Apple genius marked iPhone 5 as "OOW" due to scratch... how to change this

[rijowysock]

i bought my iphone 5 on the release date... and since have had battery issues... and issues with the O key and K key (very difficult to select either without selecting surrounding keys).. touch screen maybe has faults in it..


i discussed this over the phone several times and finally was told to visit a store in december..

i do not abuse my phone, it has never gotten wet.. but it does have a few scratches on the very edge of the "cheaply black coated" border.. the phone is not cracked.. etc.

the genius said he would replace the phone, went in the back and came back stating "it has scratches.. it's out of warranty" which i feel is complete BS.... the black coating comes off with ease and the phone has not been abused in any way shape or form.. and even if it was scratched these scratches would not affect the center of the touch pad or the battery life.


after visiting i get an email from apple showing his report:


"Problem Description/Diagnosis
Issue: Flattened external border and multiple indents, oow
Steps to Reproduce: Device had indentation and markings from drop customer complained of battery life assessed with external damage
Proposed Resolution: Swap for out of warranty cost customer declined
Cosmetic Condition: Multiple indents around external border

Employee 1176247384"


and my phone marked as "out of warranty"..


is their any way to get past this without having to pay for a replacement... the phone has a warranty covering certain items and my phone was "black listed" as out of warranty due to some surface blemishes... i feel that if toyota started voiding warranties for door dings that this would cause an uproar.. but apple can get away with it without anyone knowing any better.



-riley

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the phone is in the same condition it was prior but the "sticky" touch screen is becoming more and more frustrating, and the battery life still very poor despite any efforts..

figured i would ask here before going to the store again, and getting the OOW status thrown in my face.

[i4Collin]

Are the scratches really that bad? If not, I would have raised royal hell and refused to leave the store until I spoke to the manager. The only advice I have is to email Tim Cook and attach pictures of the iPhone. I know it sounds crazy, but it wouldn't hurt to try, and someone from the office usually gets back to you.

[rijowysock]

Originally Posted by i4Collin

Are the scratches really that bad? If not, I would have raised royal hell and refused to leave the store until I spoke to the manager. The only advice I have is to email Tim Cook and attach pictures of the iPhone. I know it sounds crazy, but it wouldn't hurt to try, and someone from the office usually gets back to you.

it was late when i went and i live 40mins from the store so i was exhausted...

does he really have a contact email like job's did? do you have it?

i felt their might be another route? hell i've owned every iphone since inception and just want one that is functional.

[Applejuiced]

So what you're saying is they are just lying and making it all up.
Your phone is in great condition and doesnt have multiple indents and markings from dropping it like they mentioned?
They're just out to get you cause they dont like you?
And yes, they can get away with it. If you keep dropping it and there's markings that prove that then they're not going to keep replacing it for you. Same way Toyota wouldnt just give you another replacement car if you bang it up and then say oh the engine doesnt run too good. Can I get another one?
Get it? Next time be more carefull with your cellphone or if you're clumsly put on a heavy duty case on.

[ipodlover77]

pictures would really help right now.

[aziatiklover]

You need to provide us some pix so we can see if you are right or apple! Most likely Apple wins this one.

[rijowysock]

Originally Posted by Applejuiced

So what you're saying is they are just lying and making it all up.
Your phone is in great condition and doesnt have multiple indents and markings from dropping it like they mentioned?
They're just out to get you cause they dont like you?
And yes, they can get away with it. If you keep dropping it and there's markings that prove that then they're not going to keep replacing it for you. Same way Toyota wouldnt just give you another replacement car if you bang it up and then say oh the engine doesnt run too good. Can I get another one?
Get it? Next time be more carefull with your cellphone or if you're clumsly put on a heavy duty case on.

not sure why you have t go off on a tangent.. the phone is not new.. but i dont put it in with keys/etc.. it goes in my jean pocket.. and well taken care of.. the corners are all "shiny" form rubbing in pocket and has a scratch on 2 corners...

"keep replacing it"

im asking for it to be replaced once under warranty for hardware issues.

"dropping it".

i dont drop my phone, i dropped my 4 one time, broke screen 199$ replacement and i understand why, because i broke the screen.. the glass on mine is perfect.. just scratches in the poorly "pvd coated" aluminum...


i really dont appreciate your generalizations... you must work for apple.


as far as pics.. i have the phone and no camera right now.. i guess i could take pics in a mirror but ill wait till stateside.

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Originally Posted by Applejuiced

You can claim what you want but if you bring in a beat up phone with lots of dents and marks what do you expect?
Common sense much?
But the only way to see both the OP's and the the Apple reps point of view is to see pics. Those dont lie.

ill get pics when i can, you need to calm down however.... i've had every phone they have made and i know what constitutes damage versus natural wear and tear... im also well aware of pvd coatings and how they should hold up..

my problems are hardware problems... touch screen acting off and battery life.. please explain to me how those are "small scratch" related?

also if you wanna pull car analogies.. warranties have to state that any damage/modification was the cause for the failure in order to void... i dont feel that shiny edges and small scratches on the aluminum could cause a battery issue.. or a screen to not work properly...

[Applejuiced]

Hey so if your phone has nothing like what they described and its in well taken cared of shape then you shouldnt have any problems.
But again why would they just put all those things there on file that your iphone has physical damage when it doesnt? Doesnt make any sense.
And offcourse you wont post any pics.

Originally Posted by rijowysock

[/COLOR]

ill get pics when i can, you need to calm down however.... i've had every phone they have made and i know what constitutes damage versus natural wear and tear... im also well aware of pvd coatings and how they should hold up..

my problems are hardware problems... touch screen acting off and battery life.. please explain to me how those are "small scratch" related?

also if you wanna pull car analogies.. warranties have to state that any damage/modification was the cause for the failure in order to void... i dont feel that shiny edges and small scratches on the aluminum could cause a battery issue.. or a screen to not work properly...

Im calm, just stating an opinion that's all. Probably not what you want to hear but I just say it like I see it.
If you keep dropping your phone you will have hardware problems like screen not responding or behaving normal etc...
And if they notice dents and scrapes from physical damage then they wont fix it obviously. Are you surprised?
But if your phone has none of that then bring it in and show them that its in normal wear and tear condition and they should take care of it for you.
Normal wear and tear doesnt fit what the Apple tech described above about your device though

[ipodlover77]

OP,

What advice did you expect us to give if you created a thread with no pictures?

Regardless of whether its your fault or apples fault, pictures are still important so we can understand why they might have determined it was out of warranty.

[Bahroo]

Originally Posted by rijowysock

it was late when i went and i live 40mins from the store so i was exhausted...

does he really have a contact email like job's did? do you have it?

i felt their might be another route? hell i've owned every iphone since inception and just want one that is functional.

Wow you had some scumbag genius then, i would of raised hell

[rtomyj]

Originally Posted by Bahroo

Wow you had some scumbag genius then, i would of raised hell

Cause you know, it's their job to give you a brand new phone. I mean, Samsung and other Android OEMs would do this. Except, they won't. You would just be yelling at a guy who probably would get in trouble for swapping out a damaged phone for a $600 brand new phone.
Congrats on being a great human being.

[Bahroo]

Originally Posted by rtomyj

Cause you know, it's their job to give you a brand new phone. I mean, Samsung and other Android OEMs would do this. Except, they won't. You would just be yelling at a guy who probably would get in trouble for swapping out a damaged phone for a $600 brand new phone.
Congrats on being a great human being.

no i would of just gotten the manager, to be honest i never had a problem wit a Genius and usually people's experience's with a Genius is very good... its unfortunate the TC had to go through that

[TwistedPain]

Originally Posted by rijowysock

i bought my iphone 5 on the release date... and since have had battery issues... and issues with the O key and K key (very difficult to select either without selecting surrounding keys).. touch screen maybe has faults in it..


i discussed this over the phone several times and finally was told to visit a store in december..

i do not abuse my phone, it has never gotten wet.. but it does have a few scratches on the very edge of the "cheaply black coated" border.. the phone is not cracked.. etc.

the genius said he would replace the phone, went in the back and came back stating "it has scratches.. it's out of warranty" which i feel is complete BS.... the black coating comes off with ease and the phone has not been abused in any way shape or form.. and even if it was scratched these scratches would not affect the center of the touch pad or the battery life.


after visiting i get an email from apple showing his report:


"Problem Description/Diagnosis
Issue: Flattened external border and multiple indents, oow
Steps to Reproduce: Device had indentation and markings from drop customer complained of battery life assessed with external damage
Proposed Resolution: Swap for out of warranty cost customer declined
Cosmetic Condition: Multiple indents around external border

Employee 1176247384"


and my phone marked as "out of warranty"..


is their any way to get past this without having to pay for a replacement... the phone has a warranty covering certain items and my phone was "black listed" as out of warranty due to some surface blemishes... i feel that if toyota started voiding warranties for door dings that this would cause an uproar.. but apple can get away with it without anyone knowing any better.



-riley

----------

the phone is in the same condition it was prior but the "sticky" touch screen is becoming more and more frustrating, and the battery life still very poor despite any efforts..

figured i would ask here before going to the store again, and getting the OOW status thrown in my face.

Unfortunately without pictures we really cannot give you an honest opinion. Detailed pictures of your phone would allow us to comment further.

[Mike84]

Dude, just call apple care and raise a storm about this complain about the terrible customer service at the store and get apple care to ship you a replacement.

[mackandproud]

Insist on a return. Call and ask to speak to the store manager. Explain the situation fully and you will get a favorable outcome.

If the manager still attempts to stonewall you, call iphone tech support and tell them you visited a store as you were asked to, and that they did not help you.

Originally Posted by rijowysock

i bought my iphone 5 on the release date... and since have had battery issues... and issues with the O key and K key (very difficult to select either without selecting surrounding keys).. touch screen maybe has faults in it..


i discussed this over the phone several times and finally was told to visit a store in december..

i do not abuse my phone, it has never gotten wet.. but it does have a few scratches on the very edge of the "cheaply black coated" border.. the phone is not cracked.. etc.

the genius said he would replace the phone, went in the back and came back stating "it has scratches.. it's out of warranty" which i feel is complete BS.... the black coating comes off with ease and the phone has not been abused in any way shape or form.. and even if it was scratched these scratches would not affect the center of the touch pad or the battery life.


after visiting i get an email from apple showing his report:


"Problem Description/Diagnosis
Issue: Flattened external border and multiple indents, oow
Steps to Reproduce: Device had indentation and markings from drop customer complained of battery life assessed with external damage
Proposed Resolution: Swap for out of warranty cost customer declined
Cosmetic Condition: Multiple indents around external border

Employee 1176247384"


and my phone marked as "out of warranty"..


is their any way to get past this without having to pay for a replacement... the phone has a warranty covering certain items and my phone was "black listed" as out of warranty due to some surface blemishes... i feel that if toyota started voiding warranties for door dings that this would cause an uproar.. but apple can get away with it without anyone knowing any better.



-riley

----------

the phone is in the same condition it was prior but the "sticky" touch screen is becoming more and more frustrating, and the battery life still very poor despite any efforts..

figured i would ask here before going to the store again, and getting the OOW status thrown in my face.

----------

Sarcasm and an accusatory tone. The last bastion of the (term I can't use) who will defend apple no matter what. So sad.

Yeah, when you're a (term I can't use), apple can do no wrong, and you get to relish the fact that they screw people over. Weee!!!!!

Originally Posted by Applejuiced

So what you're saying is they are just lying and making it all up.
Your phone is in great condition and doesnt have multiple indents and markings from dropping it like they mentioned?
They're just out to get you cause they dont like you?
And yes, they can get away with it. If you keep dropping it and there's markings that prove that then they're not going to keep replacing it for you. Same way Toyota wouldnt just give you another replacement car if you bang it up and then say oh the engine doesnt run too good. Can I get another one?
Get it? Next time be more carefull with your cellphone or if you're clumsly put on a heavy duty case on.

[Applejuiced]

Originally Posted by mackandproud

----------

Sarcasm and an accusatory tone. The last bastion of the (term I can't use) who will defend apple no matter what. So sad.

Yeah, when you're a (term I can't use), apple can do no wrong, and you get to relish the fact that they screw people over. Weee!!!!!

You can claim what you want but if you bring in a beat up phone with lots of dents and marks what do you expect?
Common sense much?
But the only way to see both the OP's and the the Apple reps point of view is to see pics. Those dont lie.

[Brounmoney]

Originally Posted by rijowysock

the guy was in a pisst mood and it was late.. the case does have marks but not "dents"..

as far as pics i'm in bogota south america.. i have my macbook air and my iphone...

if i could pull my canon 5d out of my ass from my closet in florida.. i would gladly do that... put down the hater-aide and chill out.


and if u wanna tell me to use the macbook air camera, it doesn't focus for macro...


coming from a person who has 21.5" new imac, 27", 2 air's, 2 pro's, Airport extreme, time capsule, and has had every iphone the day they came out... thank god youre not in charge of customer relations.... "oh sir, we have made more than 50k off you in the last 5 years.. however we're gonna screw you on this phone because i drank too much double XP point mountain dew tonight.



thank you to the rest of the forum who is not on a power trip.

OP I am with you on this one. Back in Dec. I went to an Apple store which is an hour away because I was having issues with my ipad 2 screen. I did a full restore as new before I went in and we I got there the guy looked at and said he could see no problem. I was mad, but I did not think that I could do anything about it. I called AppleCare and told them she said they should have replaced it and to go back. She said do it right away because my warranty was almost up.

I got an email the next day asking about my experience at the store and I gave them a bad review. I got a call from the Apple store the next day pretty much telling to come in and they would replace it. He also kind of told me not to write a bad review because the guy that help me did not really see problem. I did take it back in and got a replacement.

I say all of that to say if you do get an email give them what is on your mind and what you think about them. Also call AppleCare it will all be taken care of.

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Originally Posted by Applejuiced

So what you're saying is they are just lying and making it all up.
Your phone is in great condition and doesnt have multiple indents and markings from dropping it like they mentioned?
They're just out to get you cause they dont like you?
And yes, they can get away with it. If you keep dropping it and there's markings that prove that then they're not going to keep replacing it for you. Same way Toyota wouldnt just give you another replacement car if you bang it up and then say oh the engine doesnt run too good. Can I get another one?
Get it? Next time be more carefull with your cellphone or if you're clumsly put on a heavy duty case on.

OP don't listen to people like Applejuice.

[AlphaDogg]

Originally Posted by Brounmoney

OP don't listen to people like Applejuice.

Worst advice I've EVER read on this forum. OP, ALWAYS listen to people like Applejuiced.

[Brounmoney]

Originally Posted by AlphaDogg

Worst advice I've EVER read on this forum. OP, ALWAYS listen to people like Applejuiced.

Oh sorry I forgot Apple customer service is the best and they would never make a mistake.

They are going to give every reason possible not to replace there products because it cost them money. They are just like any other big company. Their customer service very overrated. I have never heard of people only be able to call for support twice in the time they own the device. That is so stupid.

[MVRL]

Originally Posted by Brounmoney

Oh sorry I forgot Apple customer service is the best and they would never make a mistake.

They are going to give every reason possible not to replace there products because it cost them money. They are just like any other big company. Their customer service very overrated. I have never heard of people only be able to call for support twice in the time they own the device. That is so stupid.

I dunno about you, but my exp with Apple and most other big companies has been nothing short of stellar. Apple has replaced and upgraded my old hdd with nothing asked, Logitech upgraded my mouse after I sent them back my old MX Revolution ( month 11 into the warranty), Roccat still sends me free mouse feet nearly 3 years after I purchased a Kone+ (1yr warranty btw, not to mention mouse feet are considered consumables)...etc.

I am just saying, maybe I am lucky, or maybe I treat them with a little more respect.

[Applejuiced]

Originally Posted by Brounmoney

Oh sorry I forgot Apple customer service is the best and they would never make a mistake.

They are going to give every reason possible not to replace there products because it cost them money. They are just like any other big company. Their customer service very overrated. I have never heard of people only be able to call for support twice in the time they own the device. That is so stupid.

Offcourse reps make mistakes.
All he has to do is bring in his phone and show them theres no damage like he claims.
Apple is really good with customer care and if there is an error on their end they will fix it. But obviously from the rest of the thread and the OP not wanting to show any pics you can guess what the issue is here...

[TOYSTER17]

Originally Posted by Applejuiced

Offcourse reps make mistakes.
All he has to do is bring in his phone and show them theres no damage like he claims.
Apple is really good with customer care and if there is an error on their end they will fix it. But obviously from the rest of the thread and the OP not wanting to show any pics you can guess what the issue is here...

No, they are not always good with customer service. I've had vastly different experiences with them. It's all depends on the genius you get. It's either been a fast and great experience for me, or I've been left with the urge of doing something I'd regret because the genius is basically seeing "stupid" written across my forehead. Some of those guys are a joke.

I had a genius who didn't want to replace my iPhone 4S in October because the screen was sort of detaching from the body in one corner, I could fit a credit card underneath it, she basically said that it wasn't covered under warranty because stuff like that doesn't just happen. Accused me of dropping my phone when there wasn't even a SINGLE scratch on it. Eventually she replaced it after going back and forth, but wasn't happy at all and was rude about it. Her denying my claim wouldn't have been a "mistake" on her part, it's more than that.

But again, I've also had great experiences with them, which is why I said it depends on who you get. I don't think the OP came on here just to troll. I believe him.

I'll even add a great experience I had with them. I bought a MacBook (late 2008 Alum) from Craigslist and when I attempted to fresh install Snow Leopard it failed because the disk drive scratched the install disk. I took it to the Apple store (had extended warranty), they tested it and confirmed it was scratching disks. When I went to go pick it up a few days later the genius told me they replaced the super drive, that it looked like the laptop might have been dropped as the aluminum where the disk enters was a bit bent (he said he tried to fix that as much as he could), didn't blacklist my device, or whatever it is they do. That was the time Lion had just been released, I asked to buy it and one genius actually installed it into my laptop for free.

Well a few days later I bought SCII as it was just released, and it scratched that disk up as well. I'll cut the story short here, because the laptop was also shutting down randomly. Took it back and they replaced the battery, motherboard, they replaced the whole bottom casing, new super drive, new keyboard. Everything except the battery cover.

[Brounmoney]

Originally Posted by MVRL

I dunno about you, but my exp with Apple and most other big companies has been nothing short of stellar. Apple has replaced and upgraded my old hdd with nothing asked, Logitech upgraded my mouse after I sent them back my old MX Revolution ( month 11 into the warranty), Roccat still sends me free mouse feet nearly 3 years after I purchased a Kone+ (1yr warranty btw, not to mention mouse feet are considered consumables)...etc.

I am just saying, maybe I am lucky, or maybe I treat them with a little more respect.

I was super nice to Apple, but think about it they are a huge company they want to make money not lose it by giving you a replacement. They will do what it takes not too. Sure they can be great, but people talk about them like they will do anything for anyone no matter what. It just is not true. They have good customer service, but not great. The best customer service I have ever seen is Amazon. They have gone out of the way to fix things for me. I don't call giving you 2 phone calls to AppleCare in a 1 year warranty going out of their way. Also charging you $80 more dollars on top of the price of your iphone to send you a replacement before you send yours going out of their way. Like I said they are good, but a long shot from being great.

[Brounmoney]

Originally Posted by Applejuiced

Offcourse reps make mistakes.
All he has to do is bring in his phone and show them theres no damage like he claims.
Apple is really good with customer care and if there is an error on their end they will fix it. But obviously from the rest of the thread and the OP not wanting to show any pics you can guess what the issue is here...

He said he does not have a camera to show pics. People talk like Apple will replace stuff all the time even if it is damaged. I have seen people on here say they dropped and cracked their screen and Apple replaced it free of charge. If they are that great then this should have been no problem for the OP. I am just saying that Apple customer care is not as good as people want to believe.

[Applejuiced]

Originally Posted by Brounmoney

He said he does not have a camera to show pics. People talk like Apple will replace stuff all the time even if it is damaged. I have seen people on here say they dropped and cracked their screen and Apple replaced it free of charge. If they are that great then this should have been no problem for the OP. I am just saying that Apple customer care is not as good as people want to believe.

Yes, and nobody he knows has a cellphone either to snap a pic or a dig camera available and so on.
Ok, that doesnt sound funny to you?
I dont think Apple will or should replace stuff that the customer damages. I wouldnt expect that from any company no matter how good their customer service is.
You bang it up and it doesnt work right what do you expect?
Sometimes they do go out of their way and replace cracked screens free of charge but that doesnt mean its their policy to always do it for everyone.