Damn you Amazon... - Page 2

HarryT · 04-19-2012, 11:01 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by JSWolf

But, there's a very good chance that your Kindle won't ever have KF8 support. All we know for sure is that eventually the K4 on up will have KF8 support. The Kindle Touch already does. But yours, maybe never.

Amazon said that the current generation Kindles would get KF8 support and the Kindle 3/Kindle Keyboard aren't current generation.

Yes, Jon, we all know this. What's the relevance to this thread?

JSWolf · 04-19-2012, 11:15 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by HarryT

Yes, Jon, we all know this. What's the relevance to this thread?

Quote:

Originally Posted by apastuszak

Every time my Kindle gives me grief, I get the urge to switch to an eBook reader that supports ePub.

And what does Amazon do? Their incredible customer service keeps replacing my kindle for free.

Kindle customer service truly is outstanding. And now that the KF8 format is out, the need for ePub is far less than it used to be.

That is the relevance. The need for ePub is just the same if KF8 is never supported on a K3.

susan_cassidy · 04-19-2012, 11:48 AM

I don't want any KF8 books - I'm sure my K1 doesn't support it.

rhadin · 04-19-2012, 11:49 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by jbcohen

I'm with harry my Kindle is approaching one year and I have never called Tech Support ever. I have been working in the computer field for over three decades and have used every hardware and software there is available anywhere and I have never called any tech support for anything and it goes to show the old addage in the computer industry "If you have called tech support for anything you have the wrong product." In fact if tech support people are busy with customers then there is something wrong with the product they are selling, since the goal of tech support is to drive your customers away.

Interesting. Considering the number of complaints on MR about problems with Kobo and Amazon hardware, I would think fewer of them would be sold to MR members, but it seems, especially in the case of Amazon, that there is no correlation between number of reported Kindle problems and sales, which speaks highly for Amazon's customer service, I think.

I've not owned a Kindle so I have no personal experience with the device (other than an hour or two playing with a neighbor's), but I contrast the Kindle experience -- that is, many complaints but no effect on sales -- with the Sony experience. I have 2 Sonys, a 4.5-year-old 505 and a 1.5-year-old 950, both of which are used daily for hours and I have never called tech support for either device. Both have worked and worked well from the day I bought them. Yet, there have been some complaints about Sony devices here on MR and Sony's sales appear to be in decline.

Interesting what a good reputation (or lack of one) for customer service can do for a company.

HarryT · 04-19-2012, 11:59 AM

My one and only experience with Sony support, when my PRS-600 developed a screen fault, was not a pleasant one at all. I sent it to them, they examined it and said there was no fault, and wanted to charge me £40 (about $70) to return it to me. When I said that I'd see them in hell first, they finally (after about a month) repented and sent it back to me, still with the fault. I had to send it again, this time accompanied by photographs clearly demonstrating what the fault was, before they exchanged it. All in all, I was without the device for about 3 months.

Sony could learn an awful lot from Amazon in terms of customer service.

JSWolf · 04-19-2012, 12:02 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by HarryT

My one and only experience with Sony support, when my PRS-600 developed a screen fault, was not a pleasant one at all. I sent it to them, they examined it and said there was no fault, and wanted to charge me £40 (about $70) to return it to me. When I said that I'd see them in hell first, they finally (after about a month) repented and sent it back to me, still with the fault. I had to send it again, this time accompanied by photographs clearly demonstrating what the fault was, before they exchanged it. All in all, I was without the device for about 3 months.

Sony could learn an awful lot from Amazon in terms of customer service.

I discovered that my Mother's 600 had one of those LG defective in sunlight screens. Sony was quite good about it. They sent one quickly. The one they sent had a screen that was not good enough. I sent back one of them, they sent another and that one was fine and then I sent back the one left. Sony paid for all of this and they had them sent UPS 2-day shipping.

ProfCrash · 04-19-2012, 12:09 PM

Amazon knows that the best way to keep Kindle users is to replace broken Kindles. Heck, they have replaced out of warrenty broken Kindles at discounted prices or for free. Why? Because it means that people will probably be buying books from Amazon and that is where they make their money.

It is a pretty simple idea, actually. Take a disgruntled customer (My Kindle is broken) make them a happy customer (Hey they replaced it for free even though the screen broke because I sat on it) and get them to spend more money.

There are plenty of folks who have had legitimate problems with their Kindles and sent them back for a replacement. I have been lucky and have not had an issue. My MIL had to have her K2 replaced due to the sun fade problem when that was an issue. I read reports of people have 6 or more K2's with the sun fade problem. They all stuck with Amazon because of the amazing sutomer service.

Go figure.

Blossom · 04-19-2012, 01:39 PM

There are some defective Kindles out there. I had to have my K4 replaced the day after I got it because the display was really bad. My Second was better but it's has issues. The Left side next button I seldom use because it's not responsive and has to be hit twice and now and then the Kindle locks up for no reason.

I had to have my Kindle Fire replaced because of a bad firmware update. It wouldn't go past the load screen.

Kindle Support has always taken care of any issues I have. This is why I shop from them.

To lock out someone's account because of Kindle issues is just not good business. Instead of replacing a Kindle over and over they need to step back and figure out what is going on. Why does the Kindle need replacing?

Skydog · 04-19-2012, 04:15 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Blossom

To lock out someone's account because of Kindle issues is just not good business. Instead of replacing a Kindle over and over they need to step back and figure out what is going on. Why does the Kindle need replacing?

I have seen no proof that this is Amazon's policy. Only Amazon and the customer involved have the facts regarding an account closure, even if somewhat nebulous. And it makes no sense for Amazon to offer multiple replacements for a device if their end goal is to close an account because of it.

Blossom · 04-19-2012, 04:39 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Skydog

I have seen no proof that this is Amazon's policy. Only Amazon and the customer involved have the facts regarding an account closure, even if somewhat nebulous. And it makes no sense for Amazon to offer multiple replacements for a device if their end goal is to close an account because of it.

I was referring to markbot posts who thinks they should lock that person account. Why offer a warranty if you are not going to honor it. Now I am not talking about silly issues like my K4 has the back stained due to Marware case causing some chemical reaction to it but I don't expect Amazon to replace it for something so trivial but if the buttons keep getting worse on my K4 I think that is a replacement issue.

yoho · 04-19-2012, 11:18 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by HarryT

"keep replacing your Kindle"? I am a little curious why your Kindle keeps needing to be replaced? I've owned a fair number of Kindles over the years, and have never had a problem.

same question

heeby · 04-20-2012, 05:00 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Blossom

I was referring to markbot posts who thinks they should lock that person account. Why offer a warranty if you are not going to honor it. Now I am not talking about silly issues like my K4 has the back stained due to Marware case causing some chemical reaction to it but I don't expect Amazon to replace it for something so trivial but if the buttons keep getting worse on my K4 I think that is a replacement issue.

Yeah that was a pretty nasty and judgemental response to people returning things. People don't return things for kicks generally...they do it because things aren't right. I'd love to buy things once and never think about it again but quality control in mass produced things isn't that great.

rhadin · 04-20-2012, 08:45 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Blossom

I was referring to markbot posts who thinks they should lock that person account. Why offer a warranty if you are not going to honor it. Now I am not talking about silly issues like my K4 has the back stained due to Marware case causing some chemical reaction to it but I don't expect Amazon to replace it for something so trivial but if the buttons keep getting worse on my K4 I think that is a replacement issue.

It seems to me that the questions that are not asked are: Why are the buttons getting worse? Why does Amazon have to replace so many Kindles? Are there really many more Kindles that need replacement but that the owners are unaware of it?

I realize that at the prices that Amazon charges for Kindles, high quality cannot be expected. But I would have thought the quality would be better than is reported on the forums.

What I find interesting is that Kindlers do not find the disruption caused by having to have a Kindle replaced to be a negative when discussing Amazon. In contrast, every time a Sony, for example, needs replacing -- regardless of whether the fault is Sony's or the owner's -- it is a negative mark against Sony. The differences in the way the companies are viewed by their customers is interesting.

HarryT · 04-20-2012, 08:50 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by rhadin

It seems to me that the questions that are not asked are: Why are the buttons getting worse? Why does Amazon have to replace so many Kindles? Are there really many more Kindles that need replacement but that the owners are unaware of it?

Given the number of Kindle out there, I'm not at all sure that a high proportion of them DO need replacing. It's a small sample size to be sure, but neither my own Kindles, nor those of any of my friends or work colleagues have needed replacement.

Quote:

What I find interesting is that Kindlers do not find the disruption caused by having to have a Kindle replaced to be a negative when discussing Amazon. In contrast, every time a Sony, for example, needs replacing -- regardless of whether the fault is Sony's or the owner's -- it is a negative mark against Sony. The differences in the way the companies are viewed by their customers is interesting.

Don't forget that there's also the issue of how it's dealt with. Compare the experience of sending away your Sony for repair and waiting two months while you hope that Sony will repair it and not (as they did with me) claim that there's no fault, and charge you $70 to send it back to you, with the Amazon experience of them sending you a replacement and THEN requesting you to send the original back to them. A rather more satisfactory experience, I'm sure you'll agree?

ProfCrash · 04-20-2012, 10:52 AM

People on these sites are going to post when they have a problem with their device so we read about them. I would guess that the return rate is pretty low for most Kindles, actually for most e-readers.

If you are having a button issue, I would ask for a replacement. There is no need to deal with a Kindle that is not operating properly.

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04-19-2012, 11:48 AM	#18
susan_cassidy Wizard Posts: 2,251 Karma: 3720310 Join Date: Jan 2009 Location: USA Device: Kindle, iPad (not used much for reading)	I don't want any KF8 books - I'm sure my K1 doesn't support it.

04-19-2012, 11:59 AM	#20
HarryT eBook Enthusiast Posts: 85,548 Karma: 93383099 Join Date: Nov 2006 Location: UK Device: Kindle Oasis 2, iPad Pro 10.5", iPhone 6	My one and only experience with Sony support, when my PRS-600 developed a screen fault, was not a pleasant one at all. I sent it to them, they examined it and said there was no fault, and wanted to charge me £40 (about $70) to return it to me. When I said that I'd see them in hell first, they finally (after about a month) repented and sent it back to me, still with the fault. I had to send it again, this time accompanied by photographs clearly demonstrating what the fault was, before they exchanged it. All in all, I was without the device for about 3 months. Sony could learn an awful lot from Amazon in terms of customer service.

04-19-2012, 12:09 PM	#22
ProfCrash Tea Enthusiast Posts: 8,554 Karma: 75384937 Join Date: Jul 2010 Location: Somewhere in the USA Device: Kindle1, Kindle DX Graphite, K3 3G, IPad 3, PW2	Amazon knows that the best way to keep Kindle users is to replace broken Kindles. Heck, they have replaced out of warrenty broken Kindles at discounted prices or for free. Why? Because it means that people will probably be buying books from Amazon and that is where they make their money. It is a pretty simple idea, actually. Take a disgruntled customer (My Kindle is broken) make them a happy customer (Hey they replaced it for free even though the screen broke because I sat on it) and get them to spend more money. There are plenty of folks who have had legitimate problems with their Kindles and sent them back for a replacement. I have been lucky and have not had an issue. My MIL had to have her K2 replaced due to the sun fade problem when that was an issue. I read reports of people have 6 or more K2's with the sun fade problem. They all stuck with Amazon because of the amazing sutomer service. Go figure.

04-19-2012, 01:39 PM	#23
Blossom Treasure Seeker Posts: 18,708 Karma: 26026435 Join Date: Mar 2010 Device: Kobo HD Glo, Kindles, Kindle Fires, Andriod Devices	There are some defective Kindles out there. I had to have my K4 replaced the day after I got it because the display was really bad. My Second was better but it's has issues. The Left side next button I seldom use because it's not responsive and has to be hit twice and now and then the Kindle locks up for no reason. I had to have my Kindle Fire replaced because of a bad firmware update. It wouldn't go past the load screen. Kindle Support has always taken care of any issues I have. This is why I shop from them. To lock out someone's account because of Kindle issues is just not good business. Instead of replacing a Kindle over and over they need to step back and figure out what is going on. Why does the Kindle need replacing?

04-20-2012, 10:52 AM	#30
ProfCrash Tea Enthusiast Posts: 8,554 Karma: 75384937 Join Date: Jul 2010 Location: Somewhere in the USA Device: Kindle1, Kindle DX Graphite, K3 3G, IPad 3, PW2	People on these sites are going to post when they have a problem with their device so we read about them. I would guess that the return rate is pretty low for most Kindles, actually for most e-readers. If you are having a button issue, I would ask for a replacement. There is no need to deal with a Kindle that is not operating properly.

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