PRS-650 Screen blotch

[haiyeekayakee]

I've had a PRS650 for about ten months and this has just appeared on the screen. The unit is kept and used only in my bedroom, has been in a leather cover since pretty much day one and has never been dropped or anything so I can't figure out how this has happened.

It's really difficult to get a proper photo but to the eye it looks like the centre blob is on a higher level to the two others (which are slightly fainter), if that makes any sense.





Has anyone had something similar and can it happen spontaneously or what could the cause be ?

Thanks !

[PoP]

I have a slightly smaller but similar blob on my Kindle 3. It developed after six months of usage. I think it might have resulted from unknowingly applying pressure on the screen. My reader never has been in a protective cover, though I always manipulate it with care. It is somewhat annoying but it is so small that I am now used to it, it doesn't bother me anymore when reading. I have had the blob for six months and it has not grown or changed shape. I guess it has stabilized. Wear and tear maybe.

[haiyeekayakee]

That's interesting, thanks for the reply. I've just been to the Sony Centre where I purchased it and they're adamant it's been pressed with a pen and won't be covered under warranty. I pointed out that it comes with a stylus which I don't even use, has never been dropped or anything, is always in a case and never travels anywhere other than the bedroom but no go. Well done Sony, another customer lost.

[JSWolf]

Just give Sony a call. You may get someone on the phone who can actually help.

[pidgeon92]

It's surprisingly easy to cause this type of damage. I have a similar blob on my K2 that I caused when I used my fingernail to scrape off a bit of debris.

[haiyeekayakee]

Originally Posted by pidgeon92

It's surprisingly easy to cause this type of damage. I have a similar blob on my K2 that I caused when I used my fingernail to scrape off a bit of debris.

I've never used anything but a soft cloth to clean and that very gently indeed as I'm aware of how delicate these can be. I'm very unhappy with Sony right now as I'd taken the day off to drive 140 miles and thought this would be a simple return and swap, but was instead told I must have poked it hard with a pen or similar which quite frankly is a complete insult.

I've personally bought this and a 350, have had two friends buy two more 650s and have three others saving up for one, but they've just been told to go Kindle. I was also about to pull the trigger on a 1,700 euro Sony laptop and there's no chance of that happening now.

So that's 2,400 euros worth of sales lost and no chance of me ever replacing my current Sony tv or laptop with that brand ever again. And that's all I have to say on the matter.

[Pomtroll]

Originally Posted by haiyeekayakee

I've never used anything but a soft cloth to clean and that very gently indeed as I'm aware of how delicate these can be. I'm very unhappy with Sony right now as I'd taken the day off to drive 140 miles and thought this would be a simple return and swap, but was instead told I must have poked it hard with a pen or similar which quite frankly is a complete insult.

I've personally bought this and a 350, have had two friends buy two more 650s and have three others saving up for one, but they've just been told to go Kindle. I was also about to pull the trigger on a 1,700 euro Sony laptop and there's no chance of that happening now.

So that's 2,400 euros worth of sales lost and no chance of me ever replacing my current Sony tv or laptop with that brand ever again. And that's all I have to say on the matter.

Call Sony & say just what you reported to us. Even about how they are now losing sales because of the treatment you got. Can't hurt that is for sure.

[Flip Martian]

I can understand feeling really negative towards Sony but really, you should be telling Sony that. Quite often helps with customer service issues like this.

[Analogus]

Hallo!

Have a similar problem on my 350. After using it 2 weeks a spot had become visible. If you take a 10x magnifier it looks like a bubble or a tiny part of an transparent plastic between the front plastic layer of the screen and the underlying functional e-ink layer. It is clearly visible, that this 'thing' has some height.
I just don’t understand why it was not visible at the beginning.

I called Sony ant they gave me the contact address of the repair center. I'l send them the reader inbetween the next view days.

A

[carpetmojo]

[QUOTE=Analogus; I called Sony ant they gave me the contact address of the repair center. I'l send them the reader inbetween the next view days. [/QUOTE]

Analogus - did Sony tell you they were going to charge you for looking at it, or returning it ?
Sadly, that is an awful ot of people's experience.

Make sure you know what you may be in for....... In the UK you should go for the seller - that's who your contract is with, and it's up to them to sort it out for you - Sale of Goods Act.

I'm afraid, by and large, Sony just don't seem to get the importance of customers once they've bought the kit........

[ScalyFreak]

Originally Posted by Pomtroll

Call Sony & say just what you reported to us. Even about how they are now losing sales because of the treatment you got. Can't hurt that is for sure.

Be very careful how you phrase and deliver your request.

Anyone who has ever worked in customer service understands why I would say that. We do not take kindly to customers telling us what we owe them.

[Sweetpea]

Originally Posted by haiyeekayakee

That's interesting, thanks for the reply. I've just been to the Sony Centre where I purchased it and they're adamant it's been pressed with a pen and won't be covered under warranty. I pointed out that it comes with a stylus which I don't even use, has never been dropped or anything, is always in a case and never travels anywhere other than the bedroom but no go. Well done Sony, another customer lost.

Well, I'll probably be the only one, but I can't blame customer service. You can say all you want that you didn't press it with a pen (or any other object), but you can't prove it. There is this blemish, that appears to be made by pressure. And that isn't under warranty. Simple as that.

You probably didn't do it on purpose (I mean, who would demolish something like that!), but it could have happened by accident. A thingie got caught between the screen and the cover. And was then pressed into the screen. And when you opened the cover, the thingie fell out and only left its impression.

[Pinecone]

Reason I bought the extended warranty on my Sony readers, the one that included accidental damage to the screen (the coverage I really wanted).

[haiyeekayakee]

Originally Posted by Sweetpea

Well, I'll probably be the only one, but I can't blame customer service. You can say all you want that you didn't press it with a pen (or any other object), but you can't prove it. There is this blemish, that appears to be made by pressure. And that isn't under warranty. Simple as that.

You probably didn't do it on purpose (I mean, who would demolish something like that!), but it could have happened by accident. A thingie got caught between the screen and the cover. And was then pressed into the screen. And when you opened the cover, the thingie fell out and only left its impression.

Let me put this to you, the unit has been used only in the bedroom, I've stated that twice already. It is used only in bed, and sits on my chest/stomach for reading. When finished reading the lid is closed and it is put on the locker.

No mysterious objects have appeared from thin air and somehow managed to lodge themselves between the cover and the screen whilst the reader was being used sitting on my chest in bed, and then somehow managed to vanish again.

I have explained all this quite clearly to the Sony shop and they all but called me a liar. You want to call that customer service ? How am I supposed to prove anything anyway, am I supposed to video record every moment of using the unit ? I shouldn't have to prove anything, am I to be judged guilty unless proved innocent? What a utter joke, this is just pathetic.

[Analogus]

Concerning warranty:
Though I have had a lot of problems with Sony and their products, I never have had a problem with warranty.

In the eighties I bought a mini-portable-TV-set. Very expensive, but from day one on there were no audio function. First SONY-product, first fail. But warranty worked. It took 2 month, but it worked.

Next was a mini-world-receiver. Very expensive. No problems at all.

Next a Minidisc Player. Large troubles! SONY customer service ignored several mails concerning problems with the DRM-technology, software, advertised functions which doesn’t exist, …. I guess MD-Players gave SONY the first heavy strike in their business. When I’m thinking back to these troubles I still become very angry. After one year using this thing, hardware have had a serious malfunction. Sony repaired it without charge.

First E-Reader: PRS350. After using it a couple of weeks I destroyed the operating system (my fault). Sony service center repaired it without charge.

Second E-Reader: PRS350 (yes, I own two of them): my above mentioned spot on the screen. The Sony Service Partner in my country will (email yesterday) replace the screen for free.

So, summing up that: Sony products, at least in my case, have had very often hardware problems (and software besides was undisputable). But at least warranty for hardware worked without charge.

A.