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Apple Store = Nice, AT&T Store = Rude

gkarris

gkarris

macrumors G3
Original poster
Dec 31, 2004
8,301
1,061
"No escape from Reality...”
My friend went looking for a 3G today on his day off. On his way driving downtown, I called a couple of Apple Stores in the suburbs, and AT&T Stores to check stock.

The Apple Store employees, of course, were gracious and courteous. The AT&T Store employees, sorry to say, were just plain rude, and didn't like I was "calling for a friend".

My friend ended up ordering one from a local AT&T store, but he really wants to give Apple the business, and since the wait is now 10-20 days, he was thinking of cancelling if he came across one at the Apple Store.

The AT&T employee said that if you are porting a number from another carrier, you HAVE TO get it from them. Apple is only for new activations.

Is that true? Sounds like BS to me...

I heard that Apple does get an extra $100 from AT&T for each new iPhone activation.
 
Anyone can buy an iPhone from either location, regardless of if they are porting or not. The biggest problem with the people at the at&t store is that they are poorly paid, compare to Apple Employees, and they are often overworked, because they are all understaffed.

TEG
 
I am a new ATT customer and I ported 2 numbers in a family plan at an Apple store.
 
Thanks.

Sort of understand, but if Apple wants to maintain its high standard, they should at least pick a carrier that follows that.

I've never been treated badly by any T-Mobile employee either at a store or on the phone with Customer Support.

I have when I had AT&T Wireless (before selling it to Cingular) for a very short time years and years ago.

Makes me want to stick with my unlocked phone.

I also hear that there is a 5 year exclusivity with AT&T, but some say that is FUD, and it may be only 2.

Well, talking with an AT&T employee (but not neccessarily official) from corporate. She said that the iPhone is now their flagship phone and they will do anything to make it exclusive to AT&T forever and ever, no matter what it takes. Same goes if Apple comes out with more variations of the iPhone.

Truth?
 
gkarris said:
My friend went looking for a 3G today on his day off. On his way driving downtown, I called a couple of Apple Stores in the suburbs, and AT&T Stores to check stock.

The Apple Store employees, of course, were gracious and courteous. The AT&T Store employees, sorry to say, were just plain rude, and didn't like I was "calling for a friend".

My friend ended up ordering one from a local AT&T store, but he really wants to give Apple the business, and since the wait is now 10-20 days, he was thinking of cancelling if he came across one at the Apple Store.

The AT&T employee said that if you are porting a number from another carrier, you HAVE TO get it from them. Apple is only for new activations.

Is that true? Sounds like BS to me...

I heard that Apple does get an extra $100 from AT&T for each new iPhone activation.
Click to expand...

Total BS - You can port from Apple
 
I received excellent service @ AT&T when i bought my iPhone and have been happy with the service. I've had bad experience with all cell phone company customer service people, especially Verizon. I will say that a few of the employees at AT&T were rude to other people the day it launched, but overall my rep was extremely nice and was very personable.
 
You will be able to port numbers from another carrier to AT&T at an Apple store. Remember, the AT&T employees are commission based. Although they are not supposed to they may at times say things to get you buy it from them. Unfortunately, this can happen with any commission based employee: car sales, real estate, etc.

As far as the service goes.... I have experienced good and bad service from both AT&T and Apple stores over the years. It depends on the specific rep with whom you come into contact. This holds true for the company that any of us work for. You can run across bad people at any company.
 
gkarris said:
Thanks.

Sort of understand, but if Apple wants to maintain its high standard, they should at least pick a carrier that follows that.

I've never been treated badly by any T-Mobile employee either at a store or on the phone with Customer Support.

I have when I had AT&T Wireless (before selling it to Cingular) for a very short time years and years ago.

Makes me want to stick with my unlocked phone.

I also hear that there is a 5 year exclusivity with AT&T, but some say that is FUD, and it may be only 2.

Well, talking with an AT&T employee (but not neccessarily official) from corporate. She said that the iPhone is now their flagship phone and they will do anything to make it exclusive to AT&T forever and ever, no matter what it takes. Same goes if Apple comes out with more variations of the iPhone.

Truth?
Click to expand...

In regards to AT&T service quality, I think it depends on who you talk to. I used to frequent an AT&T store that had a guy who was awesome. Would help you out with any issue and would actively seek ways to save you money on your plan. It does say something about a company when a rotten apple ends up in their ranks, but I've never had serious issues.

In regards to exclusivity, yes, AT&T has exclusive US rights to the phone for 5 years. I'm not sure when the exact starting date is, but I'm guessing that means through the Summer of 2012.

As far as the employee saying that AT&T is going to try to make it their exclusive forever? If I were AT&T I'd sure want that too. But I'm guessing those negotiations haven't started up yet. Maybe we'll be lucky and Apple will fly solo next time.
 
Yes, this whole launch seems a bit of a debacle (at least it wasn't as bad as the PS3 launch :eek:).

Maybe next time Apple won't try launching it across the globe all on the same day, and make it so that you can at least sign the contract in the store and activate it at home.
 
There are a couple of reasons AT&T are the exclusive carrier, and will probably be for a good few years. Exclusive gets more money for Apple. GSM is the most universal technology used today, and Apple wants to be as universal as possible with one type of phone. There are only 2 carriers with GSM in the US, AT&T and T-Mobile. AT&T has a much bigger base to work with (72 million as opposed to 30 million on T-Mobile). AT&T also has a much larger 3G network. By the time T-mobile have their 3G network rolled out to what the likes of Verizon and AT&T have now, they will have moved on to a 4G network. T-Mobile just can't keep up with the high speed data networks of the larger competition.

Until Verizon or Sprint change to a more universal technology (rather than their locked down technology they use now), they will never have a look in.

As far as "being nice". I went to the AT&T store on opening day, and despite all the issues with Apple activation, they were helpful and got everyone taken care of quickly.
 
TEG said:
Anyone can buy an iPhone from either location, regardless of if they are porting or not. The biggest problem with the people at the at&t store is that they are poorly paid, compare to Apple Employees, and they are often overworked, because they are all understaffed.

TEG
Click to expand...

I dont know where you get such BS information on the pay compared to Apple Employees. Have you ever worked for Apple? If so, you would know that the pay sucks. Apple is constantly understaffed, and due to the limited locations of stores (like Hawaii for instance), insanely busy. Not only that, but Apple's mentality is no longer Pro-Customer like it used to be. Haven't you ever wondered what happens to the employees when you do not purchase MobileMe, Applecare, Procare? Hours get cut, you get questioned and have to explain every sale. Its more like working at Bestbuy now (shark sales).

You have more opportunity to make more working for AT&T because of commission sales. Hell, I would rather work for AT&T then Apple.

- Former Apple Employee

I should also add, I walked out on Apple due to the crap they pulled.
 
I believe that all phone and cable companies offer terrible service. There are always exceptions though. Aplle on the otherhand has created a wonderful culture and cannot be put in the same category (even though they now sell the same product).

This had me thinking about my recent experience with Comcast (Comsumerist.com Worst Company finalist) and how after have 3 bad calls with them, I spoke to an amazing Canadien sales rep who spent 20 minutes trying different discount codes for me and was getting upset until she got me a great deal!

I've had nice AT&T service so far, other than getting the wrong information and promises. But I blame poor training, ignorance and sometimes stupidity. I'm kind of use to that, and prefer it to rudeness.
 
mademan118 said:
I dont know where you get such BS information on the pay compared to Apple Employees. Have you ever worked for Apple? If so, you would know that the pay sucks. Apple is constantly understaffed, and due to the limited locations of stores (like Hawaii for instance), insanely busy. Not only that, but Apple's mentality is no longer Pro-Customer like it used to be. Haven't you ever wondered what happens to the employees when you do not purchase MobileMe, Applecare, Procare? Hours get cut, you get questioned and have to explain every sale. Its more like working at Bestbuy now (shark sales).

You have more opportunity to make more working for AT&T because of commission sales. Hell, I would rather work for AT&T then Apple.

- Former Apple Employee

I should also add, I walked out on Apple due to the crap they pulled.
Click to expand...

It's common knowledge that retail never pays. Most of the Apple Store Employees I've met are college students working for tuition money, or people that would rather have 2 part time jobs.

Sorry you had a bad experience.
 
I've always had really good experiences with AT&T; they've always been nice (even though sometimes retarded) and always wanted to help you out.

Apple, however, has let me down. I'm not an Apple fanboy, by any means. I like the iPhone, but don't have time/money to get acquainted with Macs (I buy little disposable $400 laptops on sale).

That being said, I was so dissappointed in Apple when I went into the Apple store in the Domain in Austin, TX, and could not find anyone knowledgeable to help me. There were practically no other customers at the time, but nonetheless, getting one of the 5 geniuses they had working to just talk to me was impossible. They were all huddled in the back and would not come out to grace the store with their audacious presence. I had a 5 second question (Have you ever seen behind the glass screen of an iPhone? My screen broke and I had read online about replacing the glass yourself, but wanted to see if anyone there had heard of it).

Several times I asked to talk to one of the "geniuses" but kept getting faced with "They wouldn't know anything". I was pissed - just let me ask the question. They can tell me "No. I haven't seen/heard that," but atleast let them show their face.

Anyway, as a potential Apple customer getting slowly converted by the iPhone magic, let's just say that I was less than satisfied with the customer service of the "geniuses" who are too good to talk with the lowly commoners (AKA customers). At least AT&T people will talk to me.
 
Truth be told I've somewhat had the opposite experience...

Basically all of the employees at my AT&T store range from nice to very friendly, but they are all incredibly accommodating in terms of cutting me deals, etc.

At the Apple store a few of them are nice, some are dicks, and they are rarely accommodating or even helpful. My primary example is the fact that I had to go in FOUR TIMES to get them to fix my Macbook Pro that had a completely unresponsive keyboard and trackpad (They kept saying it was an issue Apple was aware of thus they couldn't replace it and any new one would suffer from the same issue... NO IT WOULD NOT, otherwise no one would buy their laptops because they wouldn't function).
 
^^^^ people everywhere in general, no matter where you go, are getting "meaner".

I just finished reading some replys to my posts, and yep, mean...

Times are just getting harder, and people are getting more entrenched in their beliefs and such, not being respectful towards others who may be different.

This is starting to reflect in sales and customer service for just about all companies I've dealth with.
 
gkarris said:
not being respectful towards others who may be different.
Click to expand...

This isn't in reference to my post, is it?

And5555 said:
they've always been nice (even though sometimes retarded) and always wanted to help you out
Click to expand...

If so, I wasn't meaning that they were actually mentally disabled, but rather that they just didn't know about AT&T's policies, the iPhone, etc. Sorry if I offended.
 
If we will be honest, there are good and bad at any business.

My experience with AT&T has been a mix. The CSR at my store could not be kinder or more helpful. I went in on the 8th of July to pre-qualify. She was very nice and helpful.
I called on the evening of the 11th to check inventory for the next day. She said yes they would have phones. I showed up at 7:00 and was first in line. I wanted to purchase two 16 Gig Blk. The manager and my CSR came out about 8:30 to tell all of us in line that they only had 8ea. of the 8 gig. I left because I wanted the 16.
I asked if they expected to receive any that day and was told yes. I called latter the day to ask if they had received their order. My CSR said she would call me back and let me know if they did.
She called back at 8:30 on Sunday morning to let me know they did not have any 16 gig phones so I wouldn't waste my time waiting in line.
I went in later on Sunday after they opened at 1:00 pm to place a DF order. My CSR was again very kind and helpful. During the order process, the store phone rang and the CSR next to us lifted the handset and set it right back down. I stared in amazement. She saw me looking and said I am so "sick" of these calls about the iPhone. "I just hang up on them" because I know all they are going to ask is if we have any phones in stock. I was appalled that she would do that right in front of a customer.

I wish I could say I've had good service from the online staff at AT&T. I have now been given to a member of the "Management Escalation Review Team" because I replied to one of their online reps because she made no effort to acknowledge my email but rather just tell that my phone was on backorder, which I didn't even ask about in my correspondence. My reply was nice but I made the point that I felt like she dinn't even read my email because she didn't acknowledge anything I had written about.
Her reply and that of the escalation team member carried a tone that was less than pleasant. I felt like a second grader getting in trouble with the teacher.
 
DeaconGraves said:
Incorrect. The only accounts that Apple has difficulty handling are corporate/educational rate discounts.
Click to expand...

And even then they know how to handle it. If you check out and get the error they ask you to call 611 and tell them to remove the FAN#. If it doesn't get removed they do it for you.

Anyways I agree, AT&T store is lame compared to the Apple store. I went into the AT&T store to see if they had any (looking for one for my mother) and the normal people were not very helpful and kind of rude. I explained how I had one ordered through them and I just stopped by to see if it had came in. She said, sir, if it had came in we would have called you (doubt it since it came in today and they didn't call). Then when I tried to ask if they got any in just in general she was rude about it. I then talked to my buddy that is the manager there and he was nice as usual.


Anyways Apple FTW. The day before launch some had been in from 9pm - 2am. The next day they had to come in at 5am and work till past 11pm. I was there at 10 getting my iPhone and they were nice.
 
Customer service in general in this country is going downhill.. most CS and sales people these days seem to be bothered by the presence of customers in the store..
But it varies greatly by company and also store... I happened to have only had horrible experiences everytime I stepped foot on a Somerset Mall AT&T Store (Troy, MI)... most of the people there are rude, have no intentions in helping at all, and it seems that they are just waiting for an opportunity to say NO, whatever it is that you are asking for. Bunch of jerks!

Now, I had a great experience at the Telegraph (Southfield, MI ) store... I had 2 people helping me and they were all very nice and willing to help, even though I thought one of them was trying to flirt with me (which is something I don't like). But at least they were polite and did whatever I wanted to do with my account.
 
im an at&t employee and our current staff is really nice..we're very pleasant to our customers..and its smarter for us to do so..we make commission off of sales..there are customers in our area who will wait 30 minutes to an hour to deal with the same rep they did business with last time
 
i-John said:
There are a couple of reasons AT&T are the exclusive carrier, and will probably be for a good few years. Exclusive gets more money for Apple. GSM is the most universal technology used today, and Apple wants to be as universal as possible with one type of phone. There are only 2 carriers with GSM in the US, AT&T and T-Mobile. AT&T has a much bigger base to work with (72 million as opposed to 30 million on T-Mobile). AT&T also has a much larger 3G network. By the time T-mobile have their 3G network rolled out to what the likes of Verizon and AT&T have now, they will have moved on to a 4G network. T-Mobile just can't keep up with the high speed data networks of the larger competition.

Until Verizon or Sprint change to a more universal technology (rather than their locked down technology they use now), they will never have a look in.

As far as "being nice". I went to the AT&T store on opening day, and despite all the issues with Apple activation, they were helpful and got everyone taken care of quickly.
Click to expand...

That's nice and all, but you're neglecting the fact that Apple pitched the iPhone to Verizon first...Verizon was just stupid for turning it down.
 
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