# Is there any way I can make an iPhone warranty claim in Buffalo?



## bob99 (Aug 16, 2007)

I have an iPhone, and it's started getting a buzzing noise whenever I make calls. If I squeeze the phone, it stops, but obviously that's pretty annoying.

I bought it in Buffalo September 2007, at the Apple Store. Is there any way I can do some sort of factory restore to it and get it looked at? Or will they just deny it because I'm not an AT&T customer?

Any strategies / tips would be appreciated!

Bob


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## CanadaRAM (Jul 24, 2005)

This would be at the Buffalo store that says "Absolutely no warranty on iPhones sold to Canada??


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## Adrian. (Nov 28, 2007)

If it was software unlocked I believe you can. I am not sure. This is exactly why I haven't done the plunge to the iPhone yet!


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## Visnaut (Jul 22, 2004)

If you're going to be in the buffalo area, you can give it a shot. But I wouldn't make a trip out of it.

Basically, if you don't have AT&T service, and you're claiming you have a defective product based on what it does when you place calls, it's quite obvious what you're using it for, and how you did it. And that "how" is something they deem as voiding the warranty. Hell, even if you're just using it as an iPod touch, that means you have to "hacktivate" it, and again, that's something they see as voiding the warranty.

You could get lucky with the Genius Bar guy, but then again, you might not, seeing how many Canadian customers they get in there all the time.

Your best bet would be to completely restore and re-lock your phone, go down to the States and buy a pre-paid AT&T SIM card, put it into your iPhone and activate it with ZiPhone or Independence, and then hope they don't notice anything suspicious when you present it to them, or when it's in for repair.

Again, that's a lot of trouble to go through unless you're down there for other reasons already, and even then, there's no guarantee it will work. If you do slip in under the radar though, keep in mind they likely don't do outright replacements on units that are already a few months old, so be prepared for the eventuality that they might need to service it for a few days.


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## JustAMacUser (Oct 21, 2007)

If you do decide to try and get a warranty repair on the unit, it would be beneficial to others if you post the outcome here.

Like others have said, restore it to factory state. I believe ZiPhone has an option to do that. You should realize that there are some preference (.plist) files and support files that may remain on the iPhone even after doing this (I know they've remained on my iPhone even after restoring a few times).

If you still have the AT&T SIM that came with the phone--I'm not sure if this will still work--I activated my iPhone AT&T SIM on a GoPhone plan (AT&T's prepaid) to get the $100 iPhone rebate.

I purchased a $15 prepaid card from cheapphonecards.com (I'm not affiliated in any way; you receive your card virtually so it's pretty instant). Then I used that along with the IMEI and went to AT&T's GoPhone site to register. It actually worked (to my surprise). You may want to try the same to setup a short-term account to claim warranty. It's a long shot, but it might be better than nothing. I would do it, but I'm also really close to the border.


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## Phat Bastard (Jan 3, 2003)

There's nothing in the warranty documentation about refusing service to an iPhone that is used in Canada. Actually, as far as Apple knows, the phone was never in Canada at all.

http://www.apple.com/legal/warranty/iphone.pdf

However, there is this line:
This warranty does not apply: ... (e) to a product or part that has been modified to alter functionality or capability without the written permission of Apple;

So unlocking the phone voids your warranty. But I don't see how restoring the phone to the factory state will allow you to get it serviced, because the phone wouldn't be activated and you'd have no way to explain how you came across the mysterious buzzing sound. I'd say you have to go through the $15 prepaid card method suggested by JustAMacUser.


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## benk (Dec 23, 2007)

If the iPhone ever comes to Canada, what do you guys think the chances would be of being able to get Apple to fix it in Canada? (assuming you can cover up the fact that you unlocked the phone).

Would there be any difference between an iPhone purchased in the US and an iPhone purchased in Canada (again, assuming the iPhone were to come to Canada)?

Perhaps it would be better for the OP to wait it out and hope that the iPhone comes to Canada, then get it fixed in Canada.


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## Adrian. (Nov 28, 2007)

I highly highly doubt they would honour that warranty. Any company will try to get around spending money..including our beloved Apple.


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## silentsim (Apr 15, 2006)

benk said:


> If the iPhone ever comes to Canada, what do you guys think the chances would be of being able to get Apple to fix it in Canada? (assuming you can cover up the fact that you unlocked the phone).
> 
> Would there be any difference between an iPhone purchased in the US and an iPhone purchased in Canada (again, assuming the iPhone were to come to Canada)?
> 
> Perhaps it would be better for the OP to wait it out and hope that the iPhone comes to Canada, then get it fixed in Canada.


Serial #'s would determine where it was purchased. He is best off refurbing it using ZiPhone and trying to take it in, and the AT&T pay as you go method as explained above is an excellent idea.


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## JustAMacUser (Oct 21, 2007)

benk said:


> If the iPhone ever comes to Canada, what do you guys think the chances would be of being able to get Apple to fix it in Canada? (assuming you can cover up the fact that you unlocked the phone).
> 
> Would there be any difference between an iPhone purchased in the US and an iPhone purchased in Canada (again, assuming the iPhone were to come to Canada)?
> 
> Perhaps it would be better for the OP to wait it out and hope that the iPhone comes to Canada, then get it fixed in Canada.


I would surmise that any official Canadian iPhone would be quite distinguishable from a US iPhone. Not only for the serial numbers, etc. as mentioned above, but also simply because if you restore the phone, it will be locked to AT&T, not whatever Canadian carrier Apple picks (e.g. Rogers).

If the OP is close to the border, it doesn't hurt to try taking it in. Besides, Walden Galleria is a nice mall and he could make a day trip out of it.


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## bob99 (Aug 16, 2007)

Thanks to all who have replied to this thread. I'm going to Buffalo tomorrow, so I'm going to give it a whirl. I've downloaded ZiPhone, and I'm going to use the "refurbish" command later tonight when I get home, which will hopefully restore the phone to semi-legitimate factory settings. 

I bought a $15 prepaid ATT gophone card from cheaphonecards.com, so I'll set that up and see how it goes.

JustAMacUser, did you first register with the AT&T gophone site, and then through iTunes? Once I get the phone card I want to make sure I can activate it properly through iTunes. Any additional info you can provide before I do this tonight would be appreciated!

And of course, I'll report back and let everyone know how it goes.

Bob


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## bob99 (Aug 16, 2007)

*Update:* The repair was a success, but I think it's only because I got lucky.

When I gave the technician my iPhone (which was unlocked, using my original AT&T SIM that was hooked up on a $15 GoPhone plan) he looked at it and was confused since it hadn't been registered with Apple. He asked if it was on a prepaid plan, and I told him it was.

After about ten more minutes of computing on his part, he conferred with another technician and they gave me a replacement phone. I had my original receipt with me (since I bought it from that same store on September 12 2007) but they didn't need to see it. I guess that makes sense, since technically every single iPhone ever sold is still in the one-year warranty period.

I'm happy that the exchange worked, since I was pretty frustrated by my faulty hardware. If I had to pay to replace this phone, I was going to get a Blackberry just because it burned me so much to have my $400 Apple purchase fail after only five months of use.

In conclusion, if you have a legitimate warranty claim, I'd say it's worth it to set up a prepaid account and take it back to the store. Like all Canadian iPhone transactions, there's no guarantee it will work, but it's a good roll of the dice.

A side comment on the AT&T GoPhone service - it's very neat. Every time I made a call, a box would pop up afterwards and tell me my current account balance. I'm not sure if Canadian phones on Pay As You Go do that, but I would assume that they do not. The service started working almost as soon as I crossed the border, but was not active in Canada since it does not support roaming.

Also, GoPhone web browsing is supported, but e-x-t-r-e-m-e-l-y expensive. Shades of Rogers. I loaded up GMail in Safari and read about six messages, and I was charged over $4.00. It didn't matter, since my $15 credit expires in 30 days and I won't be back to the US to use it, but that's highway data robbery.

Bob


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## JustAMacUser (Oct 21, 2007)

Bob,

Glad things went really well for you! And thanks for letting us know the outcome of your "adventure." It's good future reference for others.


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## benk (Dec 23, 2007)

Wow! That's great news! Obviously the technician knew it was unlocked right?


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## bob99 (Aug 16, 2007)

Hi Ben,

I deleted installer.app from the unlocked phone, so it looked "factory fresh" - I'm not sure if they knew it was legitimately unlocked or not. I think they just assumed it was active on the GoPhone plan, since there's apparently a way to trick iTunes into offering you a GoPhone plan if you fail the credit check.

That's why I feel like I got lucky... I'm not sure every technican would have been so happy to replace the phone, since they may have suspected something was afoot.

Bob


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## Mississauga (Oct 27, 2001)

I'm somewhat surprised you were successful, but happy for ya!

The Walden Galleria store will only benefit from providing this sort of service and it helps to build their reputation. I fear Apple Inc. may get a whiff of these actions and put the clamp on them; would be a shame.


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## HowEver (Jan 11, 2005)

Mississauga said:


> I'm somewhat surprised you were successful, but happy for ya!
> 
> The Walden Galleria store will only benefit from providing this sort of service and it helps to build their reputation. I fear Apple Inc. may get a whiff of these actions and put the clamp on them; would be a shame.


How would they find out, though ?? : )


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## Mississauga (Oct 27, 2001)

HowEver said:


> How would they find out, though ?? : )


Although it's likely difficult to track such an event, I worry about someone "spilling the beans"... like right here! 

Some news travels fast.


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## Oakbridge (Mar 8, 2005)

I had a wonky pair of iPhone headphones and I went into the Buffalo store on Friday afternoon on my way to the Springsteen concert. I was also returning a Plantronics Bluetooth headset that I had bought in Boston a week ago (great that they can do returns from other states). Perhaps it was because my purchase history came up but the technician didn't have a problem giving me a new set of headphones. 

I think it is a case by case situation but I would say that the best advice would be to try to put it back to as close as a factory state as possible, and don't get arrogant with the people you deal with. I was open and up front and said that I was from Canada and that it was an unlocked phone.


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