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Apple "Genius" refused to replace my iPhone, why?

T

thecoolone1

macrumors regular
Original poster
Apr 13, 2009
159
0
About two days ago I made a Genius appointment online to get my iPhone 3G S replaced due to it having hairline cracks on both sides of the vibrant switch. Well when I went in I saw a Genius right away and I explained to him the problem which was my iPhone having hairline cracks on both sides of the vibrate switch and a small one on the bottom where the screws are (which that wasnt that big a deal). So he took it from me and did the normal procedure and checked both water sensors for any kind of water damage which I didn't have (i checked before i left and he also confirmed) and after examining the iphone he said he wouldn't replace it due to it being MY fault. WHAT??? I baby my iPhone and have never once dropped it. I have a screen protector on at all times, a case, and for crying out loud I even put a piece of screen protector over the Apple Logo so I don't scratch it up.

Below I posted pictures which aren't that good in quality but that's all I have for the moment. I would like to know if anyone here has had the problem I had with not getting it replaced. I think this is just ridiculous and it really makes me angry.

Does anyone agree with the Genius? Please keep in mind my iPhone had NO water damage, very minimal scratches on the chrome bezel, no scratches on the screen or plastic housing. I would like to know your thoughts.





 
He must of thought I dropped it or something. I know for sure hairline cracks are prone to happen on white iPhone's and he said "i never had anyone have this problem before". I got my iPhone 3G replaced last year due to hairline cracks. I think he was being ridiculous.
 
I'm not unsympathetic but I always wonder why people post questions like this. How can we provide any sort of sensible answer?

Surely, the only person is the Apple Genius? As the OP missed his original opportunity to fully question his reasoning, the best thing to do now is to make another appointment with the Genius to see if he can obtain any further info. He may even see a different Genius who may be more helpful! :)
 
John T said:
I'm not unsympathetic but I always wonder why people post questions like this. How can we provide any sort of sensible answer?

Surely, the only person is the Apple Genius? As the OP missed his original opportunity to fully question his reasoning, the best thing to do now is to make another appointment with the Genius to see if he can obtain any further info. He may even see a different Genius who may be more helpful! :)
Click to expand...

I couldn't agree more. Perhaps it's the insatiable human desire to whine? There are cracks as shown in the photos and if the first 'genius' doesn't provide satisfaction, take it to their manager. You'd think this would be common sense with any retail issue. Clearly, it's not.
 
I won't beat you up like others here... even though their points are valid. I will simply tell you to take it to another store/person in the store you went to and don't take "no" for an answer. It's a known issue and the phone should be replaced.
 
A lot of people blasting the OP, but no one seems to have actually read what he is asking. As far as I can see, the questions are:

thecoolone1 said:
Below I posted pictures which aren't that good in quality but that's all I have for the moment. I would like to know if anyone here has had the problem I had with not getting it replaced. I think this is just ridiculous and it really makes me angry.
Click to expand...

and

thecoolone1 said:
Does anyone agree with the Genius? Please keep in mind my iPhone had NO water damage, very minimal scratches on the chrome bezel, no scratches on the screen or plastic housing. I would like to know your thoughts.
Click to expand...

Also, the plastic cracking with hairline cracks has been a problem on the iPhone's where other have been able to get the phone replaced.

OP I can only suggest that you make another "Genius" appointment or, better still, phone the helpline as people normally get better results that way. I can clearly see that there is no damage there that indicates that the phone has been dropped, and as the cracks start at the silent switch and work out
 
make another appt.

don't leave until you feel all your questions are answered to your satisfaction, you still might not get what you want but at least you will know why. Also remain polite being rude will get you nothing. I blowing off your questions because it doesn't matter what others got in there cases all that matter is you and your phone too you. ;) also everybody here can only guess as others have said good luck.
 
Geeze, for the "Genius" to say he wouldn't replace it because it was your fault is bull. He has no way to prove it even if it was your fault. That's not a legitimate reason to refuse a replacement or new back. For god sakes I dropped my phone and got a crack in the casing coming right from the middle on the bottom near the connector, the crack was probably a good 3/4in long and I lied my ass off and told them it happened by itself and they replaced it.
 
I agree with him because it's getting out of hand... people are forgetting that it's a PHONE and phones get ABUSED.. no matter what phone you have, whether it's an iPhone or a damn RAZR. You are constantly moving them around, putting them in your pocket or on a desk. You are putting pressure on the plastic and it's cracking. Apple chose a bad material, but you chose to buy the ****ing phone knowing it cracks.

There's no avoiding this problem, stop being so OCD and worry about function over looks.

And I know a lot of people aren't going to agree wit me, but I don't care.
 
acfusion29 said:
I agree with him because it's getting out of hand... people are forgetting that it's a PHONE and phones get ABUSED.. no matter what phone you have, whether it's an iPhone or a damn RAZR. You are constantly moving them around, putting them in your pocket or on a desk. You are putting pressure on the plastic and it's cracking. Apple chose a bad material, but you chose to buy the ****ing phone knowing it cracks.

There's no avoiding this problem, stop being so OCD and worry about function over looks.

And I know a lot of people aren't going to agree wit me, but I don't care.
Click to expand...

Yeah...Okay? You must have money to blow and also you must expect less than perfect or even good quality from a $200 or $600 device depending whether you paid at a subsidized price or not. I don't know about you or any other people in this forum but I know if I paid even $200.00 for a device I would expect it to be perfect or even "hairline crack" free especially when you baby the s*** outta the phone. But then again you don't care so go have fun with your blackberry.
 
thecoolone1 said:
Yeah...Okay? You must have money to blow and also you must expect less than perfect or even good quality from a $200 or $600 device depending whether you paid at a subsidized price or not. I don't know about you or any other people in this forum but I know if I paid even $200.00 for a device I would expect it to be perfect or even "hairline crack" free especially when you baby the s*** outta the phone. But then again you don't care so go have fun with your blackberry.
Click to expand...

On top of that, Iphone users typically have the most expensive individual plans so I think we feel that this is the best way to get back at Apple/At&T for charging so much per month. Not that Apple really has any say in it but still.
 
The same thing happened to me. It's because the phone won't just develop a crack on its own; whether you know it or not, you did something to it. You may have cracked it while putting the case on or taking it off, whatever it was. They may not have told you this, but it also does not lessen the phone's abilities or prevent certain uses. If it was a crack or a dead spot in the screen, then they would have replaced it. But a hairline crack doesn't stop the phone from working. They think it's you being OCD, and it kind of is
 
After working in customer service I've come to loathe people like you, good lord that crack is so small it isn't even worth mentioning, and chances are you were rude to the Apple guy and that probably influenced his decision to help you.

Sorry if I sound rude but you paid 200 dollars for a cell phone, it's not some 50,000 BMW you just bought.
 
MasterTick said:
After working in customer service I've come to loathe people like you, good lord that crack is so small it isn't even worth mentioning, and chances are you were rude to the Apple guy and that probably influenced his decision to help you.

Sorry if I sound rude but you paid 200 dollars for a cell phone, it's not some 50,000 BMW you just bought.
Click to expand...

no, hes paying 2k for that cell phone
 
MasterTick said:
After working in customer service I've come to loathe people like you, good lord that crack is so small it isn't even worth mentioning, and chances are you were rude to the Apple guy and that probably influenced his decision to help you.

Sorry if I sound rude but you paid 200 dollars for a cell phone, it's not some 50,000 BMW you just bought.
Click to expand...

You should of found another job then. I could care less if it's super tiny or having a crack all the way around the phone, I'm still entitled to my own opinion. And chances were I wasn't rude to the Genius, I as well work in retail as did he and I know how to treat a customer so I treated him the same way I would like to be treated which is with respect.
 
MasterTick said:
After working in customer service I've come to loathe people like you, good lord that crack is so small it isn't even worth mentioning, and chances are you were rude to the Apple guy and that probably influenced his decision to help you.

Sorry if I sound rude but you paid 200 dollars for a cell phone, it's not some 50,000 BMW you just bought.
Click to expand...

After being a customer I've come to loathe customer service people like you.

Perhaps it's time for a career change?

He's paying much much more than $200.... there is a 2 year contract attached to that phone.
 
Looks like you aren't in luck. Try going to another store or as someone said, make an appointment. If all fails, send an email to Apple with the pictures and demand a reply or see a manager. They are bound to replace it for you upon examining the cracks since these are the iPhone's "pressure points" and the fact that cracking around these areas have been reported.
 
Surely said:
After being a customer I've come to loathe customer service people like you.

Perhaps it's time for a career change?

He's paying much much more than $200.... there is a 2 year contract attached to that phone.
Click to expand...

Thank you and everyone else who understood me. I appreciate it. I will try to call Customer Service and hope not to get a rep like the one above. Also, I appreciate those who understood just exactly what I was asking instead of "thinking" I was asking why they didn't replace it. I was really asking if anyone has experienced this issue.

Thanks again!
 
i replaced my phone recently for the exact same problem ( just more cracks ),
but the genius told me it was a " small " problem and that he'd replace it for me this time, but next time, no can do. :(
hope you get yours replaced !
 
Wow!! Now I have a name for the "problem" I have.... You see, I expect an item I pay several thousand dollars (over the contract period) to get should be free from manufacture defects. I now know OCD is the name of my condition that makes me think crazy thoughts like that..... I am so thankful for the cool folks on the MR message board. I would of gone through life expecting all the things I pay my hard earned money for to function and look the way it should through the life of said product. I now know this is an unrealistic expectation! Thanks for all the help! :rolleyes:

The phone should not crack for no reason. You can tell if someone dropped their phone. The phone in the picture doesn't appear to have any of those signs. I had cracks in my 3gs 3 days after I bought it..... Oh wait, my OCD is fighting it's way out of my crazy head, better not worry about those cracks in my $600 iPhone.
 
Unless the handset is over 6 months old, then here in the UK your statutory rights should entitle you to a replacement handset:

whatconsumer.co.uk/how-do-you-measure-quality/

I don't know if other countries have similar laws, but those who agree with Apple's decision obviously have too much money to burn.

The back of my phone developed hairline cracks after the first year so I couldn't do anything about it, but if the cracks developed at any point within the first year by no fault of my own then I would still expect my phone to be repaired at the very least.
 
Its a hair line crack, does it make the phone not work?
Is it really that annoying you need a new phone?
Unless those cracks cause the phone to stop working why would you need to replace it? I think some people are a little too OCD.
 
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