AppleCare on MB Pro? Worth it or not?

[applefan19]

Recently bought M1 MB Pro and wondering whether it is worth it to buy AppleCare.

Found it useful for my iPhone when it had a defect about 1.5 years out, but didn't expect to need AppleCare.

 

[Apple_Robert]

How much out of pocket are you willing to spend if something breaks outside of warranty?

 

[jparker402]

I've only had one Mac before, my 2015 MacBook Air. I purchased the AppleCare with it purely for the 24/7 help, and have never regretted that decision. Am now considering the purchase of a new MacBook Air. When I do I will be in a bit of a quandary because I now have had experience with the Mac, and have discovered YouTube and several support sites (including Macrumors).

 

[eljanitor]

From my experience as a former Apple repair technician, yes it's worth every penny. I just had a friend who's Macbook Air just crapped out 2 months after the standard Applecare warranty expired. They wanted to know how much it would be to replace the display, and I told them it could be the display, or it could be the video controller on the logic board but either way the parts alone are anywhere from $500-700 not including about 1.5 - 2 hours labor.

I've had to say that in the past to many an unhappy customer, most of them would reply, " I should have bought the extended Applecare when I had the chance."

 

[Dave Braine]

Recently bought M1 MB Pro and wondering whether it is worth it to buy AppleCare.

Depends. Since 2006 I've used a mix of 15 iPods, iPhones and Macs. Never bought AppleCare and have never had an occasion where I would have used it.

 

[PaladinGuy]

It’s all about your tolerance for risk. Statistically, you’re financially losing out. That’s why it’s a profitable product for Apple. If the majority of people were using the service and getting multiple repairs done, Apple would either raise the price of it or end it. The fact that they even widened the coverage for accidental damage could be another indicator.

If the peace of mind is worth it to you or you’re prone to dropping things, go for it. I get AppleCare on most of my Apple devices, but not on everything. It’s admittedly a very good service when you need it, especially with express replacements. My experience has been very positive with any issues I’ve ever had.

I am leaning towards not getting it on my new M1 MacBook though. At some point, you can come out ahead better by just saving up your own money to have a fund setup for repairs or purchases. That way, if you don’t end up needing it, you still get to keep your money. I just don’t drop my things very much. My Apple Watch and iPhone are more likely to get damaged because of how they are worn or carried.

 

[B.Bain]

As a former iOS AHA (2013-2016) I can only say it is definitely worth it if your device ever encounters a problem or is accidentally damaged. That is from personal experience with helping customers.

 

[pmiles]

It’s all about your tolerance for risk. Statistically, you’re financially losing out. That’s why it’s a profitable product for Apple. If the majority of people were using the service and getting multiple repairs done, Apple would either raise the price of it or end it. The fact that they even widened the coverage for accidental damage could be another indicator.

If the peace of mind is worth it to you or you’re prone to dropping things, go for it. I get AppleCare on most of my Apple devices, but not on everything. It’s admittedly a very good service when you need it, especially with express replacements. My experience has been very positive with any issues I’ve ever had.

I am leaning towards not getting it on my new M1 MacBook though. At some point, you can come out ahead better by just saving up your own money to have a fund setup for repairs or purchases. That way, if you don’t end up needing it, you still get to keep your money. I just don’t drop my things very much. My Apple Watch and iPhone are more likely to get damaged because of how they are worn or carried.

Given that the new M1 Macs are basically sealed designs, repair is going to be far more costly than ever before. Consider for a moment that the GPU, CPU, et al are basically one unit. It's not like you can repair it as much as have to replace it. Memory soldered to the board. SSD soldered to the board. Basically anything in it goes wrong and the whole device goes with it.

So is that AppleCare cheaper than outright buying a new computer? Because that is what you are facing.

If you have any sort of insurance, be it automotive, dental, medical, or life... all of it is wasted money if you never actually use it. But should you need it, you will be grateful that you had it 100% guaranteed.

 

[profcutter]

Extended warranties are normally bunk, free extra money for the warranty company. That said, I’ve gotten apple are for every new mac I’ve ever bought, I don’t think I’ve ever not used it. My current IPad Pro hasn’t needed service yet, but all my Macs have needed applecare at one point or another, and I was damned happy to have it. Makes more sense on a laptop where it gets banged around, but I’d hesitate to buy any mac without it.

 

[HDFan]

Extended warranties are normally bunk, free extra money for the warranty company.

Although that is the general advise, I have saved thousands of dollars with extended warranties. Saved a ton of money on repairs for my new car , replaced my previous dishwasher and range. A warranty is paying for the repairs on my built-to-order Bosch dishwasher which failed 1 month out of warranty, replaced multiple iPhones and an iPad.

 

[Lee_Bo]

I believe it comes down to piece of mind. I’ve added AC+ on every device I’ve bought since my switch from that other OS without regret. Is it worth it? To me, yes.

 

[PaladinGuy]

Given that the new M1 Macs are basically sealed designs, repair is going to be far more costly than ever before. Consider for a moment that the GPU, CPU, et al are basically one unit. It's not like you can repair it as much as have to replace it. Memory soldered to the board. SSD soldered to the board. Basically anything in it goes wrong and the whole device goes with it.

So is that AppleCare cheaper than outright buying a new computer? Because that is what you are facing.

If you have any sort of insurance, be it automotive, dental, medical, or life... all of it is wasted money if you never actually use it. But should you need it, you will be grateful that you had it 100% guaranteed.

I agree with you, for the most part. However, a lot of money is made on insurance. To an extent, you should only insure things that you couldn’t replace or repair without it. There are companies that will gladly insure almost everything you own. If you insure it all, you’ll absolutely lose.

I’m not sure about how much more costly the new designs are to repair. There are many MacBook repairs that can be very expensive.

Like I said before, it’s 100% about your tolerance for risk and how well you can afford to deal with a repair. It’s a risk both ways. Insurance is sold on the premise that most people won’t need to use it. Otherwise, it would not be profitable. If I have AppleCare on my iPad, Apple Watch, MacBook, and my AirPod Pros, add up how much that costs. If I end up not using the warranty or insurance on any of them, I’ve spent $250/$220 for the MacBook, $150/$219 for the iPhone, $69/$129 for the iPad. At a maximum, that’s $598 pre-tax. Over years, depending on how often one upgrades, that adds up.

I may get AppleCare for my MacBook Pro, but I’m not sure. I already have it on my phone, my wife’s phone, my Apple Watch....

 

[profcutter]

Yeah, I’m my own warranty for most of my cars, kept my last one for 14 years. You can replace shot bearings or worn rotors, even reseal an injection pump. Soldered SSD on the chip package? Not so much.