Complain about a product or service

Sony Computers

Cameron of Dallas TX (12/21/08)
I purchased a Sony SR290 laptop with XP downgrade disk and Office 2007 preinstalled. I figured that the XP would be preinstalled with the Office Software. It didn't and when I installed the XP I lost my purchased Office 2007 software.

After calling the customer service and waiting on hold for 45 minutes I got to talk with someone in the Phillipines wo told me I'm out of luck and they would give me a credit for $50. i spent $300 to get the Office software preinstalled. The refused to send me a disk to reinstall the software, refused to refund the entire cost of the office software. i will never do business with Sony again.

I have to spend $300 again to purchase the software I already paid Sony for.

Samantha of Rockingham OTHER (12/20/08)
I purchased a Sony Vaio and it wouldn't run windows without constantly restarting the moment I turned it on. I have also expreienced a host of other problems, recently the sound stopped working completely.

Shari of Cambria CA (12/06/08)
On June 4, 2008 I ordered a Sony Vaio LCD all-in-one computer directly from Sony Style. The computer came out of the box not functioning properly. On June 23 a tech came to my home to replace the memory. On July another tech came to the house to fix a host of other problems. During the month of August the computer continued to have a host of problems until it failed and wouldn't turn on. It took until Sept. to get permission from Sony to send it to their San Diego repair station. They received it on September 22. It was returned about two weeks later. Immediately some of the problems I sent it there with were still present.

I called in and told them I wan't interested in the computer any longer. I gave them a timeline to respond, in which they did, but told me to send the computer back to San Diego repair again. I was asking for a replacement or a refund. That portion of my request was ignored. I went onto the Consumer Reports site, and found two bloggers that said their machines were bad out of the box as well. I still want a replacement or a refund as this unit qualifies as a lemon if it was a automobile. A fourth repair in six months meets the requirments of a lemon.

I have kept a copy of the letter I wrote them. It included over $600 in charges by my personal tech to see if he could de-bug this machine. He could not, and said he would prefer not to work on Sony machines because of the customer service problem. The original receipt was for $3800, it included a warranty until 2013. So far, the warranty seems useless if they won't stand behind the machine and replace a defective model. I have the original all-in-one produced by Sony. They have re-engineered it since June of 2008.

This infers they are aware of the problem, and have debugged the new improved all-in-one. Even though I don't want to deal with Sony any longer, they haven't even offered to replace the defective machine I own. My first choice is to receive a refund. I would be very grateful if you could problem solve this issue for me, and I would be willing to send my communications with Sony. Thank you.

Yuvrajkukar of Washington DC (12/02/08)
I have ordered for Sony Vaio SR notebook on 11/26 and then on 11/28. I asked to cancel the previous order and process with the new order for the same notebook without engraving on it and with the deal, with Digital frame and Carry Case. Surprisingly I got an email that my new order has been canceled but my old order has been processed. That is really strange!! Why my order got canceled?? Why my old order has been processed? If this is the case, I am fine with that but then why the order for Digital frame has been in process with my previous order?? Which is separately costing me more that what I was expecting? I have been facing such an Intolerable service and support from Sony. I am really thinking what kind of service I will get after purchasing this product. I have been waiting in a queue for more than an hour to talk to call customer care but there is no way I can contact them. Sony is really not delivering what I was expecting to get from the brand SONY.

Ann of Sarasota FL (11/28/08)
I purchased a SONY VAIO VGNNR180E/W LAPTOP 11/16/07. I immediately had problems with losing the CD drive and losing internet networking frequently. Was told to reformate entire system when laptop was 2 weeks old. I have had 20 documented calls to Sony Support over the 11 months and I have reference numbers for all. Was told to reformat hard drive again on 10/10. Continued to lose networking, keys worn off to undreadable.

Returned to Sony as it was still under the warrenty on 11/11/08. I was told it would take 7 working days before it was back to me. I received a callon 11/17 that it would cost me $480 because I had purchased extra Ram at Best Buy it was not Sony,therefore not under warrenty and that is why it didn't work correctly. They also replaced the optical drive, which there was nothing wrong with, it was the drivers that kept being lost! I told them I would not pay $480 and send me back the computer the way I sent it to them. I asked that they send it overnight that was the least they could do and was told by Christopher that it couldn't go out until 11/20 but I would have it on 11/21.

Now it is 11/29 and I still do not have my computer back. When I called repair they told me they were closed for an extended holiday and that my computer was still sitting there and had not been sent out! I am furious about this! Why aren't they sending me my computer! I feel like filing a report of theft with the police department! There is no reason for my computer to be sitting there.

I would never, ever buy another sony product for the rest of my life and I will advise anyone even thinking about it to throw their money away instead! This is causing me undue stress as I need it for my work.

Rnajan of New Delhi OTHER (11/27/08)
I purchased a SONY VIAO laptop from USA. It was not even a year that the DVD HARDWARE got failed. When I asked a the authorised service center what's the cause of the problem I was told 1) Its an electronic product, nothing can be done. There is no reason to it. It can be because of more/less usage, running of scratches & pirated CD/DVD etc.

The first point of them, I would like to ask then what's the difference between a SONY quality product and a CHINESE product. The second point of them, I would like to ask is the causes mentioned would make the lense weak and not the hardware would fail. All the non sense information is been provided. On asking a engineer why are you asking for Rs. 17,742/- he was not able to explain, just a rata answer dena otherwiseWould also like to ask this is why SONY ask for around 50% more for its product compairing to other companies. To give this quality and service. I just paid Rs. 1950/- to SONY for my sony car audio system which got failed with in a year again with NONSENSE replies sir electronic

Its been more that two weeks that my LAPTOP is lying with them. My day to day work is all messed up.

Nicolette of Richardson TX (11/07/08)
I just want people to know that I will never buy a Sony product again and if you do, don't waste your money on an extended service plan. I have a Vaio Laptop that I use for business working one on one with people that also have to view my screen. The right click on the pad does not work all the time and Sony refuses to fix it unless it is totally broken.

I had to go out and buy a mouse and it is useless to use the computer on my lap with a mouse rather than the pad/right. left click buttons on the computer itself.

Barbara of New York NY (10/25/08)
I bought a Sony Extended Service Plan from Sony when I purchased my Vaio TXN in June of '07. The manufacturer's Warranty is for only one year. Naturally, I needed service for the Vaio on Labor Day weekend September '08. There was none to be found. Manyphone calls, no answer, cut off during waiting on queue....etc. So on September 7th I cancelled the Extended Service Plan. SonyStyle sent me an e-mail saying that $433.49 would be refunded to my credit card. Ten days later, no credit, I called and was told that since my credit card account number had changed slightly (lost wallet) they could not credit the $433.49 to AMEX but would send a check by mail. It might take until October 19th.

On October 20 I contacted Sony Customer Care again, and was told that they didn't have my mailing address until September 22nd when I gave it to them since ceck hadn't arrived. They of course never call me! October 22nd they send me an e-mail promising a refund check of $281. Many inquiries and threats later they say that this is prorated ammount. The contract that I have from Sony states terms of effectiveness (6) as Extending from expiration of of the manufacturer's product warranty (June '08) till the date on reverse side..June '11. And (18) If you cancel this contract after 60 days you will receive a prorated refund based on the remaining days of coverage on a monthly basis less costs and claims... This ammounts to $27 for the months of June, July, and August '08.

Ofcourse Sony Customer Care has made inquiries on my behalf seven times, and has never explained its manner of computation, nor have they sent a check for a single cent!!! The little Vaio works fine, but customer care at Sony is a joke. I will NEVER trust them again and have made a formal complaint of FRAUD to the New York State Department of Insurance, and also to the Department of Cnsumer Affairs.

Waste of my time, and theft of $433.49.

Patricia of Bingham Farms MI (10/07/08)
I wont bother to go through all of the excruciating details of my experience with customer service department. [Their] customer service is the absolute worst I have ever experienced with any company. I, like many others, own a Sony Vaio laptop VGNCR290 that hasnt worked properly since it was purchased and has now ceased to work entirely. [The]warranty has zero value when [they] do not honor it. I now have a useless laptop that has long been awaiting repair services which quite likely will not resolve the problem if the repair ever actually happens.

Out of necessity, I have already purchased a replacement laptop from MAC (which by the way, is operating exactly as I hoped it would). [Their] company has made it impossible to send any type of electronic communication regarding a complaint. Interestingly, I had no problem buying the laptop over the internet and sales department was highly responsive. Another Dissatisfied Customer,

Damage - Cost of initial computer, my time, my daughter's college experience, and loss of faith in even marginal customer service.

Andrew of Ventura CA (09/23/08)
I purchased the latest Sony Laptop from Sony Style. When I received the product, it didn't preform as expected. It was slow, slower than my 4 year old laptop, it crashes frequently. I called customer service about this problem, and was informed by Sobrina, that if technical support couldn't fix the problem, then she would issue a RMA. She passed me onto Paul in technical support who logged into my laptop, and couldn't do anything to solve the issues. He admitted that the laptop that I purchased was unable to appropriate support Windows Vista, which was the only option to purchase the laptop with, and that I could downgrade my laptop to Windows XP. the then issued me an event number and passed me back to customer service.

This time I reached Rose (id 5018) who wouldn't issue the RMA, and wouldn't pass me back to Sobrina. She actually had the nerve to tell me to continually call customer service in hopes that Sobrina (1 of over 200 customer service operators) would answer the call and follow through on her word. AFter getting this huge run around, I filed a complaint with my credit card, under the terms of the credit agreement that the product I received wasn't as expected. However they didn't look into the complaint and rejected the complaint stating that I had an extended warranty. I called my credit card again and spoke to Kevin, who was going to refile the claim, but never did.

After all this, Sony has issued a recall on the product due to faulty wiring, but won't send anybody out to fix the problem until November. I am at the end of my rope and don't know what to do, but I do want everybody to know NOT to purchase products from Sony as their customer service is the worst I have EVER experienced.

I have a laptop that barely functions, I have spent many hours on the phone with customer service, technical support, etc.

Joe of Oak Hill WV (09/23/08)
My daughter got a Sony Vaio for graduation and after having it only a month, the screen cracked while she was adjusting the angle of the screen. Shipped it to Sony and got a $500 estimate for a new screen. After tussling with them over this they dropped the estimate to $350, but they insist that the computer was damaged due to abuse. I will NEVER buy so much as a battery with the Sony Brand on it as long as I live and if all I accomplish with this complaint is that you don't either, I'll be happy with that. This is a problem I found repeated over and over again on the internet. Shoddy computer and poor customer service. DO NOT BUY SONY!

My daughter needed a laptop to start college. She doesn't have one now. Sony stinks.

Greg of Buena Park CA (09/19/08)
My Vaio was [bad] since I opened the box. Always shutting down and having to restart by removing the battery and disconnecting the power supply. Like others they would not take back for months. Then when they take it back they tell me I damaged the computer and the warranty (which I paid extra for) is void! Poor product and no customer service Sony is Baloney! Don't buy Sony products!

They say water damage, Never happened! They more than likely damaged it rather than fix it. 6 months, $1,300 lesson learned no to SONY products!

Mary of Woodland IL (09/14/08)
My computer was a christmas gift for my grandson in college. He only used it for about a year and the display started to go out of it. As he needed it immediately, we had to purchase another one. We have had this around here for about a year. But I now see that there was a recall on the machines, that I didn't know about. We had a $1700 machine that we couldn't use. We need to know if there is something that can be done about this.

We did try to order parts to fix it because they said they couldn't do anything for us. Did not tell us about any recall. The parts they sent were not the right ones and now the computer cannot work. It is a Sony PCG-GRX690. Is there any help here?

Justin of Endicott NY (09/14/08)
I bought a sony laptop for school and I had problems ever since I bought it. The fan was loud, it got hot and finally after only owning it for 3 months the computer crashed. Tried to restore it I discovered that the hard drive [went] out on me. After replacing it sony charged 36 dollars for a recovery disk that should've came with it in the first place. It works now but it's still a sub par product.

stuck with a [bad] Vaio. Will NEVER buy another SONY product of any kind again.

Megan of Mesa AZ (09/07/08)
I bought my Sony Vaio VGN-FZ190 Laptop computer from the Sonystyle website at the end of July, 2007. I also purchased the 3 year expended warranty, grand total cost at $2500. In March, 2008, I turned on the computer as usual, and there were vertical colored lines covering an area of the screen approximately 2 inches wide and the entire height of the screen. As I had not mishandled or misused the computer in any way, I called the company with the extended warranty. They told me that the computer was still under the one year manufacturer's warranty and that I needed to contact Sony. I contacted Sony, explained my story, and they said it would be covered under the warranty; they would send me a box to send it to the San Diego repair center.

A few days later, I received a voicemail from Sony, saying that my estimated cost for repair was $750. I called Sony to dispute the estimate, since it should be covered under the defective parts/materials, and I was told that there was an internal crack in the LCD screen and because they consider that physical Damage then it wasn't covered. i explained that there was no crack on the outside of the screen and that I did not operate the machine in any way that would have inflicted physical damage. I was told the same thing.

At that point, my fiance took over the conversation and proceeded to escalate the call to a supervisor. He was told that the call would not be escalated. As my fiance has worked for years in management and financial advisory positions, he continued to try and escalate the call. However, the representative told him he wouldn't, that I wouldn't prove that I didn't cause the damage, and that it was Sony's word against mine. Then he hung up.

We also contacted Sony's National Customer Relations, and I was told the same thing. After many grueling calls, I finally had them ship it back to me unrepaired at the beginning of August. The screen now is completely black except for a small spot in the top left corner. I have documented all of my correspondence with Sony and its representatives, including names and company id#'s. Sony has been nothing but uncooperative.

As a teacher who relies on a home computer, I have been without a working personal computer for going on 6 months. I can't afford the 750 Sony wants to fix it. I've had to go out of my way and use other, inconvenient computers to get any work done. Plus, there are documents and files on my computer that I cannot access without a working screen. It has caused me great amounts of stress and anxiety and is a financial burden that I cannot afford.

Christiane of Dix Hills NY (09/06/08)
That was the worse experience that I ever had, I bought a sony laptop back in feb/08, by may I started calling sony becouse the computer was giving static shocks . The ilink port came physically damaged, and I came to know just when I needed to use, after days talking to their customer service they told me to send the computer back to San Diego to be fixed.

I got a call saying my computer will cost me about $874.00 and it was just about 3 months old, we ask about the warranty, they said the problems the computer has is not covered by the warranty. Suddenly my computer had a bunch of problem including motherboard and other things. they send me back the computer and now it is good for nothing and I lost all the money I paid for this stupid computer.

I paid $1280 for the commputer and now I had to buy another one from dell because the computer is useless even it is still in the warranty.

Debbie of Gulliver MI (09/05/08)
Purchased a Sony laptop VGN-FS740/W laptop for $1400. Immediately the mouse wasn't working properly, tried all the adjustments, Sony wouldn't listen and didn't care. Also, immediately, the unit ran hot. I talked to them on numerous occasions about it, and they kept telling me it was normal. When I said I couldn't even work with it on my lap because it got too hot, she said my laptop was not made to be used on my lap. I thought that was humorous. The letter and numbers started disappearing from the keyboard, they were worn off within 10 months. Then there was a red vertical line down the side of my screen, eventually there came one on the other side. Then the screen starting freezing up every time I removed the battery charger.

Eventually, burn marks showed up by the hinge and by the power charger connection. I had contacted Sony when all of these problems occurred, and no help on any of them. Oh, when I called about the screen freezing, they wanted me to totally erase the hard drive and start over.

We purchased a Sony 46 LCD TV with sound system from Sony, and within a year the center speaker went bad. We tested it, and the main speaker part had shorted. After talking to a few professionals at Sony, they said the only way to get it repaired is if we returned the WHOLE sound system to them for rebalancing. Otherwise they couldn't help us. I thought it was a law that every manufacturer had to make available to it's consumers replacement parts?

What a farce, they do everything they can to deter us from going forward with any warranty effort. Make it difficult enough, and then we'll give up. Well, it worked. I'll never buy another Sony product though, it may eventually backfire, at least I hope so.

Had to buy a new laptop (obviously not a Sony) when the $1400 Sony was less than 2 years old. We did buy a new center speaker, that was a Bose, not a Sony. As we replace, it will be another brand.

Mark of San Antonio TX (08/22/08)
On 1 June 2007 I purchased a Sony Vaio laptop for $1588. In July 2008 (2 months after the 1 year warranty), a horizontal yellow line appeared running all the way down the LCD screen. I sent it to Sony to see what was wrong and for an estimate on repairs. Sony wanted $754.24 (almost half the cost of a new one) to replace the LCD screen and then only offered a 90 day warranty for the new LCD screen.

Sharon of New York NY (08/21/08)
I purchased a sony vaio lap-top VGN-CR220EP from the Circuit City web site on Jan 4, 2008. My credit card was charged $1,083.73 I first started experiencing problems with it about 2 and a half weeks ago. It started shutting down (giving me a black screen) without warning, repeatedly. I would turn it on, and it might boot up to the Windows screen, and then it would go black & completely shut down. I wondered if it was the battery (even though the computer is less than a year old, and 99% of the time, I use it plugged in to the wall), so I completely removed the battery, plugged the lap top in, and it worked. Or, at least, seemingly.

Then I noticed that I would put in a dvd or a cd and the computer wouldn't recognize it, and then I noticed that the keyboard was feeling sticky and hard to push. I attempted to clean the keys. With many computers that i have worked with, you can just pop the individual keys off and clean them, one by one, like toshiba's and HP's. I tried this with the vaio, but it didn't seem to work so well. I could pop the keys back on, but the tension was different, and the keys were hard to push. So, I called sony. They sent me a box, fed-exed it to San diego, and then I called them about 5 days later to see what the damage was going to be.

The technician estimated the damage at $1995.76! That is 1000 dollars more than I paid for the computer, and there is just no way I can afford that. I have had the computer now for 8 months! I am never buying a sony product again, and I am finally going to go Mac. Sony and their repair scam is just shady. I asked the technician if they could just replace the keyboard, but he refused, mentioning it being a fire hazard. I am having them fed-ex it back to me, hopefully I will get it tomorrow, and, hopefully, it won't be in worse shape.

I had the vaio set up for skype, so now I am unable to communicate with my boyfriend and just about everyone else in my life. And it's all just a giant inconvenience, on somthing I had to save for months for.

Val of Wyandotte MI (08/07/08)
First a blown out motherboard and then a Red intermittent screen. Since my purchase of this SONY Notebook Laptop Vaio VGN-NR120E product on November 2007 I have been shuttled around world, (from the Philippines to Costa Rica and back to San Diego) with each instance leaving me completely breathless and frustrated. Yes breathless. That is breathless from having to explain the issue over and again while each SONY employee sanitize and refuse to provide a name, phone number or address of their department, district, regional or corporate manager.

I feel like a fool for buying this product against my better judgement. I sent my computer to San Diego, Ca for Sony repair and they return it claiming they couldn't find anything wrong. Instead, they instructed me to have this machine back (and I pleaded for a refund or new product) and want me to take photos of the Red Screen. God Bless Global Marketing folks. To this date I spoke with Vincent, David, Jefferey, Danny, and numerous others who provide little in way of assistance or real closure to this nightmare. As of August 7, 2008 I still have this product and cannot use it.

Despite graduating from a Michigan University recently I nearly failed a few classes which threatened my degree when my notes and work were lost causing me to scramble to make other provisions for a computer due to this problem. I had to humble myself and beg these professors for extended time in order to complete my coursework. It caused me a bout of anxiety that I thought was a heart attack resulting in a check with my physician. I purchased upgraded Microsoft (Home-Office) software and anti-virus and spamming software that is now expiring though I haven't even been able to use my notebook in a professional capacity or for leisurely purposes.

Victor of Doha OTHER (07/27/08)
I bought last 28 June, 2008 a Notebook PC VGN-CR353/ White, Serial Number: 7002117 with free EL 404-VAIO CASE (carrying case) but after a couple of days i found out that the color white around the unit is fading away. I have reported the same to the Modern Home City Center Doha where i bought the unit and refer me to Sony Service Center. I brought the unit in the said Service Center and shown my complain and asked to return the next day since nobody can decide what to do about the unit.

Today, June 27,2008 i have managed to return and still nobody can decide what to do on the notebook pc which i bought. Please kindly, do the necessary action about this matter since i am also wasting my time and efforts regarding this matter.

The value of the money (QRs 5,200.00) that i had spent is not worth to this type of VAIO Model.

Aleksandr of Ashland MA (07/21/08)
One of the worst customer service experiences I've ever had!!! I've ordered a top of the line laptop to take to my friend in Europe and they've shipped it by FedEx ground which takes forever to get here. Anyway, FedEx always delivers during business hours when Im at work, but I wasn't worried about that because I knew that I could pick it up from FedEx up to 10 business days after their last try. When I came to FedEx 5 business days after their last attempt they've already shipped it back to Sony and said that it must have been requested by the shipper, but that Sony can call the FedEx and ask them to return the item to me before it gets to Sony warehouse.

I called Sony and they said that they didnt request it to be shipped back to them before time so it was FedEx's fault. I asked them to call FedEx and tell them to return the item back to me before it gets to Sony's warehouse because Im leaving for Europe in less than a week and cannot wait that long. They refused to do it and said that it is against their policy and they have to wait till it gets to their warehouse and only then they can ship it back to me

In general the supervisor couldn't careless about my problem even though I was almost bagging him to do something about this situation. I then was trying to find an email to submit a complaint but found out that there is no such a thing at Sony Style USA so I submitted my complaint as a feedback to their website. At this point I dont know what to do anymore as I have less than a week to get that laptop and Sony coudn't careless about it. I was trying to find some numbers to call Sony's managers, but the only phone number available on their website is the customer DON't care. Did not expect this from the biggest name in electronics, but now I'll know better then to ever deal with them again.

Cosntantino of Spotswood NJ (06/28/08)
I Have a Sony Bravia KDL-40XBR2 built on October 2006 purchased in January 2007 stop working April 2008 Warranty expired, call Sony and told me they will have to send a technician to fix it average of 500 to 1100.00 to repair

Ms. of Columbia MD (06/27/08)
I am having too many problems with the sony viao computer that I bought from Best Buy. The window stop working and the netgear cannot connect to the internet. It takes too much time for the computer to update and it will update while I'm in the middle of doing a project on the computer, when I have to use the computer it does not work. I am so feedup with the computer and the service I have received. I have call about 75 times to sony help line and my computer still is not working.

I have lost business, money, and time behind this computer. I am paying Sprint internet and I cannot use it because the computer is not working. I am tired and I am spending too much time calling and talking to [their] people. I would to exchange this computer for a new one or get my money back because I spent a lot of money on this computer and it is less than 6 months old and I have been having problems at 2months.

Michael of Hollywood FL (06/17/08)
I would never buy anything made by Sony ever again. I purchased a SONY UX computer for almost $2000 and from the moment it arrived it was defective. The screen flickers, the battery is not charging, and it is extremely slow loading. I contacted Sony to return it in September and the representative ended up taking down my information wrong for the return label. I called back and finally got an authorization for the return but the postage would not open in the email. Sony then denied for it to be returned and I am stuck with a Computer that does not work, due to their negligence.

I am stuck with a computer that does not work and am out of almost $2000.

Sumoth of Cochin ,Kerala OTHER (06/15/08)
I bought a sony CR 22 lapt top from Sony world cochin on 31 mar 08. Sony peoples offered me payment option is tie-up with ICICI credit card that is, 40900*12 Emis, and first 3 emi is down payment. Since it is not converted as to EMI I communicated with sony and put complaint to sony cus care. But no response over this Since ICICI charged 3000 rs as charge for pending due. 

James of Spring TX (06/08/08)
I have a Vaio PCVRS430G and need to upgrade my video card to play some of the new games. The higher level video cards require a bigger power supply but Sony won't sell me one because they will only sell what originally came with the computer and the standard power supplies I can buy won't work. The mother board has a 3 prong connection from the power supply that is not standard and the power supply that came with the computer is smaller than the regular power supplies.

It seems that Sony wants you to buy a new computer instead of upgrading the current one. Needless to say, when the time comes to get a new computer, it won't be from Sony, in fact, I will not buy another Sony product of any kind.

Devchandraaj of Chennai OTHER (06/08/08)
I bought a SONY laptop Vaio vgn-25gn series. Thats nearly 1500$ Houge chunk of money in India. The thing is no OS/Driver dvds (portable media) were provided. If incase any problem occurs how will the customers make a work around? Withing a year warranty or warranty period ok. What after that? And that too they asked me to take a recovery cd copy out of it. If the OS wasnt charged ok fine, dont give the dvd. But it is! And most of all they have given all the sony softwares all OEMS with serial and some products with trial versions!

Am not complaining about the product bought or its contents. The question is why isnt the OS/repair dvds/ driver dvds for the components not provided? And funny thing is they charged well and they couldnt provide two blank dvds for me to take out the recovery discs. And there is only one partition thats defautly C drive with all the important OEM serialized stuff they put in. If incase I make partitions. I loose original datas for good. All the hard earned money goes into thin air. Else only option is for myself to back up everything in portable media which I did. And that again that cost me.

If incase I wanted to install XP on my laptop...thing is Only Vista flavours comes in these laptops. And these laptops arent configured to work with XP which they call as a downgrade. If I did install XP and faced problems like non functioning of system hardware plus the funny thing is SOny site itself provides XP drivers to load XP in the laptops. But then again my warranty will become VOID if I do that even though its still in warranty doimensions! The question is why is SONY restricting users? Then why dont they give the customers to freely move with the products which they buy.

And this concept of No OS setup dvd / driver dvd... is a huge set back because customers like me, well most will be working professionals, mostly, even learning students. They will be at a stand still when they want to change certain aspects of the product like change of OS. If the Os is changed then warranty will be VOID even if the system is just outt off the shop! Am not asking you for extra softwares. only demanding the driver cd/dvd for the hardware bought!

Basak of ızmır OTHER (05/30/08)
I am living in Turkey. I bought my laptop when travelled in Florda. When open it in Turkey for using, it wasnt work. I thought that battery needs to charged. but my laptop was not charged. I didnt use my laptop for once.Then decded to talk to onlne services. I talked to Reene. She told me to send my laptop for fxng to repar servce n San Dego. I asked her whch cargo frm we use? she said to me usng UPS cargo. I did it exactly what she said. After a few days sony repair services send me an e-mail that my laptop was broken also. And f I want them fxng my laptop, have to pay for 700$ to fx.

When I read e-mal, shocked. Because send my computer trouble-free. Whereon called UPS Cargo. Authorzed people told us to connect to  repar servces. By the way, wrote an e-mail to services and said then decided to fx my laptop in sony repeir services in San Diego . Money is not important. If give me a bank name and account number, ll pay 700$ into an account. (motherboard and bottom housing )Please send my laptop back when you fx it

After my mail, they send me an account number in February 4. when saw ths mail.. replied and said them I ll pay 700$ for an account in a 2 days because of the tme dfference. After all this e-mail, today i received an email from repar servces..and they sent my laptop back. they gave me a cargo name also cargo number..I understood that they did not fx my laptop. so, i am really sorry now and also i am upset person.Ths event is not good for SONY name.

K of Boca Raton FL (05/29/08)
I purchased a Sony Vaio laptop for $1919 last July. One day it crashed. I sent it in for repair. When it was returned to me it had 4 more problems that had not been an issue at the time it was sent in for repair. Suddenly there were dead pixels on the screen, the finish of the computer was ruined, the ethernet port didn't work and the key board was lower on the left side. When I explained that I could not send it in again as I am in the middle of a job search the company not only didn't apologize for the inconvenience and difficulties I was experiencing but told me the only choice I had was to send it in for another 7-10 days. Unacceptable.

As I am in the middle of searching for employment the loss of my computer for any amount of time is unacceptable but to have to be without a computer due to their repair center's fault shows what lousy customer service Sony provides.

Tim of Monroe NC (05/29/08)
I purchased a playstation 2 in december of 07 and as of march 08 it refuses to read any discs or games.

Robert of Denver CO (05/22/08)
1. I have a Sony VGNUX 180P with a service contract. I have some problems with the unit and called Sony. I was moved place to place with no help and nothing resolved. That only took 2 hours.

2. My wife and I purchased two Ebooks from the Sony Store in Denver. My wife has an issue with her book, it is falling apart. Took it to the store they gave us a number, otherwise were of no help. She then called the number and each places switched her to a new number. The last person assumed she dropped it and would give her no help what so ever. That took over two hours to do that. Based on our experiences we will never purchase another Sony product again.

Gill of Sacramento CA (05/16/08)
Bad Product and Worst Customer Service. I purchased a $1400 Sony VGN-FZ4000 Notebook from Sony.com (Sony Style Sales) Last month. I put the battery in place, connected the power cable and booted the computer. The power came on and right away it turned off. This was on the same day I received the computed. I called Sony to fix it or to send me a replacement.

For TWO WEEKS they kept on transferring me from one help center to another keeping me on hold for 45 minutes to 1 hr at a time, until finally they told me there is nothing they could do for me. This was by far the worst customer service I have ever encountered. I should never have bought anything from Sony, I should have gone with Dell or Apple. I have lost my money and a good TWO WEEKS of my life. I am left without a computer and lost my $1400 dollars

Richard of Las Vegas NV (05/14/08)
-Lost my order through FedEx -The replacement was sent out almost a month later after the requested full refund amount. The notebook arrived and my money was with-held until the computer was sent to the warehouse in Laredo, TX. It arrived in Laredo and my money is still being with-held from me and now they may deny me the full refund amount aside from the fact there was nothing wrong with the computer...

No computer for college. Untimely debt due to the misleading information. Credit damage through bank

Nick of San Diego CA (03/11/08)
They sold me a desktop without Windows XP CD. I asked them to send me a disk - they DID not. Now the PC is dead, I cannot boot it. I called them again and they ask me for money for the XP CD. But I ALREADY PAID for XP! Never ever ever buy anything from Sony again. Bad quality, bad service, bad attitude to people.

$1700 into the garbage can.

Peter of Seattle WA (01/26/08)
I purchased my VAIO on 12/27/07. The first time I turned it on it would not boot. In the past four weeks Sony has had at least 6 people work on it, locally and in San Diego. It still crashes before loading Vista. I was told my only recourse was to WRITE to the Sony Executive Committee at Ft Myers (they have no phone and no email). 10 days later I got a phone call from Chris (CW24). They will not replace it with a working computer. They will not give a refund. Per the Sony warranty, my only option is to continue to repeatedly send it in to the repair center that so far has been unable to detect the problem - much less than fix it. IF you are going to purchase a Sony VAIO, BUY IT LOCALLY. You can then deal with a local shop if you get a DOA computer. Sony QA is pathetic. Their repair center is (apparently) incompetent. Their warranty does NOT guarantee a computer that will ever work, only endless repair attempts. I have spent days trying to get this fixed and have not had 30 seconds of useful service from the computer.

I'm out $1400 and many days of time wasted on a paperweight.

James of Garden Grove CA (01/25/08)
I sent My lap top back for repairs of the mother board in 11/06. I was told it was past the warrenty date by one month and it would cost me $726.00. I refused service at that time. This last month I found out they had a recall on Lap top computer mother boards as well as batteries which I believe caused my problems to begin with. I called again on 1/08 and was told my model was not covered. If they are having problems with mother boards why would mine not be covered? They should have replaced the mother board back in 06

I still have a broken lap top. This limits my connectivity on business trips. I travel approximately 6 months per year.

R of Fort Campbell KY (01/05/08)
The computer laptop we purchased was made by Sony. We asked that Sony provide a down grade for the Windows Vista software because the computer keeps shutting down for no apparent reason. It's not the computer, it's the software. Sony responded that they can't do a down grade because they didn't develop any drivers for the XP OP on that laptop. What a lame excuse and now I'm stuck with a great computer with a bad OP.

We haven't had any damage, just constant shut down and a slow computer that would work much better with different software.

Robert of Richmond CA (10/12/07)
I paid $2700.00 US for a Sony Vaio 27B/N laptop. Within hours of taking it out of the box the screen had 20% pixel death. I took it back to the Sony Style store and they asked if I had bought the 3 year warranty. (It comes with a one year warranty.) They said that the store does not recognize their one year warranty. They only honor the 3 year warranty, and that I would have to send the unit to a service center.

The service center told me that a new screen would cost $700.00 and that it was not covered under that warranty as I must have dropped the laptop causing the damage. This pissed me off. So I did not pay for the screen to be fixed.

When the machine was returned, I mailed to Sony's CEO, Howard Stringer, in Tokyo with a letter. He did not respond, he just sent the machine to their service center in San Diego. What an irresponsible wanker.

I had the service center return the laptop to me again. I decided to use it as a desktop unit by hooking it up to another monitor. Within a day the motherboard died. So I've sent it to the service center again. I wonder what crap story they will tell me this time.

Saurabh of Union City NJ (03/17/07)

I made mistake to buy a Sony Laptop in US and it is crashing everyday, last week it refused to restart, saying “Operating system not found.” Its been only 2 months after I bought this piece of junk from Best Buy. Now neither Best Buy nor Sony own the responsibility. Sony just sent me recovery disk and those didn't work either.

Traci of Lino Lakes, MN (09/16/06)
I purchased a Sony Vaio notebook less than 2 years ago, and have had 2 battery packs burn up and melt the back of my connection to the AC adapter. The bottom of my computer gets so warm I am not able to pick it up. I am now faced with investing more money to get the burned connection replaced.

I am without a computer and REFUSE to invest any more money.  I paid over $1200 for this Ultimate notebook, and expected it to last.

Beverly of Morrisville, NC (09/03/06)
Sony Vaio Laptop GRV-PCV550 shuts itself off after 10 minutes of use. This is a common problem with these models and there is no information forthcoming from Sony as to the cause. The only thing I have been told by both Sony and Best Buy - buy a new motherboard $1200!

My son is a student and we spent A LOT of money on a computer that stopped working 2 years after I bought it.

Keith of Waterford Ireland (04/03/06)
I bought a Sony Vaio Laptop and within 16mnts I have returned the unit 7 times. the screen was replaced twice, then the disk drive, then the mother board,then the A key wouldn't work and was told it was a software issue only to send it back again when 45% of the keyboard wouldn't work three weeks later. I was told it was physical damage but refused to accept this as my laptop doesn't move from the one place and when it was returned the disk drive had been replaced as well as the touch pad buttons and the keyboard facia (which I may add was the wrong one). It was also missing a screw from the screen and I now own a mix and match laptop with a flappy screen as there is nothing to secure the bottom left part of the screen.

Sony have refused to replace the unit although telling me on three occasions that if it failed me again they would replace the unit. But this was reneighed on even though I have e-mails to prove these promises. Oh! and by the way did you know that parts that break in Sony products, once replaced become the property of Sony as I found out when my disk drive broke. I wanted the drive back to have the information retrieved from it but was told I would have to pay for my broken drive back as it was now the property of Sony. It is in their terms and conditions that these parts although paid for by the consumer no longer belong to them once replaced with a new part as these parts are used to fix other Sony products. (Now you know why Sony products break down all the time, they are using reconditioned parts to fix your broken product) What a joke.

It has cost me in the region of €100 euro in phone calls to Sony's support line in reporting and following up repairs status as it is not a local call charge and they also have a three minute announcment before you get the chance to speak to an engineer. Within 16mnts of owning the unit it has been with Sony for 10wks in repair. I have lost all my work on three occasions as it hadn't been backed up. I have lost five of my best clients due to this information loss and inability to carry out my work due to the faulty unit. I have had to fight with staff on every occasion I've had a problem as they wanted to charge me for the work done. It has just been a nightmare. What I can't understand is that if Sony had replaced the unit a long time ago it would have cost them less than all the shipping costs to DHL and wages to repair and support staff. It seems as though Sony employ dummies as well as make them.

Wojciech of Oceanside CA (03/18/06)
In January of 2005 I purchased a GREATLY-price reduced SONY VAIO PCG-K35 Laptop. It came with over $350+ in send-in rebates. THAT'S THE ONLY REASON I bought it. I send my rebates to both SONY & BEST BUY and have seen nothing. I have copies of all original papers I send in. I have copies of all of my receipts. This is outragous! I got ripped off! I would never have paid over $1600 for a simple laptop if I knew this crap was going to happen! SONY are thieves! Best Buy is no better! I'm thinking a Class-Action Suit against them both might wake them all up!

I have lost over $350+ in rebates that I send it to receive. I never saw the money. I called Sony but those corporate monkeys will not forward You to anyone in their headquarters. They will not give you any names or additional phone numbers or anything for that matter. They keep referring You to their useless websites.

Alex of Lakewood CO (03/12/06)
I have just recently purchased a brand new Sony Vaio notebook (VGN-TX650P) and I have had a horrible experience with the product so far. I had purchased this very small laptop 2 months ago, and I have not used it very much at all. There are many of the stock, standard features still on the computer that haven’t been removed or updated to my liking. I have stored my computer in a very safe place because I take care of my personal belongings and don’t wish anything bad happen to this $2,500 computer. Then one day when I open it up to turn it on, I notice something while it is booting up. There where many dead pixels and they were all in the middle top of the LCD and they reached almost to the center of the screen.

Then I spotted a crack visible all around the dead pixel area. I was really shocked that this had happened to a QUALITY Sony product. But then I thought it could have been a defect in the making of the screen, or just one that wasn’t made correctly. I still had faith in Sony’s quality and expected it to be carried through its customer service. So I called Sony’s customer service and they directed me to send the laptop to their service center to get it fixed under warranty. So the laptop was sent to the Sony repair center in San Diego while I thought everything would be resolved.

Then after 4 days, I had received a response via e-mail. The e-mail went something like this “The estimated charge for your repair will be $726.73 and “Please contact us at your earliest convenience by phone or email to approve or refuse this estimate.” After I had read this through I was frozen. I couldn’t believe that they actually wanted to charge me for fixing the screen that had cracked without any type of abuse done by me! I couldn’t believe that they wanted to charge me for something that they should cover by warranty! 

Lukasz of London,  England (02/24/06)
I bought my Sony Vaio laptop five months ago. Since the very beginning I was having a lot of problems with it. The most common were running very slowly, shutting down without any reasons, getting stuck and so on.

I have returned to the shop with my laptop and apart from reinstalling Windows they have not done anything else. I have been told that everything is going to work fine.

As soon as I have started using my over £1000 toy, the problems came back. This time I called the shop and I was advised to call Sony and deal with them. That was the biggest mistake in my life. No one of course has told me that when I made my first call to Sony Service Centre I have taken over the shops responsibility for my product.

I would not mind if my problems with laptop were solved. What was worse was that I have sent my laptop to Sony two times already and this cost me a lot of time and nerves. I really want to get rid of this product and buy a different one. I know that this is possible because the laptop I have bought is not a good quality and as a customer I have the rights to return it. Please help me how to cope with difficult Sony custumer service.

Edward of Grove City OH (01/12/06)
I purchased a Sony Vaio notebook in late January 2004. Everything worked great for about one month. One afternoon in early March I left the computer running while I went out to dinner. When I came back I thought the notebook had put itself into hibernation. I noticed there were no lights anywhere on the notebook which was unusual. When I tried to reboot nothing happened at all. I immediately panicked and called for support from Sony. I walked through some troubleshooting steps with the technician but came up with no solution. He informed me that I would need to send the laptop in for service and that it would most likely be covered by the original manufacturer warranty.

I sent in the laptop and received a response a few weeks later that blew my mind. The Sony repair center mailed me an invoice blaming me for damaging the laptop with liquid?? The invoice listed just about every component inside the laptop resulting in a charge of $2102.52. HA! The store price of a brand new one was $2100.00 I was completely outraged to say the least. I refused service for obvious reasons and was charged $55.29 for them to ship it back.

I wanted to take legal action but had no funds to attempt to battle with a big boy corporate company. To make a long and horrible story short, I had to wait a total of 12 months before I could send the notebook to the 3rd party 3 year warranty service that I intelligently purchased. It gets better! I sent the notebook to the warranty service center after loosing a year of service on a high end piece of equipment. They sent the laptop back a few weeks later with a report of what was wrong and how they solved it. This is what it stated:

Fully examined to factory specifications. The unit received a full inspection and is functioning at top level. Solution: Replaced CMOS battery. Checked and adjusted all functions to manufacturer's specifications. General cleaning and lubrication performed This was all done with no charge. I feel like I only got grazed by what could have been a huge bullet. Sony would have hypothetically charged me the RETAIL price of a new laptop and refurbished and resold my 1 month old parts. Criminal if you ask me. Unfortunately I still lost $55.29 and a year of my notebook's life.

Rocco of Sammamish WA (01/03/06)
I have a Sony Viao laptop and I needed a new cd-rom player. I contacted Sony Parts directly to avoid problems by getting the wrong part. I called the Sony Parts Center and gave them my model number and they told me I could buy a replacement DVD player ($250.00) and I asked if I was going to have any operating problems and the salesman assured me all I had to do was plug it in and the machine would recognize the new hardware and install it so I agreed to purchase it. They sent it and it was too small for the slot and it did not have a face on it so I called them back and they told me I needed a Bezel ($30.84)for the front of it, then they asked me if I needed anything else and I told them I don't know I just want to plug the devise in, so I asked them to tell me if I needed anything else to do that, they said no.

They sent the Bezel and I needed more pieces, so I took them off my old one except the face Bezel because that part was broken. No problem I was shipped a new Bezel, it ended up being different and did not fit in the internal slot on my computer, it is too long. Frustrated I plugged the DVD player in to see if it would work and the machine did not recognize the device, so I had to go to my device manager and ask it to install the new hardware and it gave me a message that said it could not install the device because the software could not run on Windows Software. Normally I would have an option to install the device anyway, even if it is not compatible but not in this case.

$300.00 later and three weeks and I still cannot get my computer working. I am returning the parts, they can have them and I am going to buy a new laptop. And you guessed it, it will not be a Sony. I am also going to upgrade my old big screen TV and yes you guessed it, it will not be a Sony. I also am upgrading our digital camera equipment at work and you guessed it, it will not be Sony. I know I am only one consumer and Sony won't fret too much about me taking my business somewhere else, but about $30,000 worth of equipment could have been sold if the parts department had only taken the time to make sure I was taken care of while purchasing the $300.00 worth of replacement parts.

Nina of Morgan Hill CA writes (7/5/02):
Bought new VAIO laptop Jan 17, 2002. Had internal Ethernet card problem, returned for repair April 19, 2002. Laptop returned, noticed DSL line didn't fit snug, didn't work. Tried a couple of other DSL lines, didn't fit snug, but worked.

Stopped working two weeks later, returned laptop. They tell me I caused the problem, want $726.23 to repair laptop for problem that I had nothing to do with. Laptop not properly repaired in first place, as evidenced by loose fit of DSL line. They accused me of inserting something I shouldn't have inserted, or say that a huge surge came through the phone line, bypassed a surge protector, went through the modem, the Ethernet hub, bypassed three other computers and zapped my laptop, damaging the DSL hookup and melting down the motherboard! They shipped me back the laptop in improper packaging. I am surprised the laptop still turns on and seems to function (with the exception of the internal ethernet card).

I am disabled with arthritis in my right hand, must use keyboard for typing (have doctor's certification). Just graduated from Stanford. Need laptop and network to function as student and in new career. It upsets me to consider going up against a big company who is trying to blame me for something that is not my responsibility. Apparently there are a lot of complaints about SONY in the computer field.

I just invested a lot of money in a new laptop to enable me to earn a living. I have a limited income having sustained a repetitive motion injury and am well on my way to a new career. I have an older laptop and needed a newer one to provide me with what I need to function and earn my living.

A good-news follow-up from Nina: My complaint is posted on your website. I hope you will either add to it or take it down. I did go through an ordeal so adding these remarks works. SONY does have good people working for them! I had done very well with SONY products and this event surprised me. But I feel pleased with the resolution.

To make a long story short, I didn't give up. I got a company to evaluate the laptop (not my fault) and filed a complaint with the Californai Department of Consumer Affairs.

Today I received a call from a SONY rep who impressed me with her graciousness and understanding. They are replacing my laptop. I am glad I didn't give up. I went through this trying ordeal one step at a time. There are many great people out there in the world and I am glad my situation finally reached a person who resolved this issue. My family has purchased SONY products for two generations and my father sold their products in his electronics store. Because of the way this woman treated me I am restored as a SONY customer.

Zulfiqarali of Houston (5/2/02):
I placed an order for 6 Sony Vaio GR300 computers. I placed an order on April 30, 2002. I asked the salesman that I wanted the computers by May 3, 2002. He promised me that I would get them by May 3, 2002. Today is May 2, 2002, and I called the customer service to confirm my order. Now they are saying that there is no way I would get my computers by May 3, 2002. I asked them to cancel my order. They said they can not cancel the order at this point. They already have charged my credit card for 6 computers. They gave me one option and that is that I refuse the shippment and that way I will get the credit back to my account.

But there is one problem, they said I might take 30 to 60 days before I will see the credit in my account. I am stuck now. I am very mad at there customer service. I am never going to buy sony products anymore. They also said that they will not refund the shipping charges.

Zulfiqarali will not incur any shipping charges if he refuses delivery. He can also contact his credit card company and dispute the charge, which should result in an immediate credit.

Anthony of Evanston IL (4/7/02):
I purchased a Sony VAIO desktop computer system on 1/18/02 from BestBuy for $1624.31. This system included a Sony 17" flatscreen monitor (Model #CPD-G220R). Approximately 2 weeks ago the display started to flicker and would go to 1/2 the original brightness. The monitor would then flicker within 15 seconds and the original brightness would be restored. This same defect kept occurring over the last 2 weeks until now the monitor is permanently at 1/2 the original brightness.

I tried to contact Sony today and after 12 attempts of getting a busy signal I was finally placed in the phone queue and told I had approximately a 22-minute wait. After waiting in the phone queue for 73 minutes, I finally was able to speak to a representative from Sony. This individual indicated that Sony is aware of this problem from other consumer complaints and that their engineers are looking into this matter; however they have been unable to find the cause. The representative told me Sony would e-mail me when a fix has been determined although he could not provide any type of time frame when this would occur (Event ID#E16676582).

I relayed that this was unacceptable and I was told that I could pay Sony $45 to mail back the monitor and they would exchange it. I relayed to them that this was unacceptable and that I should not have to pay $45 to ship back a known defective monitor. The representative then provided me with an authorized service location which is 1.25 hour drive from my house. The representative was also "kind" enough to suggest I take the monitor to any local CompUSA store as they are an authorized Sony repair center (different than Sony authorized service centers) and I could PAY out of my own pocket to have the monitor repaired myself! My only options are to drive 2.5 hours to the authorized service location or pay $45 to ship back the monitor to Sony. None of these options are acceptable to me since the monitor is known to be defective by Sony. Why should I, the customer, have to pay the shipment cost or travel an extensive amount of time to exchange a known defective monitor.

I am the owner of a Dell, IBM and Micron computer and I have never been asked to ship a defective part/component at my own cost by any of these respectable companies! Sony needs to start servicing their CURRENT customers and stop worrying about finding NEW customers. I think it is unreasonable not to be able to speak with a representative in a timely fashion (12 busy signals and a 73 minute wait is completely unacceptable!!). I wish I could take this entire computer system back and buy a Dell, IBM or Micron! This is LAST Sony product I will buy.

Lloyd of Carlisle, PA, writes:
I purchased a laptop from Sony in 12-01-99 It failed in 12-31-01 and I try to contact the service line was on hold for up to 40 minutes. Finally got through on 01-12-01 and they want $1700 to repair a computer that I paid $3200 for. They will not fax me a print of the part and will not sell the part, They said on their web and through an ad that dealing direct with Sony there would be no problem. At the time of purchase I asked about an extended warranty and they told me I didn't need one and that they did not sell them.

The three things I see here are implied warranty, poor design and not selling the parts.

Parmit of Cleveland writes:
I had bought a Laptop model PCGF360 from Sony in January 2000. The machine was giving me problems so I turned it in after approx 15 days and paid extra to get a higher model of PCG-F430. The system was okay in performance till the time I started running into problems where the display was getting distorted. I took it back to CompUSA and they told me I needed to deal directly with the Sony corp. I called them and they told me that I need to send it down to California for repairs. I asked them if there was anything they could do to expedite. They clearly refused.

I got my laptop back after approx 20 days. In September 2000 I had the exact same problem and had to contact Sony again! I called them up and they told me I had to send it to them again. I pleaded with them that I need my laptop returned soon and SINCE IT IS GOING TO THE SERVICE CENTER FOR THE SECOND TIME, I would APPRECIATE if they would give it a little priority. I was clearly told they could do nothing at all! I was upset but had no choice so I agreed.

Now my system is giving me the same problem again and when I called the place again they were completely unwilling to help and went to the extent of saying that I was TWO days out of the 12-month warranty. I explained to them that I realize that and the ONLY reason I am hoping they can help me is that the machine is having the same problem after being in their service center twice already. I also said that if this time it would be for a different problem I could understand them not willing to help but it is the same problem! They offered to have it shipped back to them and let their managers decide. I explained to them that I am using the laptop for my business and it is hard for me to work without it for 15 to 20 days. They were not willing to do anything for me.

That's when I told the person that I will be calling our local call for action station and launching a complaint. He told me not to threaten him! I explained that I was not threatening him, I was just making him aware of my frustration with Sony corporation. He was very rude and unwilling to help. That is when I told him that I understand that he is an employee just like most of us have been at some point of our lives and has a limit to the authority but he was very rude in his response and that is when I told him its okay and I don't feel he can help me and hung up.

Lorie of Front Royal, VA, writes:
I purchased a Sony Vaio Laptop a few months ago and found that the sound did not work properly. I have tried every diagnostic tool and every imaginable program to improve the sound. It works, but if playing a DVD, even with headphones, you cannot hear even at the hightest sound setting, what is being said. Forget playing music, you can't hear it. I called the customer service number and after going through about six different menus, you get a busy signal instead of "your call will be answered in the order in which it was placed." So, if you want to get someone on the line, you have to be able to spend your life redialing forever until the line is NOT busy. Don't think that will happen.

So, I emailed Sony advising them of my problem, asking for a solution. I got a reponse, outlining many computer related problem-solving techniques, none of which involved sound. I have extended myself in order to own this computer and it doesn't work properly. I feel as though I've wasted my money. First time I buy a computer that plays DVD's and it doesn't work. I'm out $1800.00.

Phil of Hasbrouck Heights, NJ, writes:
First of all try calling their number. Its a 40-minute wait. I called first time after believing my order would be shipped next day. I had ordered a docking station for a new Sony notebook. I got an e-mail acknowledging my order, then NADA for a week. I call back, they THEN decide to inform me that my order is on backorder and would be shipped within two weeks. I am still waiting a month later.

I called them, wasted 40 mins. They said it was shipped. Then changed their mind. I asked for a manager ... not available. I asked for an executive phone number .... not available. I asked for an e-mail. All they could give me was a snail mail address to write about my complaint. I did think SONY was a serious company. Their engineers are brilliant. Too bad they are not supported by their sales/post-sales personel.

"K" of Britt, MN, writes:
Bought Sony computer AND extended warranty in Jan '98. Computer has failed again and again - and been in service 4 times - sometimes for weeks. Upon return, lockups IMMEDIATELY resume.

Brought back two weeks ago, asked for the promised replacement if problems continued - and have heard nothing since. Have even written/faxed my inquiry to the store requesting a prompt response. Did so twice.

NET: Paid over $2,000 for a totally unreliable/inoperable system. The tech says he has replaced a faulty processor and motherboard which he felt would resolve the problems. Brought home and system was totally frozen again in the first hour of attempted use.

Diane of Stafford, VA, really needs to get her Sony Notebook working:

I sent a Sony Notebook computer Model PCGF350 to be repaired on November 8, 1999. The LCD screen was broken and needed
to be replaced. This is a brand new model for Sony and they continue to say the part is on backorder from Tokyo. How can they insist they do not have this part to repair my machine
when they have oodles of them to sell in the stores? I can't believe how a huge corporation is taking advantage of an individual buyer with no leverage at all.

I spent $2400.00 for this computer onOctober 28th and had to repair it on November 8. 1999 which will cost $955.00. I need my computer back in working order!!!

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