21 October 2005
Apple iMac External Modem Madness
A cautionary tale for all:
1) A new client orders an iMac G5 (and additional Apple RAM!) a couple of days before new versions released.
2) His old iMac then had problems which I fixed. While the Mac was 'offline' ...
3) He received the following email from the Apple store saying:
Dear Apple Store Customer,
Thank you for shopping at the Apple Store.
Today, Apple unveiled a new iMac with a variety of fantastic new features. Accordingly, we are pleased to revise your recent order and substitute the original product you ordered with the new iMac.
There are several options you may choose from. For more information on the new configuration, availability and to select your preferred option, please visit http://www.apple.com/go/transition/. You will need your web order number A12345678 and your email address to hand.
We will confirm the successful conversion of your order by e-mail within 24 hours.
If we do not hear from you within the next 5 working days, we will use our best judgement to convert your current order to the nearest configuration.
Answers to many post-sales questions can be found at the Apple Store Customer Service website: http://promo.euro.apple.com/promo/help/uk/consumer
Kind regards,
The Apple Store
4) Neither of us could do the 'conversion' as it already said that the order had been processed.
5) The client phoned Apple and the order had somehow been cancelled!!!
6) The client reordered the iMac (without the Apple RAM) and I'm pretty sure at this point he asked me if anything else. I incorrectly said No :-(
7) A friend of the client told him that the new iMac came without a modem.
8) The client called Apple and they stated that the only way that this could be resolved is to cancel the order and reorder with the modem.
9) The client then called me to check this. I said that that was the best thing to do, all the while apologising for my oversight about the modem.
10) When the client tried to do this, he was told that they couldn't because it had been despatched. Probably between 1st call and second!
This is the clincher:
He was told by AppleStore 'Any USB modem will work. Just go into PC World and pick one up'
Now unless I am mistaken, that is not the case and it hasn't been possible to do that for a couple of years now.
Why don't Apple just make it easy for everybody and sell this modem separately?
They should be available as replacements for the internal ones on older, dare I say it, Mac OS 9 Macs :-/
It's amazing how many people, out in rural areas, with these iMacs rely on dial up but don't use a surge protector!
I think this client was talking about broadband, so I will suggest that he goes for that. No point spending £35 on a 56K USB modem so that he can access his £15 a month AOL dial up account when you can get Pipex broadband for £15 per month and a Netgear DG834GT for £65!
1) A new client orders an iMac G5 (and additional Apple RAM!) a couple of days before new versions released.
2) His old iMac then had problems which I fixed. While the Mac was 'offline' ...
3) He received the following email from the Apple store saying:
Dear Apple Store Customer,
Thank you for shopping at the Apple Store.
Today, Apple unveiled a new iMac with a variety of fantastic new features. Accordingly, we are pleased to revise your recent order and substitute the original product you ordered with the new iMac.
There are several options you may choose from. For more information on the new configuration, availability and to select your preferred option, please visit http://www.apple.com/go/transition/. You will need your web order number A12345678 and your email address to hand.
We will confirm the successful conversion of your order by e-mail within 24 hours.
If we do not hear from you within the next 5 working days, we will use our best judgement to convert your current order to the nearest configuration.
Answers to many post-sales questions can be found at the Apple Store Customer Service website: http://promo.euro.apple.com/promo/help/uk/consumer
Kind regards,
The Apple Store
4) Neither of us could do the 'conversion' as it already said that the order had been processed.
5) The client phoned Apple and the order had somehow been cancelled!!!
6) The client reordered the iMac (without the Apple RAM) and I'm pretty sure at this point he asked me if anything else. I incorrectly said No :-(
7) A friend of the client told him that the new iMac came without a modem.
8) The client called Apple and they stated that the only way that this could be resolved is to cancel the order and reorder with the modem.
9) The client then called me to check this. I said that that was the best thing to do, all the while apologising for my oversight about the modem.
10) When the client tried to do this, he was told that they couldn't because it had been despatched. Probably between 1st call and second!
This is the clincher:
He was told by AppleStore 'Any USB modem will work. Just go into PC World and pick one up'
Now unless I am mistaken, that is not the case and it hasn't been possible to do that for a couple of years now.
Why don't Apple just make it easy for everybody and sell this modem separately?
They should be available as replacements for the internal ones on older, dare I say it, Mac OS 9 Macs :-/
It's amazing how many people, out in rural areas, with these iMacs rely on dial up but don't use a surge protector!
I think this client was talking about broadband, so I will suggest that he goes for that. No point spending £35 on a 56K USB modem so that he can access his £15 a month AOL dial up account when you can get Pipex broadband for £15 per month and a Netgear DG834GT for £65!
