Customer Service unacceptable

[bsnguy]

I will agree with Sam, however, that the general level of support on the Microsoft "support" line (phone) and chat (Internet chat) is lousy. Really terrible. None seem to be in the US and have a hard time understanding what I'm saying! No, it's not the accent, it's the complete lack of knowledge. They are script readers and have been taught (?) to say "reboot" and then "refresh" to every problem.

But!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

If you have a local Microsoft store handy, I've found they have good people. Well, the tech people are (the sales people are fairly clueless, too, but if you make an appointment for a service person, you will get someone who will sit with you for hours, if you need, and train you and help you fix problems).

The "support" via phone/web is dismal, however. 1/10 experiences are good, at best. But you have to deal with them to get hardware support (I went through five SP3 boxes in a year due to faulty hardware).

 

[GiorgioG]

Possibly against my own better judgement I decided to place another order for a SP4 (I previously cancelled mine because of all the issues people were having.) So far I've talked to several overseas agents that have no idea what they're talking about, calls dropped mid-transfer several times and to top it off - Microsoft put a hold for the purchase price of the SP4 not once, but twice for the same order (according to my bank.) I finally got in touch with MS Accounts & Billing and managed to get a native US-english speaker. She spent a good 45 minutes trying to sort it out, was polite, understanding, etc. Oh and I don't have my Surface Pro 4 yet (i5/8/256), but my Type Cover 4 showed up today. The Surface Pro 4 is still 'In Process' and nobody can tell me why.

I'm trying to be patient, but the MS Store is seriously dysfunctional compared to Apple's online retail, not to mention their phone customer support. I pay a premium for Apple products for a decent level of service. If Microsoft wants to compete with Apple, they'd better get their act together because they're getting beaten up on several fronts.

 

[kiwigirl]

MS support is beyond horrid. When I had to replace my charger last year I spent 1.5 hours on the damn phone with them. Put on hold 3 times, for the solar eclipse to pass each time. If you have to get anything replaced, you better book a vacation just for it.

 

[VickiFL]

I have never once had bad service from MSFT, either over the phone, or in the physical store. They go out of their way to be extra nice, and even offer a cold beverage for you to drink.

 

[bsnguy]

I've never had a cold beverage offered over the phone

I agree the in-store experience is fine, but the phone/chat is hit-or-miss... mostly miss (for me). They are script-readers, not thinkers, typically.

 

[robertcan]

Haven't tried calling but had two lengthy chat sessions before returning my first SP4 to the store for a replacement. Both were excellent. Just couldn't resolve the myriad of problems I was having with my first SP4.

 

[TTown]

I had an issue where I rented a movie and downloaded it to watch on the plane. When I went to watch the movie it said it wasn't downloaded. I later downloaded the movie again, and was hoping to watch the movie on plane back. This time it said the movie had expired. I tried calling as well as chatting with Microsoft to either fix the problem or give me a refund. I am not kidding I was transferred more than 10 times. It seemed nobody could handle my issue. I just now had a nice lady who was able to provide a refund. This was probably the worst customer experience I have ever had. The fact that I had to be transferred that many times, before someone could help is beyond excusable.

While on hold a couple of times, I actually considered returning my Surface Pro 4. While I am not an Apple fan by any means, at least I hear they are really good at customer service. I think I need a drink now!