Forgive the lack of prose in this post - I’m very busy, under a mountain of work, but I just wanted to give you all an update on my Macbook saga.

It is the hard drive. For the second time in ‘07, it has crashed and burned, taking everything with it. Not even a byte of info to be recovered. That’s okay though, as I have my most important files archived onto an external hard drive. Beyond the immediate hard drive issue, the problem was that I had a lemon. Yes, had. Hold your horses.

Apple’s official policy is that they will not replace a computer until it has had three major failures under-warranty. A borked keyboard, though it rendered my computer unusable, is not considered major, and so I therefore only had two majors. Furthermore, all work on the the Mac had been done in Costa Rica, where the computers apparently don’t sync records with the U.S. You may see where I’m going with this.

I called Apple U.S., sure that I would get further with them than with Apple Costa Rica. I had bought my Macbook in the U.S., the warranty was U.S. (worldwide usage), and the U.S. is more focused on customer service. It’s a cultural thing. Anyway, I fired up Skype, which threatened to bring the P3 Dell I’m using to its knees, and called the Apple 800-number (haha!). After sitting on hold for 20 minutes, unable to work for fear of crashing my writings, my phone call, and the computer in general, I began to chat with a nice man named Landus. I explained the problem to him, told him why I wanted a replacement computer instead of a replacement hard drive, and he said “no problem,” off in search of Someone In Charge who could order me the new computer. After another 10 minutes of holding, which brought the call to a full 1 hour, 10 minutes, the line went dead. Breathe, Erin, breathe.

I called back, waited on hold for another 20 minutes, and began a chat with Webster, who wasn’t quite as cheerful as Landus. Or helpful. He told me “no, sorry.” I said, “Put me through to your supervisor.” Supervisor Chris came on the line and for 25 minutes, treated me as only an asshole can, explaining that he didn’t care that I was out-of-country, used my computer for my job, and was being subjected to torture because of an assembly-line failure that smelled distinctly of rotten, lemony Macbook. Furthermore, he didn’t have any repair records from Icon (Apple Costa Rica), and even if he had, they’d be in Spanish, which he doesn’t speak. So sorry, he absolutely wasn’t going to help me. I tried staying cool as a cucumber, even tried pouring some honey on, but he didn’t care. I told him I wanted to speak with his supervisor. He said he was it.

By this time, I had been on the phone for about 2.5 hours, and was nearing tears of frustration. I just wanted a Macbook that worked. That’s Apple’s reputation, after all. So I told dear Christopher to transfer me to someone with a heart. That’s when Marlene at Customer Care came onto the line. In the first accented English I’d heard all day, Marlene asked me to detail the situation. I did, again. She explained, also again, that Apple won’t replace a product that’s only had two major failures. I asked for her sympathy — nay, I begged for it — and told her that in Costa Rica, parts and installation take about 6 weeks. That’s 6 weeks without my Macbook. 6 weeks on a PC. She caved.

Marlene called me “honey,” she identified with what it’s like living in a new country where things don’t work the way you’re used to, and she understood that a Macbook just shouldn’t work like this. After another hour on the phone, Marlene had ordered me a new computer, sent a shipping label to my email, and was clearing up the situation. Since I’m going back to the States for Thanksgiving, a brand new Macbook will be waiting, equipped with a faster processor than the one I already have and supplemented by all the original upgrades I ordered. The computer will come equipped with Leopard, iLife ‘08, and all the new goodies that Macbooks come with these days. It has a brand new warranty on it, which is quite convenient, given that my previous warranty was set to run out in a few weeks. Furthermore, Apple is sending me that Macbook before they even receive the old one… when I get to the States, my new Macbook already awaiting me, all I need do is affix their prepaid shipping label to a box, call the courier, and have them pick up the lemon at my doorstep.

Lemons happen, I don’t fault Apple for it. What matters is how customer support issues are dealt with after a problem has been identified. On the exterior, my 3.5+ hour story of woe may seem painful, but let’s face it: no computer manufacturer wants to replace a $1800 piece of equipment. But with a bit of patience and a lot of perseverance, Apple did it. Try getting that from a PC manufacturer.

Please bear with me, my computer has died and all resuscitation attempts thus far have failed. It is in the shop, and I should know within a few days what’s going on. Unfortunately, my next post is saved there, and I’m thinking the hard drive has failed (yes, again). So just hang in there and I’ll be back later!