You know when you watch those scary movies when everything just goes wrong for the character, like being chased through the woods and tripping on a log, car not starting, etc.. Well, I'm not going through that life threating situation, but my iMac is!! Where should I start....
I bought my iMac G5 in Hawaii last year day before Xmas. Then moved to Japan and brought it with me. Worked great!! So XMAS morning I wake up turn on my iMac, open some presents, enjoy XMAS morning, noticed that my iMac went to sleep, go to turn it on but stays black. Sleep light is on, but hitting the keys or moving the mouse never wakes it up. I restart and my computer turns on but display still stays black. Ok, so now I start to panic! Use my Powerbook to look online for similar problems, try booting from CD, but no dice.
Furious, I take my iMac to APPLE STORE JAPAN which is a 30 min. train ride from my house. The guy at the Genius Bar tells me that the model I got has had some issues with the logic board and that Apple can fix it for free. I leave it with Apple and then get a call 3 days later saying that it wasn't a problem with my logic board but my display?
Since I brought my iMac in the day after my warranty expired the guy was cool enough to extend my warranty for a few more days.. but...... according to Apple warranty, desktops are not under the 1 year warranty overseas!!! great.... so Apple Japan says it will cost $700 to fix in Japan but free in America ( Hawaii ) if I bring it to Hawaii by Jan.3. Ok, well that's impossible!
I call Apple Store Hawaii and talk to a " genius " there and was told that the repair number that Apple Store Japan gave me was wrong and that they use a different format. So they use my serial number and find my repair issue, but ALL IN JAPANESE!!!! The Apple " genius " tells me that he doesn't understand Japanese and that he will have someone look at it for me and e-mail me back. So time is running out already and I'm waiting for this e-mail, " to be free, or not to be free.. that is the question.. " I get an e-mail telling me this...
- Apple will repair it for free but I have to bring it to Hawaii by Jan. 3, when it's already Dec.27th and I am in Japan!! ( ticket to Hawaii $1,000, sending through express mail round trip $500! I don't think so.. )
- if I buy Apple Care by Jan. 3 it will extend my warranty for 2 more years and I can bring my computer to Hawaii anytime within the 2 years.
Cool!! I can by APPLE CARE for little less the $200 and can get my $700 repair fixed !! but....... THE NIGHTMARE CONTINUES!!!! According to Apple Care, if I bought a computer in America I can only buy Apple Care in America. If I buy Apple Care in Japan in won't cover my iMac that I bought in Hawaii?? Ok... so I'll just buy Apple Care ( america ) online and it should arrive just in time before my warranty runs out!!! BUT THE NIGHTMARE CONTINUES!!!! Since I live in Japan and my Credit Card doesn't have a U.S. Shipping Address I can't buy APPLE CARE!!!!!??? GEEEEEEEEEEEZ!! talk about kicking me when I'm down!!! I finally called my friend in Hawaii begged him to buy me an APPLE CARE PLAN and he gave me the enrollment no. through e-mail!! I got the number, registered my iMac and hopefully it extended my Warranty. But with my luck, I'm expecting the unexpected!!
You may say " well we told ya, allows buy APPLE CARE!!! " sure, well now I got it, but..... if anything goes wrong.. words from Apple--> " Be aware though, that since you purchased the machine in the US, repairs would only be covered in the US, just like the issue you are experiencing now with the Japan store. Anytime your machine required servicing, it would need to brought to a US location. " waaaaaaaaaaake me uuuuppppp from this NIGHTMARE!!!!!!!!
I bought my iMac G5 in Hawaii last year day before Xmas. Then moved to Japan and brought it with me. Worked great!! So XMAS morning I wake up turn on my iMac, open some presents, enjoy XMAS morning, noticed that my iMac went to sleep, go to turn it on but stays black. Sleep light is on, but hitting the keys or moving the mouse never wakes it up. I restart and my computer turns on but display still stays black. Ok, so now I start to panic! Use my Powerbook to look online for similar problems, try booting from CD, but no dice.
Furious, I take my iMac to APPLE STORE JAPAN which is a 30 min. train ride from my house. The guy at the Genius Bar tells me that the model I got has had some issues with the logic board and that Apple can fix it for free. I leave it with Apple and then get a call 3 days later saying that it wasn't a problem with my logic board but my display?
Since I brought my iMac in the day after my warranty expired the guy was cool enough to extend my warranty for a few more days.. but...... according to Apple warranty, desktops are not under the 1 year warranty overseas!!! great.... so Apple Japan says it will cost $700 to fix in Japan but free in America ( Hawaii ) if I bring it to Hawaii by Jan.3. Ok, well that's impossible!
I call Apple Store Hawaii and talk to a " genius " there and was told that the repair number that Apple Store Japan gave me was wrong and that they use a different format. So they use my serial number and find my repair issue, but ALL IN JAPANESE!!!! The Apple " genius " tells me that he doesn't understand Japanese and that he will have someone look at it for me and e-mail me back. So time is running out already and I'm waiting for this e-mail, " to be free, or not to be free.. that is the question.. " I get an e-mail telling me this...
- Apple will repair it for free but I have to bring it to Hawaii by Jan. 3, when it's already Dec.27th and I am in Japan!! ( ticket to Hawaii $1,000, sending through express mail round trip $500! I don't think so.. )
- if I buy Apple Care by Jan. 3 it will extend my warranty for 2 more years and I can bring my computer to Hawaii anytime within the 2 years.
Cool!! I can by APPLE CARE for little less the $200 and can get my $700 repair fixed !! but....... THE NIGHTMARE CONTINUES!!!! According to Apple Care, if I bought a computer in America I can only buy Apple Care in America. If I buy Apple Care in Japan in won't cover my iMac that I bought in Hawaii?? Ok... so I'll just buy Apple Care ( america ) online and it should arrive just in time before my warranty runs out!!! BUT THE NIGHTMARE CONTINUES!!!! Since I live in Japan and my Credit Card doesn't have a U.S. Shipping Address I can't buy APPLE CARE!!!!!??? GEEEEEEEEEEEZ!! talk about kicking me when I'm down!!! I finally called my friend in Hawaii begged him to buy me an APPLE CARE PLAN and he gave me the enrollment no. through e-mail!! I got the number, registered my iMac and hopefully it extended my Warranty. But with my luck, I'm expecting the unexpected!!
You may say " well we told ya, allows buy APPLE CARE!!! " sure, well now I got it, but..... if anything goes wrong.. words from Apple--> " Be aware though, that since you purchased the machine in the US, repairs would only be covered in the US, just like the issue you are experiencing now with the Japan store. Anytime your machine required servicing, it would need to brought to a US location. " waaaaaaaaaaake me uuuuppppp from this NIGHTMARE!!!!!!!!
