yet another "swollen battery / difficultly with apple staff" problem
hi,
i have been browsing these forums to gather information on the swollen battery problem.
sydney australia:
my battery swelled up a few days ago, rendering the trackpad/clickpad useless (17" macbook pro early 2008). i took it in to the apple store, knowing that people around the world are having the same problem, and having their batteries swapped.
two different apple stores in sydney, two different "genius" bar staff, two different answers, neither offering to replace the battery.
one said that as the battery was a "consumable" it's not covered. i argued that the battery wasn't "consumed" as i can hold charge for 2 hours or more. rather the battery is defective, as on one day i had a working battery, the next i had a battery that won't fit inside my mac. staff member told me to buy a new battery.
2nd genius bar staff member tried to tell me that the batteries are "designed" to swell. rubbish. why then, is this problem intermittent, with only some users experiencing the issue? surely if they were designed to swell, every single macbook owner would have this problem?
staff member told me he could sell me a new battery at $127 instead of $199. so clearly apple are aware of the swelling issue and offering discounted batteries to customers who suffer from this problem. i think this is an attempt to dodge legal responsibility under australian consumer law for what is a defective product.
i have an hp laptop that is 8 years old. it can't hold charge for more than 5 minutes, but the battery doesn't leak and it doesn't swell. my two iphones don't swell. my three ipods never swelled and one of those is older than my macbook.
the product is clearly defective. the manual does not warn that the battery will swell. there is no press release saying "don't worry, this is 'normal'". there is no whitepaper i can find that lists swelling as a technical design feature of the macbook pro battery. and yet staff say that it is a design feature? and i am supposed to accept that without any documentation?
there was a recall and swap program in place, that has now ended. apple, you can't have it both ways. if you recalled defective batteries and NOW try to tell me that sorry, they were actually designed to do that, then something suspicious is going on. my battery comes from the same time period for which you offered replacements. just because my battery swelled now instead of back then, i should not be excluded from the program.
if there is someone on this forum that can help me, then i would be most appreciative. if any apple store staff from sydney read this, i ask that you reply so that i can set up another genius bar appointment to have the battery swapped.
if apple refuse to swap a battery that is clearly defective, and apple sydney staff continue to ignore the hundreds (thousands?) of cases around the world where people are receiving replacement batteries for no charge, i will have no choice but to submit the case to NSW fair trading and the CTTT. i am happy to trawl forums for every user/post who HAS had their battery swapped, and print these for the CTTT's reference.
as a loyal apple user i am extremely disappointed with the ad-hoc approach to battery issues, where some users in some cities have their batteries replaced, no questions asked, and others have to jump through hoops just to be acknowledged.
i await a response from apple, official or otherwise, on this or the many other forums on which i will be posting this issue.
scott.
i have been browsing these forums to gather information on the swollen battery problem.
sydney australia:
my battery swelled up a few days ago, rendering the trackpad/clickpad useless (17" macbook pro early 2008). i took it in to the apple store, knowing that people around the world are having the same problem, and having their batteries swapped.
two different apple stores in sydney, two different "genius" bar staff, two different answers, neither offering to replace the battery.
one said that as the battery was a "consumable" it's not covered. i argued that the battery wasn't "consumed" as i can hold charge for 2 hours or more. rather the battery is defective, as on one day i had a working battery, the next i had a battery that won't fit inside my mac. staff member told me to buy a new battery.
2nd genius bar staff member tried to tell me that the batteries are "designed" to swell. rubbish. why then, is this problem intermittent, with only some users experiencing the issue? surely if they were designed to swell, every single macbook owner would have this problem?
staff member told me he could sell me a new battery at $127 instead of $199. so clearly apple are aware of the swelling issue and offering discounted batteries to customers who suffer from this problem. i think this is an attempt to dodge legal responsibility under australian consumer law for what is a defective product.
i have an hp laptop that is 8 years old. it can't hold charge for more than 5 minutes, but the battery doesn't leak and it doesn't swell. my two iphones don't swell. my three ipods never swelled and one of those is older than my macbook.
the product is clearly defective. the manual does not warn that the battery will swell. there is no press release saying "don't worry, this is 'normal'". there is no whitepaper i can find that lists swelling as a technical design feature of the macbook pro battery. and yet staff say that it is a design feature? and i am supposed to accept that without any documentation?
there was a recall and swap program in place, that has now ended. apple, you can't have it both ways. if you recalled defective batteries and NOW try to tell me that sorry, they were actually designed to do that, then something suspicious is going on. my battery comes from the same time period for which you offered replacements. just because my battery swelled now instead of back then, i should not be excluded from the program.
if there is someone on this forum that can help me, then i would be most appreciative. if any apple store staff from sydney read this, i ask that you reply so that i can set up another genius bar appointment to have the battery swapped.
if apple refuse to swap a battery that is clearly defective, and apple sydney staff continue to ignore the hundreds (thousands?) of cases around the world where people are receiving replacement batteries for no charge, i will have no choice but to submit the case to NSW fair trading and the CTTT. i am happy to trawl forums for every user/post who HAS had their battery swapped, and print these for the CTTT's reference.
as a loyal apple user i am extremely disappointed with the ad-hoc approach to battery issues, where some users in some cities have their batteries replaced, no questions asked, and others have to jump through hoops just to be acknowledged.
i await a response from apple, official or otherwise, on this or the many other forums on which i will be posting this issue.
scott.
MacBook Pro, Mac OS X (10.5.8)
