USER THOUGHT: Sony Customer Service

Day Five without my Clie. I went to Sony Customer Service on Saturday. The experience was a total disaster. I'd had heard horror stories about Sony's attitude, but had never experienced it first hand. I had bought the Clie on Amazon.com and had it delivered to my brother in the States. I had spoken with Sony prior to buying it, and they had assured me that the warranty would be honored in Canada. What they didn't tell me was that the Canadian warranty for a US bought Clie is only 90 days, and not one year as it is for a Canadian bought Clie. No exceptions. The customer service agent (who was extremely rude) told me that as the Clie was 5 months old, I would have to send it back to the US for service, or I could have it serviced in Canada at my expense. If I wanted the Clie serviced in Canada I would have to give them a credit card number and preauthorize up to $175 for repairs. I asked if I could just get an estimate and make my decision based on that. She told me - get this - an estimate would cost me $50. I guess now that Sony is out of the PDA business they no longer feel they have to please the customer. I left with the Clie. I tried calling Sony US and sat on hold for over 2 hours before giving up. So, for now still no Clie.
- Sheldon (Toronto, Canada)