[G.O.O.D.]

Hey all, I've been lurking the board for a while now and have finally decided to post. I've been looking into getting a laptop for school (junior in college) this upcoming year. I'll be using it for experimental statisitical work, a little photo editing and website making, as well as the basic uses that a college student has for a computer. The new iBook updates have made me decide to get one (I was previously thinking PB).

My question is this, as the title says, is buying an Applecare warranty for my computer a necessitY? It'd be nice to save the cash (~$200) unless it's absolutely necessary.

Thanks for the help.

~BG

[Randman]

You have 1 year from the date of purchase to get the A/C. It is a good deal, imo, for all laptops. It helps resale value and you're more likely to run into some trouble with a portable computer than a desktop model. Get ram when you first buy it but consider A/C before the year's out.

[Ω]

A must for laptops. As Randman said, you have a year before you need to make this decision/purchase.

[mitchell_pgh]

I just purchased an iBook and will reconsider around month 11. I plan on getting 2 years out of the iBook, so is it worth the $200 for the bump? I'm not sure. I only spent $999 for the iBook... so that's 20% or $200 towards a new iBook.

Hmmm... It's a tough call. Perhaps if I had spent $2K for the system, it would be a better deal, but I'm not sold.

[budster101]

It's great for students, because they get a third off of the Applecare, so the $999.00 system with the 3 year Applecare is as follows:

$999 - $50 for the student discount
$249 - $66 for their student discount (Not to mention the mail in rebates for the iPod / Printer / Office)
$Free iPod mini
$Free Printer
$99.00 (Office Student / Teacher Edition)
========================
$1,233 (And the student doesn't have to be concerned for 3 years) 24/7 Support.


*Taxes not included, price may vary in your state....offer good til September 24th, 2005)


mitchell_pgh: If you spend $2,000 plus for the laptop, like in the case with a Powerbook 15", then
the applecare is not $200, it's $349.00, but with a student / teacher discount that applecare is a third off.

[G.O.O.D.]

Thanks for all the replies, I didn't realize that I had a year from purchase to buy Applecare. Looks like it's not so tought a decision after all, can scrounge up $200 at some point in the next year.

After all the problems my roommate had with his PB (toasted screen, broken hard drive, short in charger) I think an Applecare plan would be very beneficial. The cost of fixing that after 1 year would be awfully high.

Thanks again all.

~BG

[OreoCookie]

Absolutely necessary. I made the mistake not getting it for my last machine. Go back to the iBook forum's thread list, look for my user name.

[Eug Wanker]

Yeah, it's probably a necessity if you plan to keep it for a while, but it's very hard to justify spending CAD$288 (US$238) to warranty a CAD$1199 (US$989) machine. That's 24% of the cost of the machine. And those are educational prices. For US retail, AppleCare is 25% the cost of the base model iBook.

OTOH, AppleCare is CAD$364 for the 17" PowerBook with 2 GB RAM and 30" Cinema Display (total CAD$7655). That's all of 4.8% of the cost. Even if you just get the base model 17", that's CAD$3099, which means that AppleCare is only 11.7%.

Basically it seems that Apple is lowering prices on the iBook but getting you on warranty costs. Anyways, I hope to sell mine before my warranty is up.

BTW, IIRC, AppleCare on the iBook used to be a lot cheaper. I hope this doesn't mean that iBook quality is going down...

[SSharon]

I am making the same decision now for my nearly one year old ibook and have pretty much decided against applecare. The ibook has been running for 230 days now so I really don't think it will have a hardware failure. Even if it does in the next year I think I will just upgrade. I am looking at safeware since I think I am more likely to need insurance than a warranty. Just my .02 anyway.

[tooki]

The thing is, a single out of warranty repair through Apple costs the same as the whole AppleCare Protection Plan (APP).

tooki

[galarneau]

I'd like to throw a different opinion into the ring:

Forget AppleCare. Get Safeware insurance instead (www.safeware.org)

I think the premiums vary by state, but here in NY, I would pay $39 per year.

Much cheaper than AppleCare, doesn't expire, and more comprehensive. They've been around for quite a while, and I've heard good things about them.

Of course, you could always do the "sell-it-in-a-year-and-upgrade-to-the-newest-model-for-$200" plan as well.

BTW, Here's a snippet from the quote page on what is covered:

---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Minimum coverage applies. If the requested coverage amount is less than the minimum offered, then the minimum coverage amount will be substituted.

Premium shown is based on $0 deductible. Other deductibles may be available, please call toll free 1-800-800-1492 for details.

The most comprehensive policy we offer. Designed for notebook computers moved more than twice a week. Also can be applied to PDAs, desktop computers, peripherals, and digital cameras as scheduled.

What are some of the features and benefits of this policy:

* Comprehensive coverage, including:
- Accidental Damage
- Theft
- Power surge and lightning regardless of source
- Vandalism
- Water damage
- Natural disasters
* Complete repair or replacement of computer system with no deduction for depreciation
* Optional deductibles
* Coverage at home, in the office or in transit
* Replaces preinstalled software

What types of losses are not covered?

This policy protects in so many ways, but it does not cover these major losses:

* Wear and tear, gradual deterioration, depreciation, or original defects
* Loss of income or interruption of business
* Any preinstalled data or media which cannot be replaced with other of like kind or quality on the current retail market
* Mechanical breakdown or faulty construction
* Loss or damage from fraudulent, dishonest or criminal acts by the owner or user
* Systems rented or leased to others

Please check your policy for full details of benefits including limitations and exclusions.
This policy includes peripherals, if scheduled.

This is a general summary of the provisions and qualifications of the insurance benefits included in the policy. Please review your policy for full details including benefits, limitations and exclusions.

[amazing]

Any manufacturer would easily expect their laptops to make it through the first year without problems. It's the next 2 years for which you need coverage. These forums are filled with horror stories of expensive problems after the first year of applecare has expired.

So: If you're a student, buy the edu applecare or, for example, Smalldog.com has a sale going on right now, where ibook applecare costs $189 and pb costs $269.

Frankly, it's foolish not to have applecare on a laptop. You can debate endlessly about safeware vs applecare, but you need at least one of them.

[Steve]

I'm planning on using the 1-year warranty that comes standard with the iBook, then selling it 11 months down the road and updating to the newest iBook with a fresh year of warranty. The price of Applecare will be about the same as the price difference between the two iBooks. Plus, I get the latest and greatest hardware AND the latest version of OS X (if there is a new one) as well as other free updated software.

[Mojo]

The L.A. Computer Company has iBook Applecare for $179. At the beginning of the year the company was charging $169.

[volcano]

OS X Leopard won't be out until the end of 2006 if I remember what SJ said in his keynote a while back.

I'm planning on buying an iBook later this week - and unlike my iMac G5 that I purchased in early June, I won't be buying Applecare the same day. My funds are being stretched at the moment, so I'll have to wait a month or two - but I'm fine with that. I'm going to buy it before my 90 day phone support is up, though. I just feel better about it - especially since it's something that I will carry around constantly, like my iPod.