Do apple usually just give you a replacement if they break something and not even charge you?

Submitted by EndlessZone123 t3_11bj640 in iphone

Send my 12 mini to the store to get a battery replacement at 84% health, mainly because there was a 109$ to 145$ (AUD) price price inflation starting March. Came back 2 hours later to them saying they ‘found’ the side button to be broken, handed me an exact new replacement, canceled the 109$ battery estimate and resent me a $569 repair. There was no warranty on the phone anymore, but said the $569 was covered by warranty and I didn’t have to pay a cent, including the 109$ for just the battery.

At the bottom of the email said “Thank you for choosing AppleCare for the repair of your Apple product.” Seems to me they just broke something and couldn’t fix it, cause I definitely don’t have AppleCare lol.

551

Comments

You must log in or register to comment.

nirvana6875 t1_j9y7qjv wrote

Our cat knocked a glass of water over on my wife’s 4S back in the day. Turned it off right away and tried to dry it out. No luck. Took it in to the Apple Store, they said “no luck, the water sensors were triggered. But if you look at the charge port, see that tiny little crack that doesn’t effect anything? Manufacture defect, here’s a brand new phone, have yourselves a great day!”

716

Anders13 t1_j9ytyhx wrote

I was a “genius” many years ago and if you were nice to me and the rest of the team and were under warranty, I’d swap it out under “single hairline crack” for free, even if there was some other type of accidental damage on the device. Those who were impatient and rude because they had to wait an hour for their walk-in appointment would pay for it :)

393

Transposer t1_j9z1uvo wrote

You are a good person. I’m sure you made so many peoples’ days. It’s hard to work in retail and to deal with the public. Sadly, so many don’t deal with employees as real people.

131

Anders13 t1_j9z75ae wrote

The best and funniest memory I have was a very sweet lady who had broken her phone but was out of warranty…I noticed the phone’s battery was below threshold during diagnostics so I swapped the whole thing under swollen battery replacement (I think it was $99 vs $300+) to replace the entire device.

About an hour later she comes back SOAKED from head to toe, including her hair (she was wearing a long dress) and tells me she had fallen into one of the mall’s water fountains lmao! At that point I swapped it again at no charge since it was within a 90 day warranty.

165

danyaylol t1_j9zgr4q wrote

I don’t get why more employees are like you. They’re acting like their paycheck is determined by getting people to pay for repairs.

46

Anders13 t1_j9zhca0 wrote

I know I know :( the amount of times I’d hear the other people I worked with get yelled at by angry customers was just absurd. I not once got yelled at in the 4 years I worked there. Like you said, it freaking Apple! Being nice to the customer and helping them as much as possible can only make your retail work/life easier.

26

Whiffler t1_j9zayya wrote

Hahaha that’s amazing. Thank you for being a great human!

22

Arkhemiel t1_j9zw4d5 wrote

Lisssstttteeeeen to meeeeee. Yesterday I had to tell a customer. You came in with a problem. I offered to fix your problem out of my own pocket (I’m not the boss) and you’re still not satisfied. What do you want? Customer: that’s a fair point. I’m done now. I’ll take that offer.

10

sodiumbigolli t1_ja12a5w wrote

That is unheard of. A retail miracle lol. If you’re on that kind of a roll, could you please demand world peace? On the a chance it might happen?

9

Arkhemiel t1_ja1caxe wrote

I live on a small island so it’s easy to become quite known you’re nice (or not nice) to people. I tell customers straight up. If you throw a tantrum I’m doing the bare minimum. If you’re understanding I attempt to get the earth to spin in the opposite direction for you. Over time with you being genuine you can get people (even the difficult ones) to see reason. Not everyone but most.

6

ilikemrrogers t1_j9zh4kh wrote

Is that what happened to me?!

Went in for my ear speaker being so quiet I couldn’t hear a thing (old iPhone, but I have the same issue with my 11 pro max.)

I was with my two little girls, and had like an hour long wait. They were apologetic, because I had made an appointment. “No worries,” says I. I assumed I’d be waiting anyway. They got my number and I took my girls for a walk and to get some treats from the food court.

The text came in that I was ready to be seen. We go in, and they take my phone for a VERY long time. My girls were having fun playing around with the display iPads, and I was enjoying watching them. The guy helping me was so apologetic, but to be honest I was having a good day.

They eventually came out with a brand new phone for some kind of recall I never knew existed and couldn’t find online.

31

GracefulHippopotamus t1_j9zszw7 wrote

Oh yeah, that definitely sounds like they wanted to give you the best they could :)

18

ilikemrrogers t1_j9zt74s wrote

They had one of those Star Wars BB-8s (or whatever… the uniball with a “head) running around. It was pretty fun to watch.

11

Natural_Nature_Shots t1_ja27yui wrote

That’s why I had two products upgraded. Thank you peeps that helped me with my iPod touch and my iPhone 3GS. I am always patient when it comes to that stuff no point in yelling and getting mad. It doesn’t solve it faster

1

navjot94 t1_j9yu4x7 wrote

Yeah this case along with OP’s sounds like it may have been a generous store employee that was able to identify a minor defect and get you a good deal for it.

31

Herves7 t1_j9yptod wrote

Lol I went with my apple watch 82% battery health. I asked to pay to replace the battery but got rejected because it has to be under 80%. 2 weeks later its under 80% but I'm in a foreign country which I told them was the reason I came in person as apple support suggested

22

azewonder t1_j9zjcry wrote

Battery does not have to be under 80% for them to replace it (unless it’s warrantied under apple care). I just had my 13 mini battery replaced at 89% because I didn’t want to wait and pay more. Of course he tried to talk me out of it, but I got it done.

−2

Herves7 t1_j9zn5iv wrote

Warranty was out of the question. I was willing to pay as well. I even asked him to ask a manager because it didn't make sense to me especially if I'm paying.

5

fiendishfork t1_ja066z9 wrote

Yeah this happened to me as well, with both Watch and phone, both having really bad battery issues but battery health stuck just over 80% and no amount of persuading could get them to replace the battery because it was not clearing whatever threshold their diagnostics were showing them.

2

con247 t1_ja07ige wrote

I hate how difficult they make it to actually pay to get it replaced. They ask you 10000 questions and fight against it. I don’t need 15 minutes of Q&A and them typing stuff into the iPad. I know what I want. Take my phone and money and let me leave. It should be a 2 minute interaction, not 15-20.

3

CactusBoyScout t1_j9zb9ym wrote

I watched a Genius Bar employee just straight up give a dude something once.

This guy brought in his MacBook that was having issues and the Genius Bar employee hooked up a wired Apple keyboard to run some diagnostics. The guy was like “Oh man I’ve been meaning to get one of those. They look really nice.”

And the employee just goes “I think you came in with it. 🤫” The guy seemed confused so he just repeated “I think you came in with it. 😉” And the guy put it in his bag after they were done.

An ex of mine got a brand new MacBook after hers required like 4 separate repairs for manufacturer issues. That seemed more reasonable but it was still at least a year out of warranty so I was impressed.

21

AngryFace4 t1_j9yvle6 wrote

Back in the 4s day apple was a lot more generous with this policy. They’re still way better than most companies, but compared to Jobs apple not close.

19

ThatOldGuyWhoDrinks t1_ja0e441 wrote

i had gotten a launch iPhoneX - 3 days later i'd left it on the roof of my car and it slid off and got run over. it was in a hard case so the bits were there but it was destroyed.

I made a genius bar appointment for that day and took the credit card to pay the OOW fee ($1000 AU) straight away as my wife was heavily preggers (was due in 3 weeks) and i could not be without a phone.

I go in and they gave me a brand new iPhone X with double the memory i had as thats all they had for no charge telling me to use the money for the baby.

8

BlackMailerWagen t1_ja203jg wrote

When I was 13 I dropped my iPhone 7 at the gym and these colored bars came onto my screen. My mom and I went to apple and said it suddenly started acting like that in the morning, and they fixed it under the warranty.

Fast forward to 2020, my mom takes her 6S in for a battery replacement, they break it, and give her a brand new phone.

1

horse_and_buggy t1_ja01xa3 wrote

Genius bar has changed. The actual level of "genius" these retail store associates has greatly decreased, and they don't really go above and beyond like they used to with support and free replacements during the early iPhone days.

4

nt-gud-at-werds t1_ja0ufl1 wrote

I think back when it was I phone 3 4 5 era they used Apple Store as a big selling point they just swapped out phones for new, no drama. This was the beginning, and for a lot of people it was there first experience with apple products. They wanted to make a great impression. It’s not like that anymore but it’s still a very good experience going to the Apple Store and I still get bonus every now and then.

3

simplequark t1_ja0eoyf wrote

That's cool and pretty much how my experiences with Apple's online support staff went, too.

Our local Apple Store staff, though, have apparently been trained to try and deflect as many customer claims as possible. So I, in turn, try to avoid dealing with them as much as possible.

0

DarkDuo t1_j9ybfcq wrote

I tried to get my iphone repaired once it was out of warranty, it was only about a month over the expiration date and they said they would have to charge me the full price, said no thanks, sent my wife in the following week with my phone, the same guy replaced it for her, no questions asked

198

Paidkidney t1_ja1ubm0 wrote

Why would you send your phone back with her when it was out of warranty? Did you feel it was wrong of them to charge you only a month after expiring? Did you know they would charge her something different?

0

zeft64 t1_j9y46ym wrote

Yeah Apple is good for this. There was one time I had a phone to old to replace. They ended up just giving me a newer phone and I didn’t pay shit.

169

EndlessZone123 OP t1_j9y49ku wrote

For what reason did they even have to replace your phone for?

34

zeft64 t1_j9y4cfj wrote

I broke my screen. At the time I was using an iPhone 4s and the 5s was out. They ended up just giving me a 5s.

45

EndlessZone123 OP t1_j9y4fza wrote

Damn they really must have not kept any in stock.

21

zeft64 t1_j9y4jwb wrote

I mean I had the phone for a very long time so I’m not shocked. What I was shocked over was the free upgrade. I’ve always kept Apple care after this. I’ve found it to be much better than the coverage a carrier can offer in most cases.

17

Sterben27 t1_j9yk67d wrote

I had the iPhone 7 and when leaving work it was windy as hell and it basically got blown out of my hand when I took a mis-step. Contacted Apple via Live Chat and they overnighted me a replacement before even getting my broken one back. Cannot fault their Customer Service most of the time.

10

thebornotaku t1_ja0zy7j wrote

CS is how you build a winning company. Especially when selling premium products. Nobody's gonna be happy dropping $1k on a phone when something goes wrong and they get told to get fucked. But if you make a serious effort to take care of your customers, they'll keep being your customers.

5

AutistWeaponized t1_ja0ssjp wrote

I had an iphone that I bought in Australia, went to apple in Amsterdam for a battery replacement, they screwed it up and gave me a complete replacement for free on the spot (new phone not a refurbished one), didn’t even have to pay for the battery change.

1

peacenchemicals t1_j9ynqdf wrote

sorta related, but i used to work for t-mobile and sometimes people would do warranty exchanges and the system would be like, “lol gtfo w that old ass phone. here’s an upgrade” it was rare, but it happened.

i also just remembered as i’m typing this, a lot of us exploited the system too lol. i never did, but i knew a few people who had old ipads. they’d add the insurance (it wasn’t supposed to work) process a warranty exchange, and the system offered them an ipad pro

4

coffeeisnotlatte t1_j9yfh7h wrote

AppleCare is the regular warranty, AppleCare+ is the extra one. It's possible they broke something, it's also possible they couldn't tell whether they broke it or if it was broke when it came in, in that case they will simply replace the whole thing because it's not worth arguing with the customer.

69

Planetoid127 t1_j9yn7ye wrote

A few years ago I had my iPhone 6s serviced by an Apple Authorized service center (London Drugs). They installed a new battery in my phone and I paid them 60$ CAD. A few hours later the battery started swelling enough that the phone was not sitting flat anymore and the screen was malfunctioning due to excessive pressure. I brought it back to the service center and after they inspected it they got apple to send me a new 6s free of charge.

34

greentiger79 t1_j9y4sbf wrote

Yeah, they do this. We took my daughter’s iPhone in for repairs and messed it up so they gave her a same model replacement phone. Also, there was a recall of the original first gen iPod Nano and I sent it in, I got a sixth gen iPod nano as a replacement.

26

Inevitable_Bar3824 t1_ja0pl86 wrote

That iPod nano exchange program was the GOAT. The nano 6 was a great little device, the touch gestures were quite polished for the time.

3

dlangille t1_j9ymmaw wrote

I've seen Apple give us a new Macbook power supply when I asked about the old one not working. It was out of warranty.

Made us very happy.

Small things like that go a long way towards brand loyalty. It's cheap for Apple in the long-term to do that.

22

papito_m t1_j9yqzwh wrote

Yup. They did this once for me with a $2500 iMac. Having screen issued so they tried to repair. Started acting up again and called Apple support. They apologized and said “we’re just going to send you a brand new one”. Two days later it was on my doorstep. New one was perfect and lasted over a decade.

Edit: Sorry. Misread your question. You said if they break it. Either way, Apple takes care of their customers.

19

wifebeatergroyper t1_j9yjuor wrote

my experience is that if you are invested in the ecosystem, they will be more lenient with you. Their customer service is unparalleled.

14

Stephen_NM2022 t1_j9yph53 wrote

People live in a fantasy world if they think this is the way Apple operates all the time. There are just as many stories in the other direction. What happened is simple and is exactly what you assumed. They broke your phone while replacing the battery, the damage in question could not be repaired on site and could not be blamed on the user, and a manager made the call to give you a replacement with a standard excuse.

14

aliensporebomb t1_j9yu7fm wrote

AppleCare is one of the best things ever. I had one of the liquid cooled G5 computers and one time late at night the computer decided to leak all the liquid onto our office floor and the thing overheated and fried itself. I had Applecare. They were just short of replacing it outright but instead literally replaced EVERYTHING inside the computer except for the DVD drive. So power supply, CPUs, liquid cooling setup, drives, the video card, the ram memory was still good, but everything else. The repair literally would have been almost as much to replace it (upwards of $2500). After Applecare? $0. So it was like getting a brand new PC in a slightly familiar case. So yeah, ever since then I get applecare for Apple products I buy.

14

escrimadragon t1_j9yj624 wrote

I had my 8+ battery replaced at a Best Buy almost two years ago and they broke the screen while repairing it. They didn’t say anything but didn’t charge me for it either. Still charged me for the battery, but hey, $50-ish for a new battery AND screen ain’t too bad.

12

Momentary_Apocalypse t1_j9yn2kx wrote

Yup. I bought my daughter a used iPhone SE (2016 model) in 2020. I took it to get a new battery just so it would have full capacity, even though the one it came with was still ok. When I came back to pick it up, they told us the Touch ID sensor was bad, so they gave us a whole new phone for just the cost of the battery, $40. No warranty, no AppleCare, not even the first owner.

11

nobody-yesbuddy t1_j9z25x3 wrote

I’ve heard many stories like this. Generally speaking if you are honest about what happened and act like a decent human being there is a good chance they will go above and beyond.

I managed restaurants and worked in retail for years. I was always more willing to help a kind customer than one that started the conversation in a rude or demanding manner. It’s not rocket science; most people will react the same way.

10

damoonerman t1_j9ym3i0 wrote

It’s called good customer experience. Apple reps have this type of discretion. That’s why you ALWAYS be nice to them if you need something fixed. Never lie. They can make you pay full price or give you a new phone. Next time you want to buy a new phone, you will think of this and go Apple. Or, even if you went Samsung, if same thing happens and Samsung charges you, you will think “Apple gave it to me for free!”

8

andytagonist t1_j9yxyx8 wrote

They broke something and you got a new phone. To cover their expense, they classified it an “AppleCare replacement”. Have a nice day, mate!

6

xuki t1_j9yqauv wrote

How old is your phone? Phones in Australia have to have a “reasonable” length of warranty - Apple interpret that as 2 years. With phone’s price these days I wouldn’t be surprised if you can argue to make it 3 years (it’s already 3 years for all Macs).

4

EndlessZone123 OP t1_ja0r4ym wrote

Just over 2 year. Maybe there was some sort of consumer warranty I didn’t know.

1

StasiaMonkey t1_ja1dt97 wrote

Apple cannot put a timeframe on it under the Australian Consumer Law. I just had my 2019 iPhone 11 replaced at the Apple Store because the Bluetooth module was intermittently dropping out.

I was polite with the person that I was dealing with at the Apple Store and they were able to replicate the issue and see history notes from when I’ve spoken with Apple Care.

1

ActualSalmoon t1_j9yvra1 wrote

This has not been my experience at all.

I had my iPhone 12 mini serviced at an authorized repair center (battery replacement, still inside the warranty window).

During the repair, the tech broke the Face ID array (they sent me an email and the exact wording was that they “made a mistake during the repair, which has caused irreparable damage to the Face ID components”). They then wanted me to pay around 500€ for a new Face ID array, along with the original 80€ for the battery replacement.

After I declined, they basically told me to fuck off; if I wouldn’t pay, my Face ID would not get fixed, and I would not get any replacements. So to this day, my Face ID still does not work.

4

ejx220 t1_j9ywyah wrote

But you went to an authorized repair center, not an Apple Store. That’s the difference.

3

ActualSalmoon t1_j9yxb98 wrote

After Apple refused to expand to this region, citing that “Authorized Repair Centers offer equivalent service quality,” I’d expect actually equivalent service.

7

Dick_Lazer t1_j9z8yre wrote

That sucks man, I'd report it to Apple itself if you haven't already.

3

VampyreOfNazareth t1_ja0f54b wrote

That’s a small claims court in my country for breaching consumer protection law.

1

dragonkyngreborn t1_j9yq2r4 wrote

There are many different reasons why they may have done this, from they may have broken the phone themselves, and they’re covering, to it may be a possible defect, they discovered. But ultimately, since Apple takes the “defective” phone back, they can reuse the parts that are good on the phone in other devices. I went in for a screen repair, and they said the antennas on my phone were messed up, so they just gave me a brand new phone. I had to pay for the screen repair, but that was it.

Basically, apple can make back most of, if not all the money they will lose by giving you a new device. It’s why I always recommend people go to an Apple store if they can, because your options are a lot greater than if you go to a phone repair shop in a strip mall.

Of course, that doesn’t mean that you will always get a new device, it’s just it’s not uncommon as people think.

3

TaylorFan01313 t1_j9ytl3a wrote

I had this happen to me! I took my iPhone 8 Plus in for a battery replacement and when I went to pick it up they said they replaced the Taptic Engine because it stopped working. It still wasn’t working, so I went back next day and they replaced my phone with a brand new iPhone SE 2022. Even got a 20W charger for free to offset the cost of the battery

3

Squeeze_My_Lemons t1_j9z0dxx wrote

They broke my 12p max and handed it to me at the store during a screen replacement, MISSING SCREEN, and said “sorry water damage”

2

drive2fast t1_j9z0q7j wrote

I brought my iphone 5 in smashes to shit from years in trades and they said ‘oh the camera doesn’t work, that is independent of the damage so have a free new phone’.

I sent in my 11 to get a new screen a few weeks ago and they sent me a brand new phone. No idea why. Looks like my dad is getting a new phone.

2

faslane22 t1_j9zddxd wrote

Totally depends on the item, what warranty if any etc etc. It’s totally case by case basis. Friends of told me that they broke something and just got handed a brand new one in many cases yet I’ve been going in there for years for my clients if I can’t fix something and I’ve never gotten anything absolutely free ever.

2

slurpeemcnugget t1_j9zn79j wrote

This happened to me in January for a screen replacement at the Apple Store.

The technician stripped a screw so they gave me a brand new identical phone.

2

Hanz_VonManstrom t1_j9zxug8 wrote

I was a Genius for many years. If we broke something during a repair that couldn’t be fixed (like one of the side buttons) we would replace it, but usually for the price of whatever the initial repair was. So if it was a battery replacement, you would get the whole phone for battery cost. I’m in the U.S. though. Australia has some pretty serious consumer protection laws in place, so I wouldn’t doubt if they have to replace it at no charge by law.

2

aaron416 t1_ja00ci2 wrote

Yup. Not the same scenario, but I had hardware issues on my MacBook Pro twice. Went to the store when I had yet more issues and I walked out with a new MacBook Pro because that was the third time I would have had to ship it out.

2

brightworkdotuk t1_ja0149t wrote

Lot of Apple Store workers are actually anti-corporate and will do anything to help you out as opposed to making apple profit.

2

Elbarto_007 t1_ja11qtm wrote

I had the Apple Store in Brisbane say we had an unapproved battery in an iPhone 6s when we took it to them for a replacement. The Genius Bar guy was quite rude about it.

We had not ever replaced the battery ourselves and owned it since new.

I asked the see the manager, who I had previously passed my thanks to over an apple camp event our kids attended, he remembered me. He twigged that there were a couple of runs with iPhone 6s where some is identifier was missing from the battery’s and it was on the work order process to follow.

He apologised for the Genius Bar member and said he was issuing a new iPhone to us and would reinforce the process with the staff.

So we walked in thinking we were paying nearly $100 and walked out with a new iPhone for our child.

2

Therealgrimweafer t1_j9yy7g0 wrote

It may have been consumer law, battery replacement would not have able to be covered but a faulty past like a button would be

1

20InMyHead t1_j9z2fgh wrote

They do this, if you bring in your device for a repair and they find something broken that shouldn’t be they will repair or replace it free. Years ago, I brought in my several-year old phone for a $29 battery replacement, they gave me a entirely new same-model phone because they said they found the battery had swollen.

1

prick-in-the-wall t1_j9z7kxl wrote

Yeah it's almost like you are paying the price of 2.5 phones so it's NBD if they give you a whole new one.

1

RevelNlife51 t1_j9z9072 wrote

My 13pm recently died and I'd only bought it last May. I took it to the Apple store. They replaced the entire system minus the screen. It would've been $600 but since it was still under warranty it didn't cost me anything. It only took them 45minutes to fix and they were busy. I will always keep AppleCare.

1

Smookes17 t1_j9z9q3g wrote

Same thing happened to me with that exact description. Power button not working 😅

1

planefan001 t1_j9zombl wrote

I once had the “No Service” bug on an iPhone 7 and had to have the logic board replaced for free under warranty. It also had a faulty charging port that moved around and a battery at 91% health. Apple sent it out for repair and it came back with a new screen, new logic board, new battery, and new charging port. All for free. Got a similar invoice to what you got.

1

BlackMailerWagen t1_ja1zucn wrote

I remember they replaced my battery too when I sent my 7 in for that repair.

1

MagJack t1_j9zp1is wrote

it happened to me a few years ago, the battery needed replacing, they came out an hour later and said the phone was shorted out and they were replacing it, but it still worked and they helped me move everything over and I left with a new phone for free.

1

weemee t1_j9zq84b wrote

I had multiple issues with multiple repairs of my G4 laptop forever ago. The genius finally said to me, “You’ve been really patient with this . How about a new laptop.” It was an upgrade due to the age so… thank you genius.

This was so far back we were the only ones in the store half the time. I miss those days.

1

HerrBadger t1_j9zupd8 wrote

I’ve had this a couple of times, with an iPhone and an Apple Watch.

They’ve been great both times, but from the varied experiences I’ve heard, you may need to get the right person at the right time.

1

LilkaLyubov t1_j9zvyoj wrote

When I worked as a tech specialist, I would bend over backward to make something work out in your favor if you weren’t an asshole to me. We were hardly discouraged from doing that so long as we communicated with the techs in back about it, and didn’t abuse it. Stuff is expensive. Things happen. We’re human, too.

1

lizzinabox t1_ja0342j wrote

Yes apple is fantastic, as long as you’re not rude. My uncle jumped into a lake with his brand new phone, he was honest with the person at the Genius Bar, they had a good laugh, he got a new phone for $0.

My boyfriend shattered his screen, he had his wallet out to pay for a replacement and they didn’t charge him and also gave him a whole new phone.

My old iPhone went in for a new battery, then went back for a new side button, and they ended up just giving me a new phone “because of my inconvenience”

IMO apple makes great products, but their customer service is what wins me every single time.

1

GamerRadar t1_ja035wj wrote

I've sworn by Apple for this single reason. I've gone to android a bunch of times but always go back to apple for their support.. I'm only using a fold for now bc I love the folding aspect, but the fact that apple just has superior support is mind blowing.

I've had issues with a bunch of devices and they're always swift and fast in their repairs, there's been a few times in the past where they just came out with a new phone and took the old one back.

1

________0xb47e3cd837 t1_ja055ib wrote

Keen to get my mini battery done before price hike, but mines at 88% health… does it need to be 85?

1

EndlessZone123 OP t1_ja0scqm wrote

No. Just book an appointment online. The app or whatever won’t let you if it scans above 80. I just told the guy I’m doing it before the price hike and he was like alright.

1

L0rdLogan t1_ja057a0 wrote

I basically got a new phone for £25 when my back glass broke. Only thing original is the screen, everything else was new

1

thecanadiandriver101 t1_ja0gpbz wrote

If it's fully functional when they open it, you will receive a fully functional phone on return. Essentially the button somehow broke during the repair, so they replaced it all.

1

That_unpopular_kid t1_ja0i0iq wrote

Got a refurbished iPad Mini 5 last year and it made staticky sounds when playing games. I brought it in and they just straight up gave me a brand new one.

They're usually pretty good with this kinda stuff unless it was something you clearly did intentionally to the device.

1

JagLR t1_ja0n69t wrote

A friend of mine got one of the early iPads on day 1 (2nd or 3rd gen I think). He was walking to work with it in his hands the next day, tripped over and smashed it on the pavement. Took it to the Genius Bar explained what happened and they just swapped it out for free. Pretty lucky/good service.

1

McNuttyNutz t1_ja0o3x1 wrote

Son had a screen problem on 2 iPhones 12 both times I’m not sure what the guy did but my son got a new phone each time

Every time I have went to the Apple Store for a phone problem if it’s hardware they not all hand me a new phone

1

Raetoast t1_ja0tbxh wrote

Ive walked out with multiple free upgrades over the years when my phone died. Once even after they told me that wasn’t possible. I keep it friendly even when I get the answer I don’t want, and I think that helps.

This past summer when I ordered my MBP I asked for it to be delivered early, was told it wasn’t possible after they reached out to FedEx. I did in fact get my delivery a few hours later tho! Idk if that was just coincidence or not but it wasn’t scheduled to be delivered for four days and it didn’t say “out for delivery” at any point.

1

SuperDuperSkateCrew t1_ja0uusp wrote

Sometimes, I remember something happening to my iPhone 6 during a repair and they just gave me a brand new phone free of charge.

1

userX97ee2ska11qa t1_ja0vl0w wrote

I received a brand new MBA M2 because they couldn't help with high RAM usage due to "windowserver" process. They tried for about 6 month.

1

INACCURATE_RESPONSE t1_ja146da wrote

I dropped off and paid for a out of warranty screen replacement on my 11 pro (also in Australia) a couple of years ago, maybe just over a year after it came out.

They said it would be about an hour to complete, and I was welcome to come back or book a return appointment, it was early on a Sunday, so I decided to hang around the shopping centre.

Go back after an hour, and they said they needed another 30 minutes as the new screen didn’t work.

Came back in 30… same thing. There was an issue trying to get it to start. Asked if I could return in another 30.

Final time, they gave me a refurb to replace it as they were unable to successfully complete the screen replacement.

Moral of the story - if they broke it, they would tell you. I reckon there was an issue with the power button and it was just hanging on before you dropped it off.

1

didiboy t1_ja1b37h wrote

Reading comments makes me wish we had Apple Stores here are my country. The local ‘Premium Reseller’ stores are not as nice with warranties and customer support. Sure, they have great coverage, the stores are beautiful, sellers are great and kind, but if they can charge you for support, they’ll find a way.

1

elbartodxb t1_ja1bz2b wrote

I went to apple store last week to get my battery replaced- it was out of warranty and never had apple care. Also did it now to avoid the price inflation. They said they will need to arrange a like for like model for me, in case something happens to my phone during the repair, we will give you the new device. Nothing happened to my device though. But that facility in itself is outta this world!

1

WailOff t1_ja1jmmu wrote

I’ll tell you what happened

They use a special device that Apple designed themselves that’s used to heat and then remove the display from the frame enough to open the phone up, and someone probably forgot to take it off or just wasn’t paying attention, and it melted a component in the side button.

How do I know this? A mixture of having five+ years of phone experience, and I’ve also had this exact thing happen. They were supposed to replace the display on my 12 pro, but they broke the volume down button with the machine that’s supposed to open it up. They had to replace my entire phone for free. Good times.

1

Okaaaayanddd t1_ja1o9b4 wrote

Yeah… They sent back my phone for a screen replacement because of a chip or scratch on the back of the phone and quoted me like $400 to fix the whole thing..

Another time, they said my front facing camera wasn’t working when I took my phone in for a battery recall, I managed to be on vacation and have plenty of pictures taken with my front facing camera that day before I took it in. They actually replaced it that time for free with no Apple Care. They said they probably forgot to reconnect it and didn’t want to reopen it, so they just handed me a new phone.

1

Robin7861 t1_ja1wd0k wrote

Sadly in my country, we are still waiting for the 1st official Apple store to open. Currently we are served by Apple Authorised Retailers and the service experience varies from one to another. Any warranty replacement, takes a long time since it has to be shipped to neighbouring country, which is the closest with Apple centre and wait around 10 days minimum before any updates are given.

Hope that once we have the official store here, things will be a lot better like what you experienced.

1

faaarmer t1_ja1znoj wrote

Just had this today. My iPhone 12 pro max had condensation under the camera lenses. Went there and they said "$980 to swap for a new one". I came back the next day to do it, and the guy who served me said "this should be free due to Australian Consumer Law" and changed it to $0

1

JayWnr t1_ja22thd wrote

I was in middle school and got scammed into buying a water damaged iPhone 4(?) at the time online from eBay. Didn’t know why it wouldn’t charge or turn on, but brought it to an Apple Store and they gave me a refurbished one on the house. The employee even helped me identify all the signs that it was water damaged. Granted I think the next phone just came out, but the associate was definitely very nice for what he did in my opinion.

1

Idontmatter69420 t1_ja3mrpn wrote

About 3 months ago my right airpod(2ndgen) just decided to not work correctly and sounded like it was playing out the back and they were only about 6 months old, the warranty for whatever reason was a bit messed up so i had to get that sorted and once i did they were taken to my nearest apple store and apparently both AirPods "failed" whatever test they do to them and they just replaced both. I didn't notice anything wrong with the left but hey brand new ones and I haven't had any issues since

1

zitsky t1_j9zt8kw wrote

Wow. Apple fixed something for free? And we’re complaining?

−2

_Prisoner_24601 t1_j9zbhw2 wrote

Figure out where the dollar sign goes

−3