Apple......the new GM?

My relationship with Apple is complicated.....much like my 10-year fling with Priuses, and thusly I was quite surprised a few months back when I bought a for-real, defective Apple Watch.
Fortunately, that store which will remain unnamed, has an iron-clad return policy, and I returned it for a full refund, buying a new Apple watch which has performed flawlessly....at least for a few months.

Fast forward to last month.....

I bought my very first ever, almost current generation iPhone XR from the Apple store only to struggle with connectivity issues for the last month or so.
It turns out that this is not an uncommon problem with the XRs and I'm hearing strange tales about Intel based modems and software glitches.

I've used Droids and iPhones side by side for almost a decade now, and although I've often and loudly lamented Apple for it's many faults, I've (*almost) always lauded them grudgingly for 2 things:
1. Respect for privacy
2. Build Quality

Is it POSSIBLE that I got back-to-back defective Apple products??!!
What goes on here?

Unfortunately....due to my own idiocy I did not return this phone for a full and fast refund during my first 14 days of ownership, so now Apple and I are stuck with each other....at least while I suss this out.

I have 27 days to buy AppleCare for this boat anchor (after which I may back over it with my Prius and send them the pieces!!)


Meanwhile......
We will now, together, explore another aspect for which the Apples are well regarded:
Customer Service!!!
.....if you're looking to put a new iPhone in the stocking this Christmas?



Shop wisely......


You’ll call us when you’re ready.
Call Apple Support:

1-800-MY-IPHONE
7:00 a.m. to 10:00 p.m. Central
When you’re ready, call the phone number above during business hours and refer to your Case ID for faster support.
Case ID:100xxxxxxxxx

 

Update (day 1)

I'm still gathering courage for my verbal with tech support, but I did a little research about this Qualcomm versus Intel modem rumor.
My work phone has proven to be VERY reliable and very sensitive in marginal cellular coverage.
It's a 7+ (MN522LL/A) and if I'm transliterating everything correctly it's an A1778 model - with the allegedly inferior Intel modem.
So much for internet wisdom....

I think I read once where the 7+ were one of the most reliable phones for hauling down weak cellular signals, and I can unreservedly recommend my work phone for anyone who is interested in a good (if very large and outdated) phone.

End of shift approaches.
I wish Apple did tech support by chat instead of voice.

Typing doesn't have a thick OUTCONUS accent.....

 

Update (day 2)
OK.....

First call is in the can.
47 minutes, and I talked to a tech named Michael, apparently located east of the Rockies.

We did the logical first steps, which is to verify phone is backed up in the cloud, wipe, and set up as a new phone.
(Grrr!)
This is to ensure that the trouble isn't ones and zeros that should be zeros and ones (software.)
....PITA, but logical first step. I'm also going to replace the SIM card this afternoon.
One might think that I would get a hook-up from a fellow employee for this, but....nope!
I get to go to the same store, sign in and deal with the same highly trained salespers...I mean "technicians" that you do.
NOT looking forward to that, but I do have the advantage of firing them.

Pro Tip:
There IS a difference between AT&T authorized retailers and an AT&T company store!!
Enough for me to drive 20-minutes in my own 21-MPG truck when there is an "Authorized Retailer" within a mile of my office that I can take my company Prius to over lunch.

Initial takeaways:
1. Apple did away with their internet chat which means that if you have trouble and need a tech you're going to be chained to a(nother) phone for up to most of an hour.
2. Don't bother setting up a case file beforehand thinking that when you do call it will go faster, either suck it up and just call them or provide info and have them call you back.
After giving providing my case file # and the unit's s/n to the tech, I was asked for an IMEI number.
I asked them why the case file didn't have this info and he admitted that the case file hadn't come up yet.

So.
Clock's ticking on whether this is a fix or a fail.
We'll see.....

 

The sign in front will state that they are an authorized reseller.

+1.

Well....that and grandchildren.
Dang hard to facetime on a droid.
They don't work with Apple watches either.....

 

Update (day 2.5)
I've discovered that my new XR will now not forward calls....this on a phone that goes radio silent asymptomatically.
Thinking that this pointed towards the carrier, I went to an AT&T store and worked with a store technician who proved that the SIM card works in a working phone.
She also said that the Xr wasn't one of the most reliable of new phones based on the number of units returned to the store.
She couldn't recommend the Xs either.

If anybody out there is wanting to stuff a stocking with an apple I would humbly recommend either an 8 or an 11.
TIFWIW.
I'm still not ready to give up on the Apples, although my faith in their build quality has been shaken up quite a bit.

Back to the phones tomorrow AM.

 

Day 4.

OK....
So I'm a dope.
The more I thought about call forwarding (a carrier feature) versus connectivity (hardware/software) I became suspicious of the AT&T tech's assertion that my problems are all Apple.
I gathered my 2 work phones (7+ and 8) and drug my beloved LG Stylo 4 out of the retirement home.
4 phones. 2 SIM chips.
I mixed and matched them carefully.
Very carefully since the powers that be don't like me jamming a company SIM card into a personal device, but hey....science.

Conclusion:
The call forwarding is an AT&T thing, and the connectivity is an iPhone XR thing....and I can now prove both....in real time.
And.....I should have known better.

SO.....
Now I get to solve the sim problem with Big Bell and THEN try and convince the Apples that they sold me a lemon.

(*sigh!)

 

OK.
So.....

A combination of the second factory reset, scratch reloading my apps and updating to 13.2.3 seems to have had an effect on my connectivity problems.
Our home phone’s VoIP line has been out for the last week and my XR has been pulling double duty - in 6 counties with spotty cellular coverage and it’s starting to win back my confidence.

I was really on the fence between an XR and the 11 and while $100 doesn’t seem to be a big diff when you’re already kicking over $600 for a phone, there’s not $100 worth of extra swag in the 11’s ‘future-proofing’ unless you’re a dedicated shutterbug (in which case you need the 11Pro anyway) or a Boomer who trades out phones every 5 years.

TIFWIW....