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Authored by: PJ on Saturday, September 29 2012 @ 08:37 AM EDT |
True. I had a laptop that went dead, so I
took it to an Apple store. I had spent hours
online looking up various possibilities, and
I'm not stupid, but I couldn't figure it out.
In less than 15 minutes, the genius bar guy
had it figured out. I needed a part, and I
could leave my laptop there and they'd do it.
But I don't like to leave my laptop anywhere,
so he told me I could get the part cheaper
elsewhere and it didn't need to be Apple
brand, and he showed me how to install it
if I wanted to do it myself.
There was no charge, because it took less than
15 minutes. It's free help if it takes less
than 15 minutes
And so I fixed it myself, which felt fun, and
I was so totally impressed. The whole experience
was enjoyable and pleasant. Not what one is
used to in customer service.[ Reply to This | Parent | # ]
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- Yes they do - Authored by: Anonymous on Saturday, September 29 2012 @ 01:40 PM EDT
- Yes they do - Authored by: PJ on Saturday, September 29 2012 @ 04:22 PM EDT
- Yes they do - Authored by: Anonymous on Saturday, September 29 2012 @ 04:22 PM EDT
- Yes they do - Authored by: PJ on Saturday, September 29 2012 @ 04:41 PM EDT
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Authored by: Anonymous on Sunday, September 30 2012 @ 05:44 AM EDT |
My young nephew bought an iPod Shuffle (the first, long model) for his father as
a present. He had saved his pocket money for months. He gave it to his dad a
couple of days before his father left overseas for a holiday. Unfortunatly, it
was faulty, so he took it back.
In Australia, if you buy something that is faulty you have a legal right to
choose between repair, replacement, or a refund. As there was no time for a
repair and the one he got was the last in stock, Michael asked for a refund.
"Not Apple policy" was the response. "Repair only". This was
not just the sales person talking. I have heard this same line elsewhere.
This is where I got involved. It ended when I printed out the relevant piece of
consumer protection legislation and slapped it on the counter at the shop where
the device was bought. Michael got his money back, bought a working iPod Shuffle
for his father, and everything worked out in the end. I dare say the retailer
probably swallowed the loss.
Where does Apple come off thinking it does not have to respect the laws of the
countries in which it operates and that it can get away convincing people that
its corporate policy overrides consumer law?
Since then, there appears to be some movement in the right direction. I
understand that when the iPhone was launched in the US, you could only use it
with AT&T (I think that was the carrier). Australia has 'third line forcing'
laws that forbid a company selling a product forcing consumers to deal with a
particular third party. When the iPhone was launched in Australia, it was
available through all carriers. Apple could not do an exclusive deal with just
one carrier.
Overall, Apple have demonstrated a consistent pattern of arrogance when dealing
with consumer issues. I am sure you could find some companies that are worse,
but Apple is far from being the top of the game.[ Reply to This | Parent | # ]
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Authored by: celtic_hackr on Sunday, September 30 2012 @ 12:19 PM EDT |
Apple certainly does take customer service serious. Most of the time. But so do
some other companies. This is not what makes Apple stand out. They have customer
service, they have a successful advertising department, they have a loyal artist
community following, they have developed a sense of coolness of their products,
they have developed a sense of eliteness of their products, etc.
As you can see it's not as simple as 1,2,profit. It's a whole packages thing.
But Apple's aggressive attacking of competitors for ridiculous patents, could
negate all the delicately intricate weave.
[ Reply to This | Parent | # ]
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