Why does everyone recommend AppleCare? It seems very expensive for 3 yrs of warranty

[Kebabselector]

Apple should standby the quality of their hardware and give a minimum of 2 years warranty. Fortunately in the UK (and EU) we have that by law.

When I buy Apple computers I tend to buy from a store in the UK that offers a standard 2 year warranty (or sometimes 3 year). O.k I loose out on telephone support and the ability to take it to an Apple store after year 1, but it's a cost saving that so far hasn't been a problem (in 6 years of Apple purchases).

I got my 2012 MacBook Pro on launch day and 3 weeks into ownership the speakers started messing up. Brought it to Apple, got it back a day later and didn't pay a dime. Would've been a $100 fix. 8 months into ownership the logic board was messing up. Got that replaced and had my MacBook back after 3 days and didn't pay a dime. That would have been $600 to fix without AppleCare. Then, a month ago my MagSafe port stopped working. Would've been $100 to fix. Again, didn't pay a dime. So in total, AppleCare has definitely paid for itself... over $800 in repairs. Similar incidents can happen to anyone, at any time. At $179, AppleCare is a steal, IMO.

As others have mentioned, surely this was in the first year - so how can Applecare have paid for itself yet? As for Applecare being a steal, certainly in your case it's a steal - but not for you

 

[Shrink]

I'm sure this is not much of a reason for most folks here, who apparently seldom need help with their computers. But for a technoboob like me, the Applecare phone tech support has been an invaluable aid in learning to use my Apple stuff, as well as helping me fix problems that have occurred.

Without Applecare, you are given 3 months of free phone support. After that each call costs $50!

Since I use Applecare tech support all the time, I figure that my calls have paid for the Applecare cost about 10 times over, or more.

Again...for thos more technologically sophisticated than me (which pretty much means everyone), this is probably not a good reason to but Applecare...although I feel that there are other very good reasons to buy it.

One more point...when you buy any insurance, there is no guarantee you will use it. It's a just-in-case issue.

 

[richorlin]

Applecare vs Amex extended warranty

Everybody talks about Amex (or other credit cards) and the extra year extended warranty but nobody really understands the details. Yes, Amex and others cover you for an additional year but, and it'a a big "but", you have to pay for the repair and then submit a claim for reimbursement. What if the repair is $1200; do you have the funds to cover it, and are you willing to wait for the check? Apple doesn't ask you for any $ up front to make a repair that's covered under your Applecare. And, what about after that second year? Applecare covers you for the third year. Considering the original price of your Macbook, and the fact that you can get Applecare cheap form LA Computing or B&H Photo, it's a small investment for peace of mind. You can even get it cheaper on eBay as long as you make sure it's a sealed package and the seller ships the entire package and not just the serial number. I've gotten the $259 Applecare for as low as $125 on eBay.

 

[sparkie7]

Bought my ultimate edition 13 MBA at an Apple Store. Was surprised to find that apple care cost only $130 AUD. Given that it covers battery replacement and I'm a very heavy user, seemed like a good deal.

did you get 13" i7 8GB 512SSD? the care on that is $279.00 AUD ain't it?

Which store?

 

[richorlin]

Bought my ultimate edition 13 MBA at an Apple Store. Was surprised to find that apple care cost only $130 AUD. Given that it covers battery replacement and I'm a very heavy user, seemed like a good deal.

Check the details on your Applecare plan. Applecare does not cover consumables, such as batteries. Apple charges over $100 for a replacement battery that is not found to be defective.

 

[kahkityoong]

Check the details on your Applecare plan. Applecare does not cover consumables, such as batteries. Apple charges over $100 for a replacement battery that is not found to be defective.

I was told that it covers the battery.

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did you get 13" i7 8GB 512SSD? the care on that is $279.00 AUD ain't it?

Which store?

Chadstone. I wasn't going to buy it until I was told the price of $130. Yep it is 13" 1.7/8/512

 

[davideotape]

let me get this straight-- if, in 2.5 years my battery is no longer useful, applecare won't cover that?

i find that hard to believe.

 

[aristobrat]

Everybody talks about Amex (or other credit cards) and the extra year extended warranty but nobody really understands the details. Yes, Amex and others cover you for an additional year but, and it'a a big "but", you have to pay for the repair and then submit a claim for reimbursement. What if the repair is $1200; do you have the funds to cover it, and are you willing to wait for the check?

FWIW, my experiences using the AMEX extended warranty a few times has worked out to where I charged the cost of the repair on my AMEX and then submitted the claim for reimbursement online. AMEX has always credited the cost of the repair back to my account within a week or two. Net result = fixed product with no cash out-of-pocket. Maybe if you request a check (is that an option?) it takes longer.

That's how AMEX has worked for me, but yeah, I guess it makes sense that people understand how their particular credit card company handles the issue before having to use it.

Switching gears, just as a general comment, after the past few years of scandal regarding AppleCare purchased from eBay, I would never recommend that people purchase AppleCare from eBay. Unless the eBay seller is authorized by Apple to sell AppleCare, Apple can (and there are a whole lot of posts on here where Apple has) invalidate your eBay-purchased AppleCare if there's any question about its authenticity.

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let me get this straight-- if, in 2.5 years my battery is no longer useful, applecare won't cover that?

i find that hard to believe.

If your battery is no longer useful because it's DEFECTIVE, AppleCare covers it.

If your battery is no longer useful because you've worn it out, that's NOT covered.

I'm unaware of any manufacturer that covers worn out batteries as part of their warranty.

 

[sparkie7]

Bought my ultimate edition 13 MBA at an Apple Store. Was surprised to find that apple care cost only $130 AUD. Given that it covers battery replacement and I'm a very heavy user, seemed like a good deal.

I was told that it covers the battery.

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Chadstone. I wasn't going to buy it until I was told the price of $130. Yep it is 13" 1.7/8/512

so did you get AppleCare Protection Plan, or a diff "battery cover"? never heard of this before

what price did you pay for you MBA?

 

[kahkityoong]

so did you get AppleCare Protection Plan, or a diff "battery cover"? never heard of this before

what price did you pay for you MBA?

AppleCare. It has to be bought at the time of purchasing the MBA which in my case was $2099.

 

[bit density]

The advantage of Applecare...

Applecare service is outstanding. They generally return the computer to a state that the computer is as useful as the day you bought it. They tend to do that with major part exchange. As opposed to repair, where the actually fix what is faulty.

With laptop computers that get used, this tends to happen on a lot of machines in a 3 year period.

The last is, it is transferable. Which definitely helps in the marketplace, probably way more so than that future proof 8 gigs...

 

[Saberon]

AppleCare can be bought within a year of buying the Mac.

 

[davideotape]

i usually buy refurbished so applecare's that much more security.
i just sold my older machines (2010 27" iMac (applecare) and 2012 MBP (no applecare... was planning to but upgraded before i needed to pull the trigger) and upgraded to the top tier MBPr and MBA and two points.

1. "applecare until Jan 2014" was a great selling point for my iMac and i'm sure eased some people's minds about spending $1600 on a used machine from a stranger on craigslist.

2. anyone saying "i'd rather put the applecare money towards a new machine"-- say something happens to your current computer 2.5 years from purchase and you say "ahh, i'll just upgrade-- i've been looking at the new models anyway". which is going to get you more value: 2.5 years interest on $179, or getting your current machine repaired w/applecare and selling it on ebay/craigslist/amazon? I'm guessing you'd get more that $400 for ANY 2.5 year old mac still under applecare.

of course if you plan on having your machine for more than the 3 years it covers that's another thing. personally it's saved me $ on repairs in the past and you can't really repair ANYTHING on my 2 current machines so i invested. and i did think they covered the battery (still kinda do) and the price to replace those are only $30-$40 more than the applecare I bought at B&H.

i dunno. if i never have to use it i paid $240 i luckily didn't need to for an incredible machine. if i do have to use it, i likely save a couple hundred dollars.

 

[aristobrat]

I was told that it covers the battery.

Looking at the AppleCare coverage legal terms for Asia Pacific (which seems to include Australia), the terms say:

4. What is not Covered?

(vi) Consumable parts, such as batteries, except in respect of battery coverage under APP for iPod or unless failure has occurred due to a defect in materials and workmanship;

http://images.apple.com/legal/sales-support/applecare/docs/081811_APAC_APP_Mac_English_v5.4.pdf

 

[sparkie7]

AppleCare. It has to be bought at the time of purchasing the MBA which in my case was $2099.

That's very cheap for AppleCare. Was it a special instore deal? B/c online you don't get a discount at all with that spec MBA

 

[BruiserB]

AppleCare. It has to be bought at the time of purchasing the MBA which in my case was $2099.

AppleCare does NOT ever have to be purchased at the time of buying the computer or other hardware. It can be bought up to day 364 of owning it. Between day 90 and day 364 you would lose phone support if you don't have AppleCare at the time a problem pops up. But as soon as you buy it you get that support option back. The standard 1 year warranty covers everything AppleCare would as far as repair, so there is no reason to have to buy it immediately....except for the chance of forgetting to add it later and then experiencing a problem.

Edit...although I suppose the retailer could offer a special discounted price on AppleCare that they will only give you if you buy at time of purchase. But like others have said, there are options to buy it for less than full retail even afterwards.

Also, just checked and the Capital One Venture Card has the the additional one year warranty as well. Not sure if it's just a Capital One benefit or if it's standard on all Visa Signature cards.

 

[aristobrat]

That's very cheap for AppleCare. Was it a special instore deal? B/c online you don't get a discount at all with that spec MBA

I don't know if you're also in Australia, but the price given by that poster was in Australian dollars.

AppleCare does NOT ever have to be purchased at the time of buying the computer or other hardware. It can be bought up to day 364 of owning it.

The other thing is that AppleCare starts from the day you purchased your Mac. So if you wait until day 364 after you bought your Mac to buy AppleCare, the coverage expires the same date as if you had purchased AppleCare on day 1. Some folks think they're getting an extra year of coverage if they wait until almost a year after to buy it.

 

[maxosx]

I endorse AppleCare based on years of experience with it.

All insurance or extended warranties are expensive since you may not use it. But in the event you do AppleCare is worthwhile because they are properly trained on Apple only. They use OEM parts and the process of getting your device repaired is easy and fast.

As to the cost, I find it reasonable.

That said I only buy it for my Macs. Any other Apple product under $1,000 I think twice consider what I plan to use it for and how long I will have it.

 

[kahkityoong]

AppleCare does NOT ever have to be purchased at the time of buying the computer or other hardware.

It does if you want Apple care from the Apple store at the price I paid.

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That's very cheap for AppleCare. Was it a special instore deal? B/c online you don't get a discount at all with that spec MBA

Seemed to be an in-store deal. I replace my notebooks every couple of years so I would not have bought Applecare at the usual price.

 

[BruiserB]

The other thing is that AppleCare starts from the day you purchased your Mac. So if you wait until day 364 after you bought your Mac to buy AppleCare, the coverage expires the same date as if you had purchased AppleCare on day 1. Some folks think they're getting an extra year of coverage if they wait until almost a year after to buy it.

That's true...no benefit to waiting other than you can get the chance to decide during the year if you feel there's a higher than usual likelyhood that something could go wrong. If the particular model you bought seems to have a high failure rate or if you have had several problems during the year, you might decide to buy the coverage.

I had it on two of my early Mac mini's. One had an optical disk failure and it was so easy to get it fixed, even though I was living in Australia at the time of the failure (and AppleCare and the machine were both bought in the States). The other one never used it. Also bought it on a refurb MacBook and never used it. So all in all, I probably paid more for AppleCare policies than I ever got out of them. Have never bought on an iPhone since Apple still gives a relatively generous out of warranty exchange price if something bad happens. I figure that's worth the risk of not having AppleCare.

It's important to remember that all extended warranties are a gamble and are weighted in the favor of the company selling them....just like any other insurance policy.

 

[gnasher729]

let me get this straight-- if, in 2.5 years my battery is no longer useful, applecare won't cover that?

i find that hard to believe.

On a new MBP, the battery is designed to last 1,000 charges and still have 80% of the original battery life. If in 2 1/2 years your battery has 500 charges and no battery life left, they'll have to cover it. If in 2 1/2 years your battery has 1,000 charges and 80% of original battery life, they won't.

 

[thejadedmonkey]

Because Apple charges hundreds of dollars for a motherboard or screen, plus labor. So if your motherboard craps out, or you need a new screen, Applecare usually ends up being cheaper than the out of pocket cost.

It's just another Apple tax, really.

 

[JupiterDoc]

AppleCare is not insurance. It doesn't cover if you break the machine.

It's warranty and phone support with international coverage.

This is key!

AppleCare gives you someone to call every day to ask for help to maximize your experience.

 

[PodPacker]

New Screen. New Trackpad

My screen had dead pixels and my trackpad failed. $750+ in repairs. Apple Care was much cheaper than that.

 

[davideotape]

agreed on the phone support- i had never really used them too much but last week i called them twice for some pretty basic issues and they were great.

i'm still within my 30 days but still it was super easy and i'll remember to call them for any dumb stuff i run into ongoing.