Are people starting to lose interest in Apple?

[Efour]

I've had three problems with Apple products over the years. Each time, I was able to walk into one of their stores and the product replaced on the spot.

I can't think of another electronic manufacturer who does the same thing. My local Samsung store is a pure sales operation.

Isn't this the very reason it costs so much extra in the first place? You can pay a ludicrous premium on any product from Argos and you will get it replaced like that too....

Im sat here with a 15" IMac Pro (A1260? )and the battery pack has literally exploded .... i thought this was the stuff of fairy tales and facebook scare stories... Ive never seen any Other battery "fail" like this one had.

Doesn't seem so premium to me how does the cover work can i just walk into a store with it and kick off?

Its my sisters ex-Lodgers she basically left it when she moved out, is the warrenty on the product owner or who ever brings it in.

Would they test the thing if i took it in my local shop so i know if its worth spending money on... or getting a free replacement.

 

[theheyes]

So how do you propose that Apple got this reputation? It seems you are implying that it materialised out of a fanboys ass! Sorry for the flippant comment, but Apple will only have gotten a reputation as having good products (RE: build quality) and good customer service if it was true...

If Apple does ANYTHING wrong then it is on 'every' website and internet forum so why can't them having good build quality and good customer service also be banded about?

Reputations precede unquestioned, and reputations are not necessarily reliable. Apple exclusively make premium products, and they excel at marketing their products around reliability and build quality that is, apparently, unmatched. And people buy into this.

I'm not questioning the fact that Apple make good stuff and have good customer service. I'm specifically calling out comments like any other company besides Apple has an inherent lack of quality or service, and that their competing products are inferior in this regard by a significant margin. It's simply not true.

I've had three problems with Apple products over the years. Each time, I was able to walk into one of their stores and the product replaced on the spot.

I can't think of another electronic manufacturer who does the same thing. My local Samsung store is a pure sales operation.

I'm not denying that Apple have good customer service. In fact, I've said several times in this thread alone that it's generally very good. But that has little or nothing to do with the reliability and build quality of the original product.

I would guess a lot of people on this forum have had contact with Apple customer service at some stage for replacement and repair issues, and most are very forthcoming with their good experiences. But for every piece of good service, surely the initial contact must have been made due to a fault in the purchased product?

So, in fact, if good customer service is common for Apple products, then it follows logically that faults or problems in Apple products are equally common. And that's my point; Apple products, on average, are not significantly more reliable than their competitors, contrary to what a lot of people would have you believe.

 

[n111ck]

So, in fact, if good customer service is common for Apple products, then it follows logically that faults or problems in Apple products are equally common. And that's my point; Apple products, on average, are not significantly more reliable than their competitors, contrary to what a lot of people would have you believe.

Prior to getting any Apple products I would generally put up with any minor issues with electrical products due to the inherent hassle of getting anything swapped by most retailers.

Apple on the other are second to none for stress free, hassle free swaps for even the most trivial complaint.

Can I really go into a 'Samsung' store and come out with a flawless replacement 5 minutes later on to which I can download an exact copy of my previous phone using my free cloud storage?

No other company can match the Apple customer life cycle IMO.

Suggesting that an extended warranty from the likes of Argos is similar experience to dealing with Apple is just laughable.

 

[theheyes]

And we're back to customer service again, which is beside the point.

 

[Efour]

And we're back to customer service again, which is beside the point.

or the only real point ?

 

[dacads]

There's a wide range of fruits, I like to keep my options open

 

[Adrianr]

And we're back to customer service again, which is beside the point.

Well, that depends how much stock you put in the role customer service plays in peoples interest in Apple. I would have thought that initially CS is an afterthought, and you only give it any credence when you're either burned by it, or receive what you consider to be exemplary service. I'd guess by now enough people have been using Apple to know that their CS is very good, that spreads through word of mouth and directly contributes to the general interest in the product.

I think their main problem is the usual one, stagnation. If you release the same thing over and over, no matter how good, eventually people will look elsewhere purely out of boredom. This is especially poignant when manufacturers are starting to catch up in aesthetics (thought I still don't think there is anything out there as good as the Macbook Pro's/Airs, still) and in terms of software as long as a computer runs a web browser and office that's more than enough for most people.

One thing that shouldn't be overlooked is Apples steady withdrawal from the pro creative market. I'm not sure of the feelings in New York or Paris, but there is a definite air of discontent around London at the moment. Given this is the bedrock from which Apple market it's 'coolness', if that is eroded away it could be detrimental to it's consumer market. If photography, graphics, fashion etc all move towards PC's and Apple finally saturate the grandparent market we could see a more general consumer shift there too.

 

[AlbertBarkley]

I was using iPhone 4S but dont know why it looks like bundle of garbage.. However Blackberry Z10 and Sumsung Galaxy Tab 2, look very attractive to me..

 

[Sheff]

I have to say I'm getting a little fed up of my iPhone 4S , the UI is boring and the notification area is really annoying (I keep accidentally dragging it down when in apps etc).

Ever since the upgrade to 6.1 safari will now sometimes freeze for a few seconds when opening a new tab.

I also agree that the screen width just isn't enough, I hate sending text messages in landscape when writing long messages and the keyboard in portrait just doesn't feel as good compared to the SGS2 or S3.

I know that this is probably partly because I've had the phone for more than 15 months now, but I'm very interested in the Sony Xperia Z (looks gorgeous and the water resistance is very appealing) and HTC One S (Zoe looks brilliant for trying to capture a baby on the move) - I think other manufacturers have caught up in flagship "build quality" which was what drew me to Apple in the first place.

 

[4T5]

In my experience people are getting fed up with iphones & tempted by bigger & better mobys like the SG3, Just about everyone I know now who had an iphone has switched apart from 2 that are on contracts that have already said they won't get another iphone.

On the flip side though I know Untold people who have ditched there PC's & Laptops for an Ipad, Not only that but a lot have bought the ipad 3 & have passed on there 1 to there kids.
They are not interested in a Android tablet at all & would never switch from there ipads. Not unless the same things happen to Tablets as had to mobys anyway.

That's my six shillings & sixpence.

 

[AshD93]

And we're back to customer service again, which is beside the point.

With regards to customer service, there are other providers with excellent service.

Sony with the PS3 and PSP for example, they literally come to your door and swap it for you.

Google with my Nexus, they gave me a link to order a brand new one with a bag and collection for the old one. And I was never left without a phone.

Companies such as John Lewis (admittedly resellers) are astonishingly good with customer service and their prices are not ridiculous either.

The three companies I mentioned above do not charge a premium for their customer service bar maybe JL.



With regards to Apple themselves, as stated, what they are releasing now is nothing special. Some of the changes they've made are questionable to say the least and they are losing their build quality USP. Go and look at a few Windows laptops and you'll see the build quality on metal laptops is excellent.

Also, you get a much better "spec wise" laptop compared to a Mac when buying into Windows. And for half the price.


Just in interest, is Mac OS REALLY as good as people make it sound like? I've used iOs a lot, but not the desktop versions.

 

[sbi5ar]

Just in interest, is Mac OS REALLY as good as people make it sound like? I've used iOs a lot, but not the desktop versions.

Short answer: yes!
Long answer: **** yes!

My productivity in OSX is well above that of a windows machine and they is due to lots of useful features that it has (Mission control, and dashboard) which allow you to have multiple desktops that you can switch between with a 4 finger swipe. The last time I properly used windows was about 2/3 years ago and I hate using my work computer because productivity is so slow. I end up connecting my laptop to the monitor and using that as with the added screen productivity goes up even further. Yes this may sound naff but I could never do that on a windows machine (things may have changed now).

The added 'bonus' is the Mac ecosystem that I have built which allows all of my tabs on safari (internet browser) to go straight to my ipad and iPhone. I have journals which automatically port across to my iPad etc... Everything works flawlessly. When I get home I can throw up a film on the TV using air display. It literally just works! (of course there is a premium price to pay but I'm okay with that).

 

[n111ck]

With regards to Apple themselves, as stated, what they are releasing now is nothing special. Some of the changes they've made are questionable to say the least and they are losing their build quality USP.

If you look at the mobile forum people are raving about the rumoured Galaxy 4which as far as I can see is just another spec bump in probably another ugly plastic case.

Yet if Apple do a spec bump then ZOMG its just an 'S' version, no innovation, Apple are finished. Blah blah blah.

There's too much hysteria around Apple on the Internet - when a company manages to release a single phone model that actually outsells the latest iPhone then maybe you could argue people are losing interest.

 

[konicky]

With regards to customer service, there are other providers with excellent service.


Companies such as John Lewis (admittedly resellers) are astonishingly good with customer service and their prices are not ridiculous either.

Buying Apple products from John Lewis = life

 

[AshD93]

Buying Apple products from John Lewis = life

3 years guarantee but no student discount I think.

 

[peter_hutson]

With regards to customer service, there are other providers with excellent service.

Sony with the PS3 and PSP for example, they literally come to your door and swap it for you.

Google with my Nexus, they gave me a link to order a brand new one with a bag and collection for the old one. And I was never left without a phone.

Companies such as John Lewis (admittedly resellers) are astonishingly good with customer service and their prices are not ridiculous either.

The three companies I mentioned above do not charge a premium for their customer service bar maybe JL.



With regards to Apple themselves, as stated, what they are releasing now is nothing special. Some of the changes they've made are questionable to say the least and they are losing their build quality USP. Go and look at a few Windows laptops and you'll see the build quality on metal laptops is excellent.

Also, you get a much better "spec wise" laptop compared to a Mac when buying into Windows. And for half the price.


Just in interest, is Mac OS REALLY as good as people make it sound like? I've used iOs a lot, but not the desktop versions.

You just used Sony as one of your key examples and in doing so have supported the point already being made. Apple charges more, partially because of the excellent customer services and support they provide, but they are not unique in this matter, Sony, Toshiba and few other key players also do. When you compare the price of a fairly similarly speced machine between sony and apple the difference is not that great. The so called apple tax diminishes significantly. So both companies are charging more for their service. I don't see why people find this hard to believe.

High quality support and warranty policies of a company cost more, they then pass this on to the customer. Some decide its not worth the premium, but others think it is. Having experienced dell, acer and lg warranty hell, I will never buy one of their products again. I don't have the time to get evolved in a battle with a supplier, with apple I don't have to. Admittedly I then pay more for my product. I know this and am happy to do so. Others are not, I'm cool with that. But generalisations that state apple products are a rip off and overpriced show a gross lack of knowledge as to what is actually being purchased and a lack of understanding of other people's needs.

In the end we all make our own choices, be happy with yours and appreciate other might have different needs and values. Not necessarily better, just different.

 

[uniQ]

I would have added Dell to the list, no idea about computers but I've had monitors replaced next business day under warranty without any hoop jumping.

 

[PhysicsMan94]

I think people are beginning to lose their loyalty and realise that they can get much better for a hell of a lot cheaper - just look at the Apple desktop tower, it costs around £3000 and has pretty substandard hardware such as GPUs like the AMD HD5450 (with limited, but expensive, upgrade options) oh and you need to pagan extra £900 or so for a monitor. So, essentially, you're looking at £4000 for the Apple logo on a piece of outdated hardware.

For just over £4000, I could get an i7-3970X with Dual SLI GTX Titans and 16GB of 2400MHz RAM all on an EVGA SR-X Motherboard with a 256GB SSD and 2 TB Mechanical HDD and a snazzy monitor.

I know which I'd prefer.

 

[richb93]

I think people are beginning to lose their loyalty and realise that they can get much better for a hell of a lot cheaper - just look at the Apple desktop tower, it costs around £3000 and has pretty substandard hardware such as GPUs like the AMD HD5450 (with limited, but expensive, upgrade options) oh and you need to pagan extra £900 or so for a monitor. So, essentially, you're looking at £4000 for the Apple logo on a piece of outdated hardware.

For just over £4000, I could get an i7-3970X with Dual SLI GTX Titans and 16GB of 2400MHz RAM all on an EVGA SR-X Motherboard with a 256GB SSD and 2 TB Mechanical HDD and a snazzy monitor.

I know which I'd prefer.

People don't buy Mac Pro's because they're good value for money. They buy them because they're the best tool for their particular job.

 

[richb93]

Short answer: yes!
Long answer: **** yes!

My productivity in OSX is well above that of a windows machine and they is due to lots of useful features that it has (Mission control, and dashboard) which allow you to have multiple desktops that you can switch between with a 4 finger swipe. The last time I properly used windows was about 2/3 years ago and I hate using my work computer because productivity is so slow. I end up connecting my laptop to the monitor and using that as with the added screen productivity goes up even further. Yes this may sound naff but I could never do that on a windows machine (things may have changed now).

The added 'bonus' is the Mac ecosystem that I have built which allows all of my tabs on safari (internet browser) to go straight to my ipad and iPhone. I have journals which automatically port across to my iPad etc... Everything works flawlessly. When I get home I can throw up a film on the TV using air display. It literally just works! (of course there is a premium price to pay but I'm okay with that).

Long time Windows user here and I have to agree with this. I love my MacBook Air. OS X is a ton better than Windows productivity wise. But if you haven't used Mac OS for more than a few hours you wouldn't really understand why.