Steve Jobs must be doing cartwheels in his grave

[EscapeCalifornia]

Originally Posted by TurcoLoco

This is how "geniuses" at the Apple store typically "repair" faulty products according to my co-worker, by simply replacing it regardless of what is wrong with it. That goes to show you either the engineering of the products is really bad or the products are way too overpriced.

High margins means its doesn't make sense to pay someone $12/hr to try to figure out what's wrong with it. Its cheaper and easier to just give the customer another one since it doesn't cost the company all that much relative to the retail cost. The bad ones probably go back to China for rework.

[TurcoLoco]

Originally Posted by EscapeCalifornia

High margins means its doesn't make sense to pay someone $12/hr to try to figure out what's wrong with it. Its cheaper and easier to just give the customer another one since it doesn't cost the company all that much relative to the retail cost. The bad ones probably go back to China for rework.

Yeah, probably. Production cost must be a lot less than what people typically assumed. Electronics production should have remained with Japan and they Taiwan plants, never China.

[NJBest]

Originally Posted by TurcoLoco

This is how "geniuses" at the Apple store typically "repair" faulty products according to my co-worker, by simply replacing it regardless of what is wrong with it. That goes to show you either the engineering of the products is really bad or the products are way too overpriced.

If you look at Apple's sales... the products certainly aren't overpriced.

[RayinAK]

Originally Posted by TurcoLoco

This is how "geniuses" at the Apple store typically "repair" faulty products according to my co-worker, by simply replacing it regardless of what is wrong with it. That goes to show you either the engineering of the products is really bad or the products are way too overpriced.

Thats exactly what any successful company would do (replace it with another). This way, within a few minutes there is a happy customer, and the defective unit is refurbished by Apple to later be sold at perhaps $50.00 discount, and with a full warranty.

By the way, you can do the same at any of the stores in town, not just Apple. All you have to do is to exchange whatever product you buy with another of the same kind, just because you don't like the way it works. If you don't want to exchange it, then you can ask for a full refund.

[archineer]

Originally Posted by TurcoLoco

This is how "geniuses" at the Apple store typically "repair" faulty products according to my co-worker, by simply replacing it regardless of what is wrong with it. That goes to show you either the engineering of the products is really bad or the products are way too overpriced.

Actually they don't, at least not with their macs. They replace parts, but usually not the whole thing.

[Bo]

Originally Posted by TurcoLoco

This is how "geniuses" at the Apple store typically "repair" faulty products according to my co-worker, by simply replacing it regardless of what is wrong with it. That goes to show you either the engineering of the products is really bad or the products are way too overpriced.

Or the geniuses aren't capable of making component-level repairs, which should not be surprising. Their role is to triage, rather than repair.

[RayinAK]

Originally Posted by Bo

Or the geniuses aren't capable of making component-level repairs, which should not be surprising. Their role is to triage, rather than repair.

What you have to keep in mind is the following: you have a new buyer that brings in a new iPad because the screen or something is bad. Should the technician just keep the defective iPad for a week or two for the parts to arrive and for him (or her) to repair it? Isn't it a lot more efficient for Apple to just exchange the unit, and have a happy customer?

All depends on the type of repair. If it's a software glitch or something that can be repaired while the customer waits at the store, then I imagine that this would be another way to solve the problem. Regardless, it's up to the customer to decide if he wants to wait or not if the unit is brand new, and that's the time he or she can request a full refund.