gft_robert@gsbacd.uchicago.edu (03/09/90)
A friend of mine is looking to buy an inexpensive Mac for his kid. I saw an ad for MAYA in the back of MacWeek with used Plus's for $995. a) Has anyone had any dealings with MAYA? Good or bad? How is their used stuff (it has a 1 year parts/labor warranty, BTW). How 'bout repairs. b) Is it a wise idea to buy a used Plus from them (or anyone?). I realize that one can get a new Plus for about $300 more, but money is a factor here. Also, the new Plus only comes with a 90 day warranty, and the places you can get it for $1300 don't always have the best service depts. Any info much appreciated! I'm interested in MAYA for myself as well, so any info about them would be most helpful. Thanks, Robert ============================================================================ = gft_robert@gsbacd.uchicago.edu * generic disclaimer: * "It's more fun to = = * all my opinions are * compute" = = * mine * -Kraftwerk = ============================================================================
eaw@Alliant.COM (Eric Woudenberg) (03/10/90)
In article <7914@tank.uchicago.edu> gft_robert@gsbacd.uchicago.edu writes: >a) Has anyone had any dealings with MAYA? Good or bad? How is their used >stuff (it has a 1 year parts/labor warranty, BTW). How 'bout repairs. I bought an apple 2 page display from them for $1600. Very good condition, good display quality (I asked them to look at it carefully before they shipped it). They said they would take it back if I didn't like it. The 1 year warranty is good stuff. Probably good folks.
mdc@spt.entity.com (Marty Connor) (03/13/90)
In article <3720@alliant.Alliant.COM> eaw@alliant.Alliant.COM (Eric Woudenberg) writes: >In article <7914@tank.uchicago.edu> gft_robert@gsbacd.uchicago.edu writes: > >>a) Has anyone had any dealings with MAYA? Good or bad? How is their used >>stuff (it has a 1 year parts/labor warranty, BTW). How 'bout repairs. > >I bought an apple 2 page display from them for $1600. Very good condition, >good display quality (I asked them to look at it carefully before they >shipped it). They said they would take it back if I didn't like it. >The 1 year warranty is good stuff. Probably good folks. I'd like to add another data point to the discussion. I have been working with clients who have gone through a nightmare with Maya, and I can no longer recommend them. Their one-year warranty is very weak, because they are the only ones who can honor it. This means that if your machine dies, you have to ship it UPS to Vermont, and they will take a look at it. My clients bought two SE20s and a LaserWriter II. The first SE was DOA and had to be shipped back. The case was cracked in transit, and the keyboard crushed. 6 working days lost in the transaction. The second SE had a head crash after 3 weeks. I ran diags, removed the drive to send back to them. They refused to replace the drive if it wasn't in the machine, and then refused to honor the warranty because the drive had been removed. This drive is an old Seagate with a mean-time-between-failure of 2.5 years. If it was used, you can imagine that it was asking to die. My clients did not get a manual nor installation disks with the LaserWriter II, even after the 3rd request. I had to install the LaserWriter fonts for them. The manager they spoke to lectured them about how good a deal they were getting as he told about not honoring the warranty. I guess that's customer service. My advice is to avoid Maya if possible; At the very least realize that you'll have to ship your Mac to Vermont to get it fixed if it breaks. Also, you may deal with people who are good at the sale and cold afterwards. Caveat Emptor (let the buyer beware). Calling 'em as I saw 'em... Marty -- Marty Connor, Marty's Computer Workshop, "Specializing in Macintosh Training" 126 Inman Street, Cambridge, MA 02139; (617) 491-6935 mdc@entity.com, or ...{harvard|uunet}!mit-eddie!spt!mdc
ngg@bridge2.ESD.3Com.COM (Norman Goodger) (03/15/90)
In article <319@spt.entity.com> mdc@spt.UUCP (Marty Connor) writes: > >Their one-year warranty is very weak, because they are the only ones >who can honor it. This means that if your machine dies, you have to >ship it UPS to Vermont, and they will take a look at it. Since Maya is the one's warranting the equipment they send you, you expect them to allow you to get it fixed somewhere else if it breaks? Its not like you bought it from Apple so you can bring it to any dealer you wish for warranty repair. >My clients bought two SE20s and a LaserWriter II. >The first SE was DOA and had to be shipped back. The case was cracked >in transit, and the keyboard crushed. 6 working days lost in the >transaction. Am I to assume you are blaming Maya for damage in shipping? Did they improperly pack the equipment for shipping? If they properly packed the equipment, and the shipper damaged it, how can you blame Maya for the 6 days lost?? >The second SE had a head crash after 3 weeks. I ran diags, removed >the drive to send back to them. They refused to replace the drive if >it wasn't in the machine, and then refused to honor the warranty >because the drive had been removed. This drive is an old Seagate with >a mean-time-between-failure of 2.5 years. If it was used, you can >imagine that it was asking to die. I don't see any problem with Maya not wanting you to disassemble the Macintosh, its their warranty coverage and you should live within whatever quidelines that they might have established for obtaining warranty service. I don't think very many Apple dealers will let you walk in with a dead HD from and SE under warranty and give you a new HD to install by yourself. Since the equipment is used to begin with, you assume the liability that something could go wrong should some component be about to fail. This is not Maya's fault, you assumed to much IMHO. >My clients did not get a manual nor installation disks with the >LaserWriter II, even after the 3rd request. I had to install the >LaserWriter fonts for them. >The manager they spoke to lectured them about how good a deal they >were getting as he told about not honoring the warranty. I guess >that's customer service. >My advice is to avoid Maya if possible; At the very least realize >that you'll have to ship your Mac to Vermont to get it fixed if it >breaks. Also, you may deal with people who are good at the sale and >cold afterwards. >Caveat Emptor (let the buyer beware). >Calling 'em as I saw 'em... >Marty > While I think it was a little short sighted not to ship the LaserWriter support disks & Manuals, thats about the only shortcoming that I can see to blame Maya for. The rest to me is sort of obvious that no company is going to let you do your own repairs and ship you replacement parts while they are footing the bill for the parts. What if you damaged a replacement drive if they were nice enough to send you one? Would you be honest enough to say you broke it during re-installation? And foot the bill, or would you send it back and tell them that you received another defective drive?? If Maya is going to warrant their used Mac's for a year, you abide by their conditions for the service, or you buy new Mac's and see if your local Apple dealer can do better at perhaps twice the cost of the used Mac. -- Norm Goodger SysOp - MacInfo BBS @415-795-8862 3Com Corp. Co-SysOp FreeSoft RT - GEnie. Enterprise Systems Division (I disclaim anything and everything) UUCP: {3comvax,auspex,sun}!bridge2!ngg Internet: ngg@bridge2.ESD.3Com.COM
mdc@spt.entity.com (Marty Connor) (03/16/90)
In article <1418@bridge2.ESD.3Com.COM> ngg@bridge2.ESD.3Com.COM (Norman Goodger) writes: >In article <319@spt.entity.com> mdc@spt.UUCP (Marty Connor) writes: >> >>Their one-year warranty is very weak, because they are the only ones >>who can honor it. This means that if your machine dies, you have to >>ship it UPS to Vermont, and they will take a look at it. > > Since Maya is the one's warranting the equipment they send > you, you expect them to allow you to get it fixed somewhere > else if it breaks? Its not like you bought it from Apple so > you can bring it to any dealer you wish for warranty repair. > My point is that Maya's sales staff strongly pushes how good its one year warranty is. People should be aware of how weak in practice that warranty can be. My points were to inform people that: 1. You can only get your machine fixed at one place in the country, and that you have to ship it there when it breaks. Risking furthur damage, and days of inconvenience. 2. The service experience that I had (and my clients had) with Maya was poor. They lectured the people that bought the machine. 3. They are friendlier before the sale than after (much like most computer dealers. > Am I to assume you are blaming Maya for damage in shipping? > Did they improperly pack the equipment for shipping? If they > properly packed the equipment, and the shipper damaged it, > how can you blame Maya for the 6 days lost?? Yes, they improperly packaged the machine. Yes, I blame the for 6 days lost productivity. And I warn people that this is the same sort of thing that could happen to them. Buy from Maya without getting a local dealer is like buying a used TV set from someone halfway accross the country. > I don't see any problem with Maya not wanting you to disassemble > the Macintosh, its their warranty coverage and you should live > within whatever quidelines that they might have established > for obtaining warranty service. .... Perhaps. But now people know that if ANY COMPONENT FAILS IN A MACHINE YOU BUY FROM MAYA, BE PREPARED TO SHIP THE WHOLE MACHINE BACK TO VERMONT. > While I think it was a little short sighted not to ship the > LaserWriter support disks & Manuals, thats about the only > shortcoming that I can see to blame Maya for. You're willing to put up with a lot. These people had no idea of the service headache they had bought. They've now got both machines under local AppleCare, and now they can get real service from a decent local dealer. In conclusion, I think your points are legalistically correct, and I think that people should be aware of what they may be getting into when they buy from a dealer far away without a service network. My advice remains. Get a good deal from Maya, and then get local AppleCare. Forget their 1 year warranty unless you've got time to burn. Your milage may vary. This was mine. Marty -- Marty Connor, Marty's Computer Workshop, "Specializing in Macintosh Training" 126 Inman Street, Cambridge, MA 02139; (617) 491-6935 mdc@entity.com, or ...{harvard|uunet}!mit-eddie!spt!mdc
m_herodotus@coors.dec.com (Mario Herodotus - Digital Customer Support Center (800) 525-6570) (03/16/90)
I can't speak about MAYA's used Macs, but I did just order a new
IIcx, RasterOps ClearVue/GS, and a MAC 105 Keyboard. I spoke to a Don
Mayor at MAYA. He was very helpful, and beat my best price by $85.00. When I
asked how long before the new equipment would arrive, he checked his stock
(the monitor was not in stock but was arriving soon), and told me it would
be 15 to 20 days (I chose UPS ground (cheapest) delivery). I was very
surprised when the system arrived in 7 days! The apple disks and manuals were
all there for both system software and HyperCard. The manuals and software
that come with the monitor were all there, as was the Tempo II software that
goes with the keyboard. The system powered up and booted first time.
I liked their service and would use them again.
Mario
Disclaimers--I have no affiliation with MAYA other than being a happy customer
who has not yet had to ship anything back for repairs.
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I can't afford my own opinions, and DEC won't pay for them either.
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Mario Herodotus [ CX03 1/K4 ] | m_herodotus@coors.dec.com
Digital Equipment Corporation |
Customer Support Center | - or - m_herodotus%coors.dec@decwrl.dec.com
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[direct line (719) 592-5520] |
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