Dear Acer Community ~
I bought an Acer Swift 3 (15.6inch i3 4GB/16GB Optane Silver 1TB £459.99) from Argos.
Within a few days it began to make a sporadic electrical static sound which happened mostly when pausing or playing videos on Netflix, BBC iplayer, Youtube, etc but also happened sporadically when there was no activity on the keyboard.
The faulty sound comes from the laptop speakers but is more noticable through amplified sound...i use 3.5mm jack cable audio output to mini cd system speakers. The sound is intermittent, crackly, sharp and disturbing. The laptop was tested through three different stereo systems with good quality cables (3.5mm jack) ..it was also tested through a mini rig speaker. Two other laptops have been previously used and again recently tested on each of those stereos and they work perfectly.
Argos said the issue was not their responsibility, Acer initially said the same as i did not buy it from them them. I was however provided with a replacement by Argos but annoyingly, within a few days, the static sound began again.
I got another exchange (my third laptop) and exactly the same happened..!
Somewhat bewildered i wrote up a short report and sent that in with the laptop to the Acer Repair Centre. Frustratingly it came back with a new fan (which was not the issue) and the faulty sound continued.
By this point i was finding it difficult that i was unable to deal with Acer Store UK directly given that they didn't supply me with the laptop. Argos didn't have a vested interest in the specifics of the issue so i sent back the laptop and got a refund.
I began to feel like i'd inadvertently stumbled upon a wide-ranging technical glitch and felt as though it was not being taken seriously, which is really worrying. So i visited the Acer Community Forum and discovered reports of similar issues, this fact was reported back to Acer Technical but sadly without any effect.
So, given that i love everything else about this laptop, i borrowed the extra money and bought the Acer Swift 3 (15.6inch i5 8GB 1TB Gold £899.99 -£200 offer code) from Acer Store UK
My hope was that the upgrade would steer me far away the issue with the previous laptops. To my complete shock, again after a few days, the new laptop started with the exact same electrical static sound. This time i made a recording of the issue and sent it via email to a member of the team at Acer Store UK, the laptop was then returned directly to him. I was informed that he identified the issue i reported but could not diagnose it with the facilities available to him and that the laptop is being sent to the service team for further assessment..i have asked to be contacted when the issue has been identified. At this point i am awaiting a replacement and am fretful that i will yet again find the same issue. This situation has been time consuming and very stressful, especially that i live a relatively simple and quiet life due to health issues. I just needed a new laptop.
Can anyone out there possibly offer any guidance..?
Is there a particular brand of 3.5mm jack stereo cable that is recommended for these ultra thin laptops..?
Would it be better if i used USB port speakers..?
If you have taken the time to read this i thank you sincerely, i am feeling quite lost.
