Disappointing lack of support from MS

[Nate Silver]

I have a decision to make. Today I was very disappointed to receive my old Band back from MS service. Included with the un-repaired and unusable Band was the following explanation:

"Dear Microsoft customer:

We have received the Microsoft Band that you returned for for which you requested service. After careful inspection, we found excessive damage to the device that is unrelated to a defect in materials or workmanship. This type of damage is not eligible for warranty service, as it is expressly excluded from the coverage of the Limited Warranty you \accepted when you purchased the device."

It goes on to explain that the damage could be due to misuse, impact, or failure to follow instructions in the manual, Damage due to exposure to liquids, and/or torn or missing parts.

To say that I am disappointed and angry would be an understatement. At no time have I ever subjected my Band to any of those conditions. It has been worn on a daily basis as a wearable fitness device, and has never been dropped, received an "impact", or been subjected to any liquid other than my own sweat. The only "torn or missing part" is the disintegrated battery covers. Despite its intended use as a wearable fitness device, MS has determined that it has "excessive damage".

As many of the regulars here on the forum may know, I have been a staunch supporter and evangelist for the Band, and have often defended it. Now I must decide whether or not to continue to support MS and the Band by purchasing a new version 1, or the new version 2 when it is released. It is not as if the Band were my only fitness device. I have my Garmin Fenix 3, my Basis Peak, Mio Fuse, and Garmin VivoFit. Of these, the Fenix 3 and the MS Band are the only two devices which I use on a continual, daily basis. I have a lot of time and effort invested in the Band eco-system, and I intend to do my best not to make a hasty decision about this, but my initial reaction is to stick with companies who understand what a wearable fitness device really is.

 

[DroidUser42]

I take it the band is otherwise functional? Your experience sounds odd since I remember someone else reporting that the stores had gotten a bulletin about the battery doors and were doing exchanges. This might be worth a follow-up phone call.

 

[anon(5327127)]

Pictures please.

 

[Nate Silver]

I take it the band is otherwise functional? Your experience sounds odd since I remember someone else reporting that the stores had gotten a bulletin about the battery doors and were doing exchanges. This might be worth a follow-up phone call.

No, it no longer holds charge and the screen went dead. That's what prompted me to send it in. Honestly, the battery door covers don't bother me since it didn't seem to have any impact on comfort or function. However, the battery door covers are absolutely the only sign of obvious 'damage'. It has never been submerged or gotten wet beyond sweat and wiping with a damp cloth. I know, the experience came right out of left-field! I was floored.

 

[ven07]

Hey Nate, sorry to hear about this :/ Seems like a weird thing to do. I mean, they could've sent a replacement unit.. but if you're still going to invest, I would say, hold off for the oct.6th event and then make up your mind

 

[Nate Silver]

Pictures please.

 

[Nate Silver]

Hey Nate, sorry to hear about this :/ Seems like a weird thing to do. I mean, they could've sent a replacement unit.. but if you're still going to invest, I would say, hold off for the oct.6th event and then make up your mind

Thanks, man. Yeah, I guess I owe it to myself to wait and see what the new release has to offer. I really don't get it though.

 

[Kilika_g35]

@DroidUser42, Nate had shared in another discussion that his "... screen went wonky (partially lit, partially dark), and it was having trouble holding a charge." So I'm also shocked that MS Customer Service came back with the response that they did.

@Nate, I agree with DroidUser24's suggestion to follow-up with a call. It can't hurt. Good luck.

**Edit, didn't realize that Nate had already responded, sorry!**

 

[DroidUser42]

View attachment 113145

View attachment 113146

I'd ask them exactly what damage they were referring to. Because I don't see anything out of the ordinary for a Band that's seen use.

 

[ven07]

Keep us updated, if you can

 

[gadgetrants]

Nate, sorry for the bad news. Odd to say the least, and wildly inconsistent with the many experiences others have had here. Can I make 2 suggestions?

First, I would call up support -- and you know where I'm going -- calmly, pleasantly, politely but adamantly insist that you be sent a new Band. Simply don't back down and keep "escalating" until you find a manager/supervisor willing to assist you. If the first person wastes your time, politely hang up and call again. I think it shouldn't take more than 3 calls.

Second, alternatively, can you head in to an MS store? I would try the same strategy there.

The 500-pound gorilla in the room is: do you reference your already-declined support request? I say no. Of course there is an excellent chance that a support person will request your serial number, which will likely pull up the original support ticket. That is where doing it all in person may be to your advantage -- you're a friendly, easy-going, likable person and I'd bet the store manager, after seeing the look of exhaustion and frustration on your face, will realize "we need to keep this customer in the fold" and they'll quietly go grab you a new Band and slip it in your backpack, no questions asked.

I'd say stay positive and remain convinced that you're in the right. It may also take some extra work, but I'd encourage you to print out a few pages of the testimonials from our forum to help support you case.

Keeping my fingers crossed!

-Matt

 

[Nate Silver]

Thanks, all. Matt, your idea is a good one. Unfortunately the nearest MS store to me is almost 4 hours away. Additionally, the old Band has already gone in the garbage (yeah, I was upset but I'm over it now). :unhappy:

Anyway, at least I am not Band-less! The first Band I ordered on release day was a size large, which just barely works for me at the tightest setting. The one I sent in was the medium I bought a few days afterwards, and was a better fit. So I'm using the large one now, and as long as I'm careful about keeping it a bit further up my arm during vigorous exercise, it's fine.

The only other tracking device I own that comes close to the Band (for 24/7 daily use, all day hr tracking) is the Basis Peak, and IMO it doesn't do things half as well. First off, it only tracks activities 'automatically', you can't just start a 'cycling outdoors', or 'run' yourself, the device has to detect it. Sometimes this works, sometimes not. Secondly, the Basis doesn't work well at all for indoor cycling (trainer). Third, after a few days, the Basis starts to irritate my wrist, and eventually I have to stop wearing it for a while.

I guess all in all, I'm still committed to the Band, despite the disappointing experience with support. In retrospect I should have done what Matt suggested, and persevered. When dealing with a juggernaut of a company like MS, sometimes you takes your chances, and this time I happened to run into a moron support staffer. I still say for a first release, the Band is a very promising device and I don't regret buying it (er, them). Here's hoping that version 2 is more durable and has even more features!

 

[gadgetrants]

Nate, I'm sorry my advice was a bit out-dated. Glad to hear your still in the owners' club!

-Matt

 

[Jorge Holguin]

Always, your best bet if you can, is to bring you hardware directly to the store. I've did it with my SP1 and the guys went through everything on the hardware. Cuz it had happened to me before.

 

[realwarder]

Call them or go to a store.

I tried the online support method and they were worthless. Said I'd have to pay to have it fixed. Walked into a store and they swapped it without asking any questions.

Edit: I see you already moved past this.

I too hope the second one is more robust, but they are pretty neat!

 

[Al4video]

Thanks, man. Yeah, I guess I owe it to myself to wait and see what the new release has to offer. I really don't get it though.

Nate I would hold out and get the newer one. But I wouldn't consider this case closed. I would continue to run this one up the pole, make some noise everywhere you can. I believe they can and will do better. Write letters, post them everywhere, facebook twitter, google plus, instagram etc.... Don't quit.

 

[mmcpher]

Nate, thanks for the photos. I successfully returned my Band because the coating surface on the interior band had separated and stripped off. I don't think I had quite as many scratches on the edge of the Band as you have. But it seems as if they may be looking at the scratches as a pretext for not replacing the unrelated material failures on the interior which expose the underlying metal. When the interior material bubbled and peeled off on its own on my unite, the rest of the Band was in nearly pristine condition. But it looked beaten-up anyway, because of the coating material failure. It would have been unfair for MS to use the failure of their materials as a pretext for claiming I had mistreated the device. They didn't in my case and immediately replaced it. One of the things I liked about Band was and is its sturdy, even bulky design. It isn't supposed to be a fragile device for dainty people. Its supposed to be rugged and athletic.

Like you, I will have my eyes open for Band 2 on October 6, so it may become a moot point, but they done you wrong! IMHO.

 

[pankaj981]

Have you tried reaching their chat support? They have been extremely co-operative with me every time I reached out a warranty claim. Especially once when device I had sent in for repairs was turned around with a BS response, that's when the chat support helped me get it replaced.

 

[Keith Wallace]

Always, your best bet if you can, is to bring you hardware directly to the store. I've did it with my SP1 and the guys went through everything on the hardware. Cuz it had happened to me before.

My sister had the material ripping off of one of the padded areas on her Band. She got on with MS support (on the Band site), and they basically set up an appointment with her to go to the nearest MS Store (about 90 minutes away) and do a swap. They were super chill and didn't bother her in the slightest. They basically just popped open a box and gave her a new one, almost no questions asked. I definite recommend trying to do an in-person exchange.

 

[Narr]

This sort of experience will put off the majority of people ever buying a Microsoft product, imo even if it was only the battery compartment material coming off they should have replaced the Band; as it is the Warranty explicitly excludes cosmetic issues from being an excuse for a replacement which I find outrageous. The whole product should last not just part of it.