[Thinkpad Tablet General] Krisfone:
Hello All,

Apologies in advance for a necessarily long story but I think it has implications for unsuspecting customers. Hope people start checking goods very carefully!!

I bought a new 64GB TPT with Keyboard Folio from a reputed online seller in UK on 19 January, paid full price and for next day delivery.

Parcel arrived promptly the next day in a big black plastic bag with carton inside. So I signed for it and opened the big plastic bag. Inside I found a large Thinkpad Carton which was a bit banged up and there was some rattling inside. I was now worried but having signed for it, I opened the outer carton and found a smaller Thinkpad Tablet box inside it, which looked undamaged.

However, on closer inspection, it was clear that this was NOT a sealed box, that someone had opened it and re-taped with narrower tape. I was getting quite worried now that I had been sent a customer return rather than Brand New.

Anyway, I open the smaller Thinkpad box, find the tablet inside but guess what, the red security seal was broken. I didn't even need to open the seal, it was poorly stuck back. I take the tablet out and see smudges and dust on the screen and scratches on the back!!

I decided enough is enough and phoned the dealer who promptly sent me an email requesting a photograph. I sent that after several attempts and they acknowledged receipt and that they had requested replacement from supplier.

I took further steps to make sure that I don't get lumbered with a used item. I checked the serial number on the despatch note and the boxes and compared it to the serial number on the tablet inside the flap cover of the SD/SIM slot. They were the same. I cleaned the screen, there were no scratches.

I thought to have a look at the tablet working anyway while waiting for exchange. It powered on and went into the home screen straight away, further confirmation that whoever had handled it before hadn't bothered to factory reset. The battery showed 3/4 charge so I went to "Settings" to have a look.

Much to my surprise, the internal storage showed up around 28GB (I had purchased the 64GB tablet) which I couldn't understand. Then the tablet shut down and stayed dead (SOD) despite every effort to put life into it. I emailed the seller anyway but they are closed on the weekend. I knew by now that not only had I been sent a USED and scratched customer return but also a defective and lower spec tablet. Weird enough but it gets worse.

I left it on charge for >24 hours and tried again today. Thankfully the tablet started without a hiccup, went into the home screen and I went straight to "Settings" and "About Tablet" to confirm internal storage. It still showed about 27.4GB plus 540MB used space. No question that they sent me 32GB tablet.

I then discovered the worst thing I could expect. I went into status and checked the Serial Number of the System Unit as recorded IN the tablet firmware itself. Guess what, the serial number embedded in the tablet is TOTALLY DIFFERENT from that in the pull down flap cover of SD slot and that on the cartons!

Until this point, I had assumed that some sleeper in the warehouse had mistakenly sent me a customer return. Now I question that assumption.

The shocking thing in this whole scenario is that the Outer carton, Inner carton and Despatch note all state the same serial number and this matches with the

small print label inside the pull down flap SD slot cover

. But the embedded System Unit Serial Number is COMPLETELY DIFFERENT!

I would not have known at all if I hadn't become suspicious from the outset. Even then it was the internal storage size that caught my attention and induced me to check system unit serial.

There is no doubt whatsoever that a replacement cannot be refused by the dealer, I phoned them and emailed photos on the day of receipt. Why should the embedded system unit serial be different from that on the SD flap cover which is after all, part of the tablet itself?

However, I would ask other forum members if I am mistaken in thinking that system serial number as seen in Settings>About tablet>Status should be the same as on the SD flap label and the boxes. If they are different as I have now found out, what is the implication?

If I am correct in thinking that the serial numbers everywhere should be the same, how come the sticky label on the SD flap cover is same as on the cartons. Indeed, according to despatch note and boxes, the serial number on them should be the 64GB machine. Not mine though!

I would appreciate comments and advice. Once again, sincere apologies for the long post and a couple of repetitions (long winded as usual!).

Kind regards