Adventures in Mac Ownership...
Posted by Matt White, Sat Feb 10 12:16:00 UTC 2007
Well, I just learned my biggest lesson about Mac Ownership… Buy AppleCare.
I’ve had my MacBookPro (MBP) for almost a year now, and I’ve been giddy about it most of the time. It’s my first Mac, and I couldn’t be happier for switching. (My name is Matt White, and I’m a switcher !)
This summer I participated in the MBP battery recall, and congratulated myself for purchasing a computer from a company so addicted to quality that they sent me a new battery because the original didn’t “live up to expectations”. Take THAT, Dell!
However, while I was based out of New Zealand last fall (about a month after getting my new battery), my computer started having hardware problems. When used on battery, it would randomly lose power without warning. No shutdown, just dead. The problem started getting worse and worse, to the point where I couldn’t even use the machine without being on AC power. Needless to say, this is ultra lame when you’re talking about a laptop. (Or “portable”, as Apple likes to call the ultra-hot MBP)
I was in New Zealand, which meant that I had to live with it. However, when I got back to the US I was looking forward to exercising my 1-year hardware warranty to fix an obvious hardware problem. I didn’t need tech support or troubleshooting, I just wanted it FIXED.
Well, lo and behold, there is NO WAY to get service under your hardware warranty without calling Apple, where you will have to speak to a tech who will explain to you that even though you have a 1-year hardware warranty, he can’t actually talk to you about your problem unless you buy AppleCare, or pay a single-time service fee of $49. Excuse me, but how else am I supposed to get service?!
After shouting at two techs, I finally got one who would help me. Though the problem began suspiciously close to my battery replacement, they still wanted me to send in my whole computer. If you’re a tech guy, you realize that sending in your computer is like being a truck driver and having to send in your truck for two weeks while your customers wait for you to get back on the road. Not good when you have deadlines. (And when do I NOT have deadlines?)
Meanwhile, in addition to the battery problem, my MagSafe power connector began having problems. I had a difficult time getting a good connection between it and the computer, and it would randomly lose connection while I was working. This coupled with the fact that my battery was now not working at all meant that when it disconnected on it’s own, everything went black. How’s that for enticing you to “save often”?
Apple sent me a box to send my machine back, and I debated and debated about doing it. Should I buy another Mac to use while waiting for this one to be fixed? No, definitely not. Local service wasn’t an option, so I opted to buy AppleCare and hope that the service level would increase enough from Apple Tech Support to actually allow me to get it fixed without taking a two-week “vacation”.
What a difference… Buying AppleCare was like the difference between a rude taxi driver and a limo driver. (I’m just assuming here. I’ve never ridden in a limo, and probably never will.) While I’m still pretty irritated about the manhandling at the hands of AppleCare when I still had a legitimate one-year warranty issue to solve, at least they would help me now… After talking to another tech, we decided to replace the battery instead. I had since tried my machine with my co-worker’s battery, and it worked just fine. When we tried my battery in HIS computer, it wouldn’t even turn on without AC power.
After explaining this to Apple, they overnighted me a new battery, a new MagSafe, and life is now good as gold…
The Moral of the Story
If you’re Apple, please have your techs stop being jackasses with people when they have a legitimate hardware issue. I did NOT appreciate how I was treated.
If you’re a Mac owner, and you don’t have AppleCare but still have your hardware warranty, be very pushy when you call them on the phone. If it’s a legitimate hardware failure, they should fix it without charging you a dime. If you don’t want to be pushy, just buy AppleCare. Then they treat you like royalty… Either way, the peace of mind of knowing that, barring my own stupidity, my machine will last a solid three years because Apple will HAVE to keep it going is still worth at least $349.