Getting my iBook was difficult. Stock problems, delays, you know, the usual at Casa de Mac.
Then there was the ultimate challenge of getting my Portuguese keyboard and the airport card. That took a really long time.
But then that is old news, and not just in this corner of the world.
So when the time came to get my iBook serviced because of a hardware problem I got really, really scared.
Alas I was in for a big surprise and a good one at that!
See, the iBook has a nice round battery lock near the battery itself in the back of the laptop. This little lock with the coin-slot is surrounded by a nice round little plastic piece which is nested in the case itself.
And it was the nice round little plastic part that broke and had to be replaced.
“No problem, they can probably replace just that little part”, though I in my innocence.
Well, it turns out I was wrong, the whole lower case had to be replaced so I really had to bring it in and get it done by a certified servicing agent.
OK, I’ll just scoop up the purchase bill and let it be replaced under the warranty. If I can find the bill, that is…
Sure enough I found it, exactly one year and five days after the purchase. Five days… Oh well, I braced myself and prepared for the pocket drainage that was sure to ensue.
Surprise number one: as of April 2003 Apple’s warranty against manufacture defects lasts for two years, not one, they just forgot to update the documentation in time. So my iBook was covered. Great!
Then there was the timing factor. How much time was I going to be without my Mac? Actually it took three days to get the replacement part and another day to replace it in the laptop for a grand total of four days. Which is not really all that bad in itself but it is gets even better.
Surprise number two: I didn’t actually have to leave the iBook there for the three days it took to get the part, they called me when they got it and only then did I take the iBook to them.
Better yet, I took it to them one day in the afternoon and went round to collect it again the next day in the morning so I ended up without my laptop only for a night.
How’s that for good service?
I’m so used to bad service that this was indeed a refreshing change and I think it deserves mentioning.
Full marks go to Interlog for all this and Apple should know what great service their partner in Portugal provides to their users.
Good job, guys!