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paul w · Feb 7, 2006, 05:15 PM

In a word: AMAZING.

On wednesday I called Apple to report some problems with the screen of my computer (purple tint on the bottom after waking from sleep) and a hard drive that was starting to make distressing noises. I backed everything up in a panic and called Apple.

The guy on the phone was very easy to talk to - indeed typical of my experience with Apple's phone support. Unlike the outsourced to India types who follow a script, this guy even chatted with me about his experience with harddrives. We were on the same page so he had a box sent. It arrived Thursday. I arranged for a pickup on Friday - it was picked up on Friday late afternoon.

Monday morning I get and email - they received the box. Another came soon after. The repairs were done. This morning I got the box. I was actually worried they hadn't repaired anything.

But no -new display, new harddrive, with my old drive's stuff restored. The display is fantastic - soo much brighter than before. The fans even seem quieter. The whole thing took essentially two business days. The powerbook arrived, was repaired and shipped out within the span of a few hours!

I would wholeheartedly recommend AppleCare to anyone now - the phone support, the speed of the service is simply unparalled, IMO.

HarriganC · Feb 7, 2006, 05:49 PM

I wish I received that service... I hate the disparities- it should always be this way seeing the premium paid.

SpaceMonkey · Feb 7, 2006, 08:31 PM

I had virtually the exact same experience, even without Applecare--just regular warranty service.

paul w · Feb 7, 2006, 10:14 PM

Naturally - Applecare is simply an extension - but nice to have that service nearly 3 years later - a new screen and hd in record time, no questions asked. Maybe my logicboard will go in the next couple weeks as well...

Hmmmm :scratches chin:

phoenix78 · Feb 7, 2006, 10:30 PM

you are very lucky to have such an experience... i have had some horror experiences with apple (which i wont go into). I also have had some great experiences with dell tech support also but some others have disasters.

I suppose it depends on who you get in what mood at what time and what experience level lol.

hope you keep having good luck (also hope you never need service again too).

cheers,
robM

mduell · Feb 7, 2006, 11:02 PM

6 days (4 biz days) to get a screen and hard disk replaced? That's awful.
Next-day on-site service is where it's at; if only Apple would offer it.

Rob van dam · Feb 8, 2006, 06:48 AM

Originally Posted by mduell

6 days (4 biz days) to get a screen and hard disk replaced? That's awful.
Next-day on-site service is where it's at; if only Apple would offer it.

6 days appears to be fast.Usualy powerbooks owners in Australia wait weeks not days.(Depends how lucky you are i guess.)

christ · Feb 8, 2006, 07:45 AM

Originally Posted by mduell

Next-day on-site service is where it's at; if only Apple would offer it.

I agree - I can't shoehorn macs into work (other than for me) until they offer this.

Ironically I have next-day, on-site service for the DELLs at work, and the service is via the sub-continent, and fixes take, on average, 10 days. (34 days is my record)

(I phone - they have to identify the part before they can send out an engineer - two hours on phone. The part identification is almost always wrong. The next day an engineer arrives from one direction, while the part arrives from another. He says "wrong part". Next visit, new guy, new part "OK - right part". Engineer fits part. Problem not solved. Now on day 4, engineer diagnoses issue. Phones in for new part. 2 days later (next-day apparently only applies to first call) new part arrives, new engineer arrives. New engineer less than complimentary about previous engineer, replaces part, orders other new part. 2 days later fourth engineer arrives, with fifth part, fixes issue.)

Because it says "next-day, on-site service" on the warranty, I am allowed to buy it. Apple's service, which is almost invariably quicker, isn't billed as next-day, on-site service, and is therefore unacceptable to the suits.

paul w · Feb 8, 2006, 08:27 AM

I don't need on-site - I can definitely wait a couple business days (that's all it was - Friday and Monday) to send it in. Dare I say I even prefer it than to have to deal with setting up an appointment and having someone invade my space.

But the point is, this was a stark contrast to my previous (and all non-Apple) service experiences. Dell and Toshiba both had me on hold for hours, had people on the phone who were utter nitwits, had me waiting not days but WEEKS. And once I even received my laptop with a stick of ram missing. Someone forgot to put it back in. Took me weeks to get it back.

Anyway, I realize this is anecdotal, and hardly representative of everyone's experience.

DrunkenTech · Feb 8, 2006, 10:51 AM

Generally, my repairs to the mail-in center are quite fast. Recently, my laptop was there for close to three weeks waiting for a logic board. When it got back to me, the lower memory slot was dead. Fortunately, the local Apple Retail store was nice enough to replace it with a new 15" PowerBook because it had been repaired a couple of times before and came back dead after 3 weeks. My experiences have been generally positive, and usually Apple finds a way to turn the negatives into positives as well.

theokandroid · Feb 8, 2006, 01:13 PM

My screen hinges are real loose on my PB 15" and I've been contemplating taking it in to get them tightened, I was afraid Id be without a computer for a week, but after hearing your experience I might just go and do it, but Im afraid they wont fix my pbook because it has a few dings in it. I have applecare, thought id mention that.