Within the past 2 years I have experienced:
2 defective Quarqs. BOTH malfunctioned 2-3 weeks before IMLP and IMFL (I’m not making this up!) and as a result I was without power. 2 defective Garmin 310xt’s. Both were replaced with a “refurbished” model. One of which I had the pleasure of paying $100.00 for.
Just bad luck or does this happen a lot???
I’ve had almost no trouble with my Quark since 2011. One issue with it which was resolved within a week. I was without power for that period of time, but the turnaround to and from Kona was absurdly fast.
Garmin is another story though. I’ve had loads of trouble with various Forerunners including the 310. I’ve tried other gps systems but didn’t like various aspects about them enough and eventually switched back.
…or you are hard on equipment.