apple care worth it?

[The-Real-Deal82]

There is either the Apple limited warranty that is 12 years for most Apple devices or AC+ that is 3 years for Macs and 2 years for most other Apple devices.


Is that guaranteed by consumer protection laws? Unfortunately the most that's usually guaranteed is a single year which is no better than the Apple limited warranty duration. Even in the EU the proposal to extend from 12 to 24 months was shot down due to retailer lobbying. Nobody wants to guarantee modern tech to last even 2 years.

If hardware is failing within 2 years, it can be argued it falls under the sale of goods act. There is clearly a manufacturing defect or poor choice of parts if a £1k+ computer is suffering hardware failures after just 12 months. To my knowledge retailers have not successfully been able to force the law to be changed. Pretty shady too if they did as it suggests these manufacturers do not have faith in their own products and are perhaps cutting corners to make cheap decisions if true.

 

[okkibs]

There is clearly a manufacturing defect or poor choice of parts if a £1k+ computer is suffering hardware failures after just 12 months.

I agree fully with you but retailers often ask for some sort of proof like obtaining certified (expert) advice just so they can avoid taking responsibility since they know nobody goes through the effort (and cost) to obtain that. From what I have heard they don't even have any process in place for the rare occasions where a customer follows through and just hand it over to legal and at that point your only option is to go to court. You might very well win but very few people would consider going down that path. Retailers know that and thus have no incentive to change their ways.

Apple is one of those businesses that handles it this way some of the time. Otherwise if you could just get free repairs after the included 1 year warranty is already expired they couldn't make as much profit with warranty extensions. For example you can extend the warranty for iPhones and iPads from one year to two years, fewer people would do that if they were guaranteed a free repair for manufacturing defects in the second year without paying extra.

To my knowledge retailers have not successfully been able to force the law to be changed.

In the EU it was proposed to extend the previously existing 6 months "no questions asked" period of consumer laws to 2 years but lawmakers were quickly convinced to drop that down from 2 years to 1 year. This was requested by the retail industry as they simply do not wish to warranty the products they freely choose to sell in their own stores for 2 years. Make of that what you will.

Pretty shady too if they did as it suggests these manufacturers do not have faith in their own products

It's about retailers, not about the manufacturers. With Apple you can buy straight from their own store in which case these consumer laws apply to them, but Apple is a notable exception in that they primarily sell directly to customers. Other manufacturers either don't put so much emphasis on it (who else has their own stores all around the world...) or don't sell directly to customers at all.

 

[MacVeteran]

l am hours away from buying a new macbook pro 14, 1 or 2 GB HD (considered 32G RAM but really don't think require, as most demanding use of mac is for online trading, open 2 or 3 trading software platforms that my mbpr 2012 (256GB 8G) can just handle, though at its limits) could easily fill up the HD with media like photos videos, etc. l am considering apple care as read that it replaces batteries if it runs under 80% capacity. did l interpret that right?
btw had my mbpr 2012 and not one accident, worked fine, jsut required battery to be changed 3 x.

It's not worth it mate, Apple is trying to squeeze another $200-300 out of you. If your battery goes bad, you can get a replacement battery for about $50 but chances are your battery is not going bad after 3 years of use.

If your charger dies, you can pick one of those up, depending on off market or apple fast charge, for no more than $100.

Take a look at my case I am a starving grad student and I need a laptop for grad school. Apple is charging only $1000 for the 13" macbook air. They are charging $200 or $70 a year. 70 x 3 is 210 so you are only getting a $10 saving if you get it for 3 years. If you get a more expensive macbook pro, you could be spending $100 a year or $300 for 3 years.
Even still, is it worth it to pay over 20% more just for apple care?
Oh and if you are worried about accidental drops, just get a clear otterbox for your apple and problem solved.

 

[philosopherdog]

apple care is a business. if it didn't make a ton of $$ apple wouldn't run the service. so no unless you are on the machine all day and make a living doing so. otherwise it's throwing money away.

 

[Macdctr]

I will add that having AC+ is worth having considering the display panels of the new MacBook Pro/Air laptops are very thin and very easy to break compared to the older Retina display panels found on older laptops like the 2013/14/15/16 models. Consider having your display panel broken on your new M1/M2/M3 laptop and then having to pay out of pocket for a replacement display because you don't have AC coverage anymore . . . no thanks. Just the price of replacing your broken display makes having AC+ worth paying for. YMMV

 

[NeonNights]

It depends on the cost of replacement. No AppleCare for my M1 MacBook Air, but definitely AppleCare for my M3 Max MBP.

I can afford to replace the M3 Max but it would hurt more than replacing MacBook Air. I agree that Apple profits from AppleCare, but they do payout claims too. Was fortunate to have Costco's 5-yr warranty on our TV last year as the display went out at 4yrs, 11 months. For big ticket items, the extended warranty is worth the peace of mind for me and now the company can worry about something breaking instead of me.

 

[Efrem]

I have been a Mac user since early 1984. (Yes, I remember when 128KB was an upgrade.) I can't count how many models I've owned, including one Motorola clone in the mid-90s. I have never, even bought AppleCare. I've paid for a few repairs that would have been covered - but I've saved that amount many, many times over.

Apple makes money selling AC, just as every company that sells extended warranties for anything makes money selling them. Unless you don't have the resources to deal with a repair but have the resources to pay for AppleCare (an unlikely pair), it's not a smart bet. You'll read lots of anecdotes that Person A or Person B got AC and needed it the next week, but those aren't random data points. If that experience was representative, Apple would increase the price of AC. Over the years, you'll come out ahead by not getting it, pocketing what it would cost, and paying for repairs out of that fund. That's true even if the fund goes into the red the first month and works its way out over time.

 

[HDFan]

Over the years, you'll come out ahead by not getting it, pocketing what it would cost, and paying for repairs out of that fund. That's true even if the fund goes into the red the first month and works its way out over time.

True. Service plans like AC are designed to be profitable so in most cases they won't be used. However it is not just an issue of whether you use it or not.

1. When you have AC you don't worry about having something happen to your device. Particularly an issue with iPhones if you are travelling, or going to sketchy areas.

2. If something does happen to your device then you don't have to hassle all of the issues of getting a device repaired. Shopping for the best price, evaluating whether the repair shop is reliable (if not Apple), getting the device to them, etc.

For me these issues are the most important. I have had replacements which have covered my AppleCare costs as well.

 

[Christopher Kim]

Also, would add that AppleCare+ is probably the best extended warranty / service plan that's offered out there. Whereas with almost every other insurance provider, when you submit a claim, they're trying to find a reason to DENY you, my impression of Apple and AppleCare+ is that (as long as you're reasonable, don't have an attitude of entitlement, etc.) they're trying to find a reason to APPROVE you.

Doesn't mean that insurance is for everyone. But on the margin / all things equal, I like that I can count on Apple taking care of its AppleCare+ customers, and approving legitimate (and even slightly less-legitimate / user-error) cases hassle free. Whereas with others, you're often having to fight just to get what you paid for!

 

[spinstorm]

I have purchased Apple Care on the last 5 iPads and Macs I have purchased. Out of those I’ve claimed on the iPads a few times - it also covers accessories - and your also more likely to drop of break it. My nano texture iPad I am using screen protector free because if I put anything on it then I will lose the benefit.

With the macs I haven’t made any claims at all although again if your spending £4000 on a laptop you want peace of mind.

In the UK (as has been mentioned) we have a law which actually protects you against faults for up to 6 years - so if there is a problem that isn’t your fault then Apple will sort it out no matter what product it is. But if I cracked or damaged my MacBook Pro then without Apple Care I would be screwed and the repair cost would be greater than the insurance.

Ultimately, I think it comes down to how much do you rely on your laptop? How much do you take it out with you? And then balance the risk against the cost.