AppleCare is it worth it?

hick

Hi folks

I just got a new macbook air, been saving up for a while.
Taking a bit of getting used to, given I've used a windows pc/laptop for the past 25 years, it's infuriating and fun at the same time.

Anyhoo, I'm trying to decide if it's worth getting the AppleCare plan which is coming in at a whopping €249. I see on the website it's got 1 year warranty although I believe under EU consumer law, faulty electronics must be repaired by the manufacturer for 2 years.

Macforums and here are handy but I know apple a very finicky about using non apple support methods.

Appreciate your thoughts
hick

Colonel Panic

For a laptop? Definitely! They're sturdy enough machines but things do go wrong!

LaughOrDie

I once heard that you get a new battery every year, from an Apple rep a couple of years ago.

Double check that first though.

Still a huge amount of cash all the same.

unclebill98

No you don't get one every year and apple care does not cover battery replacement.

I've had 5 of their laptops and each one needed the battery replace at least every 2 years.

My sturdiest on is a 9 year old power book and it's on battery number 4.

Also, iirc you do not need to by the apple care when getting the laptop you need to get it before 1 year after buying the laptop.

Aftercare can also be used on refurb models.

Jagle

no ones mentioned you dont need to buy apple care when you buy the product

it can be extended to 3 years anytime within the 1 year apple cover

horgan_p

On a laptop definitely. the cost of parts for them would make your eyes water.

Stainless_Steel

Bear in mind that apple make a profit on this.

It is in effect an insurance policy. IMO you should only insure something you can't afford to replace yourself.

Hobbes

No way Jóse

Jagle wrote: »

no ones mentioned you dont need to buy apple care when you buy the product

it can be extended to 3 years anytime within the 1 year apple cover

You pay for two years based on when the first year ends. So if you buy it 9 months in, you still only get 3 years from when you first got the product.

Having the extended Applecare greatly increases the resale value of your item.

whiterebel

No way Jóse

hick wrote: »

Hi folks

I just got a new macbook air, been saving up for a while.
Taking a bit of getting used to, given I've used a windows pc/laptop for the past 25 years, it's infuriating and fun at the same time.

Anyhoo, I'm trying to decide if it's worth getting the AppleCare plan which is coming in at a whopping €249. I see on the website it's got 1 year warranty although I believe under EU consumer law, faulty electronics must be repaired by the manufacturer for 2 years.

Macforums and here are handy but I know apple a very finicky about using non apple support methods.

Appreciate your thoughts
hick

No 2 year EU warranty in Ireland . We never signed up to it.

LaughOrDie

Sorry for the misinformation, just checked the website, they cover defective batteries for one year and that's extended for 3 years with the apple care.

That rep lied! :mad:

Nonoperational

No way Jóse

For a laptop, definitely for me.

hick

Stainless_Steel wrote: »

It is in effect an insurance policy. IMO you should only insure something you can't afford to replace yourself.

It's not really an insurance policy as if it falls and breaks I would imagine apple won't cover it, for that you would need to put iron your house hold items or get a serperate gadget insurance. Plus as much as I might be able to afford a mother board/screen replacement I wouldn't really want to out of my own pocket after 12 months, suppose I've just answered my own question. Comes back to reliability and mtbf rates

Thanks for all of the replies, still not sure, is the advise from the technical support team good? Can you use it for general "how to's"?

whiterebel

No way Jóse

hick wrote: »

It's not really an insurance policy as if it falls and breaks I would imagine apple won't cover it, for that you would need to put iron your house hold items or get a serperate gadget insurance. Plus as much as I might be able to afford a mother board/screen replacement I wouldn't really want to out of my own pocket after 12 months, suppose I've just answered my own question. Comes back to reliability and mtbf rates

Thanks for all of the replies, still not sure, is the advise from the technical support team good? Can you use it for general "how to's"?

I worked up in Apple Tech support, and having seen the price list for repairs, I always get APPs on my machines. I couldn't afford to be without my MBP or iPad for work, so for me it's a must

Stainless_Steel

I reckon it's cheaper to take the risk and not get it.

In fact it has to be. Otherwise apple would make a loss.

keredern

Guys, I have an iMac bought March 2011 & can't decide whether I should buy Applecare before the 1st year runs out!:rolleyes:

Any advice would be really appreciated!:)

Also, if anyone can recommend a trusted Ebay seller at a good price I'd be very grateful!;)

Thank you!:o

silvine

Stick it on the house insurance.

opinion guy

No way Jóse

Stainless_Steel wrote: »

Bear in mind that apple make a profit on this.

It is in effect an insurance policy. IMO you should only insure something you can't afford to replace yourself.

Except if you ring the insurance comapny with a claim they will do everything they can to get out of it - if you ring apple care they sort it for you quicksmart.


OP - for a laptop yes definitely. I'm on my third apple laptop which has never given any bother 2.5 years in. The previous one needed a couple of batteries replaced, the first one needed a logic board replaced.
So I think its a must.

Actually I think an extended care plan is a good idea for any laptop never mind just apple.

As to getting it for iphone or ipad........meh.

opinion guy

No way Jóse

Stainless_Steel wrote: »

I reckon it's cheaper to take the risk and not get it.

In fact it has to be. Otherwise apple would make a loss.

How do you know they dont' make a loss on it ?

I would imagine the repeat custom from happy customers is worth a small loss on parts. Besides, they may make a fortune parts for those who don't have the applecare and stuff goes wrong.

whiterebel

No way Jóse

opinion guy wrote: »

How do you know they dont' make a loss on it ?

I would imagine the repeat custom from happy customers is worth a small loss on parts. Besides, they may make a fortune parts for those who don't have the applecare and stuff goes wrong.

Back when Moses was a child, and I worked up in Apple Tech support, we had a price list for laptop repairs. Very straightforward, no messing with fiddly bits.

Minimum repair which covered logic board, hard drives, keyboard etc - about £440.
Screen - depending on iBook/Powerbook - £500/550 (AFAIR)
Both - BER (Beyond Economic repair)

Yet we were encouraged to sell APPs for these machines at approx £279/299
Transport back and forward to Holland or the UK via DHL also included in the APP as many times as needed.

jonseyblub

No way Jóse

keredern wrote: »

Guys, I have an iMac bought March 2011 & can't decide whether I should buy Applecare before the 1st year runs out!:rolleyes:

Any advice would be really appreciated!:)

Also, if anyone can recommend a trusted Ebay seller at a good price I'd be very grateful!;)

Thank you!:o

Bought a 27 inch imac in November of 2010. Was debating with myself whether or not to extend the warranty last October. Eventually decided I would. Literally 2 days later the mac started behaving funny in that it wouldnt shut down without using the power button. Found the support really helpful. They couldn't sort it over the phone but arranged to have it collected and repaired in Dublin. Fantastic service. Well worth the extra money.

Zapp Brannigan

No way Jóse

It's something I always factor in to the cost when I'm buying the laptop. And I always tell anyone else I know to do the same.

Apple make a good product but they don't make a perfect non-failing product.

conor.hogan.2

Does the 250 euro for 2 years cover everything?

No questions asked? Logic board to HDD? Casing? Do they attempt to transfer data of the drives?
Do they just ignore any ram added or new hdd etc?

Can you re-buy applecare at the end of the two years at get another 2 years full coverage?

Colonel Panic

It doesn't cover wear and tear style damage on casing, I'm pretty sure it doesn't cover battery issues. Not sure about HDD transfers. Imagine the existing 1 year warranty, but longer.

You can only get Applecare within the first year of purchase which extends the warranty for another two years. You can't keep buying it.

It's still totally worth it. Has saved me a fortune.

whiterebel

No way Jóse

Colonel Panic wrote: »

It doesn't cover wear and tear style damage on casing, I'm pretty sure it doesn't cover battery issues. Not sure about HDD transfers. Imagine the existing 1 year warranty, but longer.

You can only get Applecare within the first year of purchase which extends the warranty for another two years. You can't keep buying it.

It's still totally worth it. Has saved me a fortune.

It used to be good for batteries, I must look it up to check. They will not do HDD transfers. In fact even if its a broken hinge they normally wipe the HD and put on a frsh OS to check it before it leaves. I asked Stream Solutions in Cork to leave my Mother's HD alone when she had to get the hinges done on her Plasticbook, and in fairness they did.
They did a great job as well, in fairness, outer casing etc all changed and back in a week.

Jabel

I would strongly urge the OP or anyone else buying a mac to purchase Applecare. I have just got off the phone to Apple who are replacing my 27" i7 imac purchased in Nov 2009 for approx €2k. I had a screen failure and 3 separate hard drive failures and they tell me I have now 'qualified' for a replacement machine. I'm just glad I'm going to be rid of what I consider to be a 'monday morning' mac especially as this was my first 'home' mac after 15 years of working on them without any major issues.
I will now get a top of the range new imac which hopefully will work as expected. Applecare saved me a fortune and while I'm deeply disappointed with the hardware issues I've had, the support was very good throughout.
Hope this helps your decision.
J

Colonel Panic

whiterebel wrote: »

It used to be good for batteries, I must look it up to check. They will not do HDD transfers. In fact even if its a broken hinge they normally wipe the HD and put on a frsh OS to check it before it leaves. I asked Stream Solutions in Cork to leave my Mother's HD alone when she had to get the hinges done on her Plasticbook, and in fairness they did.
They did a great job as well, in fairness, outer casing etc all changed and back in a week.

Regarding batteries. It's the usual 1000 cycles -> 80% capacity (or 300 cycles for non unibody batteries) regardless. Although if your battery decided to swell or something, they'd certainly sort that for you.

I left my MBP into CompuB with a hinge issue and they didn't touch the OS at all.

conor.hogan.2

I suppose it is preference whether you want the insurance. My macbook is well outside the 3 year warranty and is still going strong besides the casing but that was not covered within the first year nevermind extended.
I was told if the hinge is broken you have to pay? This was on a plasticbook so it doesnt really apply to newer unibodys.

I got my charger replaced outside warranty because it is the one style one and they are prone to failure.

A HDD is worth the 250 and a motherboard definitely is - but how often do these break within 3 years?

mickoneill30

meh

In Ireland there's no fixed amount of time a product should last. A warranty is on top of your consumer rights. So if something that cost you €1000 breaks within 3 years you can argue that you would expect it to last longer. If they don't agree you can go through sending polite letters and then contacting the small claims court. A lot of people seem to think that they only have one year warranty with their purchases and that's it. That's not it.

There are plenty of posts in the Consumer Issues forum of people doing similar. So for stuff breaking by itself or by manufacturing defects you don't need warranty.

If the AppleCare policy includes stuff like you dropping it or breaking it yourself then it might be worth it. I'd imagine sending a letter and contacting the small claims court would be a lot slower than the AppleCare cover too though, so there's that to bear in mind.

whiterebel

No way Jóse

mickoneill30 wrote: »

In Ireland there's no fixed amount of time a product should last. A warranty is on top of your consumer rights. So if something that cost you €1000 breaks within 3 years you can argue that you would expect it to last longer. If they don't agree you can go through sending polite letters and then contacting the small claims court. A lot of people seem to think that they only have one year warranty with their purchases and that's it. That's not it.

There are plenty of posts in the Consumer Issues forum of people doing similar. So for stuff breaking by itself or by manufacturing defects you don't need warranty.

If the AppleCare policy includes stuff like you dropping it or breaking it yourself then it might be worth it. I'd imagine sending a letter and contacting the small claims court would be a lot slower than the AppleCare cover too though, so there's that to bear in mind.

Probably 2 months instead of a week, that's why i have it. i couldn't afford to be without my machine that long trying to run a business.

mickoneill30

meh

whiterebel wrote: »

Probably 2 months instead of a week, that's why i have it. i couldn't afford to be without my machine that long trying to run a business.

Only 2 months if you have to take them to the small claims court. Most reputable companies will give you your statutory rights without you having to take them to court.

whiterebel

No way Jóse

mickoneill30 wrote: »

Only 2 months if you have to take them to the small claims court. Most reputable companies will give you your statutory rights without you having to take them to court.

Apple have apparently employed solicitors since my day, and don't back down if you threaten the SCC. Back in the old days Customer Service used to sh*t a brick if anyone did that:D I actually got an english barrister on one day and he literally had the place jumping to avoid his calls. I never saw an OOW repair sorted so quickly......

Anyway, to start with you have to give them 10 days to respond etc, so that a fortnight gone straight away, then notify the SCC, then they serve notice on Apple....you're up to a month there without trying.

opinion guy

No way Jóse

mickoneill30 wrote: »

In Ireland there's no fixed amount of time a product should last. A warranty is on top of your consumer rights. So if something that cost you €1000 breaks within 3 years you can argue that you would expect it to last longer.

Where are you getting this from ? Never heard anything like that before

Sad Professor

opinion guy wrote: »

Where are you getting this from ? Never heard anything like that before

Sale of Goods Act:

http://www.irishstatutebook.ie/1980/en/act/pub/0016/index.html

As said above though, it can sometimes be a lot of hassle getting retailers to comply. If you can afford it, Applecare is worth getting just for the convenience.

conor.hogan.2

How many people here have had a HDD or any component or whole machine break within 3 years?

I know it is very very possible especially HDD and motherboards, just curious.

Zapp Brannigan

No way Jóse

I've had a HDD failure on my first plastic macbook and a logic board failure on a MBP.