AppleCare+ Is A Giant Ripoff!

[Leonard1818]

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.

This stinks on BEST BUYS part... not Apple. I've had several reman'd iPhones and they've all been just fine. I've had several brand new ones that have had issues right out of the box. I don't think you're any more or less likely to get a "bad apple" (pardon the pun) with a reman versus a brand new in box. Apple refurb process is presumably better than anyone else's because they have the knowledge and tools necessary to do it right.

I think it's shady on the part of BB to not take a reman'd phone. Who cares if it's been reman'd? So you could go to apple and have the screen, home button, battery etc. replaced and BB wouldn't give a hoot but if you get a whole new phone with those replacement parts, BB cares? Time to stop doing business at BB...

Really? I thought they were new! The heck!

It's also my understanding that they give you a new body, new screen, new battery and the only things they reuse (after testing of course) are the high dollar items like the processor and other internal components.

 

[JayLenochiniMac]

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....

No, it doesn't. You'll have to commit fraud by deliberately damaging it.

See below:

http://www.apple.com/legal/sales-support/applecare/applecareplusforiphone.html

4.2 Hardware Coverage and ADH Coverage.
... (ii)The Plan does not apply to damage caused by (a) a product that is not the Covered iPhone, (b) abuse, misuse, fire, earthquake or other external causes except as described in section 3.2 above, (c) operating the Covered iPhone outside the permitted or intended uses described by the manufacturer, or (d) service (including upgrades and expansions) if such was performed by anyone who is not a representative of Apple or an Apple Authorized Service Provider (“AASP”).
(iii) The Plan does not apply to an iPhone with a serial number that has been altered, defaced or removed, or has been modified to alter its functionality or capability without the written permission of the manufacturer.
(iv) The Plan does not apply to a Covered iPhone that has been lost or stolen. This Plan only covers a Covered iPhone that is returned to Apple in its entirety.
(v) The Plan does not apply to cosmetic damage to the Covered iPhone, including but not limited to scratches and dents, that do not otherwise affect the functionality of the Covered iPhone.
(vi) The Plan does not apply to preventative maintenance on the Covered iPhone;
(vii) The Plan does not apply to defects caused by normal wear and tear or which is otherwise due to normal aging of the product….

 

[tekkt0r]

I think AppleCare+ is great. I've used it twice in the past 2 years; both for broken screens on iPhone 5 and 5S.

 

[Leonard1818]

No, it doesn't. You'll have to commit fraud by deliberately damaging it.

See below:

They can put w/e they want in writing... the fact is, it can and probably does happen. I wear my scratches like battle scars. I only turn in once the usability is compromised but I'm sure there are people who feel otherwise and do otherwise. So in that essence, it sort of DOES cover cosmetic damage....

Honest question: What beef do you have with AC+ and those who purchase it?

 

[VO2Max]

Self insure. IMO extended warranties are a big ripoff and nothing but a money maker for the company offering the extended warranty. Set aside the $100 for Applecare+ and the $79 deductible. Maybe throw a little more at the $179 each month and before you know it you have a good amount. If you have no issues with the phone during the time Applecare+ would have covered you then you have a good chunck of change toward the purchase of a new phone down the road.

I bought an iPhone 5 on launch day and did not purchse any additional coverage. Battery started doing the whole draining quickly and shutting down at 20% thing so I took it to Apple to have diagnostics ran on it. Turned out the battery was bad but I was out of warranty (and this was before Apple issued the extended warranty for certain iPhone 5 batteries, which my serial # did fall under). I declined to pay Apple $79 for a battery replacement and ordered a new battery with repair tools for about $25 from iFixit. Been working fine ever since. So in my situation Applecare would have been a waste of money. Apple finally deciding to deal with the iPhone 5 battery issue when they did is another issue.

I understand there are bigger more costly issues than a bad battery, but I always have additional money set aside for these types of things. If nothing happens then I get to keep that $ in my pockets.

 

[thatoneguy82]

You keep saying "don't throw numbers at me", but how can you say it brings you peace of mind if you haven't looked at the numbers? If you know you are losing money with this double insurance then what is your peace of mind about if not money? If you know you're not getting the actual monetary value out of them then wouldn't you get more peace of mind simply putting the nearly $300 into a jar every iphone for self insurance? Insurance is a purely monetary deal, I don't understand how else it can give you peace of mind if not for the money aspect.

For you to just break even you would have to either consistently 1) lose every other iphone you buy, a 50% loss rate, starting with this one or 2) completely break every iphone twice each cycle (completely, no mere screen shatters).

How do you know I haven't looked at the numbers? Me saying to not throw numbers at me is me saying to not tell me what I already know. And I only said it once, I didn't keep saying it. Everything you just typed out, I know. I didn't get both without thinking it through. And like I've said numerous times, MY (not yours) peace of mind is priceless; I'll spend or do whatever I can to achieve it. I honestly don't care to "break even" since I didn't get the insurances for that reason. Lastly, it's nice that you're concerned about the money, but it's my money and I choose where it goes.

 

[JayLenochiniMac]

They can put w/e they want in writing... the fact is, it can and probably does happen. I wear my scratches like battle scars. I only turn in once the usability is compromised but I'm sure there are people who feel otherwise and do otherwise. So in that essence, it sort of DOES cover cosmetic damage....

Honest question: What beef do you have with AC+ and those who purchase it?

I couldn't care less about AC+ and those who purchase it. Just correcting any misconception people have regarding AC+ and Amex.

The fact that fraud can and probably does happen is why they've jacked up the AC+ deductible to $79 so be careful what you ask for

 

[DynaFXD]

Really? I thought they were new! The heck!

The Best Buy employee swung her monitor around and showed me why she could not take it. Truth. I can see Apple's position, after a full year, even a re-man is probably in better shape than what I had. Perhaps expecting a branny new unit is unrealistic (insert arguments here back and forth). What irks me is that these re-mans can be identified and others, such as Best Buy, can make decisions on that. Imagine if you bought a phone off eBay or from a friend, then found it was somehow tagged so that you could not use a trade-in service. I don't know if others (Gazelle, etc) care. But any limitation is a limitation none-the-less, IMO.

 

[mdlooker]

I would've gone for AppleCare myself but I needed insurance that covered theft/loss as well. But it does seem like a rip off for screen replacement everything else that's covered is pretty nice.

But doesn't your home/renters insurance cover theft? Not to sure about loss as that is a very loose coverage.

 

[fishmd]

Agree with the slef insure.

This especially makes more sense if you are using something like ATT Next or Verizon Edge or T mobile EIF or Sprint whatever. In those cases, there really is no reason to buy an extended warranty as you can get rid of the phone in a year. Save up the money just in case something goes wrong. If not, it is money in your pocket.

 

[munakib]

I couldn't care less about AC+ and those who purchase it. Just correcting any misconception people have regarding AC+ and Amex.

The fact that fraud can and probably does happen is why they've jacked up the AC+ deductible to $79 so be careful what you ask for

fraud did not jackup the deductible, its about making a profit. You think Apple gives out AC+ because it cares about its product/customers? Its a money making scheme and like all money making schemes/insurances, prices will go up to grow the bottom line.

 

[DynaFXD]

Time to stop doing business at BB...

I agree with pretty much everything you said. However, I think you are looking out of the wrong end of the telescope. I'd say, if Apple thinks these are 100% 'good as new', then it is time for Apple to stop binning them out as separate SKUs. It stands that Apple is not giving you a new unit, but an identifiable re-man. What that means to you or others is dependent on your personal situation and who you chose to do business with. YMMV.

 

[mdlooker]

Why people chose to pay for extra warranty goes beyond me.

When it comes to other electronics or buying at Walmart, everybody knows it's a terrible deal. But if it's about buying Apple products, then paying more for extended warranty makes sense...

IMHO, if a device doesn't fail during its first year (which is already covered), it will hardly do so during the next two. Therefore, I always stay only with the free warranty and just take care of my stuff. I've had two Macs, four iPads, four iPhones and one iPod – and that system worked always well.

But it's most likely NOT the normal harware or components failing that most are worried about. It's the "unlikely" and "unknown" event of dropping, crushing, drowning, you know the "oh sh**" type of events. Some like covering and having that peace of mind, others not so much.

 

[noteple]

For my Sister she is not going to repair her own phone.

With the exchange policy its piece of mind

I've used it to get a replacement rather than argue with a 'Genius' over the plight of a defective phone.

If they Forced you to buy it Maybe you could argue its a ripoff.

Nobody is twisting your arm.

 

[dannyyankou]

Applecare has saved me about a couple thousand bucks over the past several years.

 

[JayLenochiniMac]

fraud did not jackup the deductible, its about making a profit. You think Apple gives out AC+ because it cares about its product/customers? Its a money making scheme and like all money making schemes/insurances, prices will go up to grow the bottom line.

Judging from the number of members here who deliberately damaged their iPhones in order to get a replacement and think nothing of it, I'd argue otherwise.

Insurance fraud is why we all pay more in our premiums (basically built into it), not just the result of insurance companies wanting to make more money.

 

[TitsLegendary]

Deleted

 

[pbasmadj]

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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Ah true.

 

[djgcue]

My 9/12 launch iP5 started to have the power button issues last year, than the home button started not to work and the battery ran hot, finally the screen started to be pushed out. Waited until my I received my Plus to take it in. Apple hooked me up with a brand new most likely refurb 5. No Applecare on it. This has been the only iP I had issues with, luckily they were all known issues. Figured if something goes wrong with my Plus it will most likely be a widespread issue which would get fixed with or w/o Applecare.

 

[TitsLegendary]

It's also peace of mind, which is something priceless (to me).

And to extend my peace of mind (and craziness), I also have the $6.99/mo warranty from AT&T that will cover loss/theft. And with the declining deductible, it makes it even more worth it in my book.


(Yes, I know the total cost I'm paying, but it gives me the peace of mind not to worry or baby my phone.)

So you get Applecare+ and pay the $9.99/month insurance?! Yikes! Apple and ATT both thank you for your generosity.

 

[From A Buick 8]

And stolen ^_^

Do you mean Stollen

 

[pappy53]

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.

Actually it will probably be a refurbished device.

 

[wntrwhte]

For me the $100 is a convenience fee to know that whether my phone was defective or I just broke it, I can bring it to any apple store (readily available) and just get the situation dealt with.

Getting warranty replacements or Asurion replacements is a pain in the rear. I happily pay to be able to make an appointment, walk into a store, and leave with a new working phone. Or if for some reason I'm not near a store-- just get one by mail overnight. Win.

 

[ElTucan831]

I got Att's insurance and of course the rep would say it's better but maybe she's right. I pay $6.99 a month and it covers anything from what I understand. The deductible lowers with time and starts at $200. I can also choose to get rid of it which I'm considering actually.

 

[ZBoater]

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!

Drop your phone in the toilet. Try the screen replacement and tell us how that works out for you.