Is This Playstation 3 Too Dusty To Be Repaired Under Warranty?

Consumerist - We now have pictures of the Playstation 3 that Sony refused to repair under warranty because the unit was too dusty. Sony originally claimed that the pictures would not be released without a subpoena, and that the dust presented a threat to their technician's health that could only be alleviated if our tipster paid $150. After our posts, Sony abruptly reversed course and released the pictures to our tipster. Sony's letter, the pictures, and our poll, after the jump.

[Tsalagi]

Could you imagine how dirty the rest of this guys house is?

[SaturnTo]

The guy is lucky they will fix it for $150 how can someone neglect electronics like this.

[highps3]

I wouldnt repair that thing looks like it got hit by a bus. Anyone with a higher IQ then a dog would ATLEAST clean it off before sending it in. Some windex and a old t-shirt would do wonders.

The top of it is dented open which as well voids the warranty though.

lol is this the one they blew up on launch day?

[propheta]

The guy or girl who owned this console must have buried it. It doesn't look like dust as much as it looks like thin dirt. Maybe the poor bastard dug a hole in the backyard, predicting an early death of the PS3.

I wouldn't even touch that console as it is, let alone repair it. If there is something wrong with the console, there is damaged caused and the warranty doesn't cover it I think.

But this whole question is becoming quite popular isn't it? I mean... the only way you ever get to talk about a damaged PS3 is when they appear in this putrid state.

[barom]

I don't even understand how it can be that bad. I don't think my PS3 would've been that bad even if I wanted to.

[godofthunder10]

i have a 360 and i love it and i'm not planning on buying a ps3 but i agree with sony i wouldn't even pay to have it shiped back to him.i know that the 360 had a lot of problems at the beginning but they have it fixed now but they kind of had the same problem but not as bad as this but they had a lot of people that put their 360 on carpets and in video cabnets with other equipment on top or under it with the door close wich every one knows that it will cause the 360 to over heat,so like i said the 360 had some problems at the bigging but with people not taking care of their electronics made it worse.

[Real Gambler]

No way somebody can survive that long in a house that dirty. If Sony would have waited just a month or two, nobody could have still been alive to claim it back... They could then have just burned it with hazardous wastes.

[360Jamaican40GigFL]

all i can say is LOL

[socomnick]

lol that ps3 wasent being used for a long long time lol.

[rofldings]

at least when he does use it from now/2008/beyond - it won't overheat and rrod out in 3 seconds.

[xplosneer]

He expected THAT to get fixed? What does he live on the beach?
If I was Sony and had to follow policy then I wouldn't either.

[ruibing]

If it stops working because of neglect, I don't see how its any different than dropping or spilling the water on the PS3. Even if the guy has a good excuse, it should be Sony's decision whether they want to help the guy, since there's a big chance its just gonna be shipped back a few months later.

Is it just me or does it feel like the guy purposely sent the system back in this condition to create a controversy? If a 360 owner did this with his sytem and it got RRoD, I really doubt MS will fix it (since neglicence caused the overheating).

[SmokeyMcBear]

haha ruibing.. you cant even have something next to it or enclosed in an entertainment center without it happening, let alone covered in dirt and crap.. sheesh

[Shadow Flare]

That guy must live like a stinking tramp. How can anyone let their console get so filthy, but also, how can anyone be stupid enough to send it in for repair in that filthy condition? Sony should've sent the ps3 back in a box, and put a stinkin, yellow-toothed rat inside the box reading "Clean this console with rat and then send it back to us. You filthy TRAMP"

[ReBurn]

Did he keep his PS3 in the garage?

[DwightOwen]

... he dumped the contents of his vacuum cleaner onto his console.

Jesus.

[mccomber]

the guy actually owns a vacuum. I'd hate to see the rest of his house.

[DwightOwen]

Touche.

[ElementX]

OMG ick. I side with Sony on this one, definitely. I would be ashamed and too embarrassed to send that in for repairs.

Looks like a PS3 US soldiers would play in Iraq.

[ChibiSelz]

is this guy taking the mic how the hell can it get that dusty he must of done something or experimented with it Wtf?

i wouldnt fix that shyt im with sony on this one because its gona break again if it was fixed ,its obviouse he doesnt looks after it

[assjacket]

If he would have taken 5 minutes to dust it he probably wouldn't have a problem. How can he send that thing in looking like that and think they aren't going to question his care of the console!?

[Area_51]

wow that dude must live in a tee pee or a tent holy duke lol does this dude got a roof or windows on his tent or what. first thing i would do is get a vaccum and about ten bags, next a hepa filter then i would go see a lung specialist...i hope this guy doesn't have little kids in that house or a dog to that matter

what also gets me is that this joker had alot of people fired up on this site and others, he knew damn well that this ps3 looks like he was playing it in the middle of iraq cmon, it's common sense when you send something in like that for them to replace you wipe down what a hobo can you guys picture his house or his bath tube, or his sh!t can..or his girl i betcha this guy has poop stain from here to who knows where...i'm sorry i never pick on people but this guy had me fired up with sony and i wasn't the only one...can we get a courtisty wipe here

[Kulupoo]

is not dusty enough to threaten the technician's health... but is getting there... i can't imagine wut his house looks like...

[Mu5afir]

They didn't fix the system, because it was considered "NEGLECT". And from seeing the pictures I can pretty much understand why this thing wasn't repaired. How the hell do you get that much dust on the system?

[bym051d]

I'm sure they could find the technician a respirator. However, I support Sony not fixing it. Sizable amounts of dust can cause electrical problems.

Those pictures are absolutely disgusting.

The owner could at least have wiped it down with a dust cloth before he sent it in. It's really not that hard.

[aaquib5]

So, if they can't deliver on games, they refuse to deliver on customer service? I don't care how dusty the PS3 is, because if Sony didn't state that dust voids the PS3's warranty, they have to honour it. PS3 is a friggin dust magnet, and no where in the manual did it state "Please clean off dust on PS3." I can't believe those idiots would even let this get on the internet, and after all this bad publicity about it, all they do is give the guy pictures. Seriously, it's like Sony wants to piss all of their consumers off. Expensive hardware(when I bought it) then a $200 PRICE DROP to piss us early consumers off, then they can't deliver on any amazing exclusive titles(except Uncharted), and then every game gets delayed, and then all 3rd party games look worst on PS3. AND THEN I can't even trust their customer service.

Great job Sony, but if you continue this trend, I hope you fail.

[season007]

ah huh expensive unit and piss customer off with price cut?

and yet....people are happy about apple's price cut while they are not happy about PS3 price cut? I guess it's all about Sony haters here...

(btw to me i think iphone is not just a piss off product to consumer...it is a rip off product without true functionality at that price point and the battery doesn't last at all with its best function of web browsing...PS 3 is a different story)

[aaquib5]

Actually, my brother is an iPhone owner and all iPhone owners were pretty pissed at the drop....Until Apple actually refunded them $100. And don't you understand the key difference here? iPhone owners were actually satisfied with what they purchased because it was what Apple promised. Apple didn't promise this SUPER MEGA PROCESSOR that would deliver the best experiences and then fail. No, Apple succeeded because the iPhone is a revolutionary device that does exactly what it is designed to do perfectly. While, PS3 simply doesn't. Just compare the 360's first year with the PS3's first year, and then keep in mind that 360 was $200 cheaper to most people.

[tatical]

Seriously, how would you feel if you lent your PS3, 360 or Wii to a friend, and you got it back nonfunctional looking like that. The PS3 looks like it was buried after he played Lair, and dug back up after he saw that Ratchet & Clank got a 9.2 on ign.com. He didn't even bother to wipe the thing off.

And as far as the warranty goes: It may not say anything about dust voiding the warranty, but it does say that the PS3 shall be free of manufacturer's defects. I don't see how Sony can be held accountable for such an extreme amount of neglect & dust (looks more like dirt to me though).

[gamesblow]

This is absurd and anyone who says Sony is at fault for not fixing it should be kicked in the tip of the D*CK! Plain and simple!

[season007]

did he dig a hole in beach and place it in and pull it back out?
Seriously how can he make the console look like this...

my 8 years old PS2 without property cleaning looks way better than this....

edit: whoever think Sony should fix it for free must be an idiot because go buy a car and crash(or o well...scratch) it see if your dealership fix it free for you=)

[Skerj]

Lmfao that is one dirty mother effer, man did he throw it around in the desert or something? I'm scared of the rest of his house.

[Shadow Flare]

Where Ross dates this incredibly beautiful woman and when he gets to her apartment, there is filth and crap everywhere. And later on when he describes it to Joey, he's like, "You know at the end of the day when you come home, and you throw your coat on the back of a chair? Well imagine instead of a coat, it's garbage. And instead of a chair, it's garbage. And instead of the end of the day, it's the end of time and garbage is all that you can see."

[gameforall]

Looks like it has been dragged behind a truck

[ikkokucrisis]

wow, is that how you treat a $400+ piece of equipment?

[DJ]

It looks like particles of sand, with a little oil and food residue just to give it some flavor. That's probably the most neglected console I've ever seen.

[DeZimatoR]

Wtf did he do to it? Did he take MotorStorm TV ad a bit too seriously or something?

I mean seriously, someone who spends 600$ on a game machine and lets it get to that state and then has the nerve of asking for it to be repaired should get a simple' No, we won't repair it', that person should get punched in the face and have someone tell them to wake the f*ck up...

Geez, some ppl are so strange...

[Stray_Wulf]

For those of you who think this shouldve been fixed without complaint, then ur very very mistaken in thought. All that dust/dirt that can get into the console can completely ruin the inside units (processor, motherboard, etc etc). It would be like purposely spilling a gallon of water on your computer and sending it to the manufacturer asking them to repair it cuz you have a warranty on it. Besides, theres a LOT more to the story than dust/dirt, theres a post on the GAP Member area on playstation.com that shows all the official information on the matter and all with proof too. Apparently this guy exaggerated the matter GREATLY and made it seem like a HUGE deal. (Of course because he was p!ssed that he ruined his own system).

[TheMART]

Aren't you all curious how the inside of this PS3 looks? IMO it does matter a lot more to see if the inside contains lots of dirt/dust which caused the hardware failure and not whats on the outside.

Still it looks like a big mess. But hey Sony if you charged the guy 600 Euro/Dollar for this thing and now your product is sold for 400 Euro/Dollar, couldn't you give him some extra support for that 200 Euro/Dollar loss even if it was that dusty? Its not like he took a big dump on the PS3 because you screwed him over for 200 Euro/Dollar

[aaquib5]

For once I agree with you...c

[season007]

you go hammer it and send it back to the dealership?

it doesn't make any sense..

edit@the mart:yea... the mart, teach me how to accumulate that much dirt inside the memory card slot in less than a year time...and HEY THERE IS A COVER FOR IT

[TheMART]

You know your comment is totally off.

Hammering a product or having some dust on it is a totally different thing. Plus: you know that shiny stuff, especially in this colour, with a direct light flash on it makes the dirt look worse then it is, right?

The stupid thing is: if he would have whiped off the dust of the outside of this case, probably they would have fixed it. Thus as long as its not visible, they would fix.

As I said, the inside pics are more interesting.

[SKUD]

Right because everything thats dusty on the outside means its always clean on the inside. Good point.............NOT.

[rofldings]

Mart. It doesn't matter - Sony's warranty does not cover "negligence" - the way he kept his PS3 and the condition it is in the way they received it IS NEGLIGENCE.

I mean, all he had to do is CLEAN THE THING WITH A CLOTH and sony would've thought he wasn't negligent, but no... he's a dumbass.

[Enigma_2099]

... they might not have even cared what the inside looks like...

regardless of the look of the interior, the exterior screams "neglect..."

Now I agreed with you in the other thread... not here.

[OC_MurphysLaw]

That thing is very dusty....but to say it poses a health risk to work on? Come on Sony...that is a little ubsurd. Sony, do yourselves a favor and repair it under warranty and get some good kharma points...you need it.

[OmegaKulu]

Actually, read the warranty agreement from Sony..
http://www.us.playstation.c...

"THIS WARRANTY SHALL NOT APPLY IF THIS PRODUCT (A).............(D) IS DAMAGED BY ACTS OF GOD, MISUSE, ABUSE, NEGLIGENCE, ACCIDENT, WEAR AND TEAR, UNREASONABLE USE, OR BY OTHER CAUSES UNRELATED TO DEFECTIVE MATERIALS OR WORKMANSHIP;"

I think "damaged by abuse, negligence" would fit this perfectly. -.-

PS - 360 also have the same warranty agreement
http://www.xbox.com/en-US/s...
"E. EXCLUSIONS FROM LIMITED WARRANTY
is damaged by Acts of God, power surge, misuse, abuse, negligence, accident, wear and tear, mishandling, misapplication, or other causes unrelated to defective materials or workmanship;"

[kewlkat007]

SIXAXIS won't allow me to shut off my PS3 anymore

When I hold the PS button it doesn't "BEEP" like it used to and "turn off system" is highlighted, but it won't let me hi X"

WTF.. is going on

[Enigma_2099]

Small pinhole to the left of the the L2 button on the back of the controller and the right of the hole with the screw in it. I sent mine back for the same problem, and when it happened again, they told me about it... which means I sent it off for nothing.

At least it was free.

[KidMakeshift]

So, I've had my PS3 since December and everything for the most part seems to be fine, but there are a few problems I've been having and I don't know if it's the PS3 or my TV (42' Maxent 720p, 1080i Plasma, connected by component cables):

1. The PS3's main interface is set at 1080i but when I play a game or movie it causes the the tv to flick to blue screen then back to the PS3's main interface at whatever resolution the game plays in. My 360 doesn't do this and it's set up the same way.

2. Some PSN games like Tekken that play off the main interface have a constant horizontal tearing across the mid section of the screen. I've deleted and re-downloaded the game a few times but the problem remains.

3. Does anyone's PS3 make loading sounds for certain games? My PS3 makes loud loading sounds when Manhunt 2 is running (it's probably saying "get this crappy game out of me")

Thanks

[EZCheez]

And that's my only guess as to why I don't have those problems. On the sumarine I served on we had that exact same tv (I know because I ordered it) and it did the "blue flicker" on us too. Maxent tv's aren't exactly known for their quality.

As far as the other problem, I don't have any of those either.

[KidMakeshift]

I was on a sub too. It drove me nuts especially with 6 month deployments after 9/11.

[rushbd]

Didnt we have enough of this dust news already ? stupid sh!T

[Coke-a-Cola]

If that PS3 were this guy dog .........He would be arrested for GROSS NEGLECT.

[TheHater]

I am sorry, but this guy need to take better care of this PS3, and other gameing systems also. I make sure I clean all my systems at least once a week.

[Shadow Flare]

This guy is obviously a filthy, stinking tramp. Right? There is a year's worth of dust in that ps3. That dust is created from the dead skin particles that have come from that rotting walking corpse. Not only that, but the filthy dust, that came from the filthy tramp, have been lying on his filthy ps3 inside his filthy home for a whole year. The dust in that ps3 probably has more life in it then a brand new 360. If a sony technician were to breath in any small amount of that dust, they could get proper ill. Not only that, but the dust has probably got inside the console making it useless to fix anyway. If a consumer purposely doesn't look after a product, then sony has every right to say, Take this filthy crap back, you neanderthal

[Expy]

I'm sorry that is a disgrace. Seriously, how can you be THAT dirty? INVEST IN PROPER AIR FILTERING.

[Chriswsm]

This is either a wind-up or we have some junkie who is too out of it to consider maintaining valuable electronics. I am hardly a tidy person and there is no doubt my home is fairly dusty but even leaving my PS3 undusted for months would not accumulate half that that much dust.

As for not repairing it stating dust is a hazard... WTF? There are dust masks in shops for this very purpose and they only cost a few pounds for High quality '3M' branded ones. I use them regularly when doing home improvements.

Refusing to repair it due to neglect is a logical approach. Due to dust is a lazy approach.

[jackdoe]

Well, didn't Ive say he dusted the outside of his PS3 before he sent it in? He obviously lied about that.

[Covenant]

Gotta side with Sony on this one...guy needs a lint-free cloth and canned air ASAP. Imagine what the inside of the system looks like...no wonder it quit working.

I can't imagine what his other electronics look like...there are probably dust bunnies the size of tribbles in his CPU tower...

[Chubear]

-.- That's frikgen ridiculous.

I had thought this was the case and was heckled by some idiot on a forum about it when I said it was probably jsut over kill on dust but I never thought I'd see anything quite like this.

And this guy had the nerve to moan and complain that Sony wasn't doing right by him? Wow. I don't think the guy should be allowed to own ANY electronic product ever. There should be a world wide bann on his butt.

[iceice123]

There's probably a million more like this. Nobody playing their PS3 from lack of games, or to make you feel better lack of games worth buying/renting. Too bad, waste of a bunch of peoples 599US Dollars.

[Shadow Flare]

There's a reason 360's are mostly free from dust and that's because they get a good cleanup every month as they come back from the repair factory

[Funky Town_TX]

that sh8t is dirty. Maybe if he had some games to play it would not be that dirty. That guy needs his a$$ kicked.

[Meus Renaissance]

Mine gains dust daily so I wipe it with this special fabric. But I have finger prints on the Eject button and chrome strip :(

[xav0971]

compressed air can't fix...lol I opened up my friend's computer one time and it looked like that but he's also a slob with a dirty house.

[DaEnforcer]

WTF is wrong with that dude? Must be a crackhead and to think this crackhead even had the nerve to send such thing for repairs and then freak out after Sony refused to do it ROFL on what kind of stuff is this dude on? HOOOOOLY SHIIT

[Death]

Is the owner at fault for not cleaning the console before shipping? Common sense would definately say it would have been a good idea.

Could Sony have made a customer happy by repairing the system? Yeah, they missed an opportunity to go the extra mile. If I were a company plagued by bad press, I would have seized the opportunity to take care of this. Release the pics to justify your case and explain to customers that this is neglect. Let the owner know that they will do a one time good will to take care of it and then let the media know how the situation was handled.

Sometimes being right comes with a cost. I agree, Sony was probably right about the dust being an issue, but how much is good PR worth? I'm guessing more than $150.

The other thing at issue here is the actual cause of failure. A repair center is not qualified to make the call about the dust unless there is really obvious evidence to back it up. If they did not open up the console and determine the exact cause of failure, then they might have a problem legally. If a qualified independant repair center determines the failure was not directly caused by dust accumulation, Sony has a legal issue to deal with.

Now we have bad PR and possible legal ramifications. Sony must be hard up for money if they want to make a $150 gamble on it.

Bottom line, fix the console and let the owner be the bad guy.

-Death

[Lumbo]

That is one piece of neglected hardware. The air vents are partially blocked, the memory card reader is stuffed with grime, the inside will prolly look worse. To a point where the cooling system couldn't cope with the normal heat generated by usage anymore cause everything was stuffed with dirt.

And look at his excuses "i ran F@H 24/7"

So do i, still my PS3 looks pristine compared to his. And i ain't having it sitting in a protected media cabinet contrary to him.

That guy is a moron, case closed. He well deserves the $150 repair bill if he wants his unit fixed.

[DaEnforcer]

Buddy if Sony repairs such a thing then the next guy expects they repair his console he just threw out of the window. Such usage voids the warranty, so clearly no, Sony shouldn't have repaired such a console. And what do you mean with bad publicity? It's bad publicity only for crackheads and every with his brain is laughing his ass off about this dude. Just look at the USB ports HOOOOOLY SHIIT

[Lionsguard]

Looks like this guy strapped his PS3 onto his Dune Buggy and took it out for a joy ride while playing.

[Foliage]

There's a difference between dust and dirt. Last time I checked dust isn't brown, and doesn't dry onto surfaces.

I wouldn't repair that thing, not in a million years.

[hokis4ever]

THis is the way i see it...

- Is it too dusty that it will affect the technicians health? No!

- Is it so dusty that it will affect the warranty? I'd say yes...

that thing looks filthy! All that dust in there could have easily shorted something out.

[Gordii]

This guy had to do this on purpose because i have my ps3 since they first launched in the USA and you cannot tell me somone can get it that dirty. yes ps3 might collect dust but not that bad looks like he did it on purpose i asked my gaming club to send me pics of their consols and still nothing even comes close.

[Dr Pepper]

Dust, fingerprints, scratches...

It looks like he did this on purpose.

[aba]

Does this f**k live in a sandbox? Seriously...WTF.

[IntelligentAj]

There is no way something can accumulate that much dust in a year unless it was locked in cabinet running and recycling dirty air. He must have purposely done that. For what reason I don't know.

[SlaughterMeister]

No matter how you look at it, this guy is a slob.

That's disgusting, buy a vaccuum.

[Megaton]

What a mess. Looks like he took that bad boy offroading.

[season007]

highly possible....

someone obviously did it on purpose

[lticew]

Where did they have this thing hooked up? A wood shop? Not only should Sony not fix it (for any price), but this person should never be allowed to buy a video game console again. Show some respect.

[BISHOP-BRASIL]

I have been in many wood shops and luthier workstations (we call it luthiaria, don't know how you call it there, it's a guitar repair workstation) and it's definitely not THAT dirt...

[feejo]

Just keep the receipt.

[Enigma_2099]

If that much dust accumulated on the outside, imagine what the inside must look like! And if you let it get THAT bad, hell yes that's neglect! Make him pay for repairs!

[Leathersoup]

It looks like he spilled a bottle of pop on it and then threw it into a bin full of sawdust.

[darkvenom]

moron who sent this abused PS3 obviously did it on purpose!,I side with Sony on this, they shouldn't have to fix it.when my PS3 gets dusty but i always clean it.

[sak500]

Looks like it he took it out on a soccer field to play with it. Or maybe dug it out from some grave yard. I hope MS repairs my RROD'd 360 which is much cleaner on the outside but my cat's hair would surely be inside of the machine.

[marcellizot]

I really don't understand the stupidity of the owner of this machine. Letting an expensive piece of electronics that you have paid good money for get into that state is one thing. Not bothering to even make the slightest effort to clean the thing at least a little bit before sending it in for repair borders on moronic.

What was he expecting? The guy that owns this console doensn't deserve to have a PS3, Xbox 360 or a Wii if this is how he treats his belongings and Sony was quite right to void his warranty.

[PopEmUp]

look like he came from the future

[MaximusPrime_]

my PS3 is always clean. I have my PS3 for at least 8 months.

Before i power my PS3, i use a special cloth to wipe dust off the console. I got used to it.

I dont remember cleaning my xbox360, but i do remember selling it when it is too dusty and dirty. (in another word, i rarely played xbox)

[WilliamRLBaker]

sony just doesn't wanna own up their system cant handle any ammount of dirt, which is why so many fanboys on here constantly say Oh I clean my ps3 like its a babies bottom...because if they didn't id die in 5 minutes.

I've never cleaned my 2 360's and they just purr like kittens:) but then again I've never cleaned my Wii or ps3 and they run fne (the Wii crashes sometimes though)

[Salvadore]

Looks like this person already does.