Infuriated with Apple.
Hello everyone
I am absolutely, unwaveringly peeved at Apple. Here's my situation:
For around a week or so, I have been researching MobileMe and it's features. Being a carer for an adult disabled man, AND a Uni student I find iCal really, really useful to keep my life organised. Essential, really, as honestly - my head is like a sieve. I also own a Macbook Pro and iMac, so upon finding out that instead of getting the same sets of email twice, having to input events into two seperate sets of calenders, emailing my elderly father huge photo files (mostly of his old police boat) and saving all my Uni work to a flash drive and moving files I have worked on to whichever computer I did not use to edit them on (does that make sense? A blind just randomly whacked me in the face) I could simply upload photos to an online gallery, sync calendars on Mobile Me (as well as emails and my hard drive) and so on, that it would be well worth the $120AUD Apple charges after my trial expires.
However, after spending a LOT of time explaining everything to my disabled partner (who is not completely computer literate, or comfortable with giving credit card details online) I sucessfully convinced him that $120/year to make my life easier is just as, if not more, justifiable as the $120/month I pay for Foxtel (or cable, if you will) to keep him ammused whilst I study. So, I went forth, created a username and entered my credit card number.
Credit card declined.
Tried again, credit card declined.
And again, same goes.
Oh so not surprisingly, Apple successfully managed to suck a little over $6 out of my account during this credit-card declining process. Still, I do not have a Mobile Me account.
So I did what any reasonable Generation "I" person would do, and searched the forums. At least 3 discussions on MobileMe spoke of the same problem, only people were getting charged FULL subscription charges each time they tried and were told it failed. As a pensioner, I simply can't afford $360AUD for quite literally, nothing.
As determined as I am, I waited for 45 minutes for an online consultant to chat to me about the issue. Only to find...he knew NOTHING. All he could tell me was that my money would be returned to me within 24 hours (alas, still nothing yet!) and that Apple Engineers knew of the issue. However, he could not tell me when the issue would be resolved, and suggested I just drop into a local retailer (whom I rang today, and who also knew nothing) and buy an activation code. Sure, I don't need to "try before I buy, or anything".
Apparently, according to said consultant, this issue is specific to Australian credit cards.
It is at this point I would like to say, I understand IT/engineering/"computer stuff" does not always go to plan. I'll dismiss the fact that this service (which interestingly, used to be free) has been available since the 00's. I even understand the blunder with my bank account, PayPal does the same thing, takes a little money out to see you're no fraud, then puts it back in a couple of days.
My uttermost frustration comes from the fact that not only has Apple failed to address the issue - but in my opinion (however paranoid this may seem), are attempting to "hide" it. Today I checked the forums, and all discussions that complained of this blunder have disappeared from the site. When I rang the dealer I spoke to yesterday when enquiring about the MobileMe site this afternoon, asking if he knew anything about it - or moreover, anywhere I could find out more about when it would be resolved, I got a dignified "Uhh...."
Apple projects this image of "user-friendliness" superior to Windows (which I tend to agree with, to an extent. Never had a problem I could not fix by trawling through this forum and most of the time, it has been some little box I ticked without thinking - this is not a complaint about Mac Machines or their OS) and also, superior customer service. I remember a recent discussion I had with Apple Care, who boasted that if I extended my warranty on my MBP another three years I would get awesome customer care from anywhere in the world I travelled. My faith in this, after this experience is wavering severely. This "we're so superior to Windows" image, in terms of looking after their customers, is a load of cod's wallop.
How difficult would it have been, in this day and era of technology, to send an email to employees and franchisers alike, explaining this issue so Apple employees don't have to cop the brunt of people's frustrations and are stuck giving limited answers? Moreover, if this proved too much work for them, an announcement on their website, it's called COMMUNICATION. Informing your customers, and the people that represent you. Funnily enough, they managed to email me today enticing me to wander on over to the online Apple Store and fork out for a new iPod. What a joke.
I realise most of this has been cranky ramblings, but if you are still with me, thankyou. If anyone reading this has happened to have found an alternative to MobileMe, for instance, Google - I would absolutely love to hear from you. At this point in time, my frame of mind is, if they can't get something as simple as this right - what kind of risks am I taking with my important data? Who's to say all my information won't end up on the world wide web somewhere, with me none the wiser as Apple refuses to pull their thumbs out of their you know wheres and inform me?
