Tech support has been the bane of many companies. Watching their costs skyrocket, many began charging for tech support beyond a limited time frame. Many (most?) tried outsourcing to India and the Philippines, but some have pulled back to US-based support after their customers screamed about unintelligible “help.”
My experience with Apple’s tech support was no different — until recently. As a Mac user since 1989, I even formed a MacUsers group to help sort out Mac issues, which then morphed into an listserve. Luckily, Macs don’t need a lot of tech support, or at least my needs were pretty minimal.
I’d been putting off buying an iPhone for several reasons, but a key one was the horror stories I’d heard about the AT&T customer service. I was a happy Verizon customer, often being amazed at the great customer service when I called in with a question.
My Verizon contract had ended. I waited a few more months to see if the iPhone would be available with other carriers after the initial 2-year monopoly. It didn’t. I could wait no longer. I pre-ordered mine on June 8, the first day orders could be placed.