Seriously? You're angry because they didn't give you something they didn't promise? Upgrades, of any type, are never guaranteed. Deal with it.
jW
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Apple Reportedly Addressing Fraud by Third-Party Service Centers
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Seriously? You're angry because they didn't give you something they didn't promise? Upgrades, of any type, are never guaranteed. Deal with it.
jW
Not true dude. Thats senseless unresearched PC talk there. Compare Laptop specs and included software and the Mac is the better deal AND you wont be getting a PC with the build quality that you get in a Mac.
I buy Apple care with my laptops and I've had to send two in for repairs before. Save the Red Carpet, they did pick up the cost and they next day aired the shipping box and the fixed Mac back to me. I have also been given the option to have it repaired at a local authorized dealer or send it to Apple for their techs to repair. I aways choose the Apple option.
Nonsense. First, this type of fraud is rampant for all manufacturers. This is hardly specific to Apple. Apple, with so much more control over their product distribution, are in a better position than others in combatting it.
As for reseller "only making 10%", I bet most are ecstatic with that. Margins on PCs is often under 5 points. No one, other than the mfg. make money (and many of them lose money). You make you money on accessories and service contracts.
I work for an independent sales and service provider and per our contract with apple there is no charge to the customer for warranty work except if there is physical damage or if data recovery is needed
This isn't new
The auto-industry had (has) the same problem - but it's even easier to confuse the consumer because in a car, often the warranty covers some parts of the car, but not others -- even when they use terms like "bumper to bumper" warranty.
A dealership may tell you that "this particular part isn't covered under warranty" and you'll have to pay for it. After you pay for the service, they go ahead and submit the repair to the manufacturer anyway -- thus double-dipping on the reimbursement.
To combat, many manufacturers now do a follow-up customer satisfaction phone call or survey, which tries to be very clear that they are following-up to find out how happy you were with your "free warranty repair" (at which point you reply "free? no... I paid for it.")
The auto-industry had (has) the same problem - but it's even easier to confuse the consumer because in a car, often the warranty covers some parts of the car, but not others -- even when they use terms like "bumper to bumper" warranty.
A dealership may tell you that "this particular part isn't covered under warranty" and you'll have to pay for it. After you pay for the service, they go ahead and submit the repair to the manufacturer anyway -- thus double-dipping on the reimbursement.
To combat, many manufacturers now do a follow-up customer satisfaction phone call or survey, which tries to be very clear that they are following-up to find out how happy you were with your "free warranty repair" (at which point you reply "free? no... I paid for it.")
I owned several dealerships in the UK in the past and know for a fact this was going on as far back as Apple ][ days. How do i know? Because other dealers explained to me how simple it was and were almost shocked I did not do this. My guess is quite a few do it to this day.
yikes.... its kinda sad that it took several years for apple to catch on... even though its pocket change to apple its just retarded.
probably easier and less expensive to simply shut them down. take away their 'authorized' status and no longer provide them with free parts.
That man is a lying piece of garbage. There is NO agreement for that. I work for an Apple service center as a Mac tech and I can tell you right now that he's been breaking the rules. Find out if he still does and report it to Apple. That's just disgusting to me. It is absolutely NOT permissible for a service center to charge the customer for ANYTHING that is covered by warranty. Period.
On the subject at hand, Apple treats service centers like crap, so I suppose this was bound to happen. Payment for warranty work isn't all that great and is based on certain metrics which can punish the provider for things that are absolutely not their fault. Also, the people down at Apple who design the enclosures and decide how everything fits together will have a special area of Hell reserved for them where they will be forced to disassemble and reassemble their abominations until the end of eternity. I swear that some Macs are designed as they are specifically to make the techs suffer. I can't think of any other reason that they would do so.
I love a lot of Apple products, but I hate Apple corporate. I think that would mirror the sentiment of every Apple tech out there.
You do realize it has everything to do with the topic. Fraud. Although Best Buy might not be managing a warehouse of used Mac Parts and making money off of "in warranty" and "out of warranty" items.....they are making money off misleading consumers about the warranty their computer carries.
Your options are a Geforce 8800GT or Radeon 3870. Those are both officially compatible. If you installed a 4870 in your first gen Mac Pro, then don't cry when Apple doesn't fix it. Sure, it would be nice, but they said that it's not supported, so guess what? That means you're on your own if you decide to put it in there.
Or you could just use some third party hacks to run a PC card instead since you're going the unsupported route.
Yet victims exist. Can't be that simplistic that it is "the sky is green and the grass is blue" ludicrous an idea.
People obviously fell for it.
While not exactly warranty related, the whole "If you don't get a receipt then your meal is free" is to have the fast food companies combat the cashier from pocketing the money you paid for your food.
I find it interesting how companies figure out clever ways to fight fraud.
If you'd like to hear what others think of your suggestion, you are welcome to start a thread in the Site and Forum Feedback forum.
Apple legally has the right to determine what hardware they do and do not support. So the question becomes whether they were up front about the coverage of such cards in their machines. Did they provide a list of the cards they support and clearly state that use of anything else would void your warranty.
If so, then you and yours knew what you were getting into. If not, then you might have a case.
Neither 3870 nor 8800GT are sold by Apple. They were discontinued while my MP was still under warranty. A 3 year old Pro desktop is not an obsolete computer, for Xsakes! Oh yeah, according to Apple it is
FYI, there are MPs out there purchased less than 2 years ago for which there are no video cards officially supported/sold by Apple. This sucks, not to mentioned it's fraud, given that these machines were sold as "the most upgradable Mac". Apple did not tell me that I will have as little as one year to upgrade my MP with a better video card.I put the Apple branded 4870 in my MP because, contrary to Apple's misleading information, it does work perfectly fine in a 2006 MP. I intend to exercise my right to obtain warranty service on this card, should I ever need it, even if this means using another MP's serial number to obtain it.
Are we on topic now? Good.
who says it took several years for Apple to catch on. HardMac isn't exactly the most timely site. they have more than once posted things that have been on other sites for days and even weeks as if it was a hot news item. Perhaps Apple has known and have been shutting down locations for years, this is just the biggest sting and the one that got press. just like the guy earlier this year that was getting ipods for warranty replacements and then selling them.
yes but the centers knew what they were getting into when they signed the agreement to be 'authorized'. if they didn't like the deal they should have skipped it. they could still fix the machines and charge what they want, if customers are willing to go to them. and for out of warranty repairs it doesn't matter since there's no warranty to void anyway.
First off, the 3870 is made to work in your Mac Pro and will not void any warranties. Ergo, it is irrelevant if Apple sells it or another vendor. It works and is officially supported by the vendor. Do you buy all of your RAM and hard drives directly from Apple, too?Neither 3870 nor 8800GT are sold by Apple. They were discontinued while my MP was still under warranty. A 3 year old Pro desktop is not an obsolete computer, for Xsakes! Oh yeah, according to Apple it is
I put the Apple branded 4870 in my MP because, contrary to Apple's misleading information, it does work perfectly fine in a 2006 MP. I intend to exercise my right to obtain warranty service on this card, should I ever need it, even if this means using another MP's serial number to obtain it.
Are we on topic now? Good.
And since when is a computer "obsolete" just because Apple doesn't make a particular upgrade supported for your model? Since when is it fraud when they don't make a particular upgrade part for your particular model? It isn't by ANY definition, legal or otherwise. Well, except for yours, but that doesn't fly anywhere else. Apple has no obligation whatsoever to make upgrades for your particular model. They never agreed to do so in any way, shape, or form. Your Mac Pro still functions and still works just fine. If it's still under Applecare and something breaks down then they will fix it. They are obligated to do so. If you bought the 4870 directly and not as an OEM part in another Mac, then your Mac Pro serial number is irrelevant. It's covered all by itself as long as you have a proof of purchase, which you likely do considering it would've been purchased from Apple. Serial numbers are only necessary for original parts, not separately purchased upgrades.
Boo hoo, Apple doesn't sell a video card upgrade for your Mac Pro. As it turns out, the 3870 doesn't appear to be on the market anymore. You know what that means? THERE IS NOT SUFFICIENT DEMAND. You can argue that Apple is just trying to drive sales, but when third party vendors stop selling something, it's because there aren't enough people buying. Simple as that.