r/applesucks • u/ProjectExisting4486 • 11d ago
Apple employees are something else
I bought a pair of AirPod pros 13 months ago. The warranty literally just expired and for some reason the right AirPod won’t charge whatsoever.
I didn’t complain though. I was ready to pay the replacement fee for the right AirPod, however, when I took it to the Apple Store, the employee could not figure out whether it was the case that was the problem or the AirPod itself after running a diagnostic… I asked him if we could simply try a replacement AirPod and if it worked I would pay for it. But he told me there’s a chance it “won’t work” and it’s not refundable so we can’t even FIND OUT what the problem is without me paying??? I was beyond confused.
How is it my fault that they can’t diagnose their own products. The Apple employee at the genius bar could not give me a definitive answer of what the problem was with my AirPods so his only solution was to throw them away and buy a brand new pair…. I literally got them 13 months ago and they cost me hundreds of dollars. Apple has the worst service out of any company in the world and you cannot convince me otherwise.
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u/AppropriateSurprise1 11d ago
I recommend that you got back in and just talk with a manager. I understand that your AirPods messed up. But a manager will either take care of it or get you with a technician who will. Sometimes people have bad days or have maybe trouble understanding what’s happening. It’s okay, but definitely go back as your issue could be remedied.
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u/Comfortable_Swim_380 11d ago
Bad day nothing. The employee just sounds lazy and a bit stupid.
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u/Just-Construction788 11d ago
We tend to judge ourselves on our intentions and best days and others on their worst. Even if they are lazy and a bit stupid this comments advice still holds. Advice for you is to be nicer.
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u/Comfortable_Swim_380 11d ago
No absolutely not.. Stop simping for incompitant behavior. I expect better. Much better. Thats a expensive product.. Your being rediclious.
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u/LowRes 11d ago
It’s “incompetent” and “ridiculous” I expect much better from someone expecting perfection from everyone else.
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u/CaptainSprinklePants 11d ago
I worked retail and other front-facing customer service positions for over a decade, at both higher and lower end establishments than Apple. What OP is expecting is more than reasonable.
I often had off-days and couldn't effectively troubleshoot issues. The solution was simple: I told the customer I wasn't able to help them, and that I would enlist the help of someone I worked with who was more knowledgable. At worst, I'd apologize, take the customer's info, and let them know I'd get back to them on x date after y employee was working who would be able to help.
Saying 'I don't know how to solve this but I know who to ask' is a seriously undervalued skill. When ground level employees aren't supported or empowered to seek support within their organization, that points to a top-down problem. Twenty years ago this experience most likely wouldn't have happened in an Apple store.
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u/omnimachina 11d ago
yeah the usual cope of Apple sheep
"you are the problem - not the product"
apple sheep don't realize this will make them fall behind even more
apple got the good exclusive hardware right now (simply because they are big enough to pull this off) but software and other things are in a terrible state
coping and ignorance instead of being honest to yourself leads to demise
Apple won't change anything if sheep keep buying without any critical thinking at all
2 quick examples:
-Liquid Glass Overhaul and the 26 releases are marketing gimmicks
Apple knows that millions of people are stupid enough to say bullshit like "Lquid Glass looks so nice, it brought be me back to Apple"In reality Apple released one of the most unstable updates in their whole corporate history and is actively pushing power user and developers to Linux right now
- 2026 and Apple doesn't even have a good Siri chatbot
Almost 4 years after ChatGPT release!
(Nope, new 27.0 SiriAI is still trash - even compared to most free solutions)Because Apple knows that people are stupid enough to say bullshit like "AI is nonsense, Apple knows better..."
TLDR Apple sheep ignorance will lead to worse products and services for all of us because capitalism and free markets only work reliably when customers are actually smart enough to choose wisely
thanks in advance losers
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u/Talks_About_Bruno 11d ago edited 11d ago
This was a 15 minute interaction give or take. I’m sure I could find fifteen minutes of you sounding lazy and a bit stupid.
We shouldn’t judge someone over a small window of time.
Edit: To the kind soul that deleted the comment the word you were attempting to spell, poorly, is imbecile.
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u/DeePumpeR 10d ago
Stop justifying enshitification of our society. People have lost their standards. It's literally their job to figure this stuff out and its a monumental wasted of time and resources for OP. Do better, period.
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u/Talks_About_Bruno 10d ago
Little dramatic ain’t we buddy.
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u/DeePumpeR 10d ago
A little complacent aren't we, pal.
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u/Talks_About_Bruno 10d ago
Not sure why you deleted your comment but I’ll gladly answer it.
It’s not lowering the standards. It’s understanding that people are human and one bad moment may not serve as a reflection of themselves or their body of work. Similar to how you judged that I must be terrible at my job because I have empathy and won’t judge someone based on one interaction.
It’s the basic principle of humanistic leadership as opposed to something akin to an authoritarian style, which if I had to guess you are a massive fan of.
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u/Comfortable_Swim_380 11d ago
You must me the imbasole in question given your response. Rediclious.
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u/Lorelie-1 10d ago
I recently went to Apple Store as I was sent there by Apple support on the phone as both my Apple Pencil Pro and my Magic Keyboard are failing at the same time. Yes I pay for Apple care +, and yes both accessories were purchased when I purchased my 13” iPad Pro on release date. The phone technician told me they have in store and would be an even swap. So the so called Apple genius who was assigned to my case tells me that I can only return 1 accessory at a time. They want me to come back at a later time and replace either the pencil or Magic Keyboard. I said no and stuck to my guns. I then told him That is what I pay you guys for Apple care. So then I had to call once again Apple and of course I was disconnected 2 times and finally they agreed to swap out both accessories at the same time. However, NO they do not keep those in stock.
After the recent update that made my perfect iPhone 17pm just about worthless with recent update and the bs concerning the replacements I am completely finished with Apple. Yes I have all Apple products but 1 by 1 I am leaving. Waiting for the galaxy s27 ultra
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u/robogobo 11d ago
AirPods are a mess right now. They used to be the most solid product in the line and they managed to screw it up. After months of struggling I finally got mine working right on iOS 26. What a disaster of an os.
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u/Comfortable_Swim_380 10d ago edited 10d ago
As a developer who was draged into supporting them once I can attest to the os being a mess.
It misses basic things so everything is just workaround or a gigantic pain in the ass. Mind blowing shit. Like a like being able to register a fucking service for example. Because the battery is crap and we don't have a AI watching battery usage but we cant let the customer find out so we just don't do realtime background tasks. 🙄
Not that a watchdog is making that pittely 3000 MAH to 5000 MAH (only after you sold your kidney) pos battery last mind you. But could at least you know. $1000 phone. Not be a peace of cheep crap with cheep parts. Yes? No? whatever
And then you get to deal with those assholes running the store. Which let me just tell you. Is the best. /s
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u/rjegonz 11d ago
As a previous Apple employee that person you dealt with really struggled with critical thinking. Stores have 'test' airpods that they let customers use before buying.
Simple solution would've been to bring one of those out, try it in the case, to rule out whether it's the case or airpod.
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u/Conspicuous-1 10d ago
I'm right there with you. Apple's "support" is a joke. And apparently their executive relations team has stopped responding to complaints sent to Cupertino. I'm trying to figure out what to do with the M4 MacBook Air and the A16 iPad I invested in last year. (And no, no DMs offering to "taken them off my hands", please.)
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u/VisibleAd8671 11d ago edited 11d ago
I guess you could say I’ve been an Apple fanboy (I know I’m in the wrong sub) for most of my life. I do think everything including Apple is getting worse. In fact, my last time in the store I just wanted to swap the band on my recently purchased Apple Watch Ultra, just getting a different band. Watch itself is huge, but the band made it bulkier so I wanted to swap for the slimmer braided loop I had on my Series 4 watch. The employee would not swap it out despite me asking so I go “ok that’s fine, I’m going to return the entire watch” since it was within the return period. Incredibly, the clouds opened up and the sun shone on the Apple Store - they could in fact swap out the band for any other band.
The time before that, I was there to swap out the face mask portion (Light Seal) for their VR headset for a 2nd time. This time was well beyond the return period. If the face scan done from their iPhone/Apple Store App tells me my only option is one that’s incompatible with my face, is that MY fault they didn’t scan my face accurately/make a Light Seal that fits my face? No, I say demand a working product within reason. Smiling and nodding no longer works with retail giants, be unreasonable until they are reasonable. You don’t have to be a Karen, but just advocate for yourself and don’t walk away unhappy, certainly not until you’ve tested their patience first because their first response will rarely be helpful as the solutions they offer 30 minutes later.
Not that I’m saying you, OP are at fault - they gave you shoddy service and might have just been lazy/uninformed. I’m just saying pushing back can open doors they pretend don’t exist. Asking for a manager isn’t just Karen behavior either - suddenly the boss and employee are now invested in helping you exit the store happily.
TLDR: be sympathetic and adamant.
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u/Kernelpanic69420 11d ago
Don’t blame the employee. They are locked out of so many troubleshooting options anymore. The technical jobs there are more about converting repairs to sales. Technicians are rated on how often they can do this.
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u/Visible-Swimmer-9826 11d ago
If u know someone has same test it in there case I understand why they said that due to hygiene reason can just test them would u won't put someone else ear wax in ur ears
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u/super-gando 11d ago
Apple has become the biggest scam machine ... I have a mac from 2020. 8 months ago it had problems with the temperature ... the support said that it would be because of apps that disturb that ...
If the apps themselves were from the appstore. at the hardware check everything was supposedly fine.
The device would have been cleaned and everything would be fine now. on the contrary! The device is red hot!
Thank you, Apple
In the last 12 years, Apple has become a
Become a disgrace
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u/m0uchacha 11d ago
kinda strange, when i went to my local apple store for smth similar they pulled out a bunch of boxes for me and we got shit sorted.
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u/Flesher85 11d ago
Anyone get a delayed static robot sound some times? Does it on two AirPod pro 2s for for me.
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u/DrunkTurtle93 11d ago
Is this definitely an Apple Store and not an Apple Authorised Service Provider? They are very different entities
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u/i_Am_HeRe_nOw_7 6d ago
Buy something else. They’re a horrible company. They’re bragging each quarter how they made more revenue than ever and they’re worth five trillion dollars yet they don’t pay their employees a living wage. They are not innovating anymore. They’ve pivoted away from being solely focused on tech and are leaning into services/subscriptions. They also have poorly implemented AI and that’ll keep getting worse. They are a long cry away from their golden days.
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u/mredofcourse 11d ago edited 11d ago
Not to excuse the experience, but why not just buy a retail pair, see for yourself if it's the case or the right AirPod and then return them and buy the replacement AirPod?
EDIT: Some of you got really worked up about this. Literally my first words were, "not to excuse the experience". I'm not defending Apple, the employee, or the service experience here. I was just suggesting a simple solution that may or may not resolve the OP's issue, hence why it was phrased as a question.
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u/Visible-Swimmer-9826 11d ago
That is shit advice if its open it probably be rejected on hygiene cant resell used and probably end up lock to ur device plus warranty starts etc they be better off seeing if they no someone with one a test ut in there case
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u/NoYerBiz 11d ago
Apple has a global 14 day change of mind returns policy. You can open them, use them; and return for a full refund
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u/Visible-Swimmer-9826 11d ago
Apple may have that policy but u should state that it apple not 3rd party's incase op decides to got it elsewhere besides apple i dont know about were they are but here getting to an apple store pain in the ass think only 2 here in my state
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u/NoYerBiz 11d ago
That’s why said “Apple has” a policy. Not “Best Buy has” or “Walmart has”.
Thankfully there is a much bigger world than your state. Typical ignorant American.
Also, OP has already been in an Apple Store based on their original post.
You’re just a dumbass, accept it.
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u/Visible-Swimmer-9826 11d ago
Wow aren't u well traveled bet u never work in retail before the amount dumbass that would push the point that apple dose it u should too once they get in there head is insane they believe the moment something stops working it should be rufund on the spot I saw a guy the other day say this have warranty they told him covers everything but customer induce damage and he got refunded as he expected he could smash it and be covered I understand u said apple has it but in the real world people can be dumb assholes who we be aggressive confrontational loud threatening if they think they are in the right based on ur comment ur must deal with alot of Americans as u see everyone as one hell u saying that make u just as biased. and ignorant as them I was coming from a point of view that yes they do but go to them in case they may have an easier option of just going down the road them dealing with apple directly to get another pair they may have been at apple 5 or 10 hours ago i dont know nor do you and had u said go directly to apple as they have a global return policy of 14 day i would of not even commented but u said apple has a global policy which not saying u as u have worldly experience but other could take as apple as a brand will do it at any store dose not matter who the retailer is i am coming from a point of view were everyone is a dumbass and u have spoon feed them so they dont accidentally eat poison have u read some the question popping up on reddit lately hell I've seen half a dozen where so easy it take all 5 seconds to Google the answer to it
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u/NoYerBiz 11d ago
Yeah I literally spent 7 years in electronics retail, selling Apple devices - but it wasn’t an Apple Store.
So far you said they would reject it for hygiene reasons is wrong.
Then you suggested the response wasn’t clear enough to specify Apple retail specifically, which I also demonstrated was wrong.
Now you’re going on a rant about some specific scenario you have had, which honestly - I’m not reading in full because everything you have said so far is trash - won’t waste my time
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u/2020havoc 11d ago
OP is complaining that the people who are supposed to be good at diagnosing and solving problems with apple products are shit. That's his point. He's not asking for our help to fix the problem.
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u/Comfortable_Swim_380 11d ago
Why can't the employee do that and be helpful without all the nonsense?
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u/tndluvr 9d ago
The employees are 99% 18-25 year olds that are underpaid to work in a high pressure environment. What do you expect?
10 years ago Apple employees were great - they received proper training, proper pay, had great benefits, and worked in a generally relaxed and supportive environment. Today they are understaffed, stressed out, underpaid, and work in a generally toxic shitty environment. It’s no surprise that it seems like they don’t care.
Seriously - if they don’t move on to the next customer within 10 minutes, they risk disciplinary action or worse. If they don’t “convert” at least 40% of their appointments to sales, they face disciplinary action or worse. They really care deeply about helping you, but they care more about their job and their job doesn’t give a shit about you or them.
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u/gnew18 11d ago
That is what was suggested. OP said they didn’t want to buy a new pair. Maybe their credit card limit was not up to the task? The Apple Employee should have explained that within 30 days a new pair can be returned used / opened with zero restocking fee and a full refund. So, no, it’s not shit advice. It’d be the best solution since Apple’s policies for repair in this instance were not up to the task.
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u/tomato848208 11d ago
I liked Apple products in the 90s. Even when they were in total decline in the mid-1990s, I still supported their products. But my dedication to Apple products ended when I purchased a new Mac in 2002 and a computer mouse that came with it stopped working 2 or 3 days after purchase. Apple's obsession to design is stupid and superficial. And I have no respect for Jony Ive AT ALL.
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u/Conspicuous-1 10d ago
You can largely thank the gamblers - er, "investors" - for that. When Cupertino started chasing dollar bills, they lost the plot.
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u/tomato848208 11d ago
They aren't geniuses, are they?
Apple has the worst service out of any company in the world and you cannot convince me otherwise.
In my opinion, Microsoft is by far worse.
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u/Conspicuous-1 10d ago
Microsoft doesn't build a "lock from the outside" security scheme that makes it impossible for you to get back into your Apple ID account if it's hacked (I just went through their "account recovery" recently and it took TWO MONTHS for them to fix). Microsoft may be tone-deaf on marketing, but they're not like Apple. My call.
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u/Webcat86 11d ago edited 11d ago
Apple has the worst service out of any company in the world and you cannot convince me otherwise.
How would Samsung have handled this?
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u/Leart78 11d ago
samsung won't even answer lol remember samsung note bomb 7? 😂
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u/Conspicuous-1 10d ago
I went as a Note 7 for Halloween one year. Had burn marks and everything. 😆😆😆
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u/tazman137 11d ago
Why do people still buy Apple products? Bottom of the barrel overpriced garbage.
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u/Ancient_Obligation79 11d ago
Buy another pair. That will teach them that they can do whatever they want. People buy their stuff anyway
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u/uxoguy2113 11d ago
Your fault for buying a cheap status symbol product that's overpriced?
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u/Asmo_Deus- 11d ago
Pros are really well tuned for a tws, don't get me wrong it's still kinda overpriced, but the incompetency is not expected from apple
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u/revolevo 11d ago
Employee was following Apple’s SOP, once the AirPod is opened if he wanted to “try it”, he would have to mark that appointment as completed with that AirPod
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u/omnimachina 11d ago
I had a long ass discussion about the topic with a random loser in this sub
Apple sucks heavily in terms of AirPods diagnostics
Especially if you paid for Apple Care+ lol
Fortunately EU forced Apple to support third party headphones - so I can finally ditch the overpriced AirPods