[mathew_m]

Having been stuck with a powerbook with 2 dead pixels and not wanting the same with my potential iMac purchase; how is the Apple store with opening and checking out the computer before purchase? I was going to download that dead pixel program onto my iPod and take it with me (is it still available on version tracker and is it X compatible?) Are the Apple stores cool with this? I know I would look a bit like a schmuck if the first one I opened had a dead pixel and I declined it. How many will they let you open before they kick you out of the store?

[MacMaui]

Originally posted by mathew_m:
Having been stuck with a powerbook with 2 dead pixels and not wanting the same with my potential iMac purchase; how is the Apple store with opening and checking out the computer before purchase? I was going to download that dead pixel program onto my iPod and take it with me (is it still available on version tracker and is it X compatible?) Are the Apple stores cool with this? I know I would look a bit like a schmuck if the first one I opened had a dead pixel and I declined it. How many will they let you open before they kick you out of the store?

CompUsa may be more flexible in this regard......

[keston]

Would YOU accept an open box computer from any store as BRAND NEW/full price?? Or would you give them a funny look? I doubt they would let you do that, or else they would have a ton of open boxed computers. I know its the apple store, but when I buy a mac I want to be the FIRST one to break the seal.. factory direct merchandise .

[MacMaui]

Originally posted by keston:
Would YOU accept an open box computer from any store as BRAND NEW/full price?? Or would you give them a funny look? I doubt they would let you do that, or else they would have a ton of open boxed computers. I know its the apple store, but when I buy a mac I want to be the FIRST one to break the seal.. factory direct merchandise .

The Honolulu CompUsa will run a full diagnostic prior to purchase and promise that the unit will be in perfect working order in every sense, even dead pixels, prior to sale. Plus, after the sale, give you 14 days to check it out yourself with the chance to exchange it should something not be right. Perhaps it helps that they're the highest volume Apple retail store in the country

The Apple Store is quite dismal when it comes to satisfaction gurantees.......

[OldManMac]

Originally posted by MacMaui:
The Honolulu CompUsa will run a full diagnostic prior to purchase and promise that the unit will be in perfect working order in every sense, even dead pixels, prior to sale. Plus, after the sale, give you 14 days to check it out yourself with the chance to exchange it should something not be right. Perhaps it helps that they're the highest volume Apple retail store in the country

The Apple Store is quite dismal when it comes to satisfaction gurantees.......

Hmmmm. I work for Apple, as an Apple Solutions Consultant out of a CompUSA, and I have worked for CompUSA for almost seven years prior to that, and I know of no CompUSA store that would do such a thing. As was pointed out by Keston, no store is going to allow people to open computer boxes willy nilly, just to find a "perfect" machine. Margins on computers are razor thin, and no dealer wants an open box machine in inventory. I also worked for an independent Apple dealer for two years, in between my time at CompUSA and Apple, and this doesn't happen. It's hard enough to sell new computers, unopened, these days; the first thing a customer perceives when you bring out an open box is that it's a returned machine. As a matter of fact, customers have to pay for the machine before they'll even install memory or upgrade it.

[mathew_m]

Finally some posts!

Seriously I wouldn't sit there opening box after box and wouldn't expect the store manager to let me either. However I have read in the past customers inspecting their purchase before leaving. I equate it to a new car purchase. You want to test drive it first and are made more comfortable with the purchase in doing so.

[JNG]

Originally posted by mathew_m:
Finally some posts!

Seriously I wouldn't sit there opening box after box and wouldn't expect the store manager to let me either. However I have read in the past customers inspecting their purchase before leaving. I equate it to a new car purchase. You want to test drive it first and are made more comfortable with the purchase in doing so.

Online retailer Powermax will fully test out the computer prior to shipping it to you, and might well be willing to accommodate you as far as trying to make sure they send you one with no dead pixels. They are nice people.

[MacMaui]

Originally posted by KarlG:
Hmmmm. I work for Apple, as an Apple Solutions Consultant out of a CompUSA, and I have worked for CompUSA for almost seven years prior to that, and I know of no CompUSA store that would do such a thing. As was pointed out by Keston, no store is going to allow people to open computer boxes willy nilly, just to find a "perfect" machine. Margins on computers are razor thin, and no dealer wants an open box machine in inventory. I also worked for an independent Apple dealer for two years, in between my time at CompUSA and Apple, and this doesn't happen. It's hard enough to sell new computers, unopened, these days; the first thing a customer perceives when you bring out an open box is that it's a returned machine. As a matter of fact, customers have to pay for the machine before they'll even install memory or upgrade it.

KarlG,

I can assure you, from personal experience, that it's a service that the Honolulu CompUsa offers its neighbor island customers for a $30 fee. Why? Because there are no bridges between islands thus neighbor island customers can't drive in to exchange a defective unit. All the store is doing is just honoring CompUsa's stated return policy in a way that makes things easier for customers from the other islands. It's no big sneaky thing on the part of the Honolulu CompUsa. Actually, the CompUsa probably makes money on the deal by not having to pay return shipping charges (both ways) for defective units and gains 30 bucks in the process.

Powermax.com will also test out the unit, yet for no fee. Smalldog.com won't test the unit, but allow satisfaction no questions asked exchanges within the first 15 days.

Thus there are at least 3 Apple resellers that *Think Different*, and thank god for that!

[mathew_m]

I'd be willing to spend an extra 50-100 bucks just to ensure a perfect screen. I could care less about free printers and ram upgrades (which are not really free).