futureshop tryin to screw me?

[aliasaid]

i bought a laptop a little over a year ago from futureshop. i paid $250 for a 2 year extended warranty... (ya, it is a lot!!)


the laptop came with 256mb of ram, so the same day i bought it i went out and bought another 256 stick to total 512mb.

anywyas, recently the screen decided to go funky, so i took it to futureshop to get it fixed. before i went, in case the damage is irrepairable, i decided to take out the stick of ram i put in so that if they trash it, they don't trash the stick that i put in (i could always use it later.. or sell it.. ) anyways, so i go and pick up the laptop today, and i want to put the 256 stick back in, BUT when i looked at the back of the laptop, they had put a sticker over the screw to access the RAM area saying "warranty void if seal is broken" WTF?! i can't upgrade the ram anymore?!?!

1) i have a stick lying here..
2) i paid $250 for this stupid warranty.. they can't just refuse it..
3) how am i supposed to use a computer with less than 256mb ram when you take into account the integrated video chip.

and here's the deal.. the monitor sometimes goes funky and sometimes it doesn't... i'm worried that they might've thought they fixed it, when in fact it just temporarily stopped being funky.. so i'm worried if i go ahead and install the stick of ram, void the warranty, and like in a week the screen screws up again..

oh the dilemma!

..... why would they not want ppl to upgrade the ram?! it had nothing to do with the why the monitor was screwing up.. it was going for like 10 months no problem with the stick i put in.. i'm 100% sure that had nothing to do with why the monitor was spewing colours left and right..

what would you do?

 

[aliasaid]

or i know!! if i want to upgrade the ram they want me to do it through them so that i'll have to pay $50 for a 256 stick and another $50 just for them to install it.... i don't doubt thats why they did it!!

 

[The General]

Peel the sticker off, stick the ram in, put the sticker back on.

Or just tell them "I dunno, the sticker must've fallen off in my laptop case" or just go complain to them.

 

[Ridlyn]

^^^Yep, also if it wasnt on there before i dont they can change the warranty after you purchased it.

 

[Chankama]

Plead ignorance about the sticker.. As these guys above said just say "WTF are you talking about? What sticker? I just bought a laptop. If the sticker was part of the deal, you guys probably didn't give it to me."..

:freak:

EDIT:

Sorry. Misread ur original post. You haven't broken the sticker yet. Yeah, just peel it off carefully, put the RAM in, and put the sticker back on lol..

 

[Harper]

Legally... if the notebook has been purchase by you (not leased via goverment or work*), then a removing sticker on your notebook can not void your warranty. Legally they can not do that. (Or in this country anyways.) The notebook is your property.
Provided that you do not physically damage your notebook, or put parts in that causes physical damage, they can not void a warranty.
Notebooks with leasing aggreements can fall into the same catigory too.

Since both the notebook and the extra ram came from the one shop, it should not be a problem. The only time where that might get messy is when the notebook has come from one shop and the ram came from another. (This is some thing I have to deal with all the time at my work)

It would be like renting a house and have the land lord saying that you will will get evicted and loose all your bond money the second you open the door.

* Medium to Large Business and Goverment Computers normally have some service contract with computer hardware. These service contracts are followed to the letter,
If I do see one of these seals on any computer hardware, I normally contact people that are looking after the warranty and service contract before proceeding with any work. And I will ask for confirmation in writing.

The only other time where this can be inforced is when there is NO SERVICABLE PARTS inside. Eg. PSUs. Or when the parts do need to be taken to some one that is qualified. Eg. Monitors.


One question about the Warranty. This the warranty via Future Shop or by the notebook manufacturer?

If it's via the manufacturer, then you should not have any thing to worry about.
If it's via the Future Shop, then there is a good chance that they are going to try to screw you over every which way possible.

 

[talldude123]

Future Shop's warranty is a big joke with computers and MP3 players. I've tried to get an IPOD in and they wouldn't touch it, since Apple's warranty is 2 years, and their warranty is 3 years...so what's the point of paying $200 for a 1-year warranty????

I've found that they are very good with laptops, they put memory in mine right as i bought it, without voiding warranties. I havent had to take it in for repair, luckily...

They don't stand by their warranties; Best Buy should have a talk with it's son...

 

[aliasaid]

general, ridlyn, chankama: lol i think i'm gonna have to go this route... i'm just gonna as careful as possible peel the sticker and try to put it back on.. and if something happens to it, i would either plead ignorance or dispute it since the sticker wasn't on there when i purchased the laptop.. they only put it after they repaired it..

harper: the ram is from a different store. the warranty is from futureshop, not the manufacturer (manufacturer warranty is 1 year).

talldude: well the warranty isn't THAT useless.. if i didn't have it, i woulda had to pay for the repair myself.. and no idea how much it woulda cost to fix the laptop screen (colours were flooding and going everywhere).. and the original manufacturer's warranty doesn't cover the screen.