My Experience with Apple Store support....

[dan330]

My gf gave her mother (70ish years old) an iphone5 (3 yrs ago)..that she purchase from a friend (no Receipt).
All good for past 3 yrs that the mother has been using it..
She uses it like a dumb phone.. no texting or internet or games or apps .. just calls.

The mother goes out of the country for 3 months.
During that time.. my gf changes plans on T-mobile to a better plan…
And to do it.. she had to kill the mother’s plan and get a new number for her.

The mother gets back and we try to activate her iphone 5 on the new sim card..
The phone is LOCKED… It ask for the .. AppleID..
which someone created for the mother.. and she forgets all that info because she never needed to use it.
I figure no big deal.. Go to Apple Store to get it fixed .. or a full hard reset if needed.

The tech genius.. said he cant help.. because I need to show proof of purchase.
Nothing he can do.. the phone is a brick!! Not willing to do anything!
This phone is NOT stolen or reported missing .. clean EMI #
A BRICK… I cant accept that.. so I ask to see a manager.

The manager was able to find the AppleID.. because of the phone was associated to it.
But we cant remember the password… so no joy.
He asked for the phone #.. the sys will text the phone the password.
Told him the SIM with that phone number has been cancelled.. so no joy again!

He said there are only 2 options…
1. He tells me..i have to log into the AppleID, before he can reset the phone.
2. Or the Proof of purchase.. it has some info (special #) that will let them hard reset the phone.
And since I cant do either one.. then apple can not help.. it is a BRICK.

So we give up… on this.
GRRRRR--------

The manager then ask.. “is there anything else I can help with?” (like he was a lot of help)
So we move to our next issue… my GF’s iphone7 had some odd issue not letting her pick up or make calls earlier that day. She did a reboot and it did not help.
but after it made some crazy loud alarm sound on it’s own, it has since started working normal again.
The manager in his great wisdom .. puts us back in the que to talk to another apple genius.
So we wait…

After a few minutes.. we talk to different tech.
We go over this issue and he does some phone self check…
While we wait.. he ask how is our night??? I am a little upset and I tell him how unfair it is to have a $500 brick iphone.. that is NOT stolen or found.. but is still a $500 BRICK…
He says.. “how sad, that sucks.. sorry.. let me take a look at that after I get this iphone7 started through another test”.
So.. he tells me the test DOESN’T show any issues with the iphone7… but will take note of it and if it happens again.. they will replace it. ok.. whatever….

Then we go over all the details again.. on why I have a BRICK and the normal way of hard resetting this phone can not work.. due to the unique way this phone was used.. and obtained.
He runs the serial number of the phone on some database..

IT WAS SOLD AT THAT PARTICULAR APPLE STORE 3 YRS AGO!!!!!
He prints out the receipt.. and goes talks to a different manager.
It is reset and we are good too go!!!!! HELL YEAH!

So.. an iphone that is legal and good… with no issues…
If you loose your appleID and receipt… which a situation that can happen.
The phone becomes useless… a brick.. cant use it for anything!!!
Well maybe a paper weight.
Yeah.. I don’t like apple!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

FYI.. there are about 4-5 managers working a day at the store..
and each manager is only allowed 5 hard resets a day!!!
The manager that approved the reset had to get another manager to confirm the reset, because he used up his 5 for today.

 

[lunatic59]

"Geniuses" they are NOT, but it's not entirely Apple's fault. If you have Factory Reset Protection enabled on your Android phone and you forget the credentials, you're in the same boat.

Consider it a first world lesson learned.

 

[dontpanicbobby]

tl:dr

Isn't up to 10 yet? That's embarrassing if they're not.

 

[svim]

This whole situation sounds like you're pissed at Apple store employees because there's no way they can validate the chain of ownership of that phone. As there's no paper trail or record of resale on their part there's also nothing to indicate the current legal owner of that phone. You yourself know the history of that phone but they do not, and people trying to resurrect stolen merchandise is hardly an uncommon problem.

 

[dan330]

If lost or stolen.. it should be reported.
If you lost your $500-800 phone.. and don’t report it… then that is the owner’s issue!!

If the product has a good EMI.. and no billing issues..
Then it should be assumed .. it is paid and legally owned.

innocent until proven guilty!

You want to assume everyone without a receipt is a thief?
How many products do you own and purchased.. and have thrown away the receipt?

Should you have to prove you own the TV… before you get it fixed?

Your car.. has an engine problem…
You take it into a garage to get is fixed…
Should you bring in your proof of ownership first???

How many buy phones /devices 2nd hand… and don’t get a receipt?
Are they thieves too???

 

[lunatic59]

You know all that paperwork that comes with the products you listed and obviously never read? That's all covered under the warranty information. So, if you don't keep the receipt, or register the product with the manufacturer, then that's you're negligence.

And yes, on the big items (over say $150) i do save the receipts. I keep them with my tax records which is just a habit from being a small business owner. It has saved me more than once.