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January 25, 2006
A Laptop as Good as New
It is hard to believe but our laptop's screen was cracked way back in Peru on November 6th. Since then the screen and our ability to use it has been steadily deteriorating and at this point is unusable. Toshiba USA has agreed to cover the repair under warranty but we've had some problems finding someone to fix it. With that in mind, we arrived in Sydney early and headed straight for the Toshiba headquarters who informed me via email they could repair it.
When we dropped off the machine they informed us it shouldn't be a problem and I gave them a copy of an email from Toshiba USA saying they would reimburse anyone who would do the repair. Everything looked good so we headed downtown to return our rental car and check into our hostel.
We're staying in Kings Cross, known as the red-light district and a traditionally seedy part of Sydney, but have read that it has some of the cheapest rooms in town, some great restaurants and a lively feel to it. The taxi driver gave us a short tour and a little background of the area which looks more like Hillcrest in San Diego than the a seedy area that I was expecting. Trendy cafes and restaurants line the streets as it has become an attractive place for many people to live as it is a short walk to downtown. Prostitution is legal, so regulated brothels exist on the backstreets and strip clubs abound.
After getting some food, we headed back to the hostel where there was a message from Toshiba. When I called they explained that they wouldn't fix the machine as they were worried about getting the refund. Worse yet they didn't even have the part in stock. Not what I wanted to hear.
I jumped on a bus to go pick it up (after barely missing the first bus to North Ryde) but when I arrived they informed me that they did have the part afterall. If I wanted they could install it and I could try to get the refund directly from Toshiba myself. I laid down the credit card and did it.
It was a great feeling turning on computer for the first time in over 2 months and being able to see the full screen.
Tonight we grabbed some excellent Thai food near the hotel and… quite happily… worked on the computer. Tomorrow is Australia Day so we are looking forward to lots of mayhem in Sydney.
Posted by Peter Mork at January 25, 2006 10:48 PM
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