Warranty does not cover replacement for the "outdated" DepEd laptops

Dell's Country Manager Ronnie Latinaz said that warranties don't cover replacing laptops bought by the DepEd for public school teachers.

Image edit of the DepEd laptop

Invoking the warranty provision not possible?

About a month ago, we reported that DepEd procured PHP 2.4B worth of laptops through DBM-PS, even though there are cheaper and better options in the market. These laptops are more expensive than the budget allotted, resulting in fewer units leaving over 28,000 teachers without a computer.

According to COA, they cannot find an explanation why the DBM-PS would agree on the unit price of PHP 58,300 which is too high for how outdated the laptops were. To remedy the issue, DepEd said that they consider "quick fixes" so that the laptops could still be used when the classes resume on August 22.

The institution said that the devices should be covered by the manufacturer's warranty. Allegedly, there could be legal remedies to invoke the warranty provision to compel the supplier to fix or replace the laptops if the laptops do not perform as they should as purchased.

On the contrary, Dell just declared that warranties do not cover "outdated yet pricey" laptops procured during the Senate blue ribbon committee’s hearing. Senate Minority Leader Aquilino Koko Pimentel III asked Latinazo,

So you, Dell Philippines, consciously, knew that you were supplying a 1.8 gigahertz base speed. Now, if you are now told subsequently after you have delivered the notebooks, the requirement is 1.9 gigahertz base speed… is that part of your warranty?

To recall, the manufacturer provided laptops within the PS-DBM’s specification of 1.8 gigahertz base speed with 4 megabytes of cache.

Latinazo responded no, which Pimentel agreed to since Dell was just doing what was ordered. 

The country manager also answered that it probably would mean another round of payment for the distributor should new laptops be purchased due to the lack of warranty coverage.

In his own opinion, Atty. Jeremy Lotoc from the NBI said that the government is in a "disadvantageous position" on the issue.

However, he noted that an actual comparison should be conducted to submit the NBI's official position on the matter.

Source: Inquirer