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Apple Care worth it for new MacBook Pro

M

marlon bishop

macrumors member
Original poster
Jan 4, 2012
77
0
Florida
hello im almost at the point of buying my new 15 inch macbook pro, replacing my 2011 13 inch(still works fine), but need more power and speed. i never put apple care on that one. and the only issue i had is i had to replace the charger and it was 80 dollars. now since ill be spending almost 3000 dollars on the new macbook pro should i invest in apple care?

_happy holidays_
 
does applecare on a mac book pro include accidental damage???

i think you should try square trade.
its $299 for 2 years or $399 for 3 years ( $75 deductible)
$349 for 2 year or $459 for 3 years ( no deducible )

they will cover you breaking your lcd screen

i don't know if apple care covers broken screens.

having phone support would be a reason to get applecare

protect your bubble offers 5.99 for their extended warranty for the same laptop $3000 value



if the product fails after the 1st year of manufactures warranty, applecare will fix it for free. if the product fails after the 1st year of manufacturers warranty with square trade you may have to pay a deductible

applecare will also cover any airport extreme or time capsules you have for up to 5 years.

square trade coupons are often offered for 30 % off

if your laptop fails and square trade offers to cover the item, you can have it fixed at the genius bar, but you will have to pay out of pocket and wait for them to reimburse you via pay pal.

you can also elect to send it in for mail in service to square trade..

square trade will offer mail in service on a mac mini, something that apple doesn't even offer

i spilled water all over my mac book air !!!!! and squretrade paid to repair it
 
marlon bishop said:
hello im almost at the point of buying my new 15 inch macbook pro, replacing my 2011 13 inch(still works fine), but need more power and speed. i never put apple care on that one. and the only issue i had is i had to replace the charger and it was 80 dollars. now since ill be spending almost 3000 dollars on the new macbook pro should i invest in apple care?

_happy holidays_
Click to expand...

You can purchase AppleCare any time within the first year of the factory warranty. So you dont really even need to decide now. Amazon or B&H Video offer a large discount on it.

SquareTrade - research. On paper it seems better however some people have experienced poor service.
 
For a portable computer, AppleCare is very much worthwhile. These machines take a beating yet are light-weighted and very densely packed. They contain things like batteries, backlit keyboards and internal flex-board assemblies that add complication and points of failure. They're subjected to a lot of vibration, handling and temperature extremes that desktop units just don't see.

As others have noted, you can get AppleCare anytime during the first year of ownership, and you can do so at a discount via Amazon or B&H Photo (bhphotovideo.com). When I made my last AppleCare purchase through B&H, it was registered electronically automatically. I had no trouble with subsequent support events at the Genius Bar, and my Retina Macbook Pro's AppleCare also covered my Time Capsule router when it developed an issue.

Highly, highly recommended.

(I do recommend doing your purchase a couple weeks before your 1-year warranty expires just-in-case there's a snag of any sort. But I've never had one.)
 
please just get AppleCare, you have a year to save for it. Like others have said Amazon and BH give discounts on it... Look a year later you don't want to be that person posting on the forum about how Apple won't fix your Macbook Pro because you dropped the hard drive or bracket came loose. It's worth the investment and it's transferable / refundable (what ever is left) if you do not keep the MB for the entire 2yrs.

I personally get tired of seeing the Apple won't fix my problem and I don't have AppleCare threads. Save yourself from that :)
 
I'm still waiting for someone to reply to whether or not applecare covers a smashed lcd screen

if applecare covered accidental damage, i would be totally for it

lack of accidental damage coverage would be the primary reason i would go elsewhere, like square trade then be loyal and buy applecare.

one thing that someone hasn't pointed out yet is that you get 2 years of warranty using your visa/mc if you have an eligible card
 
Last edited:
rigormortis said:
I'm still waiting for someone to reply to whether or not applecare covers a smashed lcd screen

if applecare covered accidental damage, i would be totally for it

lack of accidental damage coverage would be the primary reason i would go elsewhere, like square trade then be loyal and buy applecare.

one thing that someone hasn't pointed out yet is that you get 2 years of warranty using your visa/mc if you have an eligible card
Click to expand...

Applecare for macbooks doesn't cover accidental damage, but it's still decent enough to warrant its asking price.
 
I normally buy Apple Care the week before the end of the 1 year supplied warranty. I think it is worth it. I had a 2006 Core Duo Mini that lost a logic board and some other parts in sequence. The initial repair was over $400, and they ended up giving me a new Mini because if the ongoing failures. And it was no muss, no fuss.
 
nj1266 said:
Why do people wait to get AppleCare until the regular one year warranty expires?
Click to expand...

For me it's simply the panic of spending that much money at once, and it's just a very non analytic, emotional response. My rMBP cost about 1650 with taxes, add Apple Care right then it becomes a 2k machine. More of a psychological barrier than anything else.
 
nj1266 said:
Why do people wait to get AppleCare until the regular one year warranty expires?
Click to expand...

Because they can I guess. It does nothing but extend the same coverage for two more years, so buying it on day 1 or day 364 offers the same thing.

Actually, doesn't applecare provide longer free phone support? Maybe that one thing is better if you buy it sooner.
 
I might get flamed for this, but in my experience AppleCare isn't worth the cost for a regular user. I think most of the MacBook repairs that people need are due to accidental damage which AppleCare does *not* cover. Things like a smashed LCD, dented body, etc are not covered and you will pay full price for a repair.

AppleCare is just a warranty extension for manufacturing defects. Since every MacBook comes with a 1 year warranty as standard, I think any defects that your notebook might have would become evident within that 1 year period and you would get a free repair. I honestly don't see a need to extend that period to 3 years with AppleCare.
 
Wickedness said:
I might get flamed for this, but in my experience AppleCare isn't worth the cost for a regular user. I think most of the MacBook repairs that people need are due to accidental damage which AppleCare does *not* cover. Things like a smashed LCD, dented body, etc are not covered and you will pay full price for a repair.

AppleCare is just a warranty extension for manufacturing defects. Since every MacBook comes with a 1 year warranty as standard, I think any defects that your notebook might have would become evident within that 1 year period and you would get a free repair. I honestly don't see a need to extend that period to 3 years with AppleCare.
Click to expand...

Unless you had a 2011 macbook pro 15".. in which case you were getting logic board issues for the entire 3 years of AppleCare and if you didn't do the extension to the 3 years you were really paying the price.
 
kyriostrife said:
Unless you had a 2011 macbook pro 15".. in which case you were getting logic board issues for the entire 3 years of AppleCare and if you didn't do the extension to the 3 years you were really paying the price.
Click to expand...

Right on kyriostrife. What happened to my Mac Mini was exactly that, a certain percentage of a production run just had issues, and mine fell into that.
 
marlon bishop said:
hello im almost at the point of buying my new 15 inch macbook pro, replacing my 2011 13 inch(still works fine), but need more power and speed. i never put apple care on that one. and the only issue i had is i had to replace the charger and it was 80 dollars. now since ill be spending almost 3000 dollars on the new macbook pro should i invest in apple care?

_happy holidays_
Click to expand...

Consider getting a separate all-risk insurance policy that covers your Mac and other electronic devices as well. That way, you are covered for theft, loss, and damage. Get a policy separate from homeowners/ renters and with a deductible you can afford.

You have a greater chance of having to repair damage rather than face an out of warranty repair not covered by such a policy, so this provides you with that protection. You can always get tech support at an Apple store so so do you really need 2 more years of phone support?

Also look into credit card warranty extensions; some double the manufacturer's warranty so you can already get a second year for free.

The Applecare vs no Applecare debate always brings in a lot of anecdotal evidence on both sides so I won't get into the "is it worth it?" debate; in the end it's your money, your choice, and what you want and need.
 
kyriostrife said:
Unless you had a 2011 macbook pro 15".. in which case you were getting logic board issues for the entire 3 years of AppleCare and if you didn't do the extension to the 3 years you were really paying the price.
Click to expand...

I have one and applecare is pretty much worthless considering the amount of downtime I've had. On the latest trip to the genius bar they basically told my wife that my late 2011 macbook pro is mostly my problem, despite multiple failures, logic board replacements, and now less than 1 hour of battery life with no trackpad functionality and graphics glitches. **** apple, and **** applecare. They've fallen so far from when I got my first macbook in 2006 I might as well get a dell. Don't buy applecare, for no other reason that they don't deserve the extra money after the treatment of late 2011 15" Macbook pro users.
 
I bought it for my 15" retina. Why? Because for me $250 was worth it for 2 years to fix something I can't actually fix myself. I rarely warranty anything. I don't add warranties to the new cars I buy, because I can most likely fix them myself. Despite 20 years of experience with computers, I have no desire to try and fix these new MacBooks nor do I want to pay the insane prices for things such as a logic board.

I have used the 1st year warranty for an iPad and iPhone already. In both cases, it took 5 minutes in an Apple Store to walk out with a new device.
 
mcapanelli said:
I have one and applecare is pretty much worthless considering the amount of downtime I've had. On the latest trip to the genius bar they basically told my wife that my late 2011 macbook pro is mostly my problem, despite multiple failures, logic board replacements, and now less than 1 hour of battery life with no trackpad functionality and graphics glitches. **** apple, and **** applecare. They've fallen so far from when I got my first macbook in 2006 I might as well get a dell. Don't buy applecare, for no other reason that they don't deserve the extra money after the treatment of late 2011 15" Macbook pro users.
Click to expand...

Did you buy AppleCare and are you still under it? If not they don't have to do anything for you. The 2011 logic board issue is ********, trust me I had a 2011 MBP. I still think Apple should have to cover all those logic board replacements. However, all the other issues have nothing to do with other owners 2011 MBPs.

Since I had AppleCare though, after multiple logic board replacements, they finally replaced it with a Retina MBP. AppleCare has paid for itself many of times over to the point where I don't even question if I should or shouldn't get it. I just do for all my devices.

Good luck with Dell BTW. I had one of their craptops years ago. They refused to fix it one day outside the warranty. So I said '**** you' and went without a computer for a few months until I got my Mac. The thing was probably recycled into a water bottle lol.

Oh and don't get SquareTrade. They may cover accidental but I will say this, no one, I mean no one knows these machines like Apple. Especially the Retina models. Plus I have heard some lovely stories about people getting their machines back unfixed or physically damaged (scratches, dents, etc).
 
Wickedness said:
I might get flamed for this, but in my experience AppleCare isn't worth the cost for a regular user. I think most of the MacBook repairs that people need are due to accidental damage which AppleCare does *not* cover. Things like a smashed LCD, dented body, etc are not covered and you will pay full price for a repair.

AppleCare is just a warranty extension for manufacturing defects. Since every MacBook comes with a 1 year warranty as standard, I think any defects that your notebook might have would become evident within that 1 year period and you would get a free repair. I honestly don't see a need to extend that period to 3 years with AppleCare.
Click to expand...

Certainly not true in my case.

My first rMBP failed after 18 months. It seemed to be a GPU issue. It eventually resulted in a brand new rMBP provided by Apple.

That said, if you're in the EU, don't bother. The consumer laws give you practically the same coverage.
 
Do not buy Apple Care.

I have purchased Apple Care.A waist of money. I would NEVER recommend Apple Care, they lack of trouble shooting ability. Apple Care seems to train their TEIR 2 well, but if u paid for Apple Care you'll always end up with Tier 1 personal. Those Tier 1 bunch are NOT well trained and only provide bad to very bad technical advise.
 
antsgeek said:
I have purchased Apple Care.A waist of money. I would NEVER recommend Apple Care, they lack of trouble shooting ability. Apple Care seems to train their TEIR 2 well, but if u paid for Apple Care you'll always end up with Tier 1 personal. Those Tier 1 bunch are NOT well trained and only provide bad to very bad technical advise.
Click to expand...

I Bought AppleCare in case it breaks, not the tech advise. I know how to trouble shoot it. ;)
 
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