Kobo, a real Mickey Mouse company!

tslemko · 11-11-2011, 12:04 PM

I pre-ordered a new Vox back in October from Kobo.com , and was told it probably wouldn't ship until Nov 2 at the earliest. Then I found Future shop had them in stock (Oct 27th), so I emailed Kobo and told them to cancel the order, that was 15 days ago. I bought the Future shop Vox and started having problems right away. It wouldn't charge, so I took it back, and got another one. It wouldn't charge either, but I finally figured out that it had to be powered off completely to charge. That was a little inconvenient, but okay.
I spent lots of time loading my ebooks and some apps, then suddenly the reading app failed, and I couldn't read anything. I tried power offs, reboots, everything, but nothing worked. I deleted all my extra apps, all the ebooks, but still nothing. So I returned it to Future shop for a refund.
Then ten days later I get a email from Kobo saying they are now processing my order. I immediately wrote back and told them I had cancelled two weeks previously and to not ship it. Three more days went by and they sent an email saying it had been shipped, and I checked by credit card, and it was charged.
Their robot acknowledge the emails as having been received, but they only responded to an email where I ask questions, they never responded the the three emails where I told them to cancel the order. So much for customer service. It took tens days to respond to another earlier email where I asked some questions.
When the Vox arrives, I will refuse acceptance and then fight to have the charge removed, but given Kobo's history, that will probably take forever.
I will never deal with this company again.

Haesslich · 11-11-2011, 12:09 PM

Or you could call them as other people here have to fix things, instead of depending on email.

taming · 11-11-2011, 01:55 PM

They will pay the fee to return the extra device.

Mememememe · 11-11-2011, 02:50 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Haesslich

Or you could call them as other people here have to fix things, instead of depending on email.

Have you tried calling them lately? You sit on hold for about an hour before someone puts down their nail file and talks to you. Currently there is NO effective way of getting through to Kobo. They're truly bush-league.

Haesslich · 11-11-2011, 05:03 PM

I called them the day the device came out. It took five minutes with everyone calling in to complain how it wasn't working.

Reader Paradice · 11-11-2011, 05:17 PM

On Oct. 28th, I called them about the fact you could not download the Owner's Manual. I got put in the hold-chain, and was picked up in three minutes. The person (who knows what outside company, and where on the planet it is located...) was very polite, solicitous, and came back (after a brief hold) with the information I was requesting. All in all, it was a good and satisfying interaction. I know that the odds are, that some will not have had as good an experience. It's like going to Sin City-Vegas.... All of Life is, LOL!

TonyToews · 11-11-2011, 05:25 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by tslemko

I pre-ordered a new Vox back in October from It wouldn't charge, so I took it back, and got another one. It wouldn't charge either, but I finally figured out that it had to be powered off completely to charge. That was a little inconvenient, but okay.

Mine charges quite nicely while I'm using it or just put it down so it's in sleep mode. I can see the tiny orange/green light indicator.

cypherslock · 11-11-2011, 06:02 PM

Here's a thought: why not try PM'ing some of the Kobo staff that are on here. Jack is more than helpful, including weekends. You may have gotten a lemon, but I bought mine the day I heard about it (same as you, 27th) have had no issues. But then I am a lot more patient it seems than some.

Mememememe · 11-11-2011, 07:17 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Haesslich

I called them the day the device came out. It took five minutes with everyone calling in to complain how it wasn't working.

That's not "recent". The past three weeks they've been a nightmare to deal with by phone.

taming · 11-11-2011, 07:32 PM

They don't seem to "scale up" all that well when there is a product launch. Add in the calls relating to a technical problem they were experiencing, and for sure, lots of folks had less than optimal experiences. This is a great example of the kind of thing that should improve when they have deeper pockets behind them.

Haesslich · 11-11-2011, 08:42 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Mememememe

That's not "recent". The past three weeks they've been a nightmare to deal with by phone.

Given it came out two weeks ago, I'd say it's recent. And if you were calling them three weeks back for a product which hadn't shipped yet... are you sure you actually have one?

I never had a problem getting through... and yet you've been calling them for THREE WEEKS. Hmm.

pokee · 11-11-2011, 11:00 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by cypherslock

Here's a thought: why not try PM'ing some of the Kobo staff that are on here. Jack is more than helpful, including weekends. You may have gotten a lemon, but I bought mine the day I heard about it (same as you, 27th) have had no issues. But then I am a lot more patient it seems than some.

I think that's the thing...nobody is patient anymore...we all expect things resolved quickly and easily. The average person could resolve most of their issues by searching the web...but instead they get themselves all worked up when someone doesn't solve their problem immediately. I know because I have been that user before (usually with TV or PC issues). We work hard for our money and expect good customer service when we buy something. Problem is, good customer service is hard to find anywhere nowadays. It is ideal to be patient, knowlegable, and most important of all - always have a back-up!

jefftheworld · 11-12-2011, 02:55 AM

I think the big problem is that each launch is more successful than they're ready for. I work in a large Chapters location in Toronto and I've seen each of the Kobo launches at a store level. Each time we get little info, little training and only a handful of units at launch. Then we realize how popular it is and play catch-up. I assume it's the same at Kobo.

Asawi · 11-12-2011, 03:34 AM

When cancelling an order, no matter what company, I don't consider it cancelled until I get confirmation one way or another. If I don't get confirmation pretty soon after email contact I try again. When doing so I make an extra check that I'm using the proper address for that kind of email. You always have to be extra careful when doing "important" things through email. Automated response emails do not count as any kind of confirmation for me.
Many companies handle their email really badly. I don't expect Kobo to be one of them, but my only experience with them is a few months back when they were really great.

49Kat · 11-12-2011, 09:24 AM

Tslemko,

See this thread. This has been my experience when buying a Vox from the Kobo site, or at least trying to:

https://www.mobileread.com/forums/sho...d.php?t=155200

See post #11 in that thread. I know Darrell is being inundated with e-mails and phone calls, but he'll get it straightened out for you.

It would be a good idea for Kobo to just permit order cancellations on-line, the way Amazon does, instead of requiring a phone call.

11-11-2011, 05:03 PM	#5
Haesslich Fanatic Posts: 544 Karma: 1138182 Join Date: Sep 2009 Device: Kobo Touch,Glo,Mini,Aura/HD/One,H20, Sony PRS-300/600, Kindle 3-PW	I called them the day the device came out. It took five minutes with everyone calling in to complain how it wasn't working. Last edited by Haesslich; 11-11-2011 at 05:59 PM. Reason: Edit 'wasn't' typo.

11-11-2011, 05:17 PM	#6
Reader Paradice Getting Back To Reading! Posts: 206 Karma: 431306 Join Date: Nov 2011 Device: Kobo Vox and Touch	Two Cents... On Oct. 28th, I called them about the fact you could not download the Owner's Manual. I got put in the hold-chain, and was picked up in three minutes. The person (who knows what outside company, and where on the planet it is located...) was very polite, solicitous, and came back (after a brief hold) with the information I was requesting. All in all, it was a good and satisfying interaction. I know that the odds are, that some will not have had as good an experience. It's like going to Sin City-Vegas.... All of Life is, LOL!

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11-11-2011, 12:04 PM	#1
tslemko Junior Member Posts: 5 Karma: 10 Join Date: Nov 2011 Device: Kobo Vox	Kobo, a real Mickey Mouse company! I pre-ordered a new Vox back in October from Kobo.com , and was told it probably wouldn't ship until Nov 2 at the earliest. Then I found Future shop had them in stock (Oct 27th), so I emailed Kobo and told them to cancel the order, that was 15 days ago. I bought the Future shop Vox and started having problems right away. It wouldn't charge, so I took it back, and got another one. It wouldn't charge either, but I finally figured out that it had to be powered off completely to charge. That was a little inconvenient, but okay. I spent lots of time loading my ebooks and some apps, then suddenly the reading app failed, and I couldn't read anything. I tried power offs, reboots, everything, but nothing worked. I deleted all my extra apps, all the ebooks, but still nothing. So I returned it to Future shop for a refund. Then ten days later I get a email from Kobo saying they are now processing my order. I immediately wrote back and told them I had cancelled two weeks previously and to not ship it. Three more days went by and they sent an email saying it had been shipped, and I checked by credit card, and it was charged. Their robot acknowledge the emails as having been received, but they only responded to an email where I ask questions, they never responded the the three emails where I told them to cancel the order. So much for customer service. It took tens days to respond to another earlier email where I asked some questions. When the Vox arrives, I will refuse acceptance and then fight to have the charge removed, but given Kobo's history, that will probably take forever. I will never deal with this company again.

11-11-2011, 12:09 PM	#2
Haesslich Fanatic Posts: 544 Karma: 1138182 Join Date: Sep 2009 Device: Kobo Touch,Glo,Mini,Aura/HD/One,H20, Sony PRS-300/600, Kindle 3-PW	Or you could call them as other people here have to fix things, instead of depending on email.

11-11-2011, 01:55 PM	#3
taming Trying for calm & polite Posts: 4,012 Karma: 9455193 Join Date: May 2010 Location: Mostly in Canada Device: kobo original, WiFI, Touch, Glo, and Aura	They will pay the fee to return the extra device.

11-11-2011, 06:02 PM	#8
cypherslock Groupie Posts: 178 Karma: 12392 Join Date: Nov 2009 Location: Canada Device: Kobo Vox	Here's a thought: why not try PM'ing some of the Kobo staff that are on here. Jack is more than helpful, including weekends. You may have gotten a lemon, but I bought mine the day I heard about it (same as you, 27th) have had no issues. But then I am a lot more patient it seems than some.

11-11-2011, 07:32 PM	#10
taming Trying for calm & polite Posts: 4,012 Karma: 9455193 Join Date: May 2010 Location: Mostly in Canada Device: kobo original, WiFI, Touch, Glo, and Aura	They don't seem to "scale up" all that well when there is a product launch. Add in the calls relating to a technical problem they were experiencing, and for sure, lots of folks had less than optimal experiences. This is a great example of the kind of thing that should improve when they have deeper pockets behind them.

11-12-2011, 02:55 AM	#13
jefftheworld Groupie Posts: 190 Karma: 157090 Join Date: Nov 2011 Device: Kobo, Kobo Vox	I think the big problem is that each launch is more successful than they're ready for. I work in a large Chapters location in Toronto and I've seen each of the Kobo launches at a store level. Each time we get little info, little training and only a handful of units at launch. Then we realize how popular it is and play catch-up. I assume it's the same at Kobo.

11-12-2011, 03:34 AM	#14
Asawi Gadgetoholic Posts: 1,462 Karma: 2731820 Join Date: Feb 2011 Location: Sweden Device: Kobo Libra2, Tolino Vision 6	When cancelling an order, no matter what company, I don't consider it cancelled until I get confirmation one way or another. If I don't get confirmation pretty soon after email contact I try again. When doing so I make an extra check that I'm using the proper address for that kind of email. You always have to be extra careful when doing "important" things through email. Automated response emails do not count as any kind of confirmation for me. Many companies handle their email really badly. I don't expect Kobo to be one of them, but my only experience with them is a few months back when they were really great.

11-12-2011, 09:24 AM	#15
49Kat Fanatic Posts: 580 Karma: 1309104 Join Date: Oct 2011 Location: BC,Canada/NV, USA Device: iPad 9th Gen, iPhone 11, Paperwhite 10th Gen.	Tslemko, See this thread. This has been my experience when buying a Vox from the Kobo site, or at least trying to: https://www.mobileread.com/forums/sho...d.php?t=155200 See post #11 in that thread. I know Darrell is being inundated with e-mails and phone calls, but he'll get it straightened out for you. It would be a good idea for Kobo to just permit order cancellations on-line, the way Amazon does, instead of requiring a phone call.