MacBook SSD/Flash memory card failed

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tardtasticx

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#130859 30-Sep-2013 19:36

Long story short, the memory module (ssd but not quite ssd thing) in my late 2012 MacBook Air died.

Spoke to the man at the repair place I took it to (apple authorised) who said they had no stock and had to order it. I then found out today that he actually meant apple had no stock, and that I could be waiting weeks for this to arrive.

Is this normal? How does Apple let a whole country run out of a part and not order some in sooner? I use this machine every day for uni work so its rather important I get it back ASAP as I start again next week (on break at the moment). What should I do about this? The store said to ask apple to waive the upgrade fee and get a 256GB module installed instead, of which there is stock. But the people I spoke to at apple wouldnt have any of that and dismissed it.

Do they really expect me to be without a computer for weeks because a user-replaceable part isn't available?

Has anyone had experience with this before? How long did it take to fix? I dont even know what to do, I cant wait that long. I know I sound like a whiny brat, but its one of the few things I use every single day and rely on, not to mention dropped 1.8K on, which is a hell of a lot for a student.

Anyway, keen to hear what you guys have to say.

Thanks,
Sam

macuser

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#905368 30-Sep-2013 20:11

Apple once again proves they are terrible at supporting existing customers. The CGA requires that the supplier of the goods has spares on hand for a reasonable length of time (eg at least the length of warranty I guess ), and they are to repair your machine in a reasonable length of time. Multiple weeks for a machine you need every day is too long in anyone's opinion. My suggestion is to call apple (if you bought it direct from them) and ask to speak to their manager, highest level available person and advise them your situation, and that the CGA takes priority over any of their T&Cs in NZ law. The upgrade seems reasonable, but probably isn't allowed in their terms and conditions.

macuser

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#905369 30-Sep-2013 20:15

If you bought the Air with education discount that could further aid your case in what constitutes reasonable repair time, since a student is a full time activity and buying with edu discount you demonstrated your usage needs to apple at the time of purchase. 1-2 weeks is reasonable, 1 month isn't. Get used to using the library computers

richms

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#907472 3-Oct-2013 21:09

Even with the next day onsite dell support which IMO is essential for a computer used for work or education use this happens occasionally with parts availability.

Really they should come to the party with something to sort this out since you pay a premium for apple gear so expect them to go beyond what a standard retailer warranty would offer.

Richard rich.ms

gehenna

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#907481 3-Oct-2013 21:28

Can I ask who the authorised service centre is? If you ring around other authorised service centres you might find they have their own stock without relying on Apple.

Failing that you can contact Apple's Customer Relations to express your frustration - they can often expedite things.

surfisup1000

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#907507 3-Oct-2013 22:18

tardtasticx: Long story short, the memory module (ssd but not quite ssd thing) in my late 2012 MacBook Air died.

Spoke to the man at the repair place I took it to (apple authorised) who said they had no stock and had to order it. I then found out today that he actually meant apple had no stock, and that I could be waiting weeks for this to arrive.

Is this normal? How does Apple let a whole country run out of a part and not order some in sooner? I use this machine every day for uni work so its rather important I get it back ASAP as I start again next week (on break at the moment). What should I do about this? The store said to ask apple to waive the upgrade fee and get a 256GB module installed instead, of which there is stock. But the people I spoke to at apple wouldnt have any of that and dismissed it.

Do they really expect me to be without a computer for weeks because a user-replaceable part isn't available?

Has anyone had experience with this before? How long did it take to fix? I dont even know what to do, I cant wait that long. I know I sound like a whiny brat, but its one of the few things I use every single day and rely on, not to mention dropped 1.8K on, which is a hell of a lot for a student.

Anyway, keen to hear what you guys have to say.

Thanks,
Sam

Oh , this is nothing compared to what I've gone through. My $4500 July 2012 macbook retina has had 4 major faults -- display with 15 stuck pixels, broken wifi card, SD reader failed, and a failed internal cooling fan.

Now, it's been pulled apart so many times, the screws in the bottom are falling out -- the repair people say it's not their fault, and I'm up for $30 for new screws (unless the chassis is stripped then it will cost a LOT more).

richms

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#907509 3-Oct-2013 22:20

surfisup1000:
Oh , this is nothing compared to what I've gone through. My $4500 July 2012 macbook retina has had 4 major faults -- display with 15 stuck pixels, broken wifi card, SD reader failed, and a failed internal cooling fan.

I am assuming that you had a business pay for it so you cant exercise your rights under the CGA on the retailer? screws falling out alone would be a major fault!

Richard rich.ms

surfisup1000

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#907521 3-Oct-2013 22:37

richms:
surfisup1000:
Oh , this is nothing compared to what I've gone through. My $4500 July 2012 macbook retina has had 4 major faults -- display with 15 stuck pixels, broken wifi card, SD reader failed, and a failed internal cooling fan.

I am assuming that you had a business pay for it so you cant exercise your rights under the CGA on the retailer? screws falling out alone would be a major fault!

Bought overseas :)

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tardtasticx

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#910187 8-Oct-2013 23:21

Been a very busy week so appologies for late reply.
Heres what happened:

Friday 27th: MacBook given to repair centre. Parts apparently ordered.

Monday 30th: Parts on backorder, told it could be 3 week wait for parts to come from AUS.

Tuesday 1st: Spoke to a case manager, told him I have uni this week and it needs to be done ASAP. He says he will see what he can do, says he will have a solution before Friday.

Friday 4th: Case manager cannot speed up process, decided to outright replace the MacBook, but they dont have stock of that model (Mid-2012), only Mid-2013. So he is upgrading it for me and will have it done by next week.

Monday 7th: Case manager cannot source MacBook, has to be ordered. Speak to logistics. Could take over a week. They email me forms. Form waives apple of all responsibility for the old machine, cant talk about it to anyone etc except a lawyer. Say no. Speak to case manager.

Case manager says he will call me in an hour with a solution.
He rings after 1 hour and a bit, says he found the last one in Auckland apparently, at a store in Parnell. Begged manager to hold it for me. I raced from Pt. Chev (West Auckland) to Parnell (Auckland CBD) in half an hour, at about 4:30, which any Aucklander would know is very good timing at that hour. Left store with new MacBook.

Tuesday 8th: Speak to repair centre about my old MacBook, data is not able to be salvaged, at all. Chip is completely dead. It can be sent away but at a cost of $600+. Politely decline. Leave with broken MacBook.

Tomorrow morning I'm meant to drop the old MacBook to the store I got my new one from so they can arrange to have it replaced. So right now I'm in possession of two MacBook Airs. Apple either trusts me a hell of a lot or has a sure fire way of financially hurting me if I run off with these hahaha.

Oh, and my backup is still broken. No change there.

Long story short: I got upgraded to the newest model macbook air, but lost all my data in the process.
Not sure how I feel, mix of happy and pissed off.

-Sam.

CYaBro

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#910210 9-Oct-2013 07:10

Good to hear apple went that far and got you a brand new model.
However you not having a working backup of your data is not their fault and only you are to blame for that.

Opinions are my own and not the views of my employer.

Inphinity

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#910217 9-Oct-2013 07:58

CYaBro: Good to hear apple went that far and got you a brand new model.
However you not having a working backup of your data is not their fault and only you are to blame for that.

This. As much as I despise Apple, they've met their obligation here - replaced the faulty hardware with equivalent or better. The lesson here, as always, is - If the data is important, back it up :)

macuser

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#917307 19-Oct-2013 10:52

this might have been why

http://www.theverge.com/2013/10/18/4853430/apple-recalls-last-years-macbook-air-due-to-faulty-ssd-drives

freitasm

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#917308 19-Oct-2013 10:57

macuser: this might have been why

http://www.theverge.com/2013/10/18/4853430/apple-recalls-last-years-macbook-air-due-to-faulty-ssd-drives

Came here to say this.

And if that's the case then the retailer really had no option other than giving you a replacement unity - CGA, not timely repair, etc and get a replacement unit, not a repair.

tardtasticx

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#917674 20-Oct-2013 11:39

God damn thats annoying :( How long do you think they knew about this before the recall? days? weeks?