Need advice with MBP return, AKA "how credible is that rumor?"

[murdercitydevil]

So here's the deal. I have until thursday of this week before my official 14-day return window ends on the MBP I currently have. I was fully ready to return it and continue waiting for the refresh because the lack of rumors didn't point to an imminent release. Then today we got our first real rumor from that Chinese/Taiwanese newspaper site, which reports a release in April. My question is pretty simple - how credible is this rumor, and is it safe to plan for an April release?

To clarify, if it's a for sure thing that they'll be released in April, I could keep this MBP and swap it for a new one since most times the exchange time for a product refresh is extended to a month. This way I wouldn't have to pay a restocking fee. On the other hand, if the source was wrong and there are no updates this month, I will be screwed and have to sell the MBP on ebay/craigslist/whatever. That's something I really don't want to do.

Also, I understand there's no clear-cut answer. I'm pretty sure if it doesn't come directly out of Jobs' mouth, it's still only a rumor. But I'm also pretty new to this whole thing, so I'm not sure which sources are trusted more than others. This seems like a pretty solid thing, but is there any way to be sure? Any advice is appreciated, thanks!

 

[thadoggfather]

How do you have a month to exchange if a new model comes out without any restocking fee?

Which store is this??

 

[murdercitydevil]

How do you have a month to exchange if a new model comes out without any restocking fee?

Which store is this??

When I bought the MBP and asked about new models, the salesperson made it clear that most of the time, if a refreshed model comes out within 4 weeks - a month of your purchase of the old model, you can exchange it and pay the difference if any. He said there would be no restocking fee, and that if you're aggressive/persuasive, the managers will generally let you do the exchange.

EDIT: I'm just going off what the Apple store clerk told me; if this is wrong, then I will be returning it on Thursday (assuming it doesn't come out tomorrow). Also this was at the Brea Mall store in Brea, CA

 

[alphaod]

If this is an official Apple Store, the only time you can get it exchanged is within the 14-day return period.

 

[murdercitydevil]

If this is an official Apple Store, the only time you can get it exchanged is within the 14-day return period.

Well, like I said, this is just what I heard from the guy who sold me the MBP. I don't want to take my chances though.

What about the rumor though? Do you guys think it can be qualified as a for sure thing? Have there been spot-on rumors from this specific source in the past?

 

[PAC88]

Well, like I said, this is just what I heard from the guy who sold me the MBP. I don't want to take my chances though.

What about the rumor though? Do you guys think it can be qualified as a for sure thing? Have there been spot-on rumors from this specific source in the past?

don't take the guys word for it if it's not in writing anywhere.

there is a good chance they will be out sometime in the next 2 months. probably sooner rather than later

 

[breathesrain]

I haven't done it myself, but I've heard from a wide variety of people on this forum who have done the 30-day thing with no problems (it comes up every once in a while on the Arrandale thread). You could just call/go to the store and confirm with a supervisor or something.

 

[murdercitydevil]

Hmmm...well, I suppose if there's any announcements this week, I'll just call up a store manager and get confirmation/denial. Otherwise I'll play it safe and pay the fee.

 

[modular]

Hmmm...well, I suppose if there's any announcements this week, I'll just call up a store manager and get confirmation/denial. Otherwise I'll play it safe and pay the fee.

Were those 14 days worth it? Couldn't just wait it out? You already bought the computer, just keep it and move on with life!

The only thing worse than waiting and checking this site everyday, is going ahead and buying the current mbp... And then continue to check rumors for the next mbp in hopes you can return yours in time. That would drive me crazy!

 

[murdercitydevil]

Were those 14 days worth it? Couldn't just wait it out? You already bought the computer, just keep it and move on with life!

The only thing worse than waiting and checking this site everyday, is going ahead and buying the current mbp... And then continue to check rumors for the next mbp in hopes you can return yours in time. That would drive me crazy!

Sadly, I couldn't wait it out. But having this MBP for the past week has convinced me that there's no way I could keep it. I never planned to keep it, I just needed to satisfy my obsession for the time being. It's way overpriced for the hardware it has. Arrandale will be horribly overpriced too, but not as much. Honestly the deciding factor is the 9400/9600. No way am I keeping an MBP with that config.

 

[Sir Cecil]

I never planned to keep it, I just needed to satisfy my obsession for the time being.

Then you're just an abuser with low morals. That's no better than buying a stereo system, specifically to use it for a party that weekend and then returning it on the Monday.

I hope you get stuck with what you bought. You don't deserve good service.

 

[murdercitydevil]

Then you're just an abuser with low morals. That's no better than buying a stereo system, specifically to use it for a party that weekend and then returning it on the Monday.

I hope you get stuck with what you bought. You don't deserve good service.

the MBP i have is in mint condition. It's barely been used, never taken out of the house. I have a valid reason for returning it. I don't feel bad about returning it whatsoever because I'm paying the restocking fee. I don't deserve good service?

For lack of a better phrase - "don't hate the player, hate the game". I'm not abusing anything.

 

[showkati]

Then you're just an abuser with low morals. That's no better than buying a stereo system, specifically to use it for a party that weekend and then returning it on the Monday.

I hope you get stuck with what you bought. You don't deserve good service.

maybe you should shake hands with the president and cool off a bit.

 

[Sir Cecil]

the MBP i have is in mint condition. It's barely been used, never taken out of the house. I have a valid reason for returning it. I don't feel bad about returning it whatsoever because I'm paying the restocking fee. I don't deserve good service?

For lack of a better phrase - "don't hate the player, hate the game". I'm not abusing anything.

You said you never had any intention of keeping it. So it doesn't matter what "valid reason" you dream up in the meantime, the REAL reason you are returning it is simply that you always intended to, whether there was a problem or not. You knew you'd be taking it back before you even paid for it.

As for your absolute nonsense about intending to pay a restocking fee, this is a quote from your original post: "This way I wouldn't have to pay a restocking fee".

The last time I heard the line "don't hate the player, hate the game" was when it was spoken by a dullard who was defrauding social security. To him, if it was easy to cheat, that suited him fine, because he had no morals.

 

[tflournoy95]

maybe you should shake hands with the president and cool off a bit.

im gonna pretend like i uderstood that joke...hahahahahahahahahahahahahahah

 

[thadoggfather]

the phrasing is a little morally questionable: "never intended to keep it, to avoid the restocking fee," but all that being said, I understand your rationale for not wanting to pay full retail for outdated specs, and this is coming from someone who has a mid 2009 $1999 laptop from February (couldn't hold out any longer, had an early 2008 that was a lemon and had to be replaced by AppleCare). If the new one is cool, and resell value on mine is good enough, I'll get Arrandale with money from this one. But I love the unibody, the machine is noticeably faster than my previous one, and it's stable. Plus, I don't game so to me this thing, without doing video editing or encoding at all, is zippy as can be.

You paid for it, you determine what you want to do. Avoiding a restocking fee meant to keep people from using it for one job (let alone comparing restocking fees to a national fraud) and returning it is different from someone who bought a machine and feels it's not worth the asking price imo. Either way, who cares what our opinions are. OP don't take offense to what he says. I don't know why he takes it so seriously either unless Apple was his personal business he started or something. But I think from a moral standpoint, he raises interesting philosophical questions.

We all love Apple though. Or at least the internet. Or something. So let's get along haha.

/flame bait extinguished!

 

[murdercitydevil]

Yeah, you may think I have no morals. Well, you don't know **** about me, and basing a huge accusation like that off of ONE example that I posted on the internet is pretty unethical as well, if you ask me. what about the veil of ignorance? and furthermore, who are you to define morals? I view the situation as such - I'm not breaking any laws, I'm perfectly willing to pay the restocking fee imposed upon me, and playing by all the rules. To me, that's morally sound. Trust me, I'm not going to lose any sleep over this. And honestly, are you trying to pretend that in my situation, if given the opportunity to trade an outdated MBP for a brand new Arrandale and not have to pay anything but the difference in price, you'd refuse?

 

[Sir Cecil]

I'm not trying to pretend anything. You are pulling a ruse on the store. You talk about "my situation" as if something was not of your very own choice. YOU decided to buy the so-called outdated machine, knowing full well that it was "outdated". If you were taken by surprise by an update, all well and good, but you bought it knowing full well it was due to be updated imminently, and you had every intention of taking it back for a refund whether or not it performed satisfactorily. You are a cheat. That's not an insult, but a fact. You have stated your intention to avoid a restocking fee, so your aim all along has been to have totally free use of a computer for a period of time, under the guise of buying it permanently.

Now you might well ask why do I care? Because those who go back with genuine, honest problems to be solved have to deal with suspicious managers who deal with your kind often, and who suspect there are a lot more like you. Unfortunately, they'd be quite correct in their thinking.

 

[murdercitydevil]

Hmmm...yeah, see, you still haven't convinced me that I'm a cheat. You're welcome to try some more, email me at pullaruseonapple@gmail.com

I don't know what's up your ass, but at this point I could not care less about what you think. Either contribute something to the topic or GTFO please. Get off the high horse, you're not impressing anyone.

 

[Tanegashima]

This topic is dead, now a flame war site.

 

[Relznuk]

Stop abusing the OP with your moralistic crap. This thread isn't about placing moral judgment on the OP, it's about answering his questions.

 

[kny3twalker]

I think he has a point. The op's impatience means Apple now has to deal with an open boxed item. I understand that things get returned, and sometimes people buys things they are uncertain about, but the op seems to be certain he or she had no intention of ever keeping the item. I suppose the honest thing to do would be to pay the restocking fee, if the new models are not released by the end of your 14 days.

 

[jjahshik32]

I dont see anything wrong with taking it back as long as he pays the restocking fee.

Thats why restocking fees are there.

 

[Batt]

Yeah, you may think I have no morals. Well, you don't know **** about me, and basing a huge accusation like that off of ONE example that I posted on the internet is pretty unethical as well, if you ask me. what about the veil of ignorance? and furthermore, who are you to define morals? I view the situation as such - I'm not breaking any laws, I'm perfectly willing to pay the restocking fee imposed upon me, and playing by all the rules. To me, that's morally sound. Trust me, I'm not going to lose any sleep over this. And honestly, are you trying to pretend that in my situation, if given the opportunity to trade an outdated MBP for a brand new Arrandale and not have to pay anything but the difference in price, you'd refuse?

The same reasoning I used to return my grandpa's burial suit.

 

[shadygrove]

Yeah, you may think I have no morals. Well, you don't know **** about me, and basing a huge accusation like that off of ONE example that I posted on the internet is pretty unethical as well, if you ask me. what about the veil of ignorance? and furthermore, who are you to define morals? I view the situation as such - I'm not breaking any laws, I'm perfectly willing to pay the restocking fee imposed upon me, and playing by all the rules. To me, that's morally sound. Trust me, I'm not going to lose any sleep over this. And honestly, are you trying to pretend that in my situation, if given the opportunity to trade an outdated MBP for a brand new Arrandale and not have to pay anything but the difference in price, you'd refuse?

I completely agree with you.

The whole idea of having a return policy is to give any customer a chance to use the machine before being completely out several thousand dollars. That is also why they have a restocking fee... So if you try their product out and don't like it or don't want it, you can return it for a fraction of the cost. I don't see where you did anything wrong. The notion that anyone owes any company "respect" is ridiculous, especially when everything you did was within company company.