Circa1977 - Mark J. Reeves

Long Story Short: I got a new MacBook

Lesson learned: Buy Apple from Apple.

I’ve been eyeing a new mac. My 1.5 year-old MacBook is capped at 2GB of RAM and I really need 4 when I’m slicing and dicing comps, assembling pages, and testing in multiple browsers. Add iTunes, Mail, etc on top of that, and things haven’t been too speedy.

The lineup of iMacs was recently bumped up, and I was looking forward to a 24” screen and a 2.8GHz dual core CPU (just shy of the full 3.06 now offered) this summer.

But then the A key on my MacBook came off, the plastic notches worn down. And then the trackpad button started sticking. And before having a shiny new powerhouse on my desk in the office, I needed a reliable portable.

I couldn’t turn down what Amazon was selling: A $1299 MacBook minus a $75 rebate, and a $25 gift certificate in hand, and Amazon rewards earned, and no tax and no shipping. I could order 4GB of RAM from an Amazon seller for $95 to replace the stock 2GB.

So I did it, avoiding paying Apple $1299 + $200 for a RAM upgrade +  tax. And with a free Amazon Prime trial, it came in two days.

Shoddy. It happens with the plastic MacBooks. Corners on the surface popped up a little. A space bar key bowed at the ends. A buckled ripple in the surface plastic. And a trackpad button that didn’t click on the left end. Within an hour of opening it, I had an appointment at the local Genius Bar and headed there.

In 2005 I bought two iMacs from Apple online. After loading a ton of music the SuperDrive in one died. I brought it to the Apple Store and, since it was stock, they swapped it and migrated my installs and settings from one to the other. No such luck this time. “You bought it on Amazon and we can’t tell who sold it. If we open it to replace the buttons we don’t know what we’ll find. It’s a manufacturing defect, so you should return it to Amazon for a replacement.”

I get that it was Amazon’s inventory. I wanted a replacement, not a fix, so I needed to return it to Amazon. But it’s a “manufacturing defect”, and you’re Apple, help me out here. I had an *Amazon* receipt, and Amazon (I checked) *is* an authorized reseller.

I got back to the office and filled out the steps on Amazon.com to return and request a replacement. Getting the RMA and return label was fast and easy. Then I had to wait for an email on the replacement details.

The email came, 24 hours later: “We don’t stock replacement parts. Here’s Apple’s number.” Livid, I called Amazon. No replacement would be offered. I declared that I would be returning it, confirmed I could (as “defective”, the same reason for requesting a replacement), and got off the phone.

Within 2 hours I was at the mall, at the Apple Store, to buy a new MacBook. I was offered AppleCare, software, a case and other things I declined. I was led to the back to be shown two printers I could choose from, free. I chose. I was led back to the front.

The gentleman I was handed off to rang me up on one of the handheld checkout devices. He asked if I wanted a printed receipt, email receipt, or both. Both, I said. I signed. He said I was all set. I paused, then walked out, foregoing the printed receipt to get on my way.

The email receipt never came.

The credit card charge was not $1299 + tax, but instead $1468.90: $1299 + $99 + tax.

The next morning I called and left a message. We went out for brunch at the mall. I received a voicemail and headed into the store. The email receipt is lost. Odd, it’s an address I use only for Apple, that I’ve used in that store, that came up on the handheld per my credit card, that has recently worked for iTunes, and that I received an Apple feedback email at. The printer: I was supposed to be given a rebate card, which I got on my second visit and redeemed.

The other MacBook has been returned to Amazon, by insured Priority Mail. The new one is great so far. A few flukey screen flashes after installing the 4GB of RAM I ordered that seem to be gone after resetting PRAM. And the lesson learned: If want Apple service, buy from Apple. Even then, though - no guarantees.