The Nvidia Defect Forum

Product Details: Toshiba X200-219.
Date of Purchase: 19/01/2008
Seller: Laskys.com online purchase.
Price paid: £1149
Graphics Adapter: NVIDIA SLI dual GeForce 8600M GT. 512mb dedicated VRAM (up to 2303mb total available graphics memory using TurboCache technology with 4GB system memory).

The story so far: On the 12/01/2011 I switched on my laptop as usual. The red indicators lit up as usual and the fan started up, then I heard 3 bleeps, this was one bleep followed by two slightly louder bleeps. Then the screen just stayed blank/black.
I immediately rang Toshiba Technical support who suggested it was a power problem. The technician advised I disconnect the mains lead and battery, and then press the start button. He said that the power on indicator should light up briefly. I was then told to connect the mains lead back to the laptop and that it should start up normally. Naturally it Didn't.

I then enquired of a more knowledgeable friend, who suggested it was a more serious fault, and possibly the main board that was faulty.
I then rang Consumer Direct to enquire about something I had heard about six year guarantees on TV. I was advised to contact the dealer/seller to see what they advised and to quote the "Sale of Goods Act 1979. This I did and the guy in customer services suggested I pay for their engineer (they use Comet engineers) to do a chargeable inspection of the laptop at a cost of £65. I said I would call Consumer Direct back for further advice.
I rang Consumer Direct back and was advised to get an Independent report done to ascertain exactly what the fault was. I was also advised to send a copy of the report along with a duly completed template letter off their website.

On the 16/01/2011 I took my laptop reputable computer dealer/repair shop about 10 miles away. I explained the symptoms and what Toshiba had suspected. He said it was "Bleep coding" which indicated something serious. I left it in his hands to try and diagnose what the fault was.
On the 20/01/2011 I went to collect my Laptop and the engineers report. The report stated that "the Mainboard was not recognising the memory. It went on to say that different memory was tried but the machine still beeps. The Mainboard needs to be replaced at a cost of £340 for the part plus £75 labour. It concluded that they Didn't consider this machine is economical to repair."

Later on that day (20/01/2011) I wrote my letter to Laskys, complaining under the Sale of Goods Act 1979 that my laptop was not of satisfactory quality, explained the problem and symptoms, and requesting a long lasting repair or like for like replacement. I duly sent this off with a copy of the independent engineers report, requesting a response within 14 days.

On the 26/01/2011, yesterday, I was rang by Comet. The assistant in their investigations department said that they needed to carry out a Chargeable inspection of my laptop. They were quite insistent that I had to pay for this inspection by their engineer. She concluded that they would put this in writing to me.

I spent most of that afternoon searching the web for "Bleep Coding" and so eventually I found your invaluable forum. I rang Comet back to explain about the NVIDIA Defect and to quote the various evidence I had uncovered regarding this and to claim that I was also subject to this Inherent fault. However the lady I spoke to was not available, but was assured that she will ring me back tomorrow (27/01/2011) to discuss it further.

I would be most grateful for any advice on how to proceed further.
Kind regards
John

Hello John and welcome to our forum.

Sorry to hear that your laptop has failed.

The three beeps that you hear are a universally recognised POST (Power On Self Test) error code signifying a failed video.

So, if you consider that your laptop contains an Nvidia 8600 GPU, which is one of the more prolific of the defective GPU's, plus the fact that you have the three beep code, then I think it is a forgone conclusion that your laptop is indeed inherently defective.

I would reject any offer of chargeable inspection and you should insist that you be allowed to present your own engineers report.

If they make you an offer of a free repair then you should request that they give you the written guarantee that I suggest.

Let's see what they say and then pop back here and let me know and I will advise further.

Any questions please let me know.

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.

Cheers Paul, will keep you informed of the progress.

Right, it's going to Lapcure for a Proper Diagnostics report. Then hopefully I can get some sense out of Laskys/Comet, who seem to be in Total denial of this problem.

Hello Scratchy,



Well, after sending them a copy of the report along with a letter before action they have seven days to come to their senses. If they fail to do so then give them a call on the 8th business day and ask if they are prepared to make you an offer.

If they refuse then pop on over to www.moneyclaim.gov.uk and file your small claims action against them.

I have now sent you an email with packing instructions etc.

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.

Hi Paul, sorry for the delay in replying, been a bit busy these last few days.
Many many thanks for carrying out the inspection of my laptop. I am Really impressed with the detail of your report and your findings. My next step is to get in touch with Laskys/Comet and submit my claim based on your expert findings. I will keep you informed of the progress.
Many thanks again.
Kind regards
John.

Hello John,



Good luck with that John. If you need any help or advice along the way then please let me know.

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.

Well Laskys/Comet have arranged for Toshiba to collect and inspect my Laptop. Toshiba's engineer, and I use the term Engineer Very loosely, has deemed that the primary reason for the failure of the Nvidia Graphis card is Dust/Fluff and nicotine staining. This is despite me submitting Lapcures Very extensive report which concluded that the same said failure for due to the Nvidia Graphics Card Defect.
It is quite obvious Toshiba is dodging the issue, and is demonstrating a total ignorance of the main issues surrounding this problem. Rather than own up, they prefer to cloud matters with erronious excuses which have no pertinence.
In the Final Judgement in the good old US of A, one of THEE main Symptoms is "No video on notebook computer screen even when the notebook computer is on". Guess what? That is Exactly my Laptops Symptom. Also in the Final Judgement it says that No inspection is required, only that the symptom is present, for the laptop to be considered as being included in the said judgement ruling.
No mention of anything else, such as dust/fluff etc. etc.
I have replied to Toshiba castigating their engineer's report and rejecting it as a total nonsense.
I have also written today to Laskys/Comet enclosing a copy of my letter to Toshiba and giving them 10 working days to come up with a solution, or we go to Court.
To be perfectly honest I woul prefer to go to Court, so as to expose Toshiba as the Cheats, Liars and Total Incompetents that they are. It will also give me the opportunity to expose Laskys/Comet as not having any idea with regards to the Nvidia Defect and it's symptoms etc. etc.
I will keep you updated on the progress .

Many thanks Paul for all your help in this matter.

Hello Scratchy,

I too was amazed when I read what Toshiba had written in their "report". It made absolutely no reference to the two defective cards in your laptop nor did they appear to perform any tests on the cards.

Furthermore, they received your laptop in a working state and sent it back in a none working state so they must have known that the video cards had failed.

To then state that the fan had "nicotine staining" is beyond me! The staining has absolutely nothing to do with the fact that both the cards in your laptop have failed.

In my opinion it just appears that they have looked for any conceivable excuse to refute your claim.

Though at the end of the day it is irrelevant what Toshiba say as their opinion is neither independent nor can it to be considered as unbiased.

I would now get back in touch with Laskys and would give them an ultimatum; either settle your claim now or settle later with the increased cost of your court filing fees and other consequential losses.

Don't let them fob you off or mess you around any longer.

The report you received from Toshiba is so biased and overlooks the core problem which has rendered it irrelevant.

Good luck with the next step.

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.

Cheers for that Paul.
Will keep you updated. Thank God for this Forum and your expert advice.
Kind regards
John.
ps. I've sent you a copy of my letter to Laskys, let me know what you think.