[ianliang]

Hi guys!

Im from Singapore and a recent bb convert! got myself a 9900 jus 3 weeks back! am looking to purchase 16GB pb to pair with it.. however the prices in sg for the playbook is still rather steep now hence im looking to import one from Canada!

My question is what are the chances of me getting a faulty set? i know this is a pretty subjective question.. but i asked this because im actually on my 3rd set of 9900 the QC on the 9900 was really bad. Just wanna see the replies on this one and see if any of you have to go through the pain of exchanging the device over and over again.

Dont wanna end up with a faulty pb and have no warranty whatsoever.. any thoughts guys?

[peter9477]

It's difficult to judge, because although we see fairly many reports here of problems which sound like manufacturing problems, you have to consider that 99.9% of people with perfect units will never post about it, while probably 50% or more of people with failing units will end up in this or one of the other primary forums complaining about it and asking for help.

That said, it's pretty clear there have been "many" cases where people have had PlayBooks with one or more defects, including stuck pixels, non-functional WiFi or Bluetooth or accelerometers, bad batteries or chargers or charging controllers, and so on.

There have been people report purchasing literally half a dozen different PlayBooks in a row, and finding the same issue (mostly the defective pixels, I believe) on each, having to return them. That could be a "bad lot" issue, however, so I wouldn't treat that as indicating an endemic problem with bad screens.

My guess: right now your chances of getting a good unit are probably no better than 99.9% (i.e. more bad units than 1 in 1000). I mean, we've probably seen at least 150 people in this forum reporting on one or another problem... if only a few 100K have been sold, and not everyone with bad units posted here... you do the math.

By far the best is if you can get someone else to purchase it and test it out for you, before sending it to you.

[shootsscores]

QC issues have been rare. This forum attracts a lot of vociferous whiners and moaners (though multiple polls show them to constitute a small minority of forum users) and even among them there have been few QC complaints.

Dead or, more accurately, unresponsive pixel reports seem to have largely disappeared following OEM OS updates (and/or bad lots have perhaps been identified and purged from inventory).

All in all, QC isn't an issue. Still, being able to inspect your own device and return or swap it if you aren't satisfied does have its advantages.

[ianliang]

thanks guys for the response! didn't know dead/unresponsive pixels are caused by software issues... always thought its was a hardware problem! will continue to weigh the pros and cons of an import set! can't wait to gt my hands on a PB!!!!

[symphara]

For what it's worth - I had no trouble with my Playbook or 9900. The Playbook seems very well built and several months later, after a lot of use, looks and works like new. The 9900 did gather a bit of dust in the tiny space between the push keys and the bottom part of the screen, but otherwise it's fine.

Obviously this is anecdotal - not statistical - evidence, so it should be taken as such.

[AggreX]

IME the QC for the PB seems to be good. The tiny power button is just a bad design for ease of use but it works. There are other ways to put the PB on standby/off/restart

[cielodome]

I purchased a "used" (just 2 mos old and not really used at all) PB from a friend and have had no problems with the unit, except for OS issues that will hopefullu be fixed with 2.0.

[bembol]

Hardware. It's the best I've seen from RIM, I purchased two PlayBooks off kijiji and no problems what so ever. I sold my first (16GB) to my boy because I ran into a post and chipped it, so I upgraded to 64GB.

Software on the other hand, I had a few issues where I had to Restart it. Last had something to do with Wi-Fi, it wasn't connecting.

[black hole]

Been using mine HEAVILY daily since bought a couple days after release...I gotta say, it's maybe the most robustly built tech toy I have ever bought....& I buy em all!

I would highly recommend one...