RMA for faulty Pi

[Acidomoduso]

Hi all,
I purchased my Pi from ebay and it has encountered the USB/Ethernet ports dying on me (it was working until yesterday, then... red light, no USB and no ethernet - the system still boots though and i can navigate the menu). I contacted the ebay seller who advised that it is under manufacturer's warrantee and that i have to contact them to have it replaced.

Looking on here, it would seem that most people contact their seller (RS for example). Unfortunately, i am now not sure who to contact for an RMA as the ebay seller have absolved any responsibility for the Pi (and not advised me who the "them" are that i need to contact!).

Could anyone advise me as to whom i might contact to have my unit replaced?

[Fludizz]

You can check which supplier the Pi came from. On the bottom of the Pi, there should be a white sticker with some kind of serial number on it.

If this sticker starts with FNxxxxxxxxxxxx, it is a Pi ordered via Farnell.
If it is something like ExxxxRSxxxxx, it is a Pi ordered via RS.
*Note: Not all the Pi's from both sellers have this stickering scheme, they may differ!

If you don't have the sticker on it or it is not matching above, you should ask the ebay seller where he got it and possibly ask for a copy of the receipt.

[jamesh]

Hmm. Tough one. The Ebay seller is the person you purchased it from, so he is the one who should replace it. Your contract of purchase is with him. However, under European consumer law, I think you should still be able to claim on a manufacturers warranty for up to 2 years from purchase. Depends on where you are in the world.

[RaTTuS]

Hmm. Tough one. The Ebay seller is the person you purchased it from, so he is the one who should replace it. Your contract of purchase is with him. However, under European consumer law, I think you should still be able to claim on a manufacturers warranty for up to 2 years from purchase. Depends on where you are in the world.

IANAL
though as I understand it it will be coverable to the original purchaser not for after sales
farnell / rs would be in their rights to charge you postage there and back for the item.

YMMV

[aTao]

How long have you had your RPi? If you bought it using credit card you might find that the credit card company will help, maybe a refund. even if you used a credit card to pay PayPal then they are still in the loop. The real transaction with a credit card is that the credit card company buys the item and then sells it to you, so they have responsibility for what is called "merchantable quality". If you had been the original purchaser and your supplier was willing to accept a return on these grounds then the credit card company should also be willing. they are unable to replace it so they give a refund for faulty goods.

[Acidomoduso]

Thanks for the replies... I have some ideas now. I'll check the board when i get home tonight.

Bought it at the end of October last year using paypal. Unsure whether i used my debit card or credit card to fund the paypal payment though. Again, i could check when i get home.

[abishur]

It seems a little odd that the USB/Ethernet just suddenly died on you, would you be interested in some general troubleshooting ideas to see if there might be something else going on?

[Acidomoduso]

It seems a little odd that the USB/Ethernet just suddenly died on you, would you be interested in some general troubleshooting ideas to see if there might be something else going on?

That would be very kind of you. Just to note... i cannot attach any keyboard/mouse/usb drive to the Pi. I cannot connect to the home network. I can however boot the Pi and browse through the XBMC menu using my samsung tv remote. I can get to the settings. I have tried using a different UBS power, a new network cable, a new SD card with a new build (just stops at waiting for ETH0) and powering the device with nothing attached to it.

[drgeoff]

A tap on the crystal sometimes brings the USB and ethernet back to life, though probably only temporarily. There are two crystals on the underside of the circuit board. They are rectangular silver packages. The one for the USB/ethernet chip has 'X1' written beside it.

If that does work you might be interested to look at http://www.daewonmc.com/data/tech_doc/se.ppt

[Acidomoduso]

Well, I tried the tap - nothing.

Further information...
There is no white sticker with a serial number on the board. There are a couple of white parts of the board which have "14/09" and "1233" on them. Aside from that... nothing.
The Power supply I use is an HTC 5v 1A charger so it should be within the limits.
Tried connecting HDD only and Ethernet only - still nothing.

Hmmm. Curious?

[abishur]

@Drgeoff, interesting read

@Acidomoduso, 2 questions, if you can't attach usb devices, how are you controlling the pi with your remote? And what revision of the model B do you have? (The easiest tell is if there are there two little fuses next to the USB port that have a zero on them).

Your PSU should be fine but if you have a voltmeter you might want to try reading the DC voltage at TP1 and TP2 just to confirm that the PSU isn't failing on you, and perhaps the resistance around the USB fuses (If you have fuses instead of just the 0-ohm resistor).

And just to be sure how does the smaller chip (the Lan/Ethernet one, immediately adjacent to the USB ports) look on the board? Any strange brown gunk around the edges that might indicate something blew or too much solder shorting out its pins. It's not sitting on anything conductive right?

I know these are really basic, but they tend to be where the issues lie if its something fixable, no offense is meant

[drgeoff]

@Acidomoduso, 2 questions, if you can't attach usb devices, how are you controlling the pi with your remote?

by Acidomoduso » 14 Jan 2013 17:20
.......... I can however boot the Pi and browse through the XBMC menu using my samsung tv remote.


HDMI CEC?

[abishur]

@Acidomoduso, 2 questions, if you can't attach usb devices, how are you controlling the pi with your remote?

by Acidomoduso » 14 Jan 2013 17:20
.......... I can however boot the Pi and browse through the XBMC menu using my samsung tv remote.


HDMI CEC?

This is my assumption as well, but I want to have it confirmed before I run too far with the idea They could have a serial IR receiver set up (which admittedly would be quite the feat), or using the FLIRC (which is still usb, but they might not have considered that USB)

[Acidomoduso]

Apologies... my Samsung TV remote control also controls the XBMC software. It's a cool feature - one of the (many) reasons why I made the Pi my choice for media server. It is to do with the software that Samsung use - HDMI-CEC.

[Acidomoduso]

Oh... Here are a couple of photos of the board. Should give you an idea...

Pi-01.jpg{/attachment] [attachment=0]Pi-02.jpg

[abishur]

hmm... nothing immediately leaps out and catches my eye, though I can't blow them up too large before they get grainy on me. It's doesn't look like too old of a board seeing as how it has a capacitor over at the USB ports and mounting holes.

I'd still be slightly interested in knowing the voltage between TP1 and TP2. It's low on the probability scale that your PSU is going out, but it's always good to check.

You said you tried a new SD card and build, might I assume it's of a dedicated XBMC build? While I strongly doubt that one of the dedicated "distros" introduced an issue which is causing problems for you but not anyone else, it might help to try flashing the latest debian build to the SD card. Again, extremely unlikely, but worth the look if you have the time.

[Acidomoduso]

Just had a look at the box and there is a website on it... www.element14.com
Going on there suggests it is Farnell. Am i correct in assuming i could contact these guys?

I haven't got a meter to check the voltage yet but a friend will lend me one tomorrow hopefully.

[Acidomoduso]

I have contacted Farnells and they have told me that i can replace it but it will cost me the price of a new one and the refund will go onto the card that purchased it - the ebay seller's card!

I emailed the seller. This is their response...

"the manufacturer is farnells, this is who we buy from.
"Returns are accepted if specified in the individual auction This is on a per item basis"
this is our standard returns policy, and hence why we didnt specify returns to ourselves in the auction.
we know longer sell any "pi" products and are just clearing stock of what we have before ceasing to use ebay due to the fee increases they have introduced."

So it looks like i'm stuffed!

[obcd]

If the Ebayer is a serious vender, he should send you the replacement Pi he gets in exchange to the one you return to Farnell. I can understand that he won't pay any shipping costs. So basically, you will need to return the item to Farnell on your own cost, and you will need to pay the costs to get the replacement back to your place. This still should be cheaper than a new Pi.
If the Ebayer only had 1 Pi to sell, and no other related stuff, he probably knew that something was wrong with it. You can only speculate about that, but it could explain why he isn't very cooperative.

[Acidomoduso]

This guy has 100% feedback with 1214 reviews. I have a feeling that he has sold many and will continue to do so! Oh well... these things happen.

[rurwin]

Talk to someone that knows the law; maybe the Citizen's Advice Bureau .

You may very well have a case against the seller under the Distance Selling Regulations. I have no idea if it applies to eBay sellers, but I don't see why it shouldn't, especially ones that have made over a thousand transactions.

I believe, and I may well be mistaken of course, not being a lawyer and all, that if the seller is unable to perform according to your contract, eg the goods are faulty and he wont replace them, you are able to send them back and be reimbursed in full as if the transaction did not take place. That would include the return postage and all your packaging costs too.