Pointless Advance Replacement Program

I had a disk reading issue, my Xbox one didn't want to read discs and made a grinding sound. So I looked it up and it was an issue affecting some people. So i decided to get it fixed. In this process I found the advanced replacement program, cool i get sent
a new Xbox and then send mine in so I don't lose gaming time. Awesome, or so I thought. I set everything up, had a $400 hold on my card until I sent my old Xbox in. The day comes and I get my replacement console. And behold it has an error code. Still not
mad yet, but after over 2 hours with customer support and trying the offline update tool 4 different times to no use, I get told my issues is raised to tier 3 and I'd be contacted. I still was told to send my old Xbox in otherwise the automatic system would
still charge my credit card. Ok I'm getting a little angry, I did this process so I could still play. Well after 6 days, when FEDEX has confirmation of delivery of my package to the service department 2 days later, I still hadn't heard anything. So I call
customer support yet again and get told that my order isn't closed out because it hasn't been scanned in, oh and also the escalation team decided my problem isn't tier three, sent it back to the hardware people and told me I have to wait till this order is
closed out and do another advance replacement to get the faulty Xbox I was sent repaired, and I was not informed about any of this. If I hadn't called customer support I wouldn't have know. Now I'm mad. To top this off, after an hour on the phone, the exact
words of the customer service representative and again by his floor supervisor was "you're just going to have to wait". I have supported Xbox for many years now and never had an issue. Now I have put a hold on my bank account of $400, I don't have my old Xbox
that I could play digital downloads on, have a faulty Xbox sent to me by Microsoft, and get treated ridiculously bad by customer support. I any one reads this I HIGHLY RECOMMEND
NOT USING this process.

:)

 

Advance replacement/exchange program hidden fees

Thanks for the responses. I was just beginning to get hooked to my replacement Xbox One when it got bricked. It started with some freezes and I did the usual stuff I could find on the forums and with support (hdmi cable/port changes, cache clean, persistent
storage, hard reset). I am a newbie gamer and really had not been pushing the console to overheat or filling up my disk. At this point it seems to power on, but Kinect does not show lie signs and TV is blank. Support offered to set me up for a warranty replacement
and gave me free avatar coupon. Good thing the shipping is free for regular warranty repair. I am using the advance replacement again however as my little fella needs it soon for his birthday bash.

Still wondering if I am one of the few unlucky ones to have two major failures within 30 days - or is it a systemic issue. I noticed that my previous replacement box had a much lower serial number and wondering if they are sending out refurbished boxes from
the ones that failed back in 2013. More likelihood that those old refurbs would fail again. I have assembled PCs in the past with fairly cheap components, and I did not have any major failures on them.

Well this time the rep did clearly mention the $15 charge for the advance replacement - so that is a good sign.

 

Advance replacement/exchange program hidden fees

As far as the advanced exchange goes, that is something that yes, they do - we know about it here on the forums, but for folks who don't spend a lot of time here, that is something that the chat and phone reps definitely should be saying. They charge you
advance shipping on the console and send it right away, so you get your console sooner. If no one says that, it would be impossible for you to know.

As far as the all-around experience, I can say you are definitely having some bad luck, it isn't "the norm." Now, phone support has been hit and miss for some people, but the support here on the forums is great, and the console itself is fantastic. There
are the usual disc drive or hard drive issues, but compared to the 360 Red Ring era, the problems are much less. Surprisingly, I've heard that the expected failure rate with any new technology is roughly 2%-3%. So, across, for example, 1 million sales, it
isn't out of the ordinary to have some sort of issue with around 30,000 units. Seems high to me, but that's the factor I've heard, and it seems as though the One is well within that percentage. That doesn't make it any easier for a person experiencing the
problem, though, and the support folks have a responsibility you aren't hit with any additional surprises when you're trying to get something fixed for which you've spent hard-earned money.

Sorry you've had a bumpy start, but don't lose hope - the X1 is a great system, and I think once you get past this initial unpleasantness, you'll really have a lot of fun. Also, don't forget we're here for you on the forums to help with things like setup
issues or any random problem into which you might run, most times we can help you work through it without having to contact support. Good luck, and have fun!