True or False: Rooting voids the warranty? - Page 4

cybrdmn · 01-03-2011, 07:05 PM

I'd have figured a "lawyer" would know the difference between terms of service and warranty though...

jasoraso · 01-03-2011, 07:06 PM

A warranty granted by a company may have certain restrictions; however each State in the U.S. in its common law and statutes provide certain restrictions and requirements for warranties as well (you will note that many warranties provide explicit distinctions for various states). Making a blanket statement that "rooting voids the warranty" may not be, and probably isn't true.

Despite what restrictions companies put on their warranties, different jurisdictions throughout the U.S. have different interpretations of those restrictions.

I believe that if you Root your NC and the USB port fails (physically), you will still be covered by the warranty. You would be wise to return you NC to a factory state. However, if that were an impossibility (ie. the battery wore out before you could perform the 8x reboot and factory reset) I think if you were forced to sue B&N to enforce the warranty if they tried to deny warrantying the device for the reason that the software had been modified by the end-user, most jurisdictions in the U.S. would hold B&N to warranty the physical device.

astrangerhere · 01-03-2011, 07:10 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by cybrdmn

I'd have figured a "lawyer" would know the difference between terms of service and warranty though...

a violation of the terms of service would most likely void your warranty. i don't have a nook color (only a classic) and was not going to the trouble to read it in its entirety to prove a point. at this point, i am exiting this discussion. you guys want to brick your toys, knock yourself out. and be sure you say hi to whichever one of my brethren you have to hire to sue for enforcement of the warranty. we appreciate your business.

also, if you'd like to question my credentials as an attorney, i'd be happy to PM my state bar number to a mod to prove my authenticity.

RoboRay · 01-03-2011, 07:12 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by astrangerhere

"(ii) use, copy, modify, distribute copies of, display or transmit the Software;"

modification of the software. don't see how that can be any clearer.

Use of the software is in the same clause, so using the NookColor as anything other than a paperweight invalidates the warranty also. Yeah, that's real clear.

How about booting the NC from an SD card containing a rooted vanilla Android system containing no B&N code. You then have not modified the NC's software and therefore your warranty is intact. Right?

cybrdmn · 01-03-2011, 07:29 PM

you modified it the minute you put your name in it and added a book...

Quistopher · 01-04-2011, 12:47 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by astrangerhere

You have to go through B&N before the square trade extension starts in a number of states, including my own. And I am willing to bet a stack of my business cards that the CS rep you called had no idea what he was talking about when it comes to bricking or rooting.

I didn't get that feeling from the first guy, I called back and got the same answer with another guy. Both of them were probably reading off a computer screen. He claimed SquareTrade has teams of people that can help with SW issues. I asked about your previous comments and he said only in Maine, Wisconsin & Puerto Rico are the places you have to go thru B&N first.

My main concerns are dropping it & screen damage, I have no plans for either but I would rather be safe then sorry. I am going to wait for the January update to the NC. Hopefully it will do enough where I don't have to Root it.

The Joker · 01-05-2011, 01:25 AM

A rooted return sighting......
returned after factory reset

Hopefully FatherStorm comes back to provide more information....

RockdaMan · 01-05-2011, 08:54 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by The Joker

A rooted return sighting......
returned after factory reset

Hopefully FatherStorm comes back to provide more information....

I always suspected that it might be possible. Even so, I would not do it for the reasons detailed in the first post. As I said then...YMMV

Withfeeling · 01-05-2011, 10:52 PM

First of all, if B&N says you voided your warranty and they won't cover the device, what are you going to do? Sue them?

Second of all, the odds of being "caught" with a reverted rooted Nook Color are probably about zero. So whatever you do will probably "work".

Third, many items in a warranty are just there so that if there are real signs of abuse they have an excuse to avoid coverage.

Fourth, the rest is between you and your conscience.

RockdaMan · 01-06-2011, 03:05 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Withfeeling

First of all, if B&N says you voided your warranty and they won't cover the device, what are you going to do? Sue them?

Other people in similar circumstances have done just that...

RoboRay · 01-06-2011, 08:18 PM

...and even won.

madsquabbles · 01-07-2011, 11:19 AM

rooting does violate the warranty, but why should it? all pc's come "rooted" and if there are any problems on of the most popular fixes is restore your os. you can do all this and still be under warranty.

what's unethical is the fact that rooting breaks the warranty and puts you SOL if you have problems like dead pixels, faulty workmanship, etc that have absolutely nothing to do with rooting, come up.

rooting should not violate a warranty, now overclocking should most definitely break it.

cutterjohn42 · 01-07-2011, 06:27 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Quistopher

I didn't get that feeling from the first guy, I called back and got the same answer with another guy. Both of them were probably reading off a computer screen. He claimed SquareTrade has teams of people that can help with SW issues. I asked about your previous comments and he said only in Maine, Wisconsin & Puerto Rico are the places you have to go thru B&N first.

My main concerns are dropping it & screen damage, I have no plans for either but I would rather be safe then sorry. I am going to wait for the January update to the NC. Hopefully it will do enough where I don't have to Root it.

From what I read about the warranty terms via Squaretrade is that it starts coverage immediately, but if your manufacturer warranty is still in effect you have to go through them FIRST. Squaretrade said that they would assist in dealing with the manufacturer for warranty coverage, but that was it or so the various documentation stated for the 3y warranty that I got for my gTab.

As to warranty voiding, I'd have to defer to an attorney's opinion on that, but preferably more than one or one who specializes in contract law, or whatever specialty that warrantied fall under(I'm just assuming contract law since it is, in effect, a contract...).

RockdaMan · 01-09-2011, 06:12 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by RoboRay

...and even won.

Is there a specific example you're thinking of? I'd like to read about this.

BarryR · 01-09-2011, 08:05 PM

I had to exchange my defective color Nook (which I hadn't rooted) at my B&N store. The experience leads me to agree with those who think a factory reset would most likely prevent any problems with returns.

They took it back based on my word (the screen would black out completely, intermittently). I gave them a case number, as I'd already contacted customer service, but they didn't look into it.

I assume that it's perfectly legal for them to void the warranty with rooting and I think it's ethical (though I don't like it). The consumer always has the option of not buying the device. I also doubt they'll be enforcing it much, if at all, as it would require their front-end staff to approach this with a high level of technical expertise, and they'd have to be pretty sure they were right when they refused to take one back.

Also, credibility-wise, they might be on shaky ground if the claimed that some hardware failed due to rooting.

PS: I have since rooted my color Nook and am loving it!

View Poll Results: Does rooting violate the warranty or not?
It's unclear whether it violates the warranty	12	17.91%
It does not violate the warranty	16	23.88%
It does, indeed, violate the warranty	39	58.21%
Voters: 67. You may not vote on this poll

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01-03-2011, 07:05 PM	#46
cybrdmn Member Posts: 24 Karma: 380 Join Date: Dec 2009 Device: nookcolor	I'd have figured a "lawyer" would know the difference between terms of service and warranty though...

01-03-2011, 07:06 PM	#47
jasoraso Addict Posts: 228 Karma: 1212418 Join Date: Sep 2008 Device: Nook Touch, Nook Color (rooted) and Samsung Galaxy Nexus	A warranty granted by a company may have certain restrictions; however each State in the U.S. in its common law and statutes provide certain restrictions and requirements for warranties as well (you will note that many warranties provide explicit distinctions for various states). Making a blanket statement that "rooting voids the warranty" may not be, and probably isn't true. Despite what restrictions companies put on their warranties, different jurisdictions throughout the U.S. have different interpretations of those restrictions. I believe that if you Root your NC and the USB port fails (physically), you will still be covered by the warranty. You would be wise to return you NC to a factory state. However, if that were an impossibility (ie. the battery wore out before you could perform the 8x reboot and factory reset) I think if you were forced to sue B&N to enforce the warranty if they tried to deny warrantying the device for the reason that the software had been modified by the end-user, most jurisdictions in the U.S. would hold B&N to warranty the physical device.

01-03-2011, 07:29 PM	#50
cybrdmn Member Posts: 24 Karma: 380 Join Date: Dec 2009 Device: nookcolor	you modified it the minute you put your name in it and added a book...

01-05-2011, 01:25 AM	#52
The Joker Addict Posts: 205 Karma: 882 Join Date: Dec 2010 Device: NookColor.........rooted	A rooted return sighting...... returned after factory reset Hopefully FatherStorm comes back to provide more information....

01-05-2011, 10:52 PM	#54
Withfeeling Junior Member Posts: 4 Karma: 10 Join Date: Jan 2011 Device: Nook Color	First of all, if B&N says you voided your warranty and they won't cover the device, what are you going to do? Sue them? Second of all, the odds of being "caught" with a reverted rooted Nook Color are probably about zero. So whatever you do will probably "work". Third, many items in a warranty are just there so that if there are real signs of abuse they have an excuse to avoid coverage. Fourth, the rest is between you and your conscience.

01-06-2011, 08:18 PM	#56
RoboRay Zealot Posts: 132 Karma: 270 Join Date: Apr 2010 Device: NookColor (CM7); OLPC XO (Ubuntu 8.10); HTC Thunderbolt (CM7)	...and even won.

01-07-2011, 11:19 AM	#57
madsquabbles Groupie Posts: 160 Karma: 8698 Join Date: Oct 2010 Device: samsung 8.9, galaxy note 10.1, galaxy note 2, nook hd+, ipad	rooting does violate the warranty, but why should it? all pc's come "rooted" and if there are any problems on of the most popular fixes is restore your os. you can do all this and still be under warranty. what's unethical is the fact that rooting breaks the warranty and puts you SOL if you have problems like dead pixels, faulty workmanship, etc that have absolutely nothing to do with rooting, come up. rooting should not violate a warranty, now overclocking should most definitely break it.

01-09-2011, 08:05 PM	#60
BarryR Connoisseur Posts: 67 Karma: 104 Join Date: Jan 2011 Location: Wilbraham, MA Device: Color Nook	I had to exchange my defective color Nook (which I hadn't rooted) at my B&N store. The experience leads me to agree with those who think a factory reset would most likely prevent any problems with returns. They took it back based on my word (the screen would black out completely, intermittently). I gave them a case number, as I'd already contacted customer service, but they didn't look into it. I assume that it's perfectly legal for them to void the warranty with rooting and I think it's ethical (though I don't like it). The consumer always has the option of not buying the device. I also doubt they'll be enforcing it much, if at all, as it would require their front-end staff to approach this with a high level of technical expertise, and they'd have to be pretty sure they were right when they refused to take one back. Also, credibility-wise, they might be on shaky ground if the claimed that some hardware failed due to rooting. PS: I have since rooted my color Nook and am loving it!

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