Very disapointed with Apple Support, MacBook in repair shop for 2 months.

Question

I don't know who to call, no one seems to care. I found no email address for Apple Support or for AppleCare owners support queries. My name is Andre Alves Garzia and I live in Brazil, I am a software developer and an ADC member. My development machine is/was a MacBook 13'', it was a very nice laptop until it started powering off with that silly design mistake that was named "random shutdown syndrome", I could no longer trust my machine for it could crash at any time and refuse to power up again. The machine was covered by the standard warranty and I also own a AppleCare extension plan for it. I took my machine to an authorized support shop here in Brazil, the same place I bought the AppleCare, probably the most famous apple shop here. This was on october 10th... Until today they haven't fixed the machine, I call them and they say that Apple Brazil is yet to send the replacement parts (a logic board and a heatsink), all my development stalled. I am a contract worker unable to work because Apple Brazil can't ship replacement parts!!!!
I am uterlly disapointed. If it was a matter of waiting couple weeks, okay, I could live with that but on the same shop that my machine is sitting doing nothing, there are dozens new machines, but they can't take the parts of a new machine, they must wait for the replacement... screw your loyal customer that buys a new system every year, screw the same developer that made many people switch in Brazil and that was a speaker in about six conferences in the last two years, always telling how good was to be a developer in a apple world... I earn nothing for more than a month because of a simple logic board. Even as I own all kinds of warranty and stuff, no replacement machine was offered, no one seems to care...
I phoned the Apple hotline here and the very polite girl on the other side said that she needs to verify why my parts are not here and that it will take time... time is all I have now.
I begin to think that I should publish an article in a really big newspaper here to make people pay attention how disrespectful apple brazil is with their customers... maybe this way someone will fix my machine.
This might not be the category for this post but I found no category for "apple support rant" and if this category is "Using your macbook" then it fits because I am not using my macbook because apple support does not work.
disapointed
Andre Garzia ([email protected])

Answer 1

I clicked on your notice feeling quite prepared not to believe your story, and ended up feeling very sympathetic! You seem quite reasonable and polite and it must be horrible having to go without your machine for all this time.
If I were you, I would do one of two things. The less satisfactory would be to ask for the machine back while you wait for parts. I don't know how severe your RSD was, but mine was quite liveable - it happened mostly on awakening from sleep, once or twice in a row, and my computer always responded to a prolonged hold of the power button and, in 1 gH mode, it didn't RSD. Like you, I need my macbook for work, so I asked the repair place to order the parts, let me know when they came in, and then I called for a repair appointment, and they fixed the computer while I waited. I also waited about 4 weeks for parts, but at least I had the use of my computer while I waited.
The more satisfactory thing would be to patiently and politely keep asking for higher and higher level Apple employees until you find someone willing to help you by a) giving you a definite repair date; or b) giving you a replacement computer.
I think if you decide in advance that you are not going to get off the phone until you have one or the other, and then you calmly and politely go about explaining your position and asking for a solution, and asking for a higher official if the one you are speaking to can't or won't help you, then you are likely to get your problem solved.
Please tell us how it works out with you!