[BGRS]

Maybe you should stop recommending Apple products as well because of the service I received:

I went to a local Apple Store to order a MacBook Air. I wanted 8 GB instead of the default 4 GB of RAM. (Since the Air's are non-expandable, they couldn't just drop in another 4 GB.) The store had none in stock and said I would have to special order it, through their online store. I was directed to an iMac in the store to place the order since they couldn't take orders at the registers(!). Upon placing the order, the system said it would take up to 18 days to fulfill. Since I was going to be in another city, 500 miles away, in two weeks, I had the order shipped to the Apple Store in the other city. Four days later, I get an email that says the Air is available for pick-up in the other store. I went to the original Apple Store and asked them to redirect the Air to their store so I could have it sooner. They told me that it wasn't possible. I would need to cancel the original order, get a refund (since part of the purchase was from a gift card), and buy another one, to be shipped to their store. They said it would take a few days to get the refund and another few days to receive the Air, which would put me back at being in the other city. They recommended that I wait and pick up the order at the other store, which I did.

1. Why are 8 GB Air's "special orders"? Because there are no RAM slots and they don't stock 8 GB units.
2. Why can't I purchase at the register?
3. Why is the fulfillment estimate so completely off? To impress me that instead of 18 days, it only takes 4 days? This only messed up my plans.
4. Why can't orders be redirected? It's Apple Store to Apple Store, not to some address of my choosing.

This whole problem could have been solved if the Apple Store actually stocked 8 GB MacBook Air's.

Of course there would be things like this across the board. two days ago I canceled (or as they said returned) Dell desktop that I paid almost 2K as fulfilment period was 18 days and haven't heard from them for 20. So called Dell and they told me that I could not cancel my order but only could return it (even though I have never received it). They said due to holiday season they could not make it which I don't care, as they should have count on that. Well difference between returning and cancelation is in the time I get my money back on my card. Now I need to wait until they get it back from Purolator (I guess). Once they receive it then it takes anywhere between 8-10 work days to get my money back!? WTF
... But we are talking about warranties here.

[cbvinh]

... But we are talking about warranties here.

True enough, but we're talking about doing something outside of the system that a company has set up...

BlackBerry has phone device warranties done through carriers. Their customer service reps can't just call up someone in inventory and have a new phone shipped to a customer. The warranty service directly through BlackBerry becomes a special case. Apple is set up to repair/replace phones at Apple Stores, so if a phone breaks, you bring it back to an Apple Store, not to point-of-sale. It's a hassle, as one person indicated, when the nearest Apple Store is 500 km away.

For tablets, BlackBerry takes care of warranties themselves. From threads I've seen, they've done a great job - fixing or replacing PlayBooks out of warranty, just like what some people expect of Apple.

The OP purchased a phone from eBay and asked for warranty service directly from BlackBerry. BlackBerry is not equipped to do that and referred the OP back to the normal chain of warranty service: the carrier. BlackBerry was not trying to back out of their warranty nor not stand behind their product. The OP went outside the normal chain and it became a hassle.

I went to an Apple Store to buy an 8 GB Mac Air, which Apple has decided not to stock in-store, perhaps due to low sales volume. They referred me to their normal sales chain: buy online and store pick-up. Something that was previously a simple purchase became a hassle.

[ChainPunch]

cbvinh made great points in their post.

My opinion is that if you are going to purchase a blackberry phone and want the best support, then it best to purchase from a carrier.

If you end up purchasing from shopblackberry keep in mind that blackberry does not handle the sales and suppot for the phones, but it is rather handle by a authorized reseller (Digital River, Inc.). From my experience with shopblackberry, I can say I will try never to purchase anything from them in my life time. It took me about 40 days to get a refund on a blackberry device with me having to file a report with my bank as a last resort. One day after filing the report with my bank, I got an email saying that I will be refunded my whole amount. The whole thing could of been settle if they had let me cancel the order, given that the device had not even shipped when I tried to cancel the order multiple times. If I had to go through that much trouble with their sales department, I would hate to have to deal with their technical/warranty support department.

[Jerky223]

So then all carriers are first owners?

No, they are the authorized dealers. When you purchase from an authorized dealer, you are the first owner.

[robsteve]

True enough, but we're talking about doing something outside of the system that a company has set up...

BlackBerry has phone device warranties done through carriers. Their customer service reps can't just call up someone in inventory and have a new phone shipped to a customer. The warranty service directly through BlackBerry becomes a special case.

You also have to realize that when BlackBerry sets the pricing to the carriers, it includes the carriers doing the warranty service.

The service model of the iPhone also makes them more expensive, because Apple has to supply the service infrastructure, not the carrier.

[digitalmayhem01]

Apple is garbage and just a toy. ****ty graphics too nothing like the z10 or z30 for games, or anything else that matters. It's nothing but a cheap status symbol, it's all in your head. And entirely proprietary. And no expandable memory. And iTunes sucks a big one. But it's super easy to get another under warranty lol. Guess it's easier to push crap than quality.

Posted via my awesome Z30!

[kellyTKD]

Guess it's easier to push crap than quality.

Strange. I've always had the opposite experience. If you are trying to sell crap then it always seems like nobody wants to stock it and you always have unsold inventory piled up but if you have something of quality then they seem to buy as many as you can make.