I am going on day 3 with a Pro that will not print. I have sent requests for help and left messages. All I get is the same “canned” response. They don’t read what I have included in the comments of things I have already done. All I want is someone to call me and help me. I invested in the Pro with a premium membership and, right now, feel like I made the wrong choice.
They do not offer phone support. Email (thru the contact form) is all you get.
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I just left yet another one. So far that hasn’t worked out. They just keep repeating the same stuff I can already find here - all by myself. So very frustrated.
It can take several business days to receive a response. That’s just the nature of their support.
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Most of the time the same problem will have the same cause, but if you respond to their email by hitting reply then the person there will be able to see the whole conversation. Multiple emails will just gum up the works even more as they will not have any context and trying to find the several from you would be as hard as if the situation was reversed and you had to deal with the hundreds per day of all sorts that come through.
However, there are many live humans in this group that might be of some help if you can lay out the problem and have pictures 
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Thank you. I have replied to the email. Just haven’t gotten a response back. I guess all I can do now is wait.
Just be careful, I believe if you send multiple emails it may take longer to get help. I know it’s frustrating to wait (I totally get that).
If there is anything we can help you troubleshoot, we can try… We don’t always have the answers but sometimes there are things we can suggest to try.
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Thank you. I had used this site to troubleshoot. That was the source of my frustration. GlowForge wanted me to do all the things I had already done before submitting a request for help. I did get help last night. Unfortunately, the machine needs to be returned. I suspected that all along. Would have been nice to not have spent three days to get GlowForge on the same page. Really wish they would work on the customer support side. Going back and forth via emails doesn’t seem to be very efficient for either party.
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Many of us here have had our machines for 5 years, support has always been poor. Just the nature of buying a cheap product. If you expect industrial quality support, you need to buy an industrial quality machine, which will cost 2x - 3x as much, and up.
Maybe I’m just old but $7000 (or even $4000) is not a “cheap” purchase.
Sure that’s much less than a Trotec or Epilog or even a Universal, but that’s like saying a Chevy is a lot less than a Maserati. True enough but if I never heard of Maserati and was just looking to buy a car, chances are I might buy a Chevy and have certain expectations of reliability and support. In fact, it’s pretty much certain that the reliability and support I’d get with the Chevy would not be materially different from the Maserati (and actually better).
I bet most GF buyers look at it the same way. They might know that other lasers are much more (but many are much less) and so they think they’re buying a solid middle of the road machine with the expectations of quality and support that thousands of dollars suggest.
The average American only makes something in the mid-30Ks per year. A $4000 purchase is a major one. Pretty sure no one buys a GF thinking “I’m going to buy a cheap laser and flog it to death and then complain it’s not a Trotec”.
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That is indeed how may feel, but the reality is the GF is a budget machine and comes with budget support.
I have expensive cars and the level of service is significantly higher than the cheaper ones, even from the same dealer.
Sometimes. But the reliability of the vehicles is often indistinguishable.
My 120K Lexus has more pamperers, comfy waiting lounge, etc. than my 35K Toyota but the service times and reliability of the Toyota is very consistent with the Lexus. Service only matters if something breaks. The GF has a quality & reliability perception problem which makes the service that much more important. They not only drop the ball but seem intent on drilling it into the ground on that front.
But the point isn’t that a Trotec costs more and is more reliable and has better support. It’s that the GF is not perceived as a “cheap” laser except for some here who are familiar with high-end lasers. Something the average GF buyer is most likely not. They’re not idiots, they’re just not as in tune with the laser industry as a whole (and GF certainly encourages a more shallow understanding of what they’re getting into than those of us who have been exposed to lasers for many years).
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I agree with this…being one who doesn’t know a thing about lasers outside of having the Glowforge. To me, 2, 3, $4 thousand dollars is a big deal…especially if you have nothing else to compare it to.
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I feel exactly the same way. Going on three days now with no help. This machine cost a chunk of change. Did everything exactly as stated. Getting angry at the horrific lack of support. The “canned” messages from the chat thread issued by the computer are completely pointless and just keep circling around the same messages over and over and over. I did have someone attempt to call me once, but I work a full-time job during the day and missed the call because I was in a meeting. To only offer support (and scanty support, at that) from M-F during business hours is pathetic for equipment that is so expensive. Extremely disappointed and a little angry. Feel like I’ve been taken advantage of in a very bad way.
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… and therein lies the problem.
Many owners feel that spending a few thousand entitles them to industrial-quality support. The Glowforge is just an entry-level machine. Most of us knew this from the start.
Their marketing may have given a different impression.
I don’t know about the reliability of Maserati but in college the ($7000) Jaguar was the choice of the in (and wealthy) crowd. Those were needing tweaked at least every week where my ($1600 new) volvo was running when the intake manifold fell off (and was easily put back).
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I have equipment in my shop that costs a lot more than my Pro ($6500) and some that costs a lot less. I do feel “entitled” to talk with a fellow human when things go wrong. I remain disappointed. I can call Cricut up for my $300 cutter and get a response from a live person. Glowforge had plenty of time to speak with me before my purchase decision was made. They still haven’t shipped anything out. Emails come 24 hrs. after I respond to them with more requests for information. My replacement machine will be a refurbished one with no extended warranty. Yet, another disappointment. As of today, no shipment date available.
The amount of money spent should not determine the value of customer support. I did not buy a “cheap” piece of equipment. Affordable and entry level, yes, but not cheap. I think even Glowforge would frown on being referred to as cheap. I expect more limitations with the usage of the Glowforge because of the cost, but would really encourage them to change the way they are currently doing customer support. Day 5 and still no resolution date. Fired up my $300 Cricut to complete my project and make my deadline.
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You are not wrong, we’re just relaying the facts.
It is certainly disappointing that support is so poor. I don’t have any data but I suspect companies like Cricut have sold millions of units, which justifies a better support system. I’ve never needed it for mine.
Not judging by the forum. You’re just about the only one here calling it a cheap laser and saying it’s not up to the task of supporting even a small business.
With the number of people here who bought this as their first laser I’d not expect anything different. Except for a minority of people who do extensive research on purchases, most people tend to buy on emotion and advertising messages. This is all on GF. It’s not a buyer issue.
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Thank you.
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