1. Claro Argentina (my mobile phone operator)

I tried to send a text message to a friend on tuesday, only to get an error message. This happened several times. I had checked my account balance a few days before so I was positive I had credit. I had more than enough credit. Yet, when I checked my account again it said “credit expired”. Outrage! I plugged my phone to the charger, put the hands-free heasdet on and dialed customer service. About 25 minutes later I managed to get someone to talk to me.

“– I’m sorry, sir, your credit expired a week ago”
“– Um… what? It’s not been 90 days since I added credit. It’s not even been 60 days.”
“– Our policy changed last May. Credit now lasts 45 days for a refill card of that value.”
“– wtf… Ok, fine. I’m not happy with this but I guess it’s my fault for not checking the expiration date.”

(I still can’t bring myself to yell at a CSR, even though I’m always pissed off when I call)

So I got a new card and redeemed it. I noticed two things. Unlike previous experiences, my older credit was completely lost. And my new card expires in 30 days (since it’s a $30 card instead of the $50 I got last time). This pissed me off even more than losing my credit. This company is trying to scrap as much money from me as they possibly can! No, I’m not surprised by it. But I’m still pissed. And I even more pissed about the fact that I have no choice. Their competitors are excactly the same.

I don’t mind paying more for a good product or good service. That’s why I buy my phones unlocked and I have a pre-paid line. It costs more but I can spare myself from a lot of the bullshit involving having a cell phone. Anyone wants to join me into starting a no-bullshit mobile operator? “We’ll charge you more, but you won’t feel like we are raping you from behind”. Sigh, one can dream…

2. Apple

I’m in the market for a new laptop. I’m a Mac user, which means I don’t have much to choose from. And that’s ok, because even though Apple thinks that consumers only want small screens and professionals only want big screens, I still get the choice of a good pro-spec machine. It costs more, but I was considering going for a Macbook Pro with it’s larger, matte screen.

Well, till last tuesday.

There are new Macbooks. And I most likely won’t be buying one. Not because they’re a bit ugly in my opinion (that’s not gonna affect my decision, positively or negatively), but because Apple removed the matte screen option from its professional line. This in itself doesn’t affect me much; I don’t need *that* much color acuracy for my work (my desktop monitor is VGA, for pete’s sake). What affects me is that Apple seems to be abandoning the professional market and focusing on the consumer market.

WTF? They show a computer editing video with a huge reflection on the screen? Wouldn’t that make color and contrast correcting a pain in the ass? Apple used to believe that:

MacBook Pro offers an antiglare widescreen display that’s perfect for color-minded professionals. For a more immersive viewing experience, you can configure the MacBook Pro display with a glossy finish. This gives everything you see a richer, more saturated feel.
— archived version of the Macbook Pro page on Apple.com

while the copy on the new page seems aimed to the consumer market:

The moment you open your MacBook Pro you’re greeted by glorious, full screen brightness. But that’s only one gleaming quality of the glossy LED-backlit widescreen display. The picture is brilliant and sharp from corner to corner. And anything you view — including the ultrathin display itself — is a spectacular experience.

“No matte = no buy. I’m looking at Windows laptops now. I can’t trust my business to a company that clearly abandoned the professional market for the consumer market.”. That’s the feedback I gave to the company that makes a tool I like about why they may lose me as a customer. I don’t like Windows as much as OS X, but I’m starting to look at Dell Precisions and Lenovo Thinkpads.