Resolved How can i get a free replacement from Apple?

[tymaster50]

My phone is slightly bent, when you place it on a flat surface the bottom is slightly raised, there is a ding on the back that came out of the box and it seems I still have the persistent "yellow tint" since the blue seems to be a lot lighter, almost yellowish. i have read about the bent iPhones not really getting replaced and instead losing their warranty since the genius guys classify it as "user damage"
I have done nothing to warrant a bend, I haven't placed any pressure on it, haven't sat on it or laid on it or anything. I don't really want to shell out $50 to use up one of my ac+ phones. So is there anything I can say that will give them a higher chance of replacing it? If this is any help my battery life isn't great, using it barely for 2 hours and 19 minutes got me 53% battery and I'm not on LTE.

 

[POLBOSS]

I'll be a little dishonest (ok, a lot dishonest) but... Every single time that I need to replace an iPhone for something little I do this... I tell the genius that from time to time my iPhone says, no SIM card inserted, don't mention any other defect or any other concerns... They always ask if you have gotten another SIM card and I always say, yes, from an AT&T store, that was the first thing that I did. I also add that I already tried to adjust the SIM card as much as I could...
The genius won't put your iPhone on a table to see if it's a little bent or not...
Or concentrate on any other thing than on what you are telling...
Again... I do this because I'm dishonest and because it let's me get in and out quick without having to explain this or that...

 

[tymaster50]

I'll be a little dishonest (ok, a lot dishonest) but... Every single time that I need to replace an iPhone for something little I do this... I tell the genius that from time to time my iPhone says, no SIM card inserted, don't mention any other defect or any other concerns... They always ask if you have gotten another SIM card and I always say, yes, from an AT&T store, that was the first thing that I did. I also add that I already tried to adjust the SIM card as much as I could...
The genius won't put your iPhone on a table to see if it's a little bent or not...
Or concentrate on any other thing than on what you are telling...
Again... I do this because I'm dishonest and because it let's me get in and out quick without having to explain this or that...

I have Verizon, and I just called them about the issue and they said that it is now user damage, wow congratulations Apple you just went from one of my favorite companies to one of the worst. Occasional bursts of kindness to cover up them knocking most devices out of warranty as soon as it's dropped. My phone literally did this overnight, I didn't notice until maybe 11am today that dirt was accumulating. It wasn't like that last night

 

[Wuiffi]

"Called them"
Them meaning Verizon or Apple?!

 

[dominion155]

I have Verizon, and I just called them about the issue and they said that it is now user damage, wow congratulations Apple you just went from one of my favorite companies to one of the worst. Occasional bursts of kindness to cover up them knocking most devices out of warranty as soon as it's dropped. My phone literally did this overnight, I didn't notice until maybe 11am today that dirt was accumulating. It wasn't like that last night

Call Apple again, and ask to speak to a manager, or go to a store and speak to a manager. It is unnacceptable that it came bent, and they have to give you a replacement if it is not user damage and came like that.

If they still refuse, you can go in with another problem. Find out if the battery is subpar, yellow tint, any scuffs, speakers sound bad, home button doesnt work always, etc....



Im going in tomorrow to get my phone replaced cuz of a faulty home button/scuffs.


GL man!

 

[tymaster50]

"Called them"
Them meaning Verizon or Apple?!

I called Apple, since I have ac+ it was free but really terrible CS. They knew that they were going to have bending issues. It's not pressure related because there is no crack, the phone is straight if you start from the bottom but as you move up the side aluminum starts to peel downwards and you can see dust coming in.
Idk if you can see it that well in the picture since its from a webcam shot, but you can see the slight v shape bend in between the volume buttons
in the second pic you can kind of see the bent phone

 

[dominion155]

I called Apple, since I have ac+ it was free but really terrible CS. They knew that they were going to have bending issues. It's not pressure related because there is no crack, the phone is straight if you start from the bottom but as you move up the side aluminum starts to peel downwards and you can see dust coming in.
Idk if you can see it that well in the picture since its from a webcam shot, but you can see the slight v shape bend in between the volume buttons
in the second pic you can kind of see the bent phone

So they said you can get a free replacement then?

I see what you mean by the slight bend. It must be the battery expanding or just a defect in manufacturing.

 

[tymaster50]

So they said you can get a free replacement then?

I see what you mean by the slight bend. It must be the battery expanding or just a defect in manufacturing.

they said that it was classified as user damage, completely unacceptable.

 

[PNutts]

OP: By any chance did you push it into a case? The Candyshell I bought is so tight that I was concerned on how much pressure I had to put on it. I don't want to take it out to look and then press it in again.

 

[dominion155]

they said that it was classified as user damage, completely unacceptable.

From what I see, you have three options now. If within 30 days and bought from Apple, return it. They have no questions asked policy within 30 days.


If not, call or go in store to speak to a manager. If it did indeed come defective, do not take no for an answer.


The last option (what I would do, if I have exhausted all others) is complain about other defects.

Home button that stops working sometimes, wifi problems, (they know these problems only happen randomly, so they will take your word for it).
You could also take that image someone was flaunting around the forums, that can make the screen seem flickery. Say that there is a problem with the LCD.

You could question the battery life, signal strength, etc....



I personally would stick with the wifi,home button problems, as they cant test those completely, but know they are real. They also take your word if you cant reproduce the defect.




Yet again, dont take no for an answer. If it did really come defective, they have to replace it.

 

[tymaster50]

OP: By any chance did you push it into a case? The Candyshell I bought is so tight that I was concerned on how much pressure I had to put on it. I don't want to take it out to look and then press it in again.

No the only case I ever put on it was an otterbox which afaik aren't really bendable.

This is really just completely unacceptable. Can you do walk-in visits?

 

[VandyChem2009]

From what I see, you have three options now. If within 30 days and bought from Apple, return it. They have no questions asked policy within 30 days.


If not, call or go in store to speak to a manager. If it did indeed come defective, do not take no for an answer.


The last option (what I would do, if I have exhausted all others) is complain about other defects.

Home button that stops working sometimes, wifi problems, (they know these problems only happen randomly, so they will take your word for it).
You could also take that image someone was flaunting around the forums, that can make the screen seem flickery. Say that there is a problem with the LCD.

You could question the battery life, signal strength, etc....



I personally would stick with the wifi,home button problems, as they cant test those completely, but know they are real. They also take your word if you cant reproduce the defect.




Yet again, dont take no for an answer. If it did really come defective, they have to replace it.

No questions asked assuming the phone is in the same condition it was in when purchased. While depending on the genius it is possible to return a slightly scuffed or abused phone to the Apple Store I know that 99% of the time if your phone is bent they probably won't let you return it for a full refund.

 

[dominion155]

No the only case I ever put on it was an otterbox which afaik aren't really bendable.

This is really just completely unacceptable. Can you do walk-in visits?

Typically no. You could try your luck, but most of the time they require a Genius Bar reservation. You can make it for tonight, or for tomorrow morning, etc.

For instance, I tried doing a walk in once and was not allowed to talk to a genius because I had no appointment.

You could try asking a normal apple employee bout replacing it, but they may redirect you to a Genius Bar.

 

[PNutts]

No the only case I ever put on it was an otterbox which afaik aren't really bendable.

This is really just completely unacceptable. Can you do walk-in visits?

Thx. For a Genius appt.? You can try but unless they have an opening at that time they will be booked with folks that made their appointments in advance. In my neck of the woods the chances would be very slim they have an open appointment. My recommendation would be as close to closing as possible.

 

[dominion155]

No questions asked assuming the phone is in the same condition it was in when purchased. While depending on the genius it is possible to return a slightly scuffed or abused phone to the Apple Store I know that 99% of the time if your phone is bent they probably won't let you return it for a full refund.

If it was an out of the box defect, then they would. May be hard to convince them, but it doesn't seem that prevalent of a bend.

I returned my white iphone 5 and he didn't even check it at all.

 

[VandyChem2009]

If it was an out of the box defect, then they would. May be hard to convince them, but it doesn't seem that prevalent of a bend.

I returned my white iphone 5 and he didn't even check it at all.

Like I said some Apple employees don't care and will just take the phone but others actualy inspect the device. It's also hard to say that something was out of the box defective nearly a month after purchasing the phone.

 

[tymaster50]

ah I don't really wanna wait until tomorrow, it's hard to believe that all of the appointments for today are booked.

 

[dominion155]

Like I said some Apple employees don't care and will just take the phone but others actualy inspect the device. It's also hard to say that something was out of the box defective nearly a month after purchasing the phone.

That's true as well. I suppose it just depends on the genius you get.

 

[tymaster50]

That's true as well. I suppose it just depends on the genius you get.

I think if I don't mention the bend thing they will not notice it, it's kinda hard to see unless you're paying attention to detail but it's definitely bent telling from the way you can press down on one side and the other will raise. I'll probably just lie and tell them that my wifi connection doesn't work sometimes, like it won't connect to known networks and how it will drop the signal sometimes even though it works perfectly fine on my laptop right next to me. They can't test that and my screen looks kinda yellowish

 

[VandyChem2009]

I think if I don't mention the bend thing they will not notice it, it's kinda hard to see unless you're paying attention to detail but it's definitely bent telling from the way you can press down on one side and the other will raise. I'll probably just lie and tell them that my wifi connection doesn't work sometimes, like it won't connect to known networks and how it will drop the signal sometimes even though it works perfectly fine on my laptop right next to me. They can't test that and my screen looks kinda yellowish

Just make sure you are a good liar. I for one am terrible at it. Or am I....

 

[tymaster50]

Just make sure you are a good liar. I for one am terrible at it. Or am I....

It can't be hard,
"hello I have noticed over the past few days when I am using wifi it will randomly shut off at no set schedule, I could be downloading an app and it will say "use wifi because app is over 50mb" even though I am on wifi and have celluar data turned off, I know it isn't my wifi because I am also using my laptop to browse the internet at the same time"

What could they possibly say to that that would make any sense?

 

[VandyChem2009]

It can't be hard,
"hello I have noticed over the past few days when I am using wifi it will randomly shut off at no set schedule, I could be downloading an app and it will say "use wifi because app is over 50mb" even though I am on wifi and have celluar data turned off, I know it isn't my wifi because I am also using my laptop to browse the internet at the same time"

What could they possibly say to that that would make any sense?

Come back in a week if the issue persists. Plus you run the risk of getting a phone that really does have these issues and then the genius would really be skeptical of your case.

 

[tymaster50]

Come back in a week if the issue persists. Plus you run the risk of getting a phone that really does have these issues and then the genius would really be skeptical of your case.

"it seems this phone too has the same issues I was experiencing, can you offer another replacement?"

Then if it happens again I will just update to 6.0.1 or wait until these "defect free" phones ship.

 

[VandyChem2009]

"it seems this phone too has the same issues I was experiencing, can you offer another replacement?"

Then if it happens again I will just update to 6.0.1 or wait until these "defect free" phones ship.

Well I guess if you are cool with commiting fraud you are good to go.

 

[tymaster50]

Well I guess if you are cool with commiting fraud you are good to go.

technically I'm not committing fraud, I'm taking the phone back for a design flaw but Apple doesn't want to own up to it so I'm just saying that it has another issue which I only encountered twice. They really should have known that the stuff would have dented and bent with use.