Powerbook back among the living
As promised, here’s the update on the Powebook saga. It came home to daddy yesterda. I’m quite pleased. Still not pleased that it took literally four months from the time the problem first showed up until it was resolved, but like I mentioned before, some of that is my fault for being stubborn about not shipping the machine to Apple.
My last beef, which is more sour grapes than anything else, is that apparently the Apple policy is that after three major part replacements, you’re owed a new machine (which I didn’t get). I could be butchering the policy description, so if you can state it better please chime it. According to my repair receipt, the service shop in town here replaced the screen assembly and the logic board, then shipped it to Apple which replaced the same two parts, plus the “cage box”, whatever that is. So I guess the three major parts need to be three different parts, eh? Seems to me that having to replace two major parts twice would fall within the policy, but I guess not. I was never very good at math, anyway.
So I’m back in operation, working on a cool (if I do say so myself) Keynote project on ‘The Secret Art of Managing Your Boss’, which I’ll post here as a screencast probably early next month. I’ve got to give it as a presentation at a conference in Vegas at the end of this month, so I’m glad to be able to work on it again. While in Vegas, I think I’ll be meeting up with the blog-famous, yet slightly enigmatic, Steve Pavlina, in between his naps. :-)
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8 opinions for Powerbook back among the living
Steve Mallett
Apr 7, 2006 at 6:12 am
They are indeed reneging on the three repairs rule!
Follow this: I had one ibook whose logicboard blew three times, I got a new ibook. Then that logic board plus harddrives had to blow four times before I got a new machine. The latest (fingers crossed) has only blown twice so far.
Davey Moyers
Apr 7, 2006 at 8:36 am
OK, after Steve’s post, I’m really starting to re-think the “switch” thing. Why? I cannot afford the downtime you guys have outlined. We all do mission critical work, even if it’s only personal. It is misson critical to our personal achievement. Bren was lucky to have someone loan him a machine. I would not be so fortunate. My computing expenses (including downtime) are incurred by me. However, I think Apple is poised to be the platform of choice in the open source community. I also see open source as the future of software. My question (not holding you to it, and never making a decision solely on your answers), would you buy Apple again? The investement of your money, your time (or downtime, as the case may be)!
Steve Mallett
Apr 7, 2006 at 8:41 am
It is indeed sad that you can’t really depend on an Apple laptop. The current model of ibook, which seems ok, are due for the intel overhall, and the current MacPro’s are having their fair share if issues as well.
Mind you, if you had another machine (which is a rediculous requirement), you could go with an apple lappy and roll the dice.
Mathew
Apr 7, 2006 at 3:52 pm
I’ve had two Mac laptops without trouble….for every story of woe there is probably hundreds of people who don’t have any issues. I wouldn’t make a judgement based on what you read online. Look for customer service research to see a wider view on reliability and support.
Tom
Apr 7, 2006 at 4:40 pm
One question Bren: Have you backed up your hard drive now that you dodged a bullet and got your original machine back?
Bren
Apr 7, 2006 at 6:46 pm
@Davey, I think Matthew’s point is spot on. Back in the retail days I learned that happy customers will tell a handful of people about their experience, but unhappy people will tell a LOT of people. Bad news sells, and makes interesting reading. Nobody wants to hear about how your computer did great today, but they’ll listen to your stories about crashing and burning. Kinda like the nightly news, I guess. Good luck with the research!
@Tom: I backed up a few critical files, but not the whole harddrive. I’m wating until the next budget cycle in July. Then I’ll pick up a big ol’ external drive.
Sean
Apr 13, 2006 at 1:40 am
Hey Bren, glad to hear you’re PB’s back amongst the living! Make sure you follow Tom’s advice…
Brian
Apr 20, 2006 at 12:59 pm
I’ve had five Apple laptops, and the only one that required service was an iBook that had the dreaded logic board issue. True to their word, Apple replaced my iBook on its third trip to Apple, but I did have to ask for it (perhaps more accurately, demand it). The iBook’s replacement, and iBook G4, has been flawless for the two years I’ve had it.
So, in my experience, Apple stands by the warranty, but I’ve only ever sent it to Apple — no local servicers.
Actual mileage may vary.