No Instant Defective Device Replacement at Apple Online Store Turkey

Summary

I ordered a new iPad from the Apple Online Store Turkey, which had a minor defect on its screen. Apple support said that I would have to wait 10 days for a replacement. Brick & mortar Apple stores do instant replacements in such cases; therefore, I don’t recommend anyone using the online store for substantial purchases.

Details

Last week, one of my peers approached me and asked if I’d be willing to sell my (2012) iPad to her. I use my iPad in meetings and on the stage in case I need to read music while playing. Therefore; it has an important place in my daily life, but I don’t need too much computing power. Nevertheless; I didn’t want to miss the opportunity to upgrade my hardware. We shook hands, I passed the iPad to her and ordered a new one from the Apple Online Store Turkey. Needless to say, the delivery was very fast and I was playing around with my new Apple toy in no time.

However; I noticed a black fleck on the screen. It’s not a dead pixel because it’s visible when the iPad is turned off as well. It’s either a tiny crack within the glass, or a little piece of dust between glasses. It doesn’t really affect my usage, but defects cause raised eyebrows when you are re-selling your device. And why not have a perfect device when you paid for it?

Being a long time Apple fan, I confidently contacted support to talk about my replacement options. The people I talked with were very polite and knowledgeable; however, the result was very disappointing. They said that the cargo company would contact me within 48 hours, pick the defective iPad up, carry it to some facility for inspection, and a new one would be sent to me within 7 days. That makes 10 days in total. Although I asked for different options, I was told that there isn’t one.

I could get an instant replacement if the purchase was made from a brick & mortar store.

I use an iPad extensively at work and on the stage, and sold my old iPad. So I don’t have 10 days to live without an iPad. If that was an iPhone, living 10 days without a phone would be impossible either – not everyone has a backup device. Therefore, I was forced to live with my defective device. I don’t know what else to do, and I’m very dissatisfied.

Bitter lesson learned: Never ever purchase a substantial Apple device from the online store unless you have a backup, because you don’t get instant replacements like the brick & mortar Apple stores.

Supplementary

The order was made at 2017-07-11, my order number was W430294017, and the incident number of the issue was 100236141732.

Advertisement