My worst iPhone 7 Plus purchase experience

[Mike5254]

Bought my phone in the US. Definitely will have it serviced in the US.

 

[macTW]

Developed countries have strong consumer protection laws.
Developing countries do not.

As much as you want to rant on Apple, it is often not much they can do. With these Apple authorized centers, they are not exactly Apple. Think of them like Best buy. Do you get consistent great service from Best buy? But they are also considered as authorized service center.

I wouldn't say that service in the developing countries worse per se. More like inconsistent. I had may iPhone and Macs serviced in Singapore, and my experience was inconsistent, even with the same center.

So yeah, it sucks living in countries with no official Apple presence. The bright side, it's not any better with other companies. In fact, Apple's support, regardless how bad, is generally better than others.

Why doesn't Apple offer any replacement options for defective phones in Thailand and other "non-Apple Store" countries?
Maybe import/export and sales regulation of the country? There are many factors. Adding on the high probability of fraud in this markets, I can't blame Apple. There are also inventory control and regulation.

Why does a buying experience in these countries have to be much worse than the “developed” ones like the US?
Because it's not the US? Plus, buying experience in US Best Buy is not great either in my opinion. The difference is the consumer protection laws such as returns, which are non-existent or non-enforceable in many emerging markets.

Want US level lifestyle, live in the US, I guess.

For every story like this, there are at least a hundred of "teehee I counterfeit parts and returned a 'defective' iPhone I made in my garage." That is why many of these policies are in place.

As for the cosmetic damage through repair... That's on the third-party AASP. Apple isn't responsible for what they do, they just recommend them. Typically, there is a warranty for any defects made through the repair shop.

I definitely feel for you, though.

Translation: if the law allows it, Apple will screw you over.

Nope. 100% wrong. Correct translation: if the law allows it, the people generally don't care, there is no reason any company, not just Apple, should waste time and money with services the consumers in that market barely care about. Foreigners are different, and rarer, which is why exceptions like the OP's come up.

 

[burgman]

Translation: if the law allows it, Apple will screw you over.

Perhaps to a child but in reality those who wrote the law did the screwing.
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I just had the worst experience of buying an iPhone in Thailand, one of the so-called “developing” countries. The experience was so bad that I decided to write this to raise an awareness that there is work to be done to improve the customers' experience in buying and getting Apple services potentially in many countries.

For the record, I am a loyal customer who have lived both in the US and Thailand. I have bought and obtained services from both countries. And while the services are mostly fine in both countries, I am still struggling to comprehend the stark difference between the service in the "developed" countries and the "developing" countries.

Long story short: it's a stack of one faulty service after another. From extra-long waiting time to limited options to unprofessional handling of the device, I am still in shock of how careless Apple services can be in the "developing" countries. I even decided to email Tim Cook myself but didn't get a reply. Of course, there were many important things to attend to rather than making things right for a frustrating customer, but this really gets me to the edge. So much for the "providing best customer experience" mantra.

I got a defective iPhone upon purchase.

It was a display issue that was subtle enough that I didn't notice it until when I was back home two hours after purchase. In Thailand, when buying through a carrier, you can’t return the phone. (The return option had been "removed" by Apple a year ago). So my only option was to take it to an AASP.


Ok, I can live with that, I thought.


However, at the AASP, you don’t have any option to replace the phone, unlike in the US, because AASP is not allowed to stock any iPhones.


Ok, I understand that you might need to take precaution because you don’t have an official Apple Store with all the authorized experts here in Thailand.



Then, I was told that the phone needed to be sent to Singapore for direct evaluation and repair. The whole process would be excruciatingly long 10 business days (which is 14 days in total).


Ok, this is how it is in Thailand. I will wait.



While I was waiting, there were not enough iPhones for me to borrow, so I had to drive home by myself without the GPS, and did all other things in my life without a phone.



Ok, just some small hassles to get through.



After two weeks of waiting, I got back to AASP. My original iPhone screen issue was fixed, and the screen was replaced for me. However, the iPhone came back with a much worse appearance than when I sent in. The phone was literally 3 days old, during which I put on a case the whole time, before I sent it to the AASP. Now, it was full of scratches and small specks (I suspected they were Jet Black coating peels because I couldn’t wipe them out) that maybe was caused by the technician sliding the phone carelessly on the table while fixing it. It was very unprofessional. The AASP representative said Apple might not even be responsible for this, because “cosmetic issues are out of warranty". But they agreed to open another ticket for me, in which I have to wait for ANOTHER TWO WEEKS.



I just can’t stand this really bad buying experience.



If you get a defective phone, and many will get one, you can’t return it. You can’t replace it. Your wait for it to get fixed is potentially two weeks. Your AASP might not have iPhone to borrow, because it doesn't have enough. And if the phone comes back looking WORSE than when you sent it, Apple might not even cover it or fix it for you, because “cosmetic issues” are out of warranty. Even if you get the cosmetic issues fixed or the phone replaced, you’d have to wait another two weeks, totaling FOUR WEEKS of waiting time instead of getting a replacement phone right away, at the same time paying for a carrier service you didn't use. This is so bad when you pay almost $1,000 for this experience, the same premium customers in US, UK, or Japan paid.



Is this how Apple should treat their loyal customers in "developing" countries?


There are many things that Apple has done a terrible job here.

Why doesn't Apple offer any replacement options for defective phones in Thailand and other "non-Apple Store" countries? Why does a buying experience in these countries have to be much worse than the “developed” ones like the US? It would have been much better to have that option, even with the requirement of rigorous inspection process first.

Why is there no better Quality Control for iPhone repair to make sure the appearances of the phone sent in are maintained more with care? Apple calls their service AppleCare after all.

Apple should have been more up front about their responsibility if the repair job isn't up to "their" standard, or if the device appearances aren't the same after repair. In fact, they should hurry up in these cases because it's way beyond acceptable to have customers waiting for a month for problems they didn't create.


If you are living in countries with Apple Stores, lucky you. Otherwise, when you get unlucky, you can get extremely unlucky, and Apple couldn't care less.


______________________________________________________________________________



My phone before I sent to AASP (took them at home out of admiration):

View attachment 677080

View attachment 677089

View attachment 677082

My phone I saw at AASP the second time (before I sent it for another cosmetic issues ticket). The tiny scratches and specks like these may look small in photos but several of them together really degrade the look of the product, as if it's been used heavily for months. These specks are not dusts! I think they are coating peeled off from careless handling because I couldn't wipe them away. The AASP staff also couldn't wipe these away. Otherwise, I would have deemed the whole experience acceptable.:

View attachment 677078 View attachment 677086 View attachment 677087 View attachment 677088

I would be pissed too but also I would be in awe in how the tech scratched red arrows on the back of my phone cause that's all I see.

 

[NoHardFeelings]

For every story like this, there are at least a hundred of "teehee I counterfeit parts and returned a 'defective' iPhone I made in my garage." That is why many of these policies are in place.

But in Thailand, you can still return the phone if you bought it through Apple (Thailand) website. I imagine malicious users can do the same thing you said too.

As for the cosmetic damage through repair... That's on the third-party AASP. Apple isn't responsible for what they do, they just recommend them. Typically, there is a warranty for any defects made through the repair shop.

The AASP informed me that they had to send the iPhone to Singapore for Apple technician to inspect and fix the device, so my device was actually fixed by Apple, not AASP.

Nope. 100% wrong. Correct translation: if the law allows it, the people generally don't care, there is no reason any company, not just Apple, should waste time and money with services the consumers in that market barely care about. Foreigners are different, and rarer, which is why exceptions like the OP's come up.

People definitely do get frustrated. I am Thai, and as I go through Thai online forums, several people have expressed frustration with lack of efficient services for defective devices. I mean, it's obvious that consumers who pay premium money and get a defective device would be frustrated, and would love to have a stronger consumer law. Lucky the guy in Europe who won a local court case to not get a refurbished iPhone for replacement the other day; this VDO makes me nervous if I get a refurbished phone for a replacement.

 

[NoHardFeelings]

Update (I added all this and "after" photos in the original post as well):

It could have ended worse, but now I am much happier with the outcome. I got my phone replaced and a moderate gift as a "compensation" from Apple. Five weeks total of repair / replacement process.

After sending my phone to Singapore twice (totaling four weeks), Apple refused to replace the cosmetically damaged phone caused by Apple technician. I was shocked and didn't know what to do next. I decided to call Apple directly via a phone call, directed to Apple in Singapore. I was directed to a Senior Advisor at Apple and tried to negotiate with him that I deserved a replacement phone, and I gave him all the info and photos I had. After a careful consideration, he called me back to inform me that he would do this as a one-time exception.

However, AASP informed me that I had to wait another two weeks (this would be six weeks in total to get an iPhone to replace a brand new, but defective one) in order to request the replacement phone from warehouse in Singapore; there was no way around this.

I only wanted to start using a brand new, working iPhone 7 Plus as soon as possible. Once I learned that it wasn't happening that day and there would be even more wait, I simply asked if Apple would do anything to compensate for this long period of disappointment I was going through. The second Senior Advisor I talked to was polite and empathic and she promised that she would try to find something by bringing this up in a meeting. The next day she called me to offer me a choice to pick a gift on Apple website under a moderate budget. I felt better because of this.

Meanwhile, the AASP I sent my phone to also tried to rush my case since the staff remembered I kept coming back. So it took only a week instead of two weeks to get the replacement phone.

As of now, I am a happy iPhone 7 Plus user. As for the gift, I picked the iPhone 7 Plus Leather Case (PRODUCT)Red. It's the first time I've ever used a case sold by Apple since it's expensive, but I am really impressed with the quality. I attached some photos of my replacement iPhone in the original post.

Just like @pika2000 said, even without strong consumer protection in Thailand, this ended up being a better scenario that I had expected. There were things that could be improved as I mentioned in the original writing, but at least Apple was willing to make things right for an unhappy customer.

I hope my story would be useful and informative for those who might be in similar circumstances in the future.

 

[gaymerraver]

Makes me glad I live in America!

For a developed country America has one of the worst consumer rights in the western world. Try Europe instead with 6 years. Sorry to poop onto your circle jerk but truth be told.

 

[moosquared]

I think it's only in the US where the return laws are very flexible. I've seen plenty of times where people return a half eaten birthday cake to Costco or banana. People are even taking advantage of it. Buying clothing items, wear it and return it the next day.

In Indonesia we don't have an Apple store too. Just authorised reseller. And their return policy, was only for 1 day? Or 3 days at most. And if it's really troublesome to process as well.
Fyi, even until today, their latest iPhone is still the iPhone 6. Not even 6S. I heard they're going to skip the 6S and just bring in the iPhone 7 right away.
It has a lot to do with the country's regulation on imports and whatnot.

I usually get the newly released iPhone through Singapore or US. I travel to the US several times a year, so it's not an issue. And Singapore is less than 2 hours flight. If my iPhone is in a really bad condition, I'd bring them with me when I go to the US, pay about $300 and Apple will replace it with a new one, mostly refurbished.

Somebody here replied, why not order from the US and shipped to the OP's country? You can't do that.
Ordering online from US Apple store requires a local US credit card. And it will only deliver to a US address. Unless you have a friend to order it for you and then ship it to where you are.
I don't know about Thailand, but I'm pretty sure it's quite the same as Indonesia. You don't want to do that. The shipping cost will be very expensive. When the iPhone arrives in your country, it'll be slapped with a crazy duty. The safest country in SEA to ship is to Singapore (surprise, surprise!).

 

[NoHardFeelings]

Somebody here replied, why not order from the US and shipped to the OP's country? You can't do that.
Ordering online from US Apple store requires a local US credit card. And it will only deliver to a US address. Unless you have a friend to order it for you and then ship it to where you are.
I don't know about Thailand, but I'm pretty sure it's quite the same as Indonesia. You don't want to do that. The shipping cost will be very expensive. When the iPhone arrives in your country, it'll be slapped with a crazy duty. The safest country in SEA to ship is to Singapore (surprise, surprise!).

Your iPhone warranty doesn't apply if you bring iPhone purchased from a different "zone" to an Apple Store or AASP. In Thailand, many people bought iPhone from Singapore because they can still take advantage of Apple warranty in if bad things happen. You can't do that for iPhone bought from European zone or the Us.