Warranty dilemma

Hello there,

As someone who knows very little about computers I was able to install ML on a new Probook 4530 with the help of some very smart people on these forums (notably Rehabman). Wifi, ethernet, VGA and everything else has been working great. The only problem I've been having is graphic glitches once in a while, but its a minor problem that I haven't felt necessary to correct.

Now to my dilemma; The hard-drive on my computer seems to have failed. It is making noises and sometimes the computer reboots for no reason. I still have warranty and I need to send it to the company that I bought it from. I guess it could be a problem with warranty if they discover that I've installed Mountain Lion, or what do you think? How do I "cover my tracks" so to speak?

Many thanks!
Johnnyboy

You will not get a problem with warranty because of which OS you have installed on your system. The computer and operating system are independent. You can buy these laptops with linux pre-installed.

brummymax said:

You will not get a problem with warranty because of which OS you have installed on your system. The computer and operating system are independent. You can buy these laptops with linux pre-installed.

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Are you sure thats always the case? If I'd like to re-install and get windows back before I send it off, how would I do that?

I contacted the company that sold it today and they told me that they will probably just give me another one. However, they are out of Probook 4530 so I will get money back that I can use to buy any other computer they have.

They have a 4540 but from looking at these forums it seems its not as easy to hackintosh, at least not for someone like me. Any other computer I can buy that are easy to hackintosh?

Regards
Johnnyboy

Isn't there anyone else who thinks it might be a problem if I send it and they discover it is a hackintosh? I'm really afraid to send it off in case they would decide not to allow me the warranty. In that case I could've bought a real Mac instead. At least tell me how to restore it to how it was when I received when it was new.

johnnyboy said:

Isn't there anyone else who thinks it might be a problem if I send it and they discover it is a hackintosh? I'm really afraid to send it off in case they would decide not to allow me the warranty. In that case I could've bought a real Mac instead. At least tell me how to restore it to how it was when I received when it was new.

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1. We at tonymacx86.com always suggest to get a real Mac laptop over any other, so should you have just gone ahead and gotten a real Mac? Probably yes.

2. You have to read what is covered under the warranty to see how it would apply to your laptop. I doubt warranty would be excluded because of an operating system but you would need to read it to make sure.

3. Buy a real Macbook.

johnnyboy said:

Isn't there anyone else who thinks it might be a problem if I send it and they discover it is a hackintosh? I'm really afraid to send it off in case they would decide not to allow me the warranty. In that case I could've bought a real Mac instead. At least tell me how to restore it to how it was when I received when it was new.

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You could just wipe the HDD clean. Tell them that you didn't want to send any of your data. When they get it, they'll re-image the HDD with their stock image, or run diagnostics on the HDD, and try to verify your claim.

If you think your Hard Drive is having issues, they will likely take your old hard drive, slap in a new one, and install W7 on it. Make sure you have all your stuff backed up, and be ready to reinstall OSX.

rebelleader288 said:

If you think your Hard Drive is having issues, they will likely take your old hard drive, slap in a new one, and install W7 on it. Make sure you have all your stuff backed up, and be ready to reinstall OSX.

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Thank you for your replies!

I bought what I thought was a demo-product but it was in fact a returned item. Today I called them and they told me that in most warranty cases concerning a prior returned item they would just give a voucher check without checking about the problem. In some cases they will try to see what the problem is and solve it. So it will probably be ok but I still need to erase my HDD just to be on the safe side.