Maybe just "accidentally" drop it and crack the screen so it's covered and they'll replace it?
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How did my Ultra screen crack?!?
- Thread starter Jdhommert
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Go to the Apple Store, click through to buy a watch, make your way down to the AppleCare+ section. Plain as day that you have unlimited accidental damage incidents for $70 - $80 (depending on model, plus taxes).
There are some exclusions, but nothing shocking. Minor cosmetic damage is excluded; that generally means scratches and dents that don’t impair functioning; that’s probably the biggest source of frustration. They also don’t cover intentional damage, so don’t get any ideas about “accidentally” dropping the device in front of your car and going right back in the store. They also don’t cover damage due to “fire, earthquake or other external causes,” but, again, I wouldn’t be surprised if somebody in the store just pretended to not hear that it was your house burning down and process the replacement anyway. Blatant fraud is excluded; removing the serial numbers will get you rejected (and might even get your contact information passed on to the police).
The original poster hasn’t shown any photos of the damage, which makes me rather dismissive of his claims. I suspect that what he’s describing as a “crack” is actually a scratch, which would not be covered. (Diamonds will definitely scratch the display, but not much else will … still, not hard to imagine contact between a wedding ring and the watch causing a scratch.)
A crack is only going to happen if the display is bent … not something that’s happening with the titanium frame to begin with … or else the crack will be the least of the damage. The display could chip or shatter, but nobody would describe either as a “crack.” (And, incidentally, dragging the watch from your car at high speed on rough concrete would not be enough to cause such damage.)
I suppose that a manufacturing defect could cause a crack … but I’ll instantly dismiss this possibility until we have supporting evidence. Apple’s quality control makes it virtually impossible that the first we’d hear of such from a forum post like this, for one. For another, the store would recognize this as something really weird and would know to get the device back to Cupertino for a postmortem, all while treating it casually as a weird-but-still-perfectly-normal warranty / customer service replacement.
So … all in all, this is an extraordinary claim lacking evidence, one that I’m inclined to dismiss accordingly.
b&
Having lost my driver's license once leaving it hidden in my towel while swimming I would fear theft hella more than the risk of water damage to an AW Ultra - it is a dive watch! Like the other poster said, you must have previously damaged the screen.
You're just being selfish. Pay Apple the money. They deserve it. They make amazing tech that we all need to live. They deserve to make as much money as they possibly can from us, including costly repairs even if we don't think we did anything wrong.
If you're really concerned, go and buy some Apple stock, at that way you can use your dividends from Apple to help offset the cost of owning Apple products.
I had an 1+ year old Apple Watch Series 3. It stopped working after a trip to spa. Local repair shop checked it and said that it obviously was damaged because of water and they won’t do anything.
I had bought the watch directly from Apple. They said that as it is over one year old and out of warranty the cost of replacement Watch would be 179e (new one was sold at that time for 199e I think).
I told the Apple representative that customer protection law says that it should last longer than that. I was transferred to another representative who then asked me to send the Watch to them and few days later I got replacement Watch from Holland.
Free of charge.
I had bought the watch directly from Apple. They said that as it is over one year old and out of warranty the cost of replacement Watch would be 179e (new one was sold at that time for 199e I think).
I told the Apple representative that customer protection law says that it should last longer than that. I was transferred to another representative who then asked me to send the Watch to them and few days later I got replacement Watch from Holland.
Free of charge.
There’s more to it than that. You said it was a scratch, right? They don’t replace screens for scratches in my experience. There has to be a crack or significant damage. Otherwise some people could go in every time they have any marks on their phone and demand a new one.
Unless I misread something, this sounds not like someone trying to get out of servicing you but more like you had an unreasonable expectation.
And? Unless your bum is made out of steel spikes I don't see how sitting on any AW will crack the display. Especially when it is wrapped in a towel. You'd need to concentrate the pressure in the specific small spot of the display which just doesn't happen by sitting down. Stepping on it could break it, but then if it's been in a bag wrapped in a towel it's not exactly the most likely thing to happen.
My cheap SE has seen quite some abuse (I got a cheap one on purpose so I don't have to take special care of it) and aside from some scratches when I accidentally smashed it into doorframes it's absolutely fine.
No. It is on you that you didn't read the AC+ contract. It clearly states that functionality has to be impaired. A deep scratch where the AW still works fine was never covered to begin with. You're the one who is unreasonable for expecting Apple to cover something they never, never said they'd cover. But sure blame the big corporation for your own mistake. Imagine if you sold something and told the buyer you aren't responsible if they drop it, and the next day they demand you fix it because they dropped it.
Did you actually check with Apple? They need to inspect the device and come to the conclusion that you didn't cause the crack. The Ultra is advertised as being able to withstand quite some conditions including intense heat. So if the intense heat of the sun caused this then it absolutely needs to be covered - as long as you are within the warranty, otherwise Apple would be correct to decline a free repair.
There is one catch though: The warranty covers only defects from normal use. Meaning that if the sun's heat cracks the display whilst the AW is on your arm, then it's covered. If you leave it sitting on hot asphalt and then the screen cracks then that's on you. But I don't see how wrapping it in a towel should cause excess heat unless it's been left in the sun for the entire day.
And as I understand it it wasn't even cracked until the day after, right? So it just sat on the charger overnight and in the morning you found it like that? Then that absolutely needs to be covered. If it isn't, you either fall into this unfortunate grey area where Apple can't correctly determine that you didn't cause this yourself which happens sometimes for sure. That isn't common but absolutely sucks as you have no way to prove Apple wrong. Or you actually did cause the crack, I don't assume this, but in some cases Apple correctly rejects a free repair when the customer clearly damaged it themselves.
If you have AC+ you can initiate an express replacement online, google apple watch express replacement, but you'd have to pay the deductible so it would be handled by Apple's insurer, not by warranty. But that is still cheaper than all other options.
I had a tiny nick in my car's windshield for years.
The other week I was driving around and "pop"! That small nick turned into a huge crack. Nothing was different. That's the way crystal-like materials work.
In the past, that's how it always worked. That's why you paid more upfront for AppleCare+ and have a deductible. My friend went in with scratches and they replaced his screen under AC+. What's the point of paying for accidental damage protection if you're not actually protected?
Why not take the ultra in the pool? I took mine snorkeling in the Bahamas and had zero issues
The OP also mentioned it was in a car during 90° weather...which means it could have gotten up to 140° inside the car.
FWIW, Apple's states the operating temperature for the Ultra is up to 130° when being worn, or 113° when being stored. (It's interesting to me that it can be worn in hotter temps than storing.)
They also say don't leave it in cars on hot days, as it could shorten the battery life or cause other damage.
Source:
Keep Apple Watch within acceptable operating temperatures - Apple Support
Learn about suitable operating conditions for Apple Watch, and get tips for maintaining those temperatures and handling your device safely.
I am surprised. I never had problem replacing broken screens, damaged iPhone/watch under AC+.
You think you have it all figured out , are you some apple employee or apple insurance claims dept????
It says when you buy it, you don’t just get to walk in and get a new phone even with the deductible. That would be crazy.
I bet any money, if the guy would have walked out the door and threw his phone on the ground crashing the screen, he could have made and appointment and would have been given a new phone with the price of the deductible.
It may sound crazy, but turning a phone in because of a scratch is kind of wasteful and crazy to me already.
And just because you had a “friend” do it once doesn’t mean it’s actually how apple care is supposed to work.
He does have it figured out. Don’t want an answer? Don’t ask.
How about something of substance to rebut the post, in place of personal insults.
I would not call that an insult! It’s entertaining to say the least when someone seeks help or advice only to get attacked!
Posting about AC+ policy is not attacking, sure if OP and others don’t like it or don’t agree with it, they can disagree.
Point still stands. As many people have said already, a cosmetic issue, like a scratch does not qualify for a warranty repair.
Under what sun is providing the correct answer to the OP’s question an attack?
Most posts, including this one aren’t seeking help. They are complaining. Which is legit. And usually folks commiserate with them. But, when the complaint is unfounded, folks call them out on it. That’s not an attack. That’s a forum.
It really doesn't. It's an accidental damage protection plan. You pay up front to have it, then pay again whenever you use it. If there's accidental damage, you should be able to pay to use it.
Go read the policy. This is absurd. Or maybe read half the comments on this thread. You’re not picking up on this.