How is customer service and delivery times?

Basically I'm seriously considering getting a R400 if I get into University, however it appears that Lenovo is based in China, is that correct? If so, what is customer service and are the responses prompt? And what about delivery? I won't find out whether I'm in Uni until next Thursday and then I'll need to receive the laptop by 28th September at the latest but preferably by the 18th.

Personally I'm not going with a laptop company that has all it's services based half way across the globe =/.

 

Lenovo is an internationally present company, that purchased IBM's personal computing division.

You aren't supported out of China...

Lenovo is "based" in China meaning it is owned by a Chinese company that is largely held by the Academy of Sciences.

 

I read that people who ordered from North America were having their Thinkpads shipped from China though...

 

All notebooks (or almost all--a few Japanese companies might be exceptions) are made it China--hence that is where they are shipped from.

Lenovo's design work is done in the US and Japan (but clearly there are good design teams in Taiwan, where most other notebooks are designed).

Lenovo's phone support is in the US (Atlanta, I believe ?), and repairs are done at Solectron (Arkansas ?)

 

I see. I'm concerned about the fact none of it is based in the UK. I'm trying to decide between whether to get it from the Lenovo site or laptopsdirect.co.uk. If I went with the latter I could get much quicker delivery and the support would be better too since they're actually based in the UK so if something went really wrong and Lenovo messed me around they'd actually give me another one. The problem is I can't configure the R400 on laptopsdirect so it would mean no 4GB ram and 9 cell battery for me

 

You will still be relying on Lenovo for tech support and repairs. From the laptopsdirect site:

Source: http://www.laptopsdirect.co.uk/content/customerservice.asp#technical

 

I gather that but it also states somewhere on their customer service page that in the event that something goes seriously wrong they will provide you with a replacement or a refund.

Plus next day delivery is better than having to wait like a month >_>.

 

If that's all your concerned about, then buy it there. Upgrade the RAM yourself (you should do that anyway - it'll be cheaper than getting it OEM), and get a 9-cell battery as a spare. If you're dead set against having a spare, then sell the original one to recoup some of the cost.

 

It's not cheaper because the Lenovo site has big savings until the 1st of September so I can get 4GB ram and 9 cell in the config for like £770 whereas if I buy a 9 cell battery that's like £100 ontop of the £750 itself!

 

OK. Take out the 9-cell for a moment, since we know that it's an extra cost on top of the £750. As I mentioned, if you don't want a spare, sell the original one to recoup the costs. For RAM, it's almost always cheaper. Looking at the Lenovo (US) site right now, I'm seeing the R400 coming stock with 1G of RAM. For $75, you could upgrade to 3G (eg add a single 2G stick). 2G (1DIMM) to 4G (2x2) is an extra $65. A check on Newegg shows me that I can get a single 2G stick for around $30 (still USD, and even cheaper if you buy two sticks together). That's pretty overpriced, IMHO.
Even if the laptopsdirect laptop has the 2G 2Dimm option ($40 over the 1G option), you're still saving (though not as much) buying your own 2x2G and tossing the two 1G sticks.

I realize you don't have newegg on your side of the pond, but perhaps you can still get better prices elsewhere - it's worth checking. There's also a premium you pay for getting the faster shipping. In the end it's your decision as to how much you'd prefer the quicker shipping and simpler support.

 

Thing is if I fit my own RAM I'm voiding the warranty by opening the laptop up aren't I?

 

Not at all. It's one of the many Consumer Replacable Parts, along with drive (plenty of people swap that for bigger, or SSD), wireless module, modem (if applicable), bluetooth, etc. The only difference is that Lenovo won't be the one you contact for the warranty if it fails, but the RAM manufacturers are good about that, generally, and it's far less l ikely for it to have problems than the other parts of your computer.

 

Hmm maybe. Another 2 GB would be £45:

http://www.aria.co.uk/Products/Comp...0+DDR3+SO-DIMM+?productId=32881&rqcType=r#rqc

I believe that is the correct type anyway. Would I have to chuck the 2x 1 GB DDR3 and replace them with a 2 GB stick as well? That could be quite costly =/.

 

I'll assume you've done your research, and the site has good deals.
I see this guy:
http://www.aria.co.uk/Products/Comp...Z+2GB+PC3-10666+DDR3+SO-DIMM+?productId=32883
For less than half that price. It's a step up in terms of quality/speed, which you won't be able to take advantage of, but it's the same pinout, so your computer won't care (and will simply use it at the lower speed).

Yes, you wouldn't keep using the 2x 1GB sticks, but you could always sell them. In the end, It's not especially costly:
http://www.aria.co.uk/Products/Comp...CZ+1GB+PC3-8500+DDR3+SO-DIMM+?productId=32880
£21 for the two. Would you rather have £21 unused in parts, and pay £45 (net extra cost to you is only £45, or maybe less if you sell the spares), or pay even more than the £45, but not have the £21 in parts?