The Nvidia Defect Forum

I bought an Acer 5920G from Comet in Jan 2008.

I had problems with overheating for some time, though managed it with frequent vacuuming of the ventilation grilles. Then around Dec 2009, the screen failed; for a few days I was able to get a signal to an external monitor, but that failed too shortly after - fortunately I had enough time to make a backup of my files before the laptop became totally unusable!

Having got another machine at Christmas, I never got around to complaining, and it was only recently I started investigating how to go about this, and discovered your site. However, when I took a shot to nothing and switched it on the other day, it sprang into life!

When I raised a support query to Acer, they told me "We understand your concern. According to Acer there are no common/known problems with this model." - not surprising, given what I've read here and elsewhere!

I'm now contemplating approaching Comet, but the prospect fills me with dread - especially as the laptop has magically cured itself during months of non-use.

So I'm looking for advice -

1. how can I definitively tell whether or not I'm not actually affected by the defective Nvidia problem?

2. if I do start using the machine regularly again, what's the best way of monitoring for / detecting problems, to get early warning of a possible failure?

3. is there any evidence I could / should be gathering, to back up any case I'm likely to have to make in the future?

4. should I press ahead with a complaint while the laptop is actually functioning, or will I have to wait for another catastrophic failure?

Many thanks in anticipation....

Hello Graeme150 and welcome to our forum.

Please find below the answers to your questions.



Well at this stage you cannot. The best thing to do would be to download these two utilities which will test your laptop. tools-to-test-to-see-if-your-nvidia-gpu-is-about-to-fail-t57.html

You should run those two on your laptop and then pop back here and let me know the results and I will advise further.



The only thing that you can do it to regularly monitor the temperatures to see if they are starting to increase over time. You would be wise to invest in a can of compressed air to blow out the fans in case they are blocked.



There is little you can do until it it proved definitively that your laptop is indeed inherently defective. Once that has been done and has been documented in an engineers report, then the report does pretty much everything you need.

If your laptop is indeed inherently defective then it is pretty much case won for you.



Well, you cannot really complain whilst your laptop is working so you will have to wait for it to fail.

I recommend running a DVD on loop and switching the laptop on and off a few times in between.

If it is on the fringes of failure then you will find that it will fail pretty quickly.

I hope the above answers your questions. If you need any further advice then please let me know.

Good luck and best wishes

Paul
The Admin Team

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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.

Many thanks for the prompt response, Lapcure, and for the helpful info - much appreciated.



I couldn't get RTHDRIBL to work (some problem with Directx compnents), but I did manage to find a copy of FURMARK, which seems to offer similar stress-testing. GPU-Z shows GPU to be running at around 70 C when idling, but very rapidly rises to over 100 C with FURMARK running hard (max 105 C, but fan cranks up and keeps it just over the 100 C mark).

I'd welcome your opinion on whether this is within a tolerable range (seems intuitively high?), and / or whether this is indicative of the Nvidia defect.

Regards, and thanks,
Graeme

Hello Graeme,



That is way too hot and potentially dangerous.

I would not use the laptop on a wooden surface or on your lap for that matter as you could experience burns.

The fan assembly could be blocked and this could be one reason for the high temps, but to be honest I would say it is more than likely to be suffering the defect.

On your laptop the fan assembly is easily accessible via a removable panel on the underside of the laptop.

If you are handy with a screwdriver you can remove the larger of the panels on the underside of your laptop and you will immediately see the fan assembly. Remove the screws that holds the assembly down and ensure the fans and grills are clear of dust and dirt.

Reassemble the laptop and run the temperature tests again. If the same temperatures are registered then you have the defect and the laptop will likely fail imminently.

Constant stress on the GPU plus switching off allowing to cool down and then back on will expedite such a failure.

If you need any advice then please let me know.

Best wishes

Paul
The Admin Team

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Paul,

I have been distracted by other priorities for too long, but have eventually found some time to continue chasing up on my faulty Acer 5920G.

I contacted Comet, outlining my intent to seek a refund or replacement, and received the following response....



I will respond to them asking for details of who to send the report to when I get it, but in the meantime, could you please confirm what steps I need to take to get my laptop inspected?

Many thanks,
Graeme

Hello Graeme,

Well it looks like Comet are taking their responsibilities seriously so you are at least moving forward.

Full details on how to obtain an engineers report can be found here:- need-an-independant-engineers-report-t62.html

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

Best wishes

Paul
The Admin Team

_________________
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Calculate the minimum refund that you would be entitled to.
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=======================================================

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,

Firstly, many thanks for the superb service and the excellent report - much appreciated.

When I sent the report to Comet, they than asked me to hand the laptop - and a copy of the report - into my local branch for further inspection.

Three weeks (yes, they don't seem to be in much of a hurry!), and some chasing, later, they've told me I should hear back soon; however their reply included the following statement:



I'd appreciate your thoughts before I enter an inevitably challenging dialogue with them...

Regards, and thanks,
Graeme

Hello Graeme,

I wonder what "extensive tests" they are conducting?

Even if they could provide a GPU that was free from the defect what type of solder balls are they going to use?

The only ones that would be just about guaranteed not to fail would be lead based solder balls. But the law says that manufacturers are not allowed to use lead in their products so they are left with the alternative solders which, in my opinion, are nowhere near as good or as durable.

Have you noticed how the retailers always refer to it as a "fault" rather than as a defect?

Whatever tests they are conducting will be irrelevant to the outcome.

If they are considering offering you a repair then they should provide you with a written guarantee that states that the replacement parts are free from the inherent defect.

No written guarantee = no repair.

Furthermore, the Sale Of Goods Act states that any offer of a resolution made by the retailer should not cause undue inconvenience. I would say the delay in their response back to you and the fact that you are no further forward is unduly inconvenient and would call them tomorrow to tell them so.

I would set a strict deadline of when you want a resolution by and would tell them that unless they comply you will take matters further.

The length of time you have been waiting is now unacceptable.

What do you think?

Best wishes

Paul
The Admin Team

_________________
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Calculate the minimum refund that you would be entitled to.
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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,

Sorry for letting this go cold - too much else going on in my life!

I put to them that I would want a written guarantee for any replacement parts, and they seem to have moved from offering to charge me to do a repair, to me claiming a replacement part from the manufacturer and them fitting it - aaargh. And along the way, they left me a message saying they didn't think any work had been done on the GPU, so I should take it up with my engineer - which when I challenged them to put in writing, the written version was altogether more cautious!

Here are the two latest communications from Comet:

THis came from their latest email response:


... and this one came from a "letter" (well, a crudely typed Word attachment) from their Service Centre last week:


I'm clearly getting nowhere, and they're getting increasingly evasive, which makes me feel we're edging closer and closer to taking legal action. As ever, your thoughts and advice would be most welcome...

Regards, and thanks again,
Graeme

Hello Graeme,

I would take absolutely notice of them when they state that they can find no evidence of a reflow.

I do indeed use a rework tool but have never scorched a board whilst doing so. Scorching of the board would indicate that either the heat was too high or was being concentrated for too long.

There is also no need to heat the board as high as "480/500" in order to test the GPU. Remember, I was only trying to prove that the inherent defect existed, I was not trying to repair your laptop.

If they inspected your laptop they will have noted your job number written on the underside of the mainboard so they know your laptop was stripped down.

They also must know that when you sent it to me is wasn't working and when you received it back with the report it was so that proves we have worked on your laptop.

I would give them one final opportunity to resolve matters and if they refuse I would pop on over to www.moneyclaim.gov.uk and would file a small claims action against them.

Like you correctly stated, their response seems evasive and I fear you are wasting your time trying to negotiate with them.

I have provided many reports on Acer laptops all of which had the defect so for them to claim that this does not affect Acer laptops is baloney. They also fail to mention Packard Bell, Toshiba, Asus the list goes on.

So, in one breath they are saying that you need a new graphics card but on the other they are saying it is not the Nvidia defect. Is it just pure coincidence then that it failed in exactly the same way with exactly the same manifestations as the defect?

I think that you are quite correct when you state that you are edging towards litigation. I would give them a call to give them one last chance and would tell them that when you put the phone down you will be filing your claim. See what they say. If they capitulate then great. If not them sue them. Sadly it seems it is the only language they understand.

What do you think?

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.