Sidebar Sidebar
Become a MacRumors Supporter for $50/year with no ads, ability to filter front page stories, and private forums.

AppleCare vs. Squaretrade

A

abuskeletor

macrumors regular
Original poster
Apr 20, 2015
102
0
United States
I have a Squaretrade warranty for all of my mobile devices; phone, Kindle, iPad Mini, et cetera.

Who here would advocate for AppleCare over Squaretrade for my :apple:watch and why?
 
You can actually still walk into Apple Store once u make claim with squaretrade, they will pay if charged by Apple.
 
I would rather deal with Apple solely since I know they will do their best to make me happy.

I would hate to file a claim with square trade and be denied because of a technicality.
 
Squaretrade is great. Like someone else said, you can still take it to Apple to fix it and they will reimburse you for it. Oftentimes, you HAVE to still bring it to Apple because it will be a while (if ever) that there are 3rd party certified repair shops for Apple Watches.

The screen on my wife's iPhone 6 broke a few months ago. We sent it to Apple, got it fixed, emailed the receipt to Squaretrade and I had the money back in my Paypal account within a couple days.

Also, with Squaretrade you can get 3 years of coverage instead of just two. So that's definitely what I'm going with.
 
abuskeletor said:
I have a Squaretrade warranty for all of my mobile devices; phone, Kindle, iPad Mini, et cetera.

Who here would advocate for AppleCare over Squaretrade for my :apple:watch and why?
Click to expand...

I went with ac+ for the watch. I have used square trade several times and it works great, but you have to pay apple and get reimbursed when making a claim. AC just eliminates that step.
 
John90976 said:
Walking into an Apple store seems better than shipping it off.
Click to expand...

This has been false for a very long time. Squaretrade provides you with same-day walk-in genius bar service, completely reimbursed by Squaretrade.
 
abuskeletor said:
I have a Squaretrade warranty for all of my mobile devices; phone, Kindle, iPad Mini, et cetera.

Who here would advocate for AppleCare over Squaretrade for my :apple:watch and why?
Click to expand...

AppleCare
You can walk into your local Apple store and get top rate care.

The only alternative to AppleCare that makes ANY sense... are those that offer loss/theft coverage. AppleCare requires you still have device in hand.
 
AppleCare+...I have had it on all my devices (iPads, iPhones, now AW). I have NEVER paid the accidental damage fee. Not saying I won't in the future, but no matter what's happened to the phone/iPad...they've replaced it without any fees charged. One got dropped in the toilet, another I dropped and broke the screen. I was up-front both times, told them what happened and they walked out with new devices and told me there would be no charge.

I also just had SquareTrade on a Fitbit Surge that I owned. (I've since sold it on eBay to prepare for the AW.) I dropped it on the floor of my bathroom (tile) and it cracked the screen. I sent in all the information about how to get the item fixed/replaced and they NEVER called back. I'd call and try to get in touch, talk to someone, they'd say I'd get a call back to confirm the claim...NEVER CALLED. I'm not sure I'll go with SquareTrade with Apple products ever. I have a warranty on my TV and a camera...but this last issue really soured me toward Square...
 
While I've had Squaretrade warranties on many devices, I've only had to use it twice. I used it for a Kindle my nephew stepped on and they gave me an Amazon gift card for the full purchase price. I also used it to replace an iPhone that broke (It was my wife's, don't remember the details). They immediately reimbursed her so she could purchase a new device in an Apple store the same day.

So far, I'm still leaning towards Squaretrade.
 
abuskeletor said:
While I've had Squaretrade warranties on many devices, I've only had to use it twice. I used it for a Kindle my nephew stepped on and they gave me an Amazon gift card for the full purchase price. I also used it to replace an iPhone that broke (It was my wife's, don't remember the details). They immediately reimbursed her so she could purchase a new device in an Apple store the same day.

So far, I'm still leaning towards Squaretrade.
Click to expand...

You really can't go wrong with Squaretrade. And you can get 3 years instead of just 2.

I know people are worried about a 3rd party insurer, and probably rightfully so given all the crappy ones that are out there, but Squaretrade is way better than what people in this thread are giving it credit for so far.

As I mentioned in my post above, there is nearly a 100% chance that the repair work will still be performed by Apple so there is no concern there. Couple that with the extra year, and Squaretrade is a no brainer if you ask me.
 
I have the same debate and am leaning toward Squaretrade. Not only do I get an extra year of coverage but they don't charge a fee for accidental damage claims (for the smartwatch plan, iPhone plans do have a fee). I had a Squaretrade warranty for my iPad 2 but didn't have to use it. I currently have one for my Xbox One.

Only downside is their Smartwatch plans only go up to $499. It should go up to $599 to cover the cost for the SS watch.
 
With Squaretrade, if they give you money to buy a replacement then the plan is considered complete/used. Then you buy a new/replacement device and have to buy a new Squaretrade on it, correct? That could be another negative compared to AC+ since it lasts for 2 years and gives unlimited replacements for normal issues and 2 for accidental.
 
For iPhones, the benefits and costs AC/ST are similar. People keep saying they would rather deal with Apple - you can with ST, so AppleCare is not really an advantage in that regard.

I have owned both ST and AC over the years, and choose based on current pricing, available promotions(ST), deductible for device replacement, max number of replacements, and whether or not the third year is of interest. Been very happy with experiences with both.

For the Apple Watch, Squaretrade does not appear to have an appropriate offering yet. They only have a generic plan that tops off at $499 in max value and costs $104.99, albeit for 3 years. Of greatest concern, it appears you can not just bring an Apple Watch to Apple for same day repair - they just seem to guarantee 5 day service. AC+ is just $69 for two years, includes genius bar service, and allows for two device replacements (at $79 each). It appears ST does not have a "co-pay" for device repair though.

So while I am a fan of ST for iPhones, until they have a more specific Apple Watch program, I would stick with AC+.
 
ST majorly changes smartwatch plans!

Looks like I'm going with AppleCare+! I received an email from Squaretrade today advertising their smartwatch plan for the AppleWatch. Looks like they have changed their plan:

It's now only 2 years instead of 3
They added a deductible (or you can pay more for no deductible)
Added higher price ranges ($500-599 and $600-1499)

Why would I pay $149 for a Squaretrade warranty that has a $99 deductible when I can get AC+ for 1/2 that price with a cheaper deductible?? Normally Squaretrade is quite a bit cheaper than AC+ and can be tempting. But this new plan is just ridiculous!
 
Sphyrna said:
Looks like I'm going with AppleCare+! I received an email from Squaretrade today advertising their smartwatch plan for the AppleWatch. Looks like they have changed their plan:

It's now only 2 years instead of 3
They added a deductible (or you can pay more for no deductible)
Added higher price ranges ($500-599 and $600-1499)

Why would I pay $149 for a Squaretrade warranty that has a $99 deductible when I can get AC+ for 1/2 that price with a cheaper deductible?? Normally Squaretrade is quite a bit cheaper than AC+ and can be tempting. But this new plan is just ridiculous!
Click to expand...

Same here. After seeing Squaretrade's new plan, I'm going with AppleCare.
 
I would go wi apple care and here's why. $75 deductible on malfunctions. Apple care plus for Apple Sport was $79 I believe. Okay so that's $20 more than ST. Deductible for damage is like $59 for first two with Apple Care +. But malfunctions are zero.

That's right. If at 14 months my microphone takes a **** with square trade I have to pay $75. With Apple Care, nothing.
 
Sphyrna said:
Looks like I'm going with AppleCare+! I received an email from Squaretrade today advertising their smartwatch plan for the AppleWatch. Looks like they have changed their plan:

It's now only 2 years instead of 3
They added a deductible (or you can pay more for no deductible)
Added higher price ranges ($500-599 and $600-1499)

Why would I pay $149 for a Squaretrade warranty that has a $99 deductible when I can get AC+ for 1/2 that price with a cheaper deductible?? Normally Squaretrade is quite a bit cheaper than AC+ and can be tempting. But this new plan is just ridiculous!
Click to expand...


Thanks for the info, I was waiting to receive my watch before purchasing a plan. After seeing the differences, the decision is easy. Apple gets more of my money :D
 
I'm torn between AppleCare and SquareTrade. I can't see that AppleCare covers water damage if I happen to fall into the Rogue River ;).
SquareTrade offers protection against full liquid immersion. But I can't see that SqT offers 2 incidents of accidental damage as AC does...
Decisions, decisions!
Please correct me if I'm wrong about AC not covering liquid immersion!
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Register on MacRumors! This sidebar will go away, and you'll see fewer ads.
Top Bottom
Back