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Very Happy, I Got My MBP. Which Extended Warranty (Best Buy or Apple Care)?

G

gregpod9

macrumors 6502
Original poster
Apr 27, 2007
312
95
A few weeks ago I bought the highend 21.5" iMac, but I had to return it due to major yellow tint on the screen. Last week, I received the Dell XPS 8300 and today I returned it back to Dell due to major issues with it such as freezing (which is a well known problem over at the Dell forums). After I returned it, I went to Best Buy and bought the base 15" MBP with the special financing plan they have. Now my question is which extended warranty should I get, Best Buy's or AppleCare and why?

So far I enjoy using MAC OS X over Windows 7 and I'm really glad that I made the switch. :D
 
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You can't go wrong with the Best Buy warranty. Long story short, I recently got a 2008 15" C2D replaced (it had a catastrophic accident) with a 17" quad with 2 more years of ADH warranty and only had to pay a $300 difference. If that's not an awesome warranty, I don't know what is.
 
I got Best Buys warranty but I got the upgraded version that covers accidental damage. I think it was something like $350ish.
 
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It covers all manufacturing defects, however for accidental damage it mostly covers drops and spills. I suggest you read the plan details so you know specifically what is and isn't covered. For example, if you drop it or spill juice on it, you're covered. If it gets run over by a car, you're not.
 
Bear in mind Best Buys warranty usually stipulates that they have the right to repair before replacement (this is at their discretion and not a bad thing). This means that your device will be sent to their shops and worked on by their techs (which should be Apple trained but might necessarily not be). IT could also take several weeks to repair. If I remember correctly they have a guaranteed 4-6 week turn around. I had this same issue with a vacuum and they wouldn't budge until it hit the month mark and I pushed the issue severely. They then replaced it with like, but I was without for a month. This is just a caveat and not judging, just presenting the possibilities you could be presented with (and Apple is not necessarily any better, but will usually make concessions when things run long).
 
From what Best Buy tells me, all Apple devices are now sent directly to Apple for repair. Don't know how true that is, though.
 
gregpod9 said:
A few weeks ago I bought the highend 21.5" iMac, but I had to return it due to major yellow tint on the screen. Last week, I received the Dell XPS 8300 and today I returned it back to Dell due to major issues with it such as freezing (which is a well known problem over at the Dell forums). After I returned it, I went to Best Buy and bought the base 15" MBP with the special financing plan they have. Now my question is which extended warranty should I get, Best Buy's or AppleCare and why?

So far I enjoy using MAC OS X over Windows 7 and I'm really glad that I made the switch. :D
Click to expand...

neither
 
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KwanMan said:
gregpod9 said:
A few weeks ago I bought the highend 21.5" iMac, but I had to return it due to major yellow tint on the screen. Last week, I received the Dell XPS 8300 and today I returned it back to Dell due to major issues with it such as freezing (which is a well known problem over at the Dell forums). After I returned it, I went to Best Buy and bought the base 15" MBP with the special financing plan they have. Now my question is which extended warranty should I get, Best Buy's or AppleCare and why?

So far I enjoy using MAC OS X over Windows 7 and I'm really glad that I made the switch. :D
Click to expand...

neither
Click to expand...

Very insightful
 
jenzjen said:
Yes depends on the card, but I've heard other card companies have similar programs where they will cover an additional year themselves.
Click to expand...

I thought amex only extended the original warranty by 1 year. So if you let the year warranty run out, amex kicks in, but you would still have to buy apple care before that first year is up? right? maybe that doesn't make sense to anyone else. it's hard to get out. :)
 
HighSeasCaptain said:
From what Best Buy tells me, all Apple devices are now sent directly to Apple for repair. Don't know how true that is, though.
Click to expand...
I don't think anyone knows for sure. The reps ini Best Buy told me it went to their depot center in Atlanta. I asked if it was repaired by Apple techs and they said their techs were Apple trained but it was not repaired at an Apple facility. It seems that they will tell the consumer whatever it is they think will insure the sale, rather than find out the information for sure, as this rep added that it was what he had been told.
 
Honestly, it depends on what you're going to be doing with the laptop. If you're in college (or any form of school for that matter) Then I would DEFINITELY recommend the Best Buy Warranty. We threw a party at my house a few weeks back, and water got spilled on my computer. It fried literally everything. However, I had the best buy warranty, and since I had accidental damage protection, they gave me the full retail value of the computer ($1000) to go towards a new one. Now I'm sitting on my couch happily typing on my new MacBook Pro :D
 
Research the best buy warranty before you get that, I have heard nothing good about it, on the other hand Apple Care will take care of it without a fight.
 
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