Sidebar Sidebar
Become a MacRumors Supporter for $50/year with no ads, ability to filter front page stories, and private forums.

Completely outraged...**Update**

teflon said:
I'm in vancouver and the only place I can get my Apple stuff is from best buy:(.
Click to expand...
--- umm, there are all kinds of authorized Apple dealers in GV -- Simply, Westworld, MacSimize, London Drugs, Future Shop (same as Best Buy, really) ...

Go to http://www.apple.com/ca/buy/ for the "Where to buy" page and click on Reseller. Including iPod only resellers there are 75 listed in your area.
 
How strange is this...
As I was reading this thread for the first time I got a call from my local Apple store, as a result of an email I sent to sjobs at 1 AM this morning (I have a flakey keyboard that drops keystrokes intermittently & my first Genus bar appointment resulted in nothing). I learned about the sjobs email address last night while reading another thread.

Anyway, they are ordering a keyboard for me and will replace it while I wait. :cool:
 
I wasn't really expecting to get an e-mail from the store manager to be honest - I didn't think Apple would forward them the e-mail.

I'm really not trying to stir up trouble or anything, I only e-mailed Apple because I thought they would like to know what kind of events have been going on at one of their stores so that they can correct it. In such a massive company there's no other way for Apple to know "really" what happens in their stores.

I don't really know what to say to the store manager once I call him - I was expecting Apple to take care of it.

I really just don't want to deal with that store again though. I mean I went back there to get the computer because I had pretty much no other choice (they offered me a discount on the computer).

I needed to buy an airport extreme model but I actually settled for the older one which I got form a big box store (at the same price as the new one, too) just because I did not want to deal with that store.

When the new iPods and Leopard come out, I really don't know if I'm going to go to that store to get it, or if I'll just order it online (In the 6-8 iPods our family has owned, we've never once had a problem with any of them! And I doubt the Leopard CD will have problems).

I really really loved that store (my favourite in the entire shopping center, obviously) but I'm just really turned off of it - although I know that not all of the apple stores are like this (obviously).

If it means anything - my sister likes her macbook very much so :)
 
CanadaRAM said:
--- umm, there are all kinds of authorized Apple dealers in GV -- Simply, Westworld, MacSimize, London Drugs, Future Shop (same as Best Buy, really) ...

Go to http://www.apple.com/ca/buy/ for the "Where to buy" page and click on Reseller. Including iPod only resellers there are 75 listed in your area.
Click to expand...

Thanks! I knew about Future Shop (it's right beside the Best Buy, which's kinda stupid in my opinion), and my local London Drugs doesn't have much. I wanted to find an apple store like the one in NYC. Hmm I'll check some of those out :D.
 
queshy said:
But to be frank I'm insulted that instead of an apology letter, they tried to silence me by valuing my humiliation and embarrassment at the Apple store at $200.
Click to expand...


Not to belittle you situation. How you were treated was completely unjustified. But... you DID take the $200 discount, right?

If so, and if such a valuation insulted you, why did you accept it then? Acceptance of such a token response only validates it. You accept the discount and walk away with a macBook that, you agree, is now in working order. If I had been the manager, I would've considered the issue resolved, too. Evidently though, you seem to want more.

For what it's worth, I've never really found demanding a written apology to truly offer any sort of closure. Even if the request is satiusfied, such apologies are rarely, if ever, sincere, and all the conflict and underlying issues are still there.
 
scaredpoet said:
Not to belittle you situation. How you were treated was completely unjustified. But... you DID take the $200 discount, right?

If so, and if such a valuation insulted you, why did you accept it then? Acceptance of such a token response only validates it. You accept the discount and walk away with a macBook that, you agree, is now in working order. If I had been the manager, I would've considered the issue resolved, too. Evidently though, you seem to want more.

For what it's worth, I've never really found demanding a written apology to truly offer any sort of closure. Even if the request is satiusfied, such apologies are rarely, if ever, sincere, and all the conflict and underlying issues are still there.
Click to expand...

It was pretty much that or nothing. She needed the MacBook and there's no sense trying to "squeeze" them - that isn't why I wrote to Apple. I thought that the issue with the Apple Store was indeed resolved because there was nothing else they were willing to do.

My e-mail to Apple was to let them know what happened so that it can be documented and that appropriate action can be taken (whatever they deem necessary). I was so shocked about what happened that I figured Apple would be to, so why not let them know? The e-mail didn't take me long, and I'm sure they read it with great interest - the goal being to improve the service given at their retail stores.

I pretty much knew they wouldn't apologize (like they should have) - why would they admit they were wrong? If I received a real letter of apology from Apple, they would be admitting that they messed up, and that never looks good in the Public eye. Despite that, it really would have given me more closure, because when I presented the vibrating problem to me they were acting as if I was nuts and that it wasn't a problem (When it clearly, clearly was).

The intent of the e-mail was not to shut the apple store down, not to get "free" stuff, but really just to let "them" know about the situation.
 
On the topic of emailing 'Steve Jobs' for severe issues...

I wonder how much longer they'll keep that email address for that purpose. Seems like more and more people are learning about it and using it. Eventually, Apple will be flooded with email. I wonder if they'll shut it down.

I used it a few months ago. I signed an NDA (I think) regarding what they did for me...but boy was I happy. We had an iBook that was in for repair close to 10 times over the 3-year AppleCare period. We kept asking for a replacement, but tech support wouldn't...they kept insisting the 'next time' would do the trick.

Well, it didn't, but emailing sjobs@ sure did the trick. I was more than pleased with their resolution.
 
queshy said:
No, the computer vibrates on all surfaces, not just that table.
Click to expand...

I can verify that in my MacBook experience. The first one I got developed this kind of vibration after a few days. Sent it back for a replacement. When the replacement came it had the exact same problem. Sent it back for a refund.

The vibration isn't really noticeable unless the MacBook is placed on a hard surface. If you keep it in your lap or on just a few pieces of paper the vibration disappears. If my first MacBook had vibrated out of the box I may not even have registered it as a problem (until I would have read it on this or some other Apple horror-story site :) )
 
I'm waiting to talk from someone who read my e-mail to "steve jobs" before I speak with the manager of the apple store who would like to speak with me. I wonder if someone will e-mail me back or if I'll have to e-mail them again.
 
queshy said:
I'm waiting to talk from someone who read my e-mail to "steve jobs" before I speak with the manager of the apple store who would like to speak with me. I wonder if someone will e-mail me back or if I'll have to e-mail them again.
Click to expand...

You probably won't get an email, because they forwarded it to the Store Manager of the Apple Store to handle it.

I used to work for a Big Box store in Canada, and if the email was sent to the Store Manager, then that was who handled it.

I noticed in an earlier post that mentioned your worked at Future Shop. Why didn't you buy it there?

It sucks that you had to deal with some poor service. I worked for an Apple Reseller and we couldn't just replace Macs for any reason. A lot of times RMA's would get rejected, because it wouldn't be deemed DOA. At best Apple would refurbish it, then we would sell it at a loss to get rid of it. The only time we really could get Apple to deem it DOA was if the customer called and complained then they would get a case number and then we could return it to our depot and never see it again. Apple was pretty picky, we had about $500,000 in Apple inventory that was refurbished that was hard to sell, because it wasn't advertised on apple.ca (because we were a reseller)....

I'm glad you got one that didn't vibrate.
 
emac82 said:
You probably won't get an email, because they forwarded it to the Store Manager of the Apple Store to handle it.

I used to work for a Big Box store in Canada, and if the email was sent to the Store Manager, then that was who handled it.

I noticed in an earlier post that mentioned your worked at Future Shop. Why didn't you buy it there?

It sucks that you had to deal with some poor service. I worked for an Apple Reseller and we couldn't just replace Macs for any reason. A lot of times RMA's would get rejected, because it wouldn't be deemed DOA. At best Apple would refurbish it, then we would sell it at a loss to get rid of it. The only time we really could get Apple to deem it DOA was if the customer called and complained then they would get a case number and then we could return it to our depot and never see it again. Apple was pretty picky, we had about $500,000 in Apple inventory that was refurbished that was hard to sell, because it wasn't advertised on apple.ca (because we were a reseller)....

I'm glad you got one that didn't vibrate.
Click to expand...

Hi,

I didn't get one at FS because they didn't have the free iPod promotion, and also the ones they had didn't include iLife 08, or 2 gb of ram ( I know, i know, I could have upgraded it, but it's much easier just to pay to get it done) Also the ones FS has in stock are OLD...from months and months ago.
 
Wow a restocking fee for the defective product...that is insane. I would do what a few others said, just call Apple directly, It might take a little longer to get the replacement but it will be less of a hassle and less time wasted with the so called "genius".
 
Yeah, the restocking fee is pretty terrible - especially when there is actually something wrong with the product!
 
I'm just glad my MacBook is perfect. ^_^ My Apple store is a nice place, though; they've always been helpful and courteous. It probably has something to do with living in the South; we're just nicer here. . . ^_~
 
**Update**

So yesterday I decided to resend my story to Steve Jobs' e-mail addresses with a note saying how I would have preferred to get an official response from Apple rather than just the store manager.

Well, about a half hour ago, I get a long distance phone call - it was the Director of Retail Stores in Canada. He told me he understood how I had been treated yada yada yada and how that shouldn't have happened and that what happened was not representative of all apple retail stores, etc.

I told him that I did not want to return to the store again to buy my iPod touch because of what had happened. I also told him that I never even requested the discount I was given on the computer - but rather a formal letter of apology, which he said Apple can't do. But he did offer me his personal apologies for what happened and he also said that "serious action" was taken against a certain genius who I mentioned in my letter.

I told him that I canceled my touch order just because of the whole pre-ordering fiasco and that I would rather just buy it in person so that if there's a problem with it, it can be fixed much easier. He told me that he would arrange to do the sale over the phone from the local apple store and I told him I didn't feel comfortable giving my credit card information over the phone...(makes sense...). He offered me a 10% discount on the iPod touch and I told him I'll just wait for Future Shop to get it in a few weeks (because I have gift cards from working there, around 100$ worth, and that would be a better deal ,clearly, than the 10% + dealing with that store again).
He asked me what he could do for me and I simply told him that I wasn't read to return to that store...
He told me that should I change my mind I could call him back,and that was pretty much the end of it.
 
I realize you had a terrible experience at the Apple Store, but honestly, what more do you expect them to do? You keep writing letters, and yet you admit yourself that there's nothing they can do to help you or change your mind.

In my opinion, Apple has gone above and beyond any normal expectations to "right their wrong" and you still don't seem satisfied. Apple keeps offering you special discounts, and you keep finding more problems.

...And why is a formal letter of apology so important? You got a personal phone call, isn't that just as good (if not better)?
 
queshy said:
**Update**

So yesterday I decided to resend my story to Steve Jobs' e-mail addresses with a note saying how I would have preferred to get an official response from Apple rather than just the store manager....
Click to expand...
Didn't they solve your problem? If so, give it a rest.

Honestly, we have this nice resource where real problems can get solved using the sjobs email address. I just had my flakey MBP keyboard replaced as a result of using this email, after I didn't get help from the genius bar. But if people are going to abuse it to whine incessantly about inconsequential personal crap after Apple already took care of the problem, Apple will just eliminate it and none of us will be able to have that resource in the future when it's legitimately needed.

Just get a grip and quit abusing the sjobs email address. We all know you got offended personally (does anyone besides you really care?)...time to move on.
 
RaceTripper said:
Didn't they solve your problem? If so, give it a rest.

Honestly, we have this nice resource where real problems can get solved using the sjobs email address. I just had my flakey MBP keyboard replaced as a result of using this email, after I didn't get help from the genius bar. But if people going to use it to whine incessantly about inconsequential personal crap after Apple already took care of the problem, Apple will just eliminate it and none of us will be able to have that resource in the future when it's legitimately needed.

Just get a grip and quit abusing the sjobs email address. We all know you got offended personally (does anyone besides you really care?)...time to move on.
Click to expand...

I'm not trying in any way to abuse the e-mail address. I just wanted an official response from apple, and not from the store manager. I was only providing updates because if you look back, some of the members specifically requested updates. Otherwise, I would have just kept this to myself. He thanked me for sending in the e-mail again because he didn't read it the first time. He said it was forwarded by a secretary to the apple store. He also told me he read it with great interest and he said it's letters like this that help them sort out and improve their retail stores. I don't think I did anything wrong...
 
queshy said:
I'm not trying in any way to abuse the e-mail address. I just wanted an official response from apple, and not from the store manager. I was only providing updates because if you look back, some of the members specifically requested updates. Otherwise, I would have just kept this to myself. He thanked me for sending in the e-mail again because he didn't read it the first time. He said it was forwarded by a secretary to the apple store. He also told me he read it with great interest and he said it's letters like this that help them sort out and improve their retail stores. I don't think I did anything wrong...
Click to expand...
This is my point. It's very simple.

If people persist trying to get personal hand-holding from Apple (which is exactly what you're asking for at this point) after it has taken care of the problem, Apple will grow tired of it and this avenue for resolving issues will disappear. Don't ruin it for others.
 
RaceTripper said:
This is my point. It's very simple.

If people persist trying to get personal hand-holding from Apple (which is exactly what you're asking for at this point) after it has taken care of the problem, Apple will grow tired of it and this avenue for resolving issues will disappear. Don't ruin it for others.
Click to expand...

I respectfully disagree. I'm not asking for personal hand-holding. I'm also pretty sure that they'd rather incidents like this be reported to them than not. If nobody reported these issues, the apple geniuses and the stores would go on "power trips" and more stuff like this would happen. That's one of the reasons why people have such hard times getting things exchanged at apple stores - many of the employees there feel as if they're on "power trips". The genius who handled this case at the apple store is probably regretting that he mouthed off to the wrong person - and they are probably regretting their decision to cut me an exchange deal. NOBODY should stand up to that BS. I certainly chose not to. I was simply letting apple know so that they could take action and do whatever they need to do. The guy on the phone didn't say anything about me sending it twice - in fact, he even told me that the first one was read by just the secretary and none of the superiors at the office at which the e-mail was received.

And if I ever do decide to go back there - and if something like this ever happens again - believe me, Apple will hear about it.
 
RaceTripper said:
This is my point. It's very simple.

If people persist trying to get personal hand-holding from Apple (which is exactly what you're asking for at this point) after it has taken care of the problem, Apple will grow tired of it and this avenue for resolving issues will disappear. Don't ruin it for others.
Click to expand...

i support queshy in bringing this matter to apple's attention. i think he and his sister deserve the apology he quite rightly requested.

i would suggest he is making things better for others rather than ruining anything. the person who called him was glad that it was brought to his attention. there is now a greater likelihood of better service in that store.
 
Don't punish the store because of a few bad apples (double pun intended)..Just because a few employees are dinks, and probably shouldn't be in the customer service industry, the Store Manager did a good job at trying to right their wrong.

Also, I'm not implying that you were like this, but when I was selling Macs (we sold PC's and stuff too), a lot of the Mac customers thought they were smarter and better than all of us, even though they might not have been (albeit some were, some were users from before I was even born) and it makes people get their guard up.
 
queshy

i was surprised that you asked for the mbp for the same price as the mb.

however, thanks for persevering and watching out for the rest of us.

as egregious as this was, someone superior to the store mgr needed to know what happened for the good of other customers and apple.
 
You are all right. I agree bad behavior should be brought to Apple's attention, and there are channels for that.

The sjobs emails address is an unofficial, yet valuable resource for us. It should be used with restraint. I feel bad for queshy. I've also had bad experiences with Apple myself. But once Apple has resolved the problem, apologized, and made good otherwise, it's time to let it rest and not push for written apologies, extra discounts, etc. There comes the point of diminishing returns.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Register on MacRumors! This sidebar will go away, and you'll see fewer ads.
Top Bottom
Back