My struggle continues. And I have now spent more than Rs. 35000 on this piece of shit. I am currently shuffling between APC and Exide with each side claiming that the other party’s hardware is at fault.
My suggestion to anyone who is reading this blog to stay away from APC hardware. It is not designed for the Indian market.
If you have suffered a similar fate with APC hardware in the past... Spread the word around. Click the +1 button below! ;)
Monday, November 28, 2011
Thursday, November 17, 2011
Douchebaggery of the Indian Customer Support System
I hate it when a company service representative complains about you complaining too often. Basically. Most service centers get incentives based on quick resolutions of complaints filed by customers.
And if the problem is not resolved and a fresh complaint is filed multiple times in a short period of time, it sort of raises a red flag against the service center by the company.
This exact thing is happening with me with respect to APC. The dude pretty much complains that I have filed three complaints in the last 10 days or so and this does not work out well for them. I am not sure what other option I had in this particular instance. Dude said that he left his personal number on the receipt he gave me on the most recent visit. He conveniently forgets that he never told me to contact him directly in case of further problems. In fact, he told me to call the APC call center on a previous visit for future problems.
I purchased their UPS along with two batteries in August this year. Since then, the UPS unit has been replaced two times… The unit I have right now looks like an year old model with scratches and damage to the body structure is clearly visible.
I am not concerned about it. I am however concerned about the lack of battery backup I am getting from it.
Both the UPS and the batteries were purchased from APC. They are both under warranty. Apparently the problem is not with the UPS as it has been replaced 2 times already. Batteries are the problematic component.
And if the problem continues, the only thing I can do is file requests again and again till the time my problem is resolved. APC guys have to tell me what the resolution is.
I was told today that the batteries were faulty. I responded that the batteries were purchased from APC and they are just 4 months old. Dude at the service center was sort of shocked and said, send me a scanned copy of the bill and I would get them replaced. If they had done this a week ago, my problem would have been resolved by now.
I would now have to wait for them to visit me again tomorrow to get the batteries replaced or whatever. I would then have to go through another test phase to see if my problem is resolved or not. And if it is not… What am I supposed to do? From what I see, I can file yet another complaint with the company's call center.
And if the problem is not resolved and a fresh complaint is filed multiple times in a short period of time, it sort of raises a red flag against the service center by the company.
This exact thing is happening with me with respect to APC. The dude pretty much complains that I have filed three complaints in the last 10 days or so and this does not work out well for them. I am not sure what other option I had in this particular instance. Dude said that he left his personal number on the receipt he gave me on the most recent visit. He conveniently forgets that he never told me to contact him directly in case of further problems. In fact, he told me to call the APC call center on a previous visit for future problems.
I purchased their UPS along with two batteries in August this year. Since then, the UPS unit has been replaced two times… The unit I have right now looks like an year old model with scratches and damage to the body structure is clearly visible.
I am not concerned about it. I am however concerned about the lack of battery backup I am getting from it.
Both the UPS and the batteries were purchased from APC. They are both under warranty. Apparently the problem is not with the UPS as it has been replaced 2 times already. Batteries are the problematic component.
And if the problem continues, the only thing I can do is file requests again and again till the time my problem is resolved. APC guys have to tell me what the resolution is.
I was told today that the batteries were faulty. I responded that the batteries were purchased from APC and they are just 4 months old. Dude at the service center was sort of shocked and said, send me a scanned copy of the bill and I would get them replaced. If they had done this a week ago, my problem would have been resolved by now.
I would now have to wait for them to visit me again tomorrow to get the batteries replaced or whatever. I would then have to go through another test phase to see if my problem is resolved or not. And if it is not… What am I supposed to do? From what I see, I can file yet another complaint with the company's call center.
UPS unit replaced for the second time. Problem continues.
APC guys replaced my UPS unit for the second time since purchase. This makes it the third unit since August 2011 when the entire package was purchased.
Backup problem continues.
APC guys suspected that the batteries were the problem area and not the UPS unit itself. But it would have taken them 2-3 hours to properly investigate which was something they were not willing to do.
I was told to keep a log of power cuts and also check for total backup time from the UPS after a full recharge. I would now have to depend upon the DHBVNL to get the UPS to full charge before I can check for complete backup given by the system.
I really wish I had skipped APC this time around. Microtek was offering a much better package for a lower price tag. APC apparently is still not accustomed to the power cuts we face here in India.
Backup problem continues.
APC guys suspected that the batteries were the problem area and not the UPS unit itself. But it would have taken them 2-3 hours to properly investigate which was something they were not willing to do.
I was told to keep a log of power cuts and also check for total backup time from the UPS after a full recharge. I would now have to depend upon the DHBVNL to get the UPS to full charge before I can check for complete backup given by the system.
I really wish I had skipped APC this time around. Microtek was offering a much better package for a lower price tag. APC apparently is still not accustomed to the power cuts we face here in India.
Wednesday, November 9, 2011
Problem with the same unit... Hardly 30 minutes backup now!
I barely managed to get the UPS replaced last time around. The new unit is giving problems now. Backup time is now less than 30 minutes. I would now have to go through the entire ordeal once again.
And it is not even recharging right now. Called APC. It would take them 2 days to send me an engineer. And this is when they have a service station just walking distance from my home.
Friday, September 9, 2011
Update on my APC SUA1000 fiasco
I received a replacement unit couple of days ago. I have been using it since then hoping it calibrates itself properly.
But one of the problems with the original unit is replicated in this new one.
UPS backup time drops significantly within minutes of a power cut.
Here is a video demonstration.
As you can see it takes it just a couple of seconds to drop from 100% to 50-60%.
I would imagine that something is wrong with the batteries or the installation process. I am trying to get this investigated. APC Gurgaon guys have not been very responsive to this complaint. The typical response I got was that the backup I am getting should be enough for the power cuts we get here in Gurgaon.
My problem is… This is not what I paid for. I had asked them to provide a solution that gives me 6-7 hours of backup. The system shows that the UPS is capable of around 4 hours of backup. In reality, it seems to give just around 2-2.5 hours of backup.
But one of the problems with the original unit is replicated in this new one.
UPS backup time drops significantly within minutes of a power cut.
Here is a video demonstration.
As you can see it takes it just a couple of seconds to drop from 100% to 50-60%.
I would imagine that something is wrong with the batteries or the installation process. I am trying to get this investigated. APC Gurgaon guys have not been very responsive to this complaint. The typical response I got was that the backup I am getting should be enough for the power cuts we get here in Gurgaon.
My problem is… This is not what I paid for. I had asked them to provide a solution that gives me 6-7 hours of backup. The system shows that the UPS is capable of around 4 hours of backup. In reality, it seems to give just around 2-2.5 hours of backup.
Wednesday, August 24, 2011
Major issues with APC SUA1000 UPS Solution (Archit Power Services)
I have owned APC Back-UPS RS 1000 for around 1.5 years. This UPS has served me well. I was looking for something with more backup time. So I contacted the company’s local office in Gurgaon and asked for suggestion.
Dealer Name: Archit Power Services
I was primarily looking for around 10 hours backup. APC guys said that such a solution would was outside my budget. I settled for 6-7 hours of backup. A solution that cost me around Rs. 23000 as per their claims.
They gave me APC SUA1000 with 2 Exide batteries.
Now the problem part.
This solution is not even capable of delivering 4-5 hours of backup. The best I have seen as per the software is 3.5 hours.
So, basically... They lied to me about the product they delivered.
And. This UPS worked for me for like 6 days before it broke. And I am yet to get a working replacement for the last 15 days.
I purchased it on August 2 2011 and it has been non-functional since August 8 2011.
In any case, I now have a fresh deadline. Monday. I would see what my options are if they are not able to give me a working unit by then.
Read more about my entire story here on India Broadband Forum.
Update: Monday today. No replacement. Called APC service center... Same excuse. They have ordered a replacement unit that would arrive in a day or two.
Dealer Name: Archit Power Services
I was primarily looking for around 10 hours backup. APC guys said that such a solution would was outside my budget. I settled for 6-7 hours of backup. A solution that cost me around Rs. 23000 as per their claims.
They gave me APC SUA1000 with 2 Exide batteries.
Now the problem part.
This solution is not even capable of delivering 4-5 hours of backup. The best I have seen as per the software is 3.5 hours.
So, basically... They lied to me about the product they delivered.
And. This UPS worked for me for like 6 days before it broke. And I am yet to get a working replacement for the last 15 days.
I purchased it on August 2 2011 and it has been non-functional since August 8 2011.
In any case, I now have a fresh deadline. Monday. I would see what my options are if they are not able to give me a working unit by then.
Read more about my entire story here on India Broadband Forum.
Update: Monday today. No replacement. Called APC service center... Same excuse. They have ordered a replacement unit that would arrive in a day or two.
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