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Would this get repaired under warranty? UPDATE: What next?

H

HacKage

macrumors 6502
Original poster
May 14, 2010
499
906
Hi there, I have a mid 2010 i7 MBP that I bought in April and earlier today one of the little black circle feet has came off the bottom of it. I have tried to get it back on, but it seems to need to be put on using a machine or something, as the foot is just a tad too big for the hole on the plate in order for it to be stuck in with no glue. I don't have a camera at hand, but can post pics later if needed.

The foot has little dimples that match upto the bottom of the laptop too so it can only be put on in one way. I was thinking about just gluing it on, but this is a £1900 laptop that I bought with the idea of selling it on in mint condition when a refresh comes out, as I do with everything else. I was going to go into the Apple store in Glasgow to see what they say, but I don't want to go in and be "that guy" that is complaining about nothing.

Obviously it is bugging the behind off me that it's not on, and I can't see how I could possibly get it on without just gluing it and holding it, and that's not a guarantee that it will sit right after it. I would like to get it fixed, but it's not the end of the world if it isn't, it will just bug me. Can anyone out there give any advice as to what I should do, like people who have had similar questionable faults that Apple has sorted?

Any help would be appreciated
Cheers
 
I don't think that this is a minor complaint - Apple pride themselves on build quality and attention to detail. Assuming that you still have Apple care on the machine just go and ask for it to be fixed.
 
Take it in to an Apple store. It's still under warranty and my experience with Apple is they stand behind their products. My guess is they'll simply replace the entire bottom cover, unless it is easy to pop the foot back on. If they stock bottom covers as repair parts it should be a quick fix.
 
Thanks for that guys, I will book an appointment tomorrow and see what they say. I noticed that on the bottom panel it has the serial number for my MBP, do they then update my file as it were that the serial number on the new panel is linked to this machine for warranty purposes in the future?
 
The new panel will probably be blank. The serial is only etched on there to be easy to get at.

Your serial number isn't going to change and is actually "Written" in your hardware on the inside.
 
mmhh come to think of it. They might replace the whole laptop with HDD swap out or glue it back. The bottom cover has your machine serial number imprinted on it.
 
DJ-R said:
mmhh come to think of it. They might replace the whole laptop with HDD swap out or glue it back. The bottom cover has your machine serial number imprinted on it.
Click to expand...

They aren't going to replace the entire device because a $.05 foot fell off the bottom. If they do... then that explains why Mac's are so expensive lol.
 
¬.¬

They aren't going to replace the machine.

The feet are available to techs loose. They can slap a new set on.
 
weeelll......... they replace the whole $320 ipod touch when it's just my home button got stucked ... button cost $0.05... soo..
 
DJ-R said:
weeelll......... they replace the whole $320 ipod touch when it's just my home button got stucked ... button cost $0.05... soo..
Click to expand...

That is different.

1. It is not a several thousand $ laptop.
2. It is an internal piece that is not easily replaced.
 
Yea, I was kinda expecting them to replace the bottom panel, was just worried about the serial number, good to know that it's also on elsewhere in the laptop. If they can manage to get it on without replacing the bottom then I'd be over the moon, but I've been trying for a couple of hours, seems a right PITA!
 
What's the update on your rubber foot? I just noticed that one of my rubber feet is completely worn away and I have no idea why as I only use it on my desk which is clean. The other feet are also pretty much mint condition. I was thinking if Apple would replace that. Any thoughts guys?
 
I'll be taking it in at some point this afternoon so will keep you posted!
 
Well I went into the genius bar today to get my foot looked at, and the guy was just making up allsorts of stuff, saying I had taken it off somehow. First he said they were glued on, then he changed it and said they were stuck on from the inside, and he was saying that I had got it caught on something and that is how it had fell off. He said that "in the hundreds and thousands that he has seen in there" (his own words) that he had never seen this happen before.

He then went through and said that because it was user damage and cosmetic that I would need to buy a whole new bottom panel, at a cost of £35. I showed him that even if I tried, I wouldn't be able to take a foot off, and I tried using my nails, but by the very design of them, they can't get caught on anything. The laptop is only 5 months old, and I don't expect things to be falling off it, and then for me to pay for it.

What do you think the best plan of action would be from here? The guy was of no help whatsoever, and was just trying to put all the blame on me for something that I didn't do. Can someone please give advice on who do I contact now to get this sorted, or am I fighting a losing battle?

Cheers
 
Wow, that's pretty crappy man. Looking at the feet it's pretty easy to see it would be virtually impossible for it to come off via "user damage."

Not to mention, what a pittance of a 5 cent part for them to try and blame you for. Sad, really.
 
Yea, the foot is spotless, no marks on it whatsoever. The area surrounding the foot is spotless as well, so I don't see what exactly it got caught on that would break it off. He said that every other part of the laptop was covered under warranty, but the bottom panel isn't for like dents and scratches etc. and I said this isn't a dent or a scratch, this is a part has fell off.

My guess is that if it is bonded on at the factory, then the bond hasn't held. I used to make blood transfusion kits for Haemonetics, and we used cyanoacrylate adhesive for the tubing, and I'd image Apple would use the same sort of stuff. We were regularly audited because if the bond isn't perfect, the bond will fail pretty soon after. I think that with it being only 5 months old, this has to be the case, but he wasn't for having it.

I will give the phone support a call, but will they not just tell me to take it into the store again to get it checked over?
 
HacKage said:
I will give the phone support a call, but will they not just tell me to take it into the store again to get it checked over?
Click to expand...

Explain that you went to a store and they tried to tell you that it was your fault.

Oh, ask for and write down the name(s) of anyone you talk to. If possible you can try to convince them to put it in writing that this should be fixed under AC.
 
I didn't take out AppleCare at time of purchase, does the 1yr warranty from new still count as AppleCare?

I had a look at the warranty information, and in the exclusions I seen "(b) to cosmetic damage, including but not limited to scratches, dents and broken plastic on ports". Would I be right in saying that if they really wanted to, they can just say that it is not covered under warranty because of this, just like the guy at the Genius Bar said?
 
HacKage said:
I didn't take out AppleCare at time of purchase, does the 1yr warranty from new still count as AppleCare?
Click to expand...

Yes. You get a year of Applecare "free."

I had a look at the warranty information, and in the exclusions I seen "(b) to cosmetic damage, including but not limited to scratches, dents and broken plastic on ports". Would I be right in saying that if they really wanted to, they can just say that it is not covered under warranty because of this, just like the guy at the Genius Bar said?
Click to expand...

If they really wanted to.
 
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