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Don't buy a mac from an apple store, just don't
- Thread starter CubaTBird
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jane doe said:
Technically, true, I suppose. However, I doubt that they'd void a warranty because of it, assuming they'd even bother to check. But, yes, I suppose it's possible. Although I'm still not sure a firmware alteration voids an Apple warranty.
And no offense intended, jane doe. It's just my opinion. You undoubtedly know better than I do. Can you find a source for what you state?
ITR 81 said:
Hope you know that you won't be receiving the 15" iMac bacause they stopped production on them, and also you won't be getting that $300 because that rebate only applies to the G5 and a 23" display, not a 17". I severly doubt that apple will upgrade your order once the new iMac G5s are anounced at WWDC because theres talk that there won't be a 15 anymore, and I hope for you apple will refund your applecare on it.
All you have to do is zap the PRAM if it fails. It'll work just like it used to. It doesn't actually change anything like, say, flashing a bios. There's even an undo feature.jane doe said:
The dual-display feature is already there, the hack just enables it.
http://www.rutemoeller.com/mp/ibook/ibook_e.html
I really don't see what Apple did wrong here... the bank was closed... and uh... yeah, that's it?
As long as you weren't charged for the price of the PC 2700 ram, its ok.
My apple store experiences where quite horrendous as well.
Apple store Ala Moana is horrible. They need more experienced employees. Where did they hire these people? This also applies for the Apple store in Ginza. Just for fun, I asked a question about my powerbook to 2 sales people and 1 apple tech and I got three different solutions. (I already knew the right answer, which the tech got also suggested, thank god.)
My point is, this needs to be delt with immediately. There should be a place to file complaints of specific employees on the apple site and their ludacris advice.
My apple store experiences where quite horrendous as well.
Apple store Ala Moana is horrible. They need more experienced employees. Where did they hire these people? This also applies for the Apple store in Ginza. Just for fun, I asked a question about my powerbook to 2 sales people and 1 apple tech and I got three different solutions. (I already knew the right answer, which the tech got also suggested, thank god.)
My point is, this needs to be delt with immediately. There should be a place to file complaints of specific employees on the apple site and their ludacris advice.
ITR 81 said:
If you still can... CANCEL YOUR ORDER. The G5 is fine, but it is VERY likely that both the imac and the displays will be updated in 5 days. They will probably be substantial upgrades.
Coolvirus007 said:
You're right that customer service problems need to be dealt with. However, I think that most of the stores are doing well. I think generally Apple customers expect more out of the people at the Apple store versus just walking into a Circuit City or CompUSA. Apple hasn't been in retail that long, and I think they'll be able to straighten it out.
zim said:I have the 20" iMac, would love to be able to use my TV as an external display when working in FCE.
so I went and looked up whether you could just use your TV as a preview monitor via FireWire with FCE at http://www.apple.com/finalcut/ and apparently it's an FCP feature not in FCE.
the trouble with using a TV as an external display in the way you're talking about is you'll likely get an inaccurate idea of overscan, and the colors are probably not going to be quite the same as if you had the video output going through FireWire (as in FCP).
to get to this thread's topic, yeah Apple retail store employees sometimes know less than we do. but sometimes they know more... more often though, they can't tell us what they know, or they're conditioned into misinformation. the main example is how they handle RAM sales, scaring customers into buying RAM from Apple because "otherwise you might void your warranty, and with our RAM your warranty is covered." that's such a lie, because Apple's RAM only carries a one-year warranty, whereas all the reputable third-party RAM carries a lifetime warranty. installing third-party RAM does not endanger your warranty at all. to manage that, you'd have to crack your motherboard, fuse the RAM contacts on the board or spill some iTunes Pepsi into your computer.
my personal pet peeve with Apple retail stores is how the 12" PowerBook on display connected to the 20" Cinema Display with the Aqua desktop pattern is ALWAYS mismatched. The monitor is always a nice rich blue, and the 12" screen is always turquoise. if I worked at an Apple retail store, I'd calibrate all the screens so they matched.
Add another to the list, after trying for two weeks to order an Ibook online i finally gave up and went with macmall.com.au however im having pretty much the same problems with them as i was with Apple. Finally figured that getting a Mac is jsut hard work . So now just have to wait and see how the next few days go!
Mark.
. So now just have to wait and see how the next few days go!Mark.
netytan said:So the hack is 100% harmless? I mean, theres no chance in hell that ifs going to cause some wierd errors. Also, if you reinstall the OS would you have to reinstall the patch too? Just thinking, Apple disabled this feature for a reason right
Mark.
See the solvs quote above. The hack is harmless. I did it on my 17" 800MHz iMac. My brother did it on his 17" 1GHz iMac. My neighbor did it on his iBook. It's reversible. It takes all of about 15 seconds. And it lets you have a second display. It might not be something you're interested in, but, if you are, you should know that it's harmless.
And, to stay somewhat on topic, I heard about it from an employee at the Apple Store that I've gotten to know fairly well. I'm sure it is not Apple's policy to have their employees discuss such things, but he was cool to mention it. He did it because he's known me for some time now, and it was in spite of him being an employee there, not because of it. Some apple Store employees are just employees, but I've fond that mot of them are Mac addicts, and they try to help out fellow Mac users.
absolut_mac said:
I have read so many stories on here about people having problems with the Apple Store employees but they never seem to go "and then I talked to the manager." If the genius is drunk, let their manager know. If a salesperson tries to include something on your bill you didn't ask for, let the manager know. If a salesperson tries to sell you more costly RAM than you need, let the manager know.
You're no help to Apple unless you provide them feedback about the staff. Always learn someone's name. And if someone is not being helpful to you in the store ask to speak to the manager. (Politely) Let them know your opinion of the service you have received. If you just let the person off the hook, why would they ever change their shoddy service?
For the record, I have only visited the Apple Store in the Somerset Collection (a mall in Troy, MI). I have always received excellent sales and support service. It's too bad others aren't having the same experience.
i gotta say i went and bought my powerbook last thursday in Northridge, and the only issue i had was the lady who was helping me was a bitch. Other than that the computer works great and it felt good to walk out after paying with the box in my hands.
The staff at the Apple store in Towson, MD was very helpful, to the point that while the person helping me was checking on something, two other salespeople came up and asked if I was being helped. They allowed me to configure my TiBook BTO online and then have it shipped to them, and they held it until I could pick it up.
The staff at Montgomery Mall were also pretty attentive, which was notable since the only time I've been there was on their opening day.
You'll get a few bad apples in every barrel, and probably one or two less-than-perfect employees at each Apple store. Human nature being what it is, that's understandable. Simply speak to their manager, and move on.
The staff at Montgomery Mall were also pretty attentive, which was notable since the only time I've been there was on their opening day.
You'll get a few bad apples in every barrel, and probably one or two less-than-perfect employees at each Apple store. Human nature being what it is, that's understandable. Simply speak to their manager, and move on.
no hack
12" PB, 640 RAM
There is no need for that hack, you can have 2 desktops, anyway, just uncheck the "mirror display" option and you're there. I can play a DVD on my TV in full screen mode while my wife does her email and stuff. To do this you also have to select the "Remain in full screen when player is inactive" ( DVD->>>preferences )mr_mac said:
12" PB, 640 RAM
gone fishing said:
on iBooks, iMacs and eMacs, you do need that hack to enable monitor spanning. PowerBooks and Power Macs do not need that hack.
CubaTBird said:
what exactly are you complaning about?
You are complaining about **Better RAM** (note: it will still only run @ 2100)
the bank being closed? (that's not apple's fault, more your's for not realising that Apple might want to check the loan arrangements)
You got a computer, that works, no dead pixels, not shifty HDD, in fact no problems @ all. and it took 2 hours of your life
.You should hear about some of the real horror stories from people that lurk arond these forums.
In general, if the hack you're all referring to alters the firmware, you better make sure that you understand the potential consequences.
1- Your warranty could be null and void
2- It might not work
3- It could result in a non-functioning video card
As long as you understand that, go for it. Make sure the laptop is not set to go to sleep and is plugged in to AC.
gone fishing -- what are you saying? to quote lindsay lohan (the 'apple' of my eye), "that's just retarded." first you said you don't need the hack (b/c you have a powerbook, and everyone knows monitor spanning is enabled on powerbooks), then, when someone told you that you didn't need the hack due to the fact that you do have a powerbook, you shot back with a smartass comment.
lack of gray matter
So I misread the post.... ALL you had to do is say so.
Whigga Spitta.Whigga Spitta said:
So I misread the post.... ALL you had to do is say so.
question
A few of my friends are graphic designers and one is a industrial designer, two of them use mac, In that line of work multiple displays can be very usefull. I wonder why apple would have them hack their macs in orther to enable monitor spanning?
Is this the only way to get a power mac to do this?
One thing that we did notice is that in the power mac the feature to use F1-F12 keys for custom actions is missing.
Do you know how to enable thins? (the PBs have it)
Thanks for your help mate.
That is strange ...don't you think?Rod Rod said:on iBooks, iMacs and eMacs, you do need that hack to enable monitor spanning. PowerBooks and Power Macs do not need that hack.
A few of my friends are graphic designers and one is a industrial designer, two of them use mac, In that line of work multiple displays can be very usefull. I wonder why apple would have them hack their macs in orther to enable monitor spanning?
Is this the only way to get a power mac to do this?
One thing that we did notice is that in the power mac the feature to use F1-F12 keys for custom actions is missing.
Do you know how to enable thins? (the PBs have it)
Thanks for your help mate.
lets get a few things straight
1. to the original poster of this thread: don't blame apple for:
a. an employee who went home early (but still informed another employee of your situation who was available to complete your transaction)
b. the bank being closed (duh)
c. using 2700 ram. its far better for you for upgrading in the future, and it's designed to cycle down, just like the old PC133 that would work fine on PC100 motherboards. (and even sometimes PC66)
d. pricing. you pay more cause it's a retail store. if you're surprised to discover this now, then i've got another fact that might spoil your appetite - there is no tooth fairy.
2. RAM takes 45 minutes to install because
a. sales staff have other things to do other than take care of you.
b. testing. running a hardware test after installing ram is always a good idea, and usally takes 10-20 minutes.
3. coolvirus007: you asked sales staff technical questions and got wrong answers. don't try and be all smarmy, just ask the right people. true, they shouldn't have answered ("just a second, i'll get someone for you who can answer that question") but still.. sales people do sales, and they were probably just trying to be helpful.
4. altering the firmware does void the warranty. its as simple as that. whether apple stores pick up on it while fixing your computer is another story. but they have full right to refuse to repair it if they do. but the good thing is you can re-apply the old firmware, thus restoring it to a state that the techies won't be able to tell it's been changed.
sorry to be all righteous and all, but it's a bit of a pain when people spout off on this board without knowing the facts.
1. to the original poster of this thread: don't blame apple for:
a. an employee who went home early (but still informed another employee of your situation who was available to complete your transaction)
b. the bank being closed (duh)
c. using 2700 ram. its far better for you for upgrading in the future, and it's designed to cycle down, just like the old PC133 that would work fine on PC100 motherboards. (and even sometimes PC66)
d. pricing. you pay more cause it's a retail store. if you're surprised to discover this now, then i've got another fact that might spoil your appetite - there is no tooth fairy.
2. RAM takes 45 minutes to install because
a. sales staff have other things to do other than take care of you.
b. testing. running a hardware test after installing ram is always a good idea, and usally takes 10-20 minutes.
3. coolvirus007: you asked sales staff technical questions and got wrong answers. don't try and be all smarmy, just ask the right people. true, they shouldn't have answered ("just a second, i'll get someone for you who can answer that question") but still.. sales people do sales, and they were probably just trying to be helpful.
4. altering the firmware does void the warranty. its as simple as that. whether apple stores pick up on it while fixing your computer is another story. but they have full right to refuse to repair it if they do. but the good thing is you can re-apply the old firmware, thus restoring it to a state that the techies won't be able to tell it's been changed.
sorry to be all righteous and all, but it's a bit of a pain when people spout off on this board without knowing the facts.