[wanderlust]

Well, I'm really bummed. (I'm posting this on a crappy PC.)

I've had my 17" for about 8 months now. Two months into owning it a friend had inadvertantly set the laptop down rather hard. It was in its case. There is a little support dimple on the case that slightly dented the latch area around the laptop. Fortunately, there was no internal damage and the latch still worked fine.

Well, after all this time, I've suddenly gotten some VERY bad problems. I mean I get Kernal panics immediately on startup, no matter if I'm starting up from a CD or an external drive or the internal drive. I've attempted to start up in target disk mode and the hard drive will show up, but when I try any utility (disk warrior, norton, apple's disk utility) the laptop will immediately shut itself off. If I try to copy any info off of the mac onto another mac, it shuts off after a couple of seconds.

This is really bad.

I've checked many forums, including Apple's own support forum. Nothing indicating this exact problem. I've removed both RAM modules, that doesn't seem to be the culprit. Safe mode, verbose mode, etc. will not work.

The only explaination is that the logic board is toast.

The really distressing part of this is that when I took it to the Apple Store, they immediately said, "oh, well, you've dropped this machine, that's the problem. Your warrenty does not cover this. You're out of luck."

Even though it's been almost seven months of flawless performance, I suddenly have a big problem. And Apple's answer is simple.

I'm screwed.

Since everything is tied into the logicboard on these laptops, that means that pretty much the entire mac has to be replaced, and I have to pay for it.

I can't fault my friend and guilt him into paying for it. After all, it was so long ago and there's no proof that what he did was the problem. He doesn't have Home-owners insurance and the credit card I used to buy it with only provides 90 days warrenty.

What this means is that after going through a Titanium whos both latches completely broke (Apple wanted $1200 to fix this, so I opted just to buy a new laptop) rendering it useless, I now have a useless 17" laptop that Apple wants another $1200 - $1400 to fix.

What it seems like to me is that anything that ever happens to this computer, Apple will say that it has been abused because of the tiny dent in the front and will refuse to fix it ever again.

I'm really bummed. Do you have ANY suggestions at all on what I could do? I'm at wits end. Thanks.

P.S. I'm posting to several forums I'm a member of since this is a really big deal for me. I'm hoping for a really wonderful solution.

[mintcake]

Oh God, that worries me... I dropped my month-old 12" and gave it a big dent, it's currently working fine but I'm afraid that anything that does go wrong with it from now on will be blamed on the drop. What you're saying confirms it. Effectively, one mishap and you void your warranty.

This doesn't help you, I know.

[Arch.]

You could try to find the metal to replace the cosmetic stuff by yourself and then claim waranty for the rest.

[wanderlust]

Originally posted by Arch.:
You could try to find the metal to replace the cosmetic stuff by yourself and then claim waranty for the rest.

By that do you mean replace the case myself and then send it in to get the logic board replaced? How does that work? Where would I go to find a new case and how would I put the innards into the new case without voiding the warrenty? Thanks for the solution here, but I really don't know how I would go about doing this.

Originally posted by mintcake:
Oh God, that worries me... I dropped my month-old 12" and gave it a big dent, it's currently working fine but I'm afraid that anything that does go wrong with it from now on will be blamed on the drop. What you're saying confirms it. Effectively, one mishap and you void your warranty.

This doesn't help you, I know.

Yes, it would appear that like any insurance agency, Apple maintains that, and trains their employees to expect, that their customers are always trying to pull a fast one on them, this with no discrimination or consideration to the specific event what-so-ever.

They are eager to sell products with a one year warrenty (and 3 months phone support) and SELL a three year (two year since the first year is "free" anyway) warrenty for $350 - WHICH BY GOD SHOULD BE FREE like every other computer manufacturer has (wtf?), but will refuse to even look into a case where there is any indication of outside markings. It's automatically my fault, no matter what's wrong with the machine. Now I asked the "genious" at the apple store if this sounded fair and logical and after some tooth-pulling he admitted that it didn't, but that was the way it was going to be and he wasn't going to do anything for me except charge me $70 to ship it to Apple who was just going to turn around and ship it back once they see that mark and say that I'm the one that did the damage.

If I seem a little bitter, I am. I've been through six macs (starting with a Centris 650), each one had problems within the first year. ALL OF THEM DID! But I've been patient, since I actually like the company (or did, anyway). Things happen. But this really burns me up, since there is NO recourse for me. I'm out another wad of cash for something I didn't do.

[webb3201]

That really stinks and I feel for you. In a situation in which a warranty is in effect, Apple should make the repair in for no other reason than satisfaction. It would seem that dropping a machine hard enough to screw up the motherboard would leave a huge amount of evidence.

Can you take out one of the third party insurance policies on the machine? I don't know which one but you can search for quite a few of them on the board You could then file a clain that way and save some money in relation to a full motherboard replacement.

[Turias]

That sucks. I would go into the Apple Store, not mention the drop, and try again. If they mention the dent, say it happened 7 months ago. And if they refuse to honor your AppleCare, bitch, bitch, bitch. Throw a freaking hissy fit. That should be under warranty.

[RooneyX]

That's why you should insure all your property against accidental damage.

[jasonsRX7]

Have you already called Apple, and they told you that they woudn't cover it if it had a dent? The reason I ask is because I had an IBM A20 with a 3 year warranty. During the 2nd year, I had a motherboard failure and had to send it back to have the whole board replaced. My laptop had a huge crack in the bottom right corner palm rest area. I had never dropped it or anything, it was just from repeated stress of picking it up by the corner and my hands resting on it.

IBM never said a word about it, or tried to blame the failed motherboard on the crack in the case. They replaced the board and I had the system back in 2 days. I've never dealt with Apple's support, but I'd like to think they'd be just as fair dealing with you as IBM is. If not, my current Powerbook will be my first and my last.

[Fothb]

Originally posted by Turias:
That sucks. I would go into the Apple Store, not mention the drop, and try again. If they mention the dent, say it happened 7 months ago. And if they refuse to honor your AppleCare, bitch, bitch, bitch. Throw a freaking hissy fit. That should be under warranty.

I agree. I recommend following this advice. If the drop happened months prior to the problems, you should have a completely clear conscience in fighting to get this fixed for free under AppleCare.

Besides, once it actually gets into an AppleCare tech's hands, they'll know whether or not the problem was caused by the drop at that point and charge you / refuse you accordingly. I agree, try again without volunteering the info about the drop.

[EdipisReks]

i would suggest contacting applecare over the phone, and if they don't help call corporate. when i had terrible problems with my ghz tibook and applecare refused to help, i called corporate and the worldwide applecare director fixed all my problems.

[Link]

Apple isn't holy. Do the 3 steps.

1. Try again
2. Complain to managers
3. Report to BBB

I hate how apple's first move is almost always to blame the customer (this typically at the stores).. or second or third. It really gets me mad when they finally come down to it and say..

"well geez we've never heard of this before. Usually in an odd case like that it's customer abuse" ummmm

Great way to run a business

[flanders]

i would definitely send it in to Apple. once they look into it and figure out that the drop isn't THE cause for the problem you're all set--they'll do the work to replace it for free.

i mean i can't see how the drop caused this to start happening and they probably won't either. now i don't think they'd replace your case but that's not what you're asking for. i think once it gets into a tech's hands like a previous poster said it'll be all right.

btw, would applecare have saved the $70 "sending-in" charge?

[wanderlust]

I think the consensous is that I should call Apple and send it in. And I do have a clear conscience. This should be covered. That's what burned me up in the first place. The fact that they wouldn't even bother wasting their time looking at it. Anyway, any other suggestions or comments are welcome. In the mean time, I'll try to get it to Apple and I'll let you know how it all worked out. ** crosses fingers ***

Thanks all.

[chrisutley]

I agree with the people here that suggest sending it in, and hoping Apple will come to the conclusion that the dent has nothing to do with it.

The best thing to do at this point is be honest, call the AppleCare line and tell them everything you told us. They will have a hard time making a case that a fried logic board was the result of the minor dent.

This has probably been mentioned, but if you have insurance for your home or rental - there's a chance your machine is covered. I lost a PowerBook to a water spill, and claimed it on my insurance.

Good luck. I have a feeling things will work out in your favor.

[igorsway]

Reminds me of my experience trying to convince a car dealer to fix a problem with a relatively new car that should have been covered under warranty. I had to complain to the area manager before the dealer would agree to fix the problem. I wonder if Apple stores are the same way. The manager of your particular store may just be a greedy jerk. Trying going over his head to the equivalent of Apple's area manager.

[bbales]

You know, I can't believe I'm posting this b/c people will be mad -- but I do wonder about the computer being set down "rather hard," so hard that it caused a dimple to form, even when the computer was in its case. That seems like it was REALLY hard, not rather hard. People are screaming about Apple not living up to its warranty, but this almost seems like the damage really was more of a drop, than normal usage. I understand about not going after a friend, but it seems he/she may have actually caused some kind of severe damage.

I'm not trying to start a war, I'm just trying to point out that maybe there's a reason for Apple acting as it does. That said, if the computer has acted flawlessly all this time, that might indicate a different problem.

In any case -- good luck getting the computer fixed. I hope it works out for you.

[normr]

I'm amazed that people don't buy a policy from Safeware.com, it covers, theft, damage, surges typically for around $180 .

[romeosc]

Originally posted by normr:
I'm amazed that people don't buy a policy from Safeware.com, it covers, theft, damage, surges typically for around $180 .

It's less than that if you set value to repacement. (replacement of TIPB 500 about $750.

[normr]

RE: It's less than that if you set value to repacement. (replacement of TIPB 500 about $750.


I wasn't aware you had the option you mention here.

[stwain2003]

Originally posted by wanderlust:


I've had my 17" for about 8 months now. Two months into owning it a friend had inadvertantly set the laptop down rather hard. It was in its case. There is a little support dimple on the case that slightly dented the latch area around the laptop. Fortunately, there was no internal damage and the latch still worked fine.

Well, after all this time,



The really distressing part of this is that when I took it to the Apple Store, they immediately said, "oh, well, you've dropped this machine, that's the problem. Your warrenty does not cover this. You're out of luck."

Even though it's been almost seven months of flawless performance,

That isnt fair. If it went seven months with good performace, then it obviously wasnt related to the fall. The only reason i think they wouldnt fix it was if it happened the day he dropped it. They have to fix it, because after 7 mnths, it prolly wasnt related to the drop.

[rsgunther]

I work in the Customer Service field... actually, I am an Executive that runs a fairly large customer service department. How does Apple know that this damage happened 7 months ago? How do we know it happened 7 months ago? Because he said so, right? Well, Apple would have to take everyone's word for all damaged machines. This would not be a good / profitable policy for a large company. I am not taking the company's position, but I can see their point of view & decision making process. I do sympathize with the owner of the laptop, it is really an unfortunate event (if it truly happened the way he said). Being in this business (Customer Service) for over 8 years, has made me a natural skeptic.

[PHYMAC]

My logic board died after about 9 months, and I sent it to Apple and they fixed it for free under warranty. It is a few hundred dollars, under 500, to fix it. I would send it anyway and see what happens. Luckily I did not lose anything on my hard drive. Once clue that it was my logic board was that one of the first things to go was my airport card...

[Since EBCDIC]

Try Apple again.

My internal HD died within the AppleCare warranty period. In spite of the big crack in the case by the SuperDrive (from repeatedly picking it up with one hand) they replaced the stock 40 GB with 80 GB and replaced all the skins(!) - so my baby has a whole lot more life in her. Thanks Apple.

Be clear, be firm, don't be hysterical, and good luck to you. Let us know how it all comes out.

[qualey2]

Here is my 2 cents worth, most of what I have to sa has been covered all-ready.

1) call apple and explain your problem to them,

2)do not mention the rather hard put down of the machine,

3) do this in a calm and care-full manor, people in the customer service feild do not like being yelled and screamed at. The nice-er your are to them the easier the problem will be delt with.

Remember that you attract more flies with honey than you do vinager.

HTH, best of luck

[mrmister]

You should do what I've been doing: **** the Apple Stores. From what I can tell they are A-1 worthless for warranty or repair issues, esp. if you're smart enough to post in these forums. Send straight to Apple, and if they don't repair it, take it up the chain of command.

The skepticism people have is appalling--my wife has an iBook where the letters are rubbing off. I asked an Apple Genius about it--he rubbed his chin and said, "I...think...it's not abuse." I almost yelled at him--of COURSE it's not abuse, you moron! The letters are rubbing off a 6-month old laptop! I really do worry that Apple's QC is going down the sh!tter from issues like these.

[danbrew]

It does seem that it's a bit of a stretch to tie performance today to something that happened seven months ago. Given that, that being it is *another* issue that has caused the performance problem, I'd raise all sorts of hell with Apple to get them to address the issue.

You do need insurance, btw. Homeowners, renters, safeware, etc. something. that's why they call it insurance... <snicker snicker>

But... ah, to the guy who said, "go buy an insurance policy" - ah, well... I suppose you could do that. but you'll probably burn in hell if you do.

[jamil5454]

If you didn't care about voiding your warranty, you could spend a weekend taking apart your PB and putting it back together, maybe knocking out the dent. Kind of like rebuilding an engine. I would try this first before paying >$1000 to get it repaired. You could sell it on eBay for... maybe $1500?

So then you'd only have to pay $1500 for a new one, but when you factor in the possible repair cost, it's really $500. I hope this makes you feel better.


PS - maybe it's something simple like a loose HD connector.




Hope this makes you feel better...

[mbryda]

Originally posted by wanderlust:
They are eager to sell products with a one year warrenty (and 3 months phone support) and SELL a three year (two year since the first year is "free" anyway) warrenty for $350 - WHICH BY GOD SHOULD BE FREE like every other computer manufacturer has (wtf?),

PS: Just about all computer warranties are 1 year now. IBM, Compaq, HP, Dell, etc. All 1 year with a 3 year upgrade. We demanded lower prices and we got the shaft on service. The only thing is Apple costs too much - IBM is $132 for 3 year Depot, $243 3 year onsite. And they offer up to 5 years warranty!

[RedStar]

Unfortunately this thread is 8 moths old and no suggestion will help him now.

Hope it worked out for you.

(if not i'll give you fifty bucks for it)

edit:: actually he hasn't posted in 8 months either. Weird.

[Sosa]

This is kind of amusing. So wanderlust has this problem 8 months ago, all of a sudden "Since EBCDIC" responds to this thread, and people keep responding not realizing this guy wanderlust has given up on it a long time ago, not even having the courtesy of telling us what the resolution was.

Question is, how did "Since EBCDIC" pick up this topic?

[RedStar]

Originally posted by Sosa:
This is kind of amusing. So wanderlust has this problem 8 months ago, all of a sudden "Since EBCDIC" responds to this thread, and people keep responding not realizing this guy wanderlust has given up on it a long time ago, not even having the courtesy of telling us what the resolution was.

Question is, how did "Since EBCDIC" pick up this topic?

He probably did a search and didn't notice how old the thread was.

[PBG4 User]

Originally posted by RedStar:
Unfortunately this thread is 8 moths old and no suggestion will help him now.

Hope it worked out for you.

(if not i'll give you fifty bucks for it)

edit:: actually he hasn't posted in 8 months either. Weird.

I would guess if he hasn't posted, he didn't get his PowerBook fixed. Why would he hang out in a Mac-centric forum if he didn't own a Mac anymore?

[Olorin]

OMG that's this is the most useless thread to ever be brought back to life. HAHAHAHAHAHHAHAHAHAHAHAHHAHHAHHAA