Unication refusing to repair devices older than 5 yrs old

[Echo4Thirty]

All,
We have several clients with unications with various issues from the typical USB port being inop/pushed in to RF issues. We sent them in to Unication using the normal process we have used in the past for both our in-house and other clients we service. Unication calls and tells us they will not fix any of them that are older than 5 years old and is sending them back. They also will not give us any trade in value or really anything at all towards sale of a new device. This comes from our contact directly at Unication repair and not a dealer. Has anyone else had this issue? Now we have pissed off customers. If i could buy the parts from Unication, we would just fix them in house, but nope not an option.

 

[KevinC]

Well that sucks.

 

[Echo4Thirty]

From their PDF:

1. NEW ELIGIBILITY REQUIREMENT- Limited to devices under 5 years old: The Flat Rate Repair Program is available to OOW (Out of Warranty) devices under 5 years of age (based on the Dealer’s Unication invoice date). Beginning Monday, March 14, 2022, the Unication flat rate repair/replacement program will be limited to device serial numbers that are less than 5 years old. This new policy will be displayed in the ticket system along with instructions to check the age of device prior to opening a new RMA ticket. If a device is received that is over 5 years old with no warranty, it will be returned unrepaired.

Also it seems they are not going to repair ANY out of warranty device with the USB port pushed in, which is a very common failure point or if they determine the radio is scratched up or dinged up enough to call it "cosmetic damages" even if the radio works otherwise. (again from their PDF)

"Signs of abuse or impact to knob, buttons, or port
Cosmetic damages (any cosmetic imperfection or damage that does not impact the device functionality or performance)"

This apparently went into affect in March

 

[cfsimmont]

So......... to sum it up, any Unication device older than 5yrs old in need of repair is now a paperweight? If thats correct, from what I am understanding that really makes the idea of buying one of their pagers seem like a waste of money. There are plenty of commercial brand radio equipment that is way older than 5yrs old that can still be repaired either by the manufacturer or by an independent shop.

 

[letarotor]

That is absurd. If this is their new policy, I will not be buying another one from them. What a crazy policy change doing something like this! Mine is going on three years old and that would rule out any repairs on any of the earlier models too. I can't believe they would do this. I bet when their business starts slowing down they might rethink this change. I'm glad it was brought to our attention because I did not know this was how Unication was acting now. And I've actually been considering getting a new unit that would cover another band that my VHF/700/800 model doesn't cover. I'm going to have to look into this further. But if this is what they are doing, I'm not going to even consider getting another Unication unit.

 

[DewAddict]

This is good to know going forward. I bought mine in 2021 and hadn't seen the updated information. Thanks for sharing and getting it out there for us all.

 

[ka3aaa]

thats their option if thats what they want to do, on the other hand i wouldnt recommend or even mention them if when sugesting a scanner or pager that scans to anyone. dont worry word will get around.

 

[Forts]

Considering how they have gone complete silent with software/firmware updates too, I can't say I'm surprised. They were very active in the community here, likely made a ton of sales, and have now just seemingly walked away. I can't imagine any fire department being impressed when they can't get their devices serviced.

 

[radionx]

Signs of the times to come. I think it will only get rougher as economy worsens.
Won't be the last player to toughen the rules...
They should sell warranty extensions, like HPE does for example.

 

[nyscan]

Sounds like they want 5 years to be end of life for these devices.

 

[Echo4Thirty]

Its not just devices over 5 years, the PDF states if they determine its too beat up outside of warranty, they will refuse to fix it.

 

[Echo4Thirty]

thats their option if thats what they want to do, on the other hand I wouldn't recommend or even mention them if when suggesting a scanner or pager that scans to anyone. dont worry word will get around.

We are in the same boat. We have had several fire agencies and other companies we have been selling these to, now we need to re-evaluate this. Its a shame, its a great device but if it cannot be supported after 5 years or for the USB port getting pushed in due to their poor design, or someone there determines its too scratched up, I cant in good conscience recommend these devices anymore.

If they would make parts and manuals available, we would repair them in house. We do board level repairs all the time, but they refuse to do that even. I guess its time to crack one open and see if they just OEMd some of the parts (like the USB port)

 

[Giddyuptd]

Looks like we will be going toward the bk for the 700/vhf since that is our area. Our plan was unication after trying out but if this is case I won't allow it and will go toward bk for the resolution of vhf and 700 for the vol depts.

We are in the same boat. We have had several fire agencies and other companies we have been selling these to, now we need to re-evaluate this. Its a shame, its a great device but if it cannot be supported after 5 years or for the USB port getting pushed in due to their poor design, or someone there determines its too scratched up, I cant in good conscience recommend these devices anymore.

If they would make parts and manuals available, we would repair them in house. We do board level repairs all the time, but they refuse to do that even. I guess its time to crack one open and see if they just OEMd some of the parts (like the USB port)

 

[pro106import]

In case you missed it, @bucket772 had a great tutorial on disassembly and USB port fix. Looks like it might come in handy for many of us now. Nothing to lose anymore.

Loose USB DIY repair

I hang my G4 on the visor of my car with a USB run up to it. Apparently the weight and excessive bouncing worked the crappy micro-USB loose. I'm not a radio repair guy by an stretch but decided to take a stab at it. The USB plug would just fall out so I figured the jack on the board was...

forums.radioreference.com

Bob

 

[JMR3865]

WOW. and I HAD liked unication and was recommending them. I was hoping that they would come out with a slimmer pager (like the Minitor 5 or 6), guess that really is not happening now. WTF...

 

[natedawg1604]

Did they really have that many repairs? I thought these devices were very rugged, and that's why people bought them...

 

[bob550]

Did they really have that many repairs?

Probably for the ever-failing USB ports.

My theories are that they're either having difficulty sourcing adequate supplies of parts, or difficulty staffing their repair department.

 

[BenScan]

That's disappointing. However, somewhat understandable considering what might be involved with repairing and the cost and scarcity of labor is these days.

I have 5 of them and love them. Knock on wood, they've been very durable for me. The only time I had to send any back, they were covered under warranty. They still beat the pants off of Uniden scanners for me, and I feel like I've gotten a good value on them, even the first one I bought at $950 or so when they first were becoming popular. If you compare the cost of a new one to a "real radio" that's significantly more, I bet your cost/year is still going to be better with Unication for many of us.

It would be great if they had a trade-in credit or repair parts, or a third-party repair option though.

By the way, they are hiring.

Happy Scanning!
Ben

 

[IAmSixNine]

So several posts referencing usb being pushed in and design flaw. (wait never mind its the same user posting it several times) I have several G4 and G5 and not one has USB port issues. Even on the forums here i dont see much mention of bad usb ports. So is this really a large problem or just a user with issues on theirs?

 

[rr60]

I had it happen twice, both times repaired promptly under warranty via my dealer, Ray’s.

I abandoned charging via side port and use charging cradle now.