Q: I drop my iphone in a cup of tea and now wont turn on, how do i fix this

Spoken like a truly bad bridge builder

Wow, I stepped out for a day, and see this thread has had a bit of activity since my last visit.  I'm not even sure where to post this potentially rambling thought, so I chose Lawrence's post, because:  a.)  he seems like a good guy    b)  I like his hat.

As I scanned through my emails, I saw some mention of iCloud backups.  I wanted to offer my perspective on this, how it relates to our business, etc...

So out here in the cornfields of Illinois (2.5 hours from Chicago), we tend to be a little behind the times when it comes to technology.  Tech enthusiasts like me are either rare to find around here, or aren't from here originally (the latter is the case for me).  It's not that people around here don't like technology - but often, they aren't aware of what's even out there.  That's not an insult to small town people - because I'm one of them.  It's just the way it is in this town, and from my experiences, many other small towns.

Our business, when it first started out years ago, was a web development firm.  That's my background.  Over time, we started getting calls from people regarding their mobile phones/tablets.  The most common inquiries were items such as, do you fix broken screens, do you offer training, how do i ________________?  We used to turn these calls away, because while we knew the answers to some of those questions, namely the how do i kind of stuff, it wasn't really in our business model, and we frankly didn't have time for it.

But the calls persisted, and finally one day, we decided to explore the possibility of branching out into this space.  We hired additional staff (carefully picked), received real training (not self-taught in a garage), invested in real equipment, and made the leap.  I was astounded by a lot of what I found out several months into our new adventure.  But to stay on the topic of iCloud, here's some observations that I wanted to share with you.

1. There are lots of people that have no idea about iCloud.  I was kind of surprised by this, given the way iCloud is really baked into iOS these days.  But still, to this day, when we bring up iCloud (which we do almost daily), there are tons of people who's eyes gloss over.  Once we explain it to them, they understand it, and are excited about it.  We'll set it up for them for free if they want, or give them the appropriate URL's to move forward.  Sure, it'd be more profitable for us to "back up" their data onto a flash drive, charge them for the drive and our time, and never mention iCloud at all.  But we aren't in this just for the money.  We honestly want to help people use their devices better, so we don't have that situation where pictures of a deceased spouse are lost (we've had similar situations to that, and while I know it got made fun of a little bit in this forum, it's really gut wrenching to witness).  I don't think anybody could tell a distraught customer, "well, you should have known better".  I don't think anybody in here could honestly say that to a grieving widow, a teenager who lost their grandparent, or anything similar.  If you can see yourself saying that to somebody, then you need more help than this forum can give you.
2. Honesty pays off.  The pro-Apple people (I think I am pro-Apple too) have a good point when they say there are lots of third parties out there that don't care, don't back up their work, and won't be there for the customer when things go awry.  We follow a different business model, and try to treat each repair as if it were our own device.  We have turned away tons of business, telling them that going to Apple is their best choice, and if they get nowhere, we'll discuss options with them.  Those customers usually do, indeed get helped by Apple, and are happy.  But more often than not, those people return to us later for training, a different type of repair, or even a website request, for the other branch of our business.  We believe in honesty, and know it'll come back in a positive way in the future.  And while the Apple Stores obviously offer training, given our location, driving back to Apple is not always feasible.  We feel like we are helping Apple by offering training (solid training) on their products, to those who can't get back to an Apple store.

Okay, so I branched off of iCloud a little bit.

For the Apple Folks (again, I think I am one of you too):

• There are some really poor repair shops out there.  You are right.
• There's also some really great ones, who want the best for their customers.  We will be upfront with people on their options.
• We aren't second-class citizens (nobody here said we are, but there were some of those overtones).
• I love .  I take issue with some of their policies, but that's their right.  I hope some of that changes, but I'm not holding my breath.  If consumers feel strongly enough that they want  to change, it'll be up to them.  They have a lot of power.

For the independent repair folks (I know I am one of you based on the equipment I see sitting in the repair offices right now):

• Apple fans are very passionate, just like we are about independent repairs.  If they feel attacked, they will respond (just like we would).
• Let's make sure we get our points across to Apple, but let's do it utilizing the correct channels.  This forum is good for banter, and for the most part, I think this discussion has turned into some legitimate critical thinking.  If we want Apple to change their stance on something, we'll need to up our game, and figure out how we want to do that.  Let's not insult them (as an Apple fan, I save the insults for Android - hehe).
• And let's remember - nobody in this forum who defends Apple actually has anything to do with their policies or procedures - at least I am assuming that is the case.  So attacking Philly, Maine, or Lawrence, or anybody else doesn't do anything.  It just makes us look petty, and how are you going to attack Lawrence with a hat like that?  Just like any attacks from their end makes them look like raging "i-Sheep" (I've been called that before, by the way).

Okay, I need coffee. 

Jonathan Aley wrote:

 

 

Okay, I need coffee.

I agree with much of what you're saying. I'm still not convinced this is the place for the discussion. However, the Hosts seem to have decided to allow this thread to run.

Coffee is always good.

Just be sure to keep your phone well away from your coffee cup....

GB

I won't deal with repair shops who don't have the correct parts available for what they are repairing. Wouldn't do it with one of my cars, or a phone. I expect repairs to be performed by competent shops, competent includes having the right parts for the repair. Not used parts stripped from another phone, new parts from Apple.

its a good option if your only concert is to get a working phone but if you live in a remote location you will have to wait around one week without a working phone for mail delivery OR take a 3 hours ride to get your phone replaced

BUT if your main concern is to get data recovery of whatever ( wedding picture, first step of your newborn on video,important contact...) AND you doesn't link your data to an i cloud account for any reason (you doesn't have enough space on a basic i cloud, you don't trust online backup, or you just doesn't no how it work...) 

in this second case going to apple is useless and not a good advice

I agree Meg. 

Csound1,

Are you saying that Apple is the only organization competent enough to repair these devices then?  I don't want to misunderstand what you are saying.

Jonathan Aley wrote:

 

Csound1,

 

Are you saying that Apple is the only organization competent enough to repair these devices then?  I don't want to misunderstand what you are saying.

NO, I am saying that Apple is the only source of correct parts, nobody mentioned competence (except you) I want the correct parts so I choose to use Apple for repairs. It's my money and my choice, you can do as you please, I make my own decisions

Gail,

It's funny you say that.  I almost had an incident yesterday, ironically with green tea.  I was going to post in this forum and ask what to do, but..... 

Okay, there's no need to get catty.  I simply asked a question to get clarification.  This is what I am talking about... You do a disservice to fellow Apple fans when you respond like that.  I simply wanted to understand what you were saying. 

iCloud is not the only place you can back up your device, and photos should be imported to a computer which is an entirely separate function. As has been stated here numerous times, if you think your data is safe on a phone and that is the only place you have it, then you will undoubtedly run into issues. The adage "Don't put all your eggs in one basket" has been around for centuries - it is not a new concept.

If someone does not have any of their information backed up anywhere else, then you are correct, a 3rd party repair or 3rd party app is the only possibility that it may be recovered.

Cheers,

GB

Csound1 wrote:

 

I won't deal with repair shops who don't have the correct parts available for what they are repairing. Wouldn't do it with one of my cars, or a phone. I expect repairs to be performed by competent shops, competent includes having the right parts for the repair. Not used parts stripped from another phone, new parts from Apple.

And just to be fair, you did mention competence.  And there are no such things as parts "from Apple", correct?

the option to go to apple store everytime you have an issue  ok if you have the money to buy a new phone for the 1\3 of its original price and live close to the store

bigfoot paintball wrote:

 

the option to go to apple store everytime you have an issue  ok if you have the money to buy a new phone for the 1\3 of its original price and live close to the store

Please don't misunderstand what I am saying (or trying to say).  I totally get that, and am not advocating going to the Apple Store every single time.  I was simply saying that we try to be honest with our customers as to whether or not we think that's their best option.