Apple quality control??

[Michael D.]

The problem is not Apple its the Chinise manufactures fault

In a narrow sense this holds true. However, is ultimately responsible for the quality of its products. It's not as if we have a choise to select an "-built" -imac and a subcontracted model.

It doesn't matter who assembles the products. has to set the allowed tolerances for defects.

 

[Choctaw]

Check things out 1st...then sell it...it saves money and time.

They don't QC every single item that's produced. As simple as that. Because manufacturing is mainly an automated process,This is the same as with any other company that pushes stuff down the line..

Quality control is a must on high end products. Example Gibson and PRS guitars. They are checked for performance before shipping. I would consider Apple a high end product as compaired to the normal market prices. They don't send a new car off the line until it appears to be working right...Just my take.

 

[bushman4]

Everyone that buys Apple products buys Apple for its Quality and Innovation.
Apple doesn't manufacture the hardware in the IMAC and many of the problems are hardware related. So people shouldn't get defensive that anybody is questioning the character of Apple. Everyone is paying for the Quality of an Apple Imac and everybody should expect to get that quality.

 

[chrono1081]

Everyone that buys Apple products buys Apple for its Quality and Innovation.
Apple doesn't manufacture the hardware in the IMAC and many of the problems are hardware related. So people shouldn't get defensive that anybody is questioning the character of Apple. Everyone is paying for the Quality of an Apple Imac and everybody should expect to get that quality.

With garbage threads like this (no offense) popping up like this every day people are simply sick of hearing it. Your getting angry in your original post about a machine you never even received yet.

The truth is every mass manufactured product from every company is going to have some kind of failure rate. This does not mean the product has "issues", it simply means a few people had problems and are not bright enough to exchange them. If a product has a mass recall then someone can say it has issues.

Now, that being said people are insanely picky and look for problems. If you look for them, you will find them. People who have to run "the yellow tint test" to see if their screen has yellow tint or not is one example (almost every LCD or LED out there has some type of defect from any manufacturer, technology just isn't there yet for a perfect LCD or LED display). If these people didn't run that "test" chances are they would have never seen an issue.

The bottom line is no companies products are perfect, don't go looking for flaws because you will find them, everything in this world has flaws, and instead of getting angry about defects on a product you don't even have yet, simply wait until it gets here, use it and enjoy it.

 

[MacHamster68]

Has Apple ever recalled a product?

no Apple did never recall any Product even in the days of the capacitor issue with eMac's/ iMac's , they repaired them under warranty and had a repair scheme in place for after the warranty enden , but kept it fairly secret , so only well informed people (even staff in apple stores did not know about it)
thats how apple always handled problems .. putting repair schemes up and keep them as secret as possible to maintain their reputation of high quality products

but some here are right , the chance of getting a faulty product or one that develops a fault is quiet low , nevertheless the chance is there
and not only affects iMac's , remeber the first generation of MacBooks , i said first generation , they went through logicboards faster then apple could replace them , the 24" imac with the well known invidia 8800 Gpu needs sometimes new GPU's every couple hours of use , some here on the forum had new ones fitted that blew again 15 minutes after it got fixed by apple
then again some are using that very same Mac with the same GPU since they bought it and never experienced any issues

it is just if you look in forums of any manufacturer you will always read about problems and very rarely about people who have no problems with the products of the manufacturer

so i start that now

i own a Twentieth Anniversary Macintosh build by apple in 1997 and it still works like on the day it was produced
i own a PowerMac 5500/275 which too is from 1997 and still works perfect
i own 4 iMac G3 600/700 mhz and none of them has any issues whatsoever
i own 4 eMac which too have no issues whatsoever
i own 2 quicksilver and 1 sawtooth whicht too have no problems
i own a mini G4 1.5 which works flawless
i own a PowerMac G5 dual core 2.3 which works flawless (if i put it together finally again (case gets anodized)
even my iMac intel core duo had no issues any more when i bought it , but it got the logicboard replaced including processor ,the hDD, the GPU,the display , the optical drive, the PSU all in the last couple month of apple care all failing one after the other , other then those little issues the previous owner had no problems with it

 

[BR485]

Did you even read the comments in this post? iMacs are not the only Apple product to have defects. Remember that whole iPhone antenna thing?

I am well aware that iMacs are not the only Apple product to suffer from poor workmanship/QC etc.

However, this thread was started in the iMac section of MacRumors and my post specifically addressed iMacs, not the entire Apple product line.

 

[Pintail]

Now, that being said people are insanely picky and look for problems. If you look for them, you will find them. People who have to run "the yellow tint test" to see if their screen has yellow tint or not is one example (almost every LCD or LED out there has some type of defect from any manufacturer, technology just isn't there yet for a perfect LCD or LED display). If these people didn't run that "test" chances are they would have never seen an issue.

.

Truth!! I just ran the test from another thread on my current 24" PC monitor that I've been using for almost 2 years and it failed big time! I never noticed the yellowing until this test - and I think I'm not going to even bother doing it on my 27" when it finally gets here.

 

[bpeeps]

I am well aware that iMacs are not the only Apple product to suffer from poor workmanship/QC etc.

However, this thread was started in the iMac section of MacRumors and my post specifically addressed iMacs, not the entire Apple product line.

I just don't understand the gripe, don't buy a product you think has a crazy amount of defects then. The problem is solved.

 

[BR485]

One in ten "problem products"? I doubt it's that bad

I do believe that Apple needs to control the quality of their products a little better; they've gotten worse with this through the years.

HOWEVER, the only people who come and post here are the ones WITH the problems. Hundred's of thousands of iMacs have been sold, and we've only seen about 1,000 posts issuing problems. It happens. It's like a 10% chance you'll find a problem.

Do you have any solid data to back up that 10% claim? I think you just pulled it out of thin air...

Let's pretend the 10% figure is accurate...if one out of every ten Apple products is defective in some way that would indicate a massive, epic fail on Apple's part.

 

[BR485]

In denial much?

The problem is not Apple its the Chinise manufactures fault

LOL

Who decided to outsource the manufacturing part of the business to China in order to save a few bucks (i.e. increase profit)? That's right, APPLE did. They are 100% responsible for the quality (or lack thereof) of their products regardless of where they are manufactured.

 

[MacHamster68]

Do you have any solid data to back up that 10% claim? I think you just pulled it out of thin air...

Let's pretend the 10% figure is accurate...if one out of every ten Apple products is defective in some way that would indicate a massive, epic fail on Apple's part.

10 % rate of products with some sort of defect in the first year is considered as normal in all computers , some laptops from pc makers have a failing rate of 30% in the first 3 years and are not considered as bad quality instead its just below average
Mac owners are just a bit to fuzzy about quality and ok pc's are cheaper then Mac's , but price is not a issue here as iMac's are cheap !
Think about it for a minute

the iMac starts at £999 for that price you get
a 21.5-inch

2.5GHz Quad-Core Intel Core i5
1920 x 1080 resolution
4GB (two 2GB) memory
500GB hard drive1
AMD Radeon HD 6750M with 512MB
in direct comparison
you get for £899 (could not find a all in one for exct £999 at pc world)

LENOVO IdeaCentre A700
1920 x 1080 widescreen 23" LED-backlit
Intel® Core™ i3-350M (2.26 GHz)
Memory: 4GB
Hard drive: 640GB
ATI Radeon HD 5650 graphics card
built-in JBL 2.0 stereo speakers

or for £799

PACKARD BELL oneTwo L I7526 UK 23" All-in-One PC
23" Full HD LCD touch-screen led backlid
Intel® Core™ i5-2400S 2.5 ghz
Memory: 4GB
Hard drive: 1TB
Intel® HD Graphics 2000
a TV tuner for access to Freeview television channels and digital radio stations,
eight USB ports, and a 5-in-1 media card reader.
photoshop elements 8 as a goody bag


or for $699
ACER Aspire Z5761
23" Full HD LCD touch-screen
Intel® Core™ i3-2100 (3.10 GHz)
Memory: 4GB
Hard drive: 1TB
intel hd graphics
Analogue & digital TV hybrid tuner

or for £549
LENOVO IdeaCentre B310
21.5 "
Intel® Core™ i3-550 (3.2 GHz)
Memory: 4GB
Hard drive: 500GB
ATI Radeon HD 5450 GPU with 512MB of dedicated graphics memory
5-in-1 memory card reader

all offered with 3 year whatever happens support from pcworld for about £160-200 depending on product
about problems with those look in the apropriate forums

so sure you have to say the iMac is cheaper as its made from aluminium and the others are just plastic and certainly fall apart if you touch them and do not feature a nice little and you cant get them with OSX instead they are only offered with some operating system called windows7 ,something nobody with some brain would put on a Mac or? so definitely no competition for a iMac in any way

please read signature before reply

 

[flipster]

Do you have any solid data to back up that 10% claim? I think you just pulled it out of thin air...

Let's pretend the 10% figure is accurate...if one out of every ten Apple products is defective in some way that would indicate a massive, epic fail on Apple's part.

That figure is accurate, say Apple sells 100,000 iMacs. 10,000 of them with defects is still a small figure. Besides, the only "problem" people have is with the screens.

Let me just make this clear. WITH ANY LED IPS DISPLAY, THERE WILL BE SOME SORT OF YELLOWING, ESPECIALLY AT HIGH RESOLUTIONS LIKE 2560x1440. So stop looking for problems. If the yellowing is extreme (very rare) then yes, you have every right to take it back. Else wise, you know what you got yourself into, and you know the chances of getting it when you buy the iMac.

Dont believe me? Take an iPhone 4. It has an IPS high resolution display for a 3.5" screen. Now, turn the brightness all the way up. Now, get another smartphone, Droid X for example, turn the brightness all the way up, and compare the two. The iPhone looks yellow. The Droid X looks white. I have done this test comparing the iPhone to many others, and the screen has a yellow hue to it.

 

[BR485]

I just don't understand the gripe, don't buy a product you think has a crazy amount of defects then. The problem is solved.

Yes, of course, Apple is perfect and above all criticism. How dare anyone point out ways in which they can improve and increase customer satisfaction.

You seem to have trouble accepting that iMacs have design and QC issues that Apple is too arrogant to address.

For the record my iMac works fine...as long as I have third party fan control software running to keep the temperatures under control.

 

[bpeeps]

Yes, of course, Apple is perfect and above all criticism. How dare anyone point out ways in which they can improve and increase customer satisfaction.

You seem to have trouble accepting that iMacs have design and QC issues that Apple is too arrogant to address.

For the record my iMac works fine...as long as I have third party fan control software running to keep the temperatures under control.

Let's not put words in my mouth. I said in my first post in this thread that iMacs have design issues and if it effects your quality of use, buy a different machine, exchange, or return it.

Simple.

There is a difference between pointing something out and whining/complaining about it. There are a variety of posts on the iMac forums which actually discuss these issues, providing constructive criticism on what Apple could do better. This is not one of those posts. The original poster wanted to rant and could have reasonably found one of those threads to discuss the yellow tinted screen he doesn't even own yet.

That is the issue "I have trouble accepting".

 

[laprej]

Yes, of course, Apple is perfect and above all criticism. How dare anyone point out ways in which they can improve and increase customer satisfaction.

You seem to have trouble accepting that iMacs have design and QC issues that Apple is too arrogant to address.

For the record my iMac works fine...as long as I have third party fan control software running to keep the temperatures under control.

Perhaps it's not that Apple has not address these issues adequately but maybe that their approach does not satisfy you? Either way, I'm reading a lot of criticisms on this thread... If any of you can create an assembly line that results in 100% perfect product creation, I'm sure Apple has a job for you.

 

[washburn]

LOL

Who decided to outsource the manufacturing part of the business to China in order to save a few bucks (i.e. increase profit)? That's right, APPLE did. They are 100% responsible for the quality (or lack thereof) of their products regardless of where they are manufactured.

Well yea true but I have no doubt that Apple tells these Chinise makers time and time again to try be more careful, its just that as of late many Chinise made computer parts have a tendency to fail within a short period.

 

[bushman4]

............... The original poster wanted to rant and could have reasonably found one of those threads to discuss the yellow tinted screen he doesn't even own yet.

That is the issue "I have trouble accepting".

I'm not ranting. I'm just stating that I would like to see better Quality control so that everyone would benefit.
Just because I didn't receive my IMAC doesn't mean that i'm not concerned about what I purchased and why shouldn't I be concerned based on threads that I've read relating to various issues.
When I pay for quality,I expect to get it! Maybe you don't.

 

[SaSaSushi]

APPLE's Quality control leaves much to be desired. And while most people won't address this issue we all suffer the consequences
Its not like Apple is selling millions of Imacs and cant produce them fast enough. so theres no excuse.

So your complaining about defects on a machine that you have not yet received?

AND spent over $2500 on despite being absolutely convinced it will arrive a lemon.

Highly illogical.

 

[BR485]

Apple Inc. vs. Apple Computer Inc.

Perhaps it's not that Apple has not address these issues adequately but maybe that their approach does not satisfy you? Either way, I'm reading a lot of criticisms on this thread... If any of you can create an assembly line that results in 100% perfect product creation, I'm sure Apple has a job for you.

Nobody is talking about 100% perfect products...please don't be deliberately obtuse.

There is no denying that Apple's products (some more than others) have suffered quality wise since Apple decided to sacrifice solid workmanship and reliability for a beefier bottom line. You can pull out the red herrings and construct straw man arguments in blind defense of Apple but it's a futile exercise.

(And before anyone starts blaming Chinese or Taiwanese companies for Apple's quality issues, bear in mind that during the last decade many Western companies freely chose to move their manufacturing divisions to China and other developing nations.) A few extra dollars/euros for shareholders but lost jobs and poorer quality products at home.

---

Slightly off topic, but one notable exception to this trend is Germany which still retains a robust manufacturing industry. "Made in Germany" is still synonymous with quality and reliability. The US, UK, Canada etc., OTOH, outsourced their manufacturing sectors because of cheaper labor costs in places like China while promising consumers lower prices.

The reality is that the savings are being pocketed by the companies or passed on to shareholders while the consumer gets an inferior quality product for a premium price.

Hence we get "Designed by Apple in California. Made in China."

Oh and back to Germany for a second. While most of Europe and North America got hammered by the recession Germany's economy was quick on the rebound and is doing quite well. Their unemployment rate also remains relatively low.

The obvious lesson here is that businesses can still make a very good profit by keeping their manufacturing divisions in their home countries. The consumer benefits, the economy benefits and well run companies retain their integrity and good reputation.

Excessive greed, unless one is already very wealthy, usually results in long-term pain for short-term gain. In some cases it's even been known to leave consumers feeling like they're being sold a poorer quality product for a premium price.

"Designed by Apple in California. Made in China."

---

We now return you to our regularly scheduled program.

 

[BR485]

I'm not ranting. I'm just stating that I would like to see better Quality control so that everyone would benefit.
Just because I didn't receive my IMAC doesn't mean that i'm not concerned about what I purchased and why shouldn't I be concerned based on threads that I've read relating to various issues.
When I pay for quality,I expect to get it! Maybe you don't.

Your concerns are valid. It's funny to read the many posts here telling people not to worry when their machine's idling HDD is hitting 60 degrees Celsius or that displays showing color irregularities, dark blemishes or very obvious yellow tinges are "just normal".

Cranking up the fan speeds using iMac Fan Control saved my computer from a premature death. I had all the classic display problems (smudges, artifacts, yellow blemishes) and they all mysteriously disappeared when the computer's temperatures were brought down to a reasonable level. If I let the computer regulate the fan speeds the display issues promptly reappear. Hmmm....

You are paying a premium price for your computer and should expect to get a premium product in return. Good luck!

 

[BR485]

Well yea true but I have no doubt that Apple tells these Chinise makers time and time again to try be more careful, its just that as of late many Chinise made computer parts have a tendency to fail within a short period.

LOL Some of these "arguments" in defense of Apple are absolutely ridiculous.

Replace "Chinise" with "employee Bob" in your, er, argument. You've hired Bob to do a specific job. But Bob is a sloppy worker (maybe he's just lazy, or perhaps poor management is leading to low worker morale) and the products he is producing are not up to company standards. Customers are complaining and your company's reputation is taking a hit.

Imagine telling your customers that you've asked Bob "time and time again to try be more careful, its just that as of late many Bob made computer parts have a tendency to fail within a short period". You wouldn't be in business for very long with that approach.

As the business owner what do you think your responsibilities and obligations might be?

 

[MacHamster68]

yes the Germans ..we are sometimes a bit fuzzy about things , slightly off topic but i remember a company called Mahindra from india , which did want to sell their "jeep" lookalikes to Germany the paint quality was horrible , flaking after the first rain drop ,and some other problems of the car which was not really up to any standard known by Germans , but the Indian company reacted fast and professional
their solution to the quality issue was to ship all parts to Germany for quality control and assembly , then the "partly finished car " got send back to India to receive the final parts " the mahindra badge " and then the car was exported to Germany for sale ....that was in the early 90's

to get back to the point of 100% perfection , that is not possible in a computer that is made by lots of different companies really , apple is only assembling in china , the other parts are made by intel, and wherever they get the rest from , but all manufactured in china ,by some dozens different companies , and thats where the problem is .

the Chinese can produce very high quality products too .
Some German companies get products made there , but the factories are owned by German companies , but not to produce cheaper Products , no only to avoid the Chinese import tax and shipping costs to china , the result is German quality made by Chinese workers ,but with one little downside the products are not really cheap by Chinese standards as quality has its price ,the workers in those companies get payed way above the national average in china , as those companies do it the Henry Ford way meaning a worker should be able to afford the finished product and that way makes it worth for workers to look to achieve highest possible quality if they know it could be the one they buy in the shop tomorrow!


and the conclusion ...if you pay them peanuts you get monkeys building some lemons

 

[misola]

Simple answer

Look up Foxconn. The horrible working conditions, suicides and mass employee overturn rates in the factory that Apple uses in China. I loved my 2008 I Mac.
2011 bought a laptop, had to send in back DOA. Next was a I Mac. Horrible performance, returned. Now a Mac Pro and 15"laptop. Major issues with both.
Steve Jobs told President Obama that Apple jobs are Never coming back to America. Apparently Apple has decided to rip as much cash from the market as it can, until the next great computer company takes them out of the market by practicing decency, true quality concerns and responsibility. Ah, but the money makers at Apple will have secured their fortunes for themselves and families by then, so what do they care? Until then, people just have to suffer from the delusion that the name Apple means what it did 10 years ago.

 

[Lucianrider]

My wife has a 2009 24" iMac that has worked flawlessly from the day we purchased it and it has been in a hot open Caribbean home office and is on 24/7. I just purchased and received just before Christmas a 2011 BTO 21.5" iMac with i7 and its a flawless machine as well.

We both have 13" macbooks, mine is a 2009 unibody and hers is a 2010 pro and both are flawless as far as I am concerned.

The two ipads, an iPad ver1 and an iPad2 are also both flawless. Oh, the hand me down iphones we have had over the years are also flawless, we are both on 3GS models. The iPod touch my wife has is also flawless....

We are both exceptionally happy with our Apple purchases and work them pretty hard. Build quality we find is very, very good!

 

[ombrenelcielo]

I ordered a BTO IMAC 27" with an SSD and here I am making a list of all the things to check when I finally get this IMAC.
The list goes on and on. This is rediculous, its almost like I'm buying a refurbished computer. But wait this is a brand new $2500+ computer. Why isn't Apple checking to see if the screen is yellow or if there's dust under the glass????
APPLE's Quality control leaves much to be desired. And while most people won't address this issue we all suffer the consequences
Its not like Apple is selling millions of Imacs and cant produce them fast enough. so theres no excuse.

Excuse me, if you don't trust it, why you buy it?