I recently helped my Mom get a power cord for her Mac Mini. Apple sent me a customer feedback form. Here is my reply as an open letter to Apple:
“We lost a power cord for the mac mini in a flood. When we bought a power pack, the cord was not included. The cord itself was not available on the website, nor was it available for purchase through the sales department when I called. Most frustrating was the total incompetence we faced when looking for a power cord from a brick and mortar official Apple store here in Columbus OH. It was the WORST customer service experience I had ever had. Basically they told me that there were no power cords for the mac mini in the store (a lie) and that they couldn’t order any cords (lie #2). I called the sales department while in the store, and neither the sales department on the phone, nor the brick and mortar store did anything to help the situation. It took me nearly three hours to find a technical support guy to ship a 10$ cord. All the while my family had called several times and mysteriously got cut off while on hold (which happened to me twice also). A completely vertical business model requires solid customer service. My family was planning to switch from PCs to getting 2-3 macs in the next year, but this experience has caused us to change our minds and stick with PCs. I feel sorry for everyone who has bought an ipod who needs a battery 18 months from now.”
Libervative 