(excuse this long post but i really have to get my frustration out)
so i bought my white 2ghz macbook 2 weeks ago, and the first night i started having problems. first, the power adapter was hissing/sizzling/whining like someone was frying up a piece of steak inside--very disruptive in a place like the library. then i realize that it has the moo, that was very annoying going on and off on and off on and off constantly--again, very disruptive in a quiet environment. so i called applecare twice, and was told both times that i had to have it verified by an apple store genius.
i had read from many posts here, that people were able to call applecare and either have a new unit shipped to them, or have their adpaters changed, or were told that indeed there was a problem with the moo and hissing, or something that was more helpful than "sorry, cant help you. go to a store."
anyways, i was randomly at the valley fair mall in san jose (1 hour away from my hosue), and decided that i might as well go and wait for an appointment with a genius since i had to wait for a friends tuxedo fitting. after one hour of waiting, the genius there told me that 1) the moo was normal and that apple is probably working on a fix, and 2) that he was able to hear only a little bit of sound from my power adapter. BUT the thing is, that he was going to waive the restocking fee or do an exchange for me because i was still within my 14 day return period. too bad i didnt have my box that day.
okay, so then i went to the burlingame ave. apple store in burlingame, and the kid genius named brian maier told me that the sizzle AND the moo was completley within spec. he sort of laughed at my plight and said that he couldnt do anything to help me. okay fine, i still had my san jose backup.
then i went to the pleasanton apple store in stoneridge mall and went straight to the checkout counter and said that i would like to return my macbook. the clerk told me about the 10% restocking fee and i asked to talk to a manager, hoping he would help me out. this guy came up to me with out a smile on his face, and i explained that i got the ok for a waiver of the restocking fee from the san jose store, and asked if he could extend the courtesy and waive it for me and save me a 2 hour round trip drive down to san jose. he flat out said no, and said that i would have to pay the restocking fee. no smile, no "im really sorry and wish i could help..." okay so i told him that im not just returning it just for the fun of it, but that i was displeased by the moo and the power adapter buzz which, in my opinion are defects. he then sent me to a genius who had to verify it. first the genius said the moo was within spec (okay thats fine). then he said the adapter is supposed to hiss and that he couldnt help me. i again explained how its not just a normal hiss, but something that renders my macbook useless in any quiet environment such as the library, but that didnt help either. the genius was a little more nice, but honestly, i thought a manger would like to keep a customer happy or at least be polite, instead of piss one off and lose their future business. (i read one post where someone with a mooing/whining macbook went into the store and was treated very kindly by a manger who "only wanted customers to be happy")
so in the end, i drove 1 hour down to the san jose store. told the clerk at the checkout counter that i got the okay for the restocking fee waiver a weekend ago, and everything was returned and great. he was friendly, and treated me as any customer should be treated.
first of all i must admit that the macbook is a GREAT machine. running both XP and mac osx is a dream. i love the design, i love the feel, i love the operating system, i love the applications, i just really cant handle the moo and whine/hiss. its so disruptive that i cant even use it in a library with out getting annoyed glances from other studious students.
secondly i have to say that im incredibly frustrated by the customer service, or lack there of, on apples part. i would think that they would at least acknowledge the moo problem and tell us that there will be a firmware fix coming soon, or that they can help me switch my power adapter, but neither had been done. itd also be nice for the apple employees to be a litle more bubbly and friendly. sorry let me correct that--itd also be nice for the apple employees to be a little more bubbly and friendly like back when they were trying to sell me my macbook. i thought apple was supposed to have excellent customer service, i guess i stand corrected--excellent customer service for buyers, not for owners.
and finally i have to give props to ben butterfield at the valley fair apple store. he was the one who waived the 10% restocking fee for me. he did admit that their store was more lenient than other apple stores.
so for the rest of you who are stuck with a mooing/whining/buzzing macbook, good luck. i hope apple comes out with a fix soon. and for those who have yet to buy one, please consider carefully what you might have to do in order to return it (or be denied a restocking fee free return). maybe if you buy it online, apple care will be of better service.
as for now, as we sit and wait for apple to admit the flaws of its macbook, all we can do is write letters of dissatisfaction ot apple (which is what im going to do).
good luck!
chris
so i bought my white 2ghz macbook 2 weeks ago, and the first night i started having problems. first, the power adapter was hissing/sizzling/whining like someone was frying up a piece of steak inside--very disruptive in a place like the library. then i realize that it has the moo, that was very annoying going on and off on and off on and off constantly--again, very disruptive in a quiet environment. so i called applecare twice, and was told both times that i had to have it verified by an apple store genius.
i had read from many posts here, that people were able to call applecare and either have a new unit shipped to them, or have their adpaters changed, or were told that indeed there was a problem with the moo and hissing, or something that was more helpful than "sorry, cant help you. go to a store."
anyways, i was randomly at the valley fair mall in san jose (1 hour away from my hosue), and decided that i might as well go and wait for an appointment with a genius since i had to wait for a friends tuxedo fitting. after one hour of waiting, the genius there told me that 1) the moo was normal and that apple is probably working on a fix, and 2) that he was able to hear only a little bit of sound from my power adapter. BUT the thing is, that he was going to waive the restocking fee or do an exchange for me because i was still within my 14 day return period. too bad i didnt have my box that day.
okay, so then i went to the burlingame ave. apple store in burlingame, and the kid genius named brian maier told me that the sizzle AND the moo was completley within spec. he sort of laughed at my plight and said that he couldnt do anything to help me. okay fine, i still had my san jose backup.
then i went to the pleasanton apple store in stoneridge mall and went straight to the checkout counter and said that i would like to return my macbook. the clerk told me about the 10% restocking fee and i asked to talk to a manager, hoping he would help me out. this guy came up to me with out a smile on his face, and i explained that i got the ok for a waiver of the restocking fee from the san jose store, and asked if he could extend the courtesy and waive it for me and save me a 2 hour round trip drive down to san jose. he flat out said no, and said that i would have to pay the restocking fee. no smile, no "im really sorry and wish i could help..." okay so i told him that im not just returning it just for the fun of it, but that i was displeased by the moo and the power adapter buzz which, in my opinion are defects. he then sent me to a genius who had to verify it. first the genius said the moo was within spec (okay thats fine). then he said the adapter is supposed to hiss and that he couldnt help me. i again explained how its not just a normal hiss, but something that renders my macbook useless in any quiet environment such as the library, but that didnt help either. the genius was a little more nice, but honestly, i thought a manger would like to keep a customer happy or at least be polite, instead of piss one off and lose their future business. (i read one post where someone with a mooing/whining macbook went into the store and was treated very kindly by a manger who "only wanted customers to be happy")
so in the end, i drove 1 hour down to the san jose store. told the clerk at the checkout counter that i got the okay for the restocking fee waiver a weekend ago, and everything was returned and great. he was friendly, and treated me as any customer should be treated.
first of all i must admit that the macbook is a GREAT machine. running both XP and mac osx is a dream. i love the design, i love the feel, i love the operating system, i love the applications, i just really cant handle the moo and whine/hiss. its so disruptive that i cant even use it in a library with out getting annoyed glances from other studious students.
secondly i have to say that im incredibly frustrated by the customer service, or lack there of, on apples part. i would think that they would at least acknowledge the moo problem and tell us that there will be a firmware fix coming soon, or that they can help me switch my power adapter, but neither had been done. itd also be nice for the apple employees to be a litle more bubbly and friendly. sorry let me correct that--itd also be nice for the apple employees to be a little more bubbly and friendly like back when they were trying to sell me my macbook. i thought apple was supposed to have excellent customer service, i guess i stand corrected--excellent customer service for buyers, not for owners.
and finally i have to give props to ben butterfield at the valley fair apple store. he was the one who waived the 10% restocking fee for me. he did admit that their store was more lenient than other apple stores.
so for the rest of you who are stuck with a mooing/whining/buzzing macbook, good luck. i hope apple comes out with a fix soon. and for those who have yet to buy one, please consider carefully what you might have to do in order to return it (or be denied a restocking fee free return). maybe if you buy it online, apple care will be of better service.
as for now, as we sit and wait for apple to admit the flaws of its macbook, all we can do is write letters of dissatisfaction ot apple (which is what im going to do).
good luck!
chris