Fujitsu offers free Lifebook replacement every three years
Fujitsu laptops are sort of secret favorites of us here at BBG: they just make well designed, affordable laptops with long battery life and tablet screens without a lot of fanfare and guff. Rob swears by his, only lamenting it can't run OS X.
Fujitsu's latest promotion is their Lifebook 4 Life campaign. Only available right now on their British website, any one who purchases a new Lifebook notebook until March 2009 will be able to get a brand new replacement Lifebook "of like for like specifications" every 3 years for the rest of your life, as long as you purchase the three years extended warranty.
I think that's a win: sure, it might not be the best laptop Fujitsu's got to offer, but it's basically a program that sends you a free back-up laptop for the rest of your life.
Lifebook 4 Life [Fujitsu]
the latest
latest episodes
They're awfully cagey. A click on the "terms and conditions" link simply takes you to a registration page. My guess is that they'll require you to buy another extended warranty and reserve the right to terminate the program whenever they bloody well feel like it. Pass. :)
Question is going to be how much each 3-year warranty cycle costs (and I too assume the offer is only good as long as you keep up the service contract.) Assuming prices continue to drop, it may not be all that long before the contract costs more than a replacement unit would.
And I'm not sure I'd bet that performance continues to improve in every generation. The netbooks are a clear move in the other direction, back toward cheaper machines with just enough cycles to handle typical non-game applications. "Like for like" might result in your being sent a Netbook plus an external keyboard and display peripheral, which wouldn't be an improvement.
It's an interesting idea -- basically turning the purchase into a kind of leasing arrangement. Probably a good deal for many people. But the devil is in the details.
3 year on-site warranty about £57.20 from the Fujitsu Siemens online store! Still I find the qualifing Lifebooks a little expensive to start with - so the devil really will be in the details. If they were a bit more forthcoming I might be seriously tempted; I'm lucky if I don't kill a laptop every two years.
This was discussed on /. a few days back. I haven't read the T&C myself, but the concensus there was that there were a great number of hoops to be jumped through.
The ones I can remember offhand were:
The replacement will be the same value or up to 10% more to account for inflation (so yu have to hope inflation stays low)
You need to present the original receipt - sounds good in principle, but thermal-printed receipts go black and illegible over time.
If you refuse or miss one upgrade, you're inelegible for any future upgrades.
The general feeling among the (reactionary, deeply cynical) /. crowd was that after a few cycles there'd be almost no-one who still qualified and, after several years' inflation, no hardware worth owning for that price.
Terms and Conditions..
http://www.lifebook4lifeclaims.co.uk/terms_conditions.php
Promotional period 01/10/08 to 31/03/09. Claims must be submitted online and received by us with a copy of the invoice within 21 days of the purchase date.
1. This promotion is open to residents of the United Kingdom aged 16 years and over only, excluding employees of Fujitsu Siemens Computers, their families or anyone else professionally connected with this offer. No third party applications permitted. We reserve the right to closely monitor usage of the promotional website, including users IP addresses, so that we may identify misuse, and disqualify applications if we have reason to believe the terms of the promotion have been breached.
2. Fujitsu Siemens Computer customers are entitled to a replacement Lifebook every 3 years for the purchaser’s lifetime, at no cost, as long as they adhere to the terms and conditions of this offer. After completing the registration process it is not then compulsory for the purchaser to participate further in the offer, the purchaser can choose not to exchange their Lifebook after 3 years but will also then be excluded from any further replacements. There is no option for the purchaser to buy their original Lifebook from us at the end of this term after requesting a replacement.
3. This promotion is only open and applicable to the purchase of specific qualifying products covered by a Fujitsu Siemens 3 year warranty, either included or purchased at the time of the product and therefore shown on the product purchase invoice; LIFEBOOK S, LIFEBOOK T, LIFEBOOK E, LIFEBOOK Q and LIFEBOOK P models. A maximum of 10 units in total may be registered per private buyer or company.
4. A lifetime is determined by the original personal purchaser’s life, or the time in which a business trades in its original name under the original ownership. The offer is not transferrable to another individual or business, claims will only be accepted by the original purchaser.
5. The replacement Lifebook value will be determined by the original purchase price shown on the invoice, increased by 10% every 3 years. For example; a Lifebook purchased for £1000 today would be exchanged for a model with a recommended retail price not exceeding £1100 in 3 years time.
6. Only original Fujitsu Siemens accessories and upgrades should be installed during the period of ownership. The original Lifebook must be returned, in good working original order, with no damage or faults to the address provided in the claim pack sent to successful applicants. Returned Lifebooks will be examined before a replacement is issued.
7. If a claim is refused the promoter’s decision is final and Fujitsu Siemens Computers will not enter into any correspondence once a decision has been made. Fujitsu Siemen’s promotions are executed fairly and honestly and with the best of intentions at all times.
8. In order to qualify, you must submit your application within 21 days of purchasing your product, by submitting an application you agree to these terms in their entirety.
9. The closing date for applications is 21st April 2009. Any applications received after this date will be deemed invalid.
10. To qualify for the promotion you must send the following documents:
* A fully completed claim form, printed after completing the application process online at www.lifebook4lifeclaims.co.uk
* A copy of your purchase invoice clearly detailing the purchase of your product and dated within the promotional period - despatch notes etc are not acceptable.
11. Applications will be screened for validity to ensure that the transaction made is a bona fide purchase of the qualifying product.
12. Your proof of purchase will not be posted back to you - please do not send the original.
13. Provided that the terms and conditions of this promotion have been met, you will be sent a claim pack by post, containing full details of the claim procedure. This should be kept in a safe place, as the original documentation will be required to complete a claim.
14. Proof of posting will not be accepted as proof of receipt. Fujitsu Siemens Computers cannot accept liability for any applications lost, damaged or destroyed in the post.
15. Address for correspondence is Lifebook for Life Offer, PO Box 661, Harrogate HG1 9HN.
16. This promotion is limited up to a maximum of 10 qualifying products purchased during the period of the promotion.
Promoter: Fujitsu Siemens Computers, FSC Campus, The Boulevard, Cain Road, Bracknell, Berks, RG12 1HH - please do not send any applications or promotional correspondence to this address.
This could be an enormous environmental win. If a manufacturer builds so that they can get their raw materials back they could make a ton of money. Exactly this sort of built-in-lease business model is in the great book "Cradle to Cradle".
When it says like for like specifications, what does that actually mean? Only the specifications that Fujitsu decides are important?
When DVD drives become redundant, does 'having a DVD drive' count as a spec that you could force them to provide on the new machine?
Touchpads? Weight? Chasis finish? USB slots? In-built webcam / mic? Battery life? Graphics card?
It seems probable the only spec they'll feel a duty to give you like-for-like is cost, HD capacity and speed.
Do you have to buy the service plan every 3 years, or only the first 3 years?
If it's the former, what stops them increasing the price of the service plan?