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Terrible experience at Apple store

cristo said:
But, like I said above, he's basically told the guy that the rattle isn't bothering him, since he accepted back the original one. Don't you think that these things will be noted on her account: namely that a rep spent time with her in store, only to have her storm off...?
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What am I supposed to say when the genius bar looks me straight in the face with a look and says nonchalantly "It's normal, it's the accelerometer".

Am I supposed to throw a hissy fit and say "No it's not!"

And like I said before, I just left because the replacement he tried giving me had HUGE BLATANT white dust marks under the screen that he tried wiping off.

At this point, I knew this experience was a losing battle so I just left.
 
swy05 said:
Woah, didn't know my thread would start such mixed responses.

The specs of dust is something I've learned to live with.

The issue with the accelorometer is something I'm a bit more concerned about. I mean, the phone seems fine. I just don't if this slight rattling will manifest into a bigger issue later.

But if the genius bar rep is telling me it's normal, that kind of defeats my inquiry. I guess I can ask them to pick up a demo model and shake it to compare.
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Are you in the UK? If so go to an o2 shop and swop it

if not just go back to another store or the same store and hope you get a nice person, you are well within your rights to return your purchase.

The Sale of Goods Act 1979 states that products must be fit for purpose, of satisfactory quality and as described. If any of these conditions are breached, you are entitled to a full refund, or exchange in this case.

go back and stick to your guns :) we are behind you ...
 
Any dust under the screen of a high end phone is annoying. You pay top dollar for a phone that isn't built correctly. As for the rattling noise, I also think this is not normal. I hear no rattling in my phone.
 
swy05 said:
What am I supposed to say when the genius bar looks me straight in the face with a look and says nonchalantly "It's normal, it's the accelerometer".

Am I supposed to throw a hissy fit and say "No it's not!"

And like I said before, I just left because the replacement he tried giving me had HUGE BLATANT white dust marks under the screen that he tried wiping off.

At this point, I knew this experience was a losing battle so I just left.
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You can politely disagree with the genius. If you just sit there and take it the genius will think you are agreeing with his diagnosis.
 
OP: I'm just curious if this happened at the Apple Store in Ann Arbor. Its very similar to an exchange I had with a genius.

My advice is to just chalk him up to a bad apple and try again with a different genius or at a different store.

I had a light leak through the back plastic of my white phone, and felt that to be unacceptable. Went to the Apple Store, and the genius was very confrontational and at first refused to exchange. Said the same thing about me returning too many phones due to poor quality control. I was firm, but polite, in my insistence that this wasn't acceptable. He kept trying to say that it was "within spec." Which, imo, is bs. Ulitmately, he did exchange it, and the replacement has the same problem.

But, I went to a different store, explained the light leak, the genius took it in the back to check it out in the dark, and came back with a replacement. Easy as pie. He said that it was very strange and should be replaced.

So, the moral of the story is that a) you are entitled to as many replacements as are neccessary to get it right. Apple isn't responsible for the condition of your phone months down the line, but within the first few weeks it shouldn't have the many problems people have encountered. And it should never have dust under the screen. b) the experience at the genius bar is contingent upon not only your attitude, but that of the Genius. 99% of my experience has been absolutely amazing, but there's always that 1%.


And, there should absolutely never be any rattling when you shake your iPhone. Anyone that thinks that is being ridiculous.
 
All of the naysayers against the OP are more of the smug fanboy who have to defend their religious product if one had a legitimate complaint.
The OP was within his rights to have a unit with good quality behind it. Just because AAPL no longer values quality, doesn't mean that one shouldn't expect it on the 'most advanced phone in the world'.
I have had four white 3G's and will be on my fifth tonight. Numbers 1,3,4 have the cracking casings. Number 2 had dust under the screen and a piece of broken plastic sticking out from between the metal bezzle and the screen (and this was straight out of the box and noted before I left the Apple store).

I have a suggestion for all of you smug clones. Just keep plugging your ears and yelling LA LA LA LA LA LA LA LA! Over and over until you feel more comfortable about your ignorance on the lack of QC with this product.

Oh, and Sod-off.
 
Hey OP,

This was my experience detailed at the Apple Store. If you feel your experience was less than perfect, speak to a manager. It would have been helpful to do it right after the incident, however you can still try to talk to them and at least voice your opinion. I'm not going to say that they'll be giving you personal shopping sprees or a free pair of headphones (like some people said, or like what I got)...but they will definitely appreciate the feedback.

Based on your experience, maybe the genius was not at fault, since he did provide whatever service you asked for reasonably. With no mean tone or anything. If I'm wrong, then sure speak with a manager.

Is it just me, or do I not thoroughly inspect my iPhone for dust or cracks in the screen?
 
Thanks for everyone's inputs.

I may speak to the manager at the store or just outright go to another Apple store to try my luck.
 
Mikey B said:
OP: I'm just curious if this happened at the Apple Store in Ann Arbor. Its very similar to an exchange I had with a genius.

My advice is to just chalk him up to a bad apple and try again with a different genius or at a different store.

I had a light leak through the back plastic of my white phone, and felt that to be unacceptable. Went to the Apple Store, and the genius was very confrontational and at first refused to exchange. Said the same thing about me returning too many phones due to poor quality control. I was firm, but polite, in my insistence that this wasn't acceptable. He kept trying to say that it was "within spec." Which, imo, is bs. Ulitmately, he did exchange it, and the replacement has the same problem.

But, I went to a different store, explained the light leak, the genius took it in the back to check it out in the dark, and came back with a replacement. Easy as pie. He said that it was very strange and should be replaced.

So, the moral of the story is that a) you are entitled to as many replacements as are neccessary to get it right. Apple isn't responsible for the condition of your phone months down the line, but within the first few weeks it shouldn't have the many problems people have encountered. And it should never have dust under the screen. b) the experience at the genius bar is contingent upon not only your attitude, but that of the Genius. 99% of my experience has been absolutely amazing, but there's always that 1%.


And, there should absolutely never be any rattling when you shake your iPhone. Anyone that thinks that is being ridiculous.
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No sir, this was at a store in NJ.
 
When he tries to re-sell the phone, someone will try to talk the price down due to the dust -- probably. I never accept faulty items that are expensive because if you don't nip it in the bud, you'll be the one trying to explain it to whomever you're selling it to.
 
Thanks guys! My phone rattles when I shake. I did not know that before. It goes away when I hold the home button.

I am pretty familiar with accelerometers and they should not rattle. It is not like a tilt sensor on a pinball machine.
 
bstpierre said:
Thanks guys! My phone rattles when I shake. I did not know that before. It goes away when I hold the home button.

I am pretty familiar with accelerometers and they should not rattle. It is not like a tilt sensor on a pinball machine.
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Your iPhone should NEVER rattle when you shake it.
 
To the OP:

I too had a rattle in my 3G iPhone. I don't know if the rattle is related to the problem I had but you should check this...Download Cuberunner. Set the phone on a flat table when starting the game and check to see if the "horizon" is even. My accelerometer was calibrated incorrectly and had a severe tilt to the left when the phone level. I took it in and showed the Genius. He switched it out with no problem and was friendly. My replacement phone does not rattle at all. The only issue I have with it is the vibrate function is too loud and is not strong enough. Maybe its aligned incorrectly. Regardless, not enough to exchange an otherwise nearly perfect phone for me.

Maybe that will help?
 
This thread is odd.

I exchanged my first phone and frankly I felt like an awful fool (a fussy idiot) even though my gripes were 'probably' legit ( I highlight probably as I'm actually not sure if indeed i am being fussy as it's just a lousy phone)

I think I'd have to get a surrogate for round three. :D
 
I had an issue with dust with my launch phone so I got it exchanged. The exchange then had a fried wifi chip so I went back the next day and got it replaced. The replacement had dust under the screen and a dead pixel so I complained. It was at that point the once friendly "genius" turned on me, implying that I was being picky and that he gave me a functional phone. I reluctently left the store. Once outside I realized that the phone had less than normal reception when compared to the previous two. The guy told me this was normal even though it took about 30 seconds to acquire a signal once turned on. They refused to replace it so I demanded my previous phone back. After a lot of debate, they finally caved and gave my previous phone back. A week later I went to another Apple store and got an exchange. This exchange turned out to have battery issues (as well as light leak, staggered plastic to bezel, and poor GPS reception). My 5th phone looks and works like a charm.

My point: don't settle and let someone tell you what is right when you the consumer knows better. It's not being picky. I'm sure most would do the same.
 
swy05 said:
No sir, this was at a store in NJ.
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My bad experience also took place at an Apple store in NJ (the one in the Freehold Mall to be exact). The customer service at the one in Atlantic City was far superior.
 
swy05 said:
Woah, didn't know my thread would start such mixed responses.

The specs of dust is something I've learned to live with.

The issue with the accelorometer is something I'm a bit more concerned about. I mean, the phone seems fine. I just don't if this slight rattling will manifest into a bigger issue later.

But if the genius bar rep is telling me it's normal, that kind of defeats my inquiry. I guess I can ask them to pick up a demo model and shake it to compare.
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Despite being frustrated, you should not have walked out.Go back again. Get it replaced. If there is still a problem, get it replaced AGAIN, until you receive something acceptable. It's totally reasonable. Not sure about the rattling sound as I've never heard it before but if it interferes with phone conversations then that is a problem.

As for the dust problem, no one should live with it. Trust me it might seem like nothing now, but in the long term it's terrible, spread to the whole screen. I had a razr with a little dust under the screen when i first got it, and i thought meh..minor issue.

Few months later, I can hardly use the screen during the day as it's all covered with dust which cannot be cleaned as it's under the screen.
 
swy05 said:
Made an appointment at the genius bar a couple of days ago and went to exchange my phone due to 1) dust forming under the screen and 2) slight rattling noise when shaking my phone (possibly due to something loose inside).

The rep confirms the rattle noise but says to me "It's normal, it's from the accelerometer". I'm thinking in my mind, how the hell is this normal?

He then says to me "This is your 3rd exchanged phone. What's the issue?" I then tell him to look at the previous notes on my exchanges phones. I tell him all of the previous reps confirmed my issues on the previous 2 phones. Phone 1 had improper body construction as well as dust forming underneath the screen. Phone 2 had dust forming underneath the screen after a couple of days.

The rep looks at my account and says "Hold on, I need to speak to a manager".

After a couple of minutes he comes back and says "Ok, we'll do another exchange for you but, this is a courtesy exchange." He then goes and tells me that they can't keep on exchanging the phone for a couple of dust pieces forming underneath the screen. He tells me when the dust gets bad then that's when I can come in for a "true" problem.

I'm like um WTF? How is it not an issue when dust is forming underneath the screen after a few days? Whether it's 100 dust pieces of 3 pieces.

He hands me an exchange and the new phone has 2 HUGE pieces of dust under the screen. I point this out to him and he tries wiping it off (of course you can't genius, it's under the screen).

Needless to say at this point I'm pissed off and tell him Eff it, I'll just keep my old phone and walk out.


I remember someone mentioned that the stores are trying to limit the number of phones being exchanged for a customer. Is that true or did I just meet a ****** genius bar rep?
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first of all, the genius is right
save the replacement units for people with real problems, problems that actually effect the users experience (like the home button being jammed, as it was on mine)
secondly, that rattling sound IS normal. its the accelerometer. Do you know how that works? Its a moving part. Moving things rattle when put inside something and shaken

im really getting tired of all these whiney perfectionists who use up all the replacements so people with real issues have to wait for restocks
 
shinenjk said:
More like the poor mac genius met one bad customer.

My iPhone also makes a "rattling" noise and it's NOT because there's a screw loose in there something. It is exactly what the mac genius said - it's the sensor.
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Really? I just shook my own iPhone 3G pretty good. No slightest rattling.

1-2 pieces of dust? Wow. Do you sit around home all day and stare at the iPhone screen? Does it affect the function at all? No, so why do you care so much?
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I would if I were the OP. Just because you don't care does not mean nobody should.

Of course the customer is always the king but your case is too extreme. Thus you get 0 sympathy from me.
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That's one of the things I still find annoying in the U.S. Customer service is total crap, yet people seem to accept it. Why? Yes, the customer is always right. Customer support reps should never say anything that would anger the customer. If a rep told me "This is your 3rd exchanged phone. What's the issue" in an Apple store in Japan, I'd tell him to call a manager right there, and the manager will most definitely apologize to me for the rudeness of the rep. He may even give me a freebie. Customer reps in the U.S. should be lucky. With that kind of attitude, they would never be able to hold their jobs anywhere in the world except here.
 
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