I've been researching and reading and the responses are all over the place lol. The machine in questions a 2011 Mac air i5 2gb ram 64gb ssd. I haven't had any issues and my warranty is up in 2 days so I'm on the fence. I paid 600 for it and apple care would be 200 for an extra 2 years so 1/3 of the overall value of what I paid. If you where in my shoes what would you do? Im usually an extended warranty buyer but the warranties are not 1/3 of the items cost, if it broke would I still get some money for it? Or am I better off spending 200 more? Thoughts?
Got a tip for us?
Let us know
Become a MacRumors Supporter for $50/year with no ads, ability to filter front page stories, and private forums.
AppleCare for the 11" air worth it?
- Thread starter solsearchin
- Start date
- Sort by reaction score
Its a risk you have to calculate for yourself. If your Air breaks and you dont have Applecare, chances are its going to cost A LOT more than $200 to fix it. However, if nothing goes wrong then you have 'wasted' $200 (although you have peace of mind for 2 years).
These general consensus on here is that Applecare is worth it, however, I have yet to have to use mine, ever, on any Apple product I have owned.
These general consensus on here is that Applecare is worth it, however, I have yet to have to use mine, ever, on any Apple product I have owned.
If u bough it with AMEX ur automatically extended for another year. Some premium VISA/MC would have that too.
Yeah 85% of people here tell you yes, but it's really up to you. What is your risk tolerance?
Am in the camp of, if it hasn't broke in 1 year, it's unlikely to do so after, but that's because am power user, can troubleshoot my own stuff. If this machine starts acting weird on you and you have no inclination and/or time to do any troubleshooting then I say go ahead pay for Applecare.
Yeah 85% of people here tell you yes, but it's really up to you. What is your risk tolerance?
Am in the camp of, if it hasn't broke in 1 year, it's unlikely to do so after, but that's because am power user, can troubleshoot my own stuff. If this machine starts acting weird on you and you have no inclination and/or time to do any troubleshooting then I say go ahead pay for Applecare.
I am a squaretrade man! Why buy applecare when you could spill something in it like i did! Applecare = useless. sqauretrade would have at least fixed it or refunded my cash asap! actually the plus of applecare is if there is a big problem they could possibly swap out a new unit right in the store. just my 2 cents
Last edited:
Exactly. If one's afraid of hardware failure, then ask whether ur concerned about accidents which Applecare doesn't cover. If u need a hand to hold, then Applecare maybe it.
The only device I have ever purchased an extended warranty for is my Xbox 360 and that's only because I knew they were crappy and I was bound to get an RROD within the 2 year period. That's also a device that doesn't change as far as specs go...so after two years, you'd be getting the same console.
As for laptops...outside of the first year, if it hasn't failed yet, it likely won't. For that reason alone, I don't bother with it. The other side of that coin is that if it does fail in two or three years, I'll likely be persuaded to upgrade to the newest version anyway. I don't use laptops for more than 2 or 3 years before I'm itching for an upgrade anyway.
200 dollars on a 1000 machine is way too much BTW (1000 being the cost of a brand new 11")...especially since you'd be getting a newer and faster version for that 1000 if something did break.
There is a reason all these companies have these extended warranties...cuz they make a ton of money on them. If they weren't making money, they wouldn't offer them. Which means that MOST of the time, the end user gets screwed out of the money.
For some people, piece of mind is worth 200 bucks...so if you're in that camp, then the 200 is worth it.
As for laptops...outside of the first year, if it hasn't failed yet, it likely won't. For that reason alone, I don't bother with it. The other side of that coin is that if it does fail in two or three years, I'll likely be persuaded to upgrade to the newest version anyway. I don't use laptops for more than 2 or 3 years before I'm itching for an upgrade anyway.
200 dollars on a 1000 machine is way too much BTW (1000 being the cost of a brand new 11")...especially since you'd be getting a newer and faster version for that 1000 if something did break.
There is a reason all these companies have these extended warranties...cuz they make a ton of money on them. If they weren't making money, they wouldn't offer them. Which means that MOST of the time, the end user gets screwed out of the money.
For some people, piece of mind is worth 200 bucks...so if you're in that camp, then the 200 is worth it.
They bay department store? Ya it's tough because I figure the only 2 things that could go wrong that would be major are the logic board or screen the later being usually not covered anyway I could fix the basics like battery, ssd etc small stuff.. I upgrade my laptops every 3 years sometimes 2 if they break lol. If it was 100$ I would get it, but 200 is so damn steep that's with a discount, I'm in Canada so the usual is 300! Is there a poll here of people buying apple care and having to use them or not that would be good to see the results.
Would have been good if you had posted where you are and what currency this is. For example, in the EU the store where you bought it may have to fix problems within two years. And £200, 200, US$200 makes a big difference.
But here's how I see it: If your MBA breaks after 2years 11 month, then for 200 you get an almost three year old repaired MBA with practically no warranty. For not that much more you could instead just buy a refurbished MBA, which would be a much newer model, in two years time it will have a much faster processor, more RAM, bigger SSD drive, it will be new, and it will have full warranty; if you sell the broken MBA on eBay for spare parts you'll probably get a small amount of money for that as well.
The thing about AppleCare is it does not cover accidental damage. The OP has had the MBA for a while now. The odds of failure not related to drops or spills is remote.
I'm in Canada, if only apple wasnt so greedy with the warranty cost! I think I'm going to just go for it, gives me piece of mind for the next 2 years, if anything I can sell it when I upgrade make most of my money back. I have never had any accidents with my computers they stay at my desk and don't go anywhere. My rules are strict so no eating or drinking around electronics lol