Proud to not be Apple certified!
How could this be true? Doesn't a lack of certification mean you have no idea what you're doing, or that my repair has a chance of premature failure??
No. To be an Apple certified warranty repair center, to the point that repairs are 100% officially covered under an Apple warranty, the service center must buy their parts from Apple. This gives Apple bargaining power in setting prices of parts. In order to make a profit, a repair shop must set a very high price for any given service. I am sure some of you who have been to Tekserve have heard "your machine is in warranty, so it will be $600."
Apple does not manufacture any of these parts they resell to the repair shops. LG Philips, Chi Mei, AU Optronics, and Samsung do. Apple sells the part to a service center for 3-6 times its actual cost when purchased in quantity, which is the cause for the high price quotes from Apple Authorized service centers. Apple knows that customers prefer shops that are Apple authorized service centers. It has little to do with getting you better service.
But doesn't Apple rigorously test those parts to ensure quality?
No. Are you curious as to what "Apple Authorized" means? One might assume this makes it a better part, but it's the same junk I purchase. As one can see from forums such as macrumors, Apple has no real high tech process to weed out displays with issues such as dead pixels, as a lot of people receive displays with them.
It's not just Apple, it's the industry. There is no way to mechanically weed out every last defect in an LCD, without having a human being plug it in and look at it.
The Rossmann difference is that I weed through the junk. I test parts the old fashioned way. I plug them in and look at them before I bring them to you. The personal touch can't be beat.
Don't Apple certified techs better know how to take apart a machine?
No. We've heard "I used to work at Apple" many times. It typically means they're still removing the hinge cover over the inverter board and the keyboard to plug your new LCD in. Read around if you don't believe us on this!
What about workmanship? Doesn't being certified by Apple mean my machine will be put back together properly?
One would think so! I serviced a machine recently for a customer who had the keyboard replaced by Apple. She paid hundreds of dollars, it had two screws missing, and the top case was permanently misaligned. She was told it would not be perfect cosmetically after being refurbished. This is typical!
A common example is with A1150, A1211, A1226, and A1260 model Macbook Pros. If you've had Apple work on your machine, remove the battery. Look at the two screws on the side facing the front, the trackpad button. These screws likely are not put in all the way. They're inserted at an angle, because the person putting them back in is using a screwdriver too long and thick to allow him(or her) to insert them straight.
This is a small detail, but it showcases a good point: that you barely need to know how to use a screwdriver to call yourself "Apple Certified", and shows a lack of broader experience on the part of most "certified" technicians working on these machines. Being Apple certified means someone's passed a test and can read a manual. It doesn't mean they have years of experience servicing gear in mission critical environments, where workmanship counts. I do.
I learned how to service electronics the old fashioned way – an apprenticeship alongside other techs in a broadcast facility working on recording consoles and studio gear, from Avatar to Progressive Music & Play Studios in Midtown Manhattan. Every second of downtime meant clients paying $3000/day would be extremely agitated. There were no classrooms or paper exams. You were shown how to do something, then people with 30 years of experience watched as you did it, and pointed out what you did wrong.
So being an Apple authorized repair center doesn't have anything to do with quality parts, but rather with Apple profiting from the fact that consumers prefer authorized shops?
Yes.
What about other non-Apple repair facilities?
As I state in my quality section, there's tons of bad parts out there. Big shops that try to do it all do not have the time or money to weed through all the different parts suppliers in order to save you money. It's easier for them to
a) charge a high price and buy the part at high markup from more established resellers
or
b) have a low price and buy generic junk from the first place they find off alibaba.com or hkinventory.
I don't work like that. It requires time consuming cherry picking and research to consistently find good parts at good prices. Leave that work to me. Often good parts can be had at lower prices than knockoffs, but you have to know where to look.
Also, this website specializes in a few specific repairs. Places that do it all are not always going to have the part on hand. If they order one, and it is bad, you are either getting stuck with that or will have to wait a week until a good one comes in.
What about places that are Apple Authorized at a really low price?
If someone tells you they are Apple certified and give an amazing price, it doesn't mean they are Apple Authorized to do the repair they are actually doing. They could be Apple Authorized to operate a cash register behind the bar at an Apple store. They could be Apple Authorized to resell iPod headphones. Yet, it allows them to advertise they're Apple authorized.
If someone's priced 10%-20% over me and they claim the repair is Apple authorized, it's just not true. In order for that specific repair job they performed to be Apple authorized, it has to be done with their parts.
So how will your repair affect my warranty?
Anyone who isn't a fully Apple authorized warranty repair facility is technically voiding your warranty.
However, in reality, if Apple can't tell the machine's been opened or repaired, then there's no problem. Our meticulous workmanship & ninja skills ensure they'll never know I was there. Will the next housecall repair person use a magnetized tray to ensure each screw is saved?
