Device help/advice

[adock]

So I got a Note 4 with a bad camera sensor. Its 15 days old and AT&T doesn't want to just exchange it in store, they want me to go down town to their warranty repair center. I've been there before and they aren't the most helpful people and usually try to exchange your phone with a refurb which they did a few yrs ago when I had my HTC. The refurb gave me more problems than the original but they didn't want to do anything about that one.

I also tried contacting Samsung and all they did was direct me to their warranty page which didn't help.

I think I talked them into just allowing me to return the device even though its past the 14 day return policy, but I'm not sure what to do after that. I liked the Note 4 but if warranty repairs are going to be such a pain I don't think I'd want to keep the phone for 2-3 yrs.

At this point I'm leaning towards getting an iPhone 6 if they do decide to let me return the phone.
Should I give up on android this easy or should I pick up another Note 4?

 

[iBlazed]

I gotta say, this is one of the main reasons why my iPhone will always be my main driver. The Apple Store is only 15 minutes away and I don't have to worry about being directed to a warranty page by customer service. How amateurish of Samsung to handle it like that.

 

[Fernandez21]

So I got a Note 4 with a bad camera sensor. Its 15 days old and AT&T doesn't want to just exchange it in store, they want me to go down town to their warranty repair center. I've been there before and they aren't the most helpful people and usually try to exchange your phone with a refurb which they did a few yrs ago when I had my HTC. The refurb gave me more problems than the original but they didn't want to do anything about that one.

I also tried contacting Samsung and all they did was direct me to their warranty page which didn't help.

I think I talked them into just allowing me to return the device even though its past the 14 day return policy, but I'm not sure what to do after that. I liked the Note 4 but if warranty repairs are going to be such a pain I don't think I'd want to keep the phone for 2-3 yrs.

At this point I'm leaning towards getting an iPhone 6 if they do decide to let me return the phone.
Should I give up on android this easy or should I pick up another Note 4?

Before you return it, try going to the Samsung kiosk in Best Buy and see if they can help you, I heard Samsung was trying to turn that into a customer service area. If they can't help you, than yeah, Apple is the best when it comes to customer service. You can also call AT&T and talk to a service rep, but they'll probably send you a refurb as well, though in my expierence they have been pretty good.

If you want to stay with android, Google has also been pretty good with swapping out devices, but you would have to buy through the playstore.

 

[mclld]

I have had excellent experience when I have dealt with Samsung a couple times. I have also had an excellent experience every time I have dealt with Apple

 

[LIVEFRMNYC]

I gotta say, this is one of the main reasons why my iPhone will always be my main driver. The Apple Store is only 15 minutes away and I don't have to worry about being directed to a warranty page by customer service. How amateurish of Samsung to handle it like that.

Sounds like the OP didn't really make a great attempt to go through Samsung warranty. Also, sounds like he didn't want a refurb from AT&T.

Yes, dealing with Apple is much less hassle as they can't direct you anywhere else. But, Apple will also give you a refurb(if in stock) after 14 days. I will say that Apple CS breaks the rules a lot as a nice gesture. I wonder if they are told to do that, or the employees have huge leeway.

I can't speak about phones, but I had Samsung warranty a camera years ago and they did an excellent job.

 

[jamezr]

Device help/advice

So I got a Note 4 with a bad camera sensor. Its 15 days old and AT&T doesn't want to just exchange it in store, they want me to go down town to their warranty repair center. I've been there before and they aren't the most helpful people and usually try to exchange your phone with a refurb which they did a few yrs ago when I had my HTC. The refurb gave me more problems than the original but they didn't want to do anything about that one.



I also tried contacting Samsung and all they did was direct me to their warranty page which didn't help.



I think I talked them into just allowing me to return the device even though its past the 14 day return policy, but I'm not sure what to do after that. I liked the Note 4 but if warranty repairs are going to be such a pain I don't think I'd want to keep the phone for 2-3 yrs.



At this point I'm leaning towards getting an iPhone 6 if they do decide to let me return the phone.

Should I give up on android this easy or should I pick up another Note 4?

I think AT&T cannot do that at a regular sales store. It has to be a warranty/corp store. They will replace it for you at those stores only. The regular sales stores aren't setup to do that kind of work.

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I gotta say, this is one of the main reasons why my iPhone will always be my main driver. The Apple Store is only 15 minutes away and I don't have to worry about being directed to a warranty page by customer service. How amateurish of Samsung to handle it like that.

You are so wrong! If this was an iPhone he would be in exactly the same position. The AT&T store he went to is not setup to do replacements. So he would have to go to either another AT&T store or an Apple store.

 

[iBlazed]

You are so wrong! If this was an iPhone he would be in exactly the same position. The AT&T store he went to is not setup to do replacements. So he would have to go to either another AT&T store or an Apple store.

What exactly am I wrong about then? I don't know about you, but I've never seen a brick and mortar Samsung store that takes care of warranty issues. You just proved exactly what I was trying to say. You have a problem with an Apple product, you take it to the Apple store within a year. Have a problem with your Galaxy after 11 months? Good luck getting that warranty honored. And even if you do, how many days will you have to go without a phone? I can take my broken iPhone into an Apple store and have it replaced on the spot without missing a beat. Peace of mind is worth more than anything, especially for someone who relies on their phone for their business.

 

[gotluck]

Aye, not sure if this was at a corp att store, but they are generally better for just about anything versus regular sales store. You can check on atts website

I've never had to do warranty claim through samsung, but I've read claims of people getting replacements 6 months after the warranty period. It is surely not as good as Apple support and more hassle, but I'm sure they would support a 11 month old galaxy

 

[jamezr]

What exactly am I wrong about then? I don't know about you, but I've never seen a brick and mortar Samsung store that takes care of warranty issues. You just proved exactly what I was trying to say. You have a problem with an Apple product, you take it to the Apple store within a year. Have a problem with your Galaxy after 11 months? Good luck getting that warranty honored. And even if you do, how many days will you have to go without a phone? I can take my broken iPhone into an Apple store and have it replaced on the spot without missing a beat. Peace of mind is worth more than anything, especially for someone who relies on their phone for their business.

Because all you were trying to do was say something negative about Samsung. When based on the OPs scenario. He would have had the SAME problem if it had been an iPhone. As a matter of fact....just go the the iPhone forums here on MR and you will see iphones users having the EXACT problem the OP has. They have a problem with their iPhone and don't live close to an Apple store. So they have to send the phone in for repairs.
You were just trying to make it out to be a Samsung only issue. It is not shame on you.
All he has to do is go to a AT&T corp store and they will replace his phone. End of story. the exact effort he would need to go to an Apple store too as a matter of fact......

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Aye, not sure if this was at a corp att store, but they are generally better for just about anything versus regular sales store. You can check on atts website

I've never had to do warranty claim through samsung, but I've read claims of people getting replacements 6 months after the warranty period. It is surely not as good as Apple support and more hassle, but I'm sure they would support a 11 month old galaxy

I have had 2 Samsung's replaced over the years. Both were done at an AT&T corp store no questions asked. All they checked was for water damage. One was for a loose home button and one was for a bad video display/card on a S4.
I was in and out in 20 minutes.....

 

[adock]

I'll have to try the Samsung kiosk if the att store I go to won't work with me. I talked with customer service and was authorized for a late return but the store I went to today wouldn't accept it.
I've taken phones to the warranty center for att in the past but that's a joke. All they want to do is do a factory reset. After multiple resets they finally decided to replace my old htc with a refurbished one which wouldn't have been a problem but it was worse than the original phone so I'm trying to do all I can to avoid att warranty centers.

 

[iBlazed]

Because all you were trying to do was say something negative about Samsung. When based on the OPs scenario. He would have had the SAME problem if it had been an iPhone. As a matter of fact....just go the the iPhone forums here on MR and you will see iphones users having the EXACT problem the OP has. They have a problem with their iPhone and don't live close to an Apple store. So they have to send the phone in for repairs.
You were just trying to make it out to be a Samsung only issue. It is not shame on you.

For me iPhone will always make more sense than Samsung until Samsung figures out a way to replace my phone on the spot without any wait within the warranty period. I have an Apple store within 15 minutes of my house, so I doubt Samsung will ever be able to make the warranty exchange process as easy as Apple's. Not in my area at least, not for me.

 

[Wrathwitch]

I can understand the OPs frustration though. If I could have purchased my Note4 outright at Best buy, the warranty plan is OUTRAGEOUSLY expensive, but I have used it in the past and at the last month of the warranty, they allowed me to choose either a new S4 (replacing my GS3 or a Note 3) brand new.

Because they can't sell phones outright, I had to buy through Telus, and their warranty is downright scary! Wording like: "replace at our sole discretion with the same or a device with the same features" /shudder! So no warranty for me......(excepting manufacturer's warranty).

Here's hoping that my Note 4 will last 1/3 as long as my iP4 has without problems...... I do know that if I have to send it for repairs I am going to make sure I have the IMSI or IMEI (whichever one is attached to the hardware) for MY phone so they don't pull a bait and switch on me.

 

[adock]

After 4 days of going to different stores complaining to different customer service reps they finally agreed to give me a new phone.

 

[JHUFrank]

I've had to do 2 repairs at the Samsung warranty depot, and both times they were great. However, it was the ongoing hardware issues with my GN3 that took me back to iphone.

 

[Dontazemebro]

I remember sending off a nice little review summarizing Samsung's ineptness when I sent my S4 in to be repaired for a cracked screen. What an agonizingly horrible process.

 

[mrex]

I remember sending off a nice little review summarizing Samsung's ineptness when I sent my S4 in to be repaired for a cracked screen. What an agonizingly horrible process.

why? what did they?

 

[Dontazemebro]

why? what did they?

What didn't they do, lol. Well let's see. I sent it in, they claimed they never received it, then they did, then it got lost again, meanwhile no repairs could be confirmed and I was in the dark the entire time. All this took upwards of 6 weeks so I was a bit testy as I was without my daily driver for a while. Mind you their repair center is in Texas as am I.

Oh and the icing on the cake, they still charged me $200 for the screen replacement.

 

[mrex]

What didn't they do, lol. Well let's see. I sent it in, they claimed they never received it, then they did, then it got lost again, meanwhile no repairs could be confirmed and I was in the dark the entire time. All this took upwards of 6 weeks so I was a bit testy as I was without my daily driver for a while. Mind you their repair center is in Texas as am I.

bad luck... ***** happens...

Oh and the icing on the cake, they still charged me $200 for the screen replacement.

yes, it is expensive to break the screen and get it to be fixed...