I finally bit the bullet and bought an Apple computer.
I was the only holdout in the family (okay, I had purchased one of the first Macbook Air laptops back in 2008, but gave it to my wife a long time ago).
However I found myself in need of a portable Unix box I could use for a software development project I’ve been putting off for far too long.
Not wanting to spend too much on the computer, I found a used mid-2012 one at a pawn shop in Newton, Surrey. Now I know what you might be thinking…
“Newton?” “Surrey?” “Pawn shop?” Not 3 phrases that usually have a happy ending. But wait…
After being buzzed through the iron-bar security gate at the 4 Seasons Pawn Shop and testing the Macbook Air they had on offer, I noticed it needed a new battery. So I told the the pawn shop guy I had to replace the battery and he agreed to reduce the price further (off what was already a pretty good price).
I figured I’d buy a battery on Amazon for about $75 and install it. However this is where it gets interesting…
While upgrading the OS to El Capitan and running through some further tests, I stumbled across a button that let me look at the laptop’s history (enter your serial number and Apple tells you about it). It turned out my Macbook Air had 1 more day of AppleCare eligibility.
One. Day.
I thought it was a mistake, because what are the chances you buy something from a pawn shop in Surrey and the extended warranty just happens to expire that same day?
So I called Apple and they confirmed my machine was eligible for AppleCare until the end of the day. Long story short (too late, I know), I ran down to the nearest Apple store and the good folks at the Genius Bar replaced my 3 year old, damaged battery at no charge in about 30 minutes.
What other computer company has this type of support? None that I know about. I see the appeal of Apple. Its customer service is first rate. And see, sometimes pawn shops, Newton and Surrey do have happy endings!
