On October 20 of 2008, I purchased a Rev A 15" 2.53GHz Unibody MacBook Pro. The product I received came with a design flaw. It "teetered" since the bottom case/s were not aligned correctly with the top case. A replacement was granted by Mr. Kane Massey of Apple Australia by November of 2008 but was only received by me on NOVEMBER 17, 2008 (Approximately 1 Month Later).
The new unit came with another design flaw. The keys on the the keyboard were askew, primarily along the function keys and the directional arrow keys, and less obviously on the QWERTY area. Again, a replacement unit was granted by Mr. Massey. The replacement took far much longer than the first one. I received it on JANUARY 31, 2009 (Approximately 2 (TWO) and a half months).
The THIRD unit again came with other flaws. The unit had visible scratches and dents on the top case as if it had been previously used or mishandled during manufacturing. I immediately e-mailed Mr. Massey on the same day (01/31/09). I received my first reply 9 (Nine) days later on February 9, 2009 from Ms. Janine Beach. Apparently, my issue had been forwarded to his colleague.
From February 12, 2009 onwards, Ms. Beach and I had been conversing about the issue via telephone and no longer via e-mail. Ms. Beach granted a replacement of the TOP CASE of the unit. On February 17, 2009, the replacement part had finally arrived. Since I had been assigned a vast number of projects to accomplish by the company I work for, I was unable to bring the unit till March 6, 2006 for repair which was a day I filed for absence to finally get my issue resolved.
March 6, 2006 at 10AM, I arrived at the reseller. They informed me that moving the hardware to the new body would take approximately 2 to 3 hours. I complied happily and returned to their office at 3PM. They then showed me the completed unit. We tested the unit for problems and the following issues arose:
1. When closing the notebook, it wouldn't go to "sleep" (indicator light would not pulse)
2. Even with the notebook closed, the screen would not turn off (Apple logo was still glowing)
3. The hard drive head didn't move to the "parked" position
4. The LCD wasn't aligned with the top-case when the unit was closed by about 1mm on the left side (The technicians said that the misaligned LCD could not be fixed since the holes where the LCD is attached cannot be adjusted.)
The technicians then began trouble-shooting the top case. After thorough analysis of the replacement part, they discovered that a magnet was missing from it. They took a magnet from the OLD case and moved it to the NEW case. The transfer did not solve the problem. That leads me to ask how it is possible that a replacement part be sent out of Apple's factories with a MISSING piece?
The technicians then decided to reset the logic board thinking that would solve the problem. By 6PM of the same day, the problem had still not been solved. They decided to loan me one of their units (A 2006 2.0GHz Core Duo 15" MBP) so that I could continue to work my unit is being repaired. The technicians stated that the replacement top case might have faulty wiring and that they might have to reorder another piece. They said that the repair or replacement might take anywhere between 5 days to a few weeks.
During all this "ball-throwing" from one court to the other, I have unsuccessfully been able to use the unit(s) to their full potential due to the efforts of calling daily to the reseller and making follow-ups with the Apple employees who have been handling my issue.
Just to make things clear, I have been an Apple advocate since 2004. I have 7 iMacs at the office (4 G5s and 3 Intel Core 2 Duo Machines), 6 iBooks for some of my employees, 3 MacBooks, and 4 MacBook Pros (including the one that's had these onslaught of problems.). The units that I'm mentioning have NEVER had problems. They are all top-of-their-class, meaning I purchased the best that money could buy. All of those machines are for business use, EXCEPT for this Unibody that I decided to make as a personal investment. The first time I actually decided to buy something for myself, and it came with out-of-the-box problems. I've never experienced this before with any of the other units.
An employee of the reseller actually said something logical to me today: She said "Sir, it's such a good thing that you're a die-hard Apple fanboy. Most other customers would've given up by now and would've requested a complete refund. You've been really unlucky with the Rev A Unibody MBP."
In all honesty, I COULD go for Sony or IBM or Dell despite better specs at a similar price, but I consciously and affirmatively decide not to since, just as the employee had stated, I am a die-hard Apple Fanboy. I have a firm belief in Apple's Mission and Vision. I acknowledge that Apple is the leader in design and execution. I have so much faith in your products. A faith that is currently being shaken.
During these entire 5 months of replacements and repairs, Apple has been able to release new and better products such as a new 17" MBP, Airport Extreme and Express, and now the new 2.66GHz 15" MBP. From what I've heard, the new products are flawless. I have numerous friends in New York who have the new 15 and 17" MBPs and they say their units have absolutely no problems. They even teased me by saying "That's what you get for not waiting till they (Apple) have made sure their manufacturing processes have been finalized by waiting for the next Revision." How can Apple release better products and yet pay little attention to the dedicated people like me who bought a "First Release" product not doubting the quality and attention to detail that Apple puts into them? My MacBook Pro has become obsolete during the entire duration of my issues. I haven't even begun to enjoy my unit over these past 5 months, and now it has become a thing of the past.
I am completely torn and devastated. I bought the 15" Unibody as my FIRST PERSONAL (not for business) INVESTMENT. It's the first time I actually bought an Apple product using my personal money and not the corporation's. Money that I skipped meals and and nights out with friends just to save. If that doesn't make it a VERY personal investment, I don't know what can. That MacBook Pro represents time away from people I cherish and love. It represents a growling stomach during lunches and dinners. It represents a trip to Hong Kong with my younger sister that I decided not to take just to buy the unit. That Macbook Pro is a VERY personal investment for me.
I am still loyal to Apple. That fact WILL NOT CHANGE. I just wish that Apple was just as loyal to me.
What exactly am I supposed to do now???
The new unit came with another design flaw. The keys on the the keyboard were askew, primarily along the function keys and the directional arrow keys, and less obviously on the QWERTY area. Again, a replacement unit was granted by Mr. Massey. The replacement took far much longer than the first one. I received it on JANUARY 31, 2009 (Approximately 2 (TWO) and a half months).
The THIRD unit again came with other flaws. The unit had visible scratches and dents on the top case as if it had been previously used or mishandled during manufacturing. I immediately e-mailed Mr. Massey on the same day (01/31/09). I received my first reply 9 (Nine) days later on February 9, 2009 from Ms. Janine Beach. Apparently, my issue had been forwarded to his colleague.
From February 12, 2009 onwards, Ms. Beach and I had been conversing about the issue via telephone and no longer via e-mail. Ms. Beach granted a replacement of the TOP CASE of the unit. On February 17, 2009, the replacement part had finally arrived. Since I had been assigned a vast number of projects to accomplish by the company I work for, I was unable to bring the unit till March 6, 2006 for repair which was a day I filed for absence to finally get my issue resolved.
March 6, 2006 at 10AM, I arrived at the reseller. They informed me that moving the hardware to the new body would take approximately 2 to 3 hours. I complied happily and returned to their office at 3PM. They then showed me the completed unit. We tested the unit for problems and the following issues arose:
1. When closing the notebook, it wouldn't go to "sleep" (indicator light would not pulse)
2. Even with the notebook closed, the screen would not turn off (Apple logo was still glowing)
3. The hard drive head didn't move to the "parked" position
4. The LCD wasn't aligned with the top-case when the unit was closed by about 1mm on the left side (The technicians said that the misaligned LCD could not be fixed since the holes where the LCD is attached cannot be adjusted.)
The technicians then began trouble-shooting the top case. After thorough analysis of the replacement part, they discovered that a magnet was missing from it. They took a magnet from the OLD case and moved it to the NEW case. The transfer did not solve the problem. That leads me to ask how it is possible that a replacement part be sent out of Apple's factories with a MISSING piece?
The technicians then decided to reset the logic board thinking that would solve the problem. By 6PM of the same day, the problem had still not been solved. They decided to loan me one of their units (A 2006 2.0GHz Core Duo 15" MBP) so that I could continue to work my unit is being repaired. The technicians stated that the replacement top case might have faulty wiring and that they might have to reorder another piece. They said that the repair or replacement might take anywhere between 5 days to a few weeks.
During all this "ball-throwing" from one court to the other, I have unsuccessfully been able to use the unit(s) to their full potential due to the efforts of calling daily to the reseller and making follow-ups with the Apple employees who have been handling my issue.
Just to make things clear, I have been an Apple advocate since 2004. I have 7 iMacs at the office (4 G5s and 3 Intel Core 2 Duo Machines), 6 iBooks for some of my employees, 3 MacBooks, and 4 MacBook Pros (including the one that's had these onslaught of problems.). The units that I'm mentioning have NEVER had problems. They are all top-of-their-class, meaning I purchased the best that money could buy. All of those machines are for business use, EXCEPT for this Unibody that I decided to make as a personal investment. The first time I actually decided to buy something for myself, and it came with out-of-the-box problems. I've never experienced this before with any of the other units.
An employee of the reseller actually said something logical to me today: She said "Sir, it's such a good thing that you're a die-hard Apple fanboy. Most other customers would've given up by now and would've requested a complete refund. You've been really unlucky with the Rev A Unibody MBP."
In all honesty, I COULD go for Sony or IBM or Dell despite better specs at a similar price, but I consciously and affirmatively decide not to since, just as the employee had stated, I am a die-hard Apple Fanboy. I have a firm belief in Apple's Mission and Vision. I acknowledge that Apple is the leader in design and execution. I have so much faith in your products. A faith that is currently being shaken.
During these entire 5 months of replacements and repairs, Apple has been able to release new and better products such as a new 17" MBP, Airport Extreme and Express, and now the new 2.66GHz 15" MBP. From what I've heard, the new products are flawless. I have numerous friends in New York who have the new 15 and 17" MBPs and they say their units have absolutely no problems. They even teased me by saying "That's what you get for not waiting till they (Apple) have made sure their manufacturing processes have been finalized by waiting for the next Revision." How can Apple release better products and yet pay little attention to the dedicated people like me who bought a "First Release" product not doubting the quality and attention to detail that Apple puts into them? My MacBook Pro has become obsolete during the entire duration of my issues. I haven't even begun to enjoy my unit over these past 5 months, and now it has become a thing of the past.
I am completely torn and devastated. I bought the 15" Unibody as my FIRST PERSONAL (not for business) INVESTMENT. It's the first time I actually bought an Apple product using my personal money and not the corporation's. Money that I skipped meals and and nights out with friends just to save. If that doesn't make it a VERY personal investment, I don't know what can. That MacBook Pro represents time away from people I cherish and love. It represents a growling stomach during lunches and dinners. It represents a trip to Hong Kong with my younger sister that I decided not to take just to buy the unit. That Macbook Pro is a VERY personal investment for me.
I am still loyal to Apple. That fact WILL NOT CHANGE. I just wish that Apple was just as loyal to me.
What exactly am I supposed to do now???
