Very-PC Thinbooks

[Homeland]

Hi Everyone,

 

Has anyone had any problem with Very-PC Thinbooks ?? we purchased 10 recently with 4GB RAM and i7 CPU's to use in the classroom.

 

We only got them at the start of the term and already we are having problems with 7 of them for no apparent reason they are making a loud beeping noise (sounds like a fire alarm)

and then the system shuts down without any prior warning, it's then a real struggle to get the system to power back on, we sent one back to Very-PC but apparently

the thinbook didn't replicate the fault.

 

As we are expecting OFSTED soon and these could not be trusted to work I have had to order 10 Dell Latitude's to replace them at great cost as well, whilst we do seem to have

a really good relationship with Colin McCarthy at Very-PC it does make it difficult to order from Very-PC again if we can't get an answer and suitable resolution.

[FN-GM]

Credit for posting this. Some people shy away from doing it.

 

As a community we need to know whats going on with companies and suppliers.

[X-13]

@Homeland is there anything in the event viewer about the shutdown? It could shed some light on what's going on.

 

 

We have thinbooks here and I haven't been told of any issues other than one [literally one] having problems connecting to the network first thing in the morning.

[Mark182]

My first port of call would be to speak to @VeryPC

[dhicks]

Has anyone had any problem with Very-PC Thinbooks ??

 

We've ordered two, but they haven't arrived yet - delivery seems a bit slow at the moment.

[tmcd35]

We've got 14 of these here, lower spec, and have had no problems. Indeed so far good reports from teachers who love them. We've got quiet a bit of VeryPC kit here and so far very few problems. The odd issue we have had as been sorted professionally and quickly.

 

In terms of the problem, it sounds suspiciously power related. Have you checked the power connection is fully home? Tried running the machines without batteries? Also, when you sent one off to VeryPC did you send the power brick as well or just the laptop?

 

We've ordered two, but they haven't arrived yet - delivery seems a bit slow at the moment.

 

Ours took their time arriving as well. I think it's a supply and demand problem - very popular and over subscribed.

Edited November 6, 2014 by tmcd35

[Koldov]

we are having problems with 7 of them for no apparent reason they are making a loud beeping noise (sounds like a fire alarm)

and then the system shuts down without any prior warning

 

I don't know this particular model, but this sounds to me like some sort of warning, like temperature (possibly) set up in the bios.

 

we sent one back to Very-PC but apparently the thinbook didn't replicate the fault.... whilst we do seem to have really good relationship with Colin McCarthy at Very-PC.

 

If these 7 were identified by yourselves as consistently having an issue I would have maybe looked at sending back all 7 (or at least more than one).

 

Edit - I would also work through this thoroughly with the supplier - They seem like a decent bunch and although I have only purchased 1 PC, the issue I had with it was sorted quite quickly.

 

Kol.

Edited November 6, 2014 by Koldov

[Homeland]

My first port of call would be to speak to @VeryPC

 

I have already spoken to them Mark and even sent them one of the faulty units with its power brick but still they have no answer, tried it with the batteries in and out and but it's such a random fault

that the one that has done it today is first time it has happened but I have also had another teacher in touch this morning and hers is doing I as well now :-(

[Homeland]

I don't know this particular model, but this sounds to me like some sort of warning, like temperature (possibly) set up in the bios.

 

 

 

If these 7 were identified by yourselves as consistently having an issue I would have maybe looked at sending back all 7.

 

Kol.

 

Just about to order another 30 laptops Kol and don' think I will be ordering through Very-PC at this rate.

Edited November 6, 2014 by Homeland
error

[Jamoire]

We had a similar problem with some of our equivalent model Stone laptops, turns out they forgot to connect the CPU fans up so they were simply overheating and refused to turn back on until they were sufficiently cool again.

[Mark182]

Hum..Id look in event viewer like @X-13 said and then look at sending them back, I'm guessing you have the RTB warranty? Could be a BIOS issue of serval of them are doing it? Out of interest what OS are you using? We had a slimier issue with some Lenovo laptops we downgraded from Win8 with the official Lenovo drivers to Win7, turns out the wireless LAN card is not compatible fully with Win7.

[midweek]

Does sound like an overheating CPU. Maybe run something like Real Temp and see how hot the CPU is running and how close to the max they are running.

[Homeland]

Just spoke to Very-PC and a chap called Tom who informs me that they think it's a fault with the batteries and are looking into it now.

[VeryPC_Andy]

Hi there @Homeland

 

First of all, I want to say sorry for the trouble you’ve had with our Thinbook product. We absolutely hate it when a VeryPC customer has a disappointing experience with us.

 

Whilst the VeryPC technical team are handling your warranty requirements with you privately, I think it’s also important that I make a brief response here for the sake of others in the community who are reading along.

 

In a few isolated cases VeryPC customers have recently reported similar issues to those described above with the Thinbook. By talking with the manufacturer, we have now worked out that a small proportion from a particular batch of Clevo W540 and W550 models have a fault which can lead to an intermittent CPU overheat alarm and system shutdown. The alarm appears not to be caused by an actual overheat which points toward either a firmware, power or CPU fan fault. Despite this, and frustratingly, the symptoms of the specifically affected products are not resolved by firmware update or CPU fan remount. The Taiwanese manufacturer of the Thinbook, Clevo, and Intel are aware of the issue and are supporting VeryPC to diagnose and issue a fix for returned products in their labs.

 

We have replaced and will replace any further Thinbooks with this issue when the support case is not resolvable by other means. Unfortunately the issue is intermittent and very difficult to replicate in a lab environment to determine a fix. We will be contacting the small number of VeryPC customers that are potentially affected in the next few days to determine if their Thinbooks may be affected by this issue and to make sure they are taken care of.

 

Looking after our customers is extremely important to us. Any business is only as strong as its relationships so we work really hard to keep our customers happy and always do the right thing by them so those relationships continue and prosper.

 

If anyone has any doubts, they can of course contact their VeryPC account manager or call our technical support line on 0845 0345 018 or email [email protected] and we’ll be happy to address their concerns.

 

Andy

Edited November 6, 2014 by VeryPC_Andy

[Homeland]

I really do want to stress that the purpose of this thread is not to have a go at Very-PC in any way whatsoever we have 100 of their thinbooks in the school and this is only a small amount that have had this issue.

 

The guys at Very-PC both technical and non-technical have been in constant communication to try and resolve this issue, the main purpose of the thread was so see if anyone else

has had the issue before or could maybe point me in a direction I had not previously thought of to try and help resolve the fault.

 

Once again I cannot stress enough this is in no way a dig at Very-PC just a cry for help trying to resolve the fault, I do apologise to everyone at Very-PC if that's the way this thread appears.

[VeryPC_Andy]

No apology required @Homeland

 

I think your quest for additional help is perfectly valid and I'm quite impressed by how calm and measured your reaction to this difficult situation has been.

 

I posted here today because I thought a public apology was in order and to share the information we have on the subject for anyone following the thread.

 

Andy