More on my experience with One Laptop per Child

I have been posting on my experience with the One Laptop Per Child XO computer I bought. I ordered it on November 12th, received it on December 20th, and opened and tried to get it to work on December 25th. No luck. I can get it to show an on light, and was able to charge the battery, but the screen stayed dark and there was no sound. Click on the "olpc" label at the end of the posting to see the whole story.

On my second call in which I actually spoke to someone I got an agreement to have someone call me who would be authorized to issue a Return Merchandise Authorization. After two days, I got a call, but unfortunately I missed it. (You have to go to the bathroom once and a while.) The message said that I should call the number I had been calling, and anyone there could issue the RMA.

I called at 9:05 this morning, and discovered that there is now a different phone message, which automates the handling of complaints about computers that don't work. After about ten minutes I got an operator. She took all my information which took about another ten or fifteen minutes. Note, that I had already done this whole business twice before -- name, address, phone number, date of purchase, confirmation number, serial number of the machine, date of delivery, was the box damaged, what was wrong with the computer.

At this point I was wondering if I could simply return the computer and get a refund (I was quite willing to forgo the donation of $200 for a computer for a kid abroad and the shipping cost). I was told that since I had opened the shipping box, I did not qualify for a refund.

However, if I ship the computer to Brightstar, they will look at it, and if they decide it doesn't work, they will repair it under warranty and send it back. Otherwise they will just send it back (and I can use it as a doorstop.) I was warned that if I did not return it in six days, they would not accept the return. I was also told to expect a one month turn around on the review, possible repair, and return of the computer.

More later.

Meanwhile, BBC today reports that Intel is pulling out of the OLPC partnership due to "philosophical differences".