Did David Ciccone Just Have a Bad Day With His MacBook Pro(s) or They All Junk?

We’ve all read about the mooing and whining of the MacBook Pro and how it’s one pretty hot notebook (and we don’t mean that in the slang term.) For me, I’ve had little issue with my Rev. A MacBook Pro. Sure, I had a battery that gained some weight and bloated out, but that’s Sony’s fault. But it seems some are having even greater issues. A peeling Magsafe end, a warped battery bay, and heat that will leave burn marks on any beach-going MacBook Pro user. David Ciccone of Mobility is one such user.

Seems poor David can’t win. He got a MacBook Pro back in March and has had problem after problem with it. Finally, he just got a new one from a New Jersey Apple Store and thought all was fine, until he got home. The whining sound continued and weeks later more problems ensued. In his book, his MacBook Pro was a lemon. It’s skinned him so sourly, he’s written an open letter to Apple’s Hollywood-like star CEO, Steve Jobs. In the letter, he notifies Mr. Jobs that he will no longer — “never” — purchase an Apple product and he’ll be sure to tell everyone about is poor experience. Is Ciccone being a bit extreme? Maybe.

I have had some minor issues with my Rev. A MacBook Pro, but nothing that would drive me to call the office of the CEO of Apple. Sure, everyone will get a lemon of some sort from just about every company and that just happens in our imperfect world. For the most part, Apple does do everything in its power to correct a fault and I think Ciccone even documents that in his article when he notes how the New Jersey store gave him a new MBP as well as various accessory replacements in a five month period without any grief. I can’t imagine Dell doing this. (How would they even understand such a concept in India? ;) )

I understand Ciccone’s frustration and I would be just as upset as him if I had had such an experience as his. But I didn’t and most haven’t. I think Ciccone may be a unique, one in a million, customer that just drives his machine into the ground with extreme use. After my PowerBook G4 burnt out its motherboard twice and my Dell Inspiron 1000 once, I learn a valuable lesson: laptops are meant to run all day and night long. Turn them off for a while. Since then, neither computer, nor my MBP, have had heat issues.

It’s my hope that Ciccone gets a new MBP and Apple step up to the plate and resolve this the right Apple way I’m sure it will as this kind of PR is not the kind any company wants to have. Hopefully this doesn’t happen to me, either. :)

[tags]macbook,steve,jobs,mobility,today,david,ciccone,debacle[/tags]