, , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

Apple Store In Palm Beach Gardens Mall Closing For 4 to 6 Months. UberMac In Jupiter, FL Set To Pick Up The Slack.

UberMac - Palm Beach Gardens Mall Apple Store Temporarily Closing

Apple Store in Palm Beach Gardens Mall Closing Temporarily

Yesterday, we at UberMac started hearing rumblings from our customers that the Apple Store inside of the Palm Beach Gardens Mall was closing, and that there was a line outside of the front door, wrapping around the side of the store. So we decided to visit the store and talk to some of our friends on staff to get the real skinny on the situation.

And sure enough the rumor is true. The Apple Store in the Palm Beach Gardens Mall will be closing on March 25th for 4 to 6 months to expand into the space next door to it. This news came directly from our Apple contact’s mouth.

So what will Apple customers do regarding all of their repairs and needed assistance? Well, our guess is that they will try to refer all Apple customers to the Wellington Mall Apple Store. Or maybe they will try to make Apple customers aware of the Apple Consultants Network (which we were once a member of, but decided that it wasn’t for us).

But the problem with both of those scenarios is the same problem the Apple Store has always had. It’s bad for customer service, it’s inconvenient, and it’s horrible for the customer experience.

But you have a great alternative. A store much like an Apple Store with actual Apple Certified Technicians at your disposal close by in Jupiter, FL at UberMac.

UberMac, (formerly Cobalt Computer Consulting, and a former member of the Apple Consultants Network), is one of the only Apple only repair stores in the United States. We specialize in repairing all Apple computers, devices and products. Many computer repair or “iFix” repair stores will fix anything that comes through their door such as Microsoft Windows computers, TV’s, Android phones and tablets, game consoles, etc. But UberMac is the polar opposite of those stores. We are an Apple only company. And that makes us the very best at what we do.

So while the Apple Store in the Gardens Mall is closed, you can have the very next best thing. And our repair turnaround times are amazing. We also do things that the Apple store does not do like in home consulting, computer setup and data recovery and transfers. UberMac is as close as you will ever get to an actual Apple Store.

The Differences between the Apple Store and UberMac

The only real differences between UberMac and the Apple Store, is that we are not authorized to perform IN WARRANTY repairs on Apple products. In fact, if your Apple computer, iPhone or iPad are still in warranty, we always encourage all of our customers to head to the closest Apple Store to have it serviced there. But for many of our customers, just walking into an Apple Store is an unpleasant venture in and of itself. Nothing against Apple, because we love Apple, but we all know that these stores suffer from lack of customer service. It’s a known issue. So it’s not surprising to us that about 90% of our customers are willing to have us void their warranty and continue with the repair, regardless of the consequences. From our experience, they don’t want to go to the Apple Store for one, and they also don’t want to wait for an hour or more to find out if their iPhone can be repaired. At UberMac, we can have it fixed in about 20 minutes on average. So Apple customers normally choose us instead.

That being said, as a former member of the Apple Consultants Network, we have a vast knowledge of all things Apple. UberMac and it’s Apple Certified Technicians have been repairing Apple products exclusively for over 7 years now. We have performed just about any repair you can fathom related to Apple and it’s products.

The other main difference between UberMac and the Apple Store, is that the Apple Store will not allow it’s technicians to come to an Apple customers home to assist them. It is just not allowed. And if an Apple technician does decide to take a side job at a customers home, it is grounds for termination. It is simply against policy. But UberMac technicians have been coming to Apple customers homes and assisting with everything from Apple computer setup and configuration, to wireless printer setup, to basic lessons, troubleshooting, and even wireless network installation for years now. Since 2005 to be exact.

Also, it is important to remember that our technicians at UberMac hold at least one, if not multiple Apple Certifications. This is a standard and a requirement to be employed by UberMac, and that goes for all UberMac franchises that we will be pushing out across the United States as well. (We’ll get into that in a little bit ; )

We know that Apple customers want professionals handling their expensive computers and devices, that’s why we require Apple Certifications within our organization. So why would you trust your Apple products to one of those “iFix” stores or the Geek Squad guys, of the Geeks On Call? And if you do, ask them if they are Apple Certified, and also ask to see proof. You can also verify certifications on Apple’s website as well, however it is not very reliable. I myself hold 5 Apple certifications, and not one of them shows up in their search system. So it is important for you, the consumer, to do your research, ask questions and read reviews before you trust someone with your devices. We at UberMac have a proven track record. Feel free to read all about us in our “Reviews” section here.

The “iFix” stores & iPhone Repair

At UberMac, we have repaired over 7,600 iPhones to date, over 1,200 iPads and a staggering 4,100 iMac and MacBook repairs in the last 7 years. But let’s talk about the iPhone repair industry.

Apple has never allowed anyone to repair their iPhones or iPads. They just recently started allowing some AASP’s (Apple Authorized Service Providers) to perform low level repairs, but AASP’s are rare to find and sparsely located based on our research.

In the past, it’s been known that if an iPhone repair store opens your device, the warranty was voided. But good news, that is no longer the situation.

In our opinion, this was Apple’s way to get you into their stores. And although it is almost literally impossible for any iPhone repair store to acquire actual, OEM Apple parts for repairs, many of the parts available to iPhone repair stores are very close in quality compared to Apple’s original parts. But that is only if the iPhone repair store that you trust with your repair chooses to seek out those high quality parts. Most iPhone repair stores don’t tell you that you are either getting a refurbished LCD, or the lowest priced part that they could acquire. But at UberMac, we only use the highest quality parts available, and constantly try to steer clear of refurbished iPhone screens, even though the market is literally saturated with them. But we offer a lifetime warranty on our iPhone and iPad parts, regardless, so that the consumer has nothing to worry about.

But a lifetime warranty really does you no good if the part is low quality, and you are forced to keep returning to that “iFix” store to keep having them replace the same part. That is why we demand the quality that we do in the parts that we use.

There are a few “iFix” stores out there that do have integrity, do use quality parts, and also perform repairs to our standard, but they are very few and far between. And almost none of them employ Apple Certified technicians like UberMac does. That is why we have distanced ourselves from the “iFix” industry. UberMac is so much more than an iPhone repair company. We are much closer to an actual Apple store than anything else in our industry.

Apple Computer Repairs By Apple Certified Technicians

We have been performing repairs exclusively on Apple iMac and MacBook computers for over 7 years now (But we have been in business performing computer repairs since 2005). We are capable of performing any repair on any Apple product. If your product is in warranty, we can still perform your upgrade or repair, but will advise you that you will be voiding your warranty first. But if your computer or device is out of warranty, this is where we shine. Our repair times are unbelievably faster than the Apple Store. On average, any iPhone repair takes us about 20 minutes to complete. That means you can wait in our showroom, or run down to Rock Steady Juice Joint for a pick me up.

Even iPad repairs can be handled on the same day if dropped off early enough.

And our Apple computer repair times are much more efficient than an Apple Store. For instance, a typical hard drive repair, replacement or upgrade can be done in about an hour or 2. That’s right. Same day service on hard drive repairs (Not including data transfer times, because they vary.) And if you need a repair performed that requires us to order a special part that we do not stock, like an LCD assembly, or a special SSD for a retina MacBook Pro, we can acquire that part fast. Once the part is in our hands, almost every single repair can be done within hours. The exception would be more extensive repairs like logic board repair. But again, most repairs are done the same day, unlike the several day wait that Apple customers normally need to endure at an Apple Store.

All of our parts and repairs hold a 90 day warranty on them. New parts such as hard drives generally come with a 1 year warranty on them as well.

Selling Apple Computers & Products

For years, we at UberMac resisted selling Apple computers and devices. Our customers constantly asked us to carry used Apple Computers, but to be honest, there just didn’t seem to be a way to make money in this area. However, in recent months we have found a way to finally be able to offer out customers high quality, gently used, excellent condition iMac and Macbook computers from UberMac. And we also certify all of these computers and add a 90 day warranty to them. This new addition to the services that we offer has been highly successful, and was clearly a much needed area for our customers.

We even keep a couple of NEW in the box Apple Computers and iPads in stock for the customers that don’t want to drive to the Apple Store or to Best Buy. We carry these mainly as a convenience to our customers.

Transparency, Transparency, Transparency.

We want to be very clear about the UberMac business model right from the get go with you. At UberMac, we are completely against sales and sales tactics. UberMac is not a sales company. UberMac is a customer service company first and foremost. There are no commissions at our company.

Do we “sell” products?
No. We do not “sell” anything.

Do we stock products that the consumer can buy if they want to?
Yes. We do.

In other words, we stock at least 20 gently used Apple computers at all times. We also carry a full line of Otterbox cases for iPhone and iPad. We stock almost every single Apple accessory cable, adapter, keyboard and mouse. We stock a lot of things, but we don’t sell anything at UberMac.

This seems unorthodox, we know, but we also know what it feels like to walk onto a car lot or to walk into a furniture store and feel the pressure of a salesman hovering over you. No one wants to be “hovered over” when they are simply looking, shopping or killing time. That is why, when we decided to start selling products, we chose this approach. And it works. Look, if you want to buy something at UberMac, grab it and bring it to the counter to purchase it. And if you need help or have a question, ask any UberMac employee at anytime. And if it ever feels like no one is helping you, or that you are receiving bad service when you are shopping for a product, trust us, that’s not the case. We just want you to be able to shop in peace without any pressure. Again, if you have a question, just ask and we will jump to assist you.

With this shopping experience standard put into place, and having tested it over the years, it has proven to be a huge success. Our customers have raved about how comfortable it is to shop at our store, and how honest and transparent we are when it comes to advising our customers on what to do regarding a repair or purchase.

If you offer good reliable products, they will sell themselves, and that’s what happens at UberMac.

Just the beginning.

So now that you know all about us here at UberMac, we hope you will let us be your Apple Store alternative location in the coming months while the Apple Store is closed for it’s expansion. Jupiter, FL is not far from the Palm Beach Gardens Mall, and considerably closer than the Apple Store in the Wellington Mall if you live in Palm Beach Gardens, Abacoa, Singer Island, North Palm Beach, Juno Beach, and other areas north of PGA Blvd.

UberMac has just finished the legal process to be able to franchise it’s business across the United States. This should be a great year for us, and we hope to open many UberMac locations so that we can supplement the Apple Stores’ customers when they want a faster, more relaxed alternative to visiting an Apple Store. Come check us out.

UberMac. As close to an Apple Store as you can get.

/by
, , , , ,

Why You Should Buy A Used Or Refurbished iMac Or MacBook From UberMac.

Why You Should Buy A Used Or Refurbished iMac Or MacBook From UberMac.

Well, the first thing that you should know about UberMac, is that we are not a sales driven company. We are a service & customer satisfaction driven company. So you will never feel like you are being “sold” a product at our company. We have always let our products, accessories and computers sell themselves.

The last thing anyone wants is to be followed around and hovered over while they are simply browsing.

In fact we’d like to offer full disclosure here. We never wanted to sell computers in the first place. In fact, we didn’t stock or sell computers on a regular basis until October of 2016. And the reason we didn’t is because, as I stated above, we just don’t want to be thought of as a “sales” based company. That is not what we do at UberMac.

But as the requests grew from our customers and clients, we decided to give it a shot, and so far, it had been very successful, and definitely fits our business model. It’s turned into another avenue where it serves the customer. And they appreciate it. So it works, and we have decided to continue with it. We now stock over 20 Apple computers at all times.

Now. The big question. Why buy a computer from UberMac?

Well first you have to ask yourself a few questions to find out if buying a used or refurbished computer is the right decision for you, or if purchasing a brand new iMac or MacBook with an Apple factory warranty is the better choice for you.

So who exactly is the right customer for as used Mac? Well, first and foremost, it should be the person who does not want to, or cannot afford to pay full price for a brand new Apple computer. This is where the choice of a gently used, tested and certified computer from UberMac may be the best choice for you. After all, all of our computers come with an UberMac Certified 90 Day Warranty, so if anything goes wrong, we’ve got your back.

Q: Why wouldn’t I just buy a used MacBook from eBay? Why give UberMac my money?
A: Good question. Here’s why. We have secured sources from where we purchase our used Apple computers. So we know what we’re getting before it goes out for sale on our showroom floor. We test, open, clean, inspect & certify all UberMac computers at time of arrival. If anything is questionable, or if the computer has dents, scratches or dings in it, we ship it back because we only try to offer the best of the best, and near new condition looking computers.

And let’s talk about buying Apple computers from eBay, and some of the things that you will have to deal with. The biggest problem with buying these expensive computers from eBay is when items arrived damaged because of poor packaging, or when they arrive “not as described”.

Instance #1: You buy a MacBook on eBay for $800.00. You pay, and wait for it. And when it arrives, it has been damaged in shipping and the corners of the lid are all bent in. Now you have to contact the buyer, establish where the fault lies, see if they;l accept responsibility, and then if they do, you’ll have to wait for your refund until they receive the item. And even after they receive it, they have an additional 14 days or so before they even actually need to refund your money. So what I’m saying is, you could be waiting for your money for awhile.

Instance #2: Your computer arrives, you open it up, turn it on and it works. But a week later it quits working. You take it to an Apple repair store like UberMac. They open it up and advise you that your computer has liquid or water damage. Now it is up to you to contact the seller. That seller may do one of the following. They may be really cool and allow you to return it for a refund (if they even accept returns), or more than likely what will happen is that they will claim ignorance and say that there is no way that they could have known the computer had internal liquid damage because they don’t open the computers, or the other scenario where they just blame blame you for the damage and refuse any help at all. Now your stuck fighting with the seller through eBay Protection, which is a very time consuming process.

Another reason to buy from UberMac is that you will have a physical location to go to if there does happen top be an issue with your computer. Buying through eBay or Craigslist is always a gamble.

And another great part of the UberMac buying experience is what we said in the beginning of this article. You will never feel and sales pressure. You will never be sold. It is up the the UberMac customer to let one of our team member know that you have a question about a product. Once you request assistance, we do our very best to not only coach you into buying the right computer for your needs, but use our reputation of honesty and integrity to maybe even send you to the Apple Store to make your purchase. We don’t mind losing a sale, we only care about our customer and that they are being taken care of and informed in the best possible way by our Apple Certified Technicians.

Come check us out, or give us a call with any questions.

 

 

/by
, , , , , , ,

UberMac. Why We’re Not Your Typical “iFix” Company.

UberMac. Not an "iFix" store.

UberMac. Why We’re Not Your Typical “iFix” Company.

Back in 2008, we registered iPhoneFix.com, which is probably (and arguably) the best domain name in  the world if what you’re going to do is repair iPhones for a living. And we still own it to this day. But we no longer use it, and feel that it is important to distance UberMac from the thousands of “iFix” companies that exist today, and here’s why.

I started to notice people calling and coming into our store, and confusing us with these other “iFix” stores. I had people that were angry at us that we wouldn’t repair their phones because their husband or wife told them that “The iFix” place fixed it last. And we would try to look them up in our system, and sure enough, it was always some other company that repaired their phone. And people also confused us with why their phones were having issues so soon after their repair. And again we would help them to discover that it wasn’t us. It became embarrassing to be associated with, or have the word “fix” in my name anymore.

One more example is when I had just met someone and told them what I do and that I own iPhoneFix, and their whole demeanor changed and they started complaining to me about how my company “screwed their mom over” on an iPhone repair. He told me that after it was repaired that it stopped working the next day and she brought it to Apple and they told her that the part that they used went bad, and that when she tried to get it replaced they told her they couldn’t help her. I was beside myself, but I knew for a fact that it wasn’t us. So we had to go through this whole thing where I had to convince him that our company would never do that. After regaining some respect with him, we called his mom and sure enough, it happened to be this company way down Indiantown Rd in Jupiter. It was confirmed that it wasn’t us, but it was enough to make me think. And think I did. It was time to get away from the “iFix” name association, I thought.

But, there are some “iFix” companies that do a decent job and use pretty decent quality parts for their repairs. But then, there are MANY that don’t. Believe us, we’ve seen their work come through our stores over the years.

From day one, as the owner of iPhoneFix, I adopted a standard for iPhone repairs at my company and I passed it along to the few (and chosen) technicians that I employed. And that standard was as follows: “Make sure that every single screw goes back inside of every single phone, and make it look like  no one was ever inside.”

The reason for this standard? Well, I knew that the iPhone industry was going to grow extensively, and that eventually I would have competition. And when my competition opened one of the iPhone’s that we had repaired before, if and when they noticed that that iPhone had been repaired before, I wanted to set an example for that technician and my competing company. I wanted that technician to say to himself “Wow. Those guys are good.”.

And sure enough. As the industry grew, we had competition move in. And when they moved in, we started getting their repairs. And we saw the work that they did. 90% of the time we would just shake our heads. The work was just terrible. Missing screws. Wrong screws in wrong places that were causing blemishes in LCD’s, loose home buttons, improperly glued glass, Missing plates………. I mean hey, we all have to learn somewhere, but it should never be on a customers devices. It should be on your own, in my opinion.

Now, with that said, we are not perfect either. We have had customers come back and we have made the occasional mistake. And it has always been corrected. But yes, it happens to us all. But adopting standards and admitting when you’ve made a mistake are priorities everyone should adopt. It will make you better at what you do if you learn from those mistakes.

Now, let’s talk about the explosion of the iPhone repair industry.

Around 2012, suddenly it seemed, everyone with a few thousand dollars and a little knowledge from YouTube could open an “iFix” store. And boy did they open. To this day I joke about the fact that almost every strip mall I pass in Ft. Lauderdale has a Yogurt store, A Vapor Store, and an iPhone repair store. Those industry’s have obviously exploded as well.

But with this explosion of iPhone repair stores came people looking to make a quick buck “fixing iPhones”. By now, YouTube had tons of videos on how to repair these devices. (Old man rant, shakes fist at the air: “Back in my day they didn’t have video’s on the “intertubes” showing how to fix iPhones. We had to break our own and learn from experience!”)

Soon, I watched the kiosks in the malls pop up. I watched the competition move in to Jupiter and South Florida. I even watched one local business copy my business model, logo, color scheme, and everything verbatim. I watched the websites pop up. I watched the names pop up too. iFixyourthis, iFixyourthat, iCrackedmything, ithis, ithat, i, i, i, iiiiiiiiii.

Enough. Every variation of the “iFix” thing has been done. And adding an “i” got everything has also become an industry standard. iRepair. iRobot. iHome. It’s just time to get away from the “i” fad. It’s been done to death.

But I want to say, there are a few companies that, I think, have done it right. There are a few companies where I have seen their work, that I have been impressed with. So It makes me feel good that some guys are training their techs to have some standards to their repairs. But the reason for this article is to try to explain why I am distancing myself and my company from the “iFix” industry.

Many newcomers are what professionals in our industry call “Youtube Technicians”. These are techs that learn from Youtube, fix a few phones, then get a couple thousand dollars together and open a store or start repairing mobile. But many are pressured to make a quick buck to get the money back, and in turn shop for the cheapest parts possible to sell their customers.

Cheap parts will not only make the customer angry because of all of the revisits they’ll need to make to you, but they also are of very low quality, hence the first part of this sentence. This is a complete disservice to not only the customer, but to our industry as a whole.

Over the last 3 years, our customers have expressed to us how they feel like most of the “iFix” iPhone repair stores that they enter have a low quality, and many times even a “shady” feel to them.

One guy in particular that my customer expressed a lot of concern and complaints about, was a guy who used to come into our store and have these phones repaired. They were always phones that he had tried to repair, but couldn’t get back together or get them working properly after he tried to repair them. He always paid in cash, and we would ask his name for our system and he would tell us to just call him “Money”. 6 months later, and after repairing at least 4 iPhones for him, he decided he would be an iPhone repair technician, and bought a cube truck, and drove around performing repairs. In the back of the truck, he had a couch and a desk, and would invite the customers in while the repair was being performed. Many people used the word “creepy” when describing the overall experience. And we re-repaired many of that guys repairs because when the part went bad, he always had an excuse as to why he wouldn’t fix it, or he would just stop answering the phone altogether. Needless to say, he went out of business.

Another thing that the “iFix” industry has bred are fake certification claims. Many of these “iFix” stores advertise that they have “Mobile Repair Certified Technicians” or some other certifications. Well guess what. Almost all of these certifications are made up. Made up right out of the air to make them seem legitimate. There are now a few actual certifications these days, but no way to truly verify if those technicians are actually certified. So I recommend Googling the “Certification” claims that these stores are trying to claim that they have.

Few have actual Apple Certified technicians performing repairs. I have seen one company ever. And we at UberMac, actually require, pay for, and give incentives, for our technicians to obtain an Apple certification. This way our customers can verify our certification claims on Apple’s website, and it also shows that we at UberMac, actually care enough about what we do, and care about our customers enough to obtain these certifications.

Fast forward to today. January 3, 2017.

A few months ago, I took a look around when I was in Las Vegas for CTIA, and I thought to myself after observing all of the names that were there, and realizing the over saturation of these words, “I want to separate from this whole “iFix” thing.”. We are well established, we have a great reputation. Our work speaks for itself. But it’s risky to take one of the best domain names in the industry and no longer use it for marketing. But I decided that it mattered enough to me that it was worth it. So I changed the name of my company to better reflect who I believe we are as a company.

So I changed it to UberMac.

Why UberMac, and no I won’t come pick you up. (Har har. We get it.)

Well, Uber is a German word meaning “the top of” something or “the highest of”. That word resonates because we are one of the very best at what we do, and I truly believe that. So do many of our clients if you were to ask them. And then I added the word Mac purely for branding reasons, and because hey, we are Apple guys after all.

So what we are trying to say in this article is this. You can take your expensive Apple iPhone to any one of the tens of thousands of iPhone repair stores in the world. But how does it feel when you walk in? Is it open and inviting? Or is it small and uninviting. Are they Apple Certified Technicians that are employed there? Or are they claiming some fake certification that doesn’t even exist? Have you looked at their Google and Yelp reviews?

Because coming to an UberMac store to have your iPhone, iPad or Apple iMac or MacBook computer repaired, you won’t have to guess if you’ve come to the right place to have your devices repaired or fixed. You’ll feel it. You’ll know it.

/by