Ducati Monster Forum

I have the extended service plan on my iPhone.

The button that switches it to vibrate fell off.  I call apple, and wow, it's covered under warranty.  Sweet.

They send me a new phone the next day, and charge my card $500 until my old phone gets back to them. 

I transfer all my stuff to the new phone and ship it back.

That was easy :)

But wait, there's more. . .

I get an email today that says:

"Dear Apple Customer,

Thank you for selecting AppleCare Service to repair your Apple product.

Upon inspection of the phone you recently returned to us, Apple technicians have determined that the iPhone was damaged. Because of the damage, your credit card will be charged in the amount USD 205.95/ CAD 239.77 as stated in the iPhone Advance Replacement Terms and Conditions: http://www.apple.com/legal/terms/iphonears/. (http://www.apple.com/legal/terms/iphonears/.)

If you have questions regarding this repair, please call 800-APL-CARE (800-275-2273) and choose the option for status on a previously scheduled repair. Help is available seven days a week from 8:00 a.m. to 8:00 p.m. central.

Regards,
AppleCare Service"

So, the phone was damaged. . .  well no make the beast with two backsing shit!   >:( >:( >:( >:( >:( >:( >:( >:( [bang] [bang] [bang] [bang] [bang] [bang]

I call the number in the email and got a nice girl that looked into things.  Turns out the apple techs decided that the phone has experienced heavy liquid damage.

"Like it's been submerged?" I ask.

"Yes.  They say it has experienced heavy liquid damage that would be consistent with that," she tells me.

Un-make the beast with two backsing-believable  [roll] [roll] This phone has never ever been underwater.  Id be surprised if it has ever experience more than 10 rain drops.

The customer service dept we need to talk to is closed for the weekend.  I have to call back monday 8-8 central time.

You guys think my credit card company would help me out on this if Apple doesn't get their head out of their ass?!?

Is there not an Apple store near you?

That button fell off my 3G.  I took it to them, and was on my way with a new iPhone in 5 minutes, no questions asked.

i'm sure it'll get worked out.

i'm curious, how long have you had your damaged phone? was it an original iphone/3g?

it's possible you would've qualified for an upgrade to the 3gs which is only $200.

buddy of mine dropped his 3g last month and when he went into the store, they gave him the option of a replacement or a new 3gs for the same price.

read: if you end up paying for the repair, you might as well get a 3gs out of it.

Id have a 90 minute ride to get to an apple store.  Sounds like it may have been worth it to just take a drive. . .


Original iPhone 3g bought last september.

I know it's a stretch, but I was wondering if I could get my old phone back and give it to the wife.  16g 3g phones are $199 now I think, right?  So if im paying that anyway, I may as well have a second phone to show for it.  3Gs would be cool too.

So the phone was still under the factory warranty, and not AppleCare.

That button is a pretty common issue, from what I gathered when I took mine in.

Hmm, not sure if they said factory warranty covered it or the extended one did.

I read a lot online and it seems like a common issue as you said.

Im not paying $200 for what amounts to having a button replaced.

Apple has pulled this stuff before.  I'd see about a charge-back from your CC.

This is good stuff.  I am trying to decide on the IPhone versus the new My touch to replace my well aged blackberry.  [popcorn]

i recently read a comparison (http://latimesblogs.latimes.com/technology/2009/08/tmobile-mytouch-3g-is-a-solid-google-android-phone.html) between the two... the iphone won.

I've had my iPhone for about a week and thought the button felt a little flimsy. Other than that I love the damn thing. And I am not an "apple person"


Hope they make it right for you ML

I don't know what Apple does, but most companies put a little paper dot in the phone that changes color in the presence of moisture.  This may be what they are basing their decision on.  I would call them back and ask for a supervisor.  If this is the case, I would ask them to explain what moisture had to do with the button breaking.   

I had similar thoughts [thumbsup]

depends on what you are looking for out of a phone/pda/whatever you use it for to escape talking to others/interaction

I work in AppleCare, although I don't support iPhones, but feel free to pm if you need some advice.

The biggest restraint on my iPhone lust (or any other smartphone for that matter) is that they're not waterproof & not all that robust. It's too bad, because there's a decent market for ruggedized phones, whether for construction trades or outdoor enthusiasts. I mean, it's nice to have a compass ap on the phone, but if you can't use it outside in the rain, what's the point?

whats messed up is just having the phone in your pocket all the time will make that dot change color.

My Treo has been holding up for years, but it is the worse for wear because of the holes in it from the welding sparks.

I have an Otterbox Case for my Blackberry 8310.

It is very rugged and will be waterproof to an extent. I only use it (very bulky) when I am in a situation where my phone could get damaged.

How do you know this?

My phone is in my front pocket 9-5, M-F

He peed himself once and told everyone the phone got that dot from "just being in his pocket"  ;D

[laugh]

Well,

Looks like everything is cool.  They're not charging me.

In this case, my phone was one of the phones that had the defective ring/vibe switch and that overrode the moisture tab being tripped and they just washed it out for me.

I was on the phone with customer service the second time around for 45 minutes.  I was the coolest friendliest guy around.

I got to a supervisor and he was pretty cool and really appreciated my patience (change of pace for him?) 

He's the one that told me about the switch being defective.

He *also* mentioned that if that had not been the case, he'd have made it go away anyway.

[thumbsup]

Im still not Apple's biggest fan, but I'm a lot further from the bottom than I was when I started this thread.

the one time i did pee... oh never mind im not gonna justify it to you ;D
my previous phone had the moisture sensor sticker under the battery took it in first thing they looked at was the sticker and he said water damage, which never happened (one more pee comment and ill get bitter ) ;D
my phone was always in my pocket and never got wet.
your results may differ.

You should move out here to the desert. 

So he can get ball sweat on it instead? ???

I got the otterbox case for my iTouch (asme one as the iPhone). It is completely waterproof, drop proof, dust proof, etc. I know this as I've swam with it. Only downside is the headphone port isn't a "smart" port. It will only do an output. Won't accept volume controls or the mic.

Well, I take it all back.

Turns out I never received the credit ($210).

I have left 4 voice mails with the CSR super that helped me on his direct extension and have not gotten a call back.  This is over the span of the last few weeks.

I just emailed him stating the above and that I want resolution in the next 7 days or im calling my cc company to dispute the charge and then im filing a complaint with the BBB.

 [bang] [bang]

 >:( >:( >:(

 [bang] [bang]

just a thought about the moisture tab...
did you put the phone in a ziplock bag or anything when you sent it back to them?
sometimes shipping trucks can get a little... moist...

Just as an FYI, I believe the moisture tab on the iPhone is at the bottom of the headphone jack. I had to take mine in for dead pixels and first thing the "Genius" did was peak down the jack with a flashlight.

There is one down on the other side of the jack, but water can't get to it through the HP jack port, some I'm told by Apple CS.

There is another tap down lower in the phone as well, is my understanding.

Well, sort of.  I boxed it up exactly according to the directions.  They give you a little bag that seals shut.

What credit card did you use? If you used Amex you are in luck. If you used Chase at all, you are screwed.

I've filed a few chargebacks and it worked out great. In my opinion, why should I waste endless hours of my time dealing with a merchant that screwed up when a simple online form will have my credit card company deal with it for me? The process is pretty easy. You fill out the form and they contact you by mail if they need more information, then sent you a letter with the resolution.

In most cases, the merchant never bothers to even respond to the credit card company, so the dispute is resolved in your favor without question. However, if the merchant does make good, you have a few weeks to cancel the chargeback with the cc.

I try to use my amex for everything partially because I've been so happy with their chargeback policy.

It's a VISA card, but not with chase.

They've always been good to me in the past.  I hope this time is no different.

Fingers crossed