My MacBook Pro Nightmare

Sergey Tsalkov
February 2007 - March 2007

Think Apple does customer service right? Think again. When my new MacBook Pro arrived from the factory with a defect that AppleCare couldn't correct, I had to go to the brink of court to get my money back.

So it was time for a new computer, and I was eager to get one of those new, top of the line Intel Macs. I'd been using an iBook for a year and was happy with it, but it was time for something with more horsepower behind it. The new 17" MacBook Pros with an Intel Core 2 Duo processor sounded nice, so I sprung for one. It had a dual core processor with each core running at 2.33 GHz, 2 GB of RAM, a 160GB HD and an awesome screen at 1680x1050. Overall, a kickass machine, and I got it on the cheap by joining Apple's Developer Program (costs $100 for students) and buying the $2800 machine for only $2200 with Apple's Developer Discount. This beats the standard student discount, by the way.

Not half bad.

But, little did I know of the nightmare that I was walking into.

A Problem Develops

I'd owned the system for less than a day when I noticed a flaw. The computer was emitting a high pitched noise from under the keyboard. Now, I'd done my research prior to purchasing the system and I knew of this particular problem. The wikipedia article on the Macbook Pro speaks of the noise issues, as do thousands of other reports on the Internet, but most of these reports were more than a year old and were posted shortly after the model was released. I'd assumed that Apple had fixed the issue since then, but clearly they had not.

Now before you assume that I'm simply someone with sensitive hearing who's complaining about standard computer noise, keep in mind this was a very unique noise problem. It was present only when the second core of the processor was not under load, and then only if the built-in iSight camera was not operating. Turning off the second core also silenced the noise. These exact same symptoms were reported by thousands of other users online, as well as in comments in Apple's own support forums. Various programmers had clearly investigated this in far greater depth than Apple has, and have actually released programs that would eliminate the noise by keeping the processor's second core occupied.

All of this is evidence that we're dealing with a design or manufacturing flaw rather than just standard system noise, and all of the proposed solutions were inadequate because they demand that I essentially give up one of the processor's cores, or greatly reduce battery life by keeping the iSight camera on at all times. This would have left me with a system greatly inferior to the one I paid for, and was therefore unacceptable.

They Can't Fix It

"No problem," I thought. AppleCare has always had a reputation for reliability, so I called them up. After walking me through a few possible solutions, which failed, they gave me a choice. Since this system was defective out of the box, I had the option of simply having it replaced. However, the technician guaranteed me that the problem could be fixed, so I chose to go the repair route. A box was promptly mailed to me, and I sent it in.

The laptop came back to me 2 weeks later, with a sheet that enumerated the various parts they had replaced. I fired up the system, only to discover that the problem hadn't been fixed. Not only that, but the machine came back with a second problem. A separate noise was now coming from the screen when screen brightness was set to neither maximum nor minimum. This problem, too, is commonly documented and was mentioned in the MacBook Pro's Wikipedia entry. It's known to be caused by a faulty inverter in the screen, and is not unique to Mac systems.

So I call AppleCare again, and this time immediately demand that the machine be replaced. They absolutely refused, explaining that now that I started down the repair route, I have no choice but to send the machine in for repair once more. "But what if repair fails a second time," I kept asking, but the AppleCare representative declined to answer. I was, however, still optimistic and decided that it couldn't hurt to try once more.

AppleCare Doesn't Care

To make a long story short, Apple's techs got in touch with me after the computer had been received by their repair facilities. They said their diagnostics revealed nothing wrong and the system had been elevated to their senior techs. They wanted to know if I could provide any more information about the problem. I went over my (already thorough) recollection of the problem, symptoms, and how to reproduce it.

Not long afterward, the computer arrived in the mail again.. with the same noise problem. By this point, it had been a month since I first received the system, it had been in for repair twice, and the problem was still there. I called up AppleCare once more, and the tech said I had no choice but the send the machine in a third time.

I wasn't prepared to play along any further. I asked for a refund, and was transferred to customer relations. I explained what had happened, and how it was clear to me that AppleCare is incapable of repairing this thing and I think I'm entitled to a working computer. The representative told me that a replacement and a refund are both completely out of the question because my computer is not defective. I asked to speak to a manager, but that didn't help matters. The manager also insisted that I could not have the system replaced or my money refunded. I pointed out to her that Apple's own Repair Service agreement contained the following language:

"If, after a reasonable number of attempts, the defect has not been fixed, the buyer may return this product for a replacement or a refund subject, in either case, to a deduction of a reasonable charge for usage."

But the manager wasn't going along with it. She said rather bluntly that all of this is irrelevant as long as no defect exists, and that was Apple's position. According to her, the noise I was hearing was entirely normal and "within spec." She wasn't interested in my musings about why AppleCare was replacing parts to try to fix a nonexistent problem, or why thousands of Apple customers had documented the exact same nonexistent problem, or why a normal system noise that's not caused by a defect would go away when the iSight camera is turned on. She then proceeded to hang up on me.

Should I Go to Court?

.. that was my next thought, really. I was out $2200 and stuck with a laptop that I couldn't use. I decided that if Apple didn't start cooperating, I was going to sue them in California's Court of Small Claims. It was an ambitious plan, but not an unprecedented one. I had reason on my side, and the court was likely to be sympathetic. I could make my case with a well-reasoned argument and represent myself without needing to hire a lawyer. My argument would go something like this.

There exists an implied warranty under which Apple must provide me with a working product. Since they have not, there is a breach of warranty. A computer that emits an unusual noise is not fit for the purpose for which it is sold, since I can't use it for common tasks that require intense concentration, like programming. The "pro" model is marketed specifically to professionals, including musicians and graphics designers, so it is reasonable that the system is sold to be used for mentally intensive pro-level work.
Even if the implied warranty didn't exist, there's the agreement I quoted from above. In it, Apple expressly accepts that it will replace or refund in the event that a repair fails after a reasonable number of attempts. I believe that 2 attempts, during which I am deprived of my computer for a month, is reasonable. When I asked for either a replacement or refund after what I believed was a reasonable number of attempts, Apple absolutely refused to discuss the matter.
The agreement isn't specific about who should decide when a problem exists. However, since I was in the weaker negotiating position with respect to this agreement; that is, Apple's lawyers drafted it and I was simply presented with a "take it or leave it" series of clauses with no room for negotiation, any ambiguities in the agreement should be construed in my favor (hint for the uninformed: this is a Common Law tradition). Since one of those ambiguities is who decides when a defect exists, I should get to make that decision.
It is also unreasonable for Apple to have the sole power of judgment as to what constitutes a flaw because they have a clear economic interest in deciding the no flaws exist, ever. In the past, they have shown a pattern of ignoring common flaws in their products right up until someone started a class action lawsuit.
Even if we consider Apple's position that no flaw exists, that position fails on its merits. It ignores the thousands of frustrated customers who have documented the problem and proven that it's a design flaw by isolating ways to fix it. It also ignores the fact that AppleCare techs were replacing components in my computer the first time I sent it in. Why would you replace components in a flawless system, and which components would you replace?
Apple's argument that a noise might exist, but is "within spec" if it does, is also flawed. This "spec" that it is "within," if it exists at all, has never been seen by anyone outside of Apple and therefore shouldn't be relevant. My arguments suggesting that this is a design flaw are also important here.
Apple's failure to adhere to either the expressed agreement, or the implied warranty, or both, has injured me in the amount that I spent on the laptop. I would be made whole again if the court found in my favor in this amount, so that I could buy a similar laptop from a more competent company.

..and that's pretty much it. I decided to give Apple one more try before I initiated the lawsuit.

A Conflict Resolved, A Customer Lost

So I called Apple once more, got a manager, and explained why I thought it was reasonable for me to get a refund. I told him that I was prepared to take this to court, and he said the matter would be investigated internally and Apple would get back to me. They did, in a few days, with an agreement to issue a full refund.

Finally, a great deal of stress and a few good arguments later, I'd won. I got my refund and will be taking my money to a good computer store that offers a no-questions-asked return policy next time. But I urge you, reader, to learn from my mistakes. I don't deny that Apple's computers are great machines in some respects, but when you buy a MacBook Pro, be warned.

Don't let what happened to me, happen to you.

P.S. I documented every event in this battle at the time that it happened. Such documentation is quite useful in court. Here's the log if you're curious.