Bad experience with HP Thailand

[strandedinasia]

OMEN by HP - 15-ce020tx, Serial number: [Personal Information Removed], Product number:2EZ13PA

Manufacturer warranty has expired. Start date: April 02, 2018, End Date: May 01, 2020

Issue: Laptop stopped booting in August 2020, but I had no acces to the unit until a few weeks ago. Opening the laptop it first revealed the reason for the sunk-in space key: the battery was swollen (and did not work anymore) and had bended parts of the chassis. Removing the battery the space key was back to normal.

Examining the boot problem: first made backups of SSD and hard drive (proves reading them works). Then using a backup made in 2018 to check that Windows boot is not broken (also proved that both SSD and hard drive have flawless write function). Exactly the same boot problem (stops shortly after the Windows round load symbol appears).

Trying to boot from a bootable USB thumb drive with Windows installer on it: not possible, switches to SSD quickly and hangs there again.

Trying the same with removed SSD: USB thumb drive is accessed for a few seconds, then nothing happens anymore.

Additional issues: on most boots a CMOS error for the BIOS is displayed, and a reset automatically performed. Changes in the BIOS (for example setting always boot to USB) cause the unit to turn on with a black screen and absolutely nothing happens anymore. Until you are lucky and a few times later the CMOS reset message shows up.

Just in case different RAM had been tried as well, no change.

Conclusion: there is something wrong on the motherboard, either on the BIOS side already, or at least in regard to drive I/O.

Due to the swollen battery it can not be excluded that this was the primary reason for the current boot issue, having damaged something mechanically or electrically.

Then starts the HP service saga. It took them several tries to finally understand that it’s not the RAM that is defect (they first didn’t have another one to verify), nor that Windows must be repaired (they also didn’t have a Windows boot stick, so couldn’t check that booting won’t work no matter what).

So finally they ‘found’ that the motherboard is defective, and I should pay 20,900 Baht for that exchange. The battery not included (3,500 Baht discount price quoted – still ridiculously high). The whole laptop is like new, just left its 2 years warranty, and had cost 31,000 Baht.

Is that what HP calls longevity? They want me to throw away this laptop after 2 years because they use broken batteries to begin with? They think that I will buy a HP laptop again after being treated like that? Or not tell anyone around me what I experienced with a ‘brand name’ laptop?

I tried to contact HP Bangkok directly to discuss if they would be willing to show some goodwill and lower the repair price to a reasonable level. But had to find out they have no email support addresses anywhere, so I was forced to put this here. Really bad support so far!