blog.durdle.com

For almost as long as I’ve had my MacBook Pro I have been ignoring the high-pitched whine it emits when the dual cores aren’t quite busy enough, and putting up with how insanely hot the system gets in normal use. (Apple recommends turning the processor speed down, and not using it on your lap. Genius.)

Today though I was confronted with a MacBook Woe that I couldn’t ignore: the battery itself, or possibly the charging circuitry, is dead. So for the first time in my brief tenure as an Apple owner I had need to make use of Apple’s customer service.

Good Lord, they don’t make that easy.

While the laptop itself is under a (limited) hardware warranty, in order to diagnose the fault you have to have some form of Apple support package. All their hardware comes with “complimentary” 90 days support, but of course that had expired so in order to continue the conversation with the tech support girl I had to buy nearly 300 quids worth of Apple Care package.

After lengthy and tedious diagnostics she acknowledged that there was a problem with the battery (duh) and has arranged for them to ship me a new one.

Her: Is it okay for me to ship it to your home address?
Me: Fine, when will it be delivered?
Her: Some time in the next 5-7 days.
Me: Riiight. When exactly? So I know to be in.
Her: I can’t give you that information, shall I ship it to your office address instead?
Me: No. I’m a contractor, I work from any one of up to ten locations with no idea a week in advance where I’ll be. You need to tell me one day I should stay at home, and I’ll make sure I’m here.
Her: Oh. How about we just try to deliver it and leave a note saying we’ll be back the next day?
Me: *sigh* Fine.

*bangs head against wall*

So I am, or my company is, out 280 quid for this level of service, plus the 71 quid “We don’t trust you” charge in case I don’t send the old battery back plus 40 minutes of my time.

I thought Apple was all “Think Different”. This feels like every other major company’s lousy customer service. (Foreign call centre too - the whole thing would have taken half the time if I’d not had to ask her to repeat herself or spell things for me every time…)

Urgh.

Oh yes, and the brilliance of the MagSafe connector (and how easy it pulls out of the laptop) can only be really appreciated when your laptop has no battery and WILL DIE IMMEDIATELY WHEN THE POWER IS REMOVED! I say again: urgh.