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How Apple Stole $150 From Me (Another Genius story)

BasicGreatGuy said:
Putting iOS 7 on your phone voids your warranty.
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Oh yeah? Show me where in the developer's agreement where it says this.

It does say that Apple will not cover any damages caused by installing iOS 7 on an improperly provisioned device (ie a device whose UDID was not registered on a developer account).

Taken from the iOS Dev Center:

"This version of iOS is intended only for installation on development devices registered with Apple's Developer Program. Attempting to install this version of iOS in an unauthorized manner could put your device in an unusable state, which could necessitate an out of warranty repair."
 
Why would the OP want to get an 5S if he was treated that way? I guess if that happened to me, and I had that many problems and replacements, I sure would not say that I will give them my money when the next model comes out.
 
BasicGreatGuy said:
I posted what I believe to be the pertinent part in my previous post.
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That only states that Apple takes no liability in the case that iOS 7 directly damages one's device. If there is a fault in the hardware of the phone that manifests itself while iOS 7 is installed (lock button comes loose, purple spot on camera, etc), Apple will take responsibility.

In the case of the OP, iOS 7 should not even have come up in conversation.
 
AlphaDogg said:
That only states that Apple takes no liability in the case that iOS 7 directly damages one's device. If there is a fault in the hardware of the phone that manifests itself while iOS 7 is installed (lock button comes loose, purple spot on camera, etc), Apple will take responsibility.

In the case of the OP, iOS 7 should not even have come up in conversation.
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It is plausible that said beta caused his phone to overheat. And the shattering of the glass was a consequence of the OP running the beta. As such, I believe that iOS 7 is proper to bring up.

I have never heard of Gorilla Glass breaking on its own like that, running released software in proper operating temperature and climate.

Who knows what truly happened. Either way, from what the OP has said, I believe that Apple has done a good job of providing him warrantied service. I don't believe Apple is obligated to do anything further for him.
 
I don't have an iPhone, so I don't know, but it doesn't seem like it should crack that easily. I've had an LG Dare for more years than I can remember—probably 4 or more. I drop it all the time. It's made of plastic but may have glass under the plastic, and has never broken or even scratched.

Also interesting the Genius said it uses Gorilla Glass. Apple had some canned statement I used to have use if people asked questions like that when I did sales/support for Apple, something about not listing the names of component suppliers—not that the Genius would have access to that information; it's just sort of an open secret. We also had an interesting phrase called "unpublished specifications." That one came up a lot for people calling into to ask if MacBook Pro displays were truly capable of displaying millions of colors or not.

You're also not supposed to ever use the I just work here line. You're supposed to be the face of the company—though I can definitely see the appeal in ducking out of the way. Because when you're the face of the company, you've got to insist on policies at times that you know are going to cause a customer to yell at you. I can remember saying things at times where I thought, "I am inviting the customer to yell at me by saying this." (Usually when the customer was already upset and I would have to ask for them to pay for an incident of phone support or send them to iTunes support) But the idea is that you never apologize for company policy, only for a customer's frustration. Otherwise the idea of the company in people's minds starts falling apart.
 
BasicGreatGuy said:
I did the same thing before leaving the store with my new iPhone 5. I paid a little more for the case versus Amazon, but, I didn't want to take a risk.
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ive had bad luck with fake amazon cases. i bit the bullet and purchased inshore. like you said. i paid alittle more but i knew it was a legit otter box. ive seen a ton of faked lifeproof cases on amazon too. theres a couple videos showing how well they are being faked.
 
srxtr said:
I noticed the other thread with iPhone 5 replacements and decided to share mine. I'm just copying and pasting my blog post:

I am angry and frustrated beyond words right now, but I am writing this while it is still fresh in my memory.

I bought the iPhone 5 on day one and it has had nothing but problems. Every time there is a problem, I did what most sensible people would do, which is to make a Genius appointment and let them deal with it. For the past 8 months, I went through 4 different iPhone 5s:

First iPhone 5 had the infamous Apple wireless problem. Wireless connection would be spotty and it couldn't connect to my office wifi at all.
Second iPhone 5 had a weird purple spot that started showing up through the camera lens. I use my iPhone 5 to take pictures of my baby girl, so this was a big deal to me.
Third iPhone 5 actually lasted a good while for me, until last week when the volume down button stopped working.
Fourth iPhone 5, which I got yesterday, had a single crack across the screen... which didn't happen until I got home.

The fourth and last iPhone 5 is why I'm writing this post. In no way did I drop and crack the phone myself, but the Genius (at Apple Store on Third Street Promenade, Santa Monica FYI), that was assigned to my appointment, told me I had to pay $150 to get the screen replaced.

I was stunned. The cracked screen was not my fault, and yet they were asking me to pay for the damage? This is the gist of how the conversation went:

Genius: The cost is $150 to get this repaired.
Me: What? But I didn't cause this crack. I had my iPhone 5 replaced yesterday due to a broken volume button.
Genius: It looks like the point of impact is right here (pointing at the bottom location where the antennagate used to be on the iPHone 4). There was probably some pressure here that caused this.
Me: Maybe there was tiny crack on the screen that caused this?
Genius: Yeah, well, the iPhone 5 didn't have a crack when it left the store yesterday. Also, your iPhone 5 had iOS 7 on it, and we don't officially support that, so you should have been charged $299 for yesterday's replacement.
Me: This is my fourth iPhone 5 btw, the ones I get seem to always have problems.
Genius: Yeah I can see that in the system.

This guy was putting more faults in my list, and he didn't seem convinced that the crack (and probably other defects) were due to them being defective units.

Me: But I didn't cause the crack! All I did was put it in my pocket, take it home, restored iOS 7 on it, and at some point it got a crack.
Genius: I keep MY iPhone 5 in my pocket all the time, and it doesn't crack. It uses gorilla glass, so it shouldn't crack that easily.
Me: This is so frustrating. I didn't do anything that might cause a crack.
Genius: I didn't say you did, but we have company policy and I just work here.

Needless to say, but I asked to speak to his manager, and when that didn't go well, I asked to speak to HIS manager. Same deal, I had to pay to get my screen repaired.

I was angry, and didn't want to pay the $150 when it wasn't my fault. As I left the store, I stood on 3rd Street, cleared my head, and thought of my options:

I can call Apple Customer Service or go to other Apple Stores and whine and complain until someone gets my screen fixed for free.
I can sell all my Apple **** (Mac Mini, MacBook Air, AppleTV, iPad Mini, 2 iPhone 5s) and switch over to using Android. But I don't want to use Android.
Pay $150 and move on.
I swallowed hard, went back in, and looked for the Genius that I dealt with.

Me: I would like to get my screen repaired for $150 please.
Genius: OK sure.
Me: Is it possible for me to upgrade my AppleCare to AppleCare+ for $99 and get my screen repaired for $50? (Which is the same cost, but with the benefit of AppleCare+ in case of future mishaps.)
Genius: No, sorry, that's for new devices only.

The Genius proceeded to estimate the waiting period and to update the system.

Me: What could have caused the screen to crack like this? I literally put it in my pocket after leaving the Apple Store, took it home, restored it, and it was on my table.
Genius: What, you're saying it was just in your pocket for 24 hours?
Me: No, I just left it on my table after discovering the crack yesterday, and here I am the very next morning.
Genius: Look, if my car engine breaks down then I'll have to pay for it even though it's not my fault, right?

What kind of analogy is that???

Me: I'm just so frustrated.
Genius: Well, don't take your frustration out on me, man.

It really sucks it had to come down to this. It's truly disappointing, but thinking about it from Apple's perspective, there really is no way to prove that I wasn't the one that dropped and cracked the screen.

Here are details of what happened yesterday that eventually lead to the crack. These are specific details I failed to mention to the Genius because I was so flustered and forgot.

Got iPhone 5 replacement and left Apple Store with the phone in my pocket.
Got home, walked to work (I live couple of blocks from work) with the phone in my pocket.
iPhone 5 was left charging on my table at work.
Stayed for a few hours and walked home with iPhone 5 in my pocket.
Restored iPhone 5 to iOS7. Went to a local basketball court, left the iPhone 5 under the seat.
Came home, played around with the iPhone 5 in the living room, put it in my pocket, went to my computer, took it out to discover a crack on it.
I've come to the end of this post and now that I've vented I feel better. All those stories of iPhone 5 production problems was no joke, and as soon as iPhone 5S (or the cheaper iPhone) comes out, I'll probably upgrade right away even though I don't have upgrade eligibility.

Curses.

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Sorry about the formatting. My blog has better formatting, didn't realize it wouldn't get included.
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Sound like a complainer. Accept responsibility.
 
My down volume button has suddenly stopped working. A quick google has shown that it's a common problem with the iPhone 5. I'm going to make a genius appointment.
 
RichardC300 said:
My down volume button has suddenly stopped working. A quick google has shown that it's a common problem with the iPhone 5. I'm going to make a genius appointment.
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ok? has nothing to do with the threads but thanks for letting us know.
 
RichardC300 said:
My down volume button has suddenly stopped working. A quick google has shown that it's a common problem with the iPhone 5. I'm going to make a genius appointment.
Click to expand...

A google search doesn't prove a problem is common, just commonly posted to the internet. The down volume issue isn't even common enough to be an issue.
 
dictoresno said:
ok? has nothing to do with the threads but thanks for letting us know.
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This is quoted from the original post:

srxtr said:
Third iPhone 5 actually lasted a good while for me, until last week when the volume down button stopped working.
Click to expand...
And you're welcome.


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zigzagg321 said:
A google search doesn't prove a problem is common, just commonly posted to the internet. The down volume issue isn't even common enough to be an issue.
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You are correct in saying that a google search doesn't prove a problem is common, but I every volume button issue I found was specific to the down volume button. That's more of the direction I was heading.
 
Just posting this to say, in reality Apple does not have the ability to tell if you really did crack it. All they know for fact is, you left apple store with no crack, came back next day with crack. What else are they supposed to think.

But your point of selling all your apple gear because you are angry you are being charged for the 3rd replacement phone and switching to android.

Have you considered what your situation would be like if you had a roku, HP laptop, and Samsung Phone? You would not be received the same way at a samsung store, and you would have paid your way to a 4th phone, like another user posted.
 
My power button has been acting up or a few weeks now but I didn't want to lose my JB so I just used activator to set up an alternate lock. This am the tip of a headphone jack came off in my phone leaving it in headphone mode. I tried to get it out but couldn't so I took it in for replacement. Genius said the h/p deal made my phone OOW but he would try to over look it. I informed him if his decision is to not replace my phone then he should come back with a manager because things are going to get heated and loud. The fact that there is something in the HP jack does not affect the power button one bit. I won't let a billion dollar company bend me over for a BS "rule" in their warranty. He did replace the phone (iOS 6.1.4 :mad:) and I told him sucks that he takes both barrels when Apple corp acts like a douche but that's the way it goes. I know I'm an ass when I'm not satisfied with the situation but THEY chose that job with the knowledge they may be dealing with heated customers.

So OP next time one of those guys tell you not to take your frustration out on them, tell them to get another job if they don't like it. You're an upset customer and he is currently the face of the company so he/she is gonna get it. IF they can't handle it tell them to go get someone that can. Sucks for them but it's their job... don't like it find a new one.

As far as your broken screen.... I have to side with most others here and say sucks but shelling out the $150 is the price paid for a cracked screen. I'm not saying you knowingly did something that cracked the screen but I do believe the crack was user caused. I bet if it was your first i5 and not your 5th they would of swapped out the phone/screen for free but as it was your 5th i5, they probably decided to enforce their rule. (5th phone? You're either the most unlucky person or suffer from mad OCD)
 
In the UK it would be Apples job to prove it was your fault, not your job to prove it wasn't. At least for the first six months. After that, the burden of proof is on you.

Consumer laws = win.

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BasicGreatGuy said:
It is plausible that said beta caused his phone to overheat. And the shattering of the glass was a consequence of the OP running the beta. As such, I believe that iOS 7 is proper to bring up.

I have never heard of Gorilla Glass breaking on its own like that, running released software in proper operating temperature and climate.

Who knows what truly happened. Either way, from what the OP has said, I believe that Apple has done a good job of providing him warrantied service. I don't believe Apple is obligated to do anything further for him.
Click to expand...

The phone overheating to such a degree to cause the screen to shatter can only be described as a hardware fault, surely.
 
I'm sorry; whatever way you cut it, screens don't crack themselves. When I bought an iPhone 4S, the first day I bought it, I found that 20 minutes later there was a crack on the screen originating from the home button.

Yeah it cost me $200 for a new phone; sure I didn't know how it happened, but it did.
 
ItBeMe22 said:
If you bought a car and took delivery of it and the next day you see a crack in the windshield and than take the car back to the dealer. WHO do you think would pay for it. I rest my case.:apple:
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not everyone here uses this common sense approach to everyday problems.
 
same thing happened to me. I had a brand new 4S replacement. Took it out of my pocket the next day with a big crack right across the screen and I never dropped it. Took a few phone calls and eventually apple agreed to a one time good will replacement for free.
 
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