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Shattered screen from 1 foot drop
- Thread starter Lantian
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well they make $850 from the sale of the phone and the contract, of which about $500-$600 is pure profit, so charging nothing for a trivial fix to enable the buyer to actually use the phone sounds a lot more reasonable than charging $200!
I was able to take the glass off the "ghetto" way, by just using a razor blade, then used 1/32" plexiglass. It works for now, not all that pretty but it works. Their was no need to completely take it apart. I'll get pictures.
I agree with a lot of people that the iphones are built very well, I have friends that have ran over them, spilled coffee on them, and even a few sites where they pt them through hell, and the "broken" one has kissed the sidewalk on multiple occasions with no issue, not even a scratch. The issue was that it was a minor drop. Yes, anything can happen to any product, however, if your cell phone falls about a foot and the screen cracks, that will put a disappointment on your face and one would guess that it had to have been a design flaw. In instances like that, the manufacturer should step up. I do agree that people probably have been using the line to get new phones. However, why is their no insurance policy? It is polished aluminum and Glass, we all pick up the iphone for the first tie and go, "how am I going to NOT drop this at some point?". Then we proceed to buy hand lotion 🙂 Dry hands + iPhone = disaster.
This is what got me down, it wasn't that the phone broke, and the question of should Apple replace it. I am also not just some kid that splurged on an expensive phone, as was suggested.. I am a Network designer, and I work as much as I can with Apple products. I have a rack of xserves, several new imacs, a macbook pro, my wife has her macbook that never leaves her side, even have an Apple TV.
I originally converted to Apple a good 6 years ago and stuck by them. Why? Because Microsoft and the other giants are a pain in the A** to work with. Apple was the knight in shining armor, it was like a family business, not a corporation. If you had a problem, you could be sure that the sales team and the guys at the genius bar at the Apple store would help you as much as possible, way above what they were suppose to do. Even if you broke something by very obviously violating the warranty, they would replace it, or they would make you a good deal. My local store tried to give me a free Mac Mini the day they came out, not because I bought 5 of them, but because I knew how to open them and do a memory upgrade. I told them how to open it, they offered me another Mini.
Now, Apple has become a Microsoft. The Apple store wasn't a fun and happy place with cool employees. It was officially a corporate giant that didn't care about the customer. Even when restrictions get applied, the people at the apple store are usually happy to help, and at the least, point me towards an easier way of fixing it (such as the Ghetto screen replacement) or they would check to see what they could do. These weren't Apple store workers, I think they fired the staff and replaced them with Best Buy employees, no one knew anything, and no one seemed to care about Apple.
So for now, the iPhone works again, and I will buy another because it is a good phone. I can't get one right now because I have a kid ready to be born in about a month, so finances are very tight.
Yet, I know that Apple no longer has my back, they aren't this great company that is passionate about their products and their customers anymore. They are just the corporate giant, which is the exact opposite of what made Apple so appealing to begin with. So, I have lost my faith, they have been making mistakes like crazy lately and eventually, Apple will have just as many issues as Microsoft has.
I agree with a lot of people that the iphones are built very well, I have friends that have ran over them, spilled coffee on them, and even a few sites where they pt them through hell, and the "broken" one has kissed the sidewalk on multiple occasions with no issue, not even a scratch. The issue was that it was a minor drop. Yes, anything can happen to any product, however, if your cell phone falls about a foot and the screen cracks, that will put a disappointment on your face and one would guess that it had to have been a design flaw. In instances like that, the manufacturer should step up. I do agree that people probably have been using the line to get new phones. However, why is their no insurance policy? It is polished aluminum and Glass, we all pick up the iphone for the first tie and go, "how am I going to NOT drop this at some point?". Then we proceed to buy hand lotion 🙂 Dry hands + iPhone = disaster.
This is what got me down, it wasn't that the phone broke, and the question of should Apple replace it. I am also not just some kid that splurged on an expensive phone, as was suggested.. I am a Network designer, and I work as much as I can with Apple products. I have a rack of xserves, several new imacs, a macbook pro, my wife has her macbook that never leaves her side, even have an Apple TV.
I originally converted to Apple a good 6 years ago and stuck by them. Why? Because Microsoft and the other giants are a pain in the A** to work with. Apple was the knight in shining armor, it was like a family business, not a corporation. If you had a problem, you could be sure that the sales team and the guys at the genius bar at the Apple store would help you as much as possible, way above what they were suppose to do. Even if you broke something by very obviously violating the warranty, they would replace it, or they would make you a good deal. My local store tried to give me a free Mac Mini the day they came out, not because I bought 5 of them, but because I knew how to open them and do a memory upgrade. I told them how to open it, they offered me another Mini.
Now, Apple has become a Microsoft. The Apple store wasn't a fun and happy place with cool employees. It was officially a corporate giant that didn't care about the customer. Even when restrictions get applied, the people at the apple store are usually happy to help, and at the least, point me towards an easier way of fixing it (such as the Ghetto screen replacement) or they would check to see what they could do. These weren't Apple store workers, I think they fired the staff and replaced them with Best Buy employees, no one knew anything, and no one seemed to care about Apple.
So for now, the iPhone works again, and I will buy another because it is a good phone. I can't get one right now because I have a kid ready to be born in about a month, so finances are very tight.
Yet, I know that Apple no longer has my back, they aren't this great company that is passionate about their products and their customers anymore. They are just the corporate giant, which is the exact opposite of what made Apple so appealing to begin with. So, I have lost my faith, they have been making mistakes like crazy lately and eventually, Apple will have just as many issues as Microsoft has.
gekko513
macrumors 603
I think the previous falls are the problem. Even if the earlier impacts didn't break the glass they could've started cracks and weaknesses in the glass and warped the phone slightly to make tension.
To me it sounds like you should start taking better care of your phone rather than starting to suspect design flaws.
You really need to get a better grasp at things if you think all that and if you expect a company like apple to replace every single phone (and macbooks too? macbook pros?) you drop to replace it or they are no longer "cool and family busines like" IMO.
So you better never buy anything from Sony, Panasonic, JVC, GE, Mitsubishi...
What mistakes?
You are surely not talking about investment mistakes, just look at the stock price today.
I haven't said they should replace everything I break, I even said this isn't about the phone anymore. What I was saying is that Apple use to go the extra mile for the customer. I would have been happy if one person in the store even said, due to the amount of erroneous returns, we just can't do anything to help you out, however, try these websites or as someone suggested, try the credit card company. You can get a replacement cheaper or you might be insured.
The reaction I got was, $200 to replace the phone, $300 if you agree to upgrade go to the 8 Gb. End of conversation, let us know what you decide.
This is just a bad customer service experience, which is increasing, a lot. Good for stock, I agree because all of the effort is going to sales. I was referring to technical mistakes, and other issues, like the great iPhone price drop that took an open letter to Steve Jobs to get remedied.
Being a cool company doesn't mean they got their by replacing things I broke, being a cool company is merely putting an effort into interacting with the current customer, and not just the potential customer eying the macbook pro.
And my friend just got a new macbook pro 17 because he took his old one in three times to fix it and the manager took him aside an said sorry, and gave him a NEW machine. (his was a year old.)
So he could argue the oppsite.
Best of luck,
Stop dropping things.
That is the Apple I remember and the reason I moved to Apple. I don't know the details of his Macbook Pro, was it an issue that just couldn't be found or did he keep breaking it? Either way, that makes me feel better. As I said, this isn't about my phone as much as my experience. I am pretty well known at the store, I buy a LOT of Apple products. I break a lot of them too, out of curiosity (such as hacking the AppleTV) and I just go buy a new one when I break it, they have offered to give me free stuff and I turned it down. This was a phone which is pretty much my lifeline, I use all of the features and more.
So, as I said, what got me, was that whole customer service experience. It made me feel bad because I have converted so many companies and people from Microsoft to Apple based on customer service and well, hardware and OS reliability that the way I was treated made me feel betrayed, they took away what I had used to sell people on. I'm not talking small office stuff, I primarily work in the trading industry, so I was getting blackbox servers and trading stations converted to Apples. I have to say, you just feel crappy when you put so much trust into a company, then you just get blown off, honestly, Dell reps in India are nicer and more understanding than the staff was at the store I went to. They were new, didn't even know specs on most of the products.
As long as a lot of the stores are still going strong with customer service, it makes me feel a lot better. And yes, I do need to stop dropping things, the iPhone was a fluke, and I have been honest as to how it broke, a lot of people didn't seem to believe it, but it happens. I did however drop an xserve quad core last month 🙂 haha, a 30u fall, the thing was fine, had a few scratches on the the front, no big deal. If it was broken, I wouldn't have complained, even though it was $12k, which for a personal server is hefty, but my fault. I would have however, hoped that Apple would give me some advice to fixing it, beyond paying an insane amount of money to them. (if I asked).
So all is cool, just, my store is a pretty large one in a large city, so, well, you know, speaks to what is going on in general. I just really want to see Apple change the way society works, well, Apple and the Linux community. it would be cool to see OS X go GNU, but, security issues. Either way, A lot of cool stuff has come out since Microsoft was given a heavy competitor, and new ways of doing things have come around.
And you expect Apple to give you a free replacement? So if you break your glass windshield do you expect whichever car maker you have to pay for a new windshield? WOW people these days man. I was just passing through being bored and I came across this post and just made me laugh. If you broke it yourself especially onto a corner of a desk, then its entirely your fault. I have heard of people dropping it from 5ft off the ground and it survived, but thats because it prolly didnt land on something that was protruding out of the ground. To the person who posted about it being a design flaw or watever you said, anything that has glass such as a iphone/pda type would even break if it is dropped from a height of a foot. People need stop being retarded and accept their actions. BLAME YOURSELF
That sucks. I'm sorry to hear it.
I have to say, given the choice between $200 for a repaired iPhone and $300 for a new iPhone with twice the memory, I would choose the latter.
I have to say, given the choice between $200 for a repaired iPhone and $300 for a new iPhone with twice the memory, I would choose the latter.
iKwick7
macrumors 65816
$179 repair at TechRestore- a great site.
http://techrestore.com/xcart/product.php?productid=18174&cat=0&page=1
http://techrestore.com/xcart/product.php?productid=18174&cat=0&page=1
iPhone Screen Shattered
I r🙁eceived iPhone for B-day/Christmas, extremely careful w/ new iPhone. It was in Swiss Gear Leather case, corners were exposed. Had phone less than week, noticed as I came out of Walmart that the screen was cracked. It was attached to my purse! Mac refuses to replace it. Repairs $250! Put a thin piece of glass on a phone? Stand behind the product. My phone has two tiny pin head dings on one corner, probably from glancing against a shopping buggy, I will show everyone this cracked phone.
I r🙁eceived iPhone for B-day/Christmas, extremely careful w/ new iPhone. It was in Swiss Gear Leather case, corners were exposed. Had phone less than week, noticed as I came out of Walmart that the screen was cracked. It was attached to my purse! Mac refuses to replace it. Repairs $250! Put a thin piece of glass on a phone? Stand behind the product. My phone has two tiny pin head dings on one corner, probably from glancing against a shopping buggy, I will show everyone this cracked phone.
extraextra
macrumors 68000
I think the iPhone has been stress tested quite a bit, and nearly all tests show that dropping it onto concrete will most likely not break it. (see: http://arstechnica.com/reviews/hardware/iphone-review.ars/13) However, there are certain more fragile points on the phone, and if you hit your phone in a delicate spot, then that will probably brake it.
This is probably a bad analogy, but it's sort of like human beings. If you hit a guy in the arm, that's not going to take him down, but if you kick him in the crotch it surely will. Location, location, location!
People are complaining about how it's fragile, but you knew this before you bought it, didn't you? You can see that it's glass and would probably be more susceptible to damage compared to a regular plastic phone. No one forced you to buy the phone.
Accidents unfortunately happen to the best of us.
Phil A.
Moderator emeritus
I have dropped every single phone I've owned at some point with varying results (some have survived, some have not) and I've smashed a Nokia simply by stumbling into a door frame with it in my pocket. This is why I took the O2 insurance option when I bought my iPhone - when (not if!) I drop it I can get a new one for £25.00 if it goes the way of the OP's 😀
DesignerOnMac
macrumors 6502a
had my Moto kzazr for 2 weeks,
dropped it with a wet hand because I answered the stupid phone! Dropped it from 3 feet! Guess what? Doesn't work! Did I bitch to Moto to fix it? Nope, my bad. Cell phones get dropped and break no matter how good the construction!
You can read countless threads on here and other sites about how good Apple is. Sometimes they aren't. BUT Apple is STILL better than any company out there in helping and taking care of the customer.
Example: A friend just bought a Panasonic 6.1Mhz phone system. Out of the box 2 of the cordless phones battery charger bases did not work. Two days later a call to Panasonic. After a few tests, it was determined that the bases were defective. My friend had to send the bases back to Panasonic at his expense, and he will get refurbished for two bases that are brand new!!!!!! How big is Panasonic? Couldn't they have gone the extra mile to replace new for new?
One bad experience does not make Apple a less or worst company than 'before'!
dropped it with a wet hand because I answered the stupid phone! Dropped it from 3 feet! Guess what? Doesn't work! Did I bitch to Moto to fix it? Nope, my bad. Cell phones get dropped and break no matter how good the construction!
You can read countless threads on here and other sites about how good Apple is. Sometimes they aren't. BUT Apple is STILL better than any company out there in helping and taking care of the customer.
Example: A friend just bought a Panasonic 6.1Mhz phone system. Out of the box 2 of the cordless phones battery charger bases did not work. Two days later a call to Panasonic. After a few tests, it was determined that the bases were defective. My friend had to send the bases back to Panasonic at his expense, and he will get refurbished for two bases that are brand new!!!!!! How big is Panasonic? Couldn't they have gone the extra mile to replace new for new?
One bad experience does not make Apple a less or worst company than 'before'!
ipod touch tragedy
Oh Yes. We also witnessed the classic spiderweb crack covering the entire screen of our ipod touch as it landed on the ground. Other companies would pick up on common problems like this and try to give customers alternatives and try to simplify the repair.The repair for us would cost almost as much as the ipod touch, and no matter whether it's our fault or not, that is taking advantage of consumers. You know the weak spot, so insure it, or offer a simpler, more realistic replacement policy/insurance/repair kit. That's just ridiculous..It almost seem that they purposely have it that way so that you can go back and pump in more money because you have no other choice. I agree with Lantian. Apple is just another Microsoft now.
Oh Yes. We also witnessed the classic spiderweb crack covering the entire screen of our ipod touch as it landed on the ground. Other companies would pick up on common problems like this and try to give customers alternatives and try to simplify the repair.The repair for us would cost almost as much as the ipod touch, and no matter whether it's our fault or not, that is taking advantage of consumers. You know the weak spot, so insure it, or offer a simpler, more realistic replacement policy/insurance/repair kit. That's just ridiculous..It almost seem that they purposely have it that way so that you can go back and pump in more money because you have no other choice. I agree with Lantian. Apple is just another Microsoft now.
Accident Prones Unite !!!!!
Yes! Yes! It happened.Apple has turned into a conglomerate. Accident prone or not the phones are clearly breakable and they need to fix a CLEAR problem. Stop going back to the "It's your fault" cop-out. I'm not saying it's not, I'm saying the phones are too fragile to not do something to have an better alternative for their customers and stand beside this incredibly fragile phone. ACCIDENT PRONES UNITE !!!!
Yes! Yes! It happened.Apple has turned into a conglomerate. Accident prone or not the phones are clearly breakable and they need to fix a CLEAR problem. Stop going back to the "It's your fault" cop-out. I'm not saying it's not, I'm saying the phones are too fragile to not do something to have an better alternative for their customers and stand beside this incredibly fragile phone. ACCIDENT PRONES UNITE !!!!
Correction..
I meant to say that Apple has turned into the same type of conglomerate as Microsoft, where they don't care as much about the customer anymore as they used to..
I meant to say that Apple has turned into the same type of conglomerate as Microsoft, where they don't care as much about the customer anymore as they used to..
fishkorp
macrumors 68030
My input on this situation:
It's all about how it hits the ground. I've dropped my phone from 3 feet and even 5 feet and all I got was a small ding on the side. Just a few days ago I was sitting on my front steps (concrete) and the phone was on my pants. It slid off my lap, no more than 6 inches off the step, and shattered the glass in a few places. Apple will sell a replacement for $249 (8gb) but I'd have to give them the broken phone. iPhones with broken screens are going for over $200 on eBay, so I said screw it. I'm just going to sell the broken one and I bought a brand new one. If I unlock the phone I can probably get even more for it.
And for anyone with State Farm, they'll cover the iPhone for $25/year. I added that to my policy now after I got the new phone. If it happens again, they'll cover it now. So I recommend contacting your insurance company for coverage beyond what Apple covers. Hell, $25 is cheaper then buying a case for the phone.
It's all about how it hits the ground. I've dropped my phone from 3 feet and even 5 feet and all I got was a small ding on the side. Just a few days ago I was sitting on my front steps (concrete) and the phone was on my pants. It slid off my lap, no more than 6 inches off the step, and shattered the glass in a few places. Apple will sell a replacement for $249 (8gb) but I'd have to give them the broken phone. iPhones with broken screens are going for over $200 on eBay, so I said screw it. I'm just going to sell the broken one and I bought a brand new one. If I unlock the phone I can probably get even more for it.
And for anyone with State Farm, they'll cover the iPhone for $25/year. I added that to my policy now after I got the new phone. If it happens again, they'll cover it now. So I recommend contacting your insurance company for coverage beyond what Apple covers. Hell, $25 is cheaper then buying a case for the phone.
t0mat0
macrumors 603
A foot up, say a third of a metre, so call gravity 10 metres per second per second, that'd make roughly 3 metres a second velocity.
Pressure = Force / Area
It's going ~3 times faster than walking pace. If you walk into a lampost at that speed it hurts. And it hurts the iPhone.
But - Your area of impact is small - the impact isn't spread out over a large area as it hit the edge, so the pressure on the iPhone screen is much greater - As an analogy - Hit a wood mallet slowly against the cover and it might dent. With the same swing a nail could pierce the cover.
The iPhone isn't marketed as highly rugged. It isn't marketed as a waterproof splashproof throw it around item. It's a phone. It isn't necessarily a design flaw at all.
We get away with dropping some things, others, we don't
(cats, kids, plates, bowls, knifes, phones, partners, cups of tea...)
Pressure = Force / Area
It's going ~3 times faster than walking pace. If you walk into a lampost at that speed it hurts. And it hurts the iPhone.
But - Your area of impact is small - the impact isn't spread out over a large area as it hit the edge, so the pressure on the iPhone screen is much greater - As an analogy - Hit a wood mallet slowly against the cover and it might dent. With the same swing a nail could pierce the cover.
The iPhone isn't marketed as highly rugged. It isn't marketed as a waterproof splashproof throw it around item. It's a phone. It isn't necessarily a design flaw at all.
We get away with dropping some things, others, we don't
(cats, kids, plates, bowls, knifes, phones, partners, cups of tea...)
decksnap
macrumors 68040
Every phone is breakable. You people are ridiculous. You all act so entitled. Apple didn't break your iPhone.