Even at Apple where consistency practiced and preached, not all Apple Stores are created equal, just ask reader Adam. The Bluetooth capability on his Macbook Pro was malfunctioning and because he relies on his Macbook for work, he couldn't simply drop it off for a week to be repaired. Fortunately, Adam had a 1-week vacation ahead, so he left the Macbook at the Millenia Apple Store in Orlando, FL. who promised him that the repairs would be made before the end of his break. Adam returned to pick up the Macbook and discovered that not only had it not been fixed, nobody had even attempted to diagnose the problem. Adam could not afford to miss any work, so on a whim, he brought it to a different Apple Store which produced a dramatically different result. Adam's letter, inside...

Here's a nice little story of what I encountered at the Apple Store.
Bad customer service turns to good customer service, I guess?

I have a MacBook Pro that I've had for about a year now. I noticed a
few months ago that the Bluetooth was acting up - by acting up I mean
Leopard told me there was no Bluetooth installed. I use my laptop as
my business. I do freelance graphic design so I rely on my MacBook Pro
and couldn't afford to take it in for a week just to get the Bluetooth
fixed.

Well I had planned a vacation out of town for a week so before I left
I thought I'd bring it in to the Millenia Apple Store so they can work
on it while I was away. When I brought it in, the "Apple Genius"
looked at my repair history and saw that I had my top case replaced in
January (which I did, they fixed a double click mouse problem). I
mentioned to him that my bluetooth has failed to work for several
months. He told me that the Bluetooth module was attached to the top
case, and when they put a new top case on in January they did not
transfer the Bluetooth module from the old part to my computer.

Wow, ok so Apple screwed it up in the first place. The tech apologized
and said it was totally their fault I had to come back, etc. I told
them is wasn't too much of a problem since I had planned to go on
vacation. He promised me it would be fixed and that was that.

7 days later, when I returned from my vacation I headed back to the
Millenia Apple Store. My computer was not ready. As a matter of fact,
the tech told me they had a back log and my computer hasn't even been
looked at. I spoke to the manager, told them it was Apple's fault for
me being there in the first place and I needed my computer. He
apologized to me but stood firm that it would be done in a few more
days but that was unacceptable to me as I needed my laptop for work.
So I left, laptop in hand in the same state as I brought it in.

I then went to the Florida Mall Apple Store and spoke to the manager
there. I told him the story and he seemed appalled at the way I was
treated. He took my computer and promised it would be fixed in an hour
or so. I wandered around the mall for a little while and came back to
a fully functioning computer. He told me he would speak to the
district manager about the way I was treated at the Millenia store.

So there you go. Two Apple Stores, two ways of being treated. Apple
supposedly has the highest customer service rating in the industry but
apparently there are still holes to be filled.

-Adam

Apparently, all Apple stores aren't the perfect little clones as they would have you believe. But believe it or not, we're not here to crucify Apple. The fact that the other store was able to understand Adam's needs and rapidly correct his problem is evidence that Apple's extraordinary customer service is the rule and not the exception. Kudos to the Apple Store at the Florida Mall.

(Photo: dlayphoto)