polishmacuser
macrumors 6502a
ya i know its easy but my mom is soo against internet billing and stuff like this that it amazes me sometimes
thats why i was wondering if apple can do it ?
Poor experience at the Apple Store in buying an iPhone
- Thread starter BrownManUPS
- Start date
- Sort by reaction score
thats why i was wondering if apple can do it ?ipodtouchy333
macrumors 65816
ya i know its easy but my mom is soo against internet billing and stuff like this that it amazes me sometimes
I know you probably know this but, you don't pay anything online. They put it on your next bill and prorate it in the mail. I just changed my texting plan from 200 to 1500 easy....the thing is, my mom doesn't know yet. Hopefully I can just convince her to do internet billing so I can just enter her credit card without her knowing. And yes for all you other, people I do pay for some of my plan and did buy the iPhone myself.
polishmacuser
macrumors 6502a
seriously its nice to know that you can change it and good luck with your mom
i will see what i can do. because my mom wants to get my old iphone and she wants to buy the new one for me so we have to do a overhaul on the billing thats all
McGiord
macrumors 601
Most of the times I had good experiences with the app stores and their employees, but early this week at the genius bar I encounter with my first deception. The reason of my visit was to get my iPhone 3G replaced, it had a crack in the rear plastic side, the 'genius' initial reaction was "you hit it with something", he was very rude, acting like he was going to get a comission for making me pay for a new iPhone, he was enfatic "you will have to pay for a new one"; after a couple of wasted sentences I asked for the manager, he just showed the iPhone to the manager and I was close enough to hear the manager said to him: replace it, he has the protective shield on the screen this is a customer who cares for his iPhone. The the 'genius' said to me you are lucky, my manager was in good mood, I don't know why but he authorized a replacement.
So the best thing we can do is ask for the manager and avoid useless discussions with the wrong people.
The replacement I got has another defect: silver bezel is not flushed with the plastic part, and also has marks like they were trying to pry it out, I made another appointment to get it replaced Tomorrow.
I hope that your new iPhone doesn't show these defects, and if it does don't let a 'genius' interfere in obtaining a non defective one
So the best thing we can do is ask for the manager and avoid useless discussions with the wrong people.
The replacement I got has another defect: silver bezel is not flushed with the plastic part, and also has marks like they were trying to pry it out, I made another appointment to get it replaced Tomorrow.
I hope that your new iPhone doesn't show these defects, and if it does don't let a 'genius' interfere in obtaining a non defective one
JPIndustrie
macrumors 6502a
I hate Apple store employees.
BrownManUPS
macrumors 6502a
That sounds like a dumb experience as well. My phone seems pretty good and no cracks in the phone as far as I can see. I can't wait for my case to come in the mail.
BBackspace
macrumors newbie
Grouchy Salesperson
Bad deal to get a rude salesperson! The sales people where I went were just super! I felt like I was a celebrity or something. I had to order and wait 10 days to get mine but the transaction could not have been smoother. So I hope your next encounter is better!
Bad deal to get a rude salesperson! The sales people where I went were just super! I felt like I was a celebrity or something. I had to order and wait 10 days to get mine but the transaction could not have been smoother. So I hope your next encounter is better!
andyblila
macrumors 65816
I took my wife in today to upgrade her to the 3G and we had a great experience with the staff. The network was down again and it took over an hour to get the phone activated, but the manager offered compensation in the way of a free case and mobileme upgrade. Shame to hear about such bad experiences! 
aristobrat
macrumors G5
Apple takes customer satisfaction fairly seriously, so I wasn't surprised to read on your later post that the manager wanted to get in touch with you and sincerely try to make it right.
One of the way Apple rates its stores is by each store's "net promoter" score, which is simply the percentage of the number of people who rated their visit to the store as a 9 or 10 compared to the number of people who rated their visit to the store as 5 or below. People who had an "average" experience (6-8) don't factor into this rating.
So it's pretty easy for one customer having a poor experience to really bring that store's score down.
aethelbert
macrumors 601
Glad to see that everything went well. When you show interest in their store and how they're run, they'll be very nice to you. Hell, when I was there for the Tiger launch, they were asking if anyone wanted anything (they were giving out red bull and candy to the four people in line). I said that I'd take an iMac (I wasn't serious), and asked which one. They said "we'll be back." Within five minutes, they brought out an iMac G5, to which I laughed, said thank you, and declined their offer. They wanted to give it to me for free.
All my experiences at the keystone store have made it clear that they value their good customers; they're always there to correct a problem and help you out (except the genus bar workers, they're idiots).
I too, have had bad experiences at the Keystone store. The Geniuses are anything but and even if you're super nice, it takes a lot to get something done. One Genius was downright awful to me, when it was clearly a hardware defect. I deal with phone support nowadays.
There are times that it can be difficult to be waited on, especially if you're not buying a computer. I tried to get a Time Capsule there, but everyone was too busy to swipe my plastic.
I have a hard time going back there, seeing as how I feel like the store is badly managed. I'm glad to see it was resolved for you though. I'm sorry to hear about your experience, but you're not alone.
There are times that it can be difficult to be waited on, especially if you're not buying a computer. I tried to get a Time Capsule there, but everyone was too busy to swipe my plastic.
I have a hard time going back there, seeing as how I feel like the store is badly managed. I'm glad to see it was resolved for you though. I'm sorry to hear about your experience, but you're not alone.
BrownManUPS
macrumors 6502a
Since it hasn't arrived at the AT&T store yet, I can't cancel the order. But when it does, they said I could come in and do so.
Yeah I think Apple does take good care of their customers if someone complains, but if no one says anything...obviously no one is going to know. I think it is important to talk to a manager if you had a bad (or good) experience always. Who knows...you may get rewarded.
my local apple store is awesome! i've yet to encounter a bad cs rep there, considering that I see different reps there all the time. my experiences at the genius bar (once for a dead 4G iPod and another for my macbook) were great. i'm sorry to hear about your horrible experience but it's good that they made up for it quite nicely.
I'm a total apple noob. I prefer to build my own desktops and, needless to say, that rules out any mac os.
Given that, i didn't know what to expect going into an apple store for the first time to buy a 3g. I gotta say, I was a little creeped out by the stepford sales people. My g/f was cool enough to wait out the 3 hour line with me and after all the perma-smiles and cheery chit chat we spent most of the wait trying to figure out how they screen for something like that at the job interviews.
But all in all, it wasn't a bad experience. The guy who handled my purchase and registration didn't seem nearly as likely to have been a cheerleader in school and it went great.
anyway...
A few days ago, i noticed a crack in the glass across the lower left corner. It started about 1/4" up the left side of the screen and cut diagonally to the bottom. It was so thin, i thought i was a scratch at first but when i turned the phone, you could see that it went all the way through the glass. The phone had never been dropped and has been in a SwitchEasy Capsule Rebel case. I had no idea how it could have cracked. But i sucked it up and figured i'd have to spring to replace the glass. Just in case, i called apple to see what they had to say.
Before i even finished saying what was wrong, the support guy described my exact problem and asked if that was it. He said there was an issue where the glass could crack at the corners from pressing the home button. He put me on hold for a few and spoke with a supervisor. When he came back, he gave me a case number and told me to return it for a new phone at the apple store. I never even asked for a replacement but i surely wasn't going to argue.
The stepford apple store is 2 hours away. I drove there on my next day off, got my little flashing red buzzer and met with a 'genius'. He looked at my phone and took it into the back room. When he came back, he said "we can't help you, this phone was dropped." It turned into an argument and he kept insisting it wasn't a crack. Up until that moment, i was sure i knew what a crack was but in case i was mistaken, i asked him what he thought it was and i couldn't get him to answer. He told me that even though apple authorized a replacement, he wasn't going to honor it as the phone had clearly been dropped.
It was never dropped. I've been babying this thing to the point of obsession. If i had dropped it, then fine...my bad. $250 for a new screen sucks hard but it would be no one's fault but my own for dropping it. But that wasn't the case. For whatever reason, he insisted i was lying and it turned into a 15 minute argument at the 'bar' even after the replacement order was offered and authorized by apple directly.
Eventually, he asked if i wanted to speak with a manager and i said definately yes. He disappeared into the back and returned a few minutes later.... with a new phone. He didn't say a word. Just unpacked it, put down a paper for me to sign, handed over the phone and walked away pissed.
That's it for me. Between the creepy employees, bad 3g, no communication from apple on problems, products that break from using them and confrontational 'geniuses', i think i'm done with apple. No offense intended to anyone reading who is a big fan of the company. Maybe you've all had better luck.
Buyer beware, is all.
Given that, i didn't know what to expect going into an apple store for the first time to buy a 3g. I gotta say, I was a little creeped out by the stepford sales people. My g/f was cool enough to wait out the 3 hour line with me and after all the perma-smiles and cheery chit chat we spent most of the wait trying to figure out how they screen for something like that at the job interviews.
But all in all, it wasn't a bad experience. The guy who handled my purchase and registration didn't seem nearly as likely to have been a cheerleader in school and it went great.
anyway...
A few days ago, i noticed a crack in the glass across the lower left corner. It started about 1/4" up the left side of the screen and cut diagonally to the bottom. It was so thin, i thought i was a scratch at first but when i turned the phone, you could see that it went all the way through the glass. The phone had never been dropped and has been in a SwitchEasy Capsule Rebel case. I had no idea how it could have cracked. But i sucked it up and figured i'd have to spring to replace the glass. Just in case, i called apple to see what they had to say.
Before i even finished saying what was wrong, the support guy described my exact problem and asked if that was it. He said there was an issue where the glass could crack at the corners from pressing the home button. He put me on hold for a few and spoke with a supervisor. When he came back, he gave me a case number and told me to return it for a new phone at the apple store. I never even asked for a replacement but i surely wasn't going to argue.
The stepford apple store is 2 hours away. I drove there on my next day off, got my little flashing red buzzer and met with a 'genius'. He looked at my phone and took it into the back room. When he came back, he said "we can't help you, this phone was dropped." It turned into an argument and he kept insisting it wasn't a crack. Up until that moment, i was sure i knew what a crack was but in case i was mistaken, i asked him what he thought it was and i couldn't get him to answer. He told me that even though apple authorized a replacement, he wasn't going to honor it as the phone had clearly been dropped.
It was never dropped. I've been babying this thing to the point of obsession. If i had dropped it, then fine...my bad. $250 for a new screen sucks hard but it would be no one's fault but my own for dropping it. But that wasn't the case. For whatever reason, he insisted i was lying and it turned into a 15 minute argument at the 'bar' even after the replacement order was offered and authorized by apple directly.
Eventually, he asked if i wanted to speak with a manager and i said definately yes. He disappeared into the back and returned a few minutes later.... with a new phone. He didn't say a word. Just unpacked it, put down a paper for me to sign, handed over the phone and walked away pissed.
That's it for me. Between the creepy employees, bad 3g, no communication from apple on problems, products that break from using them and confrontational 'geniuses', i think i'm done with apple. No offense intended to anyone reading who is a big fan of the company. Maybe you've all had better luck.
Buyer beware, is all.
PNutts
macrumors 601
I agree with the OP. My three experiences at two Apple stores (one independent) were so bad I don't buy anything at the Apple store and instead shop at other electronic stores.
My wife got the original iPhone and I went to get the $100 credit. I had a box of speakers in my hand and while I was looking for the information in my wife's phone she took the box and put it back on the shelf. Fry's had the speakers for $40 less and no restocking fee.
Another time I went in to buy an ipod. After asking where they were, the second thing I said was to comment on the anime playing on the display iPods. The guy asked, "You *know* about this?" I decided to walk out empty handed instead of telling the hipster that my four and two year olds watch it.
No need to get angry or upset, just vote with your dollars.
My wife got the original iPhone and I went to get the $100 credit. I had a box of speakers in my hand and while I was looking for the information in my wife's phone she took the box and put it back on the shelf. Fry's had the speakers for $40 less and no restocking fee.
Another time I went in to buy an ipod. After asking where they were, the second thing I said was to comment on the anime playing on the display iPods. The guy asked, "You *know* about this?" I decided to walk out empty handed instead of telling the hipster that my four and two year olds watch it.
No need to get angry or upset, just vote with your dollars.
d wade
macrumors 65816
lilnyc
macrumors 6502a
I always do that when someone acts like they don't want to be bothered. But sometimes, especially in this case where it's hard to get help, you take it where you find it or you're kinda numbed by the bad experience and go with the flow.
Ok so you got an unpleasant sales person, what else is new?
I've got news for you kid-get used to it. That fact that you are still fumming over this worries me a bit. You should have forgotten that unpleasantness as you pulled out of the Mall lot (least it drives you insane)
As far as respect and courtesy goes.....it's a crap shoot
And another thing, those Apple stores can be gloomy places like any other retail chain.
I've got news for you kid-get used to it. That fact that you are still fumming over this worries me a bit. You should have forgotten that unpleasantness as you pulled out of the Mall lot (least it drives you insane)
As far as respect and courtesy goes.....it's a crap shoot
And another thing, those Apple stores can be gloomy places like any other retail chain.