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Will Apple give me a white iPhone 5?
- Thread starter FooArk
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Exceptions can be made, but almost always they exchange for the exact same model you have.
Well then a miracle must have happened, because she was able to swap it out for a different color.
And it's not *physically* impossible unless the store rep has no arms and no legs and is without any coworkers who can get the phone for him.
Well to be honest, Brian, I wasn't there. All I know is that one day she had a black iPhone, and the next day she had a white one. She told us that she had cracked the screen by stepping on it in a heeled shoe, had taken it to the store, had asked "nicely" to have a white one back, and that's what happened. Seeing as how she had a white one before my very eyes, I believed her.
Now, did she do a whole mess of paperwork before hand? I don't know. Was it more than once that she had taken it in for repairs and they finally gave her a new boxed unit? Again, I don't know. Could she have gone out and bought a $650 white phone because she was so sick of her black one and then lied to us about it? Again, Brian, I couldn't tell you, although it doesn't seem plausible to me.
But please, for the love of all that is good, do not use the phrase "physically impossible" when referring to actual PHYSICAL acts. Can it be technically improbable? Sure. Ethically unlikely? Perhaps. And while many things are PHYSICALLY impossible, typing keys into a computer or handing over a box with a phone in it is NOT one of them.
That's all right. We'll just agree to disagree. Seeing as how you weren't there and don't know the history or paperwork or really, for that matter, anything at all about it, it seems nonsensical to me to continue this discussion with you.
"If You Don't Ask, You Don't Get..."
In my 58 years I've been amazed at how often people have done their best to respond positively to a reasonable request when it is done in a polite and respectful manner. As I reckon it, it has worked out for me much more than 50% of the time and sometimes it required someone to go out of their way to make it happen.
The most amazing example was when I became involved in a trademark dispute with a very well known financial advice company. Resolving the issue would have cost $100,000 or more and there was no guarantee that I would prevail in court. So I did something that most lawyers would never advise doing: I tracked-down the company's corporate counsel and explained the situation to her.
I asked her if there was some way that we could resolve the situation so that their interests were protected and I could get what I wanted. She told me that she couldn't think of a way to accomplish it. So I thanked her for her time and asked her to get in touch with me if something changed.
I figured that was the end of it; I couldn't risk the considerable expense to pursue the case. And I didn't expect to ever hear from her again.
Imagine my surprise when about a week later I get a telephone call from the corporate counsel. She had been thinking about it and after discussing it with her boss she had a proposal that would give me 90%+ of what I wanted while protecting their interests.
At that point we agreed that it would be better for her to work with my attorney since I wasn't qualified to deal with the arcane legal complexities of such an agreement. Fortunately for me, I had an excellent female attorney who valued negotiation and compromise when standing one's ground would only result in a protracted, expensive and probably fruitless legal battle.
It only took a few hours to hammer-out the details and the deal was done. We had to give up one or two things to satisfy the other attorney's superior but it wasn't anything that we couldn't live with. I got what I wanted without giving up anything substantial. The other company was satisfied that their intellectual property was protected. The total cost to me: $2000. (Keep in mind that my attorney cost $300/hour...)
After the deal was completed my attorney informed me that the other lawyer had told her that my initial telephone call was the key factor in her deciding to try and find a solution. She said that I had convinced her that I wasn't trying to take advantage of them and that I was sincere in my belief that we could both get what we wanted without the time and expense of a trial. The other attorney was under no obligation to help me and in fact she had to persuade her boss to allow her to take the time to pursue the issue. My attorney told me that in all of her years of practicing law she had never seen anything like it...
So I say Go For It. Your request is not unreasonable to me. There may or may not be an Apple corporate policy regarding this situation but it is possible that Apple employees have some leeway to disregard such a policy if indeed it exists.
If it doesn't work out, then all you have lost is a little time. Be sure to thank the person you are dealing with and let them know that you appreciate their efforts on your behalf. And don't let it discourage you from asking for what you want in future situations. Which brings to mind another aphorism: "Nothing ventured, nothing gained."
Good luck!
In my 58 years I've been amazed at how often people have done their best to respond positively to a reasonable request when it is done in a polite and respectful manner. As I reckon it, it has worked out for me much more than 50% of the time and sometimes it required someone to go out of their way to make it happen.
The most amazing example was when I became involved in a trademark dispute with a very well known financial advice company. Resolving the issue would have cost $100,000 or more and there was no guarantee that I would prevail in court. So I did something that most lawyers would never advise doing: I tracked-down the company's corporate counsel and explained the situation to her.
I asked her if there was some way that we could resolve the situation so that their interests were protected and I could get what I wanted. She told me that she couldn't think of a way to accomplish it. So I thanked her for her time and asked her to get in touch with me if something changed.
I figured that was the end of it; I couldn't risk the considerable expense to pursue the case. And I didn't expect to ever hear from her again.
Imagine my surprise when about a week later I get a telephone call from the corporate counsel. She had been thinking about it and after discussing it with her boss she had a proposal that would give me 90%+ of what I wanted while protecting their interests.
At that point we agreed that it would be better for her to work with my attorney since I wasn't qualified to deal with the arcane legal complexities of such an agreement. Fortunately for me, I had an excellent female attorney who valued negotiation and compromise when standing one's ground would only result in a protracted, expensive and probably fruitless legal battle.
It only took a few hours to hammer-out the details and the deal was done. We had to give up one or two things to satisfy the other attorney's superior but it wasn't anything that we couldn't live with. I got what I wanted without giving up anything substantial. The other company was satisfied that their intellectual property was protected. The total cost to me: $2000. (Keep in mind that my attorney cost $300/hour...)
After the deal was completed my attorney informed me that the other lawyer had told her that my initial telephone call was the key factor in her deciding to try and find a solution. She said that I had convinced her that I wasn't trying to take advantage of them and that I was sincere in my belief that we could both get what we wanted without the time and expense of a trial. The other attorney was under no obligation to help me and in fact she had to persuade her boss to allow her to take the time to pursue the issue. My attorney told me that in all of her years of practicing law she had never seen anything like it...
So I say Go For It. Your request is not unreasonable to me. There may or may not be an Apple corporate policy regarding this situation but it is possible that Apple employees have some leeway to disregard such a policy if indeed it exists.
If it doesn't work out, then all you have lost is a little time. Be sure to thank the person you are dealing with and let them know that you appreciate their efforts on your behalf. And don't let it discourage you from asking for what you want in future situations. Which brings to mind another aphorism: "Nothing ventured, nothing gained."
Good luck!
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but you could theoretically swap a black phone for a white phone.
no one talked about swapping parts...
its not "physically impossible." i think you need to learn the definition of that.
well, i guess not, but maybe you can ask that could you pay for the fees of changing it to the white.
Apple retail stores are fully capable of making almost any exception as appropriate-and this forum is filled with such examples. They may be very rare and it may take a store manager to authorize it, but it can and has been done.
Good point. After two defective retail boxes shipped to me from Verizon and then a few refurbs sent from Apple that showed up with quite a bit of cosmetic damage, I was sent a brand new sealed retail box directly from Apple after a call to corporate. Things can happen.
My wife's friend got her black iPhone 5 exchanged for a white iPhone 5 at the Upper Westside Apple store few weeks ago. So yeah it's very "physically" possible.
Her volume up button was acting up, the genius took the phone to the back for around 5-10 minutes, came back out with a replacement already in his hands, she asked if he can give her a white one, he said maybe and disappeared for maybe 2 minuted and came back with a white phone, the whole visit took maybe 20-25 minutes and she left with a white iPhone 5.
Her volume up button was acting up, the genius took the phone to the back for around 5-10 minutes, came back out with a replacement already in his hands, she asked if he can give her a white one, he said maybe and disappeared for maybe 2 minuted and came back with a white phone, the whole visit took maybe 20-25 minutes and she left with a white iPhone 5.
Brian, you're wrong. Please stop embarrassing yourself. If you create a repair for any device (iPad, iPod, iPhone) as an in-store repair rather than a swap and put the desired part number (color) it'll work. And it has worked for every single time I've done it.