I know there has been a lot of speculation with Xbox One hardware issues. Clicking disc drives, bricked boxes, so on and so forth. I haven’t heard much about it in a while, since the ones that were having issues have already been replaced. Some however, are finding that their Day One 2013 Xbox Ones, are having delayed hardware issues.
Several of our staff have bought an Xbox One on launch day. However, today, almost 4 months after receiving his Xbox One, one of our staff members is having serious issues. The staff member and I were having fun playing some Battlefield 4, but wanted to get some racing in. As soon as we put Forza 5 into the console, it did the infamous clicking for about 2 seconds, then stopped. When he pulled the disc back out, it was dented and scratched. Both he and I couldn’t believe it. The console was working perfectly fine everyday up until today. There was no weird signs of trouble before hand.
I snagged a picture of the damaged disc as he called Xbox One customer service. Seems that even though Microsoft have worked out most software bugs, they still have a long way to go. The customer service professional was exceptional. Microsoft will replace his console no problem. They are replacing Forza 5 as well, because its a first party game. If it was third party, they would require him to send in the game, and then pay a fee to have it replaced. The representative offered to give a variety of first party games at a discounted price as well.
I decided to read the confirmation email for the replacement console he was to receive. I found that if the faulty Xbox One is not received within 14 days, they will bill him for the full price of the replacement console. Knowing that FedEx is not always on schedule, that would make me very nervous about my return. Also, if my Xbox One kills one of my discs and I have to have it replaced, I don’t want to be sold a game or anything for that matter. Even if it is at a discounted price, don’t try to make money off me when you sell me a faulty console.
Overall, the experience had its pros and cons. The conversation with the representative on the phone was excellent. The speedy replacement of the console was extremely convenient. The restoring of game data was a worry-free process with the cloud. There was no problem with replacing the first-party game that was damaged. The flip side: the console became faulty 4 months after use. If he did not have a first party game, the staff member would have had to pay out of pocket for a replacement game. Microsoft also requires a debit/credit card to replace a faulty Xbox One.
There is no launch day Xbox One that is safe from this error. It has happened day one, 4 months after launch, and could easily continue to happen. Be cautious of the process and make sure your Xbox One has a great warranty. If you are concerned or have questions about the process, please reach out to Microsoft Xbox One customer support.
