HP Class Action Says Data Transfer Speeds Are Falsely Advertised

HP Inc. has been hit with a class action lawsuit from a consumer who claims that the company falsely advertises the data transfer speeds of their computers.

Plaintiff Terry Paul says that HP represents to consumers that their Universal Serial Bus (USB) 3.0 and 3.1 Gen 1 ports on their “Pavilion” computers can transfer data up to 5 gigabits per second (Gb/s).

In addition, the plaintiff claims that the company represents that, for some of its computers that these ports can transfer data at a rate “‘ten times faster than [the] USB 2.0’ transfer rate of 480 megabits per second (Mb/s).”

However, the HP class action lawsuit claims that the USB 3.0 / USB 3.1 Gen 1 Computers cannot achieve data transfer speeds anywhere close to 5 Gb/s and they are certainly not able to obtain a transfer speed 10 times faster than the USB 2.0 speed.

Paul claims that she started shopping for a new computer in October 2016 and that a transfer rate of USB 3.0 / USB 3.1 Gen. 1 was necessary for her because she needed to access and transfer big files from an external USB 3.0 / USB 3.1 Gen. 1 drive.

However, the plaintiff says she found out that the “SuperSpeed” ports were not capable of obtaining the data transfer rates that were advertised.

“In fact, she discovered that the port transfers data at rates far below the advertised 5 Gbps speed,” the HP class action lawsuit states.

The HP class action lawsuit claims that, “testing confirms that HP desktops that are even newer and more technologically advanced than Plaintiff’s are capable of transferring data at only about 1,847 Mb/s—only 37% of the ‘up to 5-Gb/s’ speed that HP advertised, and only about 3.8 times the 480 Mb/s rate of USB 2.0.”

The plaintiff states that retailers like Office Depot sell the USB 3.0 / USB 3.1 Gen. 1 Computers with false representations provided by HP. Office Depot advertises that HP’s Pavilion computer, which was purchased by the plaintiff “[o]ffers 3 USB 3.0 ports for ultra-fast data transfers. Up to 10 times faster than USB 2.0.”

Paul says she would like to buy one or more HP computers but does not have an idea if any of them actually have a USB 3.0 / USB 3.1 Gen. 1 port. The plaintiff argues that she is “likely to again be misled by HP’s claims of a ‘USB 3.0 / USB 3.1 Gen. 1’ port and will be unable to determine whether such representations are false without purchasing and testing the products.”

The HP class action lawsuit alleges fraud, deceit, and misrepresentation, violation of the Consumers Legal Remedies Act, false advertising, negligent misrepresentation, violation of the Unfair Unlawful and Deceptive Trade Practices, and violation of the Song-Beverly Consumer Warranty Act.

The proposed Class Members include: “all natural persons who, while residing in California, purchased a Purported USB 3.0 / USB 3.1 Gen. 1 Computer between October 14, 2019 and the present.”

Did you purchase an HP computer and the data transfer speeds were less than advertised? Leave a message in the comments section below.

The plaintiff is represented by Adam J. Gutride, Seth A. Safier, and Todd Kennedy of Gutride Safier LLP.

The HP Transfer Speed Class Action Lawsuit is Terry Paul v. HP Inc., Case No. unavailable, in the Superior Court of the State of California, County of Santa Clara.

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