Complaints

The complaint text that is displayed might not represent all complaints filed with BBB. Some consumers may elect to not publish the details of their complaints, some complaints may not meet BBB's standards for publication, or BBB may display a portion of complaints when a high volume is received for a particular business.

• Initial Complaint

  Date:07/26/2024

  Type:Service or Repair Issues
  Status:

  AnsweredMore info

  Complaint statuses

  Resolved:

  The complainant verified the issue was resolved to their satisfaction.

  Unresolved:

  The business responded to the dispute but failed to make a good faith effort to resolve it.

  Answered:

  The business addressed the issues within the complaint, but the consumer either a) did not accept the response, OR b) did not notify BBB as to their satisfaction.

  Unanswered:

  The business failed to respond to the dispute.

  Unpursuable:

  BBB is unable to locate the business.

  I purchased a Wacom Companion Cintiq back in 2011-2012. I use it to do my job as a storyboard artist. Ihave used it for years it allows me to connect it to a computer and draw. It works great it has no problems. yet when i recently tried to use it with my new computer with a new current Apple Operating system I could not get the computer to see the Wacom device. I called to find out why. Wacom told me they have decided to discontinue support for that product. So I need to now buy a new product in order to use it. Planned obsolescence. When I bought the product no one told me I had time limit. So why did I fork over 2k. I want my money back or a driver that will work with current OS. the issue of planned obsilesence is widespread and it is hard enough for me to make a living as it is. but when i Have to constantly pay big corporations like apple, adobe wacom in order to work as a freelancer.

  Business Response

  Date: 07/29/2024

  Thank you for making Wacom Technology aware of this situation.  Upon reviewing the case presented,the customer did reach out in ticket ******* on June 4th, 2024,about the issue of not being able to connect the Wacom Companion Cintiq DTH-A1300 due to the recent upgrading of the Macintosh Laptop running Apple Macintosh OS Sonoma 14.  x.  This is the customers only contact regarding this issue.
  
  The last driver released that supported the Wacom Companion Cintiq DTH-A130 was Wacom Driver version 6.3.46 on August 23rd, 2022, which supports Mac OS ***** to Mac OS 12.  
   Software updates to the Wacom Drivers are needed to support both hardware and software updates from both Wacom and the various OS updates.  The Wacom Companion Cintiq DTH-A1300 is no longer in production, as it was discontinued years ago.
  
  While Wacom is happy to work with the customer to get the ******************** Companion Cintiq DTH-A1300 operating on an earlier supported OS, a newer driver supporting the Wacom Companion Cintiq DTH-A1300 that is no longer in the product is not possible.

• Initial Complaint

  Date:02/08/2024

  Type:Service or Repair Issues
  Status:

  AnsweredMore info

  Complaint statuses

  Resolved:

  The complainant verified the issue was resolved to their satisfaction.

  Unresolved:

  The business responded to the dispute but failed to make a good faith effort to resolve it.

  Answered:

  The business addressed the issues within the complaint, but the consumer either a) did not accept the response, OR b) did not notify BBB as to their satisfaction.

  Unanswered:

  The business failed to respond to the dispute.

  Unpursuable:

  BBB is unable to locate the business.

  I contacted Wacom at the beginning of the year because my Mobile Studio Pro(DTH-W1320) suddenly stopped working. After testing multiple methods to charge the device, using a ******************** branded charger, a third party charger, attempting several times to plug it into power strips and multiple wall outlets, the device never charged again and now remains dead. It's not the battery as it was actively charging minutes before failure. It was charging in one room, I unplugged it to move to another room, and then it wouldn't charge anymore when I got there. The Mobile Studio Pro has three USB-C ports all lined up, which gives you better, more efficient charging, and more ways to charge it instead of a singular port. However, if ANY of those ports should break, they are a tandem unit, and all three of those ports are now dead. One of three ports becomes faulty and the entire device is now a $2,500 paper weight, that they want $1,400 to repair. For frame of reference on Wacom's build quality over the years, they are notorious for having devices that fail via battery or charging port issues, and they claim to never know of, nor have any "known issues" recorded of such things happening. With the Cintiq Companion 1, their batteries were faulty to the point of swelling, so much that it could actually put enough pressure on the motherboard to crack it. It was causing such a problem that only after a year on the market, they announced the Cintiq Companion 2 with enhanced battery and charging capabilities. What they didn't tell you is that the Cintiq Companion 2 battery would get so hot while operating that it would re-melt the solder on part of the motherboard that connected to the screen, making it so the device would turn on but there would be no visual. Wacom is an industry giant and has been for decades. They make their money by price gouging creatives on new tech, as well as repairs, replacements, and peripherals, and I won't be taken advantage of by a monopoly any longer.

  Business Response

  Date: 02/08/2024

  Hello, and thank you for making Wacom Technology aware of this situation.  Reviewing the case presented, ************************ contacted Wacom Support on December 28th, 2023, about his Studio Pro 13 DTHW1320H under Case #******* as he noted the charging port has shorted out and will not charge any longer.  ******* standard troubleshooting methods, it was determined that the repair itself was based on replacing the battery, and the mainboard would be the best solution. As ************************ disagreed with that solution, the case was, in the end, escalated to the Tier 3 support team for further review.
  
  During that process, I contacted *************** to confirm the solution because the repair cost was high, and ************************ believed there was a known design flaw.
  Upon review, it was noted and explained that a lower repair Tier could be offered for diagnostics and that the battery and power supply could be repaired under that option.  As described in detail over many email exchanges, the mainboard may also need to be included because they are both connected, which resolves the issue.
  
  ************************ has gone through various troubleshooting issues and supplied photos of the Mobile Studio Pro 13 DTHW1320H, which is outside of the One-year warranty that comes with the unit. As noted by ***********************, he bought the unit on March 5th,2020.  I did note that it was in storage for about a year.  *********************** is frustrated that this issue suddenly happened after about a year in storage.  I mentioned that batteries need regular charging to ensure they operate correctly, so repair at the Tier 1 level is possible.  The repair price based upon a location for sales taxes is $238.50 for Tier 1 repair.
  
  As also explained to ***********************, once the repair center receives the Studio Pro 13 DTHW1320H, it will undergo diagnostics and testing to confirm the necessary repairs.  We can contact ************************ to confirm what repairs would be required and if he would like to proceedall of which *********************** has refused. 
  
  Last contact from *********************** was on January 31st 2024.
  

  Customer Answer

  Date: 02/14/2024

   
  Complaint: 21264067
  
  I am rejecting this response because:
  
  

  Im rejecting their response for several reasons. Firstly based on their statement ******* standard troubleshooting methods, it was determined that the repair itself was based on replacing the battery, and the mainboard would be the best solution. How are they saying the mainboard is the best solution, but also that the repair itself was based on replacing the battery? Is the battery the replacement or the mainboard? This is what Ive been saying. Wacom as an organization is actively trying to extract the most capital from their customers that they can. They claim to understand that the problem was my battery, but insisted that the repair should be the mainboard. 
  
  
  Beyond that, despite their insistence that the issue is my battery, Ill reitterate once more that the battery could not be the issue. A lithium ion battery isnt going to just stop accepting a charge. The battery was ACTIVELY charging minutes before it stopped working. A tablet pc with a nonfunctional battery, the same as any laptop computer, will power itsef on AC power, bypassing the need for the battery. The battery was not dead, it had a full charge, I then moved it to another room and noticed that it had stopped accepting a charge, and that all three USB C ports had stopped working. No data transfer, no AC power, nothing, they were all dead, none of them worked anymore.
  
  
  I contend, and my point has remained the same since earlier, that this is a design flaw in the device itself. An example of something similar would be if you owned a vehicle that had all four wheels attached to the same frame. Now imagine that any time one of those wheels became faulty, all four wheels would have to be replaced, but not by replacing the wheels themselves, you have to replace the whole frame. Thats what Wacom is doing here. One USB port is causing a total failure of the device. ******************** insists this is not a design because it has never been listed internally as one. A company that insists that they look out for the consumers best interest, and then do things like this, does not inspire brand loyalty. They know they are one of the largest manufacturers in the industry and that they can get away with most everythingx but I am not one to take this kind of treatment quietyly.

  
  Sincerely,
  
  ***********************************

  Business Response

  Date: 02/27/2024

  Hello, and thank you for the response and the change to respond.
  As previously noted, the standard practice of troubleshooting based upon what was relayed to Wacom Support, the charging issue and, subsequently, the *** Ports and no power issue generally point to the battery and mainboard. 
  When the issue centered around the charging issue, the battery was identified as an issue and could be replaced.  Wacoms repair process upon receipt of the device is to put through a diagnostic procedure to help ensure that all issues are known and found.  In some cases, the mainboard would need to be replaced as well, as it controls many functions of the ****W1320H. 
  As *********************** later identified that there was no power and the *** Ports were failing, that would be a mainboard-based repair as Wacom does not repair at the component level.  It is easier and allows a quicker turnaround time for the customer.
  It is, unfortunately, a coincidence that after a year of non-use and storage, the battery and *** ports failed.
  The repair charges explained and offered to *********************** were explained as they can be expensive.  We did work to find a solution from the Tier 3 level at $1,431.00 with sales taxes included to Tier 1 at $238.50 with sales taxes included.  This would allow our repair team to run diagnostics on the ****W1320H to see what needs to be repaired.  The Tier 1 repair level would cover diagnostics and battery/power supply. The Tier 3 level would cover all repairs, including the mainboard.  Please also note that the charges cover parts, labor, and return shipping to the customer.
  As explained to ***********************, bringing it in at the Tier 1 repair level will allow our repair team, which I consulted earlier about this case, to understand better what repairs are needed.  I can then relay that information to *********************** so he would better understand what repairs would be required and decide what path he would like to take.
  
  That said, we can bring in the ****W1320H for diagnostics to confirm what needs to be repaired without first acquiring payment at the Tier 1 level for customer satisfaction.  However, once the diagnostics are performed and the results are known, *********************** will be made aware of what repairs would be needed and the repair Teir level charge.
  

  Customer Answer

  Date: 03/02/2024

   
  Complaint: 21264067
  
  I am rejecting this response because:
  

  I want to be very clear here that they keep saying that it's a battery issue in a manner to make it seem like it's not a hardware flaw. "If the issue is the battery, everyone knows that batteries die over time, so of course your issue stems from the device being in storage, this is YOUR fault **** ******************** is in no way, shape, or form responsible for the device not working, but we'd love to charge you for a repair fee." That is quite literally what they're saying by continuously bringing up the battery and the fact that I had it in storage. But even if I hadn't, let's say that this issue came up 14 months after I'd purchased it, what then? I would still be responsible for the repairs in the exact same way that I'm being made responsible for them now. ******************** has a history of doing things like this with their devices. In 2014 I bought a Cintiq Companion and there was an issue with it in almost the exact same fashion as what's happening with my current Mobile Studio Pro. It was exactly 14 months to the date of purchase for that device, and they fought me tooth and nail to not give me a replacement stating that the failure was my own because by that time I was outside of the warranty period, but that if I hadn't been, I would have been granted a replacement because they knew it to be a defect, but instead of issuing a recall notice, or notifying users of the issue, they just let them go.

   

  They. DO NOT. Care.

   

  As I've said before, and will continue to say, ********************'s only goal is to extract as much money out of it's base as the industry leader that they have been for decades. I am not satisfied with this service, I am not satisfied with this response, I will not be satisfied until I am able to use my tablet again. And at this point, I don't care if my data gets lost anymore, if they have to send me a refurbished unit, I don't care, I just want to be able to get back to work. I'm not going to sit here losing money, and be forced to pay even more money for an issue I didn't cause that shouldn't even be an issue. Any other mobile computer device on the market, drawing tablet or otherwise, that has USB ports on it, if one of those USB ports fails, the others will still be functional. It makes absolutely NO SENSE to have it designed the way it is that all three of them share the same circuit to where if one of them shorts out, it kills the whole board. At that point, why even have three ports if the function of one is responsible for the function of the other two at any point in time?

   

  I've been building and working with computers for 25 years, and I have never seen nor heard of that being an intelligent design choice, and if it was done, it was for the express purposes of planned obsolescence to force consumers into purchasing replacements or repairs upon the inevitable failure of the device. There's a difference between wear and tear damages, and this. Wear and tear would have meant that only the most used port on the board stopped working. There are three ports lined up in a vertical line, any of those ports can be used to charge the device. I only ever used the middle port. If the top and bottom ports were still functional/operational, I wouldn't even be having this conversation, and I would 100% be in the wrong to do so if I were because I KNOW I still have two working ports. This is not that. Those two ports should not have wear and tear issues because I never used them. For those ports to also be broken means that they were shorted by the port that was in use, which tells me that at ANY point in time, I could have had this same issue come up, regardless of any wear and tear damages. T

   

  his is far and away beyond unacceptable. I have been a ******************** customer for OVER 20 years, and in that time I have heard NUMEROUS stories from other consumers over the ways ******************** handles their customer support; denying requests, not answering, blaming users for their own issues, the list is never ending in what they won't do to make sure they get another sale. This is beyond unacceptable. You can't just treat your customers this way. Others might not know the ways to advocate for themselves properly against big businesses/corporations, but I REFUSE to be one of the millions of artists the world over that just has to sit here grinning while I know I'm being taken advantage of by the biggest name in the industry. 

  
  Sincerely,
  
  ***********************************

• Initial Complaint

  Date:01/03/2023

  Type:Product Issues
  Status:

  AnsweredMore info

  Complaint statuses

  Resolved:

  The complainant verified the issue was resolved to their satisfaction.

  Unresolved:

  The business responded to the dispute but failed to make a good faith effort to resolve it.

  Answered:

  The business addressed the issues within the complaint, but the consumer either a) did not accept the response, OR b) did not notify BBB as to their satisfaction.

  Unanswered:

  The business failed to respond to the dispute.

  Unpursuable:

  BBB is unable to locate the business.

  Order Drawing tablet on September 4,2022. $329.00 unable to use. Mailed back by **** Priority Mail on Sept 23,2022. at 11:42 to front desk Wacom claimed they didn't receive the tablet and will not return the money. They do have a return policy. The tablet was insured by **** So I Filed a claim with ****. They investigated and verify that it was delivered to the above address. but wacom claim no package . **** will not pay insurance..Tracking # **** **** **** **** **** 60 **** ************** Wacom Phone.**************

  Business Response

  Date: 01/03/2023

  Thank you for reaching out about this case.  Upon the last contact from the customer on November 14th, 2022, we confirmed as the customer reached out on November 8th, 2022, to confirm if Wacom received the *** 915867 from Order# US09494372.   While the *** was created on September 20th, 2022, as a *** Shipping Label #1ZA4800R8734656492 was also created as part of the standard return policy within 30 days.   However, the *** Shipping Label #1ZA4800R8734656492 was not used.
  
  The Wacom One (DTC133) was not located, nor is a record of US09494372 being received upon checking with the Wacom Shipping Team in *********, **. 
  The customer shipped the return through **** # **** **** **** **** **** instead of using the *** Shipping Label provided.
  
  As the Wacom One (DTC133) is missing, Wacom cannot provide a refund, as stated in the internal case. The current internal case for this situation is logged under 1447040.
  
  Regards
  ****