Brushed off by Hong Kong Genius Bar

fox1401

fox1401

macrumors regular
Last week I tried to report the rear logo damage which is likely to be a defect in some Sport Black AW and see what they'll do at the Genius Bar. With a quick glance at the symptom they told me similar cases happen but there is nothing they could do because it affects only the appearance. They even told me that making an official report won't make any difference and suggested me making a feedback at the Apple website. I didn't have time to argue with them so I just left disappointed.

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http://appleinsider.com/articles/15...ed-rear-logo-damage-other-text-scratching-off
 
Apple isn't going to replace any device for purely cosmetic damage that does not affect function
 
Falcon16 said:
Apple isn't going to replace any device for purely cosmetic damage that does not affect function
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If the damage is caused by natural wear out then it is fair enough to justify such a policy. However, user experience suggests that the damage might actually be the result of manufacturing defects, so it makes perfect sense that Apple should be responsible for it no matter it affects the function of the watch or not. And the most outrageous thing is when the Genius told me that reporting the case won't make any difference to the situation. Does it literally means Apple just doesn't give a s**t to customers complaints? The way he make such a comment is so intolerable and I just can't accept something that is so unreasonable.
 
It's cosmetic damage Apple straight up doesn't care. Have friends who for work their technical support and cosmetic damage is never covered. You'll be politely told to screw off
 
Falcon16 said:
It's cosmetic damage Apple straight up doesn't care. Have friends who for work their technical support and cosmetic damage is never covered. You'll be politely told to screw off
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Do you think this is reasonable? Not to mention that Apple DID exchange some of these problematic watches.
 
Having worked in Tech support for years I don't see cosmetic damage as a reason to complain this hard. No other company other than Apple would have users whining about cosmetic damage the way some Apple users do. Does the watch still function as intended? It's a smartwatch it's going to get cosmetic damage from normal use anyways so I don't see where the big issue is frankly. Also you're surprised you were told be an Apple store in an autonomous region of China that they wouldn't help you? Big surprise. They are in China they have very little incentive to care.
 
Falcon16 said:
Having worked in Tech support for years I don't see cosmetic damage as a reason to complain this hard. No other company other than Apple would have users whining about cosmetic damage the way some Apple users do. Does the watch still function as intended? It's a smartwatch it's going to get cosmetic damage from normal use anyways so I don't see where the big issue is frankly. Also you're surprised you were told be an Apple store in an autonomous region of China that they wouldn't help you? Big surprise. They are in China they have very little incentive to care.
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I am not surprised, I started this post because I am angry.
So you work in tech support field? no wonder I feel like I am in the customer hotline. I guess I should shut up before this conversation becomes childish bickering.
Last point, defending with the term "comestic damage" is simply a disguised displacement since here we are talking about manufacturing defects which customers of any products from any company should not be responsible for. A product will eventually gets shabby is not an excuse for bad quality control or defects. Cosmetic damage is only the outcome and we are complaining about the reason which leads to the damage.
 
fox1401 said:
I am not surprised, I started this post because I am angry.
So you work in tech support field? no wonder I feel like I am in the customer hotline. I guess I should shut up before this conversation becomes childish bickering.
Last point, defending with the term "comestic damage" is simply a disguised displacement since here we are talking about manufacturing defects which customers of any products from any company should not be responsible for. A product will eventually gets shabby is not an excuse for bad quality control or defects. Cosmetic damage is only the outcome and we are complaining about the reason which leads to the damage.
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Point is you can try to get Apple to replace it for cosmetic issues but none of the reps are going to do it. Cosmetic damage is not covered under warranty. Not saying you weren't treated like **** by the ARS in HK but good luck actually getting anywhere if the store told you to piss off. If you bought it there,unless you're going to go to corporate over this,they have the final say on whether or not they'll replace it. It's functioning as intended so they 0 reason to actually exchange it. Also from their POV there is no other way you can prove the damage wasn't caused by normal wear and tear. Not being accusatory just putting it out there. If I were at the ARS I wouldn't replace that either. I would politely give you your options for replacement if you truly were unhappy but outright replacement for cosmetic issues when the watch works as intended with no functional defects? Good luck with that
 
Falcon16 said:
Point is you can try to get Apple to replace it for cosmetic issues but none of the reps are going to do it. Cosmetic damage is not covered under warranty. Not saying you weren't treated like **** by the ARS in HK but good luck actually getting anywhere if the store told you to piss off. If you bought it there,unless you're going to go to corporate over this,they have the final say on whether or not they'll replace it. It's functioning as intended so they 0 reason to actually exchange it. Also from their POV there is no other way you can prove the damage wasn't caused by normal wear and tear. Not being accusatory just putting it out there. If I were at the ARS I wouldn't replace that either. I would politely give you your options for replacement if you truly were unhappy but outright replacement for cosmetic issues when the watch works as intended with no functional defects? Good luck with that
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Absolutely disguised displacement. Period. And good luck to your career in tech support field, you are doing a great job I can tell.
(Geez, I'd love to end this pointless customer hotline conversation)
 
fox1401 said:
Absolutely disguised displacement. Period. And good luck to your career in tech support field, you are doing a great job I can tell.
(Geez, I'd love to end this pointless customer hotline conversation)
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My career is doing just fine thank you. I can fake caring enough that even if I have to politely professionally tell someone you're screwed they'll still walk away from the interaction knowing that it's not me saying it's my employer and my hands are tied. I'm sorry you don't like the answer. Honestly the Genius guy saying you should post feedback was right. Post feedback that's how any company finds out where customer issues are and fixes them. Not by some pointless bitching on a forum that the company will never see. Like I said presuming you bought it an ARS the ARS manager has full authority to tell you no so unless you plan to go full on nuclear holocaust on this I don't see how exactly you're going to be made happy. The most I've ever seen a store do for someone with cosmetic damage was offer them a free band or in the case of an iphone maybe a free case but outright replacement unless there's an obvious defect that effects function I've been told by ARS employees that no manager will replace for that. It's too hard for them to justify to their higher ups and not many managers and I use the term loosely are willing to break protocol or risk being talked to by their boss just to please someone over some what looks to be non shiny but otherwise still perfectly fine text on the back of a mass produced smartwatch.

TL;DR Phone in and have a rep log customer feedback or go to apple.com/feedback and file some feedback there. That's what's going to get your issue resolved. Nobody will truly see your complaint here other than other forums users and none of us can help you get it fixed.
 
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Forum is intended for discussion and sharing experience, which I am trying to. I might not get any help here but at least I let more people know what's happening in other places of the world. And you can't deny that many people post in forum simply to get support from other users who share similar experiences. One could enjoy fishing without actually catching any fish.

Are you trying to tell me:
1. talk to a rep (who told you i didn't? they suggested me making a Genius Bar appointment)
2. file official feedback in apple.com/feedback (done already, not to mention tons of forum users tell us that it is like shouting into a pillow)
3. justify any unreasonable company policy. rules are rules, dude, and it is a commercial society, face the reality, son.
4. you can't prove it is a detect, if you can, go sue the company.
5. we can't make everyone happy, so it is completely ok if you are politely asked to screw off.
6. if you still can get what you want, repeat number 1 to 5, just don't post in the forum, it's meaningless. (do you really think people like bitching on a forum if they can somehow make influences or help changing a company's policies?)

Honestly, I think you are in the field too long, that your "insider knowledge" makes you think everything you've said above are reasonable. You are talking facts on the company's side and I am talking facts on the customer's side.
 
Once again. Your options are essentially call in and talk to a rep perhaps get escalated to a senior advisor who may or may not cut you some slack and just give you a new one to shut you up (if they are feeling nice that day) or go through corporate and hope you actually get to someone who has some power to possibly do something. The ARS has already told you they aren't going to do anything so beyond like I said a senior advisor feeling nice or going nuclear on corporate your odds of actually getting a resolution you want are slim to none. Sorry to be the bearer of bad news but that's how it is with large corporations. They already have your money and unless you're going to get together with a lot of other users and file a class action (Good luck btw you'd get smashed by Apple's lawyers) there is really no way to get a replacement out of this particular case that I can see.
 
Once again. You are implicitly repeating your argument that customers are unreasonable and should never ask for a replacement that might be the result of bad quality control or even manufacturing defects. (Or at least this is what I see in all your comments, though I do hope I'm getting you wrong) Stop your disguised displacement, it is never about the cosmetic damage or the replacement, it is about corporate morality and responsibility over the matter of possible defects. (If Apple announces that the peeling off is a totally natural wear out and have nothing to do with manufacturing defects, I will immediately shut up, since no company should be responsible for this kind of cosmetic damage)
This is my last reply to your comment, I really feel sorry for you, for being a person that rationalise unjust things. We all know that under normal circumstances Apple won't make any replacements even if it is a defect (like you said, we could never prove that), but I don't see why voicing out in the forum bothers you in any way. (May be you like to live with unjust social practice and kneel to authorities? Sigh...I guess servility may be one of the biggest enemies of humanity) And the most hilarious part is you gloat over your "Good luck btw you'd get smashed by Apple's lawyers" comment without even figuring out that I was just sneering at you when I said "go sue the company" in my previous comment.
 
Apple has a very bad reputation in the black / grey coating on aluminium. Notorious example is the black iPhone 5. Over the years you can see Apple making the coating less black and more grey/silvery. They are not going to admit it as a manufacturing defect otherwise they may need to recall the space grey sport watches. I think they may have even mentioned it as a normal phenomenon somewhere in the documents.
 
Also, good luck trying to make Apple executives care about the Hong Kong store. Hong Kong had been ignored by Apple for years and if not for the Chinese tourists going there and local scalpers buying all of the iPhones available, Apple wouldn't even have opened a store there. (And now there are 3!)
 
haruhiko said:
Apple has a very bad reputation in the black / grey coating on aluminium. Notorious example is the black iPhone 5. Over the years you can see Apple making the coating less black and more grey/silvery. They are not going to admit it as a manufacturing defect otherwise they may need to recall the space grey sport watches. I think they may have even mentioned it as a normal phenomenon somewhere in the documents.
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Yes, just like the official iPhone leather cases and the Apple Watch bands. All the normal wear out phenomenon are written in the documents.
 
haruhiko said:
Also, good luck trying to make Apple executives care about the Hong Kong store. Hong Kong had been ignored by Apple for years and if not for the Chinese tourists going there and local scalpers buying all of the iPhones available, Apple wouldn't even have opened a store there. (And now there are 3!)
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Shh.....It is classified, don't speak it out. Without the "you know who" scalpers "shipping" all iPhones available to "you know where", Hong Kong might not be included in the 1st round distributing locations. XD
 
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