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Apple care: is it worth the money?
- Thread starter ethan101
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If you never have to use it then its a waste of money. If you do need to use it then it will be worth it.
Bottom line if you can afford it buy it.
Bottom line if you can afford it buy it.
Personally I have never had to use it for the 5 macs I have owned and the 10 that I have had other friends, family members buy. I personally, flip my macs so fast, that it is hardly ever worth it. A better option if you are going to get the care would be to get the care from Futureshop or BestBuy, because they will cover accidental things as well and Apple won't
This has been repeated elsewhere I'm sure.
My experience with Applecare when I've had to use it has been excellent. Phone-based tech support is quick and knowledgeable. There was one time I couldn't convince the phone support dude to replace my battery (what battery dies naturally after a year??), I went to an Apple store and the Genius replaced it without blinking an eye. I did have a recent in-store repair that took a while, but I got the sense they were genuinely working quite hard. I believe that Consumer Reports consistantly rates AppleCare quite highly.
Something I didn't know until I asked: You can take your Applecare covered product to any authorized repair shop, not just Apple stores and repair depots, and the cost of repair and parts will be covered. Makes sense.
Particularly with laptops which get battered a lot, the extended warranty in the form of Applecare is a really good idea. I think it's money well spent.
My experience with Applecare when I've had to use it has been excellent. Phone-based tech support is quick and knowledgeable. There was one time I couldn't convince the phone support dude to replace my battery (what battery dies naturally after a year??), I went to an Apple store and the Genius replaced it without blinking an eye. I did have a recent in-store repair that took a while, but I got the sense they were genuinely working quite hard. I believe that Consumer Reports consistantly rates AppleCare quite highly.
Something I didn't know until I asked: You can take your Applecare covered product to any authorized repair shop, not just Apple stores and repair depots, and the cost of repair and parts will be covered. Makes sense.
Particularly with laptops which get battered a lot, the extended warranty in the form of Applecare is a really good idea. I think it's money well spent.
Since OP is new, I guess he/she has not figured out the search button, like his recent thread on glossy screen issue. In a nutshell, it's a gamble. If you bet your Mac will fail in 3 years, get Applecare. Otherwise, you should be okay without one. But for a new Mac user who needs telephone support, then, Applecare would help you as it has the 1 year telephone support.
Particularly with laptops GET Applecare. I have had a few hardware failures, and phone support is very quick and affective. Well worth the 200 bucks if your logic board or screen dies on you.
Question - what usually fails... I'm worried about my mac, first time user. Had a Dell before, but never ever got an extended warranty on anything. My idea is if things will work to one year, what would happen afterwards, unless it's my fault.
I'm worried about hardware - but what if I am pretty handy with stuff, built computers before... Would the apple store order the parts for me if I do not have apple care?
I'm worried about hardware - but what if I am pretty handy with stuff, built computers before... Would the apple store order the parts for me if I do not have apple care?
I would say as a rule this is never worth it for desktops and is always worth it for laptops. But my experience is with PCs and not macs.
Your desktop will usually live very long, but smacking your laptop around as you carry it with you will kill it quicker, and I figured for a couple hundred bucks (student discount for me!) I may as well rest easy for 3 years.
Your desktop will usually live very long, but smacking your laptop around as you carry it with you will kill it quicker, and I figured for a couple hundred bucks (student discount for me!) I may as well rest easy for 3 years.
Chalk up another vote for: skip the apple care
chances are, you won't need it. i think part of the reason it is so expensive is some freaks (look around this forum) buy it and treat is a license to bitch about anything. if you are very picky, then buy it because they will at least feel compensated for putting up with you.
and i realize i'm probably going to get flamed, but the search button is only so useful when every other post is "why is my left fan 3 decibels louder than my right fan" or "MBP LCD Issues: Spectrophotometers don't lie", so be nice to the OP.
chances are, you won't need it. i think part of the reason it is so expensive is some freaks (look around this forum
) buy it and treat is a license to bitch about anything. if you are very picky, then buy it because they will at least feel compensated for putting up with you.and i realize i'm probably going to get flamed, but the search button is only so useful when every other post is "why is my left fan 3 decibels louder than my right fan" or "MBP LCD Issues: Spectrophotometers don't lie", so be nice to the OP.
You wouldn't be able to fix it yourself, you'd have to bring it to either an authorized service provider (If you are outside the US) Apple would send them the parts, and they would fix it. Apple doesn't allow for personal repairs also due to the fact they need a second opinion on what ACTUALLY happened to your mac (which I don't see being a problem if the people at an apple store see it). Apple would probably tell you to have the store fix it, because if you do it it may void your warranty. Those kinds of things are usually the only things apple gives a hard time with.
As to what fails, most macs are usually problem free, or have very minor annoyances, like the moo sound and such. My Logic Board failed on my macbook about a month and a half ago, the distribution of the part from apple was quick, and the repair job done was decent (I'm in Canada, so by my local service provider).
It's the best way to delay problems until year 4. I've bought for my MBP and iPod. Never hesitated.
I lease and plan to buy out at the end, so I didn't like the possibility of having to make a payment on something that is broken and needs major repair$.
I lease and plan to buy out at the end, so I didn't like the possibility of having to make a payment on something that is broken and needs major repair$.
I've had three £500+ repairs for a recurring problem on my PB so I'd definitely recommend it for notebooks. You don't have to buy it at the same time as the computer, any time within the first year is fine, but telephone support does run out after 90 days without Applecare.
the way i think of it is this.
say you're buying all kinds of climbing gear to climb el capitan. you're spending tons of money on rope, harnesses, cams, nuts, biners & webbing, rock shoes, tape, etc. etc.
the guy at the store offers an extra climbing rope but you decline.
then you're up on the wall. it's your 7th or 8th pitch, so you're roughly 450 meters up, and by some weird freak accident, a bolt of lightning hits your rope and tears it in two (or a rabid squirrel chews through the rope).
so now what do you do? you have to get a rescue team to grab you off the cliff, and for the sake of argument, say that you have to pay for this rescue service which ends up costing far more than that extra rope would have ever cost.
now don't you wish you had bought that extra rope?
but then again, if you climb all of el cap without any incident, then the applecare...er...extra rope would have been a waste of money.
(hopefully all that made at least a little sense)
say you're buying all kinds of climbing gear to climb el capitan. you're spending tons of money on rope, harnesses, cams, nuts, biners & webbing, rock shoes, tape, etc. etc.
the guy at the store offers an extra climbing rope but you decline.
then you're up on the wall. it's your 7th or 8th pitch, so you're roughly 450 meters up, and by some weird freak accident, a bolt of lightning hits your rope and tears it in two (or a rabid squirrel chews through the rope).
so now what do you do? you have to get a rescue team to grab you off the cliff, and for the sake of argument, say that you have to pay for this rescue service which ends up costing far more than that extra rope would have ever cost.
now don't you wish you had bought that extra rope?
but then again, if you climb all of el cap without any incident, then the applecare...er...extra rope would have been a waste of money.
(hopefully all that made at least a little sense)
Chalk up another vote for: skip the apple care
chances are, you won't need it. i think part of the reason it is so expensive is some freaks (look around this forum
and i realize i'm probably going to get flamed, but the search button is only so useful when every other post is "why is my left fan 3 decibels louder than my right fan" or "MBP LCD Issues: Spectrophotometers don't lie", so be nice to the OP.
True, search does suck. And it's such a hassle that you could just ask the question over and get flamed, then having to search and read 1000 irrelevant post to get the answer you need.
Over at NotebookReview, many people only buy refurbs from Apple and love it. I was iffy about buying a refurb MB/MBP but figured I need to have it brand new. Maybe I should just take the risk and try out a refurb Apple one day...
If you're okay with buying a refurb, I'd buy the APP so that way if anything goes wrong, you get a new MBP!
If you're okay with buying a refurb, I'd buy the APP so that way if anything goes wrong, you get a new MBP!
charkshar - I really meant fixing it myself after the warranty had expired. Would apple sell me the parts then since I do not need their work, just the parts?
I'm assuming your logic board failed within the first year... How much did you use it before it failed? I'm still reluctant to spend that much money on Apple care
Phungy - I think apple refurbs have the same warranty as brand new products. I bought an ipod that way - no difference than brand new, and after about 2 years now it's taking it's beating but still plays like a hero...
Valiumwaltz - Those that free climb a route get to name it...
I'm assuming your logic board failed within the first year... How much did you use it before it failed? I'm still reluctant to spend that much money on Apple care
Phungy - I think apple refurbs have the same warranty as brand new products. I bought an ipod that way - no difference than brand new, and after about 2 years now it's taking it's beating but still plays like a hero...
Valiumwaltz - Those that free climb a route get to name it...