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Question

Complaint to Apple MacBook Pro for laptop bad mother board

Mar 3, 2018 9:19AM PST

March 3, 2018.
Hello, looking for more evidence that Apple had more than one complaint case regarding a defective mother board for a MacBook Pro laptop. I tried to go through all the channels to get some assistance with repair cost, but their Customer Relations department called me March 2 and said there are no quality issues; therefore, can not help with repair cost. Shown below is letter I sent to their corporate office - Tim Cook CEO.
Please send me a reply if you had a similar problem. Thank you, Tom
___________________
To:
Apple Inc. ATTN: CEO - Mr. Tim Cook
1 Infinite Loop, Cupertino, CA. 95014

Complaint Case # xxxxxxxxx861 – Created Jan 16, 2018 after speaking with Mr. xxx and escalated to Ms. xxxx with no resolution.

Dear Mr. Cook,
First, let me say our family are loyal and happy Apple customers who currently own two MacBook Pros, one iPad, one iMac 27”, and three iPhones.

The reason I am writing you this letter is to complain about my MacBook Pro, which we purchased Sept. 2012. Last week, the laptop would not power-up, so I visited your Apple store in Carlsbad California on Jan 15, 2018. After waiting 6 hours to meet with a technician, they took my laptop in the back room and ran a few tests. Later, I was told the problem was major which required a new logic board and a new battery. The total Apple repair cost would be $965.50.

My complaint is that a logic board typically does not go bad so quickly, unless it has a manufacturing problem. We’ve had laptops and desktops in the past at home and work, and never had a logic board go bad after only 5 years of ownership. When we purchased the upgraded laptop, we spent $2358, which is a considerable cost for such a short life cycle.

We would appreciate any assistance you can give us to repair the MacBook Pro or obtain a store credit to purchase a new device.

Thank you so much for your help, Regards
_________ END __________________

Discussion is locked

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Answer
While this is a rant.
Mar 3, 2018 9:21AM PST

I have to note that many things today are just 5 year designs. That can really upset folk but the old 10 year design for life span had to give way for lower costs.

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Complaint to Apple MacBook Pro for laptop bad mother board
Mar 3, 2018 10:10AM PST

Hello, yes you are correct about the shorter life cycle but Apple charges a much higher price for their equipment. The higher cost, compared to other vendors, is justified by their higher quality and beautiful design. That's the logic I used when Apple called me to say they are not responsible for the problem, but are fully justified in charging more money for their excellent products. My whole family are Apple fans but this just leaves a very bad taste. Take care.

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There are other than apple repair shops.
Mar 3, 2018 10:22AM PST
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Follow up to my MacBook Pro laptop mother board replacement
Apr 9, 2018 7:17AM PDT

Last week I visited a local NON Apple repair shop. and they fixed the problem. The tech found the fan was very dirty and did not function, which caused the laptop to shut down. He cleaned the laptop interior and the laptop works great now. The Apple store quoted a repair cost of $965 for a new motherboard and battery. The NON Apple tech charged me $0 for cleaning. I do need to service my battery, which he said would cost $149 and Apple quoted $399 + labor. Not too happy with Apple way of doing business !!!

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If you want I can explain but not justify Apple repair...
Apr 9, 2018 7:39AM PDT

If you want I can explain but not justify how Apple runs their repair system.

As to the fan, I have written many times to set a schedule to use canned air on the vents. Here I use the 1st of the month. No, it doesn't have to be that often. I do this because I am forgetful and if I forget I catch it next month. The machines are not maintenance free but I continue to encounter client after client that never heard of this.

We must learn of this or face higher maintenance costs. I also find a lot of folk disbelieve this needs to be done. You can debate how often but there should be no debate it needs to be done.

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REPLY -If you want I can explain but not justify Apple repai
Apr 9, 2018 7:50AM PDT

I agree with using the canned air. It still does not explain why the Apple Techs are not fixing the problems for their customers. It seems they just want to sell expensive parts and labor. Maybe they need to change their name from "Apple Care" to "Apple Abuse". I am still an Apple fan but this experience has given me doubts about Apple Quality and Integrity.

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It comes down to
Apr 9, 2018 8:02AM PDT

Apple was run by a control freak. Beside the machine design, it was also laid out exactly how service was going to be performed. If the fan is part of the motherboard FRU (ask if you don't know the acronyms or google these) then when the fan wasn't working then you get a new motherboard.

The one I ran into is a soldered in CR2032 battery. It would drain as it should but no Apple tech was allowed to use a solder iron. Authorized centers do not have solder irons so to fix the dollar battery you replace the main board.

This is all well and good if you are in Apple Care but very expensive OOW (out of warranty.)

Examples abound where run of the mill techs can beat Apple in the service department.
There is no mystery here, just learning how Apple works in repair. In warranty it works just fine as you never get hit with a big charge but OOW will be more expensive than non-auth repair.

It's not abuse. It's how the service system was designed to assure that a repair is always done the Apple way. To perfection. Cleaning a failed fan may work but it won't get you the machine back to as-new.

Remember I will not debate here. Only try to explain how they got to this state.

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It comes down to
Apr 9, 2018 8:30AM PDT

Hi, question about your comment "Cleaning a failed fan may work but it won't get you the machine back to as-new". Should I do anything else to keep the laptop running? I will start using the compressed air to clean the vents.

Also, the battery has a "service" indicator when I click on the battery icon. Should I wait until it fully goes bad or should I change the battery now? The OOW charges $149 and Apple charges $399.
Thank you.

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Economics.
Apr 9, 2018 10:04AM PDT

For the battery since it's not in Apple Care you should shop around. As to the battery it comes down to when to replace it. If the time on battery drops too low is one factor.

If the battery is swelling, then you must replace it. Swollen batteries are a thing and again I won't enter into any debate if that is a defect. To me it isn't unless the battery is under the rated 300 to 1,000 cycles.