At this point, you've got to see the manager! But be respectful. Demanding wont get you anything but aggrivation.
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Macbook Air Issues-Apple Store Visit
- Thread starter gan6660
- Start date
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I called my Apple Store and asked when a manager would be available to talk to about issues I was having and the person I was talking to then said well Im a manager how can I help you. I said about having to send the MBA in for repairs many times and that I dont feel Im getting anywhere with the phone support. He then said to definetly make an appoinment and bring it to the store and then asked when I was coming in to make sure that he would be available to speak with me once I arrive. So I made an appoinment for 12pm tomorrow to speak with the manager and I assume a genuis. It seemed that he is going to do more then setup another repair because he wouldnt want me to come in just to do the same thing I could do over the phone. So hopefully I leave the mall with a brand new MBA tomorrow! Im pushing for the SSD model for all the trouble Ive been through.
There going to replace the top case again and they are going to replace the bottom case also which was really scratched but that wasnt from them.
This was at the Apple store, after speaking with a manager? I am really surprised they just didn't give you a new MBA.
Yes I was at the Apple Store and I really pushed a replacement saying that this is unacceptable but they wouldnt budge. I asked for the manager and they said that he would be there in about 30 minutes but they said that there isnt anything he could do either because the case is in the control of Executive Relations which has authority over the manager. They also said that if the issue was mechanical they would have no problem giving me a new one but since it is cosmetic they can only fix it since there is no way to prove that the scratch was caused by them. The only "extra" I got out of them was the replacement bottom case which was badly scratched but that wasnt their fault.
Yes it probably would have and I should of listened to the people in this thread. Also the genius I talked to today was the one who originally did the screen repair on the MBA.
Well, I've been following this blog for awhile. And today, I read some things that I found disturbing. I feel for this person who has had trouble with repair. However, it does not in title you to a new "Bigger and Better" machine! Be happy they are repairing your machine!!!! If they don't get it right, don't expect an SSD when you had a regular HD. And a free Magic Track pad for your troubles? Come on! If everyone behaved in this manner, Apple would be out of business. Or we would be back to paying 3500.00 for a laptop. Just be happy they are willing to fix your machine. Many times they do go the extra mile, but to expect extra for your trouble. HA. Companies have to make a profit. If they don't they can't give people jobs, they can't grow and would all go out of business. So stop thinking the world owes you something. Be thankful for what you get!
Oh, and you should have just gone to the apple store to begin with. Everyone here told you and told you......Well, good luck.
Oh, and you should have just gone to the apple store to begin with. Everyone here told you and told you......Well, good luck.
Its their obligation to fix my machine, there not doing me a favor. Applecare was bought for this machine so if Apple didnt fix it they would have a lawsuit. I hate to admit it but I had better service from Sony on my prior laptop. I never had to leave the house for a repair and they sent someone to my house to repair it in front of me and explain what they were doing. And when that didnt work twice they told me to send it in and they replaced the machine with no questions asked. Quick and simple and without spending $25 on gas. When over $1800 is spent on something it is expected to work and then when an extra warranty is purchased I expect that warranty to be honored in a timely and hassle free manner. Because of this I am stronly considering buying the Vaio Z for college next year since PC's are recommended for business school anyway. And yes because of all this trouble I do expect to get something for my time and in the end I sought of did with them replacing the bottom case. And I might not be so mad at them but the last few phone calls and the store visit today took a very accusitive tone against me. The didnt come out and say that they think I made the scratches but they implied it in more than one way. Then today in the store the guy disappears into the back for like 25 minutes and I thought he was calling the manager or executive relations but he then comes out and says that he has well documented this machine and took extensive pictures and wanted me to review the machine and sign a paper before he accepted it. But he wouldnt even let me sign the paper because I wasnt 18 and he had my mom sign it. That never happen to me before with numerous iPods and Macbooks so I gues he wanted something legally binding. I guess what Im saying is that the moto of a company should be is that the customer is always right and that was my only experience with Apple up until this point where their helpful until they mess up and dont want to admit it and then act like its my fault. Touching on my Sony experience again they found water damage inside the computer but they said since Ive been through so much trouble with the repair man already (he was at my house only twice) they would go ahead and replace it. Mind you I had no special or extended warranty on this machine and it was $900 less than the MBA.
"Be thankful for what you get" - a load of botched repairs? I don't think so.
gan6660 - I see you wrote "Also the genius I talked to today was the one who originally did the screen repair on the MBA." So is this the one who broke the wifi and missed a screw? Did you point that out to them?
How much longer is left on your Applecare - perhaps you can persuade them to extend it after all these repairs.
gan6660 - I see you wrote "Also the genius I talked to today was the one who originally did the screen repair on the MBA." So is this the one who broke the wifi and missed a screw? Did you point that out to them?
How much longer is left on your Applecare - perhaps you can persuade them to extend it after all these repairs.
The applecare is left until May 2011. I did point that out to them after the genius said Im the one who did the repair and it worked fine after it left this store. He then quickly moved on to other things put I stopped him and said "No it did not work perfectly the wifi was broken and this store is the one that started all the trouble." I really didnt receive a response from that and he just looked at me and said ok and moved on.
wow man. I just finished reading through all four pages of this, and I must say, you really have to be the nicest guy on the internet. I would have raged after the first or second repair when it came back broken even worse than when it left. You got it back once, and it wouldn't even turn on? I would have done exactly what everyone else suggested. I would have marched right into that apple store, and made a big scene. I mean sure, I might seem like a jackass, but I guarantee I'd get the point across. And even if they didn't replace it, I'd try as hard as I could to watch them repair it right in front of me, and then turn it on and test it. Wow, you really are a trooper haha
'Consumer Reports'magazine's computer ratings just arrived...
... in my snail-mail box. I don't think this can be seen for free online. Subscription only.
This is the September issue's big annual survey. Of the 7 brands whose repair frequency was surveyed, they have 2 lists, laptops and desktops. On the desktop list, Apple is said to have the fewest rrepairs.
But on the laptop list, Apple's repair frequency puts it in the middle of the list. On that list, with "fewer repairs" coming first, the list is: Toshiba, Sony, Compaq, Acer, Apple, HP, Gateway, Dell and Lenovo as worst on their list.
On the big testing evaluation charts (which do not factor in the repair history), for 10 to 13", Apple takes the top 5 slots, with the MacBook Air 1.86 ghz model (the SSD model wasn't included) being rated overall #8 out of 12 models tested. Getting an "overall score" of 59. (The #1 rated MBP 13" 2.66 ghz MC375LL/A got an overall score of 73).
The gold standard of sobriety in product testing, as far as they go, C.R. doesn't test / survey and rate computer makers on what happens if you phone for help. But several other magazines do that, and just recently one of them found that Apple as it usually does, rated clearly #1 in that key area.
But clearly Apple is not in a leadership position at all, in laptop reliability. They need to be reminded, that sales could be even higher if they got their reliability up to Toshiba's level.
... in my snail-mail box. I don't think this can be seen for free online. Subscription only.
This is the September issue's big annual survey. Of the 7 brands whose repair frequency was surveyed, they have 2 lists, laptops and desktops. On the desktop list, Apple is said to have the fewest rrepairs.
But on the laptop list, Apple's repair frequency puts it in the middle of the list. On that list, with "fewer repairs" coming first, the list is: Toshiba, Sony, Compaq, Acer, Apple, HP, Gateway, Dell and Lenovo as worst on their list.
On the big testing evaluation charts (which do not factor in the repair history), for 10 to 13", Apple takes the top 5 slots, with the MacBook Air 1.86 ghz model (the SSD model wasn't included) being rated overall #8 out of 12 models tested. Getting an "overall score" of 59. (The #1 rated MBP 13" 2.66 ghz MC375LL/A got an overall score of 73).
The gold standard of sobriety in product testing, as far as they go, C.R. doesn't test / survey and rate computer makers on what happens if you phone for help. But several other magazines do that, and just recently one of them found that Apple as it usually does, rated clearly #1 in that key area.
But clearly Apple is not in a leadership position at all, in laptop reliability. They need to be reminded, that sales could be even higher if they got their reliability up to Toshiba's level.
No one here is demanding a bigger and better laptop. We were hoping. Most of us here paid top dollar for our laptops so one would expect top service. And I only got a replacement after my 3rd hardware defect. Honestly, their awesome service is why I even bother putting up with stupid random things breaking, like the hinge, lines on screen or audio hardware.
This thread turned out to be that movie with the highest of expectations... only to disappoint at the end.
Too bad for you OP. Tell you one thing though, I would have walked out w/ a rev c, no doubt in my mind.
Too bad for you OP. Tell you one thing though, I would have walked out w/ a rev c, no doubt in my mind.
Sorry for the delay in my reply.
When they replaced mine I'd already had:
4 displays
2 trackpads
New keyboard
New speakers
New top case
New hard drive
I had a very creaky hinge on the last time, (I got all this done by emailing steve jobs, I also got called by someone from executive relations).
They phoned me back the next day and she just said "I have good news for you, due to the problems we are going to be replacing your machine, and we are even going to add some upgrades for you" and she just sent me the i7.
You should've been given the extension number of the guy in executive relations so you could contact him directly.
I hope you get a replacement. Normally it's after the 3rd repair (so the 4th time) that they offer a replacement.
If anything else goes wrong, just say how this has costed you gas money, a ridiculous amount of time and loss of productivity as you've continually been without your main computer. Just ask nicely if there's Any chance of you getting a replacement unit.
Good luck.
P.S. You don't have a MBA in your sig :S
When they replaced mine I'd already had:
4 displays
2 trackpads
New keyboard
New speakers
New top case
New hard drive
I had a very creaky hinge on the last time, (I got all this done by emailing steve jobs, I also got called by someone from executive relations).
They phoned me back the next day and she just said "I have good news for you, due to the problems we are going to be replacing your machine, and we are even going to add some upgrades for you" and she just sent me the i7.
You should've been given the extension number of the guy in executive relations so you could contact him directly.
I hope you get a replacement. Normally it's after the 3rd repair (so the 4th time) that they offer a replacement.
If anything else goes wrong, just say how this has costed you gas money, a ridiculous amount of time and loss of productivity as you've continually been without your main computer. Just ask nicely if there's Any chance of you getting a replacement unit.
Good luck.
P.S. You don't have a MBA in your sig :S
This is an interesting thread for the few of us who are interested.
I will, with a touch of guilt, give a summary of my recent service issues with an Apple store.
For the smart among you who want the conclusion without details, the bottom line appears to be that each store manager will deal with issues like Gan's in different ways. Perhaps I got lucky.
At the time of our first problem, our household had 2 IMacs, my Air, 2 MBP's and a white MacBook. Oh, and there are IPods around here also. So one of the MBP's was having a battery problem and daughter took it in for a Genius experience. The Genius also noted a screen donut and said things would be fixed in 1 to 3 days. At about the same time, my Air had a left hinge failure.
I was an early adopter of the Air, February 2008. I got the 3 year Apple care. Machine one was a hot one. Machine 2 had issues and it was not until Machine 3 that I had adjusted to the heat and the fans and had a machine I was happy with. Hindsight reality is that machine 1 was not any different than machine 3. And Applecare did not properly get forwarded to the new machines which was an additional stressor.
When I took the Air in I asked if the MBP was done. "No. We are waiting on a part." WTF? Do you need a part for my Air? "Yes." Okay. Call me when it is available and tell me why you didn't call to let us know you needed a part for the MBP repair. "We screwed up."
3 days later, no part available for the MBP, it was needed by daughter so she went and got it. The parts had just arrived. The store cancelled the repair and returned the parts. That was a mistake.
I get a call that the part is available for my Air. I take it in and talk to Tarzan about the MBP issue. She sez they screwed up and she will get the parts for the MBP available and call us when they are again available.
Air gets "fixed." Air goes home and the wireless does not work. E-mail received about service at Genius bar. Response by me not entirely favorable. The store manager, we will call him Ethel, rings me for a talk. Blah, blah blah: My air don't work right and the MBP issue kinda was dumb. And Viola: they give me a new Air. SWEET!. I jump from a 64 SSD to a 128SSD which I needed.
Daughter drops MBP and they fix her issues. I go from pissed at Apple service to so happy and guilty about my new Air that I buy Mom a new IPad. Which is absolutely cool, by the way.
Conclusions:
1. Gan's story is unfortunate. I think he is getting a bit screwed and that is likely the minority. A big reason we are contributing to Steve Jobs fortune is because Apple service kicks ass in a good way. With the expansion of product line it will be more difficult for Apple to maintain their service excellence. But that is probably a bigger deal than their "coolness" factor. (Did I say the IPad is indeed "cool"?)
I hope Gan gets a new Air before it is all over.
2. My spanking new rev. C is absolutely, positively the same machine as my rev. A. I got no frikkin' idea what has been improved. I greatly appreciate the larger hard drive. No other notable difference in terms of performance. Still warm when running You Tubes. Fans crank at 6200rpm's.
3. The current Air is a great machine. If you want to use a real computer, this is not your wife's IPad. Though the IPad is cool, it really is not a very good "input" device. Do you think I would type this current rant on an IPad touchscreen??? No frikkin' way. And could I have done this on daughter's 4.5 pound MBP? Yesssss. But my lap is happier with the 3 pound Air. It is cool even when it is hot.
4. If I did not get a sort of free MBA I would not know to WAIT until the next version. I was ready to jump and pay the $1799 but I am glad I did not have to. I am happy to have the bigger hard drive, but really, this machine has not been changed since February 2008. Maybe the big day will be September 21 or maybe it will be early 2011 (when the Verizon I-Phone may exist. Or not.). If you have an Air, wait for the next version. If you do not have one and want and need an Air, but it now. You will be pleased.
5. Gan should keep complaining until he/she gets a new one.
Best to all.
I got that email too and said everything was bad and that I was unhappy. It then asked me if it was alright for Apple to contact me about my responses and I said yes so I hope I get a call from someone again. Oh and I checked my repair online today and it just says "hardware accepted, awaiting repair." I was told I could pick it up on Monday but I gues not.
thoughts on apple's customer care
i agree with both sides of the argument (i only read the first 10 or so posts), on one hand you cant expect them to give you an upgrade, but on the other hand they are a real hassle. i feel ya about them taking an accusive tone, i once had my airport fail on my new macbook a month after getting it, and they tried to say i opened up the machine and tampered with it. (i was never inside it) and tried to fine $700 to fix it. what a joke! eventually i got them to fix it because it WAS covered on the warranty. i like how easy it is to talk to a person and how helpful they are when getting service from apple, but when it gets down to it and their stuff really does fail on ya, they are nowhere to be found. talking to dell about my mom's laptop failure was exactly the opposite. as another poster said, their customer service sucked, but they had no problem sending you a new laptop without even giving a real diagnosis. maybe apple's employees are trained to be stingey, while with dell's outsourced service, they don't really care, and dell doesn't really care, as long as the job gets done.
hey, OP, you are not going to squeeze an $300 SSD upgrade out of them just because your machine failed. they aren't dumb. their obligation is to fix your computer, not to upgrade you if anything goes wrong. the warranty doesn't say "if your machine fails, we'll upgrade you for your lost time!" it simply says they will get you working again. that would be nice if every one of us could get a free upgrade, then we would all be excited when our machines die!
i agree with both sides of the argument (i only read the first 10 or so posts), on one hand you cant expect them to give you an upgrade, but on the other hand they are a real hassle. i feel ya about them taking an accusive tone, i once had my airport fail on my new macbook a month after getting it, and they tried to say i opened up the machine and tampered with it. (i was never inside it) and tried to fine $700 to fix it. what a joke! eventually i got them to fix it because it WAS covered on the warranty. i like how easy it is to talk to a person and how helpful they are when getting service from apple, but when it gets down to it and their stuff really does fail on ya, they are nowhere to be found. talking to dell about my mom's laptop failure was exactly the opposite. as another poster said, their customer service sucked, but they had no problem sending you a new laptop without even giving a real diagnosis. maybe apple's employees are trained to be stingey, while with dell's outsourced service, they don't really care, and dell doesn't really care, as long as the job gets done.
hey, OP, you are not going to squeeze an $300 SSD upgrade out of them just because your machine failed. they aren't dumb. their obligation is to fix your computer, not to upgrade you if anything goes wrong. the warranty doesn't say "if your machine fails, we'll upgrade you for your lost time!" it simply says they will get you working again. that would be nice if every one of us could get a free upgrade, then we would all be excited when our machines die!