Samsung laptops bricked by using UEFI

Unless it is completely dead, I suggest you study the thread linked below for a possible remedy. That thread is now our preferred source for info about unbricking, and is also linked in the Samsung Forum Sticky list (top of the forum).

http://forum.notebookreview.com/samsung/762595-samsung-series-7-np700z5c-s03ca-my-last-hope.html

 

See the Samsung UK website:

Contact details

Service locations

John

 

HI,

Well I've been in contact with samsung and I was told I'll have to replace my motherboard for £250. This far too much money for a fault that was not of my doing.

 

It's time to start referring to the Sale of Goods Act and latent defects (although that legislation puts the onus on the retailer to fix the problem). The vulnerability of some Samsung notebooks (which model is yours?) to bricking is well documented and is arguably a latent defect for which the noraml warranty period does not apply in UK consumer legislation.

Or you can try some DIY unbricking which, with the knowledge contributed by some other members, may not require any special hardware. I see you are aware of the other thread. Read through the past few months of discussion.

John

 

Hi, thanks for the reply. My laptop is the series 7 np700z3c-s01uk. In terms of the sales of good act and latent defects, would I have to mention this in an email to samsung or john lewis (from whom I got the laptop from)? An in terms of evidence what links shall I provide?

I'll also try to attempt to repair the laptop myself whilst I am contacting Samsung

 

See here regarding SOGA and latent defects (described as "Items may have defects at the time of sale which only become apparent later (these are known as "latent" or "inherent" defects). A buyer can complain about such defects when the defect is discovered") which I reckon covers a BIOS vulnerable to bricking problems. You will find other relevant links by searching for "sale of goods act latent defect".
You mention in the other thread that the BIOS is P**AAG so I deduce that your Z3C shipped with Windows 7. Which OS are you currently running? (the Samsung Windows 7 models running 8 or 8.1 are most vulnerable to bricking). The versions shipped with Windows 8 had a different BIOS (P**AB?).

Also, check whether John Lewis actually gave you their own warranty extended to 3 years (which was the case with my NP900X3B bought just under 3 years ago) or had they dropped the offer by the time you bought your Z3C. Either way, John Lewis have an excellent record for customer service although you might need to be persistent in pushing the point about the vulnerability of this generation of Samsung notebooks to bricking (as discussed in various places on the internet including this thread). While there may not be many bricking reports about the Z3C, I think the BIOS is shared with the Z4C and Z5C.

John