APP for 12" Powerbook, yes or no?

[Bobcat37]

The title says it all, it looks like I'm going to be picking up a 12" Powerbook soon and wondered if I should get the $350 AppleCare for it.

Would you classify the APP for a PB as a must, recommended, or a waste of money?

Please let me know, as I'm not sure what to do. FYI, I never got APP on my G5 and haven't had a single problem with it yet, so I'm hesitant to shell out $350 for a Powerbook APP.

 

[darcyh]

I've heard that it's good to wait until soon before the guarantee you get with your Powerbook expires so you can wait and see if you can get any good deals on the Applecare.

 

[bobpensik]

I think that it is a good idea, especially for a PB, i mean with laptops you are constantly carrying them around and exposing them to FAR more abuse then a desktop would ever see!

Also you have to consider that if you ever need your PB repaired when your 1 year warranty is up it is going to be WAY more expensive to repair then a desktop! Laptop components are really expensive. I mean to replace the display alone is over $1000 i believe!!

With the APP you also get 3 years of telephone support for free. Without it you only get 90 days and after that you have to pay something like $50 per incident call unless it is hardware related!

So all in all i say it is worth it

 

[JOD8FY]

I don't feel like shelling out $350 for APP for my 12" PB. If you are generally clumsy, then I would recommend it, but if you just have a question, there's always Macrumors.

JOD8FY

 

[Bobcat37]

Hmm, well for what it's worth, I consider myself fairly Mac Savvy (I've used Macs my whole life), and I'm pretty cautious with my technology items, cautious to the point of being neurodic Of course that's not to say that accidents can't happen...

I can buy the APP at any point in time within my original manufacturer's warranty right? I know Apple let me do that with my iPod and G5, so maybe I should do that for the PB and just hold off for now?

 

[t300]

There are so many threads about this, it's insane. It's just common sense. I wish I or any other member could say "Yes, next year on December 4th, 2005 your hard drive is going fry, so yeah, it would be wise to get it." It turns out that we can't, though, and neither can you. The decision is really up to you. Being a "clumsy" person really has nothing to do with it obviously, as anyone could make a mistake, but most problems I know about are with actual hardware, not really the user. Make your choice, but if you do get it, you can get APP way cheaper on eBay.

 

[EJBasile]

Wait for a while after you have your pBook. If your pBook luck is like my iPod luck definatly go for it. (After 9 monthes I'm on my 4th iPod)

 

[DJY]

I bought my 17" PB here in Aust before the 28 Jun 04 - as the EDUC 3 year warranty finished on that date.

I am a big fan of getting extra warranty for computing hardware...
was a bonus to me that I didn't have to pay extra for it!

 

[Bobcat37]

There are so many threads about this, it's insane. [...edit...] Make your choice, but if you do get it, you can get APP way cheaper on eBay.

Sheesh sorry, at least I didn't ask when G5 Powerbooks were coming out

Anyway, thanks for the advice, basically you're telling me NO do not get it from Apple, but wait and look on eBay? (I didn't even know APPs could be sold on eBay, that seems weird)

 

[t300]

Sheesh sorry, at least I didn't ask when G5 Powerbooks were coming out

Anyway, thanks for the advice, basically you're telling me NO do not get it from Apple, but wait and look on eBay? (I didn't even know APPs could be sold on eBay, that seems weird)

Yeah, good point. Yeah, you can get them on eBay, for a good amount cheaper. Good luck.

 

[dobbin]

The way I look at extended warranties for all my consumer electronic goods is like this...

If I bought one for everything, it would cost a lot of money - PC, printer, camera, phone, TV, video, DVD, PS2, washing machine, fridge etc etc.

So I don't buy a warranty for any of them, and instead I assume that maybe one of these things will go wrong once every few years and I can spend the money I saved on the warranties on replacing the faulty product.

Another reason I don't buy warranties is that I figure that if something is going to stop working, this will happen within the first year and I will simply claim against the manufacturers guarantee or rely on my statutory rights against the retailer.

The only thing that has gone wrong for me was a TINY PC that I bought 3 years ago. That was probably my fault for buying the absolute cheapest PC I could find! doh! I got that refunded anyway as it was a faulty product.

I'm glad I've never spent any money on something like Applecare, but if I had a machine that was critical to my business then I might think otherwise.

 

[jxyama]

let's get one thing clear: APP is a warranty, it's not an insurance.

being clumsy should not have any implications on whether or not you purchase APP - because problems developing due to clumsiness is an accident and won't be covered by a warranty. if the problem is your fault, then APP will not cover it.

personally, i consider extended warranty on a $2000 item a waste because i am in such financial situation that i can (but don't want to unless i have to) afford to buy another laptop right now. so if the PB died on me tomorrow, i can buy another one - but $350 is too much to pay up front just for the chance a $2000 item might die on me.

car warranty, i don't have a problem with. because i cannot afford to buy another car right now even if i absolutely had to, i decided to pay ~$1000 for a $20,000 car to get a 4 year extended warranty. i can afford $1000 but not another car that won't be a money pit. (i.e. used cars i could afford to buy if my car died tomorrow and i had no warranty.)

 

[The Past]

You get treated a lot better if you have APP. Plus, to me, it has always been a wise move economically, Last PB needed a display change and the current one MBoard. So, go for it.

 

[wPod]

let's get one thing clear: APP is a warranty, it's not an insurance.

being clumsy should not have any implications on whether or not you purchase APP - because problems developing due to clumsiness is an accident and won't be covered by a warranty. if the problem is your fault, then APP will not cover it.

personally, i consider extended warranty on a $2000 item a waste because i am in such financial situation that i can (but don't want to unless i have to) afford to buy another laptop right now. so if the PB died on me tomorrow, i can buy another one - but $350 is too much to pay up front just for the chance a $2000 item might die on me.

car warranty, i don't have a problem with. because i cannot afford to buy another car right now even if i absolutely had to, i decided to pay ~$1000 for a $20,000 car to get a 4 year extended warranty. i can afford $1000 but not another car that won't be a money pit. (i.e. used cars i could afford to buy if my car died tomorrow and i had no warranty.)

jxyama makes a couple of good points. i had a friend who dropped her PB a week after she got it. a little cosmetic damage but no other problems. a year later (about a month ago) she encounterd an actual problem with her PB. . . sent it in to get fixed and they said that apple care was void b/c of the damage done. so they charged her 1000 to fix it. so if you plan on dropping it apple care is pointless.

and, like jxyama said, if you can affoard to buy another one tomorrow then why not take the upgrade when your current one fails? im a poor college student so i got apple care for my PB. my iBook had a problem like a week after the one year warentee was up . . . too expensive to fix so i got the PB. apple care is worth it for me cause i could not replace the PB if anything happened to it. at the same time i treat it like a baby. . and right now it is time to give my PB a nap while i go off to class.

 

[James L]

As you can tell, it is your choice and opinions vary! I personally, whenever I drop this much dough on a machine, get the APP at the end of my one year warranty, and also make sure that my insurance will cover my machine in event of fire or theft.

Cheers!

James

 

[Bobcat37]

Alright, thanks for all the input guys. I think I will hold off on the APP, and then get it further down the road off eBay, because I checked and the prices are definitely better on there.

Thanks again