This weekend, I picked apart a report claiming that big, sweeping changes could be coming to Apple’s service business.
One of the big rumored changes is a shift toward Apple repairing more iPhones, as opposed to simply swapping out defective devices.
@swgs over on App.net chimed in:
The repairs are completed within 30 mins. iPhone only. Only certain internal parts are available, but they say that’ll be expanded. Stores are to have a Genius scheduled to do iPhone Repairs every hour the store is open.
From your prev [sic] role, I know you have an understanding of how many NTF devices are sent back. This drastically cuts down improper swaps. Not to mention the costs involved to send back an iPhone and re manufacture for a simple home button issue.
While I don’t know if @swgs is an Apple employee or not, his input on iPhone repairs matches what I’ve heard other places. As several people pointed out, iCloud restores can take that long, so a repair might not entail a longer wait than a “replace and restore” would.
His second point is about “NTF” devices. NTF is short-hand for “no trouble found,” a term applied to devices or laptops taken for repair or replacement with no actual hardware issues. Usually, NTFs occur because a Genius mis-diagnosed a software issue for a new one, or swapped something just to make a customer happy. Being able to physically swap out parts could clear prevent a number of NTF phones being sent back.
While I’m sure it significantly cheaper for Apple to repair “simple home button issues” than to have to replace the phone (as the original report stated), but I still think Apple needs to tread lightly here. If Stores can’t keep up with demand, Geniuses should be able to replace a phone at their own discretion, if that’s what’s right (or faster) for the customer.
(And no, I’m not saying swapping a device just to keep a customer happy is good customer service, but it happens.)