In most of the press conferences I attended, our hosts always mention TCO.  The reason behind it is because companies would like to assure their consumers that owning their product is very easy; it's very affordable even if you factor in the other elements of ownership as defined by the term TCO.

The reason why I brought this up is because every time my readers or listeners ask me what they should consider in buying a computer or a gadget, I always tell them to consider the warranty policies.  Because to me the cost of servicing the product is far more important than the price of acquiring the product--of course the acquisition price should be reasonable as well.

The next time I will be asked the same question, I will not only consider the cost of servicing the product but also the cost of servicing the product after the warranty period.  Why?

Just recently, I got an e-mail from a reader named John, telling me about his experience with his iPod Shuffle, iPod Nano and Palm Treo 650.  All the products mentioned come with a one (1) year warranty.  John said that during the warranty period, he didn't encounter any problems when it came to servicing his gadgets.  Problems occurred when the warranty period ended.

The battery of John's iPod Shuffle and iPod Nano encountered some problems.  So he went to a service center to have his iPod fixed, fully aware that it was already out of warranty.  John said he was willing to pay for the service cost.  John was surprised to find out that the service center could no longer fix his iPod, not only because it was already out of warranty but because they just don't fix it, period.

John then recalled that during the warranty period the service center replaced his iPod every time it encountered problems.  But he was never told that they could not fix his iPod.  All the while he thought that swapping was part of their good service.  The service center informed him that since his iPod was out of warranty his only course of action was to buy a new one.

After a few months, John's Treo 650 broke down too.  For some unknown reason, John said the speaker of his Treo did not seem to work.  Every time he made a call or whenever someone called him on the phone, he couldn’t hear the other party's voice.  Unfortunately John's Treo was out of warranty too.  So he went to a service center to have it fixed.  He was asked to call a toll free number (Singapore) and was asked to pay 5 (Singaporean dollars) or the equivalent of P 8,580.00.  Once the amount was paid the service center will be informed about the transaction and his Treo 650 will be replaced with a working, refurbished Treo. 

John knew that the only problem of his Treo650 was the speaker, which can be caused by a loose connection.  But because of the Treo's service procedure, he had to shell out 5 for a replacement because they just don't do repairs.  Since they were offering refurbished Treos as replacements that means John’s Treo can be fixed.  It’s just that they really don't do repairs.

My own experience in this respect had to do with my printer when it broke down.  I went to a repair shop and the technician advised me to just buy a new printer rather than have my printer fixed.  Basic printers nowadays just cost around P 2,500.00 to P 3,000.00.  One time, I was even surprised when I was about to buy cartridges (inks) the salesperson suggested that I buy a new printer instead.  A cartridge will cost around P 1,000.00 - P 1,500.00.

I suppose there are other products that have the same service procedure.  Perhaps it would be wise for us consumers to check their warranty policies and their after warranty service.  Most of us use our hard earned money to buy the things we want.  It's a bit disappointing to realize later on that the things we treasure have a limited lifespan and the only way for us to continuously enjoy it is to buy a new one as a replacement.  Is that fair?

What I want to see here is for companies to inform consumers about their entire service policy that comes with their product, during and after the warranty period and, if possible, try to repair the damaged goods even after the warranty period and charge a reasonable fee.  Otherwise, some may take advantage of the current service set-up.  Some may intentionally damage or destroy their gadget days before the warranty period ends and have it replaced with a new one.  I don't think this will be a pleasant practice for everyone concerned.

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