[FF22]

Last week I contacted Rim because one of the pins on my rapid charger remains recessed - that is the pins are apparently spring loaded and should be popped up to a certain level. One pin is not exposed as much as they others and I do not think it was making contact.

At first I was told it would be replaced. A day and a half later I received the regular ac adapter in the mail. It was not the RAPID charger I called about. I was clear it was the RAPID charger and their rma email mentioned 'rapid' also.

So I called. They would check. No reply in 2 days so I called yesterday.

I got a first email this morning:

"I received a response from the RMA facility and they stated as follows:

"Please be advised the customer is only entitled to any accessories that came in the point of sale kit which was a regular charger. We are unable to provide the customer with a rapid charger for free, therefore he will need to purchase one himself if he requires this."

Sorry for the inconvenience. Let me know if you have any further issues. "

I informed them that I PURCHASED the rapid charger and was not expecting a free one. But that the rapid charger I purchased was defective:

"Hello BlackBerry,

Okay!!!!

Someone is misunderstanding the issue. I DID PURCHASE one. The RAPID CHARGER I PURCHASED is NOT functioning properly. It is defective and I expect that it is covered by some form of warranty. One of its PINS is not extending properly.

I am not asking for a FREE rapid charger. I am asking that the one I HAVE PURCHASED ALREADY be either fixed or replaced.

Thanks for your assistance."

I then quickly got back the following:

"The rapid charger did not come with the PlayBook, you purchased is separately. The repair facility is trying to state that the only accessories that are covered under warranty are the ones that come with the tablet (the normal wall charger, and the USB cable). You can try going back to your point of purchase and see if they will exchange the rapid charger you purchased from them, but we do not replace them. Sorry for the inconvenience. "

So, there is NO warranty?

Or maybe there is another support number for rim for accessories rather than pb support?

I know some folks have had similar issues with the DOCK and its spring loaded pins. Have you gotten warranty satisfaction or just dealt with the store? I'm past me store return period, I know.

Any help or advice will be appreciated.

[peter9477]

I tried looking into this for mine, without great success. I found material in the package, which pointed me to the accessories web site for Warranty info. That site ultimately had nothing of any particular value to answer the question.

I believe in some jurisdictions it's against various consumer protection laws for a company to sell something like this with NO warranty. Perhaps that would apply to your area?

In my case, I gave up since I'm able to get it to work with a bit of fiddling each time to "seat" it properly, aided by watching the actual charging power to make sure it shows 9.4W or so.

[togardergrosse]

I'm disappointed to read that.
When 3rd party accessories brand give helluva warranty and services, the OEM one decided not to support it.
Still got my Charging Pod and hope it will lasts long.

[peter9477]

Actually, for something like this, I think a boycott is in order.

People should NOT purchase any PlayBook accessory made by RIM or marketed under their banner without checking that it has a reasonable (90 day or better) warranty. As far as I'm concerned, anyone selling something like the rapid charger without either clearly stating "NO WARRANTY" on the packaging, or having the expected warranty, is basically cheating me. It's unethical.

I get used to things having a warranty as a matter of course, so I didn't even think to check when I bought the rapid charger. Time for consumers to take control back into their own hands....

[koroshiyax]

All of the retail sites/stores list the Playbook Rapid Charger as having a 1-year limited warranty. I bought mine from Best Buy.

I don't have the original box anymore, so I can't check the warranty info that's usually included on that small piece of paper.

It's probably mis-communication on RIM's part. Who knows, maybe support for some parts are outsourced.

It'd be awesome if someone could get some accurate information on who to contact for support or warranty repairs if needed.

[therapyreject174]

I feel your pain, I never got any kind of warranty help when mine stopped working. The store wouldn't do a manufacturer warranty exchange, so I had to deal with RIM. The paperwork in the box tells you to go online, and online it says refer to your documentation. I emailed RIM general support and got no response, emailing PlayBook support got me a similar response to yours telling me they don't support accessories.

I'm sure there is a department out there that handles RMAs for accessories, but after 2 weeks of trying to get in touch with someone there, I gave up.

[Artwerks]

From the box, information about warranty : www.blackberry.com/go/accessories

Only one problem... no Playbook chargers are listed!!!

[dave1701]

It seems like RIM deserves to go out of business.

[FF22]

I still have the box but it does not state anything about warranty. If there was an insert it is probably in my mess of similar paperwork and will be hard to locate. The box does say "Designed by Research in Motion Limited" and I believe that the limited refers to support and upgrades!

Under that is their address. A bunch of fine print about copyright and logos takes up a paragraph.

And, I, too, went searching their website. But adapters are not listed.

I guess one more thing about rim to be disappointed in.

But I see I am not the only one who has had problems with this adapter. Amazon's original UNlighted case for their K3 caused problems. Once they realized it, they returned the purchase price and in many cases upgraded folks to the more expensive case. It is a company that generally knows how to support customers and garner loyalty. Rim - well, perhaps NOT.

Sad, very sad.

[mandony]

If you purchased from a major store like Staples, Best Buy, they have your purchase history. All you have to do is give them the credit card number and date of purchase. They can give you a duplicate copy of the sales record.

With purchase record at hand go back to the RIM warranty place you made return and send them a copy of your sales receipt for making claim.

Good luck.

[koroshiyax]

I've never had issues with mine.

@mandony: the problem is no one knows who to call to get warranty service. Perhaps someone from shop.crackberry.com can fill us in, since they also sell the Rapid Charger and other accessories that are "designed by, but not supported by, RIM".

[FF22]

As koroshiyax noted, there is no RIM place to contact. No phone or other warranty claim info.

I will probably call rim again. I may use the case number or just try starting anew although they will probably find me. Or maybe with they way they are so adept at things maybe there will be no record of _ME_ in their system.

And as I was typing this, I was kind of surprised at the poor support but then I recalled... wait, rim never really dealt directly with the public before - it was always carriers as the first line of contact/support or maybe a retail store for any of their phones. The pb is new and so is their sales method. RIM is the contact and support. They just forget that there are other products that they sell, too.

[rcab]

Rim is not an american company and may not be subject to US consumer protection law so you may not find any governmental support here in usa. I was considering buying one of these rapid chargers but now I will avoid them like the plague. Contact your state consumer agency and see if they can suggest any options to you.

[kjm2010]

Rim is not an american company and may not be subject to US consumer protection law so you may not find any governmental support here in usa. I was considering buying one of these rapid chargers but now I will avoid them like the plague. Contact your state consumer agency and see if they can suggest any options to you.

I am pretty sure any entity selling into a jurisdiction(state/country) by law has to comply with local laws. If you look and warranty and liability statements you see where some limits don't apply to certain states because of specific laws in that jurisdiction.

i called the bb support number for playbook extended warranty service and they said same story as given to OP. Send back through retailer.

When i explained the retailer had said they do that only for the first 30 days, I spent another 15 minutes on hold while she came back and apologized that they will process the RMA, 15 minutes more I was all set. Total call time 55 minutes..typing the RMA took the agent forever.

Not to hijack a thread I am wondering if the far left pin is supposed to be lower than the other two? I have two that look nearly the same, one works, one is intermittent. Connectors usually have at least one pin longer so that the ground circuit is first to connect. Maybe the PB has two grounds to split the charging circuit?

Also does everyones rapid charger connector flex a little? Maybe helps alignment?

[koroshiyax]

I am pretty sure any entity selling into a jurisdiction(state/country) by law has to comply with local laws. If you look and warranty and liability statements you see where some limits don't apply to certain states because of specific laws in that jurisdiction.

i called the bb support number for playbook extended warranty service and they said same story as given to OP. Send back through retailer.

When i explained the retailer had said they do that only for the first 30 days, I spent another 15 minutes on hold while she came back and apologized that they will process the RMA, 15 minutes more I was all set. Total call time 55 minutes..typing the RMA took the agent forever.

Not to hijack a thread I am wondering if the far left pin is supposed to be lower than the other two? I have two that look nearly the same, one works, one is intermittent. Connectors usually have at least one pin longer so that the ground circuit is first to connect. Maybe the PB has two grounds to split the charging circuit?

Also does everyones rapid charger connector flex a little? Maybe helps alignment?

The left pin on mine is a little bit lower, and it works fine.

[fox4800]

F2 - I have a similar charging problem as you. Also, one of the pins [on the end of the mag connector] is definitely lower on mine, as well. But, i have had some luck in manipulating the cord that connects to the Playbook [the skinny one]. I found, with battery guru open and some wiggling of the skinny cord, that i have a short in the cable, about 4 inches from the magnetic connector. I originally blamed the recessed pin too, although I think it may be a design characteristic, after reading your post. I hope this helps, although I know it isn't THE answer. I've considered doing the old 'take back to retailer and swap the bad one for the good one/return for refund' trick, but my laziness has prevented that tactic thus far.

[FF22]

It sounds as if I need to press the agent if I call again. I, too, have considered purchasing a new one and then returning the defective one in its place. I guess I can be ethically challenged by rim's ethically suspect practices.

The low pin on mine is the one on the cord end of things. And since left/right was used in someone's description, it sounds as if some are talking about the rapid DOCK as opposed to just the rapid charger. The one I have is just a charger with the magnetic plug but not a STAND.

[louzer]

I just bought the Rapid Charger (not the cradle). I still have the box and all of its contents since I'm still in my 14 day return/exchange window. I opened the box and, besides all the cardboard and platic, there is a single folded up piece of paper. On it is a diagram showing how to install it (duh!) and a brief description in 8 or so languages. On the bottom is the corporate address for RIM along with the URL for accessories (whose page does not include Playbook chargers). On the bottom right is copyright info for RIM.

No where on that sheet of paper or anywhere on the box is there any statement about any warantee. It never would have occurred to me that an expensive electronic accessory would not come with a warantee. If you're in the US, then the Better Business Bureau might be able to help you get you RMA.

[fox4800]

I have the non-cradle style rapid charger. After revisiting my bad unit, I again managed to locate the area of cable that needs repair. Should I decide to give the wire a snip and solder the internal wires back together, I'll let you know how things go. I really recommend trying to find a short in your cable (not the one that plugs into the brick/wall). My recessed pin/spring-loaded ball is on the end of the 3 balls in the mag connector.

[peter9477]

Not to hijack a thread I am wondering if the far left pin is supposed to be lower than the other two? I have two that look nearly the same, one works, one is intermittent. Connectors usually have at least one pin longer so that the ground circuit is first to connect. Maybe the PB has two grounds to split the charging circuit?

Someone who measured said that the outer two pins are power, and the middle one is ground, so that wouldn't explain one of the outer ones being lower.

Also, in a connector like this without data pins, there is no reason to have one pin longer... making contact with the ground connection first would do little since there's no circuit formed. Making contact with the power pins first makes no difference either...

Sadly, there's no reason for the rapid chargers to be the way they are except extremely bad design and/or manufacturing. (And, since good design includes the practice of "design for manufacturing" to take into account such potential issues, we can really just blame the designers in this case. I hope it was a third-party and that RIM fired them, but we'll probably never know about it in any case.)

[FF22]

I sent them another email on my case number expressing disappointment in the handling of this matter and asking what I could do. The reply offers only a bit:

"I am sorry we cannot be more help for you. The products that we sell separately are accessories of the BlackBerry Products, this is the PlayBook department so we only deal with the accessories that come with the tablet itself from point of purchase. You can try returning the rapid charger to the store where you bought it from if they will not do anything for you try emailing [email protected]."

[bembol]

Definitely disappointing as my Dock takes several attempts to get it to start charging.

I guess I should be happy that I didn't pay retail, bought it off eBay. :roll eyes:

[koroshiyax]

I reached out to Best Buy, where I bought my Rapid Charger. I asked them about the 1-year limited warranty and the process for warranty service within the warranty period.

They said to bring it to any local Best Buy stores and they will send it away for repair as needed.

This falls in line with how carriers are in charge with repairs for Blackberry smartphones and accessories. Responsibilities fall onto RIM Partners.

[kjm2010]

Also, in a connector like this without data pins, there is no reason to have one pin longer... making contact with the ground connection first would do little since there's no circuit formed. Making contact with the power pins first makes no difference either

While based on your info describing the gnd pin location you are correct its not applicable in this post, Gnd pins connecting first is more related to safety, not functionality. The US National Electric code requires all metal surfaces of electrical equipment connected to a source over 60 volts RMS to be grounded at all times the supply source is connected. The exception is if the isolation is via a class ii (low VA) powersupply typical in small wall mount chargers.