China slams Apple's 'empty and self-praising' response to warra

[techbeck]

Chinese state-run newspaper The People's Daily has called Apple out for its "empty and self-praising" response to recent criticism regarding warranties for its iPhone range. Apple published a press release on its Chinese portal after state broadcaster CCTV claimed Chinese consumers weren't getting the same level of service as Americans. Citing a student, The People's Daily echoed these concerns, saying that most American iPhone faults are handled by replacing the entire handset, while faulty Chinese handsets are repaired and handed back to users. It also faulted Apple for not extending the warranty for longer after repairs.

Apple disputed the claims in its press release. It said its warranties are "roughly the same" worldwide, noting that while Chinese law requires a 30-day warranty on repairs, it offers either 90 days or until the original warranty is up, whichever is longer. It also clarified its policies on replacing and repairing iPhones, explaining that while iPhone 4 and 4S models can often be repaired, most iPhone 5s will be replaced.

China is striving to be tech-independent

Some have pointed to The People's Daily article as a sign that the tide is turning against western companies in China. Speaking with The Wall Street Journal, analyst Jeremy Goldkom said that "there is a level of acceptance that it is okay to go against this company, which can mean there's trouble down the road." China has recently indicated it wants to be less reliant on international companies for its electronics. It signed up with Canonical to develop a custom version of Ubuntu into a "national OS," and also said that Android, despite being open-source, is "strictly controlled" by Google.

http://www.theverge.com/2013/3/26/4148086/apple-warranty-response-self-praising-and-empty-says-chinese-media

[Tidosho]

This isn't really news, because if you read the Limited Warranty section of a device's documentation you'll find it mentions "returning for replacement or repair, at the company's discretion" or words to that effect. And that's in the UK. Companies like Apple will just choose to replace the whole device, or any circuit board that's defective, whereas small companies like my repair firm will do it to board level, repairing the existing circuitry.

I prefer repair rather than chuck out and replace, it's the ultimate form of being green, reducing waste, it also reduces cost for my customers. Why chuck a full phone or tablet motherboard out when all that's wrong with it is a chip or resistor gone bad? In my eyes, companies that replace modules as a whole are just lazy, that includes so called PC "repair" firms. BGA reball skills are the best thing I ever became specialist at, because most people prefer the cheaper cost of existing circuit or individual part repair/replacement rather than shelling out for a whole new board or device.

[Growled Member]

Chinese state-run newspaper The People's Daily has called Apple out for its "empty and self-praising" response to recent criticism...

They know Apple pretty well, don't they? I've always thought that too.

[Torolol]

EU & China agrees, Apple warranty sucks.