Advice on returning an iPhone

[StrongLegs]

Hi,

I wondered if I could ask for advice on returning an iPhone to John Lewis?

My AIBU is - would I be unreasonable to try to return it again even though it has been rejected?

I bought this phone on 11th November 2021 from John Lewis, and then tried to return it, but they will not take it back.

They said that that is because the box has been opened and the phone is scratched. However, I just got the phone back and it definitely it not scratched. It is easy to close the box because it just means putting the lid back on, and they had done that to send it back to me.

When I returned it to them I had included all the original packaging and the film that covers the screen, but they have binned the screen film before returning it to me.

Here is why I am returning it: I am not able to use LED backlit screens, because they give me a headache, and I had been hoping to use this phone by attaching it to my computer and viewing the phone interface on my Windows PC screen. That would mean that I could use the phone to send text messages, use apps, scan lateral flow tests and all that stuff. It's really tricky to manage without a smart phone these days, and this is the only way I can have one.

Anyway - it turns out that the mirroring software that is available for iOS doesn't work very well, so although I could see the phone interface on my screen, I could not control the phone from my PC. Since I couldn't use the phone, and after 2 days I decided to send it back.

The phone is in perfect working order, and I have never taken it anywhere, or made a phone call on it. I just attached it to my PC by USB cable for a couple of days, and then put it back in the box.

I have contacted John Lewis Customer Services on twitter when the phone arrived back, but there is no reply.

I wondered if you think I would be unreasonable to keep trying to return it? If not, how do I get in touch with them to try again? Does anybody have experience of this?

The alternative is to sell it at a loss on ebay.

Thanks

Hi @tallduckandhandsome,

That would be really lovely if you would like to take a look. You certainly know the whole history after this thread.

I wil pm you the link.

I just had a look at the Amazon returns policy, out of interest, and their list of things that can't be returned includes "live insects". I shudder to think what weird scenario caused them to add that to the list.

Image attached.

I shudder to think what weird scenario caused them to add that to the list.

Lots of people buy live crickets on amazon to feed to pet reptiles.

live crickets

Did you buy it online or in-store? Did you speak with a sales advisor who said you could use it in the way you described?

Scrap that, I see someone has already advised you’re within your rights to send it back under distance selling regs.

Sorry if this isn't helpful OP but I work in web design and a big part of my job is accessibility.

Could you learn how to use the iPhone using accessibility mode meant for people who can't see and have to use voice readers? (Close your eyes?)

I appreciate that this is a right pain though and feel so much for you with this sensitivity. What a nightmare.

Hi @Frankii, Thanks for posting. I genuinely hadn't thought of that. The LED lights are so troublesome now that I've been seriously wondering if I will have to get opaque glasses and a guide dog one day, but it hadn't occurred to me to think about other accessibility options for blind people. That is a good idea. Thanks!

A buyer on ebay just asked for the phone's EMEI number and I gave it to them. I wonder if that is a good thing? This is a whole world of learning, this week.

One of the reasons why I bought the phone is because texting on my 1990s phone is practically impossible. Especially if I get a text from a GP, it is likely to split into 3 or more small individual texts, and piecing the information together is fantastically complicated. It's even more hilarious if one part gets lost in space and I only receive the start and finish.

However, that idea didn't work very well, as I never could use the phone outside the house, so I kept my 1990s phone as my primary contact, and that is the one I get medical texts on.

I also thought it would be good for texting DH when he is abroad, but in fact, in the end, we just ended up using the landline phone.

The one thing that the smartphone is great for is scanning lateral flow tests. That is good.

The main reason why I am trying to buy another one really is so that DS can learn to operate one, since I suppose that is becoming a basic life skill these days. That's why I need to be able to see it on the screen, so I can explain to him what is okay to do and what isn't.

Otherwise, at this point I might just give up and stick to my PC.

Oh wow! @Frankii there are actually reviews online of top 10 phones for blind people. This is great!

Oh I'm really glad! I was worried it would sound like a bit of a weird suggestion, but I hope you find something that can help you a bit (and that the tech world starts tackling the LED problem, it's shocking).

@Frankii Thanks so much for your sensitivity as well as your good idea.

It's going to sound daft, but I also worked previously and now volunteer in accessibility, helping other people, but I just hadn't managed to look at my own situation as creatively as I look at other people's.

Sometimes another pair of eyes on a situation is really so helpful. I think that also it's easy to get so bound up in hiding an accessibility problem and trying to fit in, that I forget to just embrace it and say what the problem is out loud.

I'm so glad that I started this thread. :-)

This is amazing. I'm reading about what smartphones can do for blind people, and look at this!

"Lookout by Google is an app that engages the phone’s camera to perform various sight tasks for users. Lookout can identify the labels on packaged foods or currency. It can read documents to the user. The camera can even inform you about objects that may be nearby."

That's very smart isn't it?

@StrongLegs

Some screens use flickering as a way to produce less light, so that when the user dims the screen, the screen actually starts flickering instead of actually being less bright. That is called Pulse Width Modulation.

You can tell which screens use that by looking at this website:

www.notebookcheck.net/Why-Pulse-Width-Modulation-PWM-is-such-a-headache.270240.0.html

They test all the new screens coming out and put the data on their website.

Thank you for that link! I've been looking at what to replace my current laptop with and one of my two options is reviewed there as having 'constant PWM', while the other one says PWM 'not detected'. I looked up my current laptop (which gives me wonky-eyed nausea and headaches) and it does indeed have PWM. I'll feel a bit more confident about buying now.

I'm glad that helped @HelloPudding. Buying new screens is a bit of a minefield just now I think.

Perhaps sell it on Facebook marketplace?

Can I have the eBay link please?

Thanks for the thought @Cacee3029. I actually find ebay very good, and have been selling things on there for years, so I've just listed it there. I'll leave it up until I get a decent price. Unused iPhones seem to sell for quite a lot for some reason, looking at the sold listings.