It finally happened...

[cableguynoe]

I have loved this Eris from day one. And after rooting it, it's even started causing marital problems for me

But yesterday I was driving and the car in front of me (for no apperent reason) went off the road and hit a cement fence.

I immediately got out of my car to check if the girl was ok. While she was trying to figure out what had hit her(airbag), I was trying to dial 911. Trying being the key word. Well, I'm pretty sure I connected. My phone even vibrated(some 911 emergency feature???), but i got nothing but silence. Yup.. nothing!

Fortunately other people started running up and I yelled at them to call 911. And fortunatelly no one was hurt. But I couldn't call 911. That really sucks!!!

In the past it has just been frustrating... mainly with my wife. But like you all know... after a reboot everything is fine.
But i think this was the last straw for me.
I dont want to even deal with phone swaps from Verizon... since I know the problem will still be there and probably wont be able to root. So I would be in a worse position.

So this is where I'm going with this... Moto Droid? I can't afford any of the newer phones coming out. And I saw a couple on Craigslist in my area for a decent price.
It would end up free if I sell My Eris on Ebay. They're selling for good prices still.
But I feel like shit giving someone else this problem.
Do I loose out on $150-200 and not sell it because of this problem?

 

[Mays24]

That is not a problem that anyone who has purchased a cell phone should ever have to deal with. Not being able to make a phone call is absolutely unacceptable. I have been unable to make numerous business calls when I had to make them immediately to some doctor clients of mine. I lost some of their business because of this. The 911 story is scary because of what could have happened. I am just waiting for the Droid X to come out. I cannot trust this Eris anymore.

 

[ERISLOVER]

I have loved this Eris from day one. And after rooting it, it's even started causing marital problems for me

But yesterday I was driving and the car in front of me (for no apperent reason) went off the road and hit a cement fence.

I immediately got out of my car to check if the girl was ok. While she was trying to figure out what had hit her(airbag), I was trying to dial 911. Trying being the key work. Well, I'm pretty sure I connected. My phone even vibrated(some 911 emergency feature???), but i got nothing but silence. Yup.. nothing!

Fortunately other people started running up and I yelled at them to call 911. And fortunatelly no one was hurt. But I couldn't call 911. That really sucks!!!

In the past it has just been frustrating... mainly with my wife. But like you all know... after a reboot everything is fine.
But i think this was the last straw for me.
I dont want to even deal with phone swaps from Verizon... since I know the problem will still be there and probably wont be able to root. So I would be in a worse position.

So this is where I'm going with this... Moto Droid? I can't afford any of the newer phones coming out. And I saw a couple on Craigslist in my area for a decent price.
It would end up free if I sell My Eris on Ebay. They're selling for good prices still.
But I feel like shit giving someone else this problem.
Do I loose out on $150-200 and not sell it because of this problem?

Dude that is such bullcrap. Go to verizon and demand a new incredible or something or say you are going to sue them and htc. What if someone was hurt, what if nobody else was around. That is a manufactured flaw that could hurt someones life.

 

[ReJe75]

I loved my Eris from Day 1 as well, but the more I use it the more I realize how shitty of a PHONE it really is. You cannot make calls easy, and yes its usually not a big deal, but it does get annoying when I have to wait 30 seconds for the stupid phone to respond when I try to make a call. I am selling mine on eBay as we speak then going back to my 5 year old LG env until I can get my hands on my Droid X is released.

 

[Frisco]

That story goes beyond deal breaker; it is in a category all its own, one that we usually only hear about with new car brakes failing or a firearm safety device not functioning.

I would have taken that experience straight to the store, along with notes about where and when and perhaps who was involved in the collision.

 

[Haxcid]

I experienced the same issue yesterday. For me it was the second time this has happened. My experience was not an emergency thank goodness but had it been...

It is a tough choice. I would contact VZW support and ask to speak to a manager. Dont even bother with the BS level 1 peeps. Just go straight to a manager. I would not bother with a store either, maybe a store manager but you will likely get no help from them.

 

[ERISLOVER]

I tipped the story to Phandroid. Lets get this out their and make the people for this issue responsible.

 

[cableguynoe]

Dude that is such bullcrap. Go to verizon and demand a new incredible or something or say you are going to sue them and htc. What if someone was hurt, what if nobody else was around. That is a manufactured flaw that could hurt someones life.

I want to do this, but am afraid of them trying to force another Eris on me. Since I am still on my first, i just know they are going to say it's a problem with "my" phone.
I doubt I can use information I've learned in this forum to say that I know a swap wont fix it

 

[cmajpwc]

A cement fence? Damn, thank God she wasn't hurt.

On another note, *knock on wood* I have yet to have an issue with the silent bug. I think it's more of a hardware issue (I got my Eris in April). The older hardware seems to have these problems, where as the newer hardware doesn't. When did you buy your Eris?

And the reason I think so many people have the silent bug with refurbs is because so many people turned in the old hardware cause of this bug. They refurbish the old hardware and send it out again, so you would have a good chance of having the same problem.

 

[cableguynoe]

A cement fence? Damn, thank God she wasn't hurt.

.

Yeah, which exposed a small motels swimming pool. Good thing no one was swimming or it would have scared the hell outta them

When did you buy your Eris?.

Mid March

 

[ERISLOVER]

Cableguy, demand to speak to a higher up immediatly tell them the problem, and if they say its an issue with just your phone take it to the law, by all laws, you are required to be able to reach 911 with out issues.

 

[Gnomesarealive]

This is the exact reason I am getting rid of my Eris the day the Droid X comes out. I honestly could care less about the ability to root it if I can't even make a phone call. I went through 4 replacements with Verizon until they made me eligible for an upgrade, which I am not using. I'm going to try and avoid getting onto a contract with them.
I have never had this problem with calling 911 before, but I have had it on normal calls. I always fear that something like this will happen, and I won't be able to make the call in time.

 

[dilokiam]

But I feel like shit giving someone else this problem.
Do I loose out on $150-200 and not sell it because of this problem?

Just remember karma can come back and bite you back on this one

Glad everyone was ok, but you really should let VZW hear your story about this. What if no one else was around, what if the poor girl was dying bleeding to death, what if this situation had been you and your wife and she was severely hurt and your Eris did this to you and it was a matter of mins/secs that cold have saved her life. just food for thought

 

[Mojorisen]

What if no one else was around, what if the poor girl was dying bleeding to death, what if this situation had been you and your wife and she was severely hurt and your Eris did this to you and it was a matter of mins/secs that cold have saved her life. just food for thought

That food tastes HORRIBLE!

 

[timmywa]

You should email customer service at VZW Corporate and link to this thread. add as much detail as possible. Perhaps they will forward it to Public Relations or some other department with more weight than support.

 

[ErisDroid?]

HOLY CRAP!!!! This really sheds a new light on the "silent bug". Thank fully no one was hurt. I have not had the silent issue (luckily) but I only make one or two calls a day with my phone. This is making me reconsider the appeal of the Eris.

My questions are; Is there anyone that works for VZW in this forum? Does VZW read these posts? Why hasn't this issue been addressed?

This is pretty serious, but how often does one dial 911? It shouldn't matter how often one dial 911 it should go through with no issues. (Sorry I was thinking out loud) I work for a "phone" company and I know that you do not need dial tone to call 911, the line needs to be active. So even the big land line phone companies make it easy for everyone to call 911 in an emergency.

I agree with one of the other posts (Frisco I think, sorry) you should bring this to your local paper, or news station. I'd say post it online but you already did.

WOW, sorry that happened to you, but thank you for sharing that experience.

 

[erisuser1]

Just curious - when folks experience this "silent bug" (it's never happened to me once, but I don't make/receive that many calls per month), is it silent in both directions? Does it occur more/less frequently depending on whether the call is inbound vs. outbound?

The reason I ask is that I have had "silent calls" on every cell phone I've owned... but usually they have been half-silent: I can hear the remote party, but they can't hear me, or vice-versa. And many times it happens in the middle of a call after there are other indicators of signal strength problems, such as garbling or dropouts.

I just chalked that up to a radio propagation/reception issue (signal strength or interference) - nothing specific about the phone, since it has happened on nearly every phone I've owned.

If it is total silence in both directions, does the phone give an indication of the call presence, for instance the call timer is counting up?

eu1

 

[dilokiam]

That food tastes HORRIBLE!

LOL I know right?!? about as bad as a Chinese Restaurant calling itself
#1 Chinese Restaurant ( yes it really does exsist! No. 1 Chinese Restaurant Menu - Newark, DE 19716: University of Delaware )

 

[kevhow]

LOL I know right?!? about as bad as a Chinese Restaurant calling itself
#1 Chinese Restaurant ( yes it really does exsist! No. 1 Chinese Restaurant Menu - Newark, DE 19716: University of Delaware )

Have you eaten there? Maybe they really are the No. 1 Chinese Restaurant.....

 

[dilokiam]

Have you eaten there? Maybe they really are the No. 1 Chinese Restaurant.....

LOL we have several of them here in Columbus OH and no I have not lol. But I know a few people who have.

 

[Peter123]

I have been in touch with VZW tech support, *611, also in relation with the silent bug.
The offered me to send a "repackaged" Eris. The guy said it is not refurished, but an Eris that was sent back in a few days of use - because the owner did not like it.
Peter

 

[Demache]

I knew it would happen. It was just a matter of time. Somebody could have been in grave danger. You should raise hell with Verizon. And if they fail to do anything about it, you should tell people about it. Bad publicity will generally make companies react quickly to resolve the problem in order to maintain a positive image.

Hopefully this will mean that a bugfix or a recall will be put on high priority in order to keep Eris users satisfied.

 

[dilokiam]

yeah also most city local news have an " On your side" segment, contact them as well.

 

[PhonoRoboto]

This makes my stomach turn! Does anyone really think that VZW will act on their own volition because of this (or similar) stories? I'm skeptical.

I'm curious of this is FCC territory? FCC has a comment filing mechanism that specifically calls out 911 issues related to wireless phone. I would start there!

FCC Consumer Complaints

 

[Skyholder]

I want to do this, but am afraid of them trying to force another Eris on me. Since I am still on my first, i just know they are going to say it's a problem with "my" phone.
I doubt I can use information I've learned in this forum to say that I know a swap wont fix it

Personally, I'd give them the chance to replace the BROKEN phone, and advise them your next call is to the local newspaper.
BUT, don't make a vailed threat. If they won't do anything for you, CALL the papers. But they'd love the story.