Buying advice for Educational customers in UK

[TheBigApple2006]

Just a heads-up to anyone in the market for the new laptops...You will all know that Apple offers substantial discounts to Higher education customers...in the small print it also states that the 3 year hardware warranty is standard on all laptops and desktops purchased through the Apple Store Online. This same warranty is charged at a small premium in brick and mortar Apple Stores (around 60 pounds). Given that the leading cash back sites also include around 3% cash back on Educational purchases, you are set to save quite a few pennies if you order online. In my case, I just pre-ordered a Retina MBP base model with the 16Gb RAM upgrade and it looks to come in at 1614 after cash back. Same model in Apple Store, assuming they sell it, would be 110 pounds more expensive after taking the three year warranty. So, do you maths before engaging in one of these costly purchases!

 

[stephenc92]

Did you use Quidco to get the additional 3% cashback? Also, would you mind pointing out where the inclusive 3 year warranty is stated? All I can see on the education store is an option for "APPLECARE PROTECTION PLAN UPLIFT MACBOOK PRO (HE CONTRACT)" which is £60.

 

[TheBigApple2006]

Did you use Quidco to get the additional 3% cashback? Also, would you mind pointing out where the inclusive 3 year warranty is stated? All I can see on the education store is an option for "APPLECARE PROTECTION PLAN UPLIFT MACBOOK PRO (HE CONTRACT)" which is £60.

Quidco does pay out on Education purchases, it states it on the page as well. Regarding the warranty, the Uplift is what you pay at the store too. However, if you look at the terms and cons at the end of the page, for Higher Education purchases, it states that

10. One (1) year Limited Warranty and HE National Agreement Warranty Provisions
10.1 All new Hardware carries a one-year limited warranty against defects in materials and workmanship. The warranty terms and conditions, which form part of and are incorporated into this Contract by reference, are available for you to see by clicking the appropriate hyperlink below. Such warranty terms and conditions are also contained in your Apple Hardware box. You may review a copy of the limited warranty on Apple Hardware products, including its limitations and exclusions, before your purchase, by clicking the appropriate link below. Such a limited warranty covers Apple Hardware (as defined below) only; it does not cover Software, Services or any other Products. You should refer to the relevant Software licences for warranties which may apply to your Software.


One-year limited warranty for new products except iPod and iSight
One-year limited warranty for iPod and iSight

One-year limited warranty for iPhone



The one-year limited warranty does not cover Software, Services or any other Products. You should refer to the relevant Software licences for warranties which may apply to your Software.
 The Apple One-year limited warranty covers all Apple Hardware except those explicitly mentioned below in clause 10.1.1 which describes specific warranty benefits for purchases made within the framework of the Higher Education National Agreement.

10.1.1 All Apple-branded desktop and portable computer products sold after October 1st 2005 within the framework of the HE National Agreement shall be subject to a 36 calendar month warranty period (the “HE National Agreement Warranty”) commencing from the date of delivery.

You usually get a separate email a few weeks after purchase confirming it. It's a non-standard arrangement but it works. I have never paid the extra 40-60 pounds and have had the 3 year warranty on all the various MacBooks I purchased through the online Edu store. They force you to pay the premium for warranty in-store though.

 

[biohead]

As said, the warranty is only available online. Not in a brick and mortar store.

Furthermore, the online warranty is just that. The warranty. You don't get the 3 years phone support like the full blown AppleCare - you would if you bought it in store and paid the extra.
The £60 option online gives you the addition of phone support should you want it.

 

[TheBigApple2006]

As said, the warranty is only available online. Not in a brick and mortar store.

Furthermore, the online warranty is just that. The warranty. You don't get the 3 years phone support like the full blown AppleCare - you would if you bought it in store and paid the extra.
The £60 option online gives you the addition of phone support should you want it.

True, but the warranty is the full monty - I had several repairs on previous laptops purchased under this scheme and they all went through fine without any glitch - even had a battery replaced on a pre-unibody MBP because the Service Battery message had come up on the desktop! I see little use for the phone support when you have manifestly hardware problems and are relatively close to an Apple Repair Centre.

 

[biohead]

Oh yeah definitely the full warranty on offer. Likewise, I had about a month left on mine and the battery started dying completely at around the 60% mark - took it in and got a brand new battery free of charge after running some tests on my old 2008 Alu macbook.