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Apple - Think Twice

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Re: Apple - Think Twice

#231

Post by commandar »

rm999 wrote: post #53
indiecore wrote: post #32

Earlier quoted context omitted.

So because they do it all the time ignoring a legitimate issue is now acceptable?

msy is not making a value judgment on Apple, he's saying this is nothing new. In contrast to the article: >I remember an Apple that bent over backwards to understand its customers’ point of view and stretched itself to meet the high expectations it sets.

I think the thing is that the two statements aren't really at odds.

Apple has always bent over to resolve issues for customers if they acknowledge the issue. For example, I had a pre-unibody MBP that the power button pushed through the top case. Apple very promptly took it back, replaced the top case and a few other cosmetic dings I hadn't complained about, and got it back to me.

On the other hand, Apple also has a long history of refusing to acknowledge some issues and giving the customer the run around on them, which is the type of complaint in this article.

Re: Apple - Think Twice

#232

Post by astrodust »

indiecore wrote: post #180
astrodust wrote: post #131

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I guess I should be wearing shoes made from truck tires and old seatbelts, shirts made from recycled canvas bags, and underpants made from old rags because who cares about appearances.

Realize that aesthetics are largely subjective. I personally think the Thinkpad line looks a hell of a lot BETTER than the rounded corner/aluminum macbooks.

So then appearances are important to you, but you have a different sense of what looks better. That's a lot more reasonable than insisting appearance doesn't matter.

Re: Apple - Think Twice

#233

Post by jph »

burriko wrote: post #139

Interesting. I've had the exact same problem, and yet what happened to me was the best customer service I've ever experienced. I had bought a 15" retina MBP at launch, but only noticed the ghosting last month. After booking an appointment with a 'genius' online I arrived ready to argue my case. What actually happened was that the 'genius' agreed with me straight away that the ghosting was intolerable, and without doi…

Lenovo's service and support is superb. I have had screen repairs from both Lenovo and Apple this year, and Lenovo completely impressed me with their speed, courtesy, and follow through-- they sent a repairman to my office with a brand new screen, all fully covered by warranty.

Re: Apple - Think Twice

#234

Post by georgemcbay »

michael_miller wrote: post #73

I can't help but think that the majority of comments here are the loud minority. Apple's products have had faults, I'll be the first to admit. But do we really think that even 5% of Apple's millions of customers are having issues with their purchases? If that were the case, we'd see class action lawsuits against the company, the NYTimes/WSJ covering Apple's shoddy manufacturing processes, and Apple's reputation takin…

A lot of people probably don't even realize they have an issue, but that doesn't mean there isn't one.

I'm constantly amazed when I go to a friend or family member's house and they are watching SD television content scaled up on their HDTV and the aspect ratio is all fucked and they don't even notice, or worse after you show them how to fix it they want it back the old way because they don't want to "waste" parts of their screen with black bars.

Or they are running high gamut monitors uncalibrated with an obvious red-shift that is fucking up everything they are viewing and they don't even see it. Etc, etc.

Most people just aren't that perceptive about these sorts of details, but that's no reason to excuse real problems for people that are perceptive about them, especially when you're supposedly a "premium brand".

Re: Apple - Think Twice

#235

Post by cloverich »

rozap wrote: post #164
eropple wrote: post #122

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> I've never heard of a satisfied long term customer Four MBPs, including a retina MBP. Couldn't be happier. Two iPads and two iPhones, switched to Android largely because of a new job and because I wanted a local environment for running vim. See? Other people have anecdotes too. But I get that contrariness and the application of your own pet anecdotes over evidence is really fun, so continue, by all means.

I think what he's going for is that, had you kept your original MBP, you would be unsatisfied. Not saying he's right or wrong there. However, I think it is fair to say that the majority of Apple fans often have a pretty frequent upgrade cycle. Consequently I don't think there are too many "long term customers" of Apple products in his sense of the word. I think Meaty is really going for "long term" customer as in - i…

My Wife has my old MBP circa 2008. Its still runs surprisingly well - outside the new trackpad and larger size, I don't notice a difference using that compared to my current. While I like the T61 (alot), when I left my previous job I was given the choice of keeping either it or the MBP (both with similar specs). I chose the MBP and haven't regretted it once.

Re: Apple - Think Twice

#236

Post by astrodust »

w1ntermute wrote: post #213
stephencanon wrote: post #207

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> When using a trackpad, you have to move your hand off of the keyboard and down several inches. ~2 is not "several" in modern english usage. More to the point: personally, I use my thumb on the trackpad, so by your standards of evidence the track point is less efficient than the trackpad; my fingers never leave their home row positions, whereas yours do to use the track point. In reality, yes, it's personal preferen…

> ~2 is not "several" in modern english usage. It looks like at least 3 to 4 inches to me from the home row to the middle of the trackpad on the 13" MacBook Air: http://www.digitaltrends.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/08/macb... On my X1 Carbon[0] it's 4" from the home row to the middle of the trackpad. Subtracting 0.5" for the separate mouse buttons, that would be 3.5" to the middle of the trackpad. > personally, I use…

To "two finger" it all you have to do is rotate your hand slightly and swipe with finger and thumb. This gesture becomes effortless once you internalize it.

The problem with the "stick" is that, like a game-pad controller, it operates like a steering wheel. It doesn't move the mouse directly, but it changes the rate at which the mouse is moving. This is a degree removed from actually steering the mouse and it's why it frustrates a lot of people.

If you're a "home row" person that's fine, we all have our preferences, but you're probably in the minority and the appeal of that feature is more limited than a responsive track-pad.

Re: Apple - Think Twice

#238

Post by mullingitover »

kamjam wrote: post #219
mullingitover wrote: post #211

If my history with Apple support is any guide, good luck. My first Macbook Pro: - Laptop starts dying hard with >20% battery remaining 16 weeks or so after purchase - Get a replacement battery free due to recall - Replacement battery has same problem, turns out the replacement batteries have also been recalled! Lucky me. - Get a third replacement battery - Third replacement battery has the exact same problem. Contact…

I like how you start off by saying "My first Macbook Pro", which implies you have purchased more since this initial issue?

What can I say? They're the worst laptops, except for all the others.

Seriously though, the second one has been a champion and I've used it for four years straight without a hiccup. It's a wash--I don't recommend Apple hardware for everyone, but I still prefer it myself.

Re: Apple - Think Twice

#239

Post by eropple »

Tipzntrix wrote: post #227
eropple wrote: post #174

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I'd be "unsatisfied" because a slow processor, a 4GB RAM maximum, and a shitty GPU would suck, sure. I upgrade and sell my old machines on a yearly basis or so because paying a $300-$400 delta (sell the old one, buy the new one) is worth it to have something in the target area for Apple and for developers. There's no point for me in keeping older devices long-term because nobody really targets the trailing edge. I sp…

You see with Windows, Microsoft targetted (or at least went WAY out of their way to accommodate) the trailing edge. hell, they even held support for many DOS programs for a long time. This pattern looks like it might be changing with Metro though.

Microsoft did, sure, but I'm referring more to application and game developers. The OS features are nice-to-haves to be sure, but if your applications are outpacing your hardware...

Re: Apple - Think Twice

#240

Post by cloverich »

timbre wrote: post #189
icarus_drowning wrote: post #134

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Just to add to the anecdotal evidence bandwagon, I'm another very happy long term customer, with almost a decade of happy purchases. I've never had a problem nor experienced anything but excellent service. I've had iPhones replaced for free (without Apple Care), free repairs for faulty components in 2 MacBook Pro's (performed immediately and at no cost). I don't blame you for you dislike of the Apple brand given how…

This may just be a difference in attitude. For myself, I would count having multiple iPhones and MacBook Pros replaced or repaired as a terrible experience. Good service is better than bad service, and occasional defects are unavoidable, but the iPhone is only 5 years old; multiple replacements within that span would give me doubts about a company (unless you're buying lots of them, e.g. if your at a company that sup…

Somewhat less anecdotally, I worked Helpdesk at a company ~3 yrs ago, and most of our employees had either Lenovo's (T61's, T400s) or MBP's. I didn't notice a significant difference in the failure rate between the two.
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