To Asus and all owners of a dead Zenfone 8

[leoncarrera]

By now is it clear the Asus Zenfone 8 has a weakness when it comes to its motherboard. Phones are dying in very comparable situations; after installing an update or patch and/ or when charging. The died phones show the same state: a sudden black screen, no response on buttons or screen, sometimes an orange fast blinking LED for about ten seconds when the charger is attached, after which also this stops blinking. Even the life duration of the phones are alike when this happens;  around two years.  Some people are lucky that it can be repaired under warranty, most aren't when warranty has just expired.

All of the phones which were repaired received a new motherboard. So also in here the fix seems comparable. Or at least not repairable with a soldering or partial replacement of other components. There is no wide variety of repairs to be found on ZenTalk on this. 

This issue goes beyond individual or even wrong use, a single faulty or unfortunate phone. All phones that died did this in comparable situations and after comparable life times. There is something wrong with the design or components of the Zenfone 8, or at least a batch, which can't be put on warranty alone when it comes to a repair. 

Asus, please take this matter and your clients serious. At least more then you have proven till this date. Asus can't just address this matter with the initial question if the phone is still under the warranty. Asus does know what the technical issues are with these phones, so please then also take your responsibility. Asus put this premium phone on the market at a premium price. This comes with an expected life duration that goes beyond a hard line of just 24 months. Warranty is for specific situations. These dying Zenfones are not specific. It is a general issue. So please handle it as such.

Can Asus confirm that they will keep addressing issues regarding these dying Zenfones as individual technical matters? And thus with warranty as strict and main component to define if Asus or customers are financially responsible for further action? And if so, what is their response to these resembling dying phones that Asus will keep holding onto this strict warranty duration when it is clear customers can't be held responsible for their broken Zenfones, since they die during normal use or especially after installing new and updated Asus firmware?

To all users of a died Zenfone 8: please add your phone to this thread, when it died (lifetime) and on which occurence. 

Kind regards,
León

[kissz9]

Dear Everyone,

I thought this information can be useful. 
For that you should know my mobile is out of warranty period.

I received an e-mail from ASUS Support. They offered me the pick-up, diagnosis and repair of my dead mobile.
"

Labor Cost: 48.00 euros + VAT

Collection and delivery: 16,5 euros + VAT (8,25 euros + VAT for each side)(If your address is in the Balearic Islands transport services have a cost of 40€+VAT)

If you decide not to accept the budget, you will only have the diagnostic orders (30€ + VAT) and the logistics/transport service.
"

It is not worth repairing. So, I am not sending it.
The cheapest price I found for a new one was €344. As a used one, I can sell mine for €200 or less.
For that, at first, I must spend €64.50 + VAT, which is probably around €78, and still, nothing has changed.
Then there is the reparation. The last repairman who saw it said it needed at least the battery and the connector changed. That cost €132. €132 + €78 = €210, which is more than the money I can get for it.
And still there can be another problem(s) which is/are not counted yet.

Well, obviously, I am not going for it.
I am not even going to buy another ASUS mobile, either, at least not in the next five to ten years. So, ASUS has the time to improve the quality of these products.

I am very--very disappointed with the lifespan of this flagship product!
Cheers,

[leoncarrera]

Thanks for the contribution. I think the repair man was quite optimistic. When your phone shows the infamous black screen with the brief blinking led, it needs a new motherboard. A new battery won't do much. These board go for over €500. So repairing without warranty is never an option. 

Asus already knows for quite some time now what the issue is with these dying ZF8's. So the only thing they need to improve is their customer support and after sales service when it comes to faulty (batch) products. Most people who had their phone dying were more frustrated about the horrible stance Asus takes in this matter. Phones can break down and production errors can happen. Then there is the warranty and in cases like these broad issue with the dying phones, warranty shouldn't even be an issue. The 'offer' Asus does with their standard RMA route is a slap in the face.

They simply should acknowledge the technical issue. Asus doesn't and that is the real problem.

[nasch007]

Everything said was spot on. "Optimistic" is a polite euphemism. These phones are dying due to motherboard failures. We know it. ASUS knows it. What was the repair guy willing to do if his proposed work didn't fix it?

What a sad state of affairs. A once mighty company just put out a load of trash that is causing customers so much consternation and headache. And they don't even have the decency to reply on here and address their customers. Just copy/paste. Poor guy... that sucks that his job all day is to ignore any hard questions and just copy/paste the same requests for serial numbers. That would drive me batty. I would have to express my independent thought at least once... 

[Asiaa]

This is very very sad.We only can read all the time 26 sites and nothing these same strories the same problem.The same answer from ASUS and feel powerless.They earned,phone dead and now u can only buy new.They know what they did.
My phone is alive but i know to the time.

[tesznye9]

Hello Fellow Fates,

ASUS replaced the motherboard in my 358-day-old phone two months ago. I had to pay for the replacement of the back cover, about 50 euros.

The fingerprint reader on the phone has become more accurate. That's the only positive so far. The UI stops every day, it gets terribly hot during photos, games, charging.

Off

My mother's Vivobook will be two years old on May 28. At the weekend, the screen started vibrating and streaking.

The only thing it responded to was a forced restart.... When did ASUS get so careless and useless? If the laptop dies shortly after the warranty period, I think I will never use/recommend Asus again...