I had a really bizarre experience last week. My Samsung smartphone started acting up a few weeks ago. I popped into a phone store and they told me the battery was swollen – well, that explained both fact that it shut itself off a few times a day as well as why the back cover kept popping open. I’d assumed user error was responsible for the latter. So, new battery purchased and charged, my phone was 85% better, but since it was still under warranty (automatic 2 years of warranty for all purchases of that ilk over here), I decided I’d take advantage of it. Instead of waiting for it to go completely haywire at the age of 2-years-and-one-day and hit me with a hefty repair bill.

Based on horror stories from others and my own knowledge of the Italian “customer service” system, I borrowed a spare phone from a friend (I expected to be without my phone for at least 2 weeks, possibly longer, since “it’s almost Christmas”) and prepared myself mentally for the long annoying process.

Google gave me the address (in Milan! – not somewhere far away in the middle of nowhere!). I called to check their hours and they told me to make an appointment online to avoid a wait. Miracle #1) I was able to make an appointment online, Miracle #2) it was for the following day, Miracle #3) once there, they told me they would check for the problems I’d identified and tell me what they’d found within 30 minutes, Miracle #4) they gave me a voucher for a free coffee at a bar down the street while I waited, Miracle #5) when I returned after 30 minutes, they told me they’d resolved the problems and that the phone was ready for me to take home. My Italian friend who’d accompanied me was as shocked as I was – an actual positive experience with customer service in Italy!

Samsung, you’ve got a customer for as long as I live here, and you might pick up another when my friend is ready to replace his iphone.