Defective Hinges on HP Laptops Envy

[Win7Envy]

image: https://goo.gl/photos/p6Tysy3SN2NtKy5M9

Same issue with 15 inch Envy to the left hinge.  It was First noticed it 8 months ago, but since it was my daughters laptop, it wasn't mentioned to me.  Now in College, she could be without it for 2 days, let alone 2 weeks. 

Now, When the lid is closed, it causes the case to gap by nearly 1/2 an inch.  It looks and sounds like plastic breaking and parts were never meant to be used together.  Like a door on a car that has been in an accident.  You can close the door but you can hear the metal rubbing like it's broken.  You have to force the door to close it. 

Gonna see if I can get this hinge fixed.  Purchased summer of 2014.  

Case #3023448245, HP reps, call me PM me.  something... this is so unprofessional of HP for not dealing with a clear defect in their product. Laptop has been under normal wear and tear. 

[Mikeamondo]

Win7Envy    ....    If your story progresses as others, you'll be contacted on this forum by an HP advisor who will cut and paste a paragraph about someone contacting you.   That person will in fact contact you, and since your laptop is out of date, they will certainly call it damage from use, and will offer to fix the laptop for around $200 to $300.

Continue to push for a lower price, reference my story and the posts on here.  They will not acknowlege the problem as a design flaw, but you may get the repair down to around $130.  Most do not get it lower than that.

Now... if you have the time and sufficient disgust to post a few times a day to this forum, HP's facebook page and their Twitter feed....  then you may get further.  I'm encouranging everyone to continue to make as much noise as possible....

Good Luck!

[Pjs2]

if they used the same bottom cover as you gave them, they did not see the 2 screws under the rubber caps where the laptop stands on, and the just replaced it but did not fix the problem, the problem is that the screws under the rubber cap by manufacturing fault did not got screwed so the hinges are loos in the cover, thats why the hinges pulls the cover open.

just grab a screwdriver and screw the hinges to the base cover to fix the problem for good.

[Mikeamondo]

UPDATE...  1-9-2016

Over the past 2 weeks, I've seen reports from 3 different users who have now had this fixed for free by HP when they were OUT OF WARRANTY!  In once case, over 2 years out.

Not certain if it signals a change, but certainly it's good news.  If you have this problem, I would search for as many examples on here as possible, especially those repaired out of warranty!  Perhaps HP is finally stepping up the plate on this one....

... just to bad for the hundreds who have paid to have this design flaw fixed....  Keep Posting Updates, folk... let everyone know how your case turns out!

---Mike

[VL9891]

I've had my Envy since fall 2013 when coincidentally, my old Pavillion with a faulty hinge died on me while I was in school and right before finals (terribly unplesant situation, as you can see). I know hinges are a definite issue with HP having had two different HP models fail because of it. The fan issues aside (all the HPs I've had have had the noisest fans and overheat a lot-- I've had about 4 HPs at this point in my life) and the less than stellar updating of display drivers, the hinge issue is the most worrisome for me. Obviously my laptop is out of warranty (though I do have SquareTrade on it, thank you Costco for talking me into that because that helped me at one point) so I do worry about the cose of this now that I'm seeing it really start to come apart. I have been using my laptop on my bed and it's been resting on the hinges more often than it should, but this issue seemed to happen so suddenly considering how long I've had it. I can't afford to lose my laptop having just graduated, paying off phone bills and student loans among other things, and being inbetween jobs. I've sent this laptop to fix the touchscreen before and while they were prompt with it they did leave bits of plastic rolling around inside. I still hear plastic and now I can safely assume it is from this left hinge issue. Sending this laptop off for weeks would put me behind and as someone who needs a laptop, this will not help me in the long run. Even shelling out  $140 is quite the expense right now but I don't want to have to keep paying around that price every year to enjoy the laptop as others have mentioned.

In all honesty, the new Envy models DO look better and the fact that this has come after hinge compliants is definitely telling of how far the issue has gone.

I know others have had no problem fixing it on their own but I am not mechinically savvy enough nor do I trust myself to do it on my own. I have no qualms with tighting the screws on the exposed part of the casing but anything else I'm too wary to try on my own. Right now I'm too scared to close it and have stuffed a small piece of folded paper to support the hinge's weight. I know a few people I could try to send it to after discussing this issue but really, how much do you think a non-HP service would quote for a price? I want to make this laptop last a little longer until I can afford a new one or at least a desktop to properly do work so as you can see, even if I ranted and raved about the issue I fear it won't help me unless I can get it fixed for free from HP and have it no longer have the issue in the long run.

I'm very happy to see others have been vocal about this issue because ever since my Pavillion had issues with the hinges I've been disappointed in how HP has been handling it.

[Omar-E]

@VL9891

‎Thank you for using HP Support Forum. I have brought your issue to the appropriate team within HP. They will likely request information from you in order to look up your case details or product serial number. Please look for a private message from an identified HP contact. Additionally, keep in mind not to publicly post ( serial numbers and case details).

If you are unfamiliar with the Forum's private messaging please click here to learn more.

Thank you,
Omar

[Mikeamondo]

@VL9891

I was glad to see HP Support contacted you quickly.  Please follow up here after you talk with them and let us know how it goes.  On of the others on here was nearly as far out of warranty as you, and they reported having HP fix their computer for free......   

Good Luck!

Mike

[VL9891]

@Mikeamondo

I hope so, but so far have you had any issues with the fix that they've given you? As far as the hardware fixing goes, that is. My laptop is fine aside from that hinge issue.

I'll try to keep the thread updated with my case.

[Mikeamondo]

So far so good with my last fix... but it's only been a few months.  They tend to last 8 month to a year. 

Also...  I think some of the folks who have fixed their own may have a different model than mine... their descriptions of fixes don't really match what I see.  The one person had 2-3 inches of screws through the case.... my hinges are only 1" wide to begin with.....  so a different design....

[VL9891]

I have the HP ENVY TS 15 Notebook PC so I know this has been an issue with these models and overall for HP products. I could try to get SquareTrade to have it sent off to HP like I did last time to save me the cost, but I'm not sure how much they will want to given it's been everyday use. However, with all this forum evidence this seems to help my case if HP doesn't want to deal with me negotiating with them, I might just negotiate with SquareTrade seeing as I paid for it and I should be good for another year.