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AppleCare
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LfGrdMike
Mac Enthusiast
Join Date: Jul 2003
Location: Rochester NY
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Oct 21, 2006, 10:09 PM
 
Well I am in the market but waiting for the revision. I just feel the prices should of been lowered because of the length of time it has been. Don't get me wrong the current lineup is good enough for me but its been how many months.... This time I can afford to wait as I have a capable laptop an HP which I hate at the moment. Will be able to sell the HP once I get my MacBook Pro and Parallels going on it. Can't wait to see that. I never thought I would see the day Windows on the Mac.

Anyways I bought AppleCare with my last computer the 12" PowerBook and I wonder why I did. I never had a problem and it just seems like I wasted whatever it cost me at the time. I just know though if I don't get it I might regret it.

What do you guys think? If I drop 200 in this plan again and nothing goes wrong I will be mad haha. Sounds kind of funny I know but AppleCare won't cover the battery when it starts to die so its like whats the point.
MacBook Pro 15" Rev B | 2.16GHz Intel Core 2 Duo | 2GB Mem | 160GB HD | Display 15 Glossy Widescreen Display
iPod Mini Green | 35 gigs of music :-)
HP DV1040us Laptop | 1.6 Pentium M | 1GB RAM | Centrino
     
romeosc
Mac Elite
Join Date: Oct 2000
Location: Memphis, Tn. USA
Status: Offline
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Oct 22, 2006, 07:43 AM
 
Originally Posted by LfGrdMike View Post
Well I am in the market but waiting for the revision. I just feel the prices should of been lowered because of the length of time it has been. Don't get me wrong the current lineup is good enough for me but its been how many months.... This time I can afford to wait as I have a capable laptop an HP which I hate at the moment. Will be able to sell the HP once I get my MacBook Pro and Parallels going on it. Can't wait to see that. I never thought I would see the day Windows on the Mac.

Anyways I bought AppleCare with my last computer the 12" PowerBook and I wonder why I did. I never had a problem and it just seems like I wasted whatever it cost me at the time. I just know though if I don't get it I might regret it.

What do you guys think? If I drop 200 in this plan again and nothing goes wrong I will be mad haha. Sounds kind of funny I know but AppleCare won't cover the battery when it starts to die so its like whats the point.


I don't use Applecare, I buy insurance from Safeware.com

It covers accidental damage, theft, surge damage etc, much more than Applecare! Applecare often blames any repairs to damage caused by misuse. I was in Apple Store in Baltimore and the Apple "Genius" advised a student who brought in his PowerBook because it was slowing down that he needed a new logicboard. But since there was a slight bowing in laptop, it wouldn't be covered and would be $800, but he could buy a new MacBook for a few hundred more. Genuis Bar must have been giving bonus commissions on sales!

I rebooted his laptop using my PB in firewire mode and all appeared better. Repaired permissions and I think he will be happy with his bent Laptop.

The Service Manager came over and was nice enough to tell him not to buy yet, but take it home and make sure it still works properly. PS it passed all diagnostics run. It could be ittermittent logic board, but I don't think the original advise was proper!
     
Mrjinglesusa
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Join Date: Feb 2002
Location: Why do you care?
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Oct 22, 2006, 10:54 AM
 
Apple computers are generally very reliable and problem free. You see a lot more problems here because people are looking for help. In general though, most Macs will last for years if you take care of them. That said, Apple Care is great if your computer develops problems. I bought Apple Care for my G5 iMac. I had it about a year and a weird blemish developed in the screen. Almost like something burnt in from the back. Took it to the Apple Store and they are repairing it for free - no questions asked. It's a good investment for piece of mide if nothing else. JMO. I think I will spring for Apple Care on this Refurbished 17" MBP too...
     
fisherKing
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Join Date: Jan 2001
Location: brooklyn ny
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Oct 22, 2006, 11:23 AM
 
do a search on these forums...

applecare will pay for itself IF something goes wrong with your mac;
well worth it, but of course it's a gamble.

i have applecare on my 12" pb,
and safeware.

different coverages for different things...
"At first, there was Nothing. Then Nothing inverted itself and became Something.
And that is what you all are: inverted Nothings...with potential" (Sun Ra)
     
LfGrdMike  (op)
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Join Date: Jul 2003
Location: Rochester NY
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Oct 22, 2006, 12:14 PM
 
I will definitely check out safeware. Yeah, your probably right about the piece of mind thing. I mean the day i don't buy applecare i just know is the day my machine will have a problem. I guess with an expensive pro machine to it would be a good investment. If the logic board goes applecare would pay for itself.
MacBook Pro 15" Rev B | 2.16GHz Intel Core 2 Duo | 2GB Mem | 160GB HD | Display 15 Glossy Widescreen Display
iPod Mini Green | 35 gigs of music :-)
HP DV1040us Laptop | 1.6 Pentium M | 1GB RAM | Centrino
     
Mrjinglesusa
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Location: Why do you care?
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Oct 22, 2006, 12:33 PM
 
Like fisherKing said, Applecare pays for itself once you need ANY repair. If you never need a repair, you're out the money - kind of like with ANY insurance policy.
     
fisherKing
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Join Date: Jan 2001
Location: brooklyn ny
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Oct 22, 2006, 02:42 PM
 
Originally Posted by Mrjinglesusa View Post
Like fisherKing said, Applecare pays for itself once you need ANY repair. If you never need a repair, you're out the money - kind of like with ANY insurance policy.

i did not have applecare for my pismo powerbook: logic board failed, cost $450 to fix.
my 12" harddrive died, year 2. got it replaced under applecare.
just seems worth it.

my friend had his 15" powerbook stolen last year; safeware replaced it.

for the $ we invest in our macs, seems worth having insurance.
just ask a friend w/o health insurance what that's like...!
"At first, there was Nothing. Then Nothing inverted itself and became Something.
And that is what you all are: inverted Nothings...with potential" (Sun Ra)
     
ghporter
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Join Date: Apr 2001
Location: San Antonio TX USA
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Oct 22, 2006, 03:04 PM
 
MacBook Pro: $2500; AppleCare for MacBook Pro: $349. I see it as a reasonable gamble, similar to car insurance. I won't mess up my car on purpose, but someone might mess it up, and my insurance covers making it right. Similarly, I won't abuse my MBP, but accidents happen and AppleCare will cover making the MPB right.

By the way, my car insurance covers contents of the car, and my homeowner's insurance covers contents of the house. I'm not going to leave my MBP where it could be otherwise filched, and I even think my homeowner's insurance covers me if I'm robbed, so additional insurance isn't indicated for me. But if I didn't have those coverages, I'd definitely look into coverage for what AppleCare doesn't cover.

Glenn -----OTR/L, MOT, Tx
     
memory-minus
Senior User
Join Date: Feb 2004
Location: Lost in a "plus" world
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Oct 22, 2006, 03:26 PM
 
It doesn't apply to most of us, but for many of Apple's less savvy customers, the unlimited tech support calls for 3 years makes AppleCare really worth it. I have my own issues with Apple tech support, but for the vast majority of easy "how do I do this"-type calls, they're a lifesaver.

That said, like any extended warranty offering, you gamble on whether or not it will ever pay off.
     
romeosc
Mac Elite
Join Date: Oct 2000
Location: Memphis, Tn. USA
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Oct 22, 2006, 04:31 PM
 
Originally Posted by ghporter View Post
MacBook Pro: $2500; AppleCare for MacBook Pro: $349. I see it as a reasonable gamble, similar to car insurance. I won't mess up my car on purpose, but someone might mess it up, and my insurance covers making it right. Similarly, I won't abuse my MBP, but accidents happen and AppleCare will cover making the MPB right.

By the way, my car insurance covers contents of the car, and my homeowner's insurance covers contents of the house. I'm not going to leave my MBP where it could be otherwise filched, and I even think my homeowner's insurance covers me if I'm robbed, so additional insurance isn't indicated for me. But if I didn't have those coverages, I'd definitely look into coverage for what AppleCare doesn't cover.


Most homeowners policy have a hefty deductable $250-$5000. Safeware insurance has no deductable!

Great deal! I wish they gave me a dime for everyone that I convinced to use them!
     
SierraDragon
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Join Date: Mar 2004
Location: Truckee, CA
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Oct 22, 2006, 04:46 PM
 
Buying Applecare is silly. Most failures occur during the free warranty, are covered by recalls anyway, or do not cost all that much to fix. And many of the kinds of things that (rarely) do fail 13-36 months we would rather replace with more modern technology anyway (e.g. imagine a 3 year old hard drive, perhaps the most likely failure item). Note that operator induced failures or "acts of God" like lightning strikes or dropped computers are not covered by AppleCare.

At $349 to cover repairs only for the 13-36 month time period it is a grossly cost ineffective expenditure. Even if 1 in 10 boxes failed in the 13-36 month time frame (probably it is more like 1 in 1000+) it would still make much more sense to just throw it away and buy a new/cheaper/faster box.

AppleCare has to be Apple's largest profit margin item, by a lot. Y'all keep buying it so Apple can keep hardware prices down for me.

The only real value to AppleCare is for the telephone support for folks who need such support.

-Allen Wicks
( Last edited by SierraDragon; Oct 22, 2006 at 04:57 PM. )
     
stuppy
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Join Date: Jun 2006
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Oct 22, 2006, 06:16 PM
 
Are there any Safeware comparisons in the UK?
Macbook Pro 2GHz 15" :: 2GB Crucial Memory :: 100GB HDD :: ATi Radeon X1600 256 :: Superdrive :: Airport Wireless
     
   
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