MacBook Air Quality Issues (Cosmetic)

[RedAbundance]

so after spending 3 months deciding whether i should get a macbook air or macbook pro, i went with the air last week. it's stunningly beautiful, and i'm happy with the speed and haven't run into any heating or core shut down problems. (mine is week 11).

but i noticed that the magnetic latch does not keep the laptop closed when it's held perpendicularly. i went into the apple store and three different employees including a genius looked at it and said the magnet should have more pull to it and that this was the first time they came upon an issue like this. so they replaced it with a new one. (week 10).

now here's my problem: the new one's latch is tight and works perfectly, but it's got a flaw (almost like a scuff) on the bezel of the screen near the rubber. it's about 8 mm long and fairly visible. do i take it back again, or should i just keep it? i have never ran into anything like this before with apple products, most of the stuff are pretty flawless. do you guys think it's just the air? am i being too picky, but at the same time i feel that for $1,800 + $99, i should get something perfect.


__________________
Aluminum iMac 20" 2.4GHz 4GB 320GB
Macbook Air 1.6GHz 2GB 80GB
iPhone 8GB

 

[Sesshi]

No - you should have got something 'perfect' (or as perfect as Apple can manage, which is definitely not the same thing) from the get-go.

Take it back if it bothers you.

 

[RedAbundance]

thanks for that! i just don't know if i'm being too picky or expecting too much from apple.

 

[kockgunner]

thanks for that! i just don't know if i'm being too picky or expecting too much from apple.

yeah, sometimes it's hard to know

 

[Sesshi]

thanks for that! i just don't know if i'm being too picky or expecting too much from apple.

You're paying over the odds or compromising functionality for looks/design. It's only fair that that should be solid.

 

[RedAbundance]

yep... i certainly didn't buy the air for it's 1.6ghz cpu or it's subpar graphic card. i took it back earlier tonite and got a new one, and this one is flawless. (week 7) funny how they sell the newest first. anyway, after this experience, i don't really know what to expect from apple anymore. i have NEVER exchanged or replaced or repaired ANY apple products (i've owned countless of ipods, laptops and desktops). i think now that apple has becoming more and more mainstream and the production level is much higher that quality control is becoming more of an issue.

 

[JasO]

Sounds great! How do I tell what week my macbook air was made?

 

[dantay]

Variable

Let me start by saying i love apple product design and operating system. I'm not here to bash apple. I'm now taking macbook air number 5 back and will have one last try for a unit i feel is of acceptable quility. I have listed below the problems with each unit:

Unit 1: Bad back light bleed and a 3mm object between the screen and backlight.
Unit 2: Pitting in the case arount the track pad assembly and a scratch on the case base.
Unit 3: Curvature of the space bar (downwards) as it it was melted in the middle.
Unit 4: Lid and base offset from each other (visable and by touch) this also had the effect of making the magnetic catch weak so unit would open when in a bag.
Unit 5: Cosmetically perfect! Thought finally on a winner.....switched on and a line is visable through the backlight.....maybe a crease in the reflector.

I also have a white core2duo iMac that is great.....never had a problem.
All the units i have purchased have been week 11 and i do not feel its unreasonable to expect cosmetic consistency on a product costing £1200.
This product is sold on its design and light weight.......not its specification. I keep trying as i love the design and OSX.
This Air is replacing a £400 acer that has been fine and has far more consistant QC and no visable faults.

As we know Apple does not build these computers and thats fine, I just expect better quality control as all these units have had different problems.

 

[whitlecj]

Agreed, take it back. You paid your hard earned money for a product that came with certain expectations. If it does not meet your expectations, I would take it back.

 

[RedAbundance]

Let me start by saying i love apple product design and operating system. I'm not here to bash apple. I'm now taking macbook air number 5 back and will have one last try for a unit i feel is of acceptable quility. I have listed below the problems with each unit:

Unit 1: Bad back light bleed and a 3mm object between the screen and backlight.
Unit 2: Pitting in the case arount the track pad assembly and a scratch on the case base.
Unit 3: Curvature of the space bar (downwards) as it it was melted in the middle.
Unit 4: Lid and base offset from each other (visable and by touch) this also had the effect of making the magnetic catch weak so unit would open when in a bag.
Unit 5: Cosmetically perfect! Thought finally on a winner.....switched on and a line is visable through the backlight.....maybe a crease in the reflector.

I also have a white core2duo iMac that is great.....never had a problem.
All the units i have purchased have been week 11 and i do not feel its unreasonable to expect cosmetic consistency on a product costing £1200.
This product is sold on its design and light weight.......not its specification. I keep trying as i love the design and OSX.
This Air is replacing a £400 acer that has been fine and has far more consistant QC and no visable faults.

As we know Apple does not build these computers and thats fine, I just expect better quality control as all these units have had different problems.

now i don't feel too bad! i got my THIRD one yesterday, and it's cosmetically perfect and it doesn't even wobble! it's a week 7. i'm waiting to see if there's going to be heat issues now... how did the store react to your five exchanges?

 

[UltraNEO*]

Jesus...
What the hell's going on over at Apple?
Their QA team needs the sack! Replaced with a team with the ability to see!

I don't own or used the MBA but like yourselves I've swapped my
MBP TEN TIMES so far!! And finally, i got one that's just works.

Apple from my experience have gotten bad to worst, worst to crap!! Since they move
production to nasty cheap China, things in the past weren't ever this bad... it's
disappointing and what the hell is Steve doing about this? Nothing? Apple went green
last year but we're spending more fuel returning their badly assembled products..
How does that make Apple a more eco-friendly company?

 

[AlexanderTgreat]

Jesus...
What the hell's going on over at Apple?
Their QA team needs the sack! Replaced with a team with the ability to see!

I don't own or used the MBA but like yourselves I've swapped my
MBP TEN TIMES so far!! And finally, i got one that's just works.

Apple from my experience have gotten bad to worst, worst to crap!! Since they move
production to nasty cheap China, things in the past weren't ever this bad... it's
disappointing and what the hell is Steve doing about this? Nothing? Apple went green
last year but we're spending more fuel returning their badly assembled products..
How does that make Apple a more eco-friendly company?

Steve doesn't need to make any changes he's discovered that it's not how good your product is, it's how good you can convince people it is. Apple knows that they could sell just about anything right now, so why worry about getting anything right?

 

[dantay]

Further to my last post unit 6 was collected and has now been returned, this unit had a perfect backlight.....no leak at all! so they do exist! Unfortunately it had a poorly alligned topcase....weak latch....and a ding on the case right next to the apple logo. I have now given up on finding a decent unit. For your information the final unit was a week 12. I really dont feel my expectations are that high for the price of the device and relatively low specification. Hey ho....good luck to all of you buying the Air