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Sony PlayStation 2

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A class-action lawsuit in California charges that the Sony has misrepresented the PlayStation 2 by claiming that it also plays DVDs. The suit charges that many units stop reading DVDs after only a few months of use. Gee, that sounds just like what our readers have been saying. By the way, the problems with Playstation 2 aren't all that new. Playstation 1 wasn't exactly perfect either.

LEVENT of CANKAYA ANKARA, United States September 8, 2009

The Brand New PS3 that was Sold with YLOD (Yellow Light of Death) Defect. During my recent trip to US, I purchased a brand new PS3 from AMAZON.COM (Order #102-9219028-2895431). It was delivered to one of my friend's address, who was in US at that time, on the 15th of June. I picked the unopened package on the 20th of June and returned to my country, TURKEY. I setup the unit as detailed in the User's Manual on the 23rd of June and plugged it to a 400W transformer (that converts 220 VAC to 110 VAC).

My brand new PS3 did not start at all; the red light turned green for three seconds then went yellow for one second then beeped three times and went blinking red. After search in internet I found out that this was a very common manufacturing defect on this product, called YLOD. There were lots of people suffering from this defect, but I was the only one who had this defect on a brand new unit.

On the 24th of June I sent an e-mail to SONY explaining the problem. They replied on the 25th of June with the following information: There are no authorized repair facilities outside of North America. I can have Playstation(R) products repaired (only in the United States or Canada and only if you purchased a North American Playstation(R) product). They advised me to find a friend/family member in the United States, to whom I can ship the unit (so that he/she could send the unit to SONY for repair). Later I would be able to pick up the unit from them. They also said that I may ship my PS3 internationally to SONY, provided that I found a valid U.S. (or Canadian) mailing address in order to ship the system back to me; since they do not ship internationally.

Since I hadn't been able to find any acquaintance in US, I sent another e-mail to SONY-EU (which is the responsible SONY dealer in my country) to ask for their help on the repair of the brand new PS3 that I hadn't been able to start at all. They directed me to an Authorized SONY Service.

I called this service for an out of warranty repair (since they said the warranty is only valid in US); this Authorized Service said that they could not even accept the unit to the service since it was not purchased in Turkey. I informed SONY-EU that the Authorized SONY Service they recommended refused to accept the unit. This time they replied (in writing) that the Authorized SONY Services could provide service only to the products imported by them.

On the same day I replied to SONY (US) stating that I didn't have a chance to send the unit to US, the local Authorized SONY Services do not accept the unit since it was not purchased in this country, and asked what I could do under these circumstances. They provided a link for applicable SONY services and this link (not surprisingly) took me back to the same service that told me that they did not accept unit purchased out of this country.

Upon this I found a 3rd party repair shop on the 1st of July, in ISTANBUL and shipped the PS3 to them. After waiting for more than a month, on August 5th, they informed me that they had tried everything that they could do (including reflow), but could not keep the equipment working more than two days, it kept giving the same failure.

A Brand new PS3 came with a fatal defect. (A defective unit should not pass the final inspection and test at the factory), SONY did not provide the necessary support to a consumer who bought a brand new unit with a fatal defect, The Authorized SONY Service listed by SONY on the WEB, refused to service the unit (even for an out of warranty repair to be paid by the Customer), as a result of this I was forced to find a third party repair shop (and therefore to void the warranty).

John of Deridder, LA August 27, 2009

I bought a 60gb Playstation 3 from Sony in December of 2007 for 499.99. In April of 2008 it had a system failure. I called Sony and they sent me a box to ship my PS3 back to them for a fix or a refurbished one. I did this and was sent a refurbished PS3. August of '09 the refurbished PS3 has system failure called YLOD (Yellow Light Of Death)which is known as a manufacturer defect. I have researched this online and have found that many, many consumers of this product have suffered the same result.

Sony only offers its customers a 1yr. warranty on this product for natural wear and tear, if you have problem after the 1yr. warranty expires then they want to charge you 150.00 to fix or send you refurbished PS3. Then they only want to give you a 90 day warranty on the fixed or refurbished product. After 90 days you must pay the 150.00 again for a fix that is caused by a manufacturer defect.

The Microsoft XBOX 360 has a similar issue called the RROD (Red Ring Of Death). From my research the systems last only an average of a year and a half before this problem arises, the warranty is for 1yr. Now I have a 500 product that is less than 2 years old with a 60 game stuck inside of it. Can't get game out of system with out messing up tamper resistant sticker that manufacturer puts on so they know if system has been opened which nullifies any warranty or fix.

Due to defect I must shell out an additional 150 to have fixed or send me a refurbished system with the same potential defect that could cost me an additional 150. Seems that Sony would either fix the defect or offer a 3 yr. warranty, since the system average before problem is 18 months.

Cezan of Darwen, United Kingdom August 5, 2009

I Purchased a playstation 3 in july 2007 and it has now (august 2009) broken. it is not of fault of my own. it is a common problem in the playstation 3 and is a hardware fault. yet playstation 3 want me to pay £150 pounds to get it fixed when it is not my fault it has broken.

Taylor of Dacula, GA July 31, 2009

I have had a Playstation 3 system since Decemnber 2007. My parents bought it for us for Christmas. We played the system and it functioned perfectly until March 2009. We believe my younger brother left the system on and it overheated because it would no longer power on. We ordered Sony's 150 repair service (because it was out-of-warranty) to have it either repaired or exchanged for a working system in late June of 2009. We received their box and shipped it and received a system yesterday July 29th.

We played the system that day and today and it was working properly. However, we came home later this evening July 30th, and discovered that the system was no longer "reading" or "recognizing" the blu-ray game discs. We called Sony and after trying a few options, they told us we had to send it in AGAIN. We told them we did not feel comfortable doing this because we could easily get another broken system, and have to keep going through this process.

Their warranty for the "new" PS3 is only 90 days, so they could essentially make a profit if it breaks down in 3 months. I do not appreciate their lack of value in customer service and their unwillingness to compromise at all in the situation. We wanted a BRAND NEW system "from the box" or a refund and they refused. We are stuck with another repair request and are frustrated with the way Sony has handled the matter. We have bought all their game systems and are very dissatisfied with their service.

Stevie of San Leandro, CA July 18, 2009

This is more so of a rant against the Sony Playstation3 game system. I smell something fishy about Sony's operations and the way they do business. After paying nearly 500 dollars for a brand new 80GB system barely a month ago, who would have known that the machine would stop working? It may have overheated or had a hard drive issue..Who knows? However, if one is paying this kind of money for a video game, then one expects top notch quality within the system. Not the case here!

Then, when I contacted Sony about the problem, they wanted me to send the unit to them, pay 150 dollars, and have a refurbished unit sent to me. This is unacceptable. I did not buy a refurbished unit, so why would I want one sent to me? For that system can break down too and the cycle to be repeated all over again? I don't think so! On top of it all, I've read countless consumer complaints on the internet against Sony Playstation3 (and prior Playstation systems) regarding the same system malfunction issues and the same run around you get from Sony. This is by far no coincidence.

If there is any type of class action suit that will be brought against Sony Playstation, please count me in! It's shady the way they do business!

Ryan of Amherstview, ON July 6, 2009

I purchased a Playstation 3 model CECHG01 on December 26th of 2007. The bluray diode in my drive burnt out on July 3rd of 2009. In the course of my investigation of what happened I discovered many other users have had the same issue occur about 1 year after the purchase of the same model Playstation 3. The warranty period of the system is 1 year from the date of purchase. I contacted customer service who insisted the problem I was encountering did not exist, and that my console must be sent in for repair; I would have to pay 150 to have my machine fixed. I find it outrageous that Sony denies the existence of my problem, and that they take the position that they do not need me as a customer. I do realize that nothing will likely come of my complaint, but I do hope at one point a class action suit is brought against Sony; something I paid 400 for should not become defective after a year and a half of light to moderate use.

Hong of Vista, CA July 6, 2009

My Playstation 3 does not work anymore and SCEA is stating that I pay 149 + Sales Tax to get it repaired/refurbished PS3 back. I have owned all of Sony's gaming consoles from Playstation 1, 2, 3, and the PSP; however, none of them have broken down within three years. I still have a Playstation 2 and it is in great working condition, but a 600 unit that breaks down in three years is not reasonable.

Randolph of Clearwater, FL June 13, 2009

Bluray disc drive failure on a Sony Playstation 3, 6 months past warranty expiration. Unit used primarily for Bluray movie watching. Unit cleaned weekly and kept in a clean environment. Sony's online service request area informed me that 150 USD was needed to fix anything wrong with my ps3.

Christopher of Arlington, WA June 12, 2009

After 16-18 months my blue-ray stopped working. Everything else (CD, DVD, PS2) plays except PS3 games and BlueRay movies. This only started happening after a firmware update. I have seen many others who have had the same problem. Sony is charging 150 to each person to fix this.

Steve of Stanton, MI June 6, 2009

I have owned my Playstion 3 80 gb since November of 2007. I have a total of 8 Playstion 2's, and 7 PSP's. I have over 200 Playstion 2 games, 50 PSP games, and 50 Playstion 3 games, some of which have never been played. I have 7 children who all have their own. I have purchased a lot of equipment over time for the playstions.

I have never allowed my children to play the playstation 3 due to the expensive cost of the console. I have only played it maybe 30 times. My wife purchased the PS3 for me for my birthday spending over 600.00 dollars on the system its self, not including any of the games she purchased for me.

Everyone of my kids Playstation 2's no longer work. I have fixed them all many times but they no longer can be fixed. My childrens PSP's seem to be all still working, for now.

I recently had back surgery, and was looking forward to the required relaxation playing my PS3, and the same day I came home from the hospital it would not work. It no longer will play any game, DVD, or anything. I called Sony explaining what had happened and asked that as a loyal customer if they could help me. I was told for another 160.00 they could fix my system for me. After explaining all of the equipment I have purchased from them, and the condition of them they refused to help me. They offered me a free game. I could not believe that they would offer me a free game, I do not own a working console to play a game on, I feel they were being smart asses because they knew i could not play it without a working game console.

After my extensive review of post from other dissatisfied customers, I am now aware that i am not alone on this issue. The company is well aware of the issues with their system and continue to sell their systems.

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