G.GLASS%LOTS-A@SU-SCORE.ARPA (02/08/84)
From: L. Brett Glass <G.GLASS%LOTS-A@SU-SCORE.ARPA>
About a half a month ago, I purchased a Columbia VP (Columbia Data
Systems' portable IBM-PC lookalike), and had it shipped to me here at
school. The unit arrived in pretty good condition, and worked fine,
EXCEPT for some problems in the video screen. It seems that
extraneous lines will sometimes appear when inverse (black-on-white)
characters are used, and there is a fair amount of "snow" whenever the
monochrome screen is updated.
I wasn't troubled too much by this at first, as Columbia had claimed
in their ads that warranty repairs could be done at any Bell & Howell
service center. But when I called up Bell & Howell, they told me that
1) They serviced only the desktop versions of the Columbia, not the VP;
2) They did not know if they ever would be servicing VP's; and
3) In any event, it was not likely that I would be able to get my machine
serviced by them until at least a month or two (or three) from now.
When I called Columbia, the person I spoke to verified that Bell &
Howell had indeed not been contracted to service the portable unit,
but only the 1600-4 and 1600-1 desktop models. She then went on to say
that the only way I could have my machine serviced right now would be
to return it to the factory -- where the repair time would range from
2 to 3 weeks. Allowing for 1 week (UPS) shipping in each direction,
this means that I would have to be without my computer for 4 to 5
weeks!
I have both called and written Columbia since that time, and so far
have not gotten any more favorable response.
The moral: Be wary of ANY and ALL claims that a manufacturer makes in
his advertising; and steer clear of the VP (which is otherwise
a good machine) until Bell & Howell (or someone else) really
CAN service it.
Brett Glass