Open Letter to Apple

Dear Apple,

5 years ago I’ve bought an iMac for 1700 Euros. A few month out of warranty its logic board broke for the first time and Apple agreed to replace it for free.

Unfortunately this was not the only time it broke, it happend 3 more times. And even­though the iMac was out of warranty, Apple always aknow­ledged the problem as a general design or man­u­fac­tur­ing problem and fixed it for me for free — untill it happend for the 4th time.

This 4th time Apple refused to take respons­ib­il­ity of a problem which they have already quietly agreed to be a problem with that very single machine of mine (by fixing it 3 times for free).

Apples quiet agreement

If one special part of your computer brakes four times in a row, and if that part is not a part a user could abuse by using it the wrong way — like one could with hatch or a button or a cable port — then it should be obvious that this very single machine has a PROBLEM.

So this is clearly not a warranty issue, it is either bad design or faulty man­u­fac­tur­ing, I can’t tell.

Four failed logic boards resulted for me in several weeks without a computer, several hours of backing up data before the iMac could be shipped, countless hours on the phone talking to support people explain­ing this special case, several design jobs I have missed, and most import­antly — for you and me — a fading faith in what Apple stands for.

I always felt like we were some sort of friends, I always felt like Apple is a brand I am proud to associate myself with. But today I am very dis­ap­poin­ted — and suprised about it.

I am no cheapskate, I don’t want stuff for free, but I want a working Mac, one I could trust, one where I don’t count the months till I have to start to fear that it will fail me again.

I’ve paid 1700 Euros, please give me a something you (and I) are proud of.

Still with high regards and hope,
Manuel Martensen
Support case 141598408