🚀 go-pugleaf

My Sharp representative made a nice attempt to break the news gently,
but the conclusion was inescapable:

  Sharp LCD Model #LM64P791 is a custom Apple design, and cannot be
  sold to anyone other than Apple Computer, Inc.

Further, the rep believed, the design is significantly different from
other Sharp products, so the attempt to substitute a similar product
would be in vain.

On a related front, it turns out that the single-unit cost of laptop
LCD screens does in fact range from $500 to $600.  This confirms
information sent to me by a reader who works for Sony, who said both
this and that the OEM cost of the same products is in the $200 range.

It therefore can be safely concluded that Apple Computer is paying
$200 or so for a screen that it sells for $790.

In light of this, and the ease by which my PB100 screen was broken, I
have sent the following letter to Mr. John Sculley of Apple, Inc.  

It will be interesting to see if there is a response.


Yours, 

Fred Martin

enc: letter to Mr. John Sculley
----

Dear Mr. Sculley:

A recent incident occurred with my Apple PowerBook 100 computer that
has greatly shaken my faith in both the quality of design of Apple
products and the fairness of Apple Technical Support policy.

The computer slipped from my grasp and fell from a height of three
feet.  It landed, case closed, onto a carpeted surface.  The LCD
screen shattered.

A fall of this magnitude should not destroy a piece of equipment that
is built for portability.  The plastic case of the PowerBook 100 may
optimize some aesthetic of lightness, but it does so at the expense of
providing a degree of robustness that _any_ mobile equipment should
have.

After the screen broke, I called Apple Technical Support to get a
quote on the price of repair.  My shock at having my machine break
after this incident turned into horror when I learned the price of
repair: $790.  This price is perfectly outrageous; it is common
knowledge among the industry-aware that the OEM cost of similar LCD
screens is $200.  Apple Computer should not be trying to turn a large
profit on the cost of authorized repairs, especially if the design of
the product itself is in question.

I hope that future Apple products are not as poorly designed as is my
PowerBook 100.  Further, I hope Apple will reconsider its policy
toward the screen replacement of its existing computers, either
covering under warrantee damage due to minor circumstances, or pricing
authorized service in a manner that does not prohibit the repairs
themselves.


					Sincerely yours,

					Fred G. Martin
					M.S., Mechanical Engineering
-- 
Fred Martin | fredm@media.mit.edu | (617) 253-7143 | 20 Ames St. Rm. E15-301
Epistemology and Learning Group, MIT Media Lab     | Cambridge, MA 02139 USA