display positive experience

[darkwing]

I just received my brand new 23" ADC. I thought about buying another dell 2405 but decided to go Apple on this one, since I just got the new apple account with 90 days interest free.

My display comes along with two mighty mouses (which basically suck) and I get it all set up. Immediately I notice a major issue! There is a scratch on the INSIDE of the plastic on the lower left of the screen. It is about 1 cm long and extremely noticeable. There is also a stuck green pixel in the middle, which sucks.

So I call up my local Apple store, and the hippy who answers tells me I have to come in, make an appointment with some "genius" (who probably knows less about computers than I did when I was in jr. high) and wait around for an hour and a half or more. The last thing I want to do is travel to hippy town (Palo Alto, CA) and sit around the Apple store.

So I call up Apple's online store and they tell me to call tech support. I call tech support and the automated agent hangs up on me after 5 minutes. The music stops and I hear a voice telling me to try calling the toll free number again. Wtf? So I call back, and they want to RMA it for repairs. Wait a second -- brand new product, needing repairs? No, I want an exchange, pal. So he tells me to call back to the online store.

I do that, and explain the runaround I've had. The lady talks to a supervisor and this is the deal: they're going to mail me labels within 72 business hours. (I assume she means 3 business days, because a business day is 9 hours so that'd be quite a while.) Anyway, when I get the labels I print them out and take the labels and the display to fedex. When fedex scans the labels, Apple sends me a new display. I told her it'd be nice to have someone inspect it to make sure there are no blemishes, because I won't even accept a single dead pixel. She said it's coming from the warehouse where they're built, so it should be looked at before it goes. Yeah, sure.

Hopefully I get a nice new display in good working order. Otherwise, I'll end up having to dispute the charge with the credit card company. It was nice of Apple to offer an exchange. She called it an exception, even though there's a procedure in place to handle it. Regardless of which, it looks like Apple will take care of display issues. I know some people are scared to order one, because of the stories we read here about them being unwilling to resolve issues like this. I know I was, and I took a chance. Glad it will work out.

 

[snkTab]

What's wrong with going to the store? You could perhaps already have a new display.

 

[grapes911]

What's wrong with going to the store? You could perhaps already have a new display.

I agree. And that genius goes through training from Apple and probably knows more about Apple products than you ever will. (Some of them are very stupid, but that is not the norm).

 

[darkwing]

What's wrong with going to the store? You could perhaps already have a new display.

The store is 30 miles away in a downtown area with no parking and my three experiences going there have been rather horrible. Plus, according to the guy at the store, all the "geniuses" would do is basically look at it and then ship it off to be repaired. The point of this story is that a brand new product doesn't need repairs right out of the box. If it does, it should be exchanged. Hence, brand new product.

 

[darkwing]

I agree. And that genius goes through training from Apple and probably knows more about Apple products than you ever will. (Some of them are very stupid, but that is not the norm).

Actually I bet you won't find a single one who knows more about Apple products than me. We should make it a contest. The problem isn't what they know, anyway. It's what they're trained to do in situations like these. I already know they'll want to send it off to be repaired or they'll put in the system that it isn't an issue I can complain about, as I recall has happened to others. Why drive 60 miles round trip to receive an answer I know I won't like, and have to wait around a store I don't like for over an hour to boot?

I guess the moral of the story is: the squeaky wheel gets the grease. Try and remember that I'm the guy who shelled out $1300 + tax and therefore I'm the guy who should be irate if my product is less than perfect.

 

[yenko]

What is it with Apple displays? I've seen dead/stuck pixels in stores, like CompUSA. Both of my NEW macs had those problems with dead or stuck pixels. I've got a couple of other Macs that are a few years old and there have never been issues with the flat panel displays. They work fine, but the new stuff, Sheeeze!

Apple replaced the defective screens on my machines and I'm happy with the results (so far). It's just the idea........: It's brand new!!

 

[carpe diem]

Its good you got another one

 

[Rod Rod]

Hopefully I get a nice new display in good working order. Otherwise, I'll end up having to dispute the charge with the credit card company. It was nice of Apple to offer an exchange. She called it an exception, even though there's a procedure in place to handle it. Regardless of which, it looks like Apple will take care of display issues. I know some people are scared to order one, because of the stories we read here about them being unwilling to resolve issues like this. I know I was, and I took a chance. Glad it will work out.

Congratulations on winning the initial battle. Hopefully they'll send you a non-defective product.

I agree with you that treating your issue as a repair rather than an exchange is just stupid.

I'm surprised there's no Apple store in Fremont yet.

 

[emoore3]

The store is 30 miles away in a downtown area with no parking and my three experiences going there have been rather horrible. Plus, according to the guy at the store, all the "geniuses" would do is basically look at it and then ship it off to be repaired. The point of this story is that a brand new product doesn't need repairs right out of the box. If it does, it should be exchanged. Hence, brand new product.

Why don't you go to the San Jose or Santa Clara stores? Much closer than Palo Alto and plenty of parking. I guess its not an issue now but if you don't like the Palo Alto store you should try the other two.

 

[darkwing]

Congratulations on winning the initial battle. Hopefully they'll send you a non-defective product.

I agree with you that treating your issue as a repair rather than an exchange is just stupid.

I'm surprised there's no Apple store in Fremont yet.

Isn't it weird though, that while most people will exchange a product they buy in a store, we all accept car repairs needing to be done the first week we own them?

Fremont has too many Indians living in it. They all use PCs.

 

[darkwing]

Why don't you go to the San Jose or Santa Clara stores? Much closer than Palo Alto and plenty of parking. I guess its not an issue now but if you don't like the Palo Alto store you should try the other two.

To be honest I didn't know they had stores in San Jose or Santa Clara. I work in Sunnyvale, so Santa Clara isn't too far. If I had known that, I might have tried one of those out. Except that I work full time and am taking 20 units as a graduate student this quarter up in Hayward, and have to leave work on Tues/Thurs at 9 am (classes from 10 am to 8 pm with no breaks) and MWF I work from like 5 am to 7 or so to make up the hours. I don't mind the deal Apple gave me. I have a Dell 2405 at work (a perfect product, I might add) and so I won't go through 23" LCD withdrawl. I get to use this one until the labels come, so it's fine.

 

[carpe diem]

Fremont has too many Indians living in it. They all use PCs.

Does no one find this offensive?

 

[Maedus]

Does no one find this offensive?

No, because he was simply saying that Fremont has a higher number of Indian residents who prefer the PC platform over the Mac platform which would make establishing an Apple Store there a poor business investment. He did not make and rude or crass comments about the fact that they are Indians unless you consider calling people PC users rude and insulting, nowadays.

Edit: Or that is what I am asuming he was saying. You'll have to wait for Darkwing's answer to know what he was really thinking before you can jump to conclusions to about what Darkwing was meaning by his comments.

 

[carpe diem]

How can one say there are too many indians living somewhere. That is offensive.

 

[Maedus]

How can one say there are too many indians living somewhere. That is offensive.

Easily.

There are too many Indians living in India. If there population grows unchecked, they will suffer serious problems with expansion and overpopulation that will have no easy solution in the near future.

Was my statement racist or bigoted in any way? No. I was simply stating a fact that India has a large and burgeoning population that has the very real potention of causing problems for the nation. I made no comment about their morals, character, or abilities.

Now until you know that B]Darkwing[/B] meant his comment in a negative manner, then it should not be considered offensive simply by assumption. Now you can judge it as less than tactful but you should not take offense to a bluntly stated idea.

Would it be as offensive if he or she had said, "Fremont has too many Europeans [or even more specific as to say French, Germans, Italians, Spaniards, English, Dutch, Danish, Norwegian, Finish, and so on] living in it. They all use PCs." They are probably predominantly PC users also so it would be the same thing. Why didn't you ask if anybody found him calling Palo Alto hippy town offensive? Is it alright because hippies are generally stereotyped as long haired, unkempt white people?

Basically what I am saying is that people should not be offended so easliy over such minor things and that we shouldn't be offended by comments that simply involve other cultures and peoples. How can we ever truly be diverse and multicultural if we are offended simply by talking about other people and the remote possibility that it was meant offensively?

 

[_pb_boi]

How can one say there are too many indians living somewhere. That is offensive.

How can one be looking for an arguement so badly?

andy.

 

[Brize]

How can one say there are too many indians living somewhere. That is offensive.

I agree. Still, what do you expect from someone who can discern a 'hippy' over the telephone?

 

[Rod Rod]

Isn't it weird though, that while most people will exchange a product they buy in a store, we all accept car repairs needing to be done the first week we own them?

I don't consider it weird about warranty repairs for cars. Consumer electronics are a different matter, and problems like yours should always be resolved with an exchange and not a repair.

Fremont has too many Indians living in it. They all use PCs.

I know a lot of brown people (of both Indian and Pakistani heritage) who use Macs.

How can one say there are too many indians living somewhere. That is offensive.

The part I find offensive is the idea that all Indians in Fremont use PCs. But yeah, this idea of "too many Indians" is just plain wrongheaded.

I agree. Still, what do you expect from someone who can discern a 'hippy' over the telephone?

Good point.

 

[darkwing]

Does no one find this offensive?

Only people who feel they have some sort of "right" to not be offended find things offensive. It's the Internet. I'm sorry you take it too personally.

 

[darkwing]

I don't consider it weird about warranty repairs for cars. Consumer electronics are a different matter, and problems like yours should always be resolved with an exchange and not a repair.I know a lot of brown people (of both Indian and Pakistani heritage) who use Macs.The part I find offensive is the idea that all Indians in Fremont use PCs. But yeah, this idea of "too many Indians" is just plain wrongheaded.Good point.

To be honest, the fact Fremont has so many Indians is one of the reasons I'm leaving. The city allowed them to have a festival of India a few years ago. They were told to park at the courthouse and pay $5 for parking. Instead, they parked at the shops near by (including my gym) depsite all the signs saying "no festival parking" and then, just as if they were back in India, lead their dozens of children across the busiest street in town to get over there...right in the middle of the street. They created huge traffic problems. Not only that, they left their trash everywhere. The next year, the city told them they can't have a festival again. So they did what anybody who isn't a straight white male does these days..they cried bigotry. So, the city relented. They did the same thing again, and haven't had another festival since.

Needless to say, I do have some Indian friends who I consider "cool" and they seem to hate Macs.

Fremont is not a good city to do business in, by any means. Most of the members of the city council were/are in real-estate, and they've turned the city into a bedroom community. They are constantly tearing up commercial real-estate for more houses.

 

[darkwing]

How can one be looking for an arguement so badly?

andy.

I always get a kick out of people who are so easily offended. Surely the idea of "too many Indians" isn't offensive. I just feel there's too many. So what can I do? Move. Once I finish grad school in June, I'll be gone.

 

[bousozoku]

I always get a kick out of people who are so easily offended. Surely the idea of "too many Indians" isn't offensive. I just feel there's too many. So what can I do? Move. Once I finish grad school in June, I'll be gone.

I'd suggest to all of you that you keep these kinds of opinions to yourself, from this point forward. Easily offended or not, there are a number of cultures and countries on these forums and they all deserve the respect that each of you desire for yourselves.

(Don't argue with me...just do it! )

 

[Rod Rod]

Needless to say, I do have some Indian friends who I consider "cool" and they seem to hate Macs.

You're right, that was needless to say. Needless to say, I'm not a racist. I have some black friends who are "cool" and not like the rest of them. Oh but they are like the rest of them when it comes to computers. /sarcasm

 

[RobHague]

My display (20") was pretty much perfect when i got it, but ive noticed now (about 2-3 weeks later) there are at least two pixels that are stuck. I bought my system from a reseller, and i have ben thinking about giving them a ring about it. Thing is you cannot see the 'stuck pixels' unless you are running the right application or game. Under normal circumstances they are invisible - but i was using photoshop and thats when i first noticed them. I thought it was a bit of dust or something.....

I wouldnt mind as such, but the Apple Displays are a lot of ££££. Surley in a 'professional' environment (where these are aimed at??) where colour accuracy and such are very important that this would be MORE of a problem.

£555 for a Display (the one i bought at least - the next one up is even more scary in price), you would think there would be some sort of Q&A to make sure no units get past with defective screens (dont they do burn in's??).

 

[VanMac]

I think there is too many offended people in the world.