Not sure where to put this warning, but I want to make sure no one else goes through the pain and trouble that I am experiencing now.
I purchased a refurbished item from Woot, expecting at the very least to have an item that would work, if not a bit damaged with physical imperfections. The Fire TV I bought looked good in the box, and set up seemed to go well, but there was something…off… about how it looked. Then I got to the first black screen, and I instantly saw what was “tested and verified by Amazon to be fully functional”
This is not some regular use damage. This is clearly Amazon not even turning on the item before shipment. Side note: I can’t even use YouTube for 5 seconds before it either freezes or reboots the whole thing. This is clearly someone intentionally trying to offload broken products as refurbished. Save yourself the hassle: don’t buy any refurbished item, especially any heavy items that is a hassle to unpack and repack or throw away or anything
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Make sure you contact customer service. They’ll have some options for you. Here’s the blurb.
Please reach out to Woot! Customer Service. To speed things up, let them know if you prefer a return/refund or a replacement (if possible).
Please allow 24-48h for them to respond.
Self-Return: Items without Li-Ion batteries can be self-returned within 30 days. Go to your Order Details to get started. The return label will be emailed from UPS.
Browser: Use the Woot! Customer Service form.
Woot! App: Choose Account from the bottom navigation and then Support.
Note: Woot! Customer Service replies go to the email address on your Woot! account, not your Amazon login email if used/different.
(Please Note: I’m not employed by Woot, but I volunteer to help in the forums.)
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i’ve reached out, but that doesn’t change the fact that this is a broken item being intentionally resold as refurbished. if it was even plugged in before shipping out, it would be clear that this item should have never gone to a customer. i’m trying to prevent people from being defrauded with the claim of “tested by amazon” since that was clearly never done. and now i’m left with a bulky 20+ lb box of junk that i need to figure out how to repack for shipping out
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Pretty sure they’ve sold several of these. Yours could be a one-off. It could have been damaged during shipping. Customer service will help you.
(Please Note: I’m not employed by Woot, but I volunteer to help in the forums.)
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not sure how shipping could warp the inner screen but leave the outside screen completely fine and fry the motherboard. does shipping microwave the product?
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Listen, I know it’s crap but customer service will help you out. They don’t monitor the forums so you’ll need to work with them over email.
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and it’s been over 48 hours since i sent my email response without a response back. customer service seems to be ignoring the customer part when they face problems they are responsible for. is there a phone number or escalation that can be reached since it’s clear that CS wants to sweep this under the rug?
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Be sure to check spam/junk folders. If you use an email client like Outlook, try logging into email directly from a browser because there’s another junk folder there. Note that Woot! Customer Service replies to the email address on your Woot! account not your Amazon email if used/different.
Also, please note it is right before a major holiday so they may be running slower than expected.
Woot’s phone is offline at the moment due to technical issues.
(Please note: I don’t work for Woot, I just volunteer to help out here on the forums.)
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As a (previous) TV technician, I can tell you that extreme heat and cold transistion absolutely COULD warp the inner screen. It could also cause the lamination… well… delaminate.
As for the motherboard, it is entirely possible that the set was sent back due to the problems you are experiencing. Said issues could be caused by cold solder joints. Cold solder joints are a technicians worse nightmare because they cause intermittent issues and as long as the unit is working, we can’t fix it. The set may have made it back to Amazon and, when they tested it, the connections were… well… connecting. When it was reshipped, the flexing coupled with the aforementioned heat and cold could cause the connections to once again separate.
I am not taking up for Amazon. I bought a BRAND NEW powder coat gun that had CLEARLY been taken apart and put back together. Then circuit board showed OBVIOUS signs of tampering. The cup clearly had powder run through it.
I am right now in the process of returning the SECOND, BRAND NEW CDI module to Kawasaki, because they have TWICE sent me units that were each, in different ways, even more defective than the customer’s CDI I’m working on.
One of my suppliers told me to quit buying a particular fuel pump they sold because of defective lots. Same thing happened years ago in the electronics industry with STk pack amplifier modules and don’t get me started on the whole electrolytic capacitor fiasco!
The point being… You can get bad parts even when Brand New. Crap slips through. Most often, though, Refurbished is by far a better bet than New - because in Refubs, the issues that WILL pop up, HAVE popped up and are repaired before you get it. Plus, you get it at a better deal.
Amazon, and by extension Woot, are usually really good at taking care of issues like this and getting upset doesn’t do any good, nor does it help.
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I live in an area that has highs of 70 and lows of 50s right now. unless they’re shipping it 1000 miles north and back, there’s not going to be extreme temperatures anywhere for hundreds of miles.
i suspect that the lamination on all of the stands and remotes will NOT be warped either in cases of extreme temperatures that is enough to warp the inner screen? because those arrived perfectly fine
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Just telling what I know from my 30+ years of professional experience. Take care.
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thanks and sorry for my attitude. it’s been incredibly annoying to deal with this TV and get ahold of CS when i feel like im being taken advantage of. this isn’t the first refurbished amazon item i bought off this website that crapped out within a week of arriving, so my annoyance is an understatement about the lack of QC overall from woot. My refurbished echo:
woot did right for my echo, but the 50 inch tv is a LOT harder to deal with space wise and much more frustrating
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I get it. I’ve been there. No worries… it’s all good. You have a merry Christmas.
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Hi there. I’m sorry for the issue with the TV. I’ll send a note to CS.
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i’ve reached out on the 16th and followed up as soon as they responded on the 18th. since then I have gotten nothing back and it was only handed off to a new customer representative after my bank started investigating my claim. If there is any way to get customer service to take my issue seriously without trying to sweep it under a rug, i would greatly appreciate it. At the moment, i still haven’t gotten a return slip and all my emails have had no response
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CS confirms communication with you since the 18th. Regardless, you should have updated email soon.
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thank you. i did get a resolution finally.
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