Google vs customer care

 Feb 14 2017

Just when I ran out of ideas to blog about, God gave me one. No sorry, my tablet gave me one.

See, I convinced every one and myself that I need a tablet to test my apps and bought a - cheap one. Nothing new in that, I repent each time and each time I buy a low cost, low quality device.

This is a micromax tablet - (does it still exist? Apparently yes) the feature which caught my eyes was the salesman's willingness to pay Rs. 2000 my old tablet. . instead of 1500. Ha! 

So it is lollipop (android version), has dual camera and dual sim and is INDIAN. I need to be pro-national, right?

I repented the purchase immediately. The initial theme was showing very large icons which were not even pretty. But then after some tinkering, I started using it - for playing games and once in while for browsing.

But yesterday the tablet died. Or the battery died. And today morning when I was charging, I pressed the power button and lo, it got chinkified. No, not bricked. Instead it became Chinese. Sorry for being a racist.

It started some blue menu with some lines in a language I could not decipher. I think the characters were chinese. I know a thing or two about hard resetting of devices. So I used volume buttons to scroll, hoping that some where I find an option to reboot the device - in English. I could not. I tried some options and then gave up.

So I googled Micromax helpline and called them. The customer service executive was very helpful - at-least he was trying to be helpful. But obviously he did not have a clue for this dragonification of my tablet. 

He suggested I take it to the service center where they will flash the operating system again. And he kindheartedly gave me the locations of many service centers in Bangalore.

I decided this will be one task for me and my spouse this weekend. But just out of curiosity googled about Chinese characters in Micromax tablet. 

First suggestion - ifixit site told me to scroll to the end of the screen and select it. And the system would reboot.

It did. The tablet  booted normally as if nothing had gone wrong.

Image from https://www.ifixit.com/

 

So now I can continue to use the tablet (for playing games :) )

My suggestion to customer care executives - Please when someone calls you with a problem, put them on hold and google the problem yourself, and you will get plenty of  solutions. Read the suggestion and Direct the person  to solve the problem . People will bless you.  You may redeem some of your reputations.