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General discussion

mac & reliability

Jun 20, 2007 5:44AM PDT

my iBook is about 1 1/2 yrs and today I had to bring it to the repair service because a DVD is inrecoverably stuck in the slot drive. I used that drive probably about 50 times max during these 1 1/2 yrs.

At the store they told me that the waiting time will be about 2-4(!!) weeks due to the fact that there are so many repair jobs to do right now. I'm wondering if that "right now" was just a phrase he always throws in as a habit when talking to a customer.

I really like having a mac, the OS, the design and all the stuff that can be done with it. But I'm pretty sure that when the days of my iBook are counted, I'll rather get something more reliable, throw some linux distribution on there and be just as happy.

Discussion is locked

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Actually...
Jun 20, 2007 5:56AM PDT

You don't want to know that this could happen to just about any machine...

Why not get a new drive and swap it in yourself?

Bob

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the point i wanted to make..
Jun 20, 2007 6:53AM PDT

is that I don't think this would happen as easily to just about any machine. i'm using my old Acer laptop right now which is more than 5 years old, and the only problem I had was a harddrive crash after which I bought the iBook (admittedly a much worse malfunction, but that was after more than 3 1/2 yrs and this in my opinion can happen after such a long time).

luckily I still have a warranty on the iBook (besides I wouldnt know how to replace one myself anyway). It's just the fact that after such a short time with barely using the drive, I'm now quite dissapointed about mac's and frustrated about the long repair time. I know of other examples from friends - for example the backspace button of one guys macbook came off about 2 months after he bought it. for the price that mac's are sold, I would really expect a much higher quality and reliable product.

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My view is...
Jun 20, 2007 7:40AM PDT

From providing support to some shops. I get the tough calls. You are looking at 2 machines while I have the view of a few thousand over the years.

If you want a bulletproof machine, it's not a PC or Mac...

Bob

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What procedures did you try in
Jun 20, 2007 9:08AM PDT

an attempt to recover the disk?

That disk player is NOT exclusively a Mac product, it is not manufactured by Apple and is fitted in other laptops(PC and Mac) and devices that require a Slot Loading device.

As Bob pointed out, you only see one or two, others have a much broader picture and see many more.

P

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Under warranty repairs
Jun 20, 2007 9:17AM PDT

Apple ships parts to their Authorized Service Providers overnight!
Under Warranty repairs take precedence over Non-Warranty repairs, at least if you want to keep your authorization. They track time.

You might want to check with Apple regarding the repair, especially as it is covered under the warranty.

Something about this does not sound completely right. MacBook repairs are usually shipped off to Apple. They provide the box and pay the shipping and it has been know for the repaired machine to be back in 3 days.

Have you spoken to Apple regarding this problem? Did you get a case number?

BTW, the keys on any keyboard are only clipped on. A typist with long(ish) nails can pop them off in a heartbeat.

I'm not sure I buy all of this story on the facts given.

P

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basically everything that wouldn't void the warranty
Jun 20, 2007 5:49PM PDT

e.g. restarting and holding down the eject button, tilting the iBook in various directions while doing that, rebooting with the option key, rebooting and holding down the mouse button. Every time it sounded like the drive is trying to eject but can't and made very loud and strange noises for about 10 seconds, so I'm guessing its a more serious problem than just getting the DVD out.

I should've probably mentioned earlier that I live in Vienna, Austria, and not in the US. even though it's a 2 million people city we don't have a real Apple store, just premium resellers. It's good to hear that repair service seems to be more efficient in other countries. 2-4 weeks is in my opinion a ridiculously long time, especially if you're a student who needs the computer for his daily work. they did not provide me with a compensatory machine because they're all given away due the huge amount of repair jobs they have to process (that's what they told me, at least).

My post wasn't supposed give the impression that because of this experience now I'm 100% convinced that mac products are unreliable - I'm just dissapointed. I would very much like to hear other examples that prove me wrong.

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I would be interested
Jun 20, 2007 9:49PM PDT

in hearing what Apple says when you call them to report your DVD problem.
There must be a Free Call number for support under the AppleCare agreement.

Germany appears to be the closest place with an on-line Store and they are displaying a free number but that may only be for the store.

Call Apple, not the local reseller, get a case number and establish a time-line for this problem.

See what repair options are for your problem.

P

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Handle with care
Jun 22, 2007 2:02PM PDT

That happens when you walk around with iBook, or Powerbook holding it in one hand by the corder.
Those machines look tough, but they are very compact, and just a little stress like that can bend it just enough to crack the video card, pop the earphone jack off the logic board, and yes... bend the DVD encloser just enough to stop the DVD from exiting.

I did not read through the threads...

Did you try rebooting your mac holding down the space bar?

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Mac reliablity
Jun 22, 2007 3:22PM PDT

Frankly, get a new repair facility...ridiculous waiting period. I get my Macs repaired when necessarily..rarely in two days. Regarding a disk stuck in the machine I suspect without any evidence that it might be one of those stupid non standard CDs that some greedy corporations made of certain pop performers in a benighted effort to circumvent people making copies on computers and thus, when put into the drives, they do not eject.. with regards to computer reliability. Macs are known statistically to be the most reliable hardware out there but nothing is perfect. Did you try the standard procedure to eject a recalcitrant disk..reboot and hold down the keypad or mouse button if you use one of those? This operates the eject before the data is attempted to be read and this might work though it is also possible the drive has an issue.

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I wouldn't buy any notebook computer without the factory
Jun 22, 2007 3:24PM PDT

extended warranty. I do have my second Powerbook. It went black screen at 1 1/2 years. True, the phone call did require a good twenty minutes including a couple of procedures to see if the computer would respond. It was picked up in 2 1/2 hours, went through transportation to & from service & was back in my hands in under three days. Apple service looks pretty good.

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dont go to apple would highly recommend
Jun 22, 2007 8:36PM PDT

i had a ibook g4 not too long ago before i gave it to my dad. i wanted to get a bigger hard drive for it which is now 100gb. he found this place out in illinois that is farely cheap if you want to upgrade something on your mac. the website is http://www.wegenermedia.com/
i don't have to worry about my other ibook because i got a new macbook, although i do miss the big screen!!!!

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yes,
Jun 24, 2007 11:45PM PDT

I tried all the standard ways to get it out. I'm fairly certain that it is a drive failure, and this was also suspected by the guy who took a look at it at the repair facility. the dvd thats in there is a high quality DVD-R which I never had problems with before.

I did not call Apple cuz of this issue since it is already under repair now anyway and there is not much I can do. mailing to germany will probably take even longer than it does now and would cost me extra money, so it looks like I am doomed to live in a country with crappy service until I move somewhere else or Apple decides to open up a store in Vienna.

I guess there could be week-long discussions without reaching a conclusion about the reliability of a certain computer product. I did some google-ing (admittedly I could've done that before I started this discussion, but I was pretty pissed then) and indeed Apple products seem to be the most reliable after IBM. some other statistics might say sth different, but I think the bottom line is that every computer product out of thousands can show defects pretty quickly, especially if its a laptop. tough luck or whatever I should call it, I'm glad I at least still have a warranty for it (just as a note: the 3 yrs warranty cost me 80 euros extra at purchase) and I hope I'll have at least another 2 years before I'll have to worry about if my next laptop will again be a mac.

-dan

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Stuck DVD
Jun 26, 2007 7:17PM PDT

I had this problem. Brand new MacBook Pro. DVD-R with stick-on label. The drive tried to eject it but it was stuck. Tapping on the case while holding down the eject button finally spit it out. Now, no more stick-on labels, no more problems.

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Apple repairs
Jun 28, 2007 7:21AM PDT

My daughter's macbook optical drive failed. I called Apple, went through some diagnostics and they gave me the number of the store in the city she is studying in who took the machine in for a replacement Superdrive and turned it round in less than a week

I also had an iPod fail(twice actually). I live in the UK, all iPod repairs are done in Holland. The packing to ship it was delivered the same day I reported the call, they picked it up the next day, I got it back(replaced with a refurbished one under warranty) a few days later. Less than a week in total

In fairness I must say that I have had the same quality of service from HP on a faulty laptop. It would appear that manufacturers who want to can deliver this level of service. Now _)(*&^% are another matter....

Impressive

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got it
Jul 3, 2007 6:11PM PDT

back yesterday. dvd is recovered - drive is new and works just fine. I guess the 2-4 weeks part was to make sure they're not breaking any promises. in total it took 12 days - still enough but bearable. thanks a lot for the discussion - and may your first mac dvd drive last longer than mine.

-dan