AppleCare+ Is A Giant Ripoff!

[joshkhaos1]

Let me get this straight, so it's $100 for AppleCare+. then $79 for each service right?

Why would you buy that when a out of warranty iPhone 6 screen replacement is $109?!! Somebody please explain this to me!

It's not as good as it used to be. So it's $100 to get it and $79 for an accidental damage claim use, but T-Mobile jump is $175 to get the phone replaced regardless of reason. Which is $4 cheaper than the Apple program.

When Applecare+ first came out and the carriers had garbage insurance programs, Applecare was awesome. But now the carriers programs are actually pretty decent.

 

[Leonard1818]

hmmm...reviewing.

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It's not as good as it used to be. So it's $100 to get it and $79 for an accidental damage claim use, but T-Mobile jump is $175 to get the phone replaced regardless of reason. Which is $4 cheaper than the Apple program.

When Applecare+ first came out and the carriers had garbage insurance programs, Applecare was awesome. But now the carriers programs are actually pretty decent.

I don't know that VZW offers anything worthwhile, do they? Asurion stunk when I had it.

 

[JayLenochiniMac]

I should probably add (as an applecare plus purchaser) that I:

-- Don't leave my house. I mean, I do, but I work from home so my chances of theft are much lower

-- Have a 4 year old and while she knows to ask, I want to be able to have her use my phone if she wants and accidents happen.

-- use my phone every single day for work and play (music, browsing, etc.)

-- Have only used warranty (accidental damage) once. To replace my 64-GB iPhone 5. So here's some numbers:

AC+ warranty on iPhone 4s: $99
AC+ warranty on iPad 3: $99
AC+ warranty on iPhone 5: $99
Deductible on my replacement: $50

Let's call it $350

Price to buy a new, absolutely necessary iPhone 5 (64 GB) out of warranty: $850

Difference: $500

....So the way I see it, I'm still up $500.

Out of warranty replacement price for iPhone 5 is $269 regardless of capacity.

 

[goblutes]

I'll add, I always buys my phones with an American Express card. They have a policy on all their cards where they automatically extended the warranty of any electronic item by a year. So that's your two years of coverage right there.

So besides for water damage, what else am I really missing out on?

Can you elaborate? I tried to PM you but couldn't figure out how to do it.

 

[Leonard1818]

I should probably add (as an applecare plus purchaser) that I:

-- Don't leave my house. I mean, I do, but I work from home so my chances of theft are much lower

-- Have a 4 year old and while she knows to ask, I want to be able to have her use my phone if she wants and accidents happen.

-- use my phone every single day for work and play (music, browsing, etc.)

-- Have only used warranty (accidental damage) once. To replace my 64-GB iPhone 5. So here's some numbers:

AC+ warranty on iPhone 4s: $99
AC+ warranty on iPad 3: $99
AC+ warranty on iPhone 5: $99
Deductible on my replacement: $50

Let's call it $350

Price to buy a new, absolutely necessary iPhone 5 (64 GB) out of warranty: $270 (just looked this up, previously misquoted on my end)

Difference: $80

....So I've spent $80 over 3 devices... You can't buy 3 decent cases for that much. I still think I'm ahead.

BUT I will say, it's getting less and less attractive. I do love the advance replacement that they offer. That alone is worth a lot to me as the closest apple store is over an hour away.

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Out of warranty replacement price for iPhone 5 is $269 regardless of capacity.

Yep. I edited my post. See above.

 

[goblutes]

Even with my Amex coverage, it's still a hassle compared to just going through AppleCare.

Elaborate, please.

 

[unagimiyagi]

If you plan on breaking screens only, Applecare+ is not a great deal.
If you plan on replacing the entire phones, then it is a good deal.

 

[Leonard1818]

If you plan on breaking screens only, Applecare+ is not a great deal.
If you plan on replacing the entire phones, then it is a good deal.

This is a pretty good summary actually.... except the whole premise of insurance or extended warranty is not KNOWING what's going to happen.

I chipped my screen, ding'd the body, and finally bent the headphone jack of my iPhone 5 before getting an AC+ replacement. Now I have a perfect iPhone 5 that sits on my desk, unused... ha.

 

[MikesGravity]

Well worth it! It's bumper to bumper coverage for 2 years for $100 and $79 per incident. Thats $100 for piece of mind if you never use it - for 2 years!

Let me give you an example. At 8am Friday I picked up my iPhone 6 64GB and AppleCare+. It was so beautiful I did not want to use a case. Sunday it slipped from my lap and cracked the edge of the black part of the screen (hairline fracture).

Took it to a genius yesterday, he saw I had applecare+ but didn't want me to use an incident already so he gave me a BRAND NEW PHONE at NO COST to me. None. Except this time I bought a silicone case.

If I didn't have AppleCare I don't know that he would have been so lenient.

A good deal if you ask me.

- Not to mention if you beat the crap out of your phone, get a replacement after year 1. A few days before it expires, get another replacement and sell it "as new" to put towards the "iPhone 7".

 

[Leonard1818]

Well worth it! It's bumper to bumper coverage for 2 years for $100 and $79 per incident. Thats $100 for piece of mind if you never use it - for 2 years!

Let me give you an example. At 8am Friday I picked up my iPhone 6 64GB and AppleCare+. It was so beautiful I did not want to use a case. Sunday it slipped from my lap and cracked the edge of the black part of the screen (hairline fracture).

Took it to a genius yesterday, he saw I had applecare+ but didn't want me to use an incident already so he gave me a BRAND NEW PHONE at NO COST to me. None. Except this time I bought a silicone case.

If I didn't have AppleCare I don't know that he would have been so lenient.

A good deal if you ask me.

That's pretty nice of them!

 

[joshkhaos1]

hmmm...reviewing.

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I don't know that VZW offers anything worthwhile, do they? Asurion stunk when I had it.

Not sure on what Verizon offers. ATT's plan is OKAY, but T-Mobile one ups it with the upgrade option tacked on with Jump.

 

[JayLenochiniMac]

Let me give you an example. At 8am Friday I picked up my iPhone 6 64GB and AppleCare+. It was so beautiful I did not want to use a case. Sunday it slipped from my lap and cracked the edge of the black part of the screen (hairline fracture).

Took it to a genius yesterday, he saw I had applecare+ but didn't want me to use an incident already so he gave me a BRAND NEW PHONE at NO COST to me. None. Except this time I bought a silicone case.

If I didn't have AppleCare I don't know that he would have been so lenient.

Amex also provides accidental damage coverage in the first 90 days, the crucial period when people are still getting used to how slippery the iPhone 6 is, haven't bought a case, showing it off to friends/family that want to play with it (further increasing the risk of dropping), etc. Sure, it may not be as convenient as having AC+ but it's $0.

- Not to mention if you beat the crap out of your phone, get a replacement after year 1. A few days before it expires, get another replacement and sell it "as new" to put towards the "iPhone 7".

You have to deliberately damage your iPhone to get a replacement (as they don't cover cosmetic damage). Too many people doing this is why they've jacked up the AC+ deductible to $79.

 

[darngooddesign]

Let me get this straight, so it's $100 for AppleCare+. then $79 for each service right?

Why would you buy that when a out of warranty iPhone 6 screen replacement is $109?!! Somebody please explain this to me!

How much does a replacement phone, that has been dropped in water, cost? How about a bent 6+? If you only crack the screen then sure its not worth it, but if the case dents upon impact it starts begin worth it.

 

[truth1ness]

This is a pretty good summary actually.... except the whole premise of insurance or extended warranty is not KNOWING what's going to happen.

No, the whole premise of insurance is the insurance company knowing better than you. Almost nothing is absolutely 'knowable' but you can make pretty darn good educated guesses, and they do the math while most consumers do not. They make the money on the vast number of consumers who do not do the math and think their particular case is worth it or who label not doing math as "peace of mind" ("ignorance is bliss/expensive" is what this really means). If most people did the math these plans would go out of business.

 

[JoEw]

$6.99 a month, covers just about anything under the sun and every 6 months I don't claim my deductible goes down.

 

[pbasmadj]

Yep. I've used Amex's warranty service, as well as Visa Signature's extended protection, both are a PAIN. They make you send in the device for repair\evaluation\replacement\reimbursement, then 3-4 weeks later decide what to do with your claim. It's all done through a third party... so if you can be without a phone for 3-4 weeks, or are willing to buy a new one and HOPE they decide to just refund your purchase price instead of repair or replacement, so be it. Apple Care is like anything Apple... costs a little more than its competition, but you get what you pay for, and in my opinion Apple service is worth paying more for.

Agreed. I purchased my 6 on my Amex as well, but I have decided I am still going to buy Applecare +. Reason being, much more direct, and I fully intend to get a brand new phone twice during these two years. Scratch on phone? Battery starting to die? Head into the store for a brand new device.

 

[GoCubsGo]

Elaborate, please.

You must not have the card or never used it for a warranty issue. Last I checked, you have to go to Apple, get a repair invoice, send it to AMEX, they "review" it, then they process your warranty. Apple, you just walk in...give them the device and most likely walk out with another one or a repaired device. Shaves off days as far as I'm concerned. AMEX is great still, but just saying that AC sort of works in an easier manner.

 

[JayLenochiniMac]

Agreed. I purchased my 6 on my Amex as well, but I have decided I am still going to buy Applecare +. Reason being, much more direct, and I fully intend to get a brand new phone twice during these two years. Scratch on phone? Battery starting to die? Head into the store for a brand new device.

AC+ doesn't cover cosmetic damage. Pretty sure even the standard warranty will cover bum battery that doesn't hold charge like it's supposed to (depleted by more than 50% by the end of first year).

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You must not have the card or never used it for a warranty issue. Last I checked, you have to go to Apple, get a repair invoice, send it to AMEX, they "review" it, then they process your warranty. Apple, you just walk in...give them the device and most likely walk out with another one or a repaired device. Shaves off days as far as I'm concerned. AMEX is great still, but just saying that AC sort of works in an easier manner.

That's not necessarily the case with Amex Extended Warranty. In my case, I put in a call to Amex and they didn't ask me to do anything else (no paperwork/receipt/repair invoice, etc.). I found the $299 plus tax credit on the next billing statement and used that toward a $199 plus tax out of warranty replacement at the Apple store, walking out with a replacement iPhone 4s.

You can even get it fixed first then file the claim later if you don't want to waste time.

 

[BSoares]

I'll add, I always buys my phones with an American Express card. They have a policy on all their cards where they automatically extended the warranty of any electronic item by a year. So that's your two years of coverage right there.

So besides for water damage, what else am I really missing out on?

Same here but AMEX only really helps if you pay for the phone in full with your card. So if you're paying monthly or with contract price, they will only reimburse you up to the value that you paid which can be as little as half of what a new device w/o a contract will cost. So as much as I love their extended warranties, I'm not sure it's that useful for phones unless you buy it off contract.

 

[Leonard1818]

AC+ doesn't cover cosmetic damage. Pretty sure even the standard warranty will cover bum battery that doesn't hold charge like it's supposed to (depleted by more than 50% by the end of first year).

I think AC+ covers cosmetic damage. If you think about it logically, if the guy you quoted got a scratch and didn't want his phone anymore (or wanted a replacement) what's stopping him from a) lying and saying that it "drops wifi" or "drops calls" or some other mysterious ailment or b) dropping the phone and breaking it to get a new one....

 

[DynaFXD]

Bent my iPad Air and got a new one for $49 (+$99 for the original AppleCare+ purchase). Would have been $299 without AC+. Nowadays, the copay is $79, but still a good deal for a major accident.

You probably got a remanufactured (re-man) one, not a new one. At least for iPhones, if they can't repair, Apple care gives re-mans. These re-mans are identified by their part number. As a result, Best Buy wouldn't take my iP5 as a trade in because they could tell it was a re-man. Which I think stinks on Apple's part. I was paying for extra insurance, I should get replaced like for like, not be saddled with the scarlet letter for a re-man.

tl;dr - Apple Care does not give out new units for claims. Consider that in your calculus for your personal value assessment of Apple Care.

 

[linkgx1]

You probably got a remanufactured (re-man) one, not a new one. At least for iPhones, if they can't repair, Apple care gives re-mans. These re-mans are identified by their part number. As a result, Best Buy wouldn't take my iP5 as a trade in because they could tell it was a re-man. Which I think stinks on Apple's part. I was paying for extra insurance, I should get replaced like for like, not be saddled with the scarlet letter for a re-man.

tl;dr - Apple Care does not give out new units for claims. Consider that in your calculus for your personal value assessment of Apple Care.

Really? I thought they were new! The heck!

 

[JayLenochiniMac]

Same here but AMEX only really helps if you pay for the phone in full with your card. So if you're paying monthly or with contract price, they will only reimburse you up to the value that you paid which can be as little as half of what a new device w/o a contract will cost. So as much as I love their extended warranties, I'm not sure it's that useful for phones unless you buy it off contract.

It won't work with with an installment plan like at&t Next with $0 down for sure; however, an out of warranty replacement device is only half the cost as full retail so you'll still be made whole if you buy on contract.

E.g., you buy the 64 GB iPhone 6 for $299 plus tax. Should it fail in the 2nd year, Amex will reimburse you $299 plus tax and you use that toward the out of warranty replacement cost of iPhone 6 at $299 plus tax, essentially making you whole.

 

[Azzin]

Just thought I would add my two cents in.

Between my partner and I we have had 6 iPhones and have not purchased Apple Care for any of them. If we had we would have spent $600 plus tax (here in Ontario that would make it $678) on coverage we didn't need. Neither of us have had any accidental damage to any of our phones. We have only ever had issues during the first year of warranty for things that were covered under the original warrenty.

I also paid for my iPhone with my AmEx card so that extends the coverage for a second year for any problems that arrise that aren't accidents. For me that is enough because the only issues I have had have been defects and not accidents. If one of us did have an accident with the 6 Plus and we had Apple Care then I would have paid $678 for the warrenty plus $79 for the deductible for a grand total of $767 taxes included. An out of warrenty replacement would only cost me $399 ($450 with tax) which is $317 cheaper.

Personally I would rather roll the dice and save my money seeing as so far (knock on wood) I have had no accidental damage. If you are accident prone or have damaged phones in the past or just want peace of mind then by all means Apple Care is good for you, but not everyone wants to pay extra money for something they only might need.

Ah, the old 20/20 hindsight glasses are back...

 

[HenryDJP]

Just did a little research, it looks like certain cards from the three other major card companies also offer free warranty extension. It baffles me why anyone wouldn't apply for a no annual fee Amex card and just use it for electronic purchases. Even if you don't qualify for a no fee card, a card with a small fee would still be an absolute steal if you buy multiple expensive gadgets a year!

Because not everyone wants an inquiry on their credit and prefers to pay in cash and not get caught up in a bill-me-later situation.