Help Broken SD Card Latch

[BLACKTOOTHGRIN]

I was changing sd cards today and the internal latch broke!
How the hell this happened is beyond me.
I'm extremely careful with all of my devices, and have NEVER had one of these fail.
The only thing I can figure is the fragile a$$ build quality of this phone.
Ridiculous!

I carefully pressed inward to unlock the sd card, it popped out no problem.
I put the other one in and it wouldn't lock into place.
I tried over and over to get it to lock in, but it just wouldn't.
So I tried the previous card that I had just removed...same thing...it wouldn't lock.
Finally....frustration got the better of me (because I knew the damn thing was broken)
and I rammed the thing into position!
So....now it's in there and working fine, but now it won't release.
At least it's in and working.

The problem is that I doubt I can ever get it back out without breaking something for good.
Need some suggestions on what to do.
If I call my carrier, they will just replace it with some refurb.
That right there is the reason why I got so angry in the first place and forced it into position.
The phone is only 2 months old, and I've only removed the sd card maybe 3-4 times.
Theres NO REASON that latch should have failed, and I shouldn't have to settle for a refurb so soon do to crappy build quality!!!
(bad experiences with refurbs in the past)
I called the only local repair shop in town and they said the S4 is so new that they can't do the job right now, and even if they could it would be expensive.
I really feel stuck in a bad spot here and very cheated.
Any Suggestions?

 

[Goodspike]

I would just sit and wait until either: (1) You actually need to remove the card for some reason; or (2) Something else happens to the phone. By then getting a refurb might not be so bad.

 

[BLACKTOOTHGRIN]

That's pretty much how I'm looking at it right now also.
I'm obviously angry because it never should have happened in the first place, but I'm also upset that now it is going to limit me in usage.
I wouldn't be quite as pissed if I had a 64gb card in there, but as it stands, my 32gb card is in there. Plus the limiation of not being able to swap cards out, ya know?

The S4 is probably the best functioning phone that I've ever had, BUT MOST DEFINITELY THE WORST BUILD QUALITY that I've ever had at the same time!

 

[lotus49]

I guess by the way you write that you are in the US and I'm not familiar with US consumer protection law but you should at least be covered by the one year warranty.

In the UK you would have a right to get a brand new replacement phone if it breaks this quickly, particularly as it's almost impossible to see how operator error could cause this to happen.

You should return the phone and demand a new replacement.

I do know how to get it out though. I have had to do this myself and it's dead easy. Get a bit of sticky tape (duct tape works well) and stick it to the exposed edge of the card and gently pull. Hey presto.

 

[trucky]

You do have a one year warranty through Samsung but you would have to ship your phone to them and wait for it to be returned, if you were worried about getting a refurb. If you go to your carrier you can likely get a refurb exchange while you wait or overnight with a 10 day return of your old phone. In my past experience I have never been able to see any difference between my refurbs and factory new.

 

[Goodspike]

You do have a one year warranty through Samsung but you would have to ship your phone to them and wait for it to be returned, if you were worried about getting a refurb.

I guess that's a reason to not sell your old smartphone when buying a new one. It would give you something to hobble along with.

 

[BLACKTOOTHGRIN]

I guess by the way you write that you are in the US and I'm not familiar with US consumer protection law but you should at least be covered by the one year warranty.

In the UK you would have a right to get a brand new replacement phone if it breaks this quickly, particularly as it's almost impossible to see how operator error could cause this to happen.

You should return the phone and demand a new replacement.

I do know how to get it out though. I have had to do this myself and it's dead easy. Get a bit of sticky tape (duct tape works well) and stick it to the exposed edge of the card and gently pull. Hey presto.

Are you saying demand a new replacement from Samsung or my carrier? I know Big Red won't give me a new phone. They have a 14 day replacement policy that they refuse to budge on. After that they throw you a refurbished phone.

Samsung might be a different story, but I'm not sure they'd replace anything either. Probably just offer to fix it under warranty. It's worth a shot though. As you clearly stated, it's damn near impossible for operator error to have caused this. And in my case, I guarantee it wasn't operator error. You'd think any reasonable person could see this, but alot of time policy supersedes reason here in the USA.

Thanks for the tape trick.
I think I'm just gonna leave it stuck in there for now as long as it's holding and working. If I take it out, I may not get another to stay in there....

You do have a one year warranty through Samsung but you would have to ship your phone to them and wait for it to be returned, if you were worried about getting a refurb. If you go to your carrier you can likely get a refurb exchange while you wait or overnight with a 10 day return of your old phone. In my past experience I have never been able to see any difference between my refurbs and factory new.

They will issue me a refurb while I'm waiting for mine to be fixed through Samsung warranty??

 

[BLACKTOOTHGRIN]

I've never dealt with a manufacturers warranty program when it's come to a smartphone before, and can't really say that I like the thought of my device passing over X number of hands through transit and whatnot just to be torn into as the end result to fix something so simple. I kinda feel like it's alot of risk added to what the problem actually is in this situation.

Have any of you ever had any negative issues with this type of service in the past, and ever found that when you received your device back it was more jacked up in some manner than before? (Scratches, dings, loose buttons, or ANY other defect that you know wasn't there when you shipped it to them? )

I don't know if I'm overly paranoid on this matter, but I DO KNOW that whoever has your device in their hands WILL NOT treat it as nicely as YOU WOULD, and probably doesn't really care if they mess anything up in the process. They still get paid either way, and they know you can't prove any wrong doing on their behalf just for the simple fact of you're not there to witness it.

 

[lotus49]

Are you saying demand a new replacement from Samsung or my carrier? I know Big Red won't give me a new phone. They have a 14 day replacement policy that they refuse to budge on. After that they throw you a refurbished phone.

Samsung might be a different story, but I'm not sure they'd replace anything either. Probably just offer to fix it under warranty. It's worth a shot though. As you clearly stated, it's damn near impossible for operator error to have caused this. And in my case, I guarantee it wasn't operator error. You'd think any reasonable person could see this, but alot of time policy supersedes reason here in the USA.

Thanks for the tape trick.
I think I'm just gonna leave it stuck in there for now as long as it's holding and working. If I take it out, I may not get another to stay in there....



They will issue me a refurb while I'm waiting for mine to be fixed through Samsung warranty??

In the UK it doesn't matter what the seller's policy is, there is a statutory right under the Sale of Goods Act. If something breaks this quickly there is a presumption that it was not of merchantable quality (as the Act puts it) and the retailer is in breach of contract. I have no idea what the law in the US is.

If there is no similar consumer protection legislation in the US (which is where I presume you live but you haven't said) you are stuck with getting a refurbished phone from the retailer or relying on the Samsung warranty. I have returned laptops under manufacturer's warranties and everything went fine. The only problem was the delay.

I would have thought a refurbished phone would be better than one you know is broken though.