If you still love Etymotic ER4, this is the thread for you...
Apr 29, 2017 at 10:17 AM Post #10,591 of 19,254
ok so you're mad. I fail to see where this is etymotic's fault. they make an offer, consumers are interested or they are not and that's it. etymotic didn't pull a knife on you forcing you to use an offer that isn't to your benefit. IMO you're making a fuss over something unreasonable. the guys at Ety would have told you everything if you just had asked beforehand. you can only blame yourself for your own mistakes.

my pair of er4sr ended up costing me close to 500euro, delivery, custom and all. I didn't come to blame etymotic for France having import taxes. you made a mistake, better luck next time.
Bottom line is it is not worth using the warranty upgrade program option 2. That has nothing to do with whether I am angry or not. **It is reasonable for me to express the opinion that Etymotic's warranty upgrade program is of essentially no value** The argument about if consumers should read all the small print is a complicated one. Most people at some point in their adult lives discover that the terms and conditions were not as expected. I am simply raising awareness.
 
Apr 29, 2017 at 10:21 AM Post #10,592 of 19,254
Sometimes folks get caught up in the details, and lose focus on the big picture. ***Etymotic is having customer's send in their old ER4 earphones that retail for $299, and giving them almost nothing for them.*** That is because the fine print says you cannot add regular consumer discounts and get credit for your old earphones. You are correct -- I should have checked before ordering. The real lesson learned is BUYER BEWARE. Etytmotic's WARRANY UPGRADE IS not a trade-in program, but just A LOW-VALUE PROMOTION. You will get practically nothing for sending in your old ER4 earphones. For those considering upgrading to the ER4SR/ER4XR: The intent of my posting is the make current Etymotic owners of older model ER4 earphones aware that is NOT worth sending in their old earphones, as they could sell them elsewhere and net a lower out-of-pocket expense. Bringing me back to my earlier closing statement: Albert Arends (VP at Etymotic) seemed to think there was nothing wrong with their business model. I will bring my business elsewhere.

I think *most* others took the time to do the math and see if selling the old pair first was a better deal, and almost no one expects to be able to combine promotions (except *maybe* an car deals, which they usually brag about in ads).
The REAL value of Ety's deal is that your OOW phones didn't even have to work to get the deal! If they did work, you should have sold them first.
 
Apr 29, 2017 at 10:22 AM Post #10,593 of 19,254
"etymotic didn't pull a knife on you forcing you to use an offer that isn't to your benefit."

No, they did not use a knife, they cleverly hid the fact that is it was not to my benefit!

Welcome to terms and conditions, where BUYER BEWARE is the name of the game.

Honestly, I expected more from a brand like Etymotic.

Bottom line is it is not worth using the warranty upgrade program option 2. That has nothing to do with whether I am angry or not. **It is reasonable for me to express the opinion that Etymotic's warranty upgrade program is of essentially no value** The argument about if consumers should read all the small print is a complicated one. Most people at some point in their adult lives discover that the terms and conditions were not as expected. I am simply raising awareness.
 
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Apr 29, 2017 at 10:25 AM Post #10,594 of 19,254
I think *most* others took the time to do the math and see if selling the old pair first was a better deal, and almost no one expects to be able to combine promotions (except *maybe* an car deals, which they usually brag about in ads).
The REAL value of Ety's deal is that your OOW phones didn't even have to work to get the deal! If they did work, you should have sold them first.
When you do the math, you do not assume that regular consumer offers are excluded. Sounds to me like you have a vested interest in placating the manufacturer?

Bottom line is it is not worth using the warranty upgrade program option 2. There's the math for you!

BUYER BEWARE OF ETYMOTIC'S ER4 UPGRADE OPTION 2!


***Etymotic is having customer's send in their old ER4 earphones that retail for $299, and giving them almost nothing for them.***

****---->For me, I do not want to do business with Etymotic, as I personally feel that it is offensive that my old ER4 earphones and my existing relationship were actually worth essentially nothing!<-----****
 
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Apr 29, 2017 at 5:29 PM Post #10,595 of 19,254
Did you just repost? Come on, man.

I love dealing with ety costumer service, however, when my cable got frayed, I called and the cost of an aftermarket cable was less than ety's service. So I went that route. Basic research, prior to making an agreement.
 
Apr 29, 2017 at 8:47 PM Post #10,597 of 19,254
$261.27 for latest model Etymotic ER4XR/SR

*Looking to upgrade to the Etymotic ER4XR/SR, go to Jet.com and use the coupon code SPRING15. Price with free shipping and free returns is $266.61, or $261.27 if you waive free returns.*

**If you are a current owner of ER4 earbuds not under warranty, don't bother using their warranty exchange program, will cost you more.**

***Etymotic is having customer's send in their old ER4 earphones that retail for $299, and giving them almost nothing for them. This is due to the fact that you cannot combine the upgrade program with regular consumer discounts.***

---->For me, I do not want to do business with Etymotic, as I personally feel that it is offensive that my old ER4 earphones and my existing relationship are actually worth essentially nothing!<-----
 
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Apr 30, 2017 at 5:52 AM Post #10,601 of 19,254
To be fair I found the upgrade option severely lacking as well. It seemed to be structured to dissuade folks from using it.
 
Apr 30, 2017 at 6:39 AM Post #10,602 of 19,254
If anyone don't find the upgrade promotion attractive, I'll say just don't use it. We have no issue with most headphone manufacturers that don't provide any upgrade promotion at all, so it shouldn't be an issue if one of them does give a promotion, even if it isn't a particularly attractive one. It is a privilege, not a right.
 
Apr 30, 2017 at 6:55 AM Post #10,603 of 19,254
Nobody is claiming it as a right. It's simply a very unattractive offer which begs the question of why make it at all.

We do however, as consumers have a right to question the merits of such things.
 
Apr 30, 2017 at 9:43 AM Post #10,604 of 19,254
Nobody is claiming it as a right. It's simply a very unattractive offer which begs the question of why make it at all.

We do however, as consumers have a right to question the merits of such things.
I agree "right to question merits," it's just that we're responsible for understanding promotions before claiming an excellent company with excellent customer service is screwing us.
Anyway.. I always thought that the ONLY value of the trade-in (since it was much smarter to sell your Working pair) was that the out of warranty deal was good for Broken headsets. Now, that is an excellent offer!
 
Apr 30, 2017 at 10:19 AM Post #10,605 of 19,254
I don't think anybody is screwing anybody here. I merely think the upgrade is dissuasive unless as you say you have a broken pair.

That said I have a pair of HF5's starting to buzz at high volumes and still am not certain of the benefit of the upgrade on that one.
First World Problems:)
 

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