I bought a Compaq Presario laptop early in 1999, and was persuaded to buy the 4-year extended warranty. It was $299, but the salesperson offered to reduce the price by $100. I was hesitant, but he then claimed that the warranty would cover *everything*, and that the active matrix LCD wasn't covered under Compaq's standard warranty at all. I was skeptical, but he insisted that was the case. After he spoke with his manager, he found he could not change the warranty pricing, but could get me $100 off the PC price. I agreed and bought the whole package for $2,100. When I got home, I read the warranty and found no exclusions for the display. So he lied to me to make the sale. His name is Tom, and he worked at the North Attleboro, MA store.
Now I need the warranty service due to an apparently short-circuited charging circuit in the computer - the laptop will not charge the battery, and indicates that the DC adapter isn't plugged in, when it in fact is and does put out the proper voltage. I talked through the problem with Compaq's tech support, and they were very friendly and helpful, even though it was past their warranty support. When I told them the story of the warranty lie, he said that they had heard *many* such stories from customers.
I dread taking this in for service now, especially having read the horror stories on this site. I'll be sure to record the serial number and get a receipt when I drop it off.
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