Notes: BBB= Better Business Bureau, a consumer advocacy group that most corporations take seriously.
Max= Annoying as hell virtual agent at Xbox support.
11/02/06 Xbox begins freezing about after one hour of gameplay. Call MS. Repair order setup. Told I have to ship it. Get upset, told "tough". Total time on phone: 1:30min
11/03/06 Call Xbox and try to reason. Told, "tough" with shipping (by a supervisor too). Told to give it a week to clear up, which it seemingly does. Time on phone: 1:45 Total time on phone: 3:15
11/03/06 Decide to complaint to the BBB. Complaint sent.
11/05/06 Told complaint was going to be routed next day.
11/15/06 Decide to purchase extended warranty. Heckled about open repair order. Time on phone: 2:00 Total time: 5:15
11/24/06 I get the 3 red lights. Try EVERYTHING. Call MS, told warranty expired, then they see extended warranty. Argue about shipping under extended warranty, told shipping was my job. Time: 3:00 Total: 8:15
11/25/06 Call, armed with the extended warranty terms. Legal jabber makes shortest Xbox call I have ever had. Told that I will be "overnighted" a coffin. Time: 0:10 Total 8:25
11/28/06 Call to find out status to be told that nimrod screwed it up. Arrange for a new order. Time: 0:20. Total: 8:35
11/30/06 Get a letter from the BBB; my complaint has been forwarded and I should get a reply "within 30 days"
12/1/06 Call to find out where "overnight" box is. Told it was 3 dayed but arriving today. Get coffin (empty) and label is also 3 day. Time 0:20 Total 8:45. Call UPS to arrange pickup and get into a 5 minutedebate that "the original biller will not pay the pickup costs". Call MS to discuss it with a clueless rep..Time 1:25. Total: 10:10.
12/2/06 Dropped off at the UPS Store; told truck will come saturday.
12/3/06 Truck never showed up; should show up within a week...
12/03/06: Call Xbox. Try to call. 15 minutes until Max decides to see if there is someone who can help. "Longer than normal wait times" message. 1 hour of advertising accessories I already own, hang up. Call Xbox again. Begin cursing at Max. Max gets me connected to an American within ten seconds. Give name and reference. Told that "Microsoft never overnights". Told that repair time was usually "one day" and that there was "no way" to get the replacement shipped back overnight. Said that I would recieve a "new" console if unrepairable or time constraints; when pressed on the matter, he admitted that I would most likely recieve a "reconditioned unit" but that "the failure rate is less than 1% for reconditioned units". Time 1:20 minutes. Total: 11:30
Let's do some cost comparison, shall we?
Estimated cost for a new unit: $323.30
Shipping: $10 here, $15 back.
Total: $348.30
Now, for my situation...
Cost to send me a box: $10
Cost to send box back: $15
11.5 hours X $20 hour for American reps (whom I was recieved by every time): $230
Repair cost: We'll say $80, given the cost of a repair is $140. Plus the cost of refurbish the old console.
Cost to send replacement Xbox back: $15
Total Cost: $350, IF the replacement functions. Given the 6,000 complaints in one thread about defective refurbs, it would cost at least $100 more (conservative estimate) for another defective unit.
I asked MS for this:
A) Compensation for lost time on Xbox Live. Given that I haven't been able to play it for a month, this is reasonable. I'm not asking for a refund, or more time; just the time I have lost.
B) A new unit. My unit overheated, so it likely damaged other components, which would lead to an unreliable "repaired" unit. Given the reconditioned horrors, and the fact that 360s are prone to overheating, a refurbished console is also unsatisfactory. I want a brand new console (no accessories or anything).
C) Overnight shipping, which I was originally promised. If I have a problem, I need to be able to ship it back.
I am extremely upset as the owner of a 42" DLP i purchased to play this console, as well as $1500 in Genuine Xbox games and accessories, plus the cost of XBL.
Anyone else believe that this is really ridiculous?