The IT Nerd

I got this question in my inbox today:

Hello IT Nerd. I’m sorry to hear that your MacBook Pro had issues and I’m glad things worked out for you. I’m looking to buy a MacBook Pro myself and I was wondering if I need AppleCare. I don’t like buying extended warranties as they tend to be scams in my opinion. Is AppleCare different? 

Thanks for the question. In short, AppleCare is different than other extended warranties and I consider it a must get when I buy a Mac. AppleCare extends the standard one year warranty and 90 days of telephone support to three years for both. If you have an iPod, iPhone, Apple TV, or iPad, you get two years instead of three years. In the case of iPhone and iPad users, you also get up to two incidents of accidental damage coverage, each subject to a $49 service fee.

My experience with AppleCare has been positive. For example I once needed a new trackpad for my previous MacBook Pro in Washington DC as mine wouldn’t always register clicks. I found an Apple Store in the city and they were able to do the work that day as they had the needed parts in stock. It’s always been hassle free every time I’ve needed it. Another thing to consider is that Apple products are very proprietary in nature. You’re not going to find people or parts to fix these computers outside of the Apple Store or an authorized dealer for the most part. Finally, if you have AppleCare, it tends to raise the value of your Apple hardware as there is a significant resale market for Apple computers.

The bottom line? I recommend that you get AppleCare if you get an Apple computer. It is completely worth the money.

This entry was posted on June 28, 2013 at 8:04 am and is filed under Tips with tags Apple. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.