Dim Sum Diaries
Well, that does it. Apple Customer Care has officially screwed me over. I dearly love my iBook...but when I get my next laptop, it will NOT BE A MAC.

Since the year warranty on my iBook was almost up, I decided to go ahead and buy the AppleCare warranty. Biggest mistake of this year. Because I am a dork who wasn't paying attention when I called Apple Sales, I was sold the PowerBook warranty instead of the iBook one. I didn't realize this until later, so when they shipped it, I refused to sign for it so it could be sent back to Apple and I could be given a credit. This was back on 5/21/04. So on 6/4 I call Apple to check the status. The package is still at the FedEx warehouse, but they will request that the package be sent back to Apple so I can be given a credit. So as of today I still haven't heard anything, so I decide to call to see what's up. After being put on hold for 20 minutes, I am informed that the package is in limbo. No new tracking # has been issued for the return, Raymond (or maybe his name is Bill?) unhelpfully says. You'll have to call FedEx yourself and see if you can find it yourself.

Not so, I say. I would like to speak to your manager. 10 minutes later, Leanne the supervisor comes on the phone and says, oh, why don't you just buy the correct apple warranty and we'll put a tracer on the missing package then you'll be given a credit. I'm not sure if I should talk to her about buying the new warranty? I'll even give you free overnight shipping, she says. Have a great day! Click.

Now I am really confused! Did I already buy the second warranty? What just happened? So I call back, get the regular applecare tech. Do you know Leanne, I say? Nope, the tech unhelpfully says. I'll have to transfer you to the same resolution department. So on hold I go for another 20 minutes. The hold music is creepy and boring. Finally another tech guy comes on. I explain the situation to him. Should I talk to Leanne again, I ask?

No, he says. You should talk to Sales about buying the new warranty. He'll kindly transfer me. Wait a minute, I say. How are they going to know about the free overnight shipping?

Oh, after Sales takes your money, have them transfer you back over to us, then we'll give you free shipping. And you can keep calling back about the credit too. We know you love the hold music so much. Of course, he puts me on hold again. I am ready to stick my cell phone up this guy's ass. I am so pissed off with the hoops I have to jump through in order to get a credit. Its not my fault that FedEx is a slacker. It should be your problem, not mine. I hang up the phone.

When I get home, I get on the phone with my credit card company and tell them about the dispute with Apple. So I'm not liable for the amount anymore. I don't know when I'm going to get the credit from Apple...maybe next year some time. But now they can take it up with my credit card company.

I find it quite ironic that I paid $239 for extended excellent customer care and in the process of getting customer care for the customer care, I get completely screwed.

So you just lost me as a customer, Apple computers. My next laptop will be a non-Mac.