Apple's Internal Policy on Bad Pixels Revealed
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Popeye206
macrumors 68040
Ahhh... you just reminded me of something.... the extra credit... I had one issue with the $100 refund on the original iPhone so, what did they do? They got me the $100 credit and gave me another $100 store credit for the mistake. Had a new iMac with a bad mother board... had to take it back to the store which was a major pain due to the distance.... Again... $150 Apple credit for my troubles.
Seems pretty horrible to me! How dare they try and make me a happy customer by throwing money at me!
Theclamshell
macrumors 68030
Either i have gotten perfect computers or im blind/dont give a crap about dead pixels. But this policy is BS
booksacool1
macrumors 6502
I don't care too much about dead pixels, but bright pixels tend to annoy me.
I'm amazed that apples 22"-30" monitors can have up to 8 bright pixels.
Even Dell's basic monitors can have a maximum of 5 bright pixels and none on their premium monitors.
I'm amazed that apples 22"-30" monitors can have up to 8 bright pixels.
Even Dell's basic monitors can have a maximum of 5 bright pixels and none on their premium monitors.
kiljoy616
macrumors 68000
So paying 2000+ and expecting no pixel issues is been picky. I must then be one picky person because I expect what I pay for.
Nameci
macrumors 68000
People grow up. If you problems with it and you are not satisfied, return the product, demand for a replacement. Or better yet ask for a refund and buy something else. There is no sense in a bashing a particular product. As I see it, Apple is not fooling customers around, because they can replace and return the money if the customers demand.
About dead pixels, I worked before in a semiconductor and electronics manufacturing industry. There is no perfect product even with the mil-spec ones (mil-spec is military specs for those who have no idea). There is still some tolerance, but the bandwidth for the tolerance is slim, and it goes to bin #1.
Before it could go out of Foxcon (it is in China and it is where your/our apple is made/assembled), it passed thru a rigid QC/QA gating. And these gating have tolerances as well that we don't know. Transporting or handling during transport could as well give negative effects on the product. They are not handled like glass during transport. I had worked in goods forwarding as well so I know how it works.
This is just to explain my theory on why after manufacturing you still have bad pixels.
Does some of the forumers here have worked in a manufacturing setting before? Before you could jump into any conclusion and bitch apple or any other product, think of the real world situation first.
This is the same with all other products across the board. Bring those jobs back to the US and then you have the right to complain if you get a lemon.
About dead pixels, I worked before in a semiconductor and electronics manufacturing industry. There is no perfect product even with the mil-spec ones (mil-spec is military specs for those who have no idea). There is still some tolerance, but the bandwidth for the tolerance is slim, and it goes to bin #1.
Before it could go out of Foxcon (it is in China and it is where your/our apple is made/assembled), it passed thru a rigid QC/QA gating. And these gating have tolerances as well that we don't know. Transporting or handling during transport could as well give negative effects on the product. They are not handled like glass during transport. I had worked in goods forwarding as well so I know how it works.
This is just to explain my theory on why after manufacturing you still have bad pixels.
Does some of the forumers here have worked in a manufacturing setting before? Before you could jump into any conclusion and bitch apple or any other product, think of the real world situation first.
This is the same with all other products across the board. Bring those jobs back to the US and then you have the right to complain if you get a lemon.
Mattsasa
macrumors 68020
what premium prices?
About a year and a half ago I bought my wife a MacBook. Unfortunately the sucker had a stuck (white or light color) pixel in the upper right quadrant (about 2" in from top and side). It wasn't too bad in normal usage since most things she worked on have light color schemes but it was really annoying in video playback. After reading the forums and seeing the replacement policies I determined that it was something she was going to have to live with.
I was in an Apple store one day to get her a case for the laptop and the salesperson asked how my wife was liking the machine. I told them that she really liked it but it was unfortunate that the machine had a stuck pixel. The salesperson told me that I should bring it in an have them take a look at it. I actually bought the machine from Best Buy so I was a little hesitant (read guilty) to bring it in.
I scheduled an appointment and they took a look at it and said that it just wasn't acceptable and they wanted my wife to be happy with her Mac (it was her first) so they replaced it on the spot. The new one was perfect and I couldn't have been happier with the support that I received from the Apple store.
Your millage may vary, but this just goes to show that you can't always rely on what "policy" supposedly states.
I was in an Apple store one day to get her a case for the laptop and the salesperson asked how my wife was liking the machine. I told them that she really liked it but it was unfortunate that the machine had a stuck pixel. The salesperson told me that I should bring it in an have them take a look at it. I actually bought the machine from Best Buy so I was a little hesitant (read guilty) to bring it in.
I scheduled an appointment and they took a look at it and said that it just wasn't acceptable and they wanted my wife to be happy with her Mac (it was her first) so they replaced it on the spot. The new one was perfect and I couldn't have been happier with the support that I received from the Apple store.
Your millage may vary, but this just goes to show that you can't always rely on what "policy" supposedly states.
What is WRONG with all you people claiming even one bad pixel is too many, and apple should give you a new monitor? Do you have the slightest clue about lcd monitor manufacture?
Apple's policies are perfectly in line with other manufacturers of high-end displays such as Eizo, Barco, Planar etc, and also with manufaturers of high end medical imaging acquisition systems (e.g. digital x-ray systems). I could post you similar details to these from at least 10 different manufacturers of such equipment if I hadn't got these details through commercial-in-confidence tender processes. Most of them are significantly LESS generous about replacement monitors/detectors than Apple is. You think Barco is going to give me a new pair of $20k 5MP grayscale because of one bad pixel, or 15 bad pixels? Doubt it.
If a few bad pixels are adequate for radiology use, wtf makes graphic artists, photographers, and internet pr0n viewing tossers so special they can't deal with it? Anyone going to die of cancer because a couple of pixels on YOUR screen are stuck? Could I suggest that anyone who can't do their job just as well despite a few bad pixels has much bigger problems to worry about than their LCD monitor?
Go get a life!
Apple's policies are perfectly in line with other manufacturers of high-end displays such as Eizo, Barco, Planar etc, and also with manufaturers of high end medical imaging acquisition systems (e.g. digital x-ray systems). I could post you similar details to these from at least 10 different manufacturers of such equipment if I hadn't got these details through commercial-in-confidence tender processes. Most of them are significantly LESS generous about replacement monitors/detectors than Apple is. You think Barco is going to give me a new pair of $20k 5MP grayscale because of one bad pixel, or 15 bad pixels? Doubt it.
If a few bad pixels are adequate for radiology use, wtf makes graphic artists, photographers, and internet pr0n viewing tossers so special they can't deal with it? Anyone going to die of cancer because a couple of pixels on YOUR screen are stuck? Could I suggest that anyone who can't do their job just as well despite a few bad pixels has much bigger problems to worry about than their LCD monitor?
Go get a life!
Chaos215bar2
macrumors regular
I won't argue the build quality and ease of use, but:
1) Microsoft finally got smart and made their own free antivirus, Microsoft Security Essentials. Sure you need to install it, but short of that, I haven't ever touched it or noticed it slowing anything down.
2) $30 was a special for the Leopard -> Snow Leopard upgrade. Though the usual $129 is still less than $200 for Windows 2 Pro.
3) If you want to run Windows apps, you now need to pay for 2 OS's.
I'm not saying Windows is better, but have some perspective. Windows 7 is actually fairly decent, and there are some well made PCs (as well as a lot of rather terrible ones).
Back on topic… is this really claiming 16 stuck (bright) pixels is acceptable. I can manage a few dead pixels, but even one stuck pixel can be really annoying, since it's really obvious in any mostly dark image, such as is common in movies and TV shows. Judging from my experiences at the Genius Bar, though I would expect them to replace a display with even one stuck pixel with a little convincing, and even to replace the replacement. They're generally pretty flexible as long as you're courteous but persistent.
8CoreWhore
macrumors 68030
If they are going to be like that then just return it full refund and buy another. Keep doing so until you are satisfied. They have 55 billion dollars cash because we pay for quality so we should get what we pay for.
First of all, take a deep breath. You're clearly very wound up for no good reason.
Secondly, read this thread. There is not a single comment here from a consumer saying they had an Apple product with a dead pixel and Apple refused to help them. In every situation mentioned here, the customer has had a refund, replacement or even compensation.
With regards to you not caring about their policy, saying "it's not my policy", well they're the people selling it to you. Apple never asked you if you like or agree with their policy. If you want to buy a product from them then you are affected by their policy, it is not your choice!
Finally, you need to understand this is simply a policy. Everyone in the industry has some sort of policy on dead pixels - they simply have to. Apple is correct in saying their tolerance is stricter than most. However if you had actually ever bought an Apple product with a dead pixel you would have found out they happily replace or refund you. Had you owned a product that developed a dead pixel whilst under warranty, you would have found out they replace displays for as few as 1 pixel.
Apple's policies exist to cover themselves. Apple's Geniuses/Managers/AppleCare Representatives exist to ignore these policies and delight customers. Chill out.
monokakata
macrumors 68020
You mean like
-height adjustment
-swivel base
-a multitude of inputs
-matte screen
-3 year warranty
Apple has those? Do tell.
Yes it can. I know I can buy a less expensive monitor than an Apple branded model, which is the "premium" folks on this thread are talking about. At the time I ordered my new hexacore Mac Pro I priced a similar Dell model and added options to match the hardware on the Mac Pro and it actually cost more than the Mac. Not going to be the case in all Mac models, but in some cases the Mac is indeed cheaper, as shocking as that sounds to some. And no, I don't care to entertain arguments about how I could build a machine that is "just as powerful" for $300 or whatever the going rate is. If I thought it was worth my time, I would have built it.
Izlib
macrumors member
Yea that's the article alright..
I tell you what though, anytime anyone ever brought a bad LCD to me at the ol' G-bar, I didn't care what that article said. I'd replace it.
Someone throws this logic at me
Warranty = guarantee against defect.
Dead pixel = defect.
I got crap for it from management or other geniuses occasionally. Some of them were probably still hopped up on the kool-aid.
They never gave me crap when my NPS was awesome.
I tell you what though, anytime anyone ever brought a bad LCD to me at the ol' G-bar, I didn't care what that article said. I'd replace it.
Someone throws this logic at me
Warranty = guarantee against defect.
Dead pixel = defect.
I got crap for it from management or other geniuses occasionally. Some of them were probably still hopped up on the kool-aid.
They never gave me crap when my NPS was awesome.
ImperialX
macrumors 65816
They are. The 27" model's price is not bad at all.
I just want you to know that I stayed up an extra minute to log-in solely to publicly laugh at these two lines. *ahem*
lol
Carry on ladies and gents, good night!
supernature
macrumors newbie
don't forget to pay a premium for asus too
This is Asus extended warranty which costs extra. Asus standard warranty says:
This is Asus extended warranty which costs extra. Asus standard warranty says:
This whole discussion is absurd. If you buy a premium product, heck, ANY product that you feel isn't acceptable, you should be able to bring it back for a full refund. I'm not saying there should be a law, but if a business wants to compete that's what they need to do. Yes, there are a few bad customers but just do what every company does and rate them. If they're a problem, then you implement your insane policies like this one. That's probably what this is all about because most large companies have found you'll earn more sales by being lenient. The warehouses and walmarts will all take stuff back NO QUESTIONS ASKED for up to a YEAR. But I'm pretty sure they're keeping track, and if you're a problem, at some point they'll refuse to serve you or find some mice type and refuse to take your return. If I ever have a problem with an Apple screen return then I'll be taking that business elsewhere. I need their computers for my livelihood, but I can get screens and phones elsewhere.