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+--- Thread: I’ve been saying this for years about Apple Stores.... (/showthread.php?tid=214607)
I’ve been saying this for years about Apple Stores.... - C(-)ris - 03-15-2018
This has been going on for at least 5 years in most stores. I don’t know why Apple can’t figure out how to fix the problem....
Shoppers are complaining that Apple Stores have become a 'hell on earth' like the DMV — and it's a growing crisis for the tech giant - Business Insider
http://www.businessinsider.com/apple-stores-suffer-from-customer-complaints-long-wait-time-2018-3?r=UK&IR=T
Re: I’ve been saying this for years about Apple Stores.... - hal - 03-15-2018
I disagree completely.
Do people remember the process of replacing a MaBell telephone or any tech gadget before the apple store?
It's an impossible situation that apple is making possible. What is the alternative to same-day service at the apple store (I call it same day service, you call it hell on earth)? The only other thing that I own that I can hope to get same day service is my car and that's hardly a sure thing. I own stuff made by OWC, Samsung, canon, LG, WD etc and if any of that stuff dies, there is NO WAY to get it up and running tonight. Not true of any of my macs and my iphone. At least there's a chance...
I remember people being without service or a working phone for weeks back in the monopoly days. The Apple Store is far from perfect, but its way, way better than nothing.
Re: I’ve been saying this for years about Apple Stores.... - C(-)ris - 03-15-2018
hal wrote:
I disagree completely.
Do people remember the process of replacing a MaBell telephone or any tech gadget before the apple store?
It's an impossible situation that apple is making possible. What is the alternative to same-day service at the apple store (I call it same day service, you call it hell on earth)? The only other thing that I own that I can hope to get same day service is my car and that's hardly a sure thing. I own stuff made by OWC, Samsung, canon, LG, WD etc and if any of that stuff dies, there is NO WAY to get it up and running tonight. Not true of any of my macs and my iphone. At least there's a chance...
I remember people being without service or a working phone for weeks back in the monopoly days. The Apple Store is far from perfect, but its way, way better than nothing.
Ever purchased anything from a brick and mortar business that services what they sell? Or purchase directly from a manufacturer with a physical store? Not Sears or a Home Depot , but an actual store selling a product line that they service? I always get same day service with all of my appliances in my house, a simple phone call gets it done and I can either bring it in or have them come out depending on what it is. Same thing with my car at the dealership, as you already pointed out.
Apple is in this category of businesses and the expectation is that you get top notch customer service. They are failing miserably at providing the level of service they
I'm not sure I would even call Apple "same day". I checked reservations for 5 different stores and none of them have any available for tomorrow or this evening. Earliest is Friday mid morning. I can all but guarantee you that even if you make a 10am Friday appointment you won't be seen until around 11:15 at those stores.
Re: I’ve been saying this for years about Apple Stores.... - Carnos Jax - 03-15-2018
I haven't read the article, so please forgive me. But my experiences are similar to Hal's. Recently, I had broken the screen on my iPhone 6s Plus. On a whim I stopped by the Apple Store around noon last Thursday. They were able to schedule me for a repair around 3:00 the same day. I stopped by at 3:00 and dropped off the phone. A couple hours later I stopped by to pick it up, complete with a new screen.
Previous to that, a few years ago, I had broken the back of my iPhone 5 (or was it 4...the one with a glass back). Again, I stopped by the Apple Store one afternoon, and they were able to fix it while I waited.
Frankly, I've come to expect that whenever you need to get something repaired locally, it'll take few days. For example, three times I've had to get repairs done to two different vacuums. Each time I had to drop it off and it took them 3-4 days to repair it. This is similar to my experiences with other appliances or consumer electronics as well.
Re: I’ve been saying this for years about Apple Stores.... - Harbourmaster - 03-15-2018
I should be able to just push a few buttons and the damn phone should instantly fix itself fer cryin out loud!
Re: I’ve been saying this for years about Apple Stores.... - jdc - 03-15-2018
Yeah, my experience is more like hal's as well. We have never waited more than a few minutes if we make an appointment. Bought the wifes iPhone 7 at one, in and out in 15 minutes. Had the batter in daughters iP6 replaced, 15 mintues to diagnose. Had to come back 5 days later when it was in stock -- but no appointment needed. Just walked in, said "hey my battery is here" and was told to come back in an hour. Done.
Theres no way to get my car serviced in the same day at the dealer. The only thing they will do is look at it for $100. And that takes 3 days.
Are there still brick and mortars selling things they actually make?
So a Whirlpool appliance from the whirlpool store?
What about a HP computer? Geek Squad? Or a LG phone? Or a google pixel? If it breaks, where do you take them?
And I hate these farggin stories "Shoppers" who the hell are "shoppers"? 5 people on twitter? The same 3 people that are "twitterers" or "facebookers". The "Im entitled to instant satisfaction" people? That hit an apple store in one of the largest cities in the nation on a Saturday afternoon?
Re: I’ve been saying this for years about Apple Stores.... - Speedy - 03-15-2018
Our nearest Apple Store is nearly 70 miles away so I look at a repair visit as an opportunity to play around with the newest gadgets. My local Apple Authorized Repair Facility takes days to diagnose ($60 minimum for diagnosis) and fix things. For our iPhones, we just take them to a kiosk in our mall for displays or batteries.
Re: I’ve been saying this for years about Apple Stores.... - MikeF - 03-15-2018
Here in Southern California, when the MacBook Pro 2011 died again just recently, I looked into making an appointment at an Apple store -- all the stores around here (within 25 miles) were booked for at least 1-1/2 weeks. That was for any appointment any time of the day all days of the week...
Re: I’ve been saying this for years about Apple Stores.... - Sarcany - 03-15-2018
Anyone remember when Apple Stores were genuinely social spaces?
Right when they first started opening up. When the Genius Bars were actual bars that served free bottled water and they offered places to sit. And classes. And movies. And the kids' corner with Macs loaded with games and those bouncy chairs. You could hang there all day if you wanted to or even do work at the display-machines and the guard wouldn't bother you. And there was room to wander around the floor, sit at a table, and just play with stuff instead of standing in a packed crowd jostling elbows at a table filled with items that you didn't come to look at and don't care about.
They've got a line. It's not the kind of line that people are looking for. It's at the front door. Where a guy (inevitably a guy) stands at the front of the store directing each person who enters to stand at different tables. A guy who surreptitiously takes each customer's picture so that the mobile-techs or mobile-salespeople can identify the customers on a first-come-first-served basis.
This is not a social space. This is the kind of commercial space that Jeff Bezos would make and he'd be (rightfully) loudly criticized for it. It looks big and interesting from the outside, but once inside it feels cramped and small and all the interesting stuff is going on behind the door in the back where you aren't allowed. It's a carefully calibrated machine designed to do nothing more than shuffle you around, to exhaust you, to take your money and leave you a dehumanized shell with a bit less money when they're done with you.
Where they once had very smart people behind the Genius Bar helping people, the smart ones are now locked in the back and you'll never see them. Instead, you'll find some kid who worked at Gap Kids last week who has to go in the back to get anything done at all and can't answer any questions deeper than "how much for that" and even then is wrong a good chunk of the time.
Maybe you're lucky and your local store hasn't gotten these "upgrades." Beware. It's coming.
Re: I’ve been saying this for years about Apple Stores.... - Speedy - 03-15-2018
Perhaps Apple could expand into the Toys r Us buildings or fill up a few empty Sears buildings and bring those things back that the Apple experience used to offer.
Sarcany wrote:
Anyone remember when Apple Stores were genuinely social spaces?
Right when they first started opening up. When the Genius Bars were actual bars that served free bottled water and they offered places to sit. And classes. And movies. And the kids' corner with Macs loaded with games and those bouncy chairs. You could hang there all day if you wanted to or even do work at the display-machines and the guard wouldn't bother you. And there was room to wander around the floor, sit at a table, and just play with stuff instead of standing in a packed crowd jostling elbows at a table filled with items that you didn't come to look at and don't care about.
They've got a line. It's not the kind of line that people are looking for. It's at the front door. Where a guy (inevitably a guy) stands at the front of the store directing each person who enters to stand at different tables. A guy who surreptitiously takes each customer's picture so that the mobile-techs or mobile-salespeople can identify the customers on a first-come-first-served basis.
This is not a social space. This is the kind of commercial space that Jeff Bezos would make and he'd be (rightfully) loudly criticized for it. It looks big and interesting from the outside, but once inside it feels cramped and small and all the interesting stuff is going on behind the door in the back where you aren't allowed. It's a carefully calibrated machine designed to do nothing more than shuffle you around, to exhaust you, to take your money and leave you a dehumanized shell with a bit less money when they're done with you.
Where they once had very smart people behind the Genius Bar helping people, the smart ones are now locked in the back and you'll never see them. Instead, you'll find some kid who worked at Gap Kids last week who has to go in the back to get anything done at all and can't answer any questions deeper than "how much for that" and even then is wrong a good chunk of the time.
Maybe you're lucky and your local store hasn't gotten these "upgrades." Beware. It's coming.