apple care necessary?

People buy AppleCare for peace of mind. I would recommend it for all laptops,but not necessarily for desktops.

I always say if there's a screen attached then yes. iMac, MB and MBP ... that's my rule-o-thumb.

A one-time experience is not a good way to evaluate a purchase decision. This is insurance and provides buyers with access to additional services. As with all insurance, some will come out ahead and most will not. Apple probably does not lose money on this product. Do your own analysis - I don't agree with many of the blanket recommendations on this topic.

I recently bought 13 inch MBP but did not buy Apple care. I couldn't justify paying $250 at this moment. Good point with apple care is that you can buy it within one year of buying the product as your product anyway has warranty for one year. Thus even if I think of buying apple care, I would spend $250 in the 12th month rather than paying them now. Obviously it's personal decision!

iamuurme said:

so is apple care necessary i had and imac for about 2-3 years now and it still didnt have to pay a visit to apple. but now i got 13 mBP and im guessing that it wont break or do anything stupid.
so why do people buy apple care? when most of the times your machine dont disappoint you if it did then would it be worth it for an apple care? do any of you have it and used it? thanks

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It is not "necessary" -- it is a form of insurance. I've made good two of three times purchasing. Once was big -- the infamous bad Nvidia GPU that didn't show up for 18 months.

Almost every Mac that has been in my house has needed some sort of work done on it. I would definitely suggest Applecare.

iamuurme said:

thanks for all your reply. iv think my new MBP 13 wont break within the next 3 years or so still im not convince to buy apple care.

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If you ever decide to, I'd buy it off Amazon.com

You end up saving $52. (it's about $198)

That, just for me, is worth it, for the piece of mind. You never know with computers, they could fail a day out of warranty... It's basically gambling, AppleCare or no AppleCare.

Well the good thing is after you buy the MBP, you will have a year from then to decide if you want Applecare. Again, I would suggest it. You never know when something bad could happen.

iamuurme said:

so why do people buy apple care? when most of the times your machine dont disappoint you if it did then would it be worth it for an apple care? do any of you have it and used it? thanks

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we always get apple care on any apple product- and we've used it! My sister's white macbook had the hard drive die just over 1 year, and the logic board died after about 2.5 years, she also got the casing replaced because it had cracks all over it.

My old 15" Powerbook went into repairs about twice- once for the fans acting up, the second when the screen failed.

Apple care is great piece of mind, and with computers, there always seems to be something that can go wrong. When I buy apple computers, I always expect them to last at least three years, and apple care makes sure that happens! I think its particularly important for laptops.

The thing is, that if it does break within the 3 year range and you're not covered, you will hate apple as never before when realizing that the repair would cost you at least the half of a new computer. I, personally, didn't want to take the risk.

I work retail and sell protection plans - the things you must know are:

1. Most consumers will never use the plan, so technically it "goes to waste", BUT...

2. It's not about whether or not you USE the plan, it's the peace of mind knowing that if you DO need to use it, it's there for you. You actually don't WANT to have to use it, because that means that your item failed on you.
(Some people say, "I'd better have to use this in order to feel better about buying it.")

3. AppleCare has some of the best support you'll find in the tech industry. The people are nice (both in person and on the phone), and generally help you get your problem worked out as quickly as possible.

4. AppleCare does NOT cover accidental damage (most plans don't.) They're basically assuring you that for 3 full years from the date that you *purchased the item* (not from the date that you bought AppleCare), you'll have a machine that runs the way it should.

5. (Related to above): AppleCare comes free for the first year on all new items as your 1 year limited warranty. You have up to a year to purchase it, but if you wait until then, it only adds TWO additional years (total of 3) to the computer you've purchased (I think it's only one additional year for the iPhone.)

If you wait until the year is almost up, you'll also lose out on up to 9 months of free phone support, as you only get 90 days of free support with the AppleCare that comes with the machine. If you buy it within that first 90 days though, you'll get the full 3 years of free phone support as well.

And finally...

6. AppleCare is obviously more expensive through the manufacturer (Apple), but there are third party websites that resell Apple's warranties at a somewhat reduced price, such as LA Computer Company.

Is AppleCare worth it? I got a great deal on it for my Mac Pro, and I've started having issues with my fans recently, so I'll be taking it in for free fan replacement at my Apple store before the warranty runs out in January. Even if I didn't have to use it though, it was still worth the peace of mind knowing that my machine was running the way it's supposed to.

iamuurme said:

thanks for all your reply. iv think my new MBP 13 wont break within the next 3 years or so still im not convince to buy apple care.

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How do you know, your Mac won't break within the first three years of your purchase?

I have an iBook that had its infamous logic board failure after 18 months. I got lucky for having an extended warranty for 70€ and got my logic board (up to 500€) repaired at no additional cost.
My iMac and MacBook are still working fine after two years, but I still have one year warranty left on the MacBook and some months on the iMac.

And I will buy Apple Care for my 17" MBP, as it is a fragile machine (every notebook almost is, except those ToughBooks).

Most people have home insurance even though it is very unlikely their home will burn down or get destroyed by a natural disaster...

It's better to be safe than sorry.

Unfortunately, with Apple, you have to pay good money for something other vendors include as standard.

chaosbunny said:

Unfortunately, with Apple, you have to pay good money for something other vendors include as standard.

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What exactly do you mean by this comment? I am not 100% sure on the full workings of applecare but I was under the impression that the computers were covered by a full 12 month warranty as standard and the applecare is an additional service you can purchase. I would love to know a computer company that offers a full 3 year warranty on their hardware

There's the little matter that most people have a mortgage. Same thing for collision and comprehensive insurance on a car. The insurance makes sure the bank gets paid.

A good test to insure or not to insure is can you afford to repair it or lose it? Most people can't do that for a car. A computer is a different matter.

A general rule of thumb is to get the extended warranty on a notebook as they take a bit more of pounding in normal use. Not worth it for an iPod or iPhone as there's a relatively narrow window between the normal warranty and when it's time to replace it.

xi mezmerize ix said:

Most people have home insurance even though it is very unlikely their home will burn down or get destroyed by a natural disaster...

It's better to be safe than sorry.

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BB

A lot of credit cards will double manufacturer's warranties up to one year. I was able to get some repair work done on an iBook a number of years ago. It might be worth looking into.

I am always amused by how Apple fans rave about the superior hardware and build of the computers and then say AppleCare is a necessity.

chaosbunny said:

Unfortunately, with Apple, you have to pay good money for something other vendors include as standard.

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Who includes a 3 year warranty standard on any electronic device out there? I would say it's almost the opposite, Apples standard 1 year warranty on electronics is great. Lots only offer 30-90 days.

Ben Dixon said:

What exactly do you mean by this comment? I am not 100% sure on the full workings of applecare but I was under the impression that the computers were covered by a full 12 month warranty as standard and the applecare is an additional service you can purchase. I would love to know a computer company that offers a full 3 year warranty on their hardware

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At least in the EU, most electronics come with a standard warranty of 3 years. Eizo monitors for example, even give you 5 years for free! If you buy a gpu, a hard drive, a processor, etc. all of them have 2 or 3 years of standard warranty.

DaveP said:

I am always amused by how Apple fans rave about the superior hardware and build of the computers and then say AppleCare is a necessity.

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Neither the hardware in most cases is superior -at least, what's not done by Apple-, neither AC is a necessity

If I could afford to buy a 2k computer every time I wanted I would just screw AC, if not, I wouldn't want it to fail because I'm not going to be able to argue "hey guys, your hardware was not superior to me, as it failed, replace it for free!" and I will have to pay or live without.

To sum up, if you can't be sure you'll be able to re buy once the comp needs a serious repair (logic board or something), as it's gonna be really expensive -te price of using Mac-, one can consider to extend the warranty. If money is not an issue, then there's no need for the piece of mind.

You can imagine it's less probable that a Mac would fail, compared to other PCs, but as some say ***** happens.

After 15 years of using Apple computers, never once would having AppleCare saved me money.

But that's just my personal experience; I know loads of people who swear by it.

AppleCare is pretty damn good if ya ask me. Hell, my Mighty Mouse and keyboard have each been swapped twice in the 3 years my iMac has existed. That **** paid for itself. (169 for the AppleCare - 200 value in apple stuff. Not to mention if I ever need a new shiny display or something.)

Besides accessories with the computer though, Desktop applecare gives you onsite repair too. (IE: someone coming to your house) though that only rings true for iMac and Mac Pros. And they have to live within a certain mileage.

I'll ring the "please get it for a laptop" bell one more time. Anything you're mobile with is almost a must. I had a Sony Vaio hard drive crap out on me after a week of carrying it around. (It was fixed, btw. I'm a huge fan of that computer.) But the point is computers are fragile - most especially the ones you can carry under your arm.

Two tricks I've learned with AppleCare -

eBay has it really cheap. I know this has been brought up before, but my experience was pretty awesome. Aluminum macbook is still under warranty according to Apple's support site.

Or, if you feel more comfortable with the legit route - walk into an apple store with a student/teacher, or an old student ID. Guaranteed at least 50 bucks off the AppleCare with the discount.

tl;dr? short answer: get it. you'll thank yourself should something unforeseen happen to your Mac. It is a machine after all... not a god.