Microsoft Band

liamog

Sir Oxman wrote: »

Had to return mine after 3 months - strap split which is common apparently. No hard wearing juts used for notifications, steps, sleep etc
Very disappointed as it's a good bit of kit (the tech)
Might be a bad batch.

I'm thinking bad design, mine has done the same. I've been gluing mine back together, so far so good.

mik_da_man

Oh that's not good, I assume it's covered under warranty?

liamog

It should be covered under warranty, I bought mine on a business trip to the US, so would need to post it over there for warranty issues, that's why I go with the superglue approach.

A1an006

Just to let people know, the band tearing is NOT covered under warranty unless you have Microsoft Complete. My band tore about 5 weeks ago (I super-glued it as well), and then 3 weeks ago the battery stopped charging. I sent it off to be repaired but they returned it saying it wasn't covered by warranty. Contacted support, and they said it would cost about €204 to replace! I told them it was a common issue, and they asked to send in photos to see if it's exchangeable or not. Waiting for a reply to that.

It seems the band tears if worn on the tightest setting. I wore mine on the 2nd tightest setting. Have to say, I'm bitterly disappointed that it didn't last longer than 3 months, considering how much I paid for it, and even more so that Microsoft are not accepting that it is clearly a manufacturing issue. Hopefully support will come back and say they will replace it, but honestly I'm not expecting much.

ablelocks

A1an006 wrote: »

Just to let people know, the band tearing is NOT covered under warranty unless you have Microsoft Complete. My band tore about 5 weeks ago (I super-glued it as well), and then 3 weeks ago the battery stopped charging. I sent it off to be repaired but they returned it saying it wasn't covered by warranty. Contacted support, and they said it would cost about €204 to replace! I told them it was a common issue, and they asked to send in photos to see if it's exchangeable or not. Waiting for a reply to that.

It seems the band tears if worn on the tightest setting. I wore mine on the 2nd tightest setting. Have to say, I'm bitterly disappointed that it didn't last longer than 3 months, considering how much I paid for it, and even more so that Microsoft are not accepting that it is clearly a manufacturing issue. Hopefully support will come back and say they will replace it, but honestly I'm not expecting much.

did you buy direct from MS? If you're not getting anywhere with the first line of support, ask for your case to be escalated. I had to do this to get a refund on the screen protector (!) - the supervisor only read about a third of the chat and agreed to a full and immediate refund. First line of support brief is to challenge any customer issues, the supervisors brief is to solve issues - or at least that's the impression I've gotten anytime I've had to deal with them.

I bought my band 2 on amazon.co.uk - they replaced my original band 1 without any argument (it had the issue of the rubber peeling from the back of the screen). If you bought from Amazon, there should be no issued getting a refund or replacement.

I hadn't heard about this tearing issue until i read it here - is it that common?

Fingleberries

A1an006 wrote: »

Just to let people know, the band tearing is NOT covered under warranty unless you have Microsoft Complete. My band tore about 5 weeks ago (I super-glued it as well), and then 3 weeks ago the battery stopped charging. I sent it off to be repaired but they returned it saying it wasn't covered by warranty. Contacted support, and they said it would cost about €204 to replace! I told them it was a common issue, and they asked to send in photos to see if it's exchangeable or not. Waiting for a reply to that.

It seems the band tears if worn on the tightest setting. I wore mine on the 2nd tightest setting. Have to say, I'm bitterly disappointed that it didn't last longer than 3 months, considering how much I paid for it, and even more so that Microsoft are not accepting that it is clearly a manufacturing issue. Hopefully support will come back and say they will replace it, but honestly I'm not expecting much.

Did you buy it in the UK, Ireland or elsewhere in the EU?

If so, then Warranty be damned - Warranty is over and above your consumer rights and does not replace them.

You can reasonably expect the specific device to last longer than 3 months, if it broke through normal usage in that time (as in you weren't hitting it with a hammer or driving over it with your car) then you should be offered a refund, repair or replacement "within a reasonable time and without any significant inconvenience"

For more details Check out the details of your consumer rights that should cover you for purchases in the EU.

For a purchase in the EU, you also covered by Sale of Goods and Associated Guarantees Directive 99/44/EC.
If you bought it in Ireland then you are also covered by the Sale of Goods and Supply of Services Act 1989.
If you bought it in the UK, then it is covered by the Sales of goods act 1979 in addition to the EU directive.

Your contract is with the retailer in the first instance and they should cover the repair, replacement or refund - but, if you press your case with Microsoft, that essentially MS will have to replace the device anyway, so they might as well cut out the middleman and just replace (or repair) it. Most importantly: Free of Charge and without any significant inconvenience

(If you bought it in the US, then you're in a far more difficult situation, though).

A1an006

Thanks for the replies, very informative. Yes, I bought it in Argos in Ireland. I've moved house recently though and can't find the receipt (typical), which is why I went straight to Microsoft. And haha, no, I've taken good care of it. I spotted the tear as it began to form, but there was little I could do about it. Super-glue did stop it from completely tearing though, but 2 weeks later it wouldn't hold charge. It seems that wearing it near the tightest settings is the culprit. It puts too much stress on the strap itself, and stretches the wires near the battery.

Yes, it does seem to be a common issue. I've seen threads on Reddit and the Band's forums too with the same issue e.g.:

[http://]answers.microsoft[dot].com/en-us/band/forum/msband2-band_hardware/cracked-rubber-on-my-band/620c2ce6-ed5c-4973-99c3-7b914d8101ad?page=1

(I'm not allowed post links)

I can (try) link to the pictures I have of my band. The tear is in the exact same spot as everyone else's. Lot's of people were able to walk into Microsoft Stores and get them replaced, no questions asked, meaning it is obviously a known issue. Unfortunately, with there being no Microsoft Store here, it's not that easy. I also wasn't allowed purchase Microsoft Complete as it was more than 45 days after the date of purchase.

Other than the issues above, I thought it was a great device. Really hope I can get it fixed/replaced, although I don't really know what I can do to stop it happening again other than having it hanging loose around my wrist. For reference, it's a size Medium, and i wore it on the 2nd tightest setting. Would I be correct in saying the sizes don't overlap?

MJohnston

My Band, when registered on the MS Support site, had a 3 year hardware warranty.

A1an006

MJohnston wrote: »

My Band, when registered on the MS Support site, had a 3 year hardware warranty.

My warranty goes up to December 2016, but the strap tearing was deemed accidental damage and as such, is not covered by the warranty. I took good care of my band, so it feels a bit like a slap in the face. The same tear, in the same place, happening to hundreds of people can't ALL be accidental damage.

MJohnston

A1an006 wrote: »

My warranty goes up to December 2016, but the strap tearing was deemed accidental damage and as such, is not covered by the warranty. I took good care of my band, so it feels a bit like a slap in the face. The same tear, in the same place, happening to hundreds of people can't ALL be accidental damage.

As pointed out above, keep pressing the issue, they WILL replace it.

A1an006

Will do, thanks. I'll post any resolution here as well. Could be handy as a future reference for someone else.

MJohnston

There's a thread on Windows Central's forums that covers this problem ("Rubber strap splitting on Band2") that should provide lots of extra evidence too!

A1an006

Good find, thanks. I did include a few links in the support ticket as well, to show I wasn't eating the thing or anything! I've requested an update from them, so I'll just have to wait and see.

liamog

I've upgraded to a Forerunner 235, mainly due to the split and the battery life, as a distance runner I was a little worried it wouldn't cover me for a full Marathon.

I'll attempt to do a warranty repair on it and let you all know how I get on.
If it's replaced I will probably stick it up on adverts or here if the charter allows it

Good luck A1an006 with your attempts.

ablelocks

MJohnston wrote: »

My Band, when registered on the MS Support site, had a 3 year hardware warranty.

have you a link to the band registration page? Never knew there was one....
ta

Fingleberries

A1an006 wrote: »

Will do, thanks. I'll post any resolution here as well. Could be handy as a future reference for someone else.

Warranty is extra cover, but the device is already legally covered by the things I listed previously. The Band 2 has not been released more than a year ago, so cannot possibly be over a year old.

As an aside, I had an issue with my Kinect for Xbox One and MS support wanted to charge me €60 to repair/replace it because it was over a year old and 'out of warranty' I pushed them with the various consumer protection laws and they replaced it for free.

If you can talk to someone rather than chat you may get further. (although it's always good to have the chat logs to fall back on as proof, if needed).

A1an006

Thanks for all the help, guys. Contacted support this morning, and re-explained my issue. I told them I had pictures of the tear, and how it looked exactly like everyone else's who had the same problem. I sent an email with the pictures attached, and included 5 links to forums - Band's own forums, a thread on WindowsCentral (thanks MJohnston) and several Reddit posts - where other people had the same problem.

The customer service agent was very helpful, and after reviewing my pictures, and the links I sent, deemed that it clearly wasn't accidental damage. They removed the accidental damage flag that had being set against my account (needed a superior to do this), and set my Band up for exchange again. To confirm, I asked could it be returned again and NOT fixed for the same issue, but they said "it should not be deemed accidental damage again. Accidental damage would be physical damage possibly caused by the customer. Judging from your images this does not seem to be the case." Once they have my warranty amended, they will process the exchange and send me the shipping label to return my Band.

I'm still waiting for the label, but I imagine updating the warranty will take a bit of time. However, as someone who has a healthy dose of scepticism, I won't consider this resolved until I physically have the repaired/replaced Band. That said, it does seem to be looking positive. I didn't even need to drop the "law bomb" (thanks Fingleberries) to get this sorted, although I had all the relevant details ready to go in case I did. Have to say the Microsoft agent was quite helpful.

TL;DR

Contacted support again, tear deemed not accidental, band will be exchanged.

liamog

I've seen reference to them updating the polymer mix in the Band from February onwards, maybe this means that they've fixed the issue.

Sir Oxman

I got fully refunded by Littlewoods after explaining issue, links etc photos and sending back. No questions asked while MS tried to put me through the ringer initially.

I loved the Band 2 but am back with my Band 1 cos there is definitely a flaw with v2's strap and I'm not inclined to take the chance on another one.
Pity, it's great tech

A1an006

A1an006 wrote: »

Contacted support again, tear deemed not accidental, band will be exchanged.

Just posting an update to my issue. Got my band exchanged. Took just under a week from the time I sent it off, 'til the time I had the new Band back. I can't tell if it's a new Band, or a refurb, but it seems like it's new. Happy to have the issue resolved finally, after initially support wanted me to pay ~€204 for an out-of-warranty replacement.

Not sure how'll I'll stop the Band from tearing again, but I'll treat that thing like a baby from now on! (i.e. I won't drop it TOO much )

Seriously though, thanks for all the advice.

liamog

A1an006 wrote: »

Just posting an update to my issue. Got my band exchanged. Took just under a week from the time I sent it off, 'til the time I had the new Band back. I can't tell if it's a new Band, or a refurb, but it seems like it's new. Happy to have the issue resolved finally, after initially support wanted me to pay ~€204 for an out-of-warranty replacement.

Not sure how'll I'll stop the Band from tearing again, but I'll treat that thing like a baby from now on! (i.e. I won't drop it TOO much )

Seriously though, thanks for all the advice.

Same here, they replaced mine as well and looks to be a new one. Was expecting difficulty because I purchased it in the US. As I said earlier will be sticking this up on Adverts as have moved on to Forerunner

quad_red

Are they updating this soon?

I see allot of people on here got it for £150/€180 in the last few months.

Prices are £190 (Amazon UK), €279 (littlewoods), €318 (Argos) at the moment.

Is that because stock is running down?

Why are prices going up so sharply?

liamog

quad_red wrote: »

Are they updating this soon?

I see allot of people on here got it for £150/€180 in the last few months.

Prices are £190 (Amazon UK), €279 (littlewoods), €318 (Argos) at the moment.

Is that because stock is running down?

Why are prices going up so sharply?

I wouldn't expect to see a new one until the start of 2017. MS are meant to have pushed their second OS release of 2016 to beginning of 2017 to align with new hardware. I'd say they'd follow the same approach as Band 2 and do a combined Lumia, Surface and Band refresh.

Of course by then Lumia is meant to be replaced with Surface Phone, all rumour based so take with a pinch of salt.

MJohnston

Earliest v3 will be announced would be November, but as liamog mentions, they might push it to 2017 to line up with the rumoured Surface mobile hardware.

MJohnston

LIGHTNING wrote: »

I have yet to get any notifications through the notification centre since I got my band 2 Any ideas on how to get it working? In the Microsoft health app I can see the individual apps that you can set to alert in there but I get none.

Hmm - the problem is more likely on the phone end than the Band, so what phone OS and version are you using?

CatInABox

LIGHTNING wrote: »

lol a un/re of the app fixed the notifications. Being in IT I should have tried it first before posting! Hurrah Whatsapp notifications!!

:pac:

This happens to me all the time. If a problem happens on my computer, I immediately start thinking of what could be wrong, and what to do about it. After an hour of messing around, I'll need to reset my PC for a completely different reason, then realise that I just accidentally fixed the problem I first had.

I'll then sit there for a while with a red face while I hope no one realises what just happened.

MJohnston

http://www.windowscentral.com/microsoft-confirms-new-hiking-features-and-explore-tile-coming-microsoft-band-2

This looks like it's going to be a really cool software update!

Yggr of Asgard

Excellent addition in theory, updated this morning and went exploring. There seams to be some bugs with it.

It counted my steps during the explore activity double in the dashboard/apps, while the step counter on the band is showing the correct amount. So I know have nearly 2000 steps more in the dashboards than I have done.

The GPS is running in power savings mode which makes the display of the route taking very bad, nothing like the excellent tracking during "run" tile use. I have a specific route I do every day and in "run" I can see how I follow the bends of the river, in explore mode, it's a single line.

I did a pause after a while to have a chat to someone, I restarted the "explore" and it continued to track the walk (steps, elevation etc.) but on the map in the dashboard I set an end flag to where I paused, while all the data (steps, time etc.) continued until I stopped.

There are also some nicer info in the "explore" mode if you walk as it show you a nice summary screen and more info about where you were and so on.

I'll take it for another spin this evening and see if it again does a double count.

Yggr of Asgard

After I did a soft reset on the band no more double counting of explore steps.

allybhoy

Ordered one from Microsoft UK direct this morning, 150 sterling delivered which works out at 180 euro which isnt bad. Looking forward to playing with it when it lands.

I intend to use it with a galaxy S5, what are people's opinions on the android compatibility with it?
I also have a Lumia 650 that i could use instead but id prefer to stick with Android.