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You are not alone
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Steve Jobs 21 December 2005 I am the original Mac bigot. I love Macintoshes, and have loved them ever since I first set my eyes on a 512k Mac Classic in 1990, and especially since I bought my Performa 575c in 1995, or my Ruby iMac in 2001, or my iBook in 2003. Before that I loved my Apple iic+. I have always defended Apple and extolled the virtues of “Thinking Differently” to the PC crowd. The reasons I did so are their quality, ease of use, plug and play virtues and superior customer service. Unfortunately, my Apple delirium has abated as of late, ever since I discovered that I am the owner of a “black screen” bad-logic-board iBook. At first, around February of 2004, I was happy that your company repaired my laptop and returned it to me within a week’s time. None of my data was even disturbed and the whole experience was what I would consider top notch service. Then that logic board went kaput around April of 2005. Not to worry, as Apple thoughtfully extended the warranty for two more years in order to catch any “bad logic boards in the supply chain,” as your product specialist put it. Of course, this time your service center also thoughtfully replaced a defective hard drive I also had on my iBook, but never offered to backup my data (a $50 option the first time). As an MFA student, I had much of the poetry I write backed up on an external hard drive, but still wound up losing a good deal of material. Not to mention the week or so it took me to reinstall third party software, update system software, etc. After that logic board went out in October of this year (2005), I began to be genuinely concerned. My three year anniversary was fast approaching and apparently no one had yet figured out the difference between a “good” logic board and a “bad” one at the service center where I sent my computer. I called the 800 number and qualified my laptop, but then asked the very helpful and polite customer service rep to explain one thing to me: “What guarantees do I have that this logic board you are going to put in is any different than the last three that I’ve gone through [my original, the February 05 one, and the April 05 one]?” “I really don’t know how to answer that question, sir,” he replied. I asked to then speak to his supervisor, and was shocked to hear that supervisors don’t speak to customers (a FIRST to ever hear that come out of any corporate America mouth, in either a corporation I’ve worked for or dealt with). By that time I couldn’t talk any longer, and told him I would call back the next day to talk with a “product specialist.” When I finally spoke with this specialist, he only spoke in tautologies (In response to the same question above, he replied, “We are fixing your computer for free and the bad logic boards have been purged from the supply line.” “How do you know this?” I asked. “Because we are fixing it for free.” After chasing my tail for twenty minutes, I finally asked to speak to his supervisor. Same story as before. He then refused to give me his name again, his extension, or his supervisor’s name. I am a patient man, Mr. Jobs, but my patience has come to an end. Your company has the faithful over a barrel, since Windows isn’t a viable option and Linux is further out into computer geekdom than Gate’s clan. All we have to rely upon is your reputation for fairness, reliability, and integrity. Please do what you can to rectify this situation in whatever way you feel is most suitable. If you can’t offer me a refurbished iBook, then perhaps a discount on a Powerbook would be in order. In any event, I would like to have my long-standing faith in your company restored, and I wanted to make a personal plea to you on behalf of your company’s reputation. Thanks for your time. Please feel free to either write me at the above address or e-mail me at: benjiborden@mac.com. Best, Benji Borden |
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Veronique, Paris, France My problem is that I really need to be sure because this summer, I will join as a reporter (photo + text) a sailing boat for 2 years on her "Cacao Road" and I will be far from any repair service. I ! can't take the risk to kill that wonderful opportunity to get out of unemployment. So I asked apple to change for a new
computer, I was even ready to pay the difference of price and as you can
imagine they refused with a very disdainful way. they didn't even advise
me by mail I had to call the customer service because I knew by my
re-seller that I was given a 3 month warranty extension . what will be
the use for me in the middle of the Atlantic especially when the logic
board has already a 2 years extension? Does it mean that they will
provide me a satellite phone onboard and an helicopter in case of
problem? Veronique |
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May 8, 2004 Steve Jobs CEO Apple 1 Infinity Loop Cupertino, CA 94516 Dear Mr. Jobs, I used to be a dyed-in-the-wool, proud Apple user. I worked in publishing for 13 years and always worked with Macs. I made frequent sneering comments about Bill Gates and the Evil Empire, and sang the praises of you and your company. But after buying my latest Mac, I have begun to seriously question my affection for your computers. Let me explain. Last July I bought an iBook (900 MHz) from Microserv in Dorval, Quebec. It worked fine until March of this year when it suddenly crashed. I took it in to the store on March 24. It wasn't ready until April 2. The store replaced the logic board. Why did it take so long? (The store had told me that it normally takes only two to three days to fix a computer.) The first logic board that came from Mac was defective. I took it home, used it for an hour or so, and then it stopped working again. Back in the shop. It took until April 19--two more weeks--to supposedly get the problem fixed. Once again the logic board was replaced, plus a cable, the optical drive, and the hard drive. (Hey, what’s left to change--the white plastic case?) I took it home and it worked for a few days. Then I noticed that the battery no longer recharged properly. (Before it was "repaired," the battery would hold a charge for more than 3 hours; after I got it back, it would hold only a 2-hour charge.) Yesterday I went by Microserv and was told that now the battery needs to be replaced. So far, it isn't ready. I took the computer back anyway because I need to finish off an article. I have now lost close to a month of use of my computer--and counting. This is not just a minor inconvenience. I do a lot of freelance writing at home (I am a regular contributor to Prism, the magazine published by the American Society for Engineeering Education) and not having a computer has meant having to check my e-mail on friends’ computers and not being able to write in the evenings. The fact that all this work has been covered on warranty is little consolation to me. This computer is obviously a Grade A lemon, probably made by a guy who proudly drives up Infinity Loop every day in his Lada, belching smoke out of its tailpipe. I used to boast about owning a Mac. But no more. When people ask me whether they should buy a Mac I tell them, don't bother: Save a few hundred bucks and buy a PC. It can't be any less reliable than a Mac. As a high school teacher (my day job), I have ample opportunity to spread the word. By the way, my last computer was a Performa that worked flawlessly for eight years. I guess your quality control has gone to hell in a wheelbarrow since then. Yours truly, x ---------------------------------------------------------------- |
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Feb. 05, 04
Hi Bill, Here is another story. My iBook is have its 6th logic board, being replaced. The 5th logic board lasted 2 days. The 5th board was replaced on Jan 29th/04. At that time I talked to the apple rep who reassured me that this new board would solve the problem as it was a redesigned board. The Rep called the Apple store to confirm. I picked up the iBook on Saturday the 31st. On Monday Feb 2nd the ibook had failed again. This time (Feb 3rd) I drove it down to the Apple store in Victoria BC (I live in Nanaimo) and called the Apple Customer Service from there. I could not get the same Rep. The Rep I did get told me that the 5th logic board was not of the new design as it was ordered on Jan 27th and the new ones did not become available until the 28th when the replacement plan was announced. The new Rep would not replace the iBook as this 6th board would be of the new design and the problem solved once and for all. I complained bitterly about the down time and the shipping and travel costs. The Apple Rep agrees to send me an iSight to compensate. I feel still uncomfortable as I am not sure what is really happening. My iBook is not abused and the only traveling it does is to the local Macintosh User Group meeting (of which I am Chairman) and connected to the Universities AV system. Do you think I should contact a Lawyer? I have all the details and names of the Customer Reps. PS: I also had to replaced the Power Supply which packed it in after the warranty expired. A.S. Nanaimo, BC ---------------------------------------------------------------- |
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Dear Bill, CW |
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Dear Bill, CW |
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Hi Bill,
I've been a Mac user for a long time, and the quality of Apple's products have never left me hesitant in recommending them to others, or in ordering thousands of pounds worth of equipment from them. Unfortunately, it's also led me to delude myself that in the event of any problems I could expect quick and speedy resolution. My iBook recently died two weeks outside of it's warranty (the dreaded display/logic board failure right on Christmas Eve). Not worried at all, I booted off the machine in target disk mode, and tried doing a backup onto CDs using my .Mac provided Backup. Didn't work. Worse still, I suddenly realised that the support for .Mac is appalling, and after wasting many hours trying to resolve the situation have given up on trying to use Backup. Fortunately, I have an old copy of Retrospect Express, and backed up all my data. I then thought I'd go to my dealer and try to get the board replaced. They won't do anything until the end of January, and I cannot get through to Apple due to a large volume of calls, and there is no support by email... While I can understand that these things happen from time to time, I've discovered that the issue with the iBook seems to be extremely common, and while I wish your class action suit in the US the best of luck, I'm not optimistic about this remedying similar problems for UK users. I have had a problem in the past with my old Pismo, but I managed to get a speedy resolution within 1 week (last time it was my hard drive that went). I'm glad that Apple has seen market improvements in the last couple of years, but I'm now convinced that this has also been accompanied with a huge drop in quality. In my entire Mac lifetime, I've probably used 30 different Macs, and never seen any logic board failures within 3 years. Unfortunately, I feel like I've paid good money for two lemons (the iBook and .Mac) and am unable to do anything with either of them! Is it time to switch? Hope that Apple wakes up and does something before I switch the whole office to PC. BR, Merul ---------------------------------------------------------------- |
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CHAPTER 1 * new ibook 800 in 5/2003 * mosaic of death after 5 weeks * logic board replaced by local retailer * mosaic of death after 5 more weeks * local shop owner and i call apple to angle for a new machine, apple guy says "fix one more time" * logic board replaced again my local retailer * mosaic of death after 5 weeks * i call apple with case number, they accept return 10/03 CHAPTER 2 * Needless to say I'll never buy another apple product again and am eager to get the word out to help others avoid my pain. I'm not sure what I'll do next, perhaps buy a pc and donate my ibook to a non-profit that already has a stable of ibooks they support. cheers, A |
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Well I came across your site by accident really, but was a little shocked. I've had an apple ibook since may 2001, the first "ice book" (500MGz, 10G HD, 66MGz system bus) and its still going strong, I'm writing this on it right now. Its been used every day since purchased,its rarely shut down, only put to "sleep". It's been thrown in my back-pack and been taken on many many jobs. On your site you say there are "thousands" of dead ibooks, due to this "logic bored problem" not true, out of the millions that have been sold, yes you can expect a few hundred, even more to fail. I'm a system admin, I work with macs and PC's and know many many apple people, non have had the problems you speak of. I do sympathize with your problem, but you didn't even pay for the ibook, you said it was donated to you!!! Anyways that¹s my 2pence worth, this so called law suit will go no ware, that¹s certain. All the best, C W |
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hi bill, you can see my iBook trouble shooting fun at http://members.rogers.com/btraynor/ ---------------------------------------------------------------- |
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Hi Bill,
My name is "A", I'm from Bogotá
Colombia, I'm a Mac user since 1997, I have 3 Macs in my home, the last was
a 2002 G3 800 iBook. Greetings, A ---------------------------------------------------------------- |
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Hello Bill
I'm afraid my horror story is all too familiar. Nothing new really. Bought an ibook model A1007 about a year ago. Now just out of warranty and the 3rd visit back to W...... Computers in Edmonton with a defective logic board, misdiagnosed twice before as a power problem, I now have a dead machine. I have been a Mac customer since 1981 when I bought my first an Apple IIe. I am no longer. I am a scientist and used to technical
problems but the issue is an ethical one and has nothing much to do with
electronics. I was sold the machine by people who knew that there was a
problem and who also knew I had a small business and who pretty much didn't
give a damn. I am now out of pocket a considerable sum but more importantly
I am in the middle of negotiations with a large pharmaceutical company for a
strategic partnership and license deal worth ultimately millions of dollars. Sincerely, B |
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| Dear Bill,
I write this email from Germany and had the same problems with my 700 Mhz iBook. Just a few days after the warranty end the effect occurs and increases so hardly, that the iBook was not able to boot. Apple first said that there would be no chance for a service out of the warranty. Cause I had to go on with my work, I decided to buy a new 900 Mhz book an change the hard disk (my dealer does it). After that I made several attempts to get a "service out of warranty" over my dealer without success. At the end a apple member gave me the number of of a so called "de-escalation service bureau" and here they had an open ear for my problem. Few days later I got a service number and the main board was changed by my local apple partner. Now I hope, the problem will not occur again and the new 900 iBook will not have the same sleeping error, that caused so much trouble. At the end of this letter, you will excuse my horrible "English". I hope you understand it anyway and it may help other users of the iBooks. With best regards,
J. J. |
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| Bill,
I came across your site via news.com and man, am I glad I did. I was probably a month away from buying the 1GHz 14” iBook. I’ve been wanting an iBook for many months now. I was going to get it for Christmas but the wife and I purchased a house so money was tight. I’m disappointed in what I’ve read on your site and at blackcider.com. I was really looking forward to the possibility of switching. J |
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| Hi
Bill,
Here is my story. I bought my IBook (700 MHz, 14", DVD-Reader/CD-Burner) in Germany in August 2002. I was student and I was extremely satisfied with this quite expensive, but hell good looking and flexible computer. In September 2003 there was one week before the submitting of my diploma thesis. Suddenly, when I started my IBook on the screen there were black and white lines and quads. This was the first time in my life, when I had to go to the hospital, because I had an allergic reaction because of the stress. My skin went red, it was cold and warm on the same time, and my lips become thick. In the hospital the doctors wanted to keep me, but I said I have to submit my diploma in one week, so next day I went into my favourite Apple store and they told me that there is a problem with the logic board. My computer has been since few weeks out of warranty, so I had to pay for the exchange 480 EUR (more than 600$ US, and I was a student with no regular income). How I accomplished the diploma thesis? My IBook worked if I opened the display in a defined angle and touched the keyboard as smooth as I could. "Do not shake the table" was the running gag during this week. I submitted the thesis and was only happy, that the horror was over. But I tell you, this week I will remember for a long time. Greetings from Anton Klotz |
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The opinions expressed on this page are those of the author and are not necessarily those of Eyestir. |
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