^ I'm disregarding two posts above. Defend a company and the unreliability of portable electronics and be on the offense to loyal customers, makes sense.
Anyways...
I have my laptop back now. Most absurd experience. I just emailed them a nasty gram too:
"I would like to share with you the less-than-satisfactory experience I had getting my computer repaired. I took my early 2008 MacBook Pro in to get the graphics card and SuperDrive fixed as the 8600M GT card was scrambling graphics on the screen and I took screenshots of it. Also, the SuperDrive was working well for the most part but would refuse to burn Dual Layer DVD+R's; it created multiple coasters when I used the highest quality media on the lowest burn setting. The Genius wanted to run a graphics test on the card, saying that normally there is no picture on the screen as opposed to scrambled graphics (where it says in Apple documentation that graphics scrambling is a common issue and needs replacement:
http://support.apple.com/kb/TS2377). Anyways, he could not run a graphics test because the USB drive that had it was erased, and there was no backup USB drive so he took the computer and ordered the parts for it anyways, a new logic board and SuperDrive. I was told it would be between 4-6 business days, and he would run tests some other time.
On Tuesday, just to get an update to see how things are going, an Apple store employee over the phone told me that the parts were in and my machine was on the workbench for early Tuesday repair service and would likely be done Wednesday. Since I was in the area on Wednesday, I came in mid day expecting to pick up my computer and the lady behind the counter told me it was still being worked on and would need 3 additional days but that I should try back on Friday. I told her what I heard the other day on the phone, and she offered no resolution. She also told me that due to cosmetic damage, the in store repair would be saving me $1000 as opposed to sending it off to the repair center where they are more strict about damage. At that point, I didn't know what "damage" she was referring to and was concerned my machine was damaged in the process of storing it in the back room. Turns out, what she considered cosmetic damage was a slight scratch blemish near the plastic bezel that could have easily been caused by wearing a watch on my wrist (the last Genius I dealt with on Friday night told me that's absurd, and "the cosmetic damage" was not an issue to the repair in the slightest). By the way, I have never dropped or dented the machine or poured any liquids on it either. So, I called back on Friday, early evening, and the person I spoke to on the phone this time told me the SuperDrive was in the store but not the logic board (they were still waiting for that), after being told Tuesday that the parts were in and the machine was going to be done by Wednesday. Also, I waited 20 minutes on the phone as the next customer in the queue and after being impatient, hung up the phone and called again when somebody was actually picking up. At this point, I was furious. I became tired of the inconsistent sources of information and called the Apple store one more time to pick up my laptop, repair order complete or not. I had, from what I had been told, taken for a ride for 6 days with my machine essentially collecting dust in the back room.
After sitting at the genius bar for 30 minutes last night, without a single Genius making eye contact with me (while being inches from their faces the entire time) in order to avoid acknowledgment of my presence while working with other customers, I finally confronted a Genius near the right side and told her I want to pick the machine up and I'm fed up and want to tell the manager about the experience I'm describing now. Turns out my MacBook Pro was the first work order on the bench for Friday night after speaking to the last person over the phone, and Carlos did a fantastic job being very friendly and helpful as well as Vanessa during my frustrating experience. They were the only people who seemed to care about my poor experience. I wanted to speak to the manager who was on duty around 7:00, only she was busy dealing with another frustrated customer I overheard about not getting iPhone repairs resolved over the course of a week, which sounded a lot like my story.
The fact that the laptop repaired was completed was a pleasant surprise, and it should not have had to been. Given the multiple stories I heard about my laptop, from it being ready Wednesday to not having the parts in on Friday and getting completed on Friday as well as the outrageous claims of cosmetic damage over the phone which really got me upset is the most absurd experience I ever had, from Apple or not. I am far less inclined to ever take any of my Mac computers to this retail location, to recommend it to friends at the University of Miami in case they have technical issues, or to purchase one of the newer unibody style MacBook Pro's (which I was going to be in the market for sometime between now and the beginning of the next school year) from this store. I hope you have read my constructive criticism and take it to heart because I am certain I am not the first customer at this store who has had a less-than-optimal experience from a company who relies heavily on Customer Service and good customer relations."
There's a typo or two and the grammar isn't the best, but I think they get the idea.
