.. because if I do, it’ll mean my Mac or iPod has died. But if it does, they are going to be first one the list. Some companies product is good, but their customer service leaves a lot to be desired (TelstraClear cable comes to mind). Some just get it right. ifix appears to be one of those.
It all started after christmas. My trusty iPod Nano went all funny on me over christmas, and basicly didn’t want to talk to the PC at all (unrecognised USB device). I found if I hard reset it a few times with the cable plugged in, it would – maybe, if I held my face right – talk to the PC. Sometimes. Maybe.
Other than that, it worked just fine :( Charged ok, played music ok, etc.
So I looked around a bit, and found ifix.co.nz via an ad on trademe (not theirs). They fix both Mac’s and iPods – everything from a motherboard to a new battery. I emailed them (them = Brian in this case), chatted for a bit, and he advised me that it would be a replacement motherboard, which ment the iPod was dead, as it’s almost the cost of a new one. Pity it was only 2 months out of warranty.
So, when Leonie’s nano started to discharge in record time (sometimes in under 2 hours without use, sometimes within 2 days without use), I pinged Brian again. A replacement battery was in order, so he sent me their standard ipod fixing package.
Now, standard is really not a good way to describe it. It’s slick. It’s easy. They send out a box (see the pic below), with nano-sized padding inside, and a return courier bag. Pop the ipod in, sign the work order, put it back on the courier, nice :) It’d be even quicker if I’d persuaded the courier guy to stick around for 5 mins :) Brian tells me they usually do in-person pick up and drop off (they are in Wellington), but they were very busy at the time.
That arrived on tuesday. It’s now thursday, and the ipod is back, fixed.
It’s returned in the same box, with invoice, some promo business cards, and a chocolate (someone’s been reading Brad Sugars / Action International ;-) ). Brian even called last night to tell me he’d found the problem, and was just verifying that it was fixed overnight before sending it back. Outstanding communication, outstanding service.
All up, I’d definitely recommend ifix if you have a mac or ipod, and it breaks. I dont know if they do under-warranty repairs for apple – but for out of warranty stuff, they rock.
The only real “problem” is, they provide a service I dont want to have to use. I’d rather my ipod and mac dont break in the first place! But as thats not likely with normal wear and tear, it’s nice to know they are there.
Cheers Brian and ifix! I see they are also profiled in the March/April issue of the NZ MacGuide magazine.
