> Support from Apple was pretty straightforward for my friend: "Your phone is out of warranty, sorry, we will not help you." The fact that this warranty is illegal under EU law is left out
In my experience (happened twice), even if you buy the device from an Apple Store on some other European country (thus having the 2-y warranty) Apple Stores in the UK won't fix it. I had to wait for the flight home to have it fixed in my home country (and it was).
I own all categories of Apple devices but I never had a good experience at an Apple Store, not even when buying stuff. I realise I'm an exception though.
Apple products and services are not exclusively sold by Apple and its network of official resellers etc. On the other hand, most manufacturers offer warranty in addition to the legally mandatory seller's warranty obligations.
In most EU countries, it's the responsibility of the store that you bought it from, not the manufacturer. http://www.apple.com/uk/legal/statutory-warranty/