New MacBook Pros (Late 2008) Now Shipping With More Defects Than Ever Before!

[mawsoccer]

I'm on my 3rd machine (2nd replacement) and Apple still can't seem to get it right.

They clearly have some quality control issues and since mine is BTO it is coming straight from Shanghai and appears to not have any kind of quality control procedures whatsoever.

1st machine: loose battery cover and scratches right out of the box

2nd machine: even looser battery cover and even more scratches right out of the box

3rd machine: better battery compartment (not as noisily loose, but still loose) and a nice little dent in the frame by the optical drive right out of the box.

For $2600 I sure as hell am not accepting any imperfections in my machine.

I'm also not planning on wasting any more time on these new MacBooks with 0 quality control shipping straight out of China.

I'm about ready to call Apple (for the 6 or 7th time) and ask if they have ever had someone switch from a Mac to a PC. Because thats what I feel like doing.

Theses are the crappiest machines they have ever created and they don't seem to give a crap.

 

[Vanarak19]

I'm on my 3rd machine (2nd replacement) and Apple still can't seem to get it right.

They clearly have some quality control issues and since mine is BTO it is coming straight from Shanghai and appears to not have any kind of quality control procedures whatsoever.

1st machine: loose battery cover and scratches right out of the box

2nd machine: even looser battery cover and even more scratches right out of the box

3rd machine: better battery compartment (not as noisily loose, but still loose) and a nice little dent in the frame by the optical drive right out of the box.

For $2600 I sure as hell am not accepting any imperfections in my machine.

I'm also not planning on wasting any more time on these new MacBooks with 0 quality control shipping straight out of China.

I'm about ready to call Apple (for the 6 or 7th time) and ask if they have ever had someone switch from a Mac to a PC. Because thats what I feel like doing.

Theses are the crappiest machines they have ever created and they don't seem to give a crap.

Take your money somewhere else. I am holding off personally.

Then again, this is the first go around with these new machines. You dont deserve it, but some things just happen. In time, it will get better Im sure. But if you need a machine now, Apple may not be it, shrug.

I havent even seen the new machines in person because ill be too tempted to buy one (seeing the perfect store machines), and probably be in the mess you all are in. No thanks.


Im currently running Vista 64bit just to see if I can "cope" with not having OSX. I am also giving Sony, and HP (probably an HP before Sony) both good looks.

If they cant sort their issues out, they wont get my money again, Damn the OS. Then again, they are the "hip" thing right now, so for every customer they lose, they gain 10x "mommy and daddy I have to have it" customers.

Apple is not the same company it was 3 years ago. It never will be.

 

[apolloa]

I'm waiting for my replacement for my BTO machine that had smudges behind the glass. If it's imperfect I won't waste any time, I shall just send it back and get a full refund then upgrade the ram and HDD in my last gen 2.4 Mac Book Pro. I'll also hold out on buying anything Apple again.
But your 100% correct, it's disgusting the number of faulty or defected units that are on web forums, so multiply that to match the number of total MB Pro sales and I bet the figures high, maybe Xbox 360 levels?

 

[Red-red]

Your thread title is well off the mark because countless people will be getting perfect machines like myself.

It's unfortunate that you keep getting ones with defects but it certainly doesn't happen to everyone. Complain a lot, kick up a fuss but be nice about it and they might chuck you something in for free .

As always, people who complain will generally come on to a forum like this to do so, You cannot judge the state of a product from a forum.

Comparing it to the 360 is laughable.

 

[mawsoccer]

In fact, I'm going to tell them I want my machines (I kept the first one so I wasn't without a laptop and the second one was a 2nd charge of $2600, then I sent the 2nd one back and the 3rd is the replacement for the 2nd) returned and immediate refunds.

I'm also going to tell them that they can pay for the invisible shield I ordered and the incase sleeve i ordered and have had if I cannot return them because of how long I have had to wait in between each machine and I still don't have one that I will use with those products.

This is just awful... I can't afford to waste any more of my time on this crap, but I can't afford not to either because there is obviously quite a bit on money on the line here.

If any company could get it right the first time it should be them... how long have they had to redesign these things? Only 3-4 years on the MBs but on the Pros, the design hasnt changed in god knows how long.

Why the hell can't they figure out all their flaws and fix them within that time?

 

[mawsoccer]

Your thread title is well off the mark because countless people will be getting perfect machines like myself.

It's unfortunate that you keep getting ones with defects but it certainly doesn't happen to everyone. Complain a lot, kick up a fuss but be nice about it and they might chuck you something in for free .

As always, people who complain will generally come on to a forum like this to do so, You cannot judge the state of a product from a forum.

Comparing it to the 360 is laughable.

By perfect you mean you haven't had the guts to take your battery cover off and see if it comes loose?

I didn't even have to touch these machines, right out of the box the battery cover is jiggles around and doesn't even seem to be the right size.

 

[Red-red]

Well considering you have a computer to use while you're sorting it out. It's a bit of a ball ache but just moan and be nice. Going by many of stories I have heard you might get something out of it.

By perfect you mean you haven't had the guts to take your battery cover off and see if it comes loose?

I didn't even have to touch these machines, right out of the box the battery cover is jiggles around and doesn't even seem to be the right size.

It's perfect, nothing wrong with it. I'm from the UK so I don't know if recieved it from another factory or batch than yourself.

Also from what I've picked up on isn't the battery issue easily fixed?

 

[Vanarak19]

In fact, I'm going to tell them I want my machines (I kept the first one so I wasn't without a laptop and the second one was a 2nd charge of $2600, then I sent the 2nd one back and the 3rd is the replacement for the 2nd) returned and immediate refunds.

I'm also going to tell them that they can pay for the invisible shield I ordered and the incase sleeve i ordered and have had if I cannot return them because of how long I have had to wait in between each machine and I still don't have one that I will use with those products.

This is just awful... I can't afford to waste any more of my time on this crap, but I can't afford not to either because there is obviously quite a bit on money on the line here.

F Apple, if any company could get it right the first time it should be them... how long have they had to redesign these things? Only 3-4 years on the MBs but on the Pros, the design hasnt changed in god knows how long.

Why the hell can't they figure out all their flaws and fix them within that time?

Your a consumer, its all up to you! If you dont like it, get something else.

Im not agreeing with the "F Apple" portion though...their products are much better than most others.

I myself will let you all get the first round of these, and deal with all these "issues". Then ill buy @ the next speed bump!

One thing that bothers me in all these threads. People complaining, like they cant do anything about it. Its a choice, excercise it!

 

[mawsoccer]

Also from what I've picked up on isn't the battery issue easily fixed?

Supposedly it can be easily fixed on some, on others it doesn't work.

Also, why the heck would I tamper with a machine and potentially break its warrenty days after buying it. Think about it, bending metal to fix a problem. Just keep bening it every time it gets loose and eventually it will snap off or become so loose the thing wont even stay on.

I havent even opened the 2nd and 3rd macbook to see what the inside or the screen or the trackpad look like... I just put them right back in the box.

I can't take it to the store because they cant do anything about BTO models.

I want one of these mabooks, I just don't have the time or money to keep going through them until I find one that is actually worth the $2600 I just paid for it.

Also, I ordered the 1st one the day after they came it... It is now 4 days until the one money anniversary of the relese and Apple has not acknowledged any quality control issues, defects, or anything like that and doesnt seem to be doing anything to fix the obvious problems with its manufacturing in China.

 

[apolloa]

Your thread title is well off the mark because countless people will be getting perfect machines like myself.

It's unfortunate that you keep getting ones with defects but it certainly doesn't happen to everyone. Complain a lot, kick up a fuss but be nice about it and they might chuck you something in for free .

As always, people who complain will generally come on to a forum like this to do so, You cannot judge the state of a product from a forum.

Comparing it to the 360 is laughable.

I thought it was relevant comparing it to the 360. And I also meant forums as in plural. And isn't it already a known fault for the trackpads to stop responding. But it's disgusting and TOTALLY unacceptable for a $2600 doller machine to have these defects because these defects are mostly cosmetic. I have to say that these story's of new Mac Books, Mac Book Pro's and even the iPhone and iPod touch, having cosmetic defects out the box are just about the only products I've heard to have such a problem with it.
Every single one should be checked with quality control, it's very worrying when a company happily sells products with smudges behind the screen, scratches, dents, crooked keys, loose battery covers to you. Apple said they have spent years working in the unibody manufacturing process. Wouldn't it be nice if they did the same with it's quality control?

I just hope and pray my replacement is spotless and defect free.

 

[nawoo]

there are thousands of people out there with perfect mbps. only the ones with problems come in to complain on the forums


I have a perfect mbp. my friend has a perfect mbp. Your luck just sucks. Stop pulling Apple's reputation down with it

 

[Jeff Barlow]

My replacement CTO came today.

Yes, the keys on this one are slightly crooked. Not quite as bad as the first one, though. Maybe they'll seat flush with wear.

 

[Mattjeff]

Apple is not the same company it was 3 years ago. It never will be.

sad isn't it?
I want my old apple Company back... I feel like every new customer apple gets the further from my interests they get.

 

[guitarmaster18]

If one were to soley read macrumors for information about Macs and Apple's quality control, I suppose they would come to the conclusion that 9 out of every 10 macbooks are defective. This is simply not true. The great majority of Macbooks are perfectly functional, with about 1 out of every 10 being defective. The reason this number seems so inflated is because people dont post about their functional machines. They only post about their unfunctional machines, because you dont need advice about your functional machine.

 

[Red-red]

The 360 is one of the worse cases of an actual design error in the history of electronics, they still haven't fixed the problem. The MBP's problems are cosmetic like you say, nothing to do with the design of the machine.

The quality control is a issue, but no other companies buyers will inspect their hardware anywhere near to that of apples customers. You're paying a lot of money in some regards but then are you? Really? It is when you compare it to PC manufacturers but then they have just as bad if not worse quality control on products that are nowhere near the quality of the new MBP that you only pay a slight bit more for. Apple no longer charge ridiculously high prices, they are very competitive and as a result of being so it seems the quality control has taken a dip ( potentially ) but you could also put that down to the much larger user base they have generated and the factors that have come with it. I would think if you compared Apple to the likes of HP, Dell, Acer etc they would be exactly the same if not better.

I think 95% of MBP customers will be getting perfect machines, the remaining 5% have just got the short straw, It's unlucky but it happens in everything, in all electronics and apple are no different. Specially with a rev A release.

As for the trackpad, hasn't it been stated it's a software issue? I've never noticed it mind.

 

[mawsoccer]

If one were to soley read macrumors for information about Macs and Apple's quality control, I suppose they would come to the conclusion that 9 out of every 10 macbooks are defective. This is simply not true. The great majority of Macbooks are perfectly functional, with about 1 out of every 10 being defective. The reason this number seems so inflated is because people dont post about their functional machines. They only post about their unfunctional machines, because you dont need advice about your functional machine.

1 out of 10... that doesn't quite fit into the 3 out of 3 machines that I have had so far... I know that the forums is where people go to complain ... but I'm sorry buddy, your statistics don't fit my case at all.

Do I need to go through 10 to find a real statistic?

I'm curious if the CTO ones are the most likely to be defective since they come straight out of Shanghai with seemingly no quality control in between.

 

[guitarmaster18]

The 360 is one of the worse cases of an actual design error in the history of electronics, they still haven't fixed the problem. The MBP's problems are cosmetic like you say, nothing to do with the design of the machine.

The quality control is a issue, but no other companies buyers will inspect their hardware anywhere near to that of apples customers. You're paying a lot of money in some regards but then are you? Really? It is when you compare it to PC manufacturers but then they have just as bad if not worse quality control on products that are nowhere near the quality of the new MBP that you only pay a slight bit more for. Apple no longer charge ridiculously high prices, they are very competitive and as a result of being so it seems the quality control has taken a dip ( potentially ) but you could also put that down to the much larger user base they have generated and the factors that have come with it. I would think if you compared Apple to the likes of HP, Dell, Acer etc they would be exactly the same if not better.

I think 95% of MBP customers will be getting perfect machines, the remaining 5% have just got the short straw, It's unlucky but it happens in everything, in all electronics and apple are no different. Specially with a rev A release.

As for the trackpad, hasn't it been stated it's a software issue? I've never noticed it mind.

+1

This pretty much sums the situation up.

 

[guitarmaster18]

1 out of 10... that doesn't quite fit into the 3 out of 3 machines that I have had so far... I know that the forums is where people go to complain ... but I'm sorry buddy, your statistics don't fit my case at all.

Do I need to go through 10 to find a real statistic?

I'm curious if the CTO ones are the most likely to be defective since they come straight out of Shanghai with seemingly no quality control in between.

So, if what you say is true, why are the forums not flooded with thousands and thousands of people who are in the same situation as you?

 

[mawsoccer]

The 360 is one of the worse cases of an actual design error in the history of electronics, they still haven't fixed the problem. The MBP's problems are cosmetic like you say, nothing to do with the design of the machine.

The quality control is a issue, but no other companies buyers will inspect their hardware anywhere near to that of apples customers. You're paying a lot of money in some regards but then are you? Really? It is when you compare it to PC manufacturers but then they have just as bad if not worse quality control on products that are nowhere near the quality of the new MBP that you only pay a slight bit more for. Apple no longer charge ridiculously high prices, they are very competitive and as a result of being so it seems the quality control has taken a dip ( potentially ) but you could also put that down to the much larger user base they have generated and the factors that have come with it. I would think if you compared Apple to the likes of HP, Dell, Acer etc they would be exactly the same if not better.

I think 95% of MBP customers will be getting perfect machines, the remaining 5% have just got the short straw, It's unlucky but it happens in everything, in all electronics and apple are no different. Specially with a rev A release.

As for the trackpad, hasn't it been stated it's a software issue? I've never noticed it mind.

Please stop bringing up the X Box... Your comparing $500 (Maybe) with $2600. Thats like comparing a saturn and a bently. ... so lets not get into that.

Not to mention that is from Microsoft and when you get an OS like Vista from them, you know not to expect much anymore.

 

[Red-red]

Please stop bringing up the X Box... Your comparing $500 (Maybe) with $2600. Thats like comparing a saturn and a bently. ... so lets not get into that.

Not to mention that is from Microsoft and when you get an OS like Vista from them, you know not to expect much anymore.

I didn't bring it up.

 

[mawsoccer]

So, if what you say is true, why are the forums not flooded with thousands and thousands of people who are in the same situation as you?

Because they either gave up, gave in to the crappy quality, or think they fixed it themselves until it comes loose again and they can't do anything but get their brand new machine fixed.

3 MBPs all different weeks and all are flawed ... theres a statistic.

 

[Red-red]

No it isn't, It's just what you have received. It's bad luck, it doesn't reflect what every customer is getting. That's like me turning round and saying 1 MBP, perfect, they are all perfect.

 

[guitarmaster18]

Because they either gave up, gave in to the crappy quality, or think they fixed it themselves until it comes loose again and they can't do anything but get their brand new machine fixed.

3 MBPs all different weeks and all are flawed ... theres a statistic.

3 MBPs? Are you serious? You cant say that all the thousands of MBPs out there are flawed and "crappy" just because you have used 3. That's like saying "3 people I saw had cancer, therefore everyone has cancer." Seriously, think about the logic of your statements before you post them.

 

[mawsoccer]

Okay... lets put $5200 on your credit card for a couple months and see how long you last without going crazy when you still don't have a machine that looks brand new out of the box.

 

[guitarmaster18]

Okay... lets put $5200 on your credit card for a couple months and see how long you last without going crazy when you still don't have a machine that looks brand new out of the box.

It's understandable to be frustrated, however it is not understandable to make stereotypical remarks about the status of all Macbook Pros. If you're unhappy with your product, return it. Period. It's your right to whine about it, however it would probably be more effective if you did something to help your situation.