Samsung S4 Issue

E

erMaC

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Hi guys,

The last few days I have been experiencing major problems with my S4, the device is shutting off when the battery is still at like 80-90% and it won't boot back into the OS until it is plugged in. So this lead me to believe it was a battery issue. I took the battery out and it is quite swollen in the centre. I phoned up my local Cell C and asked if I could just swop the battery out, I was sadly informed that they need to send the entire device up to Joburg and it would take 21 working days. This is just plain pathetic.

The device is less than 6 months old, surely in terms of the of the CPA implied warranty of quality period I have the right to demand a new device?
 
erMaC said:
The device is less than 6 months old, surely in terms of the of the CPA implied warranty of quality period I have the right to demand a new device?
Click to expand...
I doubt you can demand a new device, they will replace the battery if that is the only issue with the device and replace or repair your device if there's some other issue causing the battery problem.
 
R13... said:
I doubt you can demand a new device, they will replace the battery if that is the only issue with the device and replace or repair your device if there's some other issue causing the battery problem.
Click to expand...

That's pretty much what Cell C told me, but I remember when CPA came out they did a bit of a talk about it at work. I just checked the act

56. Implied warranty of quality.—
(1) In any transaction or agreement pertaining to the supply of goods to a consumer there is an implied provision that the producer or importer, the distributor and the retailer each warrant that the goods comply with the requirements and standards contemplated in section 55, except to the extent that those goods have been altered contrary to the instructions, or after leaving the control, of the producer or importer, a distributor or the retailer, as the case may be.

(2) Within six months after the delivery of any goods to a consumer, the consumer may return the goods to the supplier, without penalty and at the supplier’s risk and expense, if the goods fail to satisfy the requirements and standards contemplated in section 55, and the supplier must, at the direction of the consumer, either—

(a)

repair or replace the failed, unsafe or defective goods; or
(b)

refund to the consumer the price paid by the consumer, for the goods.
(3) If a supplier repairs any particular goods or any component of any such goods, and within three months after that repair, the failure, defect or unsafe feature has not been remedied, or a further failure, defect or unsafe feature is discovered, the supplier must—

(a)

replace the goods; or
(b)

refund to the consumer the price paid by the consumer for the goods.
(4) The implied warranty imposed by subsection (1), and the right to return goods set out in subsection (2), are each in addition to—

(a)

any other implied warranty or condition imposed by the common law, this Act or any other public regulation; and
(b)

any express warranty or condition stipulated by the producer or importer, distributor or retailer, as the case may be.
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So the way I would interpret that is I can choose to get a new device and save myself the hassle of being without a phone for a month.
 
Your biggest issue here is that you are in a remote area,If you were in JHB you could have gone to a samsung repair center and in a few hours(took them 1 and a half to sort out my screen) you could have your phone sorted out.

Don't you know anybody coming here that could sort it out for you,I'm not sure if dbn and ct have samsung repair centers.
 
erMaC said:
Hi guys,

The last few days I have been experiencing major problems with my S4, the device is shutting off when the battery is still at like 80-90% and it won't boot back into the OS until it is plugged in. So this lead me to believe it was a battery issue. I took the battery out and it is quite swollen in the centre. I phoned up my local Cell C and asked if I could just swop the battery out, I was sadly informed that they need to send the entire device up to Joburg and it would take 21 working days. This is just plain pathetic.

The device is less than 6 months old, surely in terms of the of the CPA implied warranty of quality period I have the right to demand a new device?
Click to expand...

Hi erMaC, you can book the handset in for repairs at a Cell C store. They can provide a loan unit if they have stock. *DM*
 
falcon786 said:
Your biggest issue here is that you are in a remote area,If you were in JHB you could have gone to a samsung repair center and in a few hours(took them 1 and a half to sort out my screen) you could have your phone sorted out.

Don't you know anybody coming here that could sort it out for you,I'm not sure if dbn and ct have samsung repair centers.
Click to expand...


Actually you gave me a great idea, I had a look on the Samsung website and found two accredited service centers in PE. One of them had batteries in stock, will sort it out that way. Thanks!
 
Cell_C said:
Hi erMaC, you can book the handset in for repairs at a Cell C store. They can provide a loan unit if they have stock. *DM*
Click to expand...

Thank you for your reply, I phoned my local store and they told me the same story, but they said it would be a basic unit that wouldn't even run Whatsapp. I can't operate like that for a month unfortunately.
 
encrypted said:
And the battery looks slightly swollen.

Edit: The "swollen" part is the NFC. There was a recent software update I see too.
Click to expand...

encrypted said:
Wifes phone been doing it for last few days too.
Click to expand...

Spoke to a very friendly repair guy at the service center, he said they had been having this problem with several S4s, apparently it is a batch of batteries. They have been instructed to send all these issues directly to Samsung, but a new battery is going to cost me R320. I'm rather just going to shell out and save myself the hassle.

Also the XDA forums seem to confirm this as a problem http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=2447355

My battery serial is part of that batch, so I will go grab a new battery after work. Hopefully that will sort everything out.
 
erMaC said:
Spoke to a very friendly repair guy at the service center, he said they had been having this problem with several S4s, apparently it is a batch of batteries. They have been instructed to send all these issues directly to Samsung, but a new battery is going to cost me R320. I'm rather just going to shell out and save myself the hassle.

Also the XDA forums seem to confirm this as a problem http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=2447355

My battery serial is part of that batch, so I will go grab a new battery after work. Hopefully that will sort everything out.
Click to expand...

Maybe you should just send in your battery if they are willing to do it that way?That way you'll end up with a spare.
 
falcon786 said:
Maybe you should just send in your battery if they are willing to do it that way?That way you'll end up with a spare.
Click to expand...

Ya I will chat to them this afternoon when I get there to see if that is viable.

Something interesting I discovered today is the warranty on the battery is only 6 months, not 24 months like the rest of the unit.
 
encrypted said:
And the battery looks slightly swollen.

Edit: The "swollen" part is the NFC. There was a recent software update I see too.
Click to expand...

Ok now that I can compare my new battery to the old I can confirm they should sit flat. The NFC doesn't cause a protrusion. If you can spin the battery easily on a flat surface you've probably got issues.

See a photo of the two side by side. Apologies for the bad pic I took it from my tablet
6ehu3ahy.jpg


Note how the battery on the right is actually raised.
 
take it to an official Samsung center ans complain until they give you a new battery. this is a known issue. Search for article relating to it and even go on the Samsung site to find the official press release for this and show them if they say "I dont know about this" ha bull****. They are obligated to give you a new battery as this is their fault and you are not to blame in any way. You should not have to wait for a replacement this should be on the spot in my opinion and if this happened to my s4 i would make their life hell until I got it my way.
 
Hey guys.. There's a bad batch of batteries in circulation. You can identify if urs is from the bad batch by checking the serial number on the battery. If it starts with "BD" then u need to get that swapped out immediately.. Google your nearest Samsung agent and get it swapped out. Samsung has admitted there is a problem with some batteries and you can swap them out.
 
rickster your 100% right there and i've seen it happen before but this isnt the case. A lot of users are having this issue and its basically Samsungs fault, they are recalling the battery pretty much without officially recalling it. Kinda cheating cause they want to keep this quite as it is a rather large percentage that are effected, some 30% from what I've read, i wouldn't quote that figure though could be wrong, read it in an tech blog.
 
Thanks guys, yea my battery was from the BD series. I bought a new one in the interim, will take the faulty one in at some stage to get a spare. I suppose these things happen, still can't believe Cell C wanted me to send my entire phone in for a month, for what is a known battery issue.

Rickster I agree some people really do mistreat their batteries, however I think you would have to really abuse a battery to get it into this sort of state in less than 5 months. And I feel I generally treat my batteries rather well.
 
I wouldn't take it back to cell c, or any carrier in general if this problem happens to people not on cell c just saying. take it to the closest official Samsung store cause they should have a clue as to what going on. Generally when i go there they seem to know whats going on, or at least more than the carriers
 
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