We have now had two people post that iRobot Customer Support has told them that putting the Roomba into Diagnostic Mode has voided their warranty!
I'm going to give iRobot the benefit of the doubt, and assume that this is simply a case of misinformed customer service reps, rather than an actual policy.
For the record, putting the Roomba into Diagnostic mode does not harm the Roomba in any way. It merely assists in troubleshooting a problem, and I have personally had iRobot technical support walk me through putting the Roomba into diagnostic mode, as I'm sure has been the case with countless other customers.
I will be following up with the people who have been told this, as well as iRobot, to get to the bottom of this as quickly as possible. In the meantime, if you call customer support - DO NOT TELL THEM THAT YOU HAVE PUT THE ROOMBA INTO DIAGNOSTIC MODE.
And rest assured, if iRobot does hold firm with this absurd policy, I will personally pay to replace the units of EVERY SINGLE PERSON who is denied warranty replacement for this reason.
Contact me via private message, or at webmaster@robotreviews.com if you have been denied warranty service in any way because of putting your Roomba into Diagnostic Mode.
Regards,
Craig
WARNING! DIAGNOSTIC MODE VOIDS WARRANTY!??!?!
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robotreviews
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WARNING! DIAGNOSTIC MODE VOIDS WARRANTY!??!?!
Last edited by robotreviews on January 23rd, 2007, 2:36 pm, edited 1 time in total.
I kinda hear were Irobot is coming from. If you run the wheel motor tests and don't attend to the robot, it could kill itself or damage personal belongings. All of the protection features are disabled. I believe the poster that first reported this is telling the truth, he ran diag mode after the roomba went for a trip down the stairs. But what about the person that runs the wheel test and has the robot burn a motor out if it hits a wall or breaks when it goes sailing down the stairs?
A person could get injured too, while running the robot in your lap you could get a finger stuck in the wheels or brushes.
Irobot probably feels walking a person through the diags under supervision was a good idea but I bet they will stop that practice too.
A lot of us are perfectly able to run diag mode. But Irobot is a public company out for maximum profit. They are not going to hurt their bottom line by replacing robots trashed due to neglect.
Mike
A person could get injured too, while running the robot in your lap you could get a finger stuck in the wheels or brushes.
Irobot probably feels walking a person through the diags under supervision was a good idea but I bet they will stop that practice too.
A lot of us are perfectly able to run diag mode. But Irobot is a public company out for maximum profit. They are not going to hurt their bottom line by replacing robots trashed due to neglect.
Mike
Last edited by mfortuna on December 19th, 2006, 6:15 pm, edited 1 time in total.
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THX-1138
- Robot Master
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As Sir Winston Churchill said once :
"...dummy proof everything and you will end up with a dummy society..."
I disagree with the view to protect everyone from everything. Provide a disclaimer / warning, to those who can and are able to handle the diagnostics, that iRobot is not liable to what may happen if diagnostics is run without 'professional' support. Personal emergency power plants provide similar warnings and/or disclaimers on their generators not to be used in a enclosed environment but some people still do and kill themselves (read latest news), in these cases are the personal generator companies liable? People have to take responsibility of their doings, no one can protect everything from everyone.
"...dummy proof everything and you will end up with a dummy society..."
I disagree with the view to protect everyone from everything. Provide a disclaimer / warning, to those who can and are able to handle the diagnostics, that iRobot is not liable to what may happen if diagnostics is run without 'professional' support. Personal emergency power plants provide similar warnings and/or disclaimers on their generators not to be used in a enclosed environment but some people still do and kill themselves (read latest news), in these cases are the personal generator companies liable? People have to take responsibility of their doings, no one can protect everything from everyone.
Not my view, just my perception of Irobot's view. I think they are making mistakes with regard to service and marketing. I'm not trying to hijack this thread so please don't reply regarding 2 or 3.
1. The diag mode warranty exclusion. My prior gripe was the ebay warrenty exclusion.
2. The lack of warrenty extension when your robot breaks and is out of service.
3. Too many products. Offer 4 robots; basic roomba, roomba deluxe, basic scooba, and scooba deluxe.
Mike
1. The diag mode warranty exclusion. My prior gripe was the ebay warrenty exclusion.
2. The lack of warrenty extension when your robot breaks and is out of service.
3. Too many products. Offer 4 robots; basic roomba, roomba deluxe, basic scooba, and scooba deluxe.
Mike
Fortunately, it's a moot point as several consumer warranty laws place the burdon of proof for the cause of failure on the manufacturer. iRobot cannot automatically void the warranty just because you place the unit into diagnostic mode. Now if placing the unit in diagnostic mode resulted in a failure that needed repaired, then they could void the warranty but only if they'd informed you in writing through the documentation that came with the unit that if you do so, placing the roomba into diagnostic mode "may" violate the warranty.
And in California, they're further excluded from making even that restriction.
And in California, they're further excluded from making even that restriction.