iPhone 1.1.1 Update Sucks... But I Love Apple
I've always been a fan of Apple products, but it's not often that I actually purchase them. Maybe that's because of the additional premium cost that seems to be tacked onto everything from the iPod power cables to the Mac Pros. One might argue that the "elegance" of these products and the overall user experience justify these additional dollars, but I tend to think that you are more so paying for superior customer service. Now, before anyone goes off complaining that Apple has bad service, let me asterisk it all by saying that all companies have times of less-then-stellar support. My point is that more often than not, Apple is generally at the top of their game. Let me give you a few examples.
About two months after I got my iPhone, I had a strange issue pop-up where my world time clocks and my calender were set to different time zones and there was nothing I could do to resolve the issue, aside from setting my main clock to be at England time. I called up Apple support and they quickly escalated me up the ladder to a top tier support guy who proceeded to make sure all my settings were correct. After a short time, he suggested I do a system restore of the phone, which I wouldn't be able to do until the weekday, since my sync PC is at work. On Monday, on the drive to work, I noticed that my phone had corrected itself and that the issue must have been a faulty relay tower near my house. What was surprising is that the support technician who was working with me actually called me on his way home from work just to make sure that everything was ok. He didn't have to do that, but it took time outside of work to make sure that a customer was happy. That is simply great support beyond the call of duty.
My second customer support moment occurred this past Saturday. Since the 1.1.1 firmware update, my iPhone has been acting a bit strange and the battery life has dropped significantly. I consulted the support forums and found out that others were having the same issues, or at least similar ones, and were suggesting that customers make a reservation at the Genius Bar and then report the issues there. I proceeded to do so, via the nice online reservation system (which I love) and spilled the beans on the problems that I have been having. Jen, the lovely lady who helped me, checked through the support information, asked me a few questions and then proceeded to give me a new phone. It was as simple as that. Apple knew there were some issues with the firmware and simply replaced my phone. They didn't make me send it off somewhere or spin some tale about how the next update would fix the issue. It was amazing. I was in and out of the store in about 15 mins... and five of those minutes were me waiting my turn.
That is what I call good customer service. If any of you out there have ever thought about buying a mac or iPod or iPhone, definitely do it and rest soundly at night knowing that any problems you might have will quickly be waved away by the Apple wand.
I still am disappointed in the issues that are occurring with the firmware update, as I think there should have been some greater quality assurance going on within Apple, but I can't argue in what they did to fix it in my situation.
About two months after I got my iPhone, I had a strange issue pop-up where my world time clocks and my calender were set to different time zones and there was nothing I could do to resolve the issue, aside from setting my main clock to be at England time. I called up Apple support and they quickly escalated me up the ladder to a top tier support guy who proceeded to make sure all my settings were correct. After a short time, he suggested I do a system restore of the phone, which I wouldn't be able to do until the weekday, since my sync PC is at work. On Monday, on the drive to work, I noticed that my phone had corrected itself and that the issue must have been a faulty relay tower near my house. What was surprising is that the support technician who was working with me actually called me on his way home from work just to make sure that everything was ok. He didn't have to do that, but it took time outside of work to make sure that a customer was happy. That is simply great support beyond the call of duty.
My second customer support moment occurred this past Saturday. Since the 1.1.1 firmware update, my iPhone has been acting a bit strange and the battery life has dropped significantly. I consulted the support forums and found out that others were having the same issues, or at least similar ones, and were suggesting that customers make a reservation at the Genius Bar and then report the issues there. I proceeded to do so, via the nice online reservation system (which I love) and spilled the beans on the problems that I have been having. Jen, the lovely lady who helped me, checked through the support information, asked me a few questions and then proceeded to give me a new phone. It was as simple as that. Apple knew there were some issues with the firmware and simply replaced my phone. They didn't make me send it off somewhere or spin some tale about how the next update would fix the issue. It was amazing. I was in and out of the store in about 15 mins... and five of those minutes were me waiting my turn.
That is what I call good customer service. If any of you out there have ever thought about buying a mac or iPod or iPhone, definitely do it and rest soundly at night knowing that any problems you might have will quickly be waved away by the Apple wand.
I still am disappointed in the issues that are occurring with the firmware update, as I think there should have been some greater quality assurance going on within Apple, but I can't argue in what they did to fix it in my situation.
posted by Frosty @ 12:42 PM
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