And I realised that what I wrote, in the measely 4000 characters (split between the two 2000 characters “any extra comments” sections) available, was pretty much what I’ve been wanting to post here, more or less:
- Provide separate provisions for customers: a) those who know what they are talking about, b) those who have no idea.
- I experienced the exact same hardware problem with my iMac that I’d had several months before, and I expected it to be dealt with in the same way, ie a replacement midplane board was shipped to me and I swopped it out. That previous time I got a working computer again in less than 48 hours: sending my Mac off to be repaired somewhere in Surrey took two weeks and would surely have been a greater expense to Apple – what happened to the DIY programme? It was extremely annoying to me that I knew the exact problem with the hardware after following the same testing procedure, and the repair process has become less efficient and a greater waste of my time. I also couldn’t understand why Amsis, apparently Apple’s sole designated repair company, doesn’t have iMac midplane boards in stock as a standard item – it’s pretty much the thing that goes wrong in that model, and it wasted another few days.
- Is this something that’s going to happen to my iMac every 3-9 months? I’ve been using Macs for the past fifteen years – I stuck with you guys when Gil Amelio was CEO! – and I’m not used to them breaking all the time. So, y’know, I’m a bit cheesed off.
- Realising my time to buy AppleCare was running out, I bought it through Apple’s online store a couple of days before my iMac packed up – but I had to wait for the AppleCare box to be delivered before I could activate it! Surely AppleCare should be active from the moment you buy it, since it’s just an extension of the warrenty – you could at least email me the activation code whilst the box is being posted! Another few days, wasted.
- The exact nature of the repair options wasn’t at all clear to me. I thought that an “on-site” repair would be a guy with a van who came and fixed it: how wrong I was. And perhaps the telephone support person could tell you where your nearest Apple-approved repair place was, so you’d be able to make an informed decision about which repair option to go for. Again, what happened to the DIY repair scheme?
- Did I just waste my money on AppleCare, since there is a warrenty extension on the power and video problem with first generation iMac G5′s? And don’t get me started on navigating Apple’s online store, customer accounts, and the Education area: that needs a bunch of work.
- I’d be delighted to help you improve your service: last time I was very impressed, but it all seems to have gone downhill. I’m not a Windows user, and I’m not used to being treated like one. Give me a call.
- I don’t actually have my Mac back yet. Maybe tomorrow. Hopefully.
Fingers crossed.
