thank your goverment.
why praising apple about doing what their were forced to do by law and about the issue they still dont seems to address/acknowledge. so customers are getting their phones replaced or not - depending on the country or ac. it shouldnt be like that when the issue was there from the beginning.
in this scenario there shouldnt be any ac or goverment laws to protect the customer. if the device has manufacturer/design error from the beginning, no one should even consider that their phone isnt replaced automatically.
what if you lived in a county with only one year warranty and no country laws protecting, would you still believe to get a phone replaced easily by apple?
Apple and other manufacturers may be forced to cover defects and issues by law (and rightly so). My treatment from Apple is that I tell them what's going on, and they generally replace the item without issue. I've never mistreated my kit, and anything that has gone wrong has been rectified. The most difficult part has been sometimes having to wait to see someone when the Genius Bar has been busy and running over time. Not really a huge issue - the overall experience has always been great.
Compare that to the service many other companies offer - especially here in the UK - and even where they are liable, they refuse to take responsibility. Although the manufacturer offers a warranty, in the UK it is the company that sells you something that is really responsible. But those companies sometimes try and force you to use the manufacturer's warranty (even though legally they can't do this) - and the manufacturers sometimes are just extremely slow or unhelpful, as they know the seller is responsible under UK law. Unfortunately retailers rarely train their staff in basic consumer law, and tell them to refer customers to manufacturers, and you get stuck in a loop.
I've spent many hours trying to get faulty kit (TVs, graphics cards, guitars, washing machines) replaced or repaired, been given the run around by retailers (and occasionally manufacturers or extended warranty providers too), told to live with faulty kit (including those down to design faults), failed to be given calls back, and had to produce proof of the law and fight so many times when I shouldn't of had to. A lot of people I know would have given up in some cases I've been through, and I'm guessing that there are those that do.
Yes, you're right - a manufacturer (or retailer in the UK) should resolve things - as a matter of moral duty, and due to legislation covering faulty goods - and no-one should consider that a faulty phone (or other item) isn't replaced automatically.
The reality is very different - and compared to a lot of other companies I've dealt with, when something's gone wrong Apple have been a joy to deal with.
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Factory refurbished get a new serial number when processed. This could also be the case (Apple needs to maintain their maintenance stock). Next to impossible for a customer to tell if it's refurbished or not (new shell, new glass).
I don't know if it's still the case, but Apple used to give refurbished phones a really good burn-in test too, which meant that they didn't leave the factory without being in perfect condition. The couple of refurbs I've had have been flawless, and I'd consider them as good as (or better, as the risk of getting a lemon is all but removed) than a sealed new device.
customer 
