Asus Owners & Retailers PLEASE HELP...

Can anyone tell me If they received their Asus laptop from a retailer with their copy of Windows XP or XP Pro already registered? I just picked up an older spec V6V from a reputable and authorized Asus retailer for my Father, and everything was sealed, the laptop itself is immaculate, every sticker is in place, all the discs are sealed, the screen has zero dead pixels etc...except the first time I booted it up after opening the box and charging the battery for 4 hours, Windows XP Pro loaded and their was one user account listed as "BVI", I found that strange, anyways, I continued to check everything out for any evidence that someone had already used the laptop, and there was nothing, no entry's in any program, no preferences set, I did everything I could think of to see If the computer had been used already, and there are no other traces...the only other weird thing I could find is when I right click my computer and go to properties, under registered to, It again says "BVI"? Is this normal? Is this done when the retailer is checking to make sure everything runs properly before they ship it or sell it? I need to know if this is a normal occurance with all Asus ensemble systems, or If I should be concerned it's been lightly used before? Like I said, there are zero other hints It's been used. Please let me know what you think, the sooner I can get to the bottom of this the better. Thanks in advance.

PS, Once I get to the bottom of this, I'll fill everyone in on why I bought this V6V out of the blue and what I think about it. Like I said, It's mainly for my Father's use, I'll be picking up a W3J as soon as they're in stock!!!

 

Stop freaking out man. When soemone installs windows, they have to put a name for the main account. Most retailers put the brand name and model number, for ex: ASUS Z70Va or w.e... But your retailer chose "BVI"... It's no big deal, you can go in control pannel and change it yourself.. Who know swhat "BVI" stands for..

 

I'm not freaking out, I just wanted to know If that was normal is all...and you're saying it is. I've never owned a laptop myself before, just many Desktops, and I've never had one of them, out of 6 running XP home and Pro already have a user account name listed, let alone already be registered when I first booted them up. Since I got this V6V for an incredible price, I wanted to make sure It wasn't lightly used, seeing as the retailer assured me it was brand new before I bought it, It's as simple as that.
It's for my Father as I've said, and I bought It on a whim, so before I hand it over to him, I wanted to be sure I wouldn't have to contact the retailer for an explanation or some compensation before It's too late.
Can anyone else please confirm what mystery has said, that their Asus was already registered the first time they booted it up out of the box...thanks!

I'll fill everyone in on the story surrounding the purchase tomorrow, you're not going to believe it!!!

 

mystery, your first post.... sort of helpful. don't be calling him freaking out. he's caring for his product that he just spent good money for. chill out.

 

And yeah, what Mystery said was 100% correct. It's not that hard to change the register name..

 

Oh, I know how to change it, I wasn't worried about changing it or the user account name, I know that's very simple to do...I just wanted assurance that It's common amoung Asus laptops (or laptops in general) to come pre-registered in windows when booted for the first time. All my other experiences with windows XP/XP Pro in desktops made me question otherwise...

I guess sometimes when you get such a great deal on something that you end up buying in the spur of the moment without much thought can lead you to being a bit paranoid, even about small things. It still seems to good to be true but It's starting to sink in.

Thanks for the responses so far

 

and the solution to your problem can be found by clicking this mystical, unexplanable link (jks)

 

I know you were kidding with the link above, but honestly, maybe I wasn't clear when I first asked my question, I was never asking how to change the user name and registration in Windows, I was simply asking If It was normal to boot up a brand new laptop and to find that It was already registered along with having an unfamiliar user name entered, seeing as It's an ensemble system. I was simply asking If it was common or normal, not how to change it. My previous experience with new desktops running windows has differed, I've never already seen these fields filled in, I've always been the first to enter the user names and register windows etc. All the experience I have with laptops to date has always been demos or someone else's, I've never owned or booted a brand new one before... So seeing those things already entered combined with my previous windows experience and the price I got it for sent up a red flag in my head...which I wanted you guys to straighten out for me. If I had bought it for the normal retail price, I bet I would have assumed It was normal/fine...see how jaded we can be these days...It seems to good to be true, so my mind jumps on the first small inconsistancy I could find and automatically leads me to think something is wrong.

 

For notebooks in general it is not the way it usually is. First time boot gets you to a screen to create the first user. NO precreated users. Just as if you have just done a restore and are booting for the first time.

That said, I have no experience with Asus, so don't know if it is different !

 

Unless you got this for like $200, all this build up is...

 

The only reason the notebook would have to be opened is if you had ordered something else with it or upgrade or they were doing tests. The only reason they would be running tests is if it is a return or they were just interested. The vendor does not need to setup windows on an ensemble. Your only course of action is to call asus and request a warranty check. Obviously its warranted for a year if it is less then you have a problem,

 

You said it has been "Pre-registered", a brand new out of box laptop shouldn't be like that. I don't know where you bought it from(but I know it is not from me), maybe that is why the price you paid is $600 below my purchase cost , I think for the price you paid, that sounds OK. Shouldn't complain even it has been used.

 

When you boot a new laptop, it runs a mini-setup (sysprep) which allows you to customise it. I would be more concerned with the hardware than the software...

I'm with eddie on the warranty check. Bring it to a service center to have a peace of mind

 

Asus' ensembles don't come like that....... and quite honestly, if they tested the system for any reason, it's really their prerogative to do so. I know that Asus seals their systems in Taiwan with Asus blue tape........ sometimes you'll get a green QC tape over that which is from Asus in Fremont... you can't do anything about that. We used to double check those green taped ones just to make sure everything was ok and then resealed. Now, we retape everything that leaves here with out tape just because if that tape is cut or damaged when it gets to a customer, we know for a fact something happened after it left here, we've got to blame FedEx for tampering with it after it left. Because, we've seen UPS (one reason we don't use them anymore) screw up a box... like drop it and get a big hole in it and they're sort of smart... instead of taping over the hole, they'll take the stuff out of the box and get a new box and tape it up and put a new label on it. Of course they can't get the same exact box that Asus uses and certainly not the same tape. So, for that reason, we tape everything (most of which we don't even crack the Asus seal, but if the customer gets our product without our tape, we tell them not to accept it.

In your case, the dealer could have opened it....... turned it on and to get into windows you need to put some name into the system..... that doesn't mean it's registered though.... what they should have done is returned the system to factory defaults and done an automated restore........ You can do that now and be fine...... but someone there either played around with it at the company you bought it from (which if it was just a QC test you can't blame for), but if it was a a demo unit they used for ever, that's a problem.... or it could be used and returned.... that's more of a problem.

But the real problem is you tried to find an old V6v......... since Asus ran out of all of those in early October....... I'm surprised you could find one, but you can't totally be surprised that it's not perfect, especially if you don't have full trust in the place you're getting it. I wouldn't worry though, sounds like they wanted to see what the notebook was all about and started it up.. that's about it.

 

Like everyone commented, it's not normal.


The first thing a new user should see upon first boot up is the Windows Welcome screen which walks them through the EULA and such. Even if a reseller installs software for the customer, the reseller cannot bypass the EULA for the customer, the customer has to agree to it. All OEM's know how to bypass the intial setup screen to install software and "reseal" the OS for the customer so the first thing the see is the setup/EULA screen.

 

I would call asus and check if its been serviced. and see how long the warranty is left. thats really all you can do.

 

So CalibratedComa, any updates for us on the story of your purchase?

 

Thanks for all the input everyone...I thought something was up...I'm very busy trying to get to the bottom of things. I should have everything worked out by tomorrow night, I've been really busy with work as well. I'll definitely fill everyone in on everything as soon as I can. Thanks again for the replies

 

Looks like It's going to be one more day until everything is finalized...I got a great deal but boy have I had to work for it, (Why can't a great deal go smoothly for once???) between Asus's customer service and the retailer I bought It from, I've talked to maybe 6 different people, apparently in more than three Countries so far...and 2 of those 6 I've talked to more than 3 times each. The way things stand right now, Asus confirmed it definitely shouldn't have come with windows registered (as most of us already knew) and after a long story which I'll go into detail on sometime tomorrow, It has It's full 2 year global warranty intact from my purchase date through Asus. I've learned so many crazy things about these companies systems of operation though, all I can say is I feel badly for Justin and the other retailers that have to deal with Asus USA going back and forth, confirming one thing and then later taking it back etc on a regular basis...Like I said, I'll go into detail on this whole situation hopefully tomorrow...If everything is finalized by then. (fingers crossed)

Just so everyone knows...Things got off to a rocky start with Asus customer service, but as things stand now, they ended up doing the right thing and got back to me promptly three times in one day...I feel confident that If I ever need to contact them directly again, I won't have any problems and their service will be fast and efficient.

 

Can you say High Maitenance! Run the thing through some tests and get over the whole BVI issue. Of course maybe its stolen.... .

 

Can you say can't spell maintenance!!! For someone with only 4 posts here, It's not the coolest thing to make a negative comment towards someone you know nothing about like that.

Anyways, Here's the story for anyone interested.

5 days ago or so I was in my local Office Depot, yes that's right Office Depot...getting some photocopies made at about 10 minutes to 9, they close at nine. I decided to look around a bit while I was waiting and came across the laptop section. The V6V I had seen 4 months prior was still sitting there on display and the price had been slashed a few times and was sitting at $1200 CAN. I assumed this was for the display model only and asked one of the few people working there to find out for me...the guy said he thinks they have one other one left in the back, I asked if it was brand new and for the same price...he went to the computer and said it was. I was shocked!!! before I found this out, I was considering buying the used display model at this price even though it was missing one key on the keyboard and had a small chip on the base's outer edge. When he told me there was a new V6V in the back for $1200 bucks I told him I would like to put a deposit or hold on it. This guy then tells me they're closing in 2 minutes and that he couldn't take a deposit or hold it for me...I then made the decision right then and there to buy it since I'd have 14 days to return it if I needed to and this way I wouldn't have to worry about someone else snatching it up...He then told me that the manager had already left for the night and I wouldn't be able to buy it either, can you believe that, he was turning down a last minute laptop sale for over a thousand bucks. I thought he was joking but sadly he wasn't. I assured him that If I left without him setting it aside for me or letting me buy it or putting a deposit on it for tomorrow and It was gone/sold before I got back the next day, that he'd have quite a problem on his hands. Anyways, I picked up my copies and left the store in shock.

I went back the next day after I left my office and lucky for him the V6V was still there. The manager went and got it from the back, we both opened it, looked it over, and he assured me it was BRAND NEW. I have to admit it was in pristine condition and everything was sealed and looking fine. So I bought the V6V, took it home, opened everything up, charged the battery and went to bed. The next evening I booted it up for the first time and to my surprise, there was a user name already listed and windows basically booted like I'd used the computer before. I did everything I could possibly do internally and externally to look for clues that the laptop had been used before, there were absolutely none. The only other thing I could find, which I already mentioned, was that windows had already been registered to the same three letter (BVI) used in the user name. From there I thought something might be a bit off, and that's when I first posted here for everyone's thoughts/opinions. I then looked up Asus's number and gave them a call, after calling who knows where, I told the rep on the line that I was calling from Canada and asked if there was a toll free number I could call instead so I wouldn't incur charges, he asked for my number and said he'd call me back. I sat by the phone thinking he'd call right back, (Silly me) an hour later I got a call from someone else with vastly superior english skills to the previous rep and proceeded to tell him my situation. He told me it wasn't normal and said he'd look up the serial number. This is where I was shocked to find out that Asus doesn't register individual serial numbers or log specific laptop cases.

It took me a while to get this out of him, first he got all defensive and said he couldn't tell me If anyone had registered or sent this particular laptop in for privacy reasons...after a few minutes of explaining to him that I really need that info he gave in and told me what I said above, that Asus doesn't track individual laptops, but rather they go by the batch/build date and your date of purchase. He did tell me that there's nothing that would indicate that this particular laptop had ever been in for service, or had ever been registered (warranty wise) before...what he did tell me was that because the serial number was older, that Asus would only be willing to offer me a one year global warranty. I got really mad when he said this, I told him that I know quite a bit about Asus laptops and their policies relating to warranties over the last few years. He told me that all the newer V6's are now only coming with a one year warranty, to which I agreed and pointed out that the model I bought came with a two year warranty and I have the sticker and literature to prove it. He again said he doesn't think they're going to be able to offer me the two years at which time I said that was unacceptable. He said he'd have to check with someone and call me back, I said fine.

He called me back 2 hours later and said Asus is willing to warranty the laptop to May 2007, which is basically one year. This time I went postal on him and quoted almost everything I've learned about Asus from this forum over the past 2 years or so and basically said If they didn't honor the 24 month/2 year warranty they'd be breaking the law amoung other things. He was quite surprised by just how much I knew and said he'd call me back again. He then called back about an hour later and said that Asus has decided in this case that they'd be happy to honor the full 2 year warranty, they gave me a case number to refer to and the rep I was talking to basically said I could call him If I ever needed anything in the future and they'd be happy to help. That was that, Oh, and he also basically said registering online was meaningless and basically just for show. I think It's crazy that they handle their warranty system like that, without keeping specific tabs on each individual laptop...anyways...

Now onto Office Depot, their customer service is absolutely insane...I'm not going to go into all the detail on this side of things because I've already written a short novel here and I'm sure most of you could care less...The one thing I will share is that when I first called I ended up talking to a guy named Nelson in Mexico who kept assuring me that there was 100% no way I could have gotten a used product from them. This guys in Mexico, I bought the laptop in a store in Canada and he's betting his life and giving me 100% assurance that no one could have possibly used the laptop even after I explained to him that Windows XP Pro was already physically registered by someone. The story basically ends today when Office Depot agreed to further discount the laptop for me. I ended up paying $1050 Canadian for a flawless "maybe used once by a curious office depot employee" V6V with a full 2 year global warranty! It might be a bit of an older spec, but It's one sweet laptop none the less (and cheaper than almost all dells)!

I'll post some other thoughts/things in another post below.

 

Wow CalibratedComa... that post is intimdating. Please create more paragraphs next time
Heh heh...

 

The laptop also came with the ZBD policy, but so far the screen is perfect without any dead pixels. Anyone who thinks this laptop and It's fan is loud, Is being unreasonable if you ask me. The only issue I might have is with the battery because It's probably been sitting in Office Depot's warehouse all this time unused. The first time I charged it, it went to 100%, but I ran that all the way down, and I think the second time It only went to 99% after a full night of charging/being plugged in. It seems to be discharging faster than what's listed, but I'm getting a reading of 3 hours and 35 mins in email mode with bluetooth off and wifi on, It jumps to 3 hours and 50 mins with wifi off as well, and that's without any tweaks and screen at 80%. I might RMA the battery soon just to be safe. I also found out that I have access to 2 out of 3 unsecured wireless networks thanks to my neighbors. Right now we're running a wired router setup, so I'd have to plug it in for access to our network. The other little annoying thing that other new Asus owners are finding out is that the hard drive is formatted in Fat32 and because this model only has a 60GB drive, that kinda sucks. I know the laptops an older spec, and I know lots has already been said about the V6 series, but If anyone has any other questions, I'd be happy to answer them for you. I plan on picking up a W3J in the next few weeks when they make it onto shelves over here...then I'll have gone from someone with a bit of in person Asus experience, to someone who owns two of Asus's top end models!!! I think I'm also going to hook this V6V up with 2X1GB sticks of Ram before I hand it over to my Father.

I went back in and made some breaks...they might not make the most sense structure wise, but at least it breaks things up visually!!!

 

Haha, amusing story calibrated. Glad everything worked out for you in the end. Good eye to spot the great deal. You fought well. BOYCOTT Office Depot! Power to the people!

 

HAHAHAHAHA, seriously coma, paragraphs~!

I can give english grammar lessons for about 100 an hour.

You can also check to see if any computer has been used before, given the original harddrive is still in it, by using the harddrive's SMART function. It reports how many hours it has been in use for.

 

I'm too busy these days to bother with paragraphs people, I was typing that out as fast as I could...just pretend I'm talking to you in person as you read it.

Shampoo, can you post me a short step by step tutorial on how to access/check that SMART function you mentioned??? That would be a cool fact to know.

Thanks in advance.

 

Coma
Late last year (or sometime i really cant recall) asus decided to cut 2 year global warranty to 1 year only. That included the v6va. Some of them shipped with a 2 year global warranty. The reps in the states claimed that the ones that shipped with these stickers do indeed have a 2 year global even though dealers advertised 1 year. That is the last i heard of this. I would expect them to hold true to what is stated on the little stickers especially when it comes to warranty.

 

Thanks G2P, I knew that already, I was the one that pointed that out to the Asus rep on the phone as part of my defense. They really had no choice, It's basically false advertising otherwise, especially with the sticker clearly reading 24 months!

Shampoo or anyone else, can you please list the steps/instructions I need to take in order to check the hard drives smart function or whatever It is that will tell me how long the hard drive has opertated for so far. Thanks

I'm surprised no one else commented on the low price I got it for...There's still a demo unit there that I'm sure someone could get for even less. If anyone's interested, let me know and I'll tell you which location has it.

 

What a steal!

 

Hey coma, sorry I took so long, I've been busy with trying to sell my desktop hardware on another forum.

I find the easiest way is through Notebook Hardware Control because it just displays this information without having to search for it.

I dont have my notebook on me, but you just install NHC, whichever version, go into the harddrive tab and there should be a SMART button in the upper right. Just click on it and then at the bottom of the new window you see will have "Power-On Time Count:* displayed.

Thing is it might show 0, but you must specify the units, either year, days, hours. Set that option to HOURS. Then it will tell you how long the harddrive has been in operation.

I don't know if this information can be changed or reset from a format or not. Someone else may be able to answer that part, but this way you can know how long your system, if the harddrive is the original harddrive in the system, has been on or used for.

Hope that helps~!

Cheers,
Mike

 

Alright cool, I'll install NHC and check that out. Thanks.

Here's another question for any Asus owners or dealers, I know people have had lots of sound issues with various models, especially when it comes to audio out using headphones etc...I just popped in a DVD to test things out...It seems that using the V6's internal speakers to listen to the movie with I'm only getting background sounds etc...I can't hear any dialogue or voices almost at all. I've turned every software option I can find up to max and almost everything else gets quite loud, but the characters voices/dialogue are still basically non existant. Like I already said, I know there have been sound issues, I just can't recall anyone having this particular one on a V6, anyone have any ideas on a solution or what might be the problem?

 

What program are you using to watch the DVD calibrated? PowerDVD?

 

Yeah, actually whatever came with the system on CD I installed, I think It was AsusDVD. I tried to use Windows Media Player but both the DVD's I had with me at the time were put out by Sony. On that note, does anyone know how to get WMP to play Sony encrypted discs through a computer DVD drive???

You think that If I use another player like VLC or whatever that It'll fix the audio dialogue problem symetrikal?

Did anyone get Microsoft works bundled in with their Asus ensemble system? I didn't get one but I've seen a few pics of peoples box contents and they seem to be showing a copy of works with everything else?

 

Coma, use another video player, but that AsusDVD thing isn't too bad.

I'm not too sure about actual DVDs, but if you're playing videos like divx or whatever downloaded from the internet you can boost voices over background audio if it uses AC3 filter.

Have you tried different equalizer settings? Also go into the AsusDVD audio configuration and change things up in there. Using Dolby something or other in quiet mode for full range of sound is messy with the notebook's internal speakers. Try the last option that says something like For Loud Environments.