or were they being total 'jobsworth' meltdown in Ikea

[Ceci03]

So bit of a long one but... I applied for the ikea finance thingy, it's no interest so seemed good. Got the virtual card - its like a bank card, and on the website it said you had to show it at the till and then they would key in the numbers. So went on Fri eve, took about 3 hours to do all the shopping, mainly a bed, but you know what it's like there. Got to the till, and the guy said I had to have the app. What app? Ikea finance app, he said. So there I was trying to download this app at the till with people queueing behind me. When it finally downwloaded it said I couldnt use it as it needed 14+ update.

So then a 'manager' came over and said I could "do it" online. So she directed me to this website for the finance company. But I couldnt log in as it said I needed a family card number, but I don't have a family card.

She suggested I go over to the doors to get better reception on wifi. I said it wasnt the wifi that was the problem!

I then tried to login in the ikea finance website, but for some reason my phone kept doing the 'circle of doom'. - When I got home I tried it again, and it still did it, only conclusion is that my phone isn't new enough.

So I begged her, to let me use the card. She said no as she "didnt know it was me". So I had to just leave all the stuff and go home.

So back again on Saturday. I tried logging in on my laptop, which is how I applied for the loan and it worked perfectly. So I rang customer service, and said could I show my laptop at the till, no problem.

When I got there to be sure, I found a manager at the till, and explained the problem. I said I didnt want to do all my shopping and then get to the till and the same thing happened, so could I show her beforehand. OK she said. So I pulled out the laptop but couldnt login!!!!!!!!! I think it was the ikea wifi wasnt strong enough. So I went away and was able to connect using my mobile hotspot. Went back and tried to find her but she kept moving away and chatting to her colleagues and ignoring me. In the end after about 15 mins of me standing there trying to get her attention I went up and said 'excuse me' and tried explaining again. I showed her how I had logged in, and she could see the card etc. But... she said the rule was I had to show it at the till when I got there. I said but what if my laptop plays up and I cant get logged in, you've seen it now, cant you say that I can definitely use it? No, she said. I said that it didn't say anything about that on their website, and shouldnt it be a bit clearer. She said no, it was very clear, and nobody else had ever had a problem. It was getting a bit heated now, well I was getting upset. I asked her a few more times but she wouldnt budge. I jsut burst out crying, I was just at the end of my tether. I felt like screaming at the bloody mindedness of the whole thing. Eventually another manager came over, and he took me to a seat, and he phoned another manager, and then another manager, and eventually they said ok, they had seen me login, and "knew it was me", and if I did my shopping I would be able to use the card.

I'm still upset, stupid I know. I'm thinking as well is this just discrimination against people who don't have top of the range phones? I mean my phone works perfect for everything, just not this for some reason. It's a 12 update I think. So it's not ancient or anything. Surely they need to have some flexibility if the technology is not working?

Thanks for reading if you've gotten this far. I honestly don't know what I could have done different...?? I've tried to contact the bank they set up, Ikano , but impossible to get a response...

@Clymene @WhoIsPepeSilva

The Motorola. I would not buy. It’s only running Android 5.0. The current Android OS is 11. This is really bad.

The Alcatel. It’s running an Android system designed specifically for low-end smartphones, and it’s version 8.1. For example, the IKEA app OP needed and Spotify (just as an example) should both run on 8.1, but just know that any very techy apps that require 3D or something might not. You may be able to save up to add more memory to it though. I’m not sure if it’s possible it has the processing power.

@Ceci03

Well before you buy just to say I just tried to get the app on ds phone 1 year old android cost £20 and it won’t download so...

I’m still scared to go back to ikea and try for the refund without having the app...

that app says it requires at least Android 5.0, which was released in 2014 so if it won’t download, I’m wondering whether it’s something to do with your sons actual phone rather than the compatibility, if his is only a year old… what exactly did it say when you tried to download it?

…Although it may be fruitless anyway as already discussed previously in the thread, the reviews for the iPhone version of the app are terrible and having looked at the Android reviews, they are all terrible too, so even if you download it you may run into further problems!

@Clymene Vodafone actually has a lot of current options in their pay as you go phones, that have Android 10 or 11 for about £50, but I admit, it’s because it includes their pay as you go “bundle” which right now is £10 for 5GB plus unlimited talk and texts per month. I don’t know if £10 is too much.

@Ceci03 Can you tell me what model Android it is?

@RightYesButNo That's really helpful info, thank you - sorry @Ceci03 for the phone derail!

@WhoIsPepeSilva @Clymene
For example, I know this might be a no name, but it’s running Android 9 go edition (again, it won’t run really techy apps BUT it will run all the major normal apps) which is a bit newer and is actually cheaper.
www.argos.co.uk/product/6607603?clickPR=plp:1:21

@Ceci03

I know I really didn’t want to go back *@DonaPatrizia* but my dd had picked out this bed wit storage she wanted and she already had an Ikea mattress which I don’t fit standard beds they r a diff size. But yeah I won’t be sorry if I never go back. There is the problem of the rug tho . I can’t find out if I need the app to return it and don’t want to make the journey if they are going to refuse a refund til I login to the app

You could call and ask?

@WhoIsPepeSilva No problem. I know the OS thing is such a pain in the arse. I do think it’s wrong that they sell phones with OS’s so old that it will be difficult to get some not even super “tech” (using 3D or AR) apps, but I guess that’s the only way to provide them cheaply enough. Still, I think they should be required to have a “will not work with latest updates” warning or something if the OS is more than 3 years old. But then that will tell the buyer how long the phone has been sitting around

Ceci03 Thanks for your posts, I avoid Ikea like the plague anyway. Also avoid smartphones (I just don't WANT one, ok, smug posters?) So now I'm avoiding all the places that call for apps.. ;-)
Soon, I will be living in my own little world.. but I'll be happy there.. :-)

You can be discriminated against even though you are not considered to have a protected characteristic. People who have older mobiles are often discriminated against as for most apps you need a smartphone. Many people do not have a smartphone and are discriminated against...

Yes I've tried ringing but havent got through to a 'human' yet.

Problem is I rang on Saturday morn before I set off for the Day 2 expedition, and the information the guy gave me was not what the manager told me when I got there. He wasnt completely fluent in English though, so maybe he didnt quite understand what I was asking.

So I don't trust customer service now

Wow totally stressful. I use to have a phone that I couldn't ge much mobile data on, so I didn't use a lot of apps.
But even with my new phone, some places have bad WiFi, so I think there WiFi was at fault. I have mobile data, but don't want to use it too much.
I booked some train tickets, normally I pick up from the station, I thought I had clicked on this option, till I got to the station, it said I had downloaded the tickets to the App.
I was like, I didn't want that, so had use my mobile data, as the WiFi at the train station, is spotty at best, luckily I got it downloaded, but it was a very stressful start to my day. Not everyone wants to use the apps, next time I double checked, that I could pick up from the station.

What phone do you have?

@Binkybix

What is your protected characteristic that makes it discrimination?

Discrimination isn’t just a legal term. It’s a perfectly legitimate use of the word.

That sounds super stressful, OP. Very glad you managed to sort it out.

exactly why the phrase is bandied around flippantly and without truly understanding the real implications of discrimination.

As an aside, Ikea don’t control Apple updates, so if it’s a recent app or recently been updated, v12 is about iphone 6 level, or older. Can’t expect everything to work if you don’t have a phone that’s under 5 years old.

Interesting chats about smartphones. I realise that I am in the over 50s generation, I have an android smartphone (motoG) that is about 4/5 years old, is it now going to be defunct shortly? How do I know what number Android it should be? How do I find out?

And I need to keep a phone that can magnify the text highly (rubbish eyesight)

Cecil03 Mate. I sympathise. Technology frequently reduces me to gibbering frustration and actual rage, as do people who think there's something wrong with you if you can't afford or don't want the latest model when there's nothing wrong with your old one, and don't understand that we need to stop littering the planet with obsolete gadgets. I've got a second hand iPhone 6 and a three year old laptop I was forced to get when Microsoft stopped supporting Windows 7, and I've only got them because I can't function in the modern world without them. The most common make of debit card gadget refuses to read the chip in my card even though none of the others have a problem with it. My car is currently telling me it's getting an unfeasible signal from the accelerator pedal, whatever the fuck that means; no mechanic seems to know either, so I suppose I'll have to throw the car away before I spend more than it's worth on failing to get it fixed. Let's run away together back to the 1970s.

@callmeadoctor There are a few types of moto g. The thing we’re talking about (I’m not trying to patronize you, in case you already know this) is the “number” that refers to the version of your phone’s operating system. So the very first Android operating system on phones back maybe 10 years ago might have been 1.0. Right now, the “latest” system is 11.0. Many apps in the Google Play App Store will work on either “5.0 or later,” “9.0 or later” or, if they use something very advanced like augmented reality, they might require “11.0 or later” (these will not be normal apps like Facebook, banking, Amazon, etc).

I’ve googled your phone and I think (think) you should to go to Apps, then settings, then about phone, then android version, and that should tell you what “version” of the OS you have. If it’s later than probably 8, you shouldn’t have trouble for a while?

@motherofadog

Cecil03 Mate. I sympathise. Technology frequently reduces me to gibbering frustration and actual rage, as do people who think there's something wrong with you if you can't afford or don't want the latest model when there's nothing wrong with your old one, and don't understand that we need to stop littering the planet with obsolete gadgets. I've got a second hand iPhone 6 and a three year old laptop I was forced to get when Microsoft stopped supporting Windows 7, and I've only got them because I can't function in the modern world without them. The most common make of debit card gadget refuses to read the chip in my card even though none of the others have a problem with it. My car is currently telling me it's getting an unfeasible signal from the accelerator pedal, whatever the fuck that means; no mechanic seems to know either, so I suppose I'll have to throw the car away before I spend more than it's worth on failing to get it fixed. Let's run away together back to the 1970s.

I won’t bet money but I will bet you some it’s the pedal position sensor.

You’re a hell of a lot more patient that me I know I would have been like oh fuckkk off and gone off crying lol .
Glad you sorted it in the end , but as I feel lately everyone likes to make everything so difficult.

Don't worry @mamabear715 - I will probably be there with you! I don't WANT a smartphone either, and refuse to reduce almost my whole life to a stupid tiny screen.

Bluntness100

Discrimination against people who cannot for whatever reason have the latest technology. It is a thing because technology poverty exists thinking of all the children homeschooled during Covid without laptops or good enough wifi plus sharing that technology with family members.
Don’t get me started on the elderly who can’t get a Dr apt because they can’t log in or do a vitual apt. We have to put time in with two elderly households helping them adapt to technology as it keeps upgrading beyond their first investment plus my mother and it caused them great distress and isolation .
Technology discrimination or poverty . If you can’t access the same services to me that feels like discrimination

@Darlingx couldn't agree more. I look after my elderly mum who has dementia, it's a nightmare re technology, plus, as you say, less well-off families homeschooling during lockdown. :-(
@gofg Great, company! It does my head in, seeing people everywhere glued to their phone screen.. what's so interesting? I'm noticing architecture etc instead while I'm out & about. Although yeah, I did embarrass my dd in London, looking up at carvings on buildings & exclaiming 'OOH, PIGEONS!' (They were sheltering from the rain, dozens of them) ;-) Great, she said, we come to London & you're excited about PIGEONS.
@Overtired201984 - yes, THIS! Why IS life made so difficult? @Morgysmum that's exactly the kind of thing that would push me (and presumably @Overtired201984) over the edge..

[quote RightYesButNo]@callmeadoctor There are a few types of moto g. The thing we’re talking about (I’m not trying to patronize you, in case you already know this) is the “number” that refers to the version of your phone’s operating system. So the very first Android operating system on phones back maybe 10 years ago might have been 1.0. Right now, the “latest” system is 11.0. Many apps in the Google Play App Store will work on either “5.0 or later,” “9.0 or later” or, if they use something very advanced like augmented reality, they might require “11.0 or later” (these will not be normal apps like Facebook, banking, Amazon, etc).

I’ve googled your phone and I think (think) you should to go to Apps, then settings, then about phone, then android version, and that should tell you what “version” of the OS you have. If it’s later than probably 8, you shouldn’t have trouble for a while?[/quote]
Many thanks xxx

Aha its 8.1.0