So, I got it back from the Apple Store on Thursday morning. I didn’t have a chance to start messing with it until Thursday afternoon. I ended up trying Air Play for the first time, beaming my MacBook to an Apple TV (box), for display on my client’s 46 inch TV. After I had already stopped the Air Play I think I went into System Preferences and everything just froze. There was no escape. I had to force a shut down. I thought — oh no? Again?

However since that time, I’ve updated to 10.8.3 (Make sure you install this update on your Macs if you are running 10.8), I reloaded all of my data by dragging it over from manual backups that I made and not my Time Machine backup. I began reinstalling key apps on an as needed basis. I would have typically restored for a client via the Time Machine method, however I chose the perfectionist method. It takes a little longer.

All in all the repair took 5 days. As I mentioned before, the hard drives on the 2012 MBA’s are pretty rare and not the more common 2.5 inch rotational or solid state drives. It’s possible that the replacement drive had to be shipped from California or China. Out in California, Apple has a team willing to deal with troubling customer issues. The rep that I worked with in Customer Relations implied in a phone conversation that the hard drive had to pass through the midwest via Fed Ex and that Fed Ex experienced delays earlier in the week.

While we never talked specifics, the rep said he was willing to "do something" for me for the poor communication I had to go through at the store and the frustration I had to go through of waiting 5 days.

Those of you who have followed my past Updates know that Apple has been good to me. In October they gave me a new MacBook Air as a replacement for a 2.5 year old MacBook that had major problems last summer and fall and was still under warranty.

It seemed like the rep was would have probably offered me a gift card of some sort. I DECLINED and not on the basis of the complimentary MacBook Air. Last month I had to return something to Apple and I was actually credited $100 more than I deserved. I was refunded in full once and then mistakenly received a partial refund. The next day I called 1-800 begging to give it back. I spoke with an Admin named Gabriel (no not the Angel Gabriel) who told me I could keep it.

I relayed that situation to the Customer Relations rep — and told him that I believe we are even. That $100 made up for my 5 days of inconvenience. Apple built up a lot of goodwill with me before this encounter. I say we’re even.