Krankerz Posted February 11, 2004 Share Posted February 11, 2004 I placed a phone order for my new PowerBook 15" Superdrive about 1.5 weeks ago. It was the 31st of January and I customized it (really only swapped for a faster HDD) and was told that might put a short delay on my laptop delivery time. It is now the 11th of February and still, no laptop. The part I think is weird is, this previous saturday, I talked to my sales guy and he said he would have a reason why the delay occured that evening. I never got a call back from him, so I left a message for him Saturday, Sunday, and Monday. Called in and talked to a supervisor and he said he would call me back the following day (Tuesday). Didn't hear from him yesterday, left a message and didn't hear from him today, left another message. Now I'm stuck with a several thousand dollar purchase and I have no idea where m laptop is and no one at Apple will tell me where it is. I am a Switcher and, frankly, I'm ****ed that I made the move to Apple. This is the worst service I have ever had with a hardware company, and I haven't even received the product yet! I can't wait to see how bad the service is AFTER I get it (if at all). Basically, I was wondering what anyone's experience has been lately with purchasing computer hardware from them, or if I just got a bad Apple. Your comments are appreciated. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
session Posted February 11, 2004 Share Posted February 11, 2004 Never tried purchasing on the phone. I always buy things online and the service is ok though not the best. I know how you feels and I'ml sorry for you. Hope you to get your laptop as soon as possible Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Krankerz Posted February 12, 2004 Author Share Posted February 12, 2004 The thing is, I only called Apple to get information on the laptop, and told the guy I wanted to buy online, like I always do. He assured me that it would be faster to place the order over the phone since he directly inputs my info into the work order. He told me if I ordered online, the only thing that is doing is creating an extra step because someone still has to look at that order and place it in the system after that. So if I placed on the phone, I would get my stuff quicker. Ironically, it has taken almost 2 weeks longer than expected! :angry: ******s... :angry: So I am not ****ed that the order is delayed, as I am used to that sort of stuff. I'm just angry that I am not receiving any sort of support from such a "reputable" company. Guess I shouldn't have expected as much... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tim Dorr Veteran Posted February 12, 2004 Veteran Share Posted February 12, 2004 If you got a BTO option, it's gotta be built in the manufacturing plant (in Taiwan) before they can get it to you. It can take anywhere from 1-3 weeks for it to get to you. I do agree that they've tossed you around a bit, and that's upsetting. I'd still recommend ordering through the website versus the phone. Do they even give you the ability to track your order online if it's phone based? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Elliott Posted February 12, 2004 Share Posted February 12, 2004 I've always had good order service with Apple. I've never had an order come in late. My G5 did have a bad processor when I got it, and I blame my Apple Store for the semi-bad service. It took 1 week and 4 days for them to figure out I had a bad processor (something that I was suspecting from the start), but I don't have the real AppleCare plan for my G5 (and my city is full of idiots). My 15" AlBook always got prompt service though (I got a scratch on my screen and I got it back in no time). Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Krankerz Posted February 12, 2004 Author Share Posted February 12, 2004 If you got a BTO option, it's gotta be built in the manufacturing plant (in Taiwan) before they can get it to you. It can take anywhere from 1-3 weeks for it to get to you.I did do BTO, and I was informed that it would take a little longer, but the ETA delay was about 2 days after. The thing is, I got an e-mail last Friday stating that there was some "unexpected delay. You will not receive your laptop up until the 18th." Which is what prompted me to call the sales rep to see what was wrong, which started this whole mess. I was pretty shocked that a) it would be delayed that much longer and b) there was no explanation for the delay.Do they even give you the ability to track your order online if it's phone based? Yes, you do get order tracking, however, since it hasn't shipped yet, I have yet to receive a shipment confirmation e-mail, so that won't do me any good. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tim Dorr Veteran Posted February 12, 2004 Veteran Share Posted February 12, 2004 A delay of only 2 days? I don't think that sounds right at all :/ Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Krankerz Posted February 12, 2004 Author Share Posted February 12, 2004 Right, he said that the delay would only be a couple of days (making it about a 5-6 day wait time). Nothing really significant according to him. Maybe the automated e-mail I got is something everyone gets when they do a BTO. Anyone else who has done a BTO receive an automated e-mail telling them to wait about 2 weeks later than the expected delivery date? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bling3k12 Posted February 12, 2004 Share Posted February 12, 2004 My iBook took near a month to get here, and that was just a stock config. I was ****ed, but there were unexpected delays in Taiwan, so... whatever. It came, but by that time I had already bought and received a G4 from MacWarehouse, so the iBook went back to Apple. So why do I have an iBook now? Long story... :laugh: Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
isus Posted February 12, 2004 Share Posted February 12, 2004 hte phone support has always been fine for me... like every other company, they put you on hold and sometimes it can take a few minutes to answer... but considering that asking a question and getting an answer about my ipod took me a minute, someone with a bigger problem would take longer... and therefore i would be on hold longer. either way, i would never have suggested calling to order, as online it is much easier to follow where your order is... when i ordered my ipod online, it told me pretty much exactly what step it was on (preparing package, shipping... i think there are 4 steps in all, but i can't think of the other 2). who cares if it takes an extra step to order online? if apple wants the money, they'll take the time to do it right? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
netstarman Posted February 12, 2004 Share Posted February 12, 2004 If you paid by credit card , call your credit card company and tell them your getting the shaft and they'll put a hold on the payments and they will look into it for you so you'll be fine then. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Fusion Posted February 12, 2004 Share Posted February 12, 2004 You win some, you loose some ;) If you are really ****ed that you switched because their sales staff is under par, switch back. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Krankerz Posted February 12, 2004 Author Share Posted February 12, 2004 Oddly enough, I left a message for the supervisor that I could have easily walked to Best Buy and picked up an HP without having to have the hastle like I did with Apple. Believe me. They are well aware that their sales team is below average. I already put the order in and am not in the mood (or the situation) to be cancelling orders and making new orders. If I have to wait 1 more week to get my laptop (as the e-mail implied), then so be it. It's not like I'll have to call Apple sales after I get it. So really, switching back would be pointless, since I already went through the hastle. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Xer34 Posted February 12, 2004 Share Posted February 12, 2004 i know compusa sells macs.. i woulda got one there.. although.. i dunno thats mee. its weird how apples compys cost so much yet you get so little (service that is).. i guess reletively speaking their laptops arent that expensive Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Krankerz Posted February 12, 2004 Author Share Posted February 12, 2004 Believe me. I would've done that immediatley, but I didn't want to settle for a 4200 (or whatever) RPM HDD. So I upgraded to the 5400 RPM. Even that seems slow since I have a 7200 in my desktop. I wonder why Apple won't budge and go to a high performance 7200 RPM HDD. Whatever. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
frod Posted February 12, 2004 Share Posted February 12, 2004 heat maybe? who knows. my service from apple has only been top notch. i went to an apple store with a bad logic board in my powerbook. they shipped it out that night to apple, it was fixed and back on my doorstep in less than 48 hours. my power adapter broke. called them up and had a new one at my doorstep the next day. i would assume there are just some delays at the manufacturing plant. maybe they ran out of those hard drives? who knows. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DirtyLarry Veteran Posted February 12, 2004 Veteran Share Posted February 12, 2004 my power adapter broke. called them up and had a new one at my doorstep the next day. same with me. 2 times actually my power adapter broke (just with my latest g4 laptop, nevermind the "hockey puck" power adapter of the g3's i got seriously 5 replacements) and just as frod says i got my replacement the next day, i was super impressed at that. i can say though that my last big order with them was my dual g4 desktop and my g4 powerbook last year. both were custom orders and i got my powerbook within less than a week of ordering. my desktop actually took longer but they did let me know that. so i would say possibly something is up with the plant or whatever it may be. i would call and no matter who you talk to ask to speak to their manager again. say you do not appreciate the run around in getting a response to your order status and that you would like to cancel your order (knowing your not serious of course at the moment) if it is not solved immediately. that should get someone working on your problem really quick. i know its somewhat lame and harsh advice but desperate times stand for desperate measures. keep in mind apple is just like any other company and when you have humans working for you you have your good workers and your bad workers. just cause they work for apple doesn't mean they like their job you know? if the above advice does not work if you do indeed try it out PM me and i can give you my contact at an authorized apple dealer. really good company (and rep especially) and they take care of their clients like they were gold. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
suntzu Posted February 12, 2004 Share Posted February 12, 2004 i broke my F11 key and that want me to send my pb in for them to replace the whole frickin keyboard....I should just go to the apple store and pop one off from a display..... :yes: Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DirtyLarry Veteran Posted February 12, 2004 Veteran Share Posted February 12, 2004 i broke my F11 key and that want me to send my pb in for them to replace the whole frickin keyboard....I should just go to the apple store and pop one off from a display..... :yes: cant you just have them do it at the apple store itself? my g4 desktop needed some work and instead of sending it to apple, i arranged it so my local apple store ordered the part, called me when it came in, i took it in and got it back the next day. not that bad a deal at all. i did tell them i could not afford the luxury of not having my comp for over a day as it was related to my livelihood (which is true by the way) so i was even able to bring it in on a friday night and had it by saturday afternoon. its worth a shot at least for sure (Y) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
isus Posted February 13, 2004 Share Posted February 13, 2004 Believe me. I would've done that immediatley, but I didn't want to settle for a 4200 (or whatever) RPM HDD. So I upgraded to the 5400 RPM. Even that seems slow since I have a 7200 in my desktop. I wonder why Apple won't budge and go to a high performance 7200 RPM HDD. Whatever. only one company makes a 7200rpm hard drive... they claim better power usage than some 5400rpm's, but... i dunno. the faster the drive has to spin, the faster the battery dies. you can buy the hard drive (the 7200rpm one) for a couple hundred and put it in yourself if you want... from what i have heard, the read/write speeds going from a 4200 to a 5400 are MUCH better, but battery life is reduced a bit. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Fusion Posted February 13, 2004 Share Posted February 13, 2004 Believe me. I would've done that immediatley, but I didn't want to settle for a 4200 (or whatever) RPM HDD. So I upgraded to the 5400 RPM. Even that seems slow since I have a 7200 in my desktop. I wonder why Apple won't budge and go to a high performance 7200 RPM HDD. Whatever. Apple won't budge? Show me any computer company that sells 7200rpm drives in their laptops stock. I had a desktop PC with a 7200 drive and my powerbook has a 4200. I have never noticed a difference. Also, I wouldn't go with the 5400 drive in the powerbook, probably better to have longer battery life. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
isus Posted February 13, 2004 Share Posted February 13, 2004 Apple won't budge? Show me any computer company that sells 7200rpm drives in their laptops stock.I had a desktop PC with a 7200 drive and my powerbook has a 4200. I have never noticed a difference. Also, I wouldn't go with the 5400 drive in the powerbook, probably better to have longer battery life. i'm sure some of these 2" thick "notebooks" from the x86 world have 7200rpm drives available for them... but also, they produce a lot of heat. example: http://www.alienware.com/Configurator_Page...ode=SKU-EXTREME Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
NeoMayhem Posted February 13, 2004 Share Posted February 13, 2004 Believe me. I would've done that immediatley, but I didn't want to settle for a 4200 (or whatever) RPM HDD. So I upgraded to the 5400 RPM. Even that seems slow since I have a 7200 in my desktop. I wonder why Apple won't budge and go to a high performance 7200 RPM HDD. Whatever. You dont need one in a laptop. Because the HD Platters are half the size, the drive only has to spin half the speed (it might be a little more or less then half, but it is slower) to access data at the same rate. Faster on laptops is bad, it make the computer get hotter and sucks up battery life... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chadwick Posted February 13, 2004 Share Posted February 13, 2004 i dont think what you said is entirely correct. They wouldn't introduce a faster drive unless it would work at hte same power consumption and heat levels as hte other models. do you see a warning "battery life: 5 hours, with 7200rpm drive, 3 hours", nope, because that wont happen. By your logic upgrading to a faster processor speed degrades performance too. 7200rpm drives are perfect for gaming, your game will lag bad on a slower drive, 5400rpm is hte minimum for gaming, so faster is always better. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Fusion Posted February 13, 2004 Share Posted February 13, 2004 i dont think what you said is entirely correct. They wouldn't introduce a faster drive unless it would work at hte same power consumption and heat levels as hte other models. do you see a warning "battery life: 5 hours, with 7200rpm drive, 3 hours", nope, because that wont happen. By your logic upgrading to a faster processor speed degrades performance too. 7200rpm drives are perfect for gaming, your game will lag bad on a slower drive, 5400rpm is hte minimum for gaming, so faster is always better. I have played many games on my 12" powerbook without lag. Maybe on a wintel machine, but I have not noticed any difference here. Yes, chadwick, they would introduce a faster drive even if it caused more heat and less battery time. Many people use their powerbooks at work in professional studios and never let it touch their lap, and that would mean also that it would be plugged in all the time. I used to be a "custom PC" guy before I switched to Mac, and believe me, the hard drive speed was the only thing hanging me up on getting a laptop. I mean, I was already going down in speeds to a 1g processor, how many sacrifices did I need to make just to switch? I believed all the jazz I head about processor speeds not be comparable so that was fine, but hard drives were hard drives, the same cross platform. In my PC, I was using an 80g western digital 7200rpm with 8mb cache. I know use a 12" powerbook with a 4200rpm full time and it is still faster than my PC was. I have never seen my hard drive lag and it is almost full, time for an upgrade. After using it for this long, I will probably upgrade to another 4200. This is just my personal experience. BTW chadwick, Apple doesn't need to provide a warning.. 46-watt-hour lithium-ion battery (with integrated charge indicator LEDs) providing up to 4.5 hours of battery life Up to 4.5 hours means it depends on your specific configuration. I am sure it is entirely possible to get 4.5 hours with the 5400 or even the 4200 for that matter if you turn your screen off, turn airport, bluetooth and just about everything else off, and then let your computer sit there without working on it. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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