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Apple warranty blunder Down Under
The Australian Consumer Law was passed in January of 2011, with one of the major stipulations being that companies must provide customers with a "reasonable" warranty period for products. For expensive items like computers, a period of two years is suggested. The Sydney Morning Herald is reporting that Apple has increased the standard warranty on its products to two years to comply with the law, but is telling retail employees to not discuss those changes with customers. The newspaper obtained an email from an Australian Apple retail store instructing staff not to talk about the new warranty with customers. In some cases, Australian customers who request repair or replacement for an item outside of the normal one-year Apple warranty end up paying for the support if they didn't purchase AppleCare. NSW Fair Trading Commissioner Rod Stowe was interviewed by the newspaper, and he agreed that electronic devices like Apple's products fall under the two-year "reasonable period." Stowe was quoted as saying that it was "rather surprising and disingenuous" for Apple Store managers to be instructing employees not to tell customers about the two-year warranties. "To instruct your staff to not let people know [about the change] is something that seems of quite concern and I don't understand why they wouldn't want to be upfront about it," said Stowe. The new warranties are effective for iOS devices as of today, and will apply to Macs within two weeks. Australian consumers should be sure to be informed of their rights under the Australian Consumer Law before considering the purchase of AppleCare Protection Plans. [via Apple Insider]
Australian government, Apple still disagree on branding of 4G LTE iPad
Apple is going head-to-head against the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission (ACCC) in a Melbourne Federal Court on Monday, says a report in The Sydney Morning Herald. At the heart of this dispute is the use of 4G in the iPad name in Australia. The ACCC asserts that the 4G in the device's name is misleading to customers because the new iPad does not support Australia's 4G networks. Apple responded to this complaint by putting up disclaimers that explained the iPad was not compatible with Australian 4G and offering refunds to customers who wanted to return their device. The two parties met earlier on Monday to discuss the iPad name at a mediation session, but an agreement could not be reached. [Via AppleInsider]
Metareview: Gangs of London
Gangs of London is the biggest release for PSP this week. Sony's been hyping the game through extensive advertisements and elaborate contests. They even printed tons of demos so that people would pick up, play and think "man, this game is a winner." Unfortunately, the plan backfired as I got tons of comments from readers trashing the game. Chris Powell asked me what I thought and I called it "laughably bad." It looks like our negative first impressions of the game were right as the game has been ridiculed by critics the world over. Let's check out some reviews from all over the world: Pocket Gamer UK (40/100) - "Don't put Gangs of London on anyone's Christmas list. Whether it's stealth, driving or shooting, the game feels limited and unengaging, is hampered by unresponsive controls and completely lacks the necessary polish of a modern production." Sydney Morning Herald (60/100) - "With such clumsy controls, the limited intelligence of both friends and foes, and a lack of mission variety, most players would have a lot more fun with GTA Liberty City Stories." GameZone (50/100) - "Gangs of London is a pretty dull game that can border on frustrating due to the clunky controls, lame missions and weak AI. Definitely more 'Swept Away' than 'Lock, Stock and Two Smoking Barrels'." I'm somewhat disappointed at how this game turned out. If Grand Theft Auto: Vice City Stories wasn't around the corner, I'd be pretty upset.
