Not true. The problem is that the power supply dies a premature death ~18 months.
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Apple Offers Repair Program for 2008 Time Capsule Power Issues
- Thread starter AdeFowler
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Not true. The problem is that the power supply dies a premature death ~18 months.
And it goes without any warning which means you don't get the chance to save the data stored on the Time Capsule's hard drive.
No repair was offered in my case, but replaced with a refurb. Not everybody was so lucky, though, especially in countries where the consumer laws were less adequate. The TC was supposed to "Back up a lifetime's worth of memories", but the TC had to be handed over with my memories on the hard disc as opening the TC voided the warranty.
Instead of turning our TC's in for refurb replacements, my son fixed and adapted both mine and his TC. I do not feel kindly toward Apple anymore since.
It's Dead, Jim
March 2010:
8pm - Mine died, checked the web and found nothing but links about "yeah, it's toast" with more links to how to open the TC and yank the drive.
9pm - Heat the rubber mat to get to the screws, tears at one corner. F!! Oh well, it's bricked anyways.
10pm - Drive is out, in another external SATA cradle anc backing up as normal. TC is reassembled and sitting there ~ a hollow shell of a lie of ostentatious uselessness. Then I see the "by the way, if you have applecare it's covered...." sentence. F!!
Warranty void, hard disk is mega-hot when powered on, waste of money on a crummy device that I fell for with the TimeCapsule UI.
Next day: Purchase an HP ShareSpace 4TB RAID NAS for same price as the TC but with more flexibility AND media streaming, blah blah.
Moral: Some stuff Apple just does well, some stuff Apple should just as well NOT do.
March 2010:
8pm - Mine died, checked the web and found nothing but links about "yeah, it's toast" with more links to how to open the TC and yank the drive.
9pm - Heat the rubber mat to get to the screws, tears at one corner. F!! Oh well, it's bricked anyways.
10pm - Drive is out, in another external SATA cradle anc backing up as normal. TC is reassembled and sitting there ~ a hollow shell of a lie of ostentatious uselessness. Then I see the "by the way, if you have applecare it's covered...." sentence. F!!
Warranty void, hard disk is mega-hot when powered on, waste of money on a crummy device that I fell for with the TimeCapsule UI.
Next day: Purchase an HP ShareSpace 4TB RAID NAS for same price as the TC but with more flexibility AND media streaming, blah blah.
Moral: Some stuff Apple just does well, some stuff Apple should just as well NOT do.
When it is bad, sure it dies a premature death--but if it isn't bad--what can you do but use it like I have with mine--which is over 2 years old and runs 24/7. My point was that other than the bad power supplies, there are not other problems with the Time Capsule--it does what it is supposed to do.
huh
the hard drive itself is fine. you can take it out and plug it into an external drive, copy the stuff off and there your data is!
as stated in the main MR post, the US apple stores will give direct help to get your data transferred over to your replacement TC - in other countries im not sure on the support though.
I think you have that backwards. Before the current policy you could get your data transferred at the Apple Store, but the current policy is mail-in only for those who wan their data preserved in the US and Japan. That was also what I was told when I called Apple yesterday.
B
im sorry but i dont think that i am misunderstanding anything... ? thats rediculous if that is indeed the case.
What I was told is that per the current policy, neither the Apple Store, nor AASPs are supposed to open the Time Capsules to be replaced. They can only replace the unit with a "virgin" one that does not have your data on it. If you want/need the data you can arrange (by phone) to mail it in and get a replacement unit back with your data on it in 3-5 days.
Previously there was at least an option to have the data transferred on site at the Apple Store for a "data transfer fee" of $99.
i.e. the US Apple Store is of no direct help in helping you preserve your data. Apple phone support is the only way to get that part of the deal.
Stupid, innit?
B
how does that even make ANY sense? apple admits that there is a problem - the data is there and fine, yet its completely locked in. i daresay that if you go to retrieve the data yourself the warranty would be void. however i got away with it
i was able to get a replacement after getting my data off.
And, I got a replacement without even returning my defective unit, but that ain't the policy.
So now I have two of 'em sitting on my desk and still don't know what I want to do with either of them. I have to pull the drive from the old one, but after that... The only thing I'm missing is extending my wireless network, but I'm getting decent enough coverage from the Airport Extreme by itself.
B
wowza! lucky you! you may as well replace the caps yourself. or send them to an aussie guy who will do it for a fee of $50 iirc. its a very easy thing to do and it starts working again
FWIW, I was told the same thing at the genius bar today when I went to turn in my broken 500GB. My choices were
1) get a refurb 500GB on the spot , but I would have to relinquish my broken TC and say goodbye to my data and any previous versions of my data (aka no time machine)
OR
2) my data would be transferrred to a "new" TC , (not sure which size or version), and this new one with my data would be fed exed to me in a week.
I chose the latter in case I feel the urge to review previous versions of my data. And I didn't need a receipt.
I had one of the original time capsules (500 gig) which failed about a couple of months back now. I approached Apple who replaced it for free, I kind of indicated there was a problem as acknowledged by the Apple time capsule memorial register, given Apple had fixing peoples broken down time capsules as indicated by the register then there was sort of a president. I was nice about it all and civil, they were pretty forth coming on offering repair.
The register is here http://timecapsuledead.org/
That's my good luck story anyway, hope it helps someone.
The register is here http://timecapsuledead.org/
That's my good luck story anyway, hope it helps someone.
If the replacement I got is any indication it is the exact same model and capacity, hopefully a later build.
B
So it sounds like they are replacing the defective units with similar refurb models. Anyone getting new ones?
I have received a replacement which is a refurbished unit. Its serial number still falls into the problematic range as identified at http://support.apple.com/kb/TS3351
If they have given me one faulty product to replace another, then I feel that is very poor customer service. I hope others receive replacements which do not fall into the serial range of the dodgy batch
If they have given me one faulty product to replace another, then I feel that is very poor customer service. I hope others receive replacements which do not fall into the serial range of the dodgy batch
Mine was replaced at the (Australian) Apple Store. Sorry to hear that your TC has died too, sounds like the exact same problem. Hope you get the dual band one without this problem
Oh fail, what a great program however mine is stuffed the power supply failed and we tried to replace the caps in it!! it's now at the dump ah well.
Just had my Feb 2008 Time Capsule replaced with NEW unit
Hey all - So I bought my 500GB Time Capsule when it was first released in Feb 2008. I heard about the power issues as of late but I didn't think much of it since my TC was running just as good as always. And then, out of nowhere last night, BAM, power goes off. Tried unplugging and plugging it back in multiple times with no response.
So, I immediately scheduled a Genius Bar appointment on my Apple Store App for the next day here in the Boston area. The Genius was aware of the issue and diagnosed the unit as failed but told me they had no replacement units and I'd have to wait 3-5 days for them to order one. I politely explained why that was a problem for me and asked for a new unit "off the shelf". The Genius explained that they can't do that since I'd be getting the newer 1TB dual band model in it's place (which I knew obviously) but that he would talk to the manager. 5 minutes later I was walking out of the store with a BRAND NEW Time Capsule that has double the storage space! No lengthy repairs and best of all, no lousy refurb that was once someone else's problem. I did have to sign a waiver stating that I knew this was a one time exception and they didn't allow me to keep the new box (just gave me the TC and cord out of the newly opened box) but overall I'm very happy with the swift resolution to this issue.
Hey all - So I bought my 500GB Time Capsule when it was first released in Feb 2008. I heard about the power issues as of late but I didn't think much of it since my TC was running just as good as always. And then, out of nowhere last night, BAM, power goes off. Tried unplugging and plugging it back in multiple times with no response.
So, I immediately scheduled a Genius Bar appointment on my Apple Store App for the next day here in the Boston area. The Genius was aware of the issue and diagnosed the unit as failed but told me they had no replacement units and I'd have to wait 3-5 days for them to order one. I politely explained why that was a problem for me and asked for a new unit "off the shelf". The Genius explained that they can't do that since I'd be getting the newer 1TB dual band model in it's place (which I knew obviously) but that he would talk to the manager. 5 minutes later I was walking out of the store with a BRAND NEW Time Capsule that has double the storage space! No lengthy repairs and best of all, no lousy refurb that was once someone else's problem. I did have to sign a waiver stating that I knew this was a one time exception and they didn't allow me to keep the new box (just gave me the TC and cord out of the newly opened box) but overall I'm very happy with the swift resolution to this issue.
Well Done.
I wish I had been as aggressive as you were.
I received my original TC from fedex three days after dropping it at the genius bar. I assume they just replaced the power supply. It appears to be working normally. I have yet to enter the time machine to see if my data is still there.
Interesting. I've been following this thread and I believe you're the first person to get their original unit back. How did you tell--the serial number or telltale marks on the case?
Thanks to all for posting their experiences.
My 500GB TC has been working perfectly, but it's within the date and serial number range (it's an XX814XXXXXX unit). From the start, I purposely avoided placing any other equipment on or near it. Now I'm afraid it will continue to work until the 3 years from date of purchase are up in May 2011, and then fail after that. I guess there's nothing I can do, though.
Apple's support document http://support.apple.com/kb/TS3351 at the bottom says "Apple will continue to evaluate the service data and will provide further updates to the program if needed." This seems to indicate that Apple may extend the program period or make other changes to the replacement program.
Does anyone have opinions about whether it's a reasonable hope that Apple would extend the time period?
I'd say that if you end up getting 3 years out of a $299 device, that is pushing the limits of acceptable. Given the known issue though, you have a right to be concerned.
On another note, anyone feel that the Time Capsule could be a much better device than it is? Like why not throw a FireWire or useful USB port on there so it could also be used as a traditional portable hard drive? I'd love to be able to easily transfer files to my PS3 from this thing (I'm pretty sure the USB port on there now is only for printers and other hard drives - haven't tried hooking it up to the PS3).
Also, does anyone really care that much about an external Apple power brick? If the internal power supply is causing the issue they should just redesign it with an external supply and everyone will go on living their lives just fine.