2013-07-02, 3:14 AM

In early May, I ordered a laptop (IdeaPad Y500 w/ 1080p monitor) from Lenovo. I was very impressed with the hardware and excited to start using it. However, within about 25 days, the computer bricked completely - the laptop would not boot, no power lights, nothing at all. I understand hardware defects happen, so I called Lenovo's support hotline for IdeaPad products. I was told that I could mail in my computer, and it would be returned within 7 days. As someone who depends heavily on my computer for my job, it is very important that I have a working laptop - every day without my laptop costs my business money and makes me almost useless. To my horror, when I checked my repair status after 7 days, I was told that the computer would be unavailable for an entire month until early July when new parts were arriving at the repair center. This was obviously not an adequate solution, as a month without my laptop is extremely costly. I immediately asked for either a refund so that I could buy a new Y500, or a replacement shipped to me. Over the course of a few week or so, my case was escalated and I was put in touch with Crystal, a customer service representative. At this point I was very desperate - I badly needed my computer, and it was getting VERY expensive. Crystal told me she was going to ship me a replacement model overnight. Happy to have only lost 2-3 weeks of time instead of the initial month, I thanked her. Later that week, she sent me a specification sheet for the laptop and asked me to look over it and make sure it was correct. I replied explaining that the model she had selected was not 1080p, and that my original computer had a 1080p monitor. She never responded to this email, or any subsequent emails. Instead, the following day, I received a tracking number for the (wrong) laptop. To add to it all, the computer was NOT shipped overnight as promised, but 5 day ground! I was at this point very frustrated, and I repeatedly called and emailed Crystal. Either by accident or by malice, she did not respond to any of my queries. Today, I received the 'replacement' by mail. It is not 1080p, as expected, and so I immediately contacted support once more. My case was escalated, and I am now waiting for someone to contact me re:this situation.

I was told that it will take three business days to do this - since the 4th of July is this week, that means that by Friday I may be put in touch with someone who can then hopefully ship me a computer replacement. This means that at best I will have a working computer mid next week.

This level of service is absolutely unnacceptable, and extremely unprofessional. Lenovo has now had my computer for a longer time than I have, and despite repeated attempts to rectify the situation, delays have continued to pop up, causing me personal stress and great expense to my business.

At this point, I am not sure what recourse I have. I will continue waiting to hear from Lenovo about a (2nd) replacement, but the costs of not having a laptop have now far exceeded the initial price of the device, and I am ready to start fighting for a refund to purchase a computer elsewhere.

I am calling my attorney tomorrow to see if there is any legal recourse for me (assuming Lenovo cannot provide any adequate resolution to the situation).

The moral of this story is quite clear: Lenovo's customer service is highly unprofessional. If you plan on purchasing a laptop for your business, steer clear of Lenovo - their product line is certainly excellent and the quality of the hardware commendable, but for anyone who depends on their computer for work, their customer service is completely unnacceptable.

PS - I have nothing but good things to say about Lenovo's lowest tier of support, all the agents there are very helpful and have truly done their best to help me. However, this issue goes beyond their capability to help me, and the incompetence of the higher support tiers makes Lenovo a poor choice for businesses.