I actually would recommend it. I work for best buy and the way they handle the ipad warranties is really great. Technically they are suppose to go for what geek squad calls a rapid exchange which means they get sent out and you get a refurbished one back in a couple of days usually less then 4. They cover cracks drops spills pretty much anything except negligence. However, what usually happens is they don't have them available for a rapid exchange and you get an exchange for a new one right on spot.... To make it even better. Let's say you broke the screen on your ipad 2 three months from now. They won't have the ipad 2's available anymore and you will get an ipad 3 at no extra charge except you have to repurchase the warranty if you want.
I used to work to Best Buy as well...I worked in mobile and BTP was painful. LOL.
First off, to OP, and fender maybe you'll be able to back me up here - but do your research. Whoever is trying to sell you BTP will always try and make it seem nice. There are some honest people out there, there are some "must make sales" people out there, there are also some dumb people out there. They will say things to try and make you buy BTP. The most common line: "Yup! It covers
everything!"
BTP, at least for cell phones, with ADH always has "fine print". For starters, it covers cracked screens and water and stuff, yes. Water submersion is not covered, so if, for some reason, you drop your iPad into the pool or a toilet or something, it's not covered.
Now this can be avoided. If such a thing were to happen, you could easily say "oh, I spilled my water on it", and it will be covered under ADH. So whatever you do to the iPad, just say water spilled on it. A sales associate may say "yeah we cover water damage", but "water damage" is a pretty broad term, apparently (for BBY). Spills that lead to water damage = covered. Submersion/falling into some liquid = not water damage covered by BBY.
Second, yes, instead of the old method of sending a device out to repair, you have rapid exchange now. You bring it in, and if the damage is covered, you get a refurbished device mailed to your home or in store for you to pick up. It's your choice whether or not you want a refurb as a "new" unit.
Also, if your device gets ran over or anything or completely destroyed, don't tell an associate. Sometimes they'll shoot you down instantly and you can go to another store, sometimes a nice associate will tell you to change your story. And that's true. If a car runs over your iPad and you say you "fell" with your iPad in hand and it cracked, then a sales associate doesn't have a right to question you or investigate. My manager has told me before "oh, just put 'device fell from table' [in the Geek Squad report]". YMMV on this one. At my store, if you were a nice, patient, understanding customer, managers would help you send it in for repair. If you run into Best Buy all riled up and demand a repair, sorry...lol...don't expect one.
BTP does not cover loss or theft either. A sales associate will say "yeah, it covers everything!" and when you say you lost it, they'll say "Oh, it's a protection plan, not insurance" (I've had so many customers get pissed at my mobile manager for saying this). It isn't insurance...so just realize, any loss or theft is not covered (although I don't think AppleCare covers loss or theft either).
BTP has no deductible and you get unlimited claims. A benefit is that they offer monthly payments, so if you only want 6 months of protection under BTP, you can just pay 14.99 a month (idk if the price is right) and cancel whenever you want. They have discounted prices for 1 and 2 year plans as well. But if you cancel after say month 7, you cannot re-purchase BTP and expect to have BTP after month 15 and pay monthly again.
For me, it comes down to whether or not you are okay with getting a refurbished iPad back if you bring it in for repair.
For the "break iPad 2 screen, get an iPad 3", I've heard of such cases...it is possible, but I'm not 100% sure anymore. Because you get a refurb shipped from some DC somewhere, chances are they'll have iPad 2s for a while. Theoretically, you should be allowed to get an iPad 3 free of charge because the device for which you have BTP has reached EOL (end of life) status...I'm not 100% sure...I'd read this as an added bonus...don't let this make or break the deal.
Let me know if you have any questions...I've tried to cover what I realized most customers complained about (so many ****ing associates say "it covers everything" when it doesn't...). Cheers!
