Apple is making me pay for replacment!

Question

Yes my warranty has passed and I had my iPhone for 1 1/2 years but it is still in great condition. The problem isn't with me, its with apple. So I have a bug where internet disconnects and then says wrong password and then doesnt let me reconnect. It sometimes works when I disconnect the internet by shutting the power on and off. It can also be very slow for me at times when fast for everyone else. This happens with all wifi not just at home and I am running the same version as everyone in my family. They all have the 5S like me and don't get thesd issue. I tried restore and the dfu method and basically everything that is suggested. To make sure my backup wasn't corrupted I just restored as new iPhone and it still does it. Now this is clearly a fault with the software because it started happening when I updated to IOS 8 and the later updates never helped. I'm currently on the latest. So I made an appointment to the "genius" bar and they tried to help me out and did the DFU restore method and told me to see if it helped which it didn't. They told me if it didn't help then I need to pay $200 to replace it. They are making me pay $200 plus exchange my perfectly good condition iPhone because of the fault in their software? I mean if my screen was cracked or something that would make sense but this isn't on me. Why would I do this and possibly not even get a new phone back (because usually they replace you with a refurbished phone) when I can get a brand new one myself and then sell mine? Is apple stupid or something? Thats just like buying a candy bar that has no candy in it.
What should I do and what are your thoughts?
PS: Don't tell me that the replacements are new because half the time they are refurbished and that is someone else's phone that was either broken before or has a load of germs on it.

Answer 1

DavidGuba wrote:
Yes my warranty has passed and I had my iPhone for 1 1/2 years but it is still in great condition. The problem isn't with me, its with apple. So I have a bug where internet disconnects and then says wrong password and then doesnt let me reconnect. It sometimes works when I disconnect the internet by shutting the power on and off. It can also be very slow for me at times when fast for everyone else. This happens with all wifi not just at home and I am running the same version as everyone in my family. They all have the 5S like me and don't get thesd issue. I tried restore and the dfu method and basically everything that is suggested. To make sure my backup wasn't corrupted I just restored as new iPhone and it still does it. Now this is clearly a fault with the software because it started happening when I updated to IOS 8 and the later updates never helped. I'm currently on the latest. So I made an appointment to the "genius" bar and they tried to help me out and did the DFU restore method and told me to see if it helped which it didn't. They told me if it didn't help then I need to pay $200 to replace it. They are making me pay $200 plus exchange my perfectly good condition iPhone because of the fault in their software? I mean if my screen was cracked or something that would make sense but this isn't on me. Why would I do this and possibly not even get a new phone back (because usually they replace you with a refurbished phone) when I can get a brand new one myself and then sell mine? Is apple stupid or something? Thats just like buying a candy bar that has no candy in it.
What should I do and what are your thoughts?
PS: Don't tell me that the replacements are new because half the time they are refurbished and that is someone else's phone that was either broken before or has a load of germs on it.
Replacement iPhones from Apple are not previously used devices.  No one owned that device before you.  It is a remanufactured device.  This is different from refurbished.
Refurbished is usually what your carrier gives you.  It is a previously used device, that has been physically inspected for nay signs of damage, and then simply erased and set up as new and tested.  It's really no different than what you could get from a private party.
Apple's replacements are either A) New out of the box or B) Remanufactured, which means the device begins a a collection of individual, brand new components (with only the camera or processor being possibly 'reclaimed').  Each component goes through an individual quality check, then the device is assembled.  It is tested along the way at different points of construction, and the final assembled product is then quality checked.
A 'new' iPhone pulled for the purpose of replacement goes through the same final quality check.
In either case, this is a higher level of quality check than any new iPhone you can buy from a store goes through.  In essence, a replacement iPhone from Apple has gone through a much higher level quality check than a new iPhone.  I'm currently using a replacement iPhone 4, which was replaced due to damage caused by me.  It has been working perfectly for over two years now.
You are the one that chose not to extend your coverage.  When you bought the device, you agreed to a one-year manufacturer warranty.  In other words, you agreed that you were expecting only one year of proper operation of the device.  Anything beyond that time frame would be considered a 'bonus'.  If you didn't like those terms, then you should have extended the coverage with AppleCare+.
You say you paid '$200' for the device.  Actually, you didn't.  When you bought it from the retailer (your carrier, presumably), your carrier discounted it by about $450.  But part of your monthly bill with your carrier actually goes towards repaying that subsidized price.  They don't delineate that in your agreement, but that's what happens.
And it's not the software.  If it was the software, then ALL identical devices running the same iOS would have the same problem.
iOS 8.1.3 on an iPhone 5S is the exact same lines of code as iOS 8.1.3 on another iPhone 5S.  There is absolutely no difference, period.
When it comes to figuring out the root cause of a problem with an iOS device, here are the possible culprits:
A) Hardware (the iPhone itself)
B) Operating System (the iOS)
C) User Data (everything that you've loaded onto the device, such as third-party apps, photos, messages, etc.)
D) Environmental or account-side issues.
You say you've restored the device as new.  If true, then you've removed C as a component.  Now, did you restore the iPhone via iTunes on your computer and reinstall a fresh copy of the iOS?  While it is possible for a corrupted installation of the iOS to cause problems, the odds of two consecutive corrupt installations are astronomically high.  It just doesn't happen.  If you want to be really sure, use a different computer to restore via iTunes.  The odds of two different computer/two different iOS installations having problems is virtually impossible.
So, if' you've reinstalled the iOS, then you've eliminated B.
Now, does this issue happen regardless of whether you're using cellular data or wi-fi to connect to the internet?  Does it happen regardless of where you are or what wi-fi network you are connected to?  If you have the same issue with the device properly restored as new via iTunes, even if you're using different data connections, then you've eliminated D.
This leaves A: The iPhone itself.  And therefore, there is some form of problem or defect in the hardware.  And therefore, it falls under the terms of the warranty.  And, once again... you agreed to the terms of the warranty at time of purchase.
Let me ask you this; do you own a house?  Are you paying a mortgage on that house?  If so, you agreed with the bank to pay a certain amount each month.  Now, if the bank called you and said they were changing the agreement, without your approval, and increasing your monthly payments by $500 each month, would you be okay with that?  Should they be allowed to change the terms of the agreement without your approval?
No?
Then why do you feel you have the right to change your agreement with Apple without Apple's approval?
And finally... germs?  Really?  You're exposed to more germs on a daily basis just by walking around and being near other people than you would from a replacement iPhone.  Do you really think that Apple just takes in a device and then stuffs it in a box as a 'replacement'?  If you're that germaphobic, then wear a mask and wipe down everything with antiseptic wipes.