

I noticed that some members have suggested getting Which involved. I have emailed them and got the following reply.

"Hello Mike

Thank you for your email regarding Nvidia Defect.

I was sorry to hear about the problems with your Granddaughter's laptop.

A search of our archive records indicates that this is not a subject we have covered to date and this is not something that we would do unless we had solid research data to show that this is a general problem. If we did report on incidents without the backing of researched data Which? could risk causing a lot of damage to a company, and we must always be responsible in how we deal with issues of this nature.

I will pass on your findings to our Research Department for their consideration and if it becomes apparent this is a widespread problem then we may be in touch for additional information.

In the meantime, if you need guidance on how to pursue a claim against Comet you may find the following advice pages useful:

http://www.which.co.uk/consumer-rights/ ... -of-goods/"

If any of you guys are members might be worthwhile sending them a email, as least you get a reasonable responce.

Mike

Hello Mike,

I can understand Which being reticent at getting involved, no one wants to cause unnecessary harm to a company. Though if they researched a little further than their own archive then they would see that this is a worldwide problem worthy of attention.

You can, as they say, lead a horse to water but you can't make it drink!

See what the passage of time does and the more people who lodge a complaint the better.

Best wishes

Paul
The Admin Team

_________________
=======================================================
Calculate the minimum refund that you would be entitled to.
FAQ's
Why you should not accept a repair
Links to evidence
What is the Nvidia Defect?
Step by step help to getting a refund
Do you need an engineers report?
=======================================================

If you like what you see on this forum and would like to help then please post links to this forum in other forums or blogs. The more people we can help the better.


Please note that I am not legally qualified and I only offer my own personal advice. You are advised to seek professional legal advice for formal clarification of advice I give.