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Frustrating Apple Store Experience

J

jehartley

macrumors member
Original poster
Sep 30, 2012
92
0
Well, I had a mura spot develop on my 10 month old 27inch iMac. So, I called apple care. They said it was a known issue and that the display needed to be replaced. I told them I would have to take a vacation day to go because the Apple store is two hours away. Scheduled the appointment.

I got to the store and made the Genius go over every inch of the imac to see that it was mint (I baby my stuff). She commented how it was in excellent condition with no scratches dents...nothing, and showed me where she notated it. Verified the mura spot, and then I left. They said they had the display in stock and that it would take 3-4 days.

About two hours after I got home, I received an email that it was ready. Took another vacation day, and went back this morning to get it. The stand was scratched pretty bad in several places. I pointed this out, and she went to the back. A few minutes later she emerged and said they did not have any stands in stock, but they could order it and replace it. I said that i needed my mac back up and running, so I will just deal with it...I can't keep taking vacation days and then take repeated 4 hour round trips. I asked if they would fire it up so I could verify that the screen was fixed. She told me that they couldn't and that they run diagnostics after all repairs and that it passed. Not being a really confrontational person, I said okay and packed it up and took it home.

Got home, unpacked it, plugged it up and turned it on. It made the startup sound but the display remained black as in a power off state. About 30 seconds in, the fans start running a super high RPM's!!! I couldn't believe it.

Called the store and asked for a manager. They had me perform a SMC reset, but that did nothing. Now I have to take another vacation day, and drive over tomorrow to drop it off again, and then of course go back when it is repaired. This time i will make them fire it up to verify everything is good, but damn am I ever frustrated.
 
I am wondering if you might be like I was and unaware that your AppleCare includes on-site service. I had an issue with my 27" iMac screen and insisted they come fix it on-site in my home and they did. Three months later, the problem has recurred and when I called the first line of support was trying to get me to go to a store with it. I said no thank you. AppleCare includes on-site service and that is what I want. I was then passed to an AppleCare advisor who spoke to me about the history of the issue, what I was seeing now, etc. and satisfied that the same repair needed repeating plus three new fans, he setup the on-site appointment.

The following day (earlier today) I got a call from the tech who let me know he had 3 out of 5 parts needed and the remaining two would be available in the morning. He told me he'd call tomorrow morning to arrange an afternoon time to do the repair - in my home.

I realize this still means time lost from work but at least you are not wasting money on gas as well as your valuable time traveling so far to the store. It also means you can see for yourself that the repair was effective before the tech goes anywhere. I watched mine verify it, etc. before he left and it was fine at the time.

I would encourage you also to set a limit at three attempts to repair an issue before telling them you want a replacement Mac because clearly one that cannot be fixed with that many attempts is not up to Apple standards of quality and it isn't fair to you to keep losing time, productivity, etc. on a lemon that you paid top dollar for.

I hope you see this in time. I would highly recommend canceling the store appointment, calling AppleCare and asking to speak to an AppleCare advisor about your in-store experience. I think you should insist on on-site service to fix the problem now and while you are at it have them deliver a new base and replace that too since the store damaged it. Why should you settle for less than what you paid for when you purchased AppleCare, not to mention an Apple computer?
 
Last edited:
Thanks. Unfortunately, I am using the one year warranty I have, I didn't buy the extended Apple Care. The standard one year warranty doesn't have on site service included. You have to purchase the extended Apple Care. They tried to get me to do that on the phone in order to get the on site repair, but I don't have $165 lying around to spare.
 
I think that getting the AppleCare is a good option given the current condition of OP's iMac. The problem may come back even if it is fixed now!
 
Sorry to hear you had such a bad experience. Actually quite surprised. My personal experience with Apple has been really good.

I know you say you do not have the money laying around for the extended warranty, but may I suggest trying to scrounge it up somehow. I can tell you from personal experience that the 27" iMac can become extremely expensive to fix if you do not have warranty.

I had a 2011 that became a real problem over a period of about 6 months and would have cost me pretty much the price of a new 27" had I not had the extended warranty. Yes you may be covered now, but things can snowball real quick.

My problems started with a line of pixels going bad in the screen, then the power supply, then the video card, then the logic board and before they did a fifth repair they decided to replace the iMac. But most of this was under the extended warranty.

Good thing that you documented that there was no damage to your iMac and Apple was ready to fix the issue no questions asked. Pain in the butt though having to take all that time off. Good luck with this and hopefully your next experience is better than the first one.
 
Thanks, Guys. I think I am just going to buy Apple Care today and put it on my credit card. I hate to do that, but I guess it would be the best thing.

Have you ever heard of an Apple store that has messed around a customer like this and then offered Apple Care for free...should I ask?

I would tell them to go ahead an order the stand and then when it comes in take the mac back, but I just don't think I want to waste the time and effort for scratches on the stand. A 4 hour round trip and the possibility of getting the mac back with more damage and more trips required just gives me a headache.

Anyway, thanks for the comments and advice.
 
FWIW, when my iMac's display needed replacement under AppleCare I recall when I went to pick it up after it's been repaired, the genius plugged it in and asked me to inspect the new screen and everything else before they handed it to me, without me even asking. So I think it's a very reasonable request if you ask to see it running before driving off.
 
The Apple Store is open every day, so I don't understand why you need to take vacation days.
 
fa8362 said:
The Apple Store is open every day, so I don't understand why you need to take vacation days.
Click to expand...

Because I am on a seven/12 hour cycle at work for the next two months, and that is when my warranty runs out.
 
Well, today's visit actually worked pretty well. I walked in when they opened and was greeted by the manager I had spoken to previously. We set up the mac so they could see the issue. Ran diagnostics and it showed the display was not working.

I told the manager that I would like to have it notated in my work authorization email that they damaged the stand and would like a new one ordered. They also had to order another display because they didn't have any in stock, so I will be without the mac for awhile probably. The manager agreed, and I received the email in store on my phone.

I also ask politely if I could go ahead and purchase apple care because these latest developments make me feel as though I might have more problems, and because it has on-site repair, I won't have to drive so far. He said sure and went to get the paperwork started. When he came back, he said because of all your trouble, I am going to give this to you for free! I couldn't believe it. So, I am a bit more optimistic now. :)
 
I would highly recommend spending the money for AppleCare. It is well worth it for the peace of mind and the extended service should you need it. Mine has easily paid for itself many times over at this point. If I had relied on the one year warranty I would be screwed right now. The tech coming here today to replace the LCD, panel and three fans would cost me a lot of money and that doesn't include the previous time this was already done or the possible next time, etc.

I love Apple and I love my iMac but I consider AppleCare a necessary expense for a computer of this kind and I sure am glad I did. I hope you will too.

I sound like I work for them here but I don't! I'd just hate to have you get burned when for comparatively much less money you could spare yourself that. I'd never buy an iMac without AppleCare myself.

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jehartley said:
Well, today's visit actually worked pretty well. I walked in when they opened and was greeted by the manager I had spoken to previously. We set up the mac so they could see the issue. Ran diagnostics and it showed the display was not working.

I told the manager that I would like to have it notated in my work authorization email that they damaged the stand and would like a new one ordered. They also had to order another display because they didn't have any in stock, so I will be without the mac for awhile probably. The manager agreed, and I received the email in store on my phone.

I also ask politely if I could go ahead and purchase apple care because these latest developments make me feel as though I might have more problems, and because it has on-site repair, I won't have to drive so far. He said sure and went to get the paperwork started. When he came back, he said because of all your trouble, I am going to give this to you for free! I couldn't believe it. So, I am a bit more optimistic now. :)
Click to expand...

Wow! I just saw your post after writing my previous one. That is awesome. I'm sure your faith must be renewed right about now. I'm very happy to hear you made out so good. Good for you! :D
 
Glad to hear you ended up with something positive from Apple after all your bad experience.

I 100% now recommend Apple Care for Apple computers. I have bought Macs for 30 years and never had problems until recently. I always avoided Apple Care / extended warranties as my Apple computers lasted forever with no problems. Unfortunately the past 12 months I have had several problems arise with Apple products. The quality is just not the same, at least for me.

The last straw was this week when my 14-month old 27" iMac had a logic board failure. This will now cost me almost $800 to have fixed. I'm pretty much disgusted with Apple's reduced quality lately. I used to be able to buy an Apple product and know it would last many years. Now I will have to buy Apple Care to know I can get 3 years out if it.
 
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