Why I'm now an Apple fan...

[Kantastic]

Many computer enthusiasts say that Apple is a company with questionable business ethics and overpriced products, but from my recent experience I would have to disagree and commend Apple for their excellent customer service. I purchased a new iPad about two weeks ago and waited for my case and screen protectors to arrive before opening it. When the goods arrived, I unwrapped my new toy. But upon opening it I immediately noticed there was a stuck pixel-like blemish on the screen. A little diagnosis later and the conclusion was reached that the blemish was neither a dead pixel nor a ding on the surface, it was something under the screen. With that information, I went to exchange the iPad at the Apple store. I unfortunately arrived without making an appointment. The wait time was said to be over two hours. I sat there for a while until the Genius who scheduled my appointment approached me and asked what the issue was with my iPad. I showed her the blemish, and after taking one look, she took me right over to the counter and helped me make the exchange.

The second iPad worked great for a few days, but yesterday I noticed that it had a bright green stuck pixel, which went unnoticed for the entire time I used my new toy since the PPI is extraordinarily high with the retina display. To add onto my lack of fortune, the iPad was one day past the 14 day return window. I went to the Apple store again to explain my case, and again, the Genius took one look and exchanged it, no questions asked. I checked for dead pixels in the store immediately after getting the replacement and it checked out clean.

I go home, do whatever I had to do (shower, eat, etc), and decided to take my iPad out to play Draw Something before bed so the lights were already off in my room. Upon turning it on I noticed that there were 4 areas of backlight bleeding on the left side of the display. What did I do? I called Apple, explained my case, and was told that all I had to do was take it back, get it looked at, and have it exchanged despite the amount of times I've already exchanged it and the fact that it's past the window of time for return. I plan on doing that tomorrow, and since I'm already on my 3rd iPad, I don't see why this time will be different. I was told time and time again that it was not a problem, and that me being satisfied with my product is their priority.

I don't think any company has ever demonstrated such exemplary customer service, at least not to me personally. I know a lot of my friends here at TPU feel that Apple is a company worth boycotting, but I, for the first time, beg to differ. Yes their prices command an industry high premium. Yes they might mistreat their employees overseas (of which I share an ethnicity). And yes they might be a little too eager to litigate when it comes to patent infringement, but they are also just as eager to please a customer. Would I ever buy from Apple again despite the woes of my first Apple product? Absolutely! Macbook Air & iPhone 5 (whenever it's out) here I come!

tl;dr - Apple skeptic experiences top in class customer service first hand and converts to an Apple fanatic.

[1nf3rn0x]

I'd honestly be quite pissed off having to return my new toy 3 times since it was defective. I myself have a 64GB new Ipad and I haven't had any troubles with it...

[MxPhenom 216]

I have heard nothing but problems with Apples customer service. They're products are nice, but as much as I love a plastic brick, I won't ever own their products. I also really dislike their business stuff going on as of late with patenting ideas rather then actual technology. They cannot handle the rise of androids and WP7 market and instead patent anything they can to get their competition in trouble. They are just demanding a monoply at this point.

The innovation road has also ended for apple as well. Instead of innovating making better products than their competitors they try and stop their competitors from making anything that at any degree is better then what they put out.

[95Viper]

Great customer service, but it seems product quality is lacking... 3 ipads in a month or two!
Unless, I am reading your story incorrectly.

[FordGT90Concept]

Why are you talking about great customer service when they clearly have horrible quality assurance. You're talking about three defective products in a row on receiving the product.

The worst I had was two defective products in a row. The first may have been UPS's problem. I contacted CyberPower and Newegg and decided to send the UPS back at UPS's expense due to the damage the box received. The second I received, I sent to CyberPower instead (because they're only about 300 miles away versus well over 1000). They promptly returned one that is working to this day. All my corrospences with Newegg and CyberPower were excellent (CyberPower especially so). Neither CyberPower nor Newegg gave me any flak about anything. Only the second received could really be attributed to poor quality assurance versus three of Apple's.

[Aleksander]

I have to disagree 100%. One of my friends has samsung galaxy s2 and has never had anything defective.
I totally hate apple.
I dont want to start arguments here, because all people are against apple.
Do you know who says apple is great? Apple owners

Do you know how many times one of my website costumers asked me to repair its website? 10 TIMES!
And i did all the 10 times he imaginatively thought it was defective...
Do you mean i am better than apple?

[INSTG8R]

I had to chuckle a bit. You have to make an APPOINTMENT to speak to a Genius??

I'm glad I have never had any issues with my iPhones(Not that I would know if/where an Apple store exists around here)

[cdawall]

I like my not apple products, but that's just me you do what you want.

[Kantastic]

I'm sorry if this thread is turning or going to turn into a flame war. I will have no objections if a mod deems it fit to shut or delete this thread.

Originally Posted by FordGT90Concept

Why are you talking about great customer service when they clearly have horrible quality assurance. You're talking about three defective products in a row on receiving the product.

The worst I had was two defective products in a row. It was a brand new model of UPS from CyberPower. The first may have been UPS's problem. I contacted CyberPower and Newegg and decided to send the UPS back at UPS's expense due to the damage the box received. The second I received, I sent to CyberPower instead (because they're only about 300 miles away versus well over 1000). They promptly returned one that is working to this day. All my corrospences with Newegg and CyberPower were excellent (CyberPower especially so). Only the second one received could really be attributed to poor quality assurance versus three of Apple's.

I definitely share your thoughts about the lack of quality assurance, and it would be a lie to say that I'm not disappointed, but I also understand that with such a densely pixelated display, there are bound to be dead pixels and defects. Their customer service really set them apart from others. Where would I go if my Asus Transformer tablet was discovered to be defective after the return period? The retailer may or may not take it back, and Asus would have me setting up an RMA over the phone or online, ship it back to them for inspection, then wait for a replacement. I can walk in an Apple store with one iPad and walk out with a replacement in under half an hour. Sure I had to do it a few times, but nothing is as reassuring as knowing that I have an entire team of staff willing to help me 24 hours a day, 7 days a week, 365 days a year. I also had important school documents on the iPad, so it was a huge relief when I was able to sync my new tablet and restore all settings, photos, documents, apps, etc, all in the store!

Edit: And all this talk (not by you, but in general) about how Apple abuses their employees overseas is a stark contrast to the feedback I get when I ask Geniuses about their experience working at the store. At least Apple employs Americans. No accents, no attitudes, no bullshit.

Originally Posted by INSTG8R

I had to chuckle a bit. You have to make an APPOINTMENT to speak to a Genius??

I'm glad I have never had any issues with my iPhones(Not that I would know if/where an Apple store exists around here)

The Apple store I have been going to is in the heart of Manhattan, right next to Central Park. Many tourists go to see the place (which is inspired by and designed after the Louvre in Paris), some even to buy their products. It's always packed, but they have over 100 units of various products on display for people to try. A 2 hour wait for an appointment at 2 in the morning was disheartening, but I was able to get out way earlier.

[MxPhenom 216]

Wait you have to make an appointment for a product you bought? Its not like your going to get its teeth cleaned!

My friend went in to get is Macbook fixed from hard drive failure and video issue, and they charged him out the ass for it. He just said screw it and got a Windows laptop for school and called it a day.

[erixx]

All fine and ok, but please help to ban the use of "genius" outside of its true sense. Geniuses do not work at stores for the last 3000 years.

[MxPhenom 216]

Originally Posted by erixx

All fine and ok, but please help to ban the use of "genius" outside of its true sense. Geniuses do not work at stores for the last 3000 years.

Yeah seriously. I don't like Albert Einstein worked in a little store.

[Kantastic]

Originally Posted by MxPhenom 216

Wait you have to make an appointment for a product you bought? Its not like your going to get its teeth cleaned!

My friend went in to get is Macbook fixed from hard drive failure and video issue, and they charged him out the ass for it. He just said screw it and got a Windows laptop for school and called it a day.

The Apple retail store I go to does more than just sell products. They also do repairs and have Geniuses specifically assigned to "Personal Setup" sections where customers are walked through their new (or old) products and taught how to use it. Technology is not always kind to those who did not grow up with it. Even to me iOS and OSX are new. I'll pick it up quickly, but it's nice to have someone designated to teaching me the little tricks and shortcuts in person.

I can't speak for potential issues that arise in time, but from my limited experience, Apple is excellent. You can buy AppleCare+ or SquareTrade if you don't want to pay full price for service. There's a reason insurance exists... home insurance, health insurance, car insurance, product insurance, etc. Speaking of SquareTrade, it's a great economical alternative to AppleCare/AppleCare+, and they allow you to have your iPad repaired in any Apple store and they will foot the bill.

[MxPhenom 216]

Originally Posted by Kantastic

The Apple retail store I go to does more than just sell products. They also do repairs and have Geniuses specifically assigned to "Personal Setup" sections where customers are walked through their new (or old) products and taught how to use it. Technology is not always kind to those who did not grow up with it. Even to me iOS and OSX are new. I'll pick it up quickly, but it's nice to have someone designated to teaching me the little tricks and shortcuts in person.

I can't speak for potential issues that arise in time, but from my limited experience, Apple is excellent. You can buy AppleCare+ or SquareTrade if you don't want to pay full price for service. There's a reason insurance exists... home insurance, health insurance, car insurance, product insurance, etc.

Stop calling them genious's. The people who work in those stores are just a bunch of Apple fanboys trained to fix that shit. They are nothing special.

[johnnyfiive]

Originally Posted by MxPhenom 216

Stop calling them genious's. They people who work in those stores are just a bunch of Apple fanboys trained to fix that shit. They are nothing special.

We get it, you don't like Apple. The term genius is used within the Apple stores to pin point people who actually know how to fix Apple products. They go through training and have to be certified before they can claim the genius title. It's an earned title, and those "genius" titled employee's actually make a nice amount per hour...thanks to Apple paying them properly. Apple makes great products, has fantastic support and service, and they know how to keep customers satisfied.

I think a lot of you guys posting negative comments aren't reading the original post in the right light. Kan is simply saying he received great service and because of that, he is now inclined to purchase more future Apple products.
Apple has great customer service, even if things are out of the return period. I doubt you will get the same treatment at a local best buy. If you bought something and try to return it after the 30 day return period, I bet they won't allow it. If they do, I bet there is a restock fee along with no cash/card return, but store credit.

[FordGT90Concept]

Originally Posted by Kantastic

...I also understand that with such a densely pixelated display, there are bound to be dead pixels and defects.

I've bought/installed 7 monitors, 5 of which were 1920x1080 or bigger without a single dead pixel/faulty monitor. That adds up to far more pixels than the Retina display on the iPad. I think what your experience says is they have poor methods for testing Retina displays for defects.

Originally Posted by Kantastic

The retailer may or may not take it back, and Asus would have me setting up an RMA over the phone or online, ship it back to them for inspection, then wait for a replacement.

Because ASUS can't afford to put an ASUS Store in all the major cities. The PC and Android markets are highly competitive, no one has the profit margins necessary to do that. Instead, they have to rely on main stream retailers to be the middlemen for DOA/infant mortality products.

In short, what you're describing as a positive of Apple is a consequence of the monopoly they have on their products.

Originally Posted by Kantastic

I can walk in an Apple store with one iPad and walk out with a replacement in under half an hour.

I could do the same at the Gateway outlet in North Sioux City not too far from here. The the thing is, Gateway/Acer doesn't really have any outlets anywhere except here and California where they build the computers. See above for an explaination of why that is.

[Kantastic]

Originally Posted by MxPhenom 216

Stop calling them genious's. The people who work in those stores are just a bunch of Apple fanboys trained to fix that shit. They are nothing special.

Sorry if that offends you, but I refer to Apple store employees Geniuses just as I refer to GeekSquad employees Geeks. I'm not putting Apple store employees on a pedestal or giving them credit they don't deserve, it's just a reference.

Originally Posted by FordGT90Concept

I've bought/installed 7 monitors, 5 of which were 1920x1080 or bigger without a single dead pixel/faulty monitor. That adds up to far more pixels than the Retina display on the iPad. I think what your experience says is they have poor methods for testing Retina displays for defects.

You don't think it has anything to do with the maturity of 1080P display fabrications versus the super high density retina display that has yet to be rivaled in the market?

Originally Posted by FordGT90Concept

Because ASUS can't afford to put an ASUS Store in all the major cities. The PC and Android markets are highly competitive, no one has the profit margins necessary to do that. Instead, they have to rely on main stream retailers to be the middlemen for DOA/infant mortality products.

In short, what you're describing as a positive of Apple is a consequence of the monopoly they have on their products.

I could do the same at the Gateway outlet in North Sioux City not too far from here. The the thing is, Gateway/Acer doesn't really have any outlets anywhere except here and California where they build the computers. See above for an explaination of why that is.

That's one store out of 50 states. Apple has 5 in Manhattan (that I'm aware of). As for the monopoly... would you care to elaborate (not that it's relevant to this thread)? There are competing Windows and Android counterparts for every single product Apple has to offer. I would relate the abundance of Apple stores to the fact that they value their customers and do things the way Dell, HP, Gateway, Lenovo, etc should be doing it. I know that buying a building in Asia, filling it up with people, and routing all customer support calls overseas is more economical, but it's a much larger inconvenience for customers.

[MxPhenom 216]

Originally Posted by Kantastic

Sorry if that offends you, but I refer to Apple store employees Geniuses just as I refer to GeekSquad employees Geeks. I'm not putting Apple store employees on a pedestal or giving them credit they don't deserve, it's just a reference.

Well than that makes more sense.

[AphexDreamer]

I've had to exchange my Asus ROG matrix 5870 two times (think I have threads on it here) and while they replaced it both times I wasn't a fan of them for it. Replacement of a faulty product should be a given!

Have we sunk so low that the basic expectations of customer service have been placed on such a high pedestal?


I was infuriated with Asus! I spent so much $520 to get a card that was expected to perform under extreme conditions with quality parts only for it to fail twice and delay my use of the product.

Returns shouldn't be hailed or praised, but I suppose since we have been spiraling downward so much these days from big company policies that we are in such an awe when they replace faulty products.

[MxPhenom 216]

Originally Posted by AphexDreamer

I've had to exchange my Asus ROG matrix 5870 two times (think I have threads on it here) and while they replaced it both times I wasn't a fan of them for it. Replacement of a faulty product should be a given!

Have we sunk so low that the basic expectations of customer service have been placed on such a high pedestal?


I was infuriated with Asus! I spent so much $520 to get a card that was expected to perform under extreme conditions with quality parts only for it to fail twice and delay my use of the product.

Returns shouldn't be hailed or praised, but I suppose since we have been spiraling downward so much these days from big company policies that we are in such an awe when they replace faulty products.

Couldn't agree more....

[Kantastic]

Originally Posted by AphexDreamer

I've had to exchange my Asus ROG matrix 5870 two times (think I have threads on it here) and while they replaced it both times I wasn't a fan of them for it. Replacement of a faulty product should be a given!

Have we sunk so low that the basic expectations of customer service have been placed on such a high pedestal?


I was infuriated with Asus! I spent so much $520 to get a card that was expected to perform under extreme conditions with quality parts only for it to fail twice and delay my use of the product.

Returns shouldn't be hailed or praised, but I suppose since we have been spiraling downward so much these days from big company policies that we are in such an awe when they replace faulty products.

With regards to my particular situation, most display manufacturers and retailers have specific dead pixel policies, and retails like Amazon have been known to blacklist customers for frequent returns of high-value items regardless of the reason (read about a guy who exchanged a few Macbooks since he was as anal as me and wanted a perfect one) and Amazon blacklisted him. They also blocked his access to his Kindle books. Apple replaced it twice and will do it a third time no questions asked. That's more than I can ask for, and that's more than any other company will tolerate.

[MxPhenom 216]

Originally Posted by Kantastic

With regards to my particular situation, most display manufacturers and retailers have specific dead pixel policies, and retails like Amazon have been known to blacklist customers for frequent returns of high-value items regardless of the reason (read about a guy who exchanged a few Macbooks since he was as anal as me and wanted a perfect one) and Amazon blacklisted him. They also blocked his access to his Kindle books. Apple replaced it twice and will do it a third time no questions asked. That's more than I can ask for, and that's more than any other company will tolerate.

Hmmmm, I know for a fact Dell will replace your monitors and devices as many times as it takes. Dell also has No dead pixel gaurentee on their monitors so you shouldn't have an issue with it anyways. To even pass that gaurentee their monitors go through a lot of evaluation and testing before they are packaged up.

[AphexDreamer]

Originally Posted by Kantastic

With regards to my particular situation, most display manufacturers and retailers have specific dead pixel policies, and Amazon has been known to blacklist customers for frequent returns of high-value items regardless of the reason (read about a guy who exchanged a few Macbooks since he was as anal as me and wanted a perfect one) and Amazon blacklisted him. They also blocked his access to his Kindle books. Apple replaced it twice and will do it a third time no questions asked. That's more than I can ask for, and that's more than any other company will tolerate.

Your just proving my point.
And as for what other companies tolerate I just told you Asus did the replacement for me 2 times and Amazon is an online retailer. I could have done it a third+ if I hadn't fixed the card myself. I'm still not a fan of Asus even if they replaced my card 1000 times. I'd quit on them by 4h or 5th and be frustrated with them after the 2nd.

This just shows the fanaticism people claim apple fans to have. Apple does something basic and they are praised for it.

[Kantastic]

Originally Posted by MxPhenom 216

Hmmmm, I know for a fact Dell will replace your monitors and devices as many times as it takes. Dell also has No dead pixel gaurentee on their monitors so you shouldn't have an issue with it anyways. To even pass that gaurentee their monitors go through a lot of evaluation and testing before they are packaged up.

There are definitely other companies out there that value their customers... but I'm curious as to where Dell monitors are taken for replacement, how long the downtime is, and who pays for the shipping (if they're not taken to a local store)?

Originally Posted by AphexDreamer

Your just proving my point.
And as for what other companies tolerate I just told you Asus did the replacement for me 2 times and Amazon is an online retailer. I could have done it a third+ if I hadn't fixed the card myself. I'm still not a fan of Asus even if they replaced my card 1000 times. I'd quit on them by 4h or 5th and be frustrated with them after the 2nd.

This just shows the fanaticism we claim apple fans to have. Apple does something basic and they are praised for it.

How long was the downtime in between cards? Did you get a used or a refurbished card back or a brand new, sealed retail card? Every time I RMA something it's refurbished. The one time I had to contact Asus (first time building a system), I was charged for phone support. Of course I paid since I wanted to get the X58 system running, but paying for support for a product I just bought is never fun.

As for the fanaticism... guilty as charged. Any company, regardless of whether it's Apple, Dell, Asus, etc will earn my loyalty if they treat me like Apple did. It just so happens that many are fans of Apple because Apple is one of the few companies that do things right (by my book).

[FordGT90Concept]

Originally Posted by Kantastic

You don't think it has anything to do with the maturity of 1080P display fabrications versus the super high density retina display that has yet to be rivaled in the market?

Immaturity is not an excuse for quality assurance. Also, there's been screens out there with higher pixel denisty than the iPad 2 for a long time (used in radiology) so it isn't exactly immature in the first place--just new to Apple.

Originally Posted by Kantastic

That's one store out of 50 states. Apple has 5 in Manhattan (that I'm aware of). As for the monopoly... would you care to elaborate (not that it's relevant to this thread)? There are competing Windows and Android counterparts for every single product Apple has to offer. I would relate the abundance of Apple stores to the fact that they value their customers and do things the way Dell, HP, Gateway, Lenovo, etc should be doing it. I know that buying a building in Asia, filling it up with people, and routing all customer support calls overseas is more economical, but it's a much larger inconvenience for customers.

But where do you get Windows and Android products at? Electronics stores like Radio Shack, Best Buy, Circuit City, Walmart, Target, etc. You don't go to brick and mortar Microsoft store to buy Windows products, do you? You don't go to a brick and mortar Google store to buy an Android product, do you? You don't go to a Dell brick and mortar store to buy a Dell computer, do you? Where there's competition, there are many parts and peices involved.

We're not talking about the products here, we're talking about where you buy and return a defective product to.

If HTC could profit $412.49 on every phone they sell for $600 like Apple did on the 16 GB iPhone 4, HTC could afford to put 5 stores in Manhattan too. But no, they got Samsung, Motorola, Pantech, Impule, LG, and Xperia breathing down their neck.