I ordered an Onyx Aura HD on 4/20, and it took several days to get any answers out of the company about shipping, but it eventually shipped and I received it on 4/29.
I opened it, took it out of the box, performed the software update, and turned on the backlight for the first time to reveal an impressive blown pixel near the bottom of the screen. There are no problems with the backlight out, but with it on, it's quite prominent (see attached image). Luckily it's in an area of the screen that rarely sees text. Within 30 minutes of unboxing my new reader, I contacted customer support and had to initiate the exchange process. Since the initial report, I discovered two smaller blown pixels near the upper right corner. They are smaller and unobtrusive, but the screen is clearly defective.
They sent me a form to fill out and requested a picture of the damage, so I sent the same one you should see. I triple checked the information, and I sent the form off. Soon after, Kobo verified the damage, and agreed to send me a replacement reader. This was on 4/29.
On 5/15 (about 2.5 weeks later), after talking to them via the phone, web chat, email, and Twitter virtually every day, they finally issued me a tracking number for a replacement. They claim they were having problems with their shipper. The reality (and what I believe to be the truth) is that they wanted to burn up the rest of the 15 day return period, so I could no longer get a refund.
I track the Canadapost package, and it gets to the local office and is immediately returned to sender, because the "Recipient is not at the address." So I immediately contact the company by both Twitter and phone, and they say they'll look into it. Then I get a tweet from @kobohelp telling me that a rep has emailed me. I open the email address to find that they sent the package to the WRONG address despite having my address correct on the form and in my original purchase order.
I email Kobo back and paste the original form highlighting my address and all of what I wrote in BOLD text, and send it back to them. Not only did they have my address wrong, but they also had the color wrong, because the person who sent the replacement device seems to have challenges with reading, which is ironic seeing as they're an e-book/e-reader company.
I promptly contacted MasterCard and issued a chargeback/dispute. After Kobo sat around for nearly 2.5 weeks before sending a replacement, clearly exceeding the refund period, I feel like I've been given the royal runaround by rude reps at every turn.
I have no plans to deal with Kobo directly in the future. If I buy another product, I'll buy it through a third party and slap a warranty on it. I'm done with them.
I opened it, took it out of the box, performed the software update, and turned on the backlight for the first time to reveal an impressive blown pixel near the bottom of the screen. There are no problems with the backlight out, but with it on, it's quite prominent (see attached image). Luckily it's in an area of the screen that rarely sees text. Within 30 minutes of unboxing my new reader, I contacted customer support and had to initiate the exchange process. Since the initial report, I discovered two smaller blown pixels near the upper right corner. They are smaller and unobtrusive, but the screen is clearly defective.
They sent me a form to fill out and requested a picture of the damage, so I sent the same one you should see. I triple checked the information, and I sent the form off. Soon after, Kobo verified the damage, and agreed to send me a replacement reader. This was on 4/29.
On 5/15 (about 2.5 weeks later), after talking to them via the phone, web chat, email, and Twitter virtually every day, they finally issued me a tracking number for a replacement. They claim they were having problems with their shipper. The reality (and what I believe to be the truth) is that they wanted to burn up the rest of the 15 day return period, so I could no longer get a refund.
I track the Canadapost package, and it gets to the local office and is immediately returned to sender, because the "Recipient is not at the address." So I immediately contact the company by both Twitter and phone, and they say they'll look into it. Then I get a tweet from @kobohelp telling me that a rep has emailed me. I open the email address to find that they sent the package to the WRONG address despite having my address correct on the form and in my original purchase order.
I email Kobo back and paste the original form highlighting my address and all of what I wrote in BOLD text, and send it back to them. Not only did they have my address wrong, but they also had the color wrong, because the person who sent the replacement device seems to have challenges with reading, which is ironic seeing as they're an e-book/e-reader company.
I promptly contacted MasterCard and issued a chargeback/dispute. After Kobo sat around for nearly 2.5 weeks before sending a replacement, clearly exceeding the refund period, I feel like I've been given the royal runaround by rude reps at every turn.
I have no plans to deal with Kobo directly in the future. If I buy another product, I'll buy it through a third party and slap a warranty on it. I'm done with them.