Defective Hinges on HP Laptops Envy

[YoshyiP]

Thanks for this @mikeamundo 

It's really insightful to let see what you've been through, I'm going to keep fighting for this thanks to you and seeing the result you got out of it, as I now know that it can happen!!

Cheers,

Josh

[Envy_Bad_Hinge]

I am also on my second hinge break. We'll see how HP handles it. 

Strangely, I posted this topic in this Hardware forum, but they've somehow moved it to the "Cafe and Lounge" forum. Seems a lot of other complaints have been squirelled away in that forum as well! Bizarre...

http://h30434.www3.hp.com/t5/HP-Cafe-and-Lounge/Broken-Hinge-Again-on-Envy/td-p/5378001

[Mikeamondo]

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@Envy_Bad_Hinge wrote:

I am also on my second hinge break. We'll see how HP handles it. 

Strangely, I posted this topic in this Hardware forum, but they've somehow moved it to the "Cafe and Lounge" forum. Seems a lot of other complaints have been squirelled away in that forum as well! Bizarre...

http://h30434.www3.hp.com/t5/HP-Cafe-and-Lounge/Broken-Hinge-Again-on-Envy/td-p/5378001

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They also moved one of mine over there.... it was a post specifically asking them (HP) to comment on this hardware issue.  Not surprisingly, they did not comment. 

FWIW, the cut-and-paste reply you recieved normally does lead to contact, but it often takes a few days.   My first call came in less than 24 hours after I posted once on their Facebook page, and the woman who called said she received my info from the 'social media team'.   Who knows?  Your situation is identical to mine, however, right down to the 8 month time frame.  They should certainly fix it again for free.  Doesn't mean they will, of course.... just that they should.

Good Luck!

[Mikeamondo]

For all those who have been following the hinge issue....   check out this review of the new HP ENVY 17...  specifically look at the pics of the new design on the hinge!

http://www.cnet.com/products/hp-envy-17-2015/

As you can see, their new design is radically different, runs the full width of the laptop AND... most importanly...  supports the weight of the screen directly on the table it's sitting on... or your lap, presumably.

And yet, they continue to maintain that there was no problem with the old hinge....

I like the new design, FWIW...  creates a nice lift to the back and puts the keyboard on an angle similar to a desktop keyboard.  I'm sure it's not installable in our older generation ENVY's, though... too different, I imagine.

[TahoeMama]

I just posted the hinge problem as well. Thank you for all the detailed information on your latest dealings with HP customer service. They are indeed sneaky with turning their heads the other way on issues that are clearly their manufacturing fault.

My cooling fan just stopped working, which is directly in the corner next to the faulty left hinge that is pulling apart the laptop's casing. Coincidence? I think NOT!

I will continue to follow your updates and do the same for my posting.

What a pain! I use our Envy for business, and I'm going to have to figure something out to run payroll next week, as my laptop is not safe to run in its current state.

[Envy_Bad_Hinge]

Just an update, it's been over a week since I first posted my issue on the forum. JeffHelp contacted me by private message on the 2nd of December, and said someone from HP would be contacting me. I have yet to be contacted. Not sure if that's the typical wait, but thought I would keep anyone who's interested updated on the process.

[Envy_Bad_Hinge]

So, shortly after posting the above, I received a private message saying that I would be contacted soon. About an hour or so later, Don called me. We ran through the problem, and he said he was only authorized to give me a 50% discount on the repair, coming out to $121.89. He said if I wasn't satisfied with that, I could speak to his supervisor. After some time on hold, the supervisor, Paul, eventually came on. Again, we went through the problem, with him saying that he can only give a 50% discount as well, despite what Mikeamundo has written here. He claimed that there was no known issue with my model, an Envy 15t, although he did seem to mention the Envy m6 and Envy 17 as having known issues. Since they all seem to have the same hinge design, and there are literally thousands of poeple on this forum posting about problems with their 15t, this seems like a somewhat disingenous statement.
He said if I wasn't satisfied, I could contact the  Americas Escalation Management Team, which I plan on doing. There is no way I'm going to pay $120 dollars a year to own this machine, especially as I'm heading overseas again for an extended time, and need a reliable laptop that won't break again in a few months.

Now, if they could somehow place my computers components inside one of those new Envys that seem to have a different hinge design, that would be something I would be happy to pay for...

Anyway, we'll see what the Americas team says. But looking more and more like my family won't be purchasing another HP product ever again - [content removed] Guess their loss on that wasn't high enough to cause corporate change...

[Mikeamondo]

Well...  @Envy_Bad_Hinge ....  I'm sorry to hear they didn't do for you as they had done for me.  I've been rather busy the last week or so and have gotten behind in my posting.... 

Thanks for posting your story, and please do keep us updated.  The person who called me back out of the blue and reversed my repair charge told me that no one below her could have done so.... but of course, I have no idea at what 'level' she works at.   I wonder if there really are any 'escalation' levels....   maybe they all work in the same office and get a good laugh pretending to 'escalate' our cases.  Who knows... you certainly can't trust HP to be transparent. 

 I had posted my story and info to a minimum of 3-5 threads everyday for a couple weeks before that person contacted me.

Keep fighting for fairness!

[Keiki]

Just want to say thank you for conscientiously posting the updates to the Envy hinge issue. I also have an Envy, and mine is a 17-inch. From the beginning of my ownership, I've been worried about the inadequate hinges. The screen is just too heavy to be moving the laptop around during operation, so I've been very careful not to do this too often. I've had my laptop for over a year and a half now. The hinges have yet to fail, but I feel it's only a matter of time and movement. I recently began using a lapboard under the laptop (padded where it sits on my lap). I'm one of the few diehards out there that actually uses my laptop on my lap! I mainly use it out in the family room, which is the hub of activity in my home.

Anyway, thanks again for your posts. I'll definitely keep the negotiation factor in mind when it comes time to replace my hinges!

[Envy_Bad_Hinge]

So, a few days ago I emailed the Americas Escalation Management Team. Despite being promised someone would contact me "by the end of the next business day," I have yet to hear anything. 

Hopefully soon!