Yeah but you probably paid full price for your 16 month old iMac. And so they gave you the a new iMac at the same pricepoint.
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How do i get my money back from apple?
- Thread starter bkarabel
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Price has nothing to do with warrantees it's about the product. If your low end MBA stops working, and your under apple care they should either repair or replace with a low end MBA. If you then say you want a high end MBA and they say pay the difference, that's fair play. But to charge extra for a low end MBA is wrong.
It has everything to do with the warranty. If he bought his Rev A a year ago for $1799 they wouldn't be asking him to pay the difference.
And actually he upgraded in the deal. A Rev B at $1799 is a much better deal than a Rev A at $1399. REfurb Rev A's are $999 on Apple's site while Refurb Rev B's are $1549.
Your argument that he'd have to pay for a higher end model can be applied here. He is in effect getting a higher end model. AT the time of his purchase he could have bought a "higher end" REv B for $1799, but instead chose the "lower end" Rev A for $1399.
He shouldn't pay. This has everything to do with the warranty yes, just look at the warranty covering ANY HARDWARE FAILURE under normal working conditions with replacement at no charge. Its not his fault all they have are REV Bs. They can hunt down a REV A if they want and give him a new one of those, or just give him the rev b no charge. They can pick, but his warranty protects him from having to pay for anything under these conditions.
Just to make it clear,
There is no " higher end " purchase, period. They are both the base model machines, ( 1.6/80 vs 1.6/120) . The reason i bought my original mba because i was going to save a bit ( $ 400 ), my original mba was brand new in box and it was not refurbished.
I did not ask for an upgrade ( and where is the upgrade? they are both base models ).
All i wanted a working machine... that`s all.
This is a very interesting case, I'm excited to see how it turns out.
I understand why people saying that he essentially took a "deal" by "upgrading" to the new revision model, but the business practice seems a little shady.
I think that the failure of the apple staff to not present all the options up front automatically puts Apple in the wrong.
Seems like the OP is protected by Applecare and should get his money back.
I understand why people saying that he essentially took a "deal" by "upgrading" to the new revision model, but the business practice seems a little shady.
I think that the failure of the apple staff to not present all the options up front automatically puts Apple in the wrong.
Seems like the OP is protected by Applecare and should get his money back.
It is too, in effect, a higher model machine. It's the next-gen MBA.
AS you said, at the time you made your purchase you chose the $1399 MBA Rev A over the $1799 Rev B. IN effect there is no difference between the choice you made or the choice someone makes in choosing a $1199 imac over a $1499 iMac of the same generation.
Totally different story imo if you purchased your Rev A for $1799.
Where is the upgrade?!!??
Have you looked at benchmarks? The Rev B is much faster than the Rev A. It has a faster gpu for one thing. It has a faster and larger hard drive as well. It has faster DDR3 memory. Faster frontside bus. Bigger L2 cache. The Rev B 1.6ghz model is even a good chunk faster than the old high-end Rev A 1.8ghz model. It's a big jump - some 33% or more faster than the previous base model according to MacWorld.
I'm not going to knock a man for trying to get more of a deal. Why not right? ...., but imo you didn't get ripped off at all. I personally think you paid too much originally and so getting a rev B for $400 more is well worth it.
If you just want a Rev A then get a full refund and buy a refurb Rev A from Apple's online site for $999. Good as new and you'll pocket $400 from your original $1399 purchase.
I got my 1.6 Rev A replaced with a 1.6 Rev B about 9 months into the 1 year warranty at the genius bar. I am still surprised they don't just put an order in for a Rev A refurb if none are in the store.
The only trouble I had was getting the AppleCare transferred to the new serial number. They didn't seem to want to do this and it took a 30 minute phone call to accomplish.
The only trouble I had was getting the AppleCare transferred to the new serial number. They didn't seem to want to do this and it took a 30 minute phone call to accomplish.
Warranty says repair at no charge, but it does not say replacement at no charge. It doesn't use the word replacement either. IT says exchange. I couldn't quote it because it won't let me copy and paste, but I paraphrased the key words in an earlier post.
The difference here is that the guy bought the Rev A for a cheaper price while the Rev B's were also in the store. In effect he bought a lower-end MBA model at the time of purchase.
Sure it's not his fault all they have is Rev Bs. But had he refused the deal Apple would have offered him a refund. He accepted the deal.
I got my 1.6 Rev A replaced with a 1.6 Rev B about 9 months into the 1 year warranty at the genius bar. I am still surprised they don't just put an order in for a Rev A refurb if none are in the store.
The only trouble I had was getting the AppleCare transferred to the new serial number. They didn't seem to want to do this and it took a 30 minute phone call to accomplish.
Oh yeah difference is you paid full price for your Rev A.
Would they have refunded him since he bought it at another store? Refund and then purchase of a 2.0 Macbook wouldn't be the worst deal.
trip1ex,
How do they know how much i paid for my original mba. They did not ask for a receipt nor i`ve provided one. I have my receipt from B&H but they never asked to see it. Do you think B&H or other retailers provide apple their sales records online?.
Don`t get me wrong i know it is a better machine ( so far i am not experiencing any core shut downs or any other issue and i am really pushing the machine to its limits). It has a larger hard drive, faster ram and a better video card. But my point is still in my opinion it`s just a swap ( base model to base model ).
I mean how can they know how much i paid for it?
If they charge you an extra $400, they should have upgraded the machine for that amount... not replaced the machine with the same exact model.
I know the upgrade to the next machine is more, but if they charge you for a new machine that already has Apple Care -- they darn well should give you an upgrade.
Calling the state Attorney General, and the Departments of Weights and Measures (whoever handles pricing) may be your next step. In fact, I'd probably call them both.
If you can grab a deal for a price on a product, you should never be penalized any fees before a company offers you to do warranty service -- unless they are upgrading to a higher level product for that money.
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Basically, something like what happened would in most people's eyes be called consumer fraud, either a scam a store is pulling, or the store manager is sticking the money in his pocket.
tricky situation though. I have a 2.2ghz macbook which is nearly 2 years old. it was the 'middle' model and cost £829. now if it broke and they offered a replacement, i wouldn't be happy with the current base model, although it has better specs. it costs nearly £100 less than what i paid. but should i expect apple to give me the current 'middle' model which now costs £100 more that what i paid?
also something i find interesting if this did occur, could i argue that i had 2.2ghz processor, and that 2.0ghz processor on the lower models is not good enough and demand a top model one? (although as they're a few gens on from mine they will be better)
What store was this? This is a complete scam on their part. If they couldn't fix it at the store, then they should send it in for repair.
If they did not offer that option, and offered a in-warranty replacement, then there should not be any extra associated cost.
This actually has my blood boiling right now, but I never would have left that store paying an extra dime.
I think you need to tell us which store, so we know what to deal with should we walk in those doors for service.
If they did not offer that option, and offered a in-warranty replacement, then there should not be any extra associated cost.
This actually has my blood boiling right now, but I never would have left that store paying an extra dime.
I think you need to tell us which store, so we know what to deal with should we walk in those doors for service.
Every company has a Standard Operating Procedure to handle these situations. It is pretty clear what the Apple SOP is in this case. What SHOULD have happened is as follows.
1. "Genius" decides machine can't get replaced; therefore needs replacement
2. "Genius" discovers rev A is not in store
3. "Genius" tells customer Apple will ship him a replacement rev A from company inventory, but it will take a few days. Apple is allowed to ship refurbs to fulfill warranty and they DO have refurb rev A models in inventory.
4. Possibly, "Genius" may offer an OPTION to upgrade to rev B at $400, as alternative to 3. I say "possibly" because this is the only part of the story that may or may not be part of Apple SOP.
Now, per the originator step 3 did not happen. The question is, did the Genius really skip step 3 or did the originator not understand it in the confusion? This is an important point.
The reason originator seems to be getting runaround from Apple is that everyone at Apple assumes step 3 happened per SOP.
If in fact the Genius skipped step 3, he was not following Apple SOP. The point that Genius skipped step 3 needs to be made clear in any communication with Apple, otherwise Apple people will assume it happened.
1. "Genius" decides machine can't get replaced; therefore needs replacement
2. "Genius" discovers rev A is not in store
3. "Genius" tells customer Apple will ship him a replacement rev A from company inventory, but it will take a few days. Apple is allowed to ship refurbs to fulfill warranty and they DO have refurb rev A models in inventory.
4. Possibly, "Genius" may offer an OPTION to upgrade to rev B at $400, as alternative to 3. I say "possibly" because this is the only part of the story that may or may not be part of Apple SOP.
Now, per the originator step 3 did not happen. The question is, did the Genius really skip step 3 or did the originator not understand it in the confusion? This is an important point.
The reason originator seems to be getting runaround from Apple is that everyone at Apple assumes step 3 happened per SOP.
If in fact the Genius skipped step 3, he was not following Apple SOP. The point that Genius skipped step 3 needs to be made clear in any communication with Apple, otherwise Apple people will assume it happened.
Clarification on ALL points
First, the reason apple "refunded" you $1399 even though they don't have proof (they never saw your receipt) that you spent $1399 is a complete coincidence. When the Rev Bs first hit Apple Stores, they were selling brand new Rev As for $1399 to clear stock; saw them with my own eyes. It turns out that B and H was selling them for the same price Apple was. The point is, this is a legitimate Apple price point.
If you buy a shirt from GAP for $20 and bring it back without a receipt after it's been on sale for $10, they're only going to give you $10 credit.
Second, they screwed up by not offering you the option to have your Rev A repaired or replaced... as has been pointed out, they have lots of refurbs of this model.
Third, you screwed up by taking the offer. You should have first demanded that they give you the Rev B for nothing, and when that didn't work you should have demanded repair/replacement of your Rev A. They didn't do what they should've done, but they didn't con you, or twist your arm either.
Fourth, it's odd that everyone you talked to acknowledged the superiority of the Rev B. We all know that better CPU+faster RAM+better GPU+bigger HD = better designed MBA, but Apple hasn't ever acknowledged the problems with Rev A. In your case they have tacitly done so. Unfortunately, they're using it to your disadvantage. But, in their defense, these problems are precisely why you were able to save money on the computer in the first place.
Fifth, I find it odd that they didn't just give you the Rev B for free. I took my Rev A (paid $1150 at MacMall AFTER Apple was selling it for $1399) in and complained of overheating. I was straight with them and told them that I didn't think there was anything "wrong" with it, meaning I didn't think it was broken. I told them, "everybody knows the Rev A was poorly designed" and the Genius actually acknowledged that fact. When they ran the tests (the tests that your Rev A failed) it passes with flying colors, but it got REALLY hot during testing so they replaced it.
This just goes to show you how much of this stuff depends on manager's prerogative. My manager felt like being cool, yours felt like making money. I don't know that either of them followed SOP.
I truly hope you get your money back. Be persistent, assertive, and NICE. At the very least I suspect you'll get $400 "worth" of Apple gear.
First, the reason apple "refunded" you $1399 even though they don't have proof (they never saw your receipt) that you spent $1399 is a complete coincidence. When the Rev Bs first hit Apple Stores, they were selling brand new Rev As for $1399 to clear stock; saw them with my own eyes. It turns out that B and H was selling them for the same price Apple was. The point is, this is a legitimate Apple price point.
If you buy a shirt from GAP for $20 and bring it back without a receipt after it's been on sale for $10, they're only going to give you $10 credit.
Second, they screwed up by not offering you the option to have your Rev A repaired or replaced... as has been pointed out, they have lots of refurbs of this model.
Third, you screwed up by taking the offer. You should have first demanded that they give you the Rev B for nothing, and when that didn't work you should have demanded repair/replacement of your Rev A. They didn't do what they should've done, but they didn't con you, or twist your arm either.
Fourth, it's odd that everyone you talked to acknowledged the superiority of the Rev B. We all know that better CPU+faster RAM+better GPU+bigger HD = better designed MBA, but Apple hasn't ever acknowledged the problems with Rev A. In your case they have tacitly done so. Unfortunately, they're using it to your disadvantage. But, in their defense, these problems are precisely why you were able to save money on the computer in the first place.
Fifth, I find it odd that they didn't just give you the Rev B for free. I took my Rev A (paid $1150 at MacMall AFTER Apple was selling it for $1399) in and complained of overheating. I was straight with them and told them that I didn't think there was anything "wrong" with it, meaning I didn't think it was broken. I told them, "everybody knows the Rev A was poorly designed" and the Genius actually acknowledged that fact. When they ran the tests (the tests that your Rev A failed) it passes with flying colors, but it got REALLY hot during testing so they replaced it.
This just goes to show you how much of this stuff depends on manager's prerogative. My manager felt like being cool, yours felt like making money. I don't know that either of them followed SOP.
I truly hope you get your money back. Be persistent, assertive, and NICE. At the very least I suspect you'll get $400 "worth" of Apple gear.
Yeah my point is you bought what was really the lower end MBA at the time of your purchase. And that, although maybe you could have got a better deal, you didn't get ripped off. And Apple did not buy back your laptop for a discounted price.
(I'm) Not sure how you can say both are base models when clearly one was $1399 and one was $1799 at the time you made your purchase. It seems to me the old MBA, the REv A, was in effect the low-end model because it was the last gen base model.
How did they know the price? Like you said, they used the $1399 price that was in their system. I've never registered Applecare, but I'd guess that gives them even more information. Based on the date of purchase they know the retail price of the MBA which is what Apple uses to determine what model to upgrade you to. Anyway seeing as how you paid $1399 for it and they were offering you $1399 for it you didn't have any reason to dispute their offer and so you didn't dispute it.
I say all the more power to you in your effort to try and get a better deal. However I don't think you got ripped off. It's a reasonable exchange. I mean I'd rather have a MBA Rev B for $400 more than have a working Rev A for $1399.
And Apple bought your Rev A back for the same price you paid. They did not buy it back for a discounted price as you allege in your original post. If they gave you a refund then you would have received $1399.
They can process the exchange any way they want, but offering people a refund of their money on a refurb or old stock, and charging them full whack to upgrade to a working current model stinks.
Even if it is a refurb, or a discounted old stock, you still are entitled to a working machine without being charged extra to swap it for a Rev. B machine.
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What would be the point of refurbs if Apple charges you full price every time the machine breaks?
Even if it is a refurb, or a discounted old stock, you still are entitled to a working machine without being charged extra to swap it for a Rev. B machine.
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What would be the point of refurbs if Apple charges you full price every time the machine breaks?
Still waiting for that phone call from Apple
I will post any updates guys.
Thanks,
******** UPDATE********
Finally i got the call from Apple
But i am a bit confused now, this is what they are offering me right now.
They said i can get a brand new macbook pro ( high end model ) all i have to do just take it to an apple store, they gave me a case number and a code that i have to give it to a store manager.
What do you guys think? Should i take this deal?
I have a high end macbook at home, maybe i can ebay it and keep the macbook pro and buy a macbook air with the money coming from my old macbook.
I am planing to go to an apple store today or tomorrow ( saturday ).
Finally i got the call from Apple
But i am a bit confused now, this is what they are offering me right now.
They said i can get a brand new macbook pro ( high end model ) all i have to do just take it to an apple store, they gave me a case number and a code that i have to give it to a store manager.
What do you guys think? Should i take this deal?
I have a high end macbook at home, maybe i can ebay it and keep the macbook pro and buy a macbook air with the money coming from my old macbook.
I am planing to go to an apple store today or tomorrow ( saturday ).