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Another case of sweat damage and horrible customer support


Nomi

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Posted

Hi everyone,

I'm just quoting the e-mail I wrote to CTDI Romania after they refused to accept the warranty claim:

Repair of HTC Vive HMD, SN FA8B2JJ00361, CTDI repair no 416334HRO

Dear Sirs,

 

the damage from liquid has been caused by sweat as you know. This has been covered by warranty in old versions of the VIVE warranty terms before HTC supposedly realized that the product is vulnerable for this and deleted the sentence about perspiration.

 

Instead of changing the product and making it more durable against sweat, HTC rather changed the warranty terms. This is not only ethically questionable but has also caused a lot of damage to HTC’s reputation.

When you google for the problem you see its well known in VR boards, YouTube-Channels, Reddit, Steam-Community etc.

Somebody made a nice video about this here:

 

I actually already thought about buying a Vive Pro because Beatsaber is more fun without cable, but with this customer service I’m not sure.

Do you really want to go on with this strategy and make customers upset?

 

I’d like to ask you to send a new RMA to Mr. Härtel from Saturn and make the repair under warranty which would only be fair.

Thank you.

 

Mit freundlichen Grüßen/Best regards  [END OF MESSAGE]

 

Their answer was:

Hello,

In this conditions we can repair it only with cost, if you want to be repaired and pay please contact Htc to open a new ticket.

Thank you

 

Now I'm actually thinking about giving the case to a lawyer. Does anyone have experience about that so that they would repair it when they get a letter from a lawyer?

Posted

At the risk of being unpopular amongst us vive owners,  I'm not sure it's totally legitimate to expect htc to repair the HMD under warranty with sweat damage.

Although it's accidental, it's still self-inflicted. 

Personally, I can tell when I'm perspiring, and I'll STOP, remove HMD, wipe brow, take a cold drink, switch on a/c or take off sweater.

I absolutely do not want to damage my prized toy!

The HMD is a sophisticated piece of technology and needs to be treated with due care and respect. I wouldn't expect my tablet to be repaired under warranty if I accidently spilled a drink on it.

I'm wondering if a compromise could be for htc to offer an accidental damage warranty, on top of their standard warranty, which would include sweat damage and even dropping it?

I would certainly pay the extra amount - $10 a month perhaps?

Posted

@Nomi

I'm sorry your Vive malfunctioned.  Sweat (or any other liquid) damage is not covered under the warranty conditions. 

Please work with the regional support team handling your case for next steps with your repair.  

The HMDs are not IP rated against liquid damage and can incur damage due to sweat or other liquids.  This can be mitigated through a few simple maintenance techniques as outlined below:

·        Wiping the HMD down with a lens wipe that has light alcohol allowing for sterilization and evaporation to occur around the lens area after each use (we run many events managing hundreds of users every year and have had great success with these these Zeiss lens wipes to clean not only the lens but the entire housing)

·        Storing the HMD with the lens facing down to allow any liquid accumulation to move downwards away from the casing.

·        Using a breathable face gasket such as the leather like products sold via our partners at VR Covers that can be wiped down or insuring the original foam gasket is not saturated with liquid prior to storing.

If you find yourself perspiring excessively after some time has passed in game play, find a moment to pause to dry the hmd with a cloth to again reduce the risk.  


Thank you. 

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