Macs replaced/repaired in first month? POLL

I just want to see how many people have gotten their macbook and macbook pro replaced/repaired within the first month of purchase.

 

Actually, I've really got to ask, what Apple Store did you go to to get your own MacBook Pro replaced 3 or 4 times for cosmetic defects? Did they give you any trouble or hassle in doing it? Why didn't they try to repair the keyboard and mouse problems rather than just giving you entirely new MacBook Pros (a major expense for them, to just give out 4 laptops for issues that they normally repair).

 

Apple store in burlington massachusetts. Not all problems were cosmetic, and the first few times they happily swapped, but it was a hassle the next two times . They told me if they sent it out to repair they would just send it back so they gave me new ones.

 

Wow. Definitely incredible. Not sure what the heck is going on with the Apple Store in Burlington though. I'm also not sure why they would say that nothing would be done if it wasn't sent out for repair - I mean, if there was a problem, why wouldn't they repair it?

If it was something they didn't think Apple would even repair, I'm not sure why they would be willing to take it back without a restocking fee and give you a new one (I mean, that Apple Store basically took a huge hit on just swapping out a MBP 4 times).

Really odd stuff. I guess it isn't any consolation to you at this point, but all I can say is that the people at that Apple Store don't seem to be following properly procedures. I think that if they had just sent it to be repaired the first time, whatever issues you had could have been fixed professionally and you would have ended up with something that worked.

Not sure why they handled it the way they did.

So anyway, what laptop did you end up getting?

-Zadillo

 

hahaha ive told this story to so many people and your the first person that finds it hard to swallow. I think its because of the fact that its a couple of days old and they felt sorry. I dunno, but i didnt get a replacement because i decided to wait for vista/santa rosa platform to come out.

 

I see. Yeah, I'm sorry, I don't mean to sound like I don't believe you or something - it's more that I can't understand why the people at that Apple Store would have handled it the way they did (hell, even the bit about one of the guys there trying to fix the keyboard problem himself).

Anyway, sorry you had such bad luck, and that they gave you the runaround - I still think things would have been better if they just sent the original one to get repaired so there'd be no more question about it. Although I guess it's hard to criticize them for actually being willing to give you new MBP's so many times - but I imagine Apple wouldn't be pleased with that, that they did that and told you that getting it repaired wouldn't even do anything.

-Zadillo

 

Remember though guhjeeh, if it were any other manufacturer, they would have told you tough luck. Don't expect anyone else to happily take back a not so defective product so 4 times.

 

^^ but then again i havent had this much trouble with any other company. Anyways im not pissed off at apple i just want to see how many people had trouble with their macbook purchase. I fully appreciate apple customer service.

 

This seems to be a very unfair post towards Apple, not everyone has had the same experiences as you guhjeeh, the reason why I say its unfair is because you have decided not to include the option "Never had to repair/replace yet".

The only impression this thread will give off to potential buyers is nothing but a bad feelings, I think it would be better if you include that option.

As for me, I'm going on 3 months right now with no need of replacement or repairs.

 

xbandaidx, could you tell me how much you spent on your macbook(along with tax and ram upgrade)??

 

That's really still the big part about guhjeeh's experience that I don't understand. As for as MBP horror stories go, the more common one I've heard is people who actually do have serious problems (i.e. logic board problems, shutdowns, etc.) and getting Apple to actually swap the whole thing with a new MBP is usually pretty difficult. Apple's general policy seems to be 3 repairs and only then will they actually swap it out. So I guess I just don't understand why they were so willing to not even swap it out once without a repair but do it 3 or 4 times. Just seems odd that they would so willingly do that in this case for some issues, while people with serious defects more likely have to wait until the 3rd repair before they can get a completely new one.

-Zadillo

 

Well that is the difference of actually going to the store vs talking to them on the phone. Also banaid, yeah i tried to put "never had it replaced", but couldnt have it edited. so yeah i guess im stuck with this.

 

$1459 for my Macbook with tax and ram upgraded by me, I also bought AppleCare APP for $182 which i didnt include in the price. Just to let you know I am a student as well, so I had gotten discounts on it.

Guhjeeh, I think if you ask cashmonee he will do it for you, moderators can edit that kind of stuff after its been done.

 

so if i buy the black macbook..i would be spending around 1831$ ??
I dont think student discount is available in india and also i dont think its for high school students..
So i would be spending around 1900$,right??
Or should i go for the white macbook(2.0 GHz) and upgrade the hard drive and ram?

 

Yes, unless you just really want it in black, it is cheaper to get the white one and then buy a new HD and RAM yourself. Essentially, The base price of the black macbook is $1399..... the comparable white MacBook is the $1199 model with a superdrive, and for an extra $50 it can be brought to the same specs as the black MacBook (changing the HD from 60 gigs to 80 gigs). So that leaves a $150 price difference that is basically just for the black matte finish instead of the white MacBook finish.

 

Yeah its only $1,199 if you can get the educational discount, generally its not available to High School students, only the staff and faculty of the High school can get the educational discount.

It's most likely its $1,299 USD or 60,312 rupees in indian currency. Now I read on a news site that Apple products in India is basically a black market, they are very overpriced over there, now the price I gave did not include tax and custom fees etc etc so its probably much more.

 

Got a week 16 mbp from my university bookstore but had it returned due to some cosmetic issues and BLOWN SPEAKERS. But then I'm lucky enough to get a advertised customized version instead (some person ordered a 2.0GHz model with 1Gb ram and 100G HD, but he found out it was not a glossy screen so he doesn't want it) for 1699 after Applecare rebate. This one is a week 21 and it's flawless except the whine, but it's much quieter than the previous one.

 

As long as it is in 14 days, you can return it for a replacement if there is anything you feel is wrong. They are pretty easy going. After that, then the 3 repair rule kicks in and you gotta pretty much call customer relations to get a replacement before the third repair.

The point is, there are few retailers/manufacturers who are easy going within the return period. Most would charge the restocking fee for th problems guhjeeh had. But he did say that was one of the better parts of his experience.

 

Normally there's still a restocking fee though, right? I know they will waive it from time to time, but I didn't think it was standard for them to do so.

EDIT: Duh, sorry, should have read your response more closely...

 

This poll is useless

sorry, but what is the use of knowing x amount of people got there laptops repaired or replaced in the first month without knowing how many people didn't

for the numbers to make sense we need to know what kind of pool the repairs/replaces represent? do they make up 75% of owners? 50%, 25%, 10% .5%?

 

Well, hopefully no-one is going to take this poll to mean much...... even if there was an option for "didn't need replacement/repairs" you couldn't tell much from it really........... it's why when you do this kind of thing to actually try and get some real numbers, you have to use some sort of random sampling, or just survey everyone.

 

Although in all seriousness, it does make me wonder about these repair/replacement rates compared to other laptops.

I just noticed another post in the HP forums from a new HP owner complaining about how their trackpad didn't work reliably (i.e. for anything beyond basic clicking and selecting, it wasn't reliable). But they didn't say anything about trying to get HP to replace it, they said they just use it with an optical mouse whenever they can.

It also reminds me of my time as a Sony owner, and reading about so many people coming up with their own fixes for problems with the spacebar, or sticking some velcro on their batteries so they were no longer loose. I didn't often see people try and actually get Sony to fix these issues.

I know that the MB and MBP's have both had a fair share of significant problems, but it does make me wonder if there is more sensitivity to less serious problems.

Personally I do think that people should definitely demand that something is fixed or replaced, but I kind of get the impression that MB and MBP owners seem to be especially sensitive to problems, and might be more likely to actually expect a repair or a replacement, rather than just dealing with it or trying to fix it themselves.

 

I do not remember mentioning that this thread is a highly scientific study of macbook repair/replacement rates. I just wanted to see how many people actually did get their notebooks replaced. I just dont understand the zealous users of apple computers.

 

It is a good point you bring up zadillo. I believe quality of computing products is down across the board. I think it has a lot to do with the way they are manufcatured and the parts being poor. I mean there are some design flaws I am sure, but things like guhjeeh experienced or most of my problems, cannot be blamed so much on Apple as on the company that made it and the parts they used. Same goes for nearly all brands. Can Dell be blamed for Sony making a bad battery? I say it was Sony's problem, althoug there are rumors that both Dell and Sony knew about it, but as for the part being bad, Dell did not make it.

 

Yeah. One thing it probably calls into question is the quality control and QA procedures in the factories where these laptops are produced. Hopefully this is something that Apple is taking a look at. Aside from the general damage to their reputation whenever someone gets a laptop with problems, it also does end up being more expensive for Apple the more they have to deal with returns, repairs, etc. that could have been caught potentially during the normal QA procedures.

Not expecting them to catch everything, but it does seem like some of the more obvious stuff (keyboards not installed properly, trackpads not working, etc.) could be caught.

I have to assume at least that it will cause Apple to take a look at their current manufacturing partners and see if any changes need to be made.

-Zadillo

 

I don't think the complaint above was specifically an example of zealousness, really. There's frankly always going to be a fair degree of brand loyalty for any brand; Apple in particular just happens to garner an especially strong sense of brand loyalty that very few companies have really managed to replicate, and it does result in people who are a bit more passionate about things.

On one hand this zealousness can result in people turning a blind eye to certain problems or even defending the indefensible, but it also has a converse effect; namely, those same zealous users will be even more vocal whenever they do experience a problem, rather than just sort of accepting it, which seems to be more common with some other brands.

-Zadillo

 

You want to find out about how much loyalty Apple has from its users?

Get the book "The Cult of Mac" I bought it and its terrific book with tons of high quality pictures, I learned a lot about the history of Apple and what it had went through, as well as what many fans out there do.

 

^^ exactly what im talking about. apple zealots.

 

"The Cult of Mac" isn't specifically just about "Apple zealots" as you label them. There is a pretty wide diversity among Mac users. Most of them are really just the standard computer users like anyone else. Then there are the "zealots" that I believe you're referring to, the people who really do go nuts, etc.

But then there's also the people that just really like the platform and the company and do feel a very intense loyalty to Apple and really care about what the company does, for better and for worse.

The zealots are irritating, but there are also Windows zealots and Linux zealots..... it's just human nature.

But I think you'll find that most Mac users are pretty nice people generally, and I don't think there's anything to look down on the fact that Apple has managed to create a really loyal customer base. Most companies try for decades to create that kind of loyalty, and I think it's why Apple continues to be a model for so many other companies.

Take a look at HP/Compaq for example; they are desperate to be thought of like Apple and to instill the same sort of passion in their customers that Apple has, but they have found that it isn't so simple.

You can sort of see this in the mp3 player world as well; a lot of the same qualities that made loyal Mac users have created loyal iPod users as well, and you have a lot of competitors who are desperate to try and recreate that but again find that it is not so simple.

I'd venture to say that what Microsoft has done with XBox users is probably close though, which is why MS put the XBox people in charge of this new Zune player effort.

So why have disdain for that? I think it is a great success story for a company to accomplish what it has in the industry and with its userbase over the past 30 years, from something that didn't even exist prior to 1976.

-Zadillo

 

My apologies, It's been a long bad day, i'm sure you guys get them too.

Zealousness + Apple, lol. Well, Apple is one unique beast- that is for sure.