Should I buy APPLE CARE?

Hello everyone,

I'm VERY new to this forum and this is my first post. I wanted to get some opinions on what other people think about APPLE CARE through the apple store. I recently bought a macbook pro (about a month now) and I am considering purchasing the Apple-care insurance/warranty/whatever it is. The only reason i'm hesitant is because i've owned numerous amounts of notebooks and have NEVER had one fail on me, hence I take very good care of my electronics. I have heard from other friends who have had apple care that they have gotten replacements when theirs went bad, however they might have mistreated it or didn't take it of it as good as i do.

My second question is, what part of the macbook pro is prone to failing? i have never owned a mac before so i don't know of any "trends" that people have been having. I'd like to know if parts that are difficult to replace/fix such as screens or whatever else is prone to breaking. If a hard drive fails, that's fairly easy to fix but parts that are difficult to obtain or fix is my main concern.

Any thoughts, opinions, feedback is welcome and HIGHLY appreciated.

I hope to hear back from some people! ANY INPUT IS VALID, please don't turn this into a "i don't buy warranty or believe in warranty argument". I just want to know if apple care is worth it, YES or NO.

Thank u!

YES.

I'm really glad I bought Apple Care for my 15" MacBook Pro (2008) as it has certainly paid for its self at this point I believe. It's kind of a tricky situation though, so let me explain.

I had my battery replaced as well as the logic board. So I basically have an almost new Aluminum MBP. BUT... Even though I had the Apple Care, I don't believe that had I not (had the Apple care), that I should have had to pay for Apple to replace the logic board. I would have been out of warranty, but would it have been MY fault that the logic board "just broke" ?

Because that's what happened. I take excellent care of both my MacBook Pro's. Baby them. So for a logic board to just go south out of nowhere, is unacceptable to me. I would have called Apple and gotten in touch with their customer relations department right away in order to express my thoughts. I don't know if they'd have bent or not, but with the Apple Care, I didn't have to go through any hassle.

I'm in Hungary right now, by the way.. so the support is international, just so long as you bring your unit into an authorized dealer.

I plan on getting Apple care on my 13" Unibody MBP before the year is up, but will get it from :

LA Computer Company Inc

They sell A.C. at a discounted price and are totally legit. An ex co-worker of mine gets his from these guys, as well as theft insurance. He says he's always been satisfied with them.

Doug

Forgot to answer your other questions.

It's funny.. My wife had this Compaq Presario (huge brick) for over 10 years. We gave it away, and it still works. The mobo battery needs replacing but that seems to be about it. It's fully functional. Never had any problems so to speak..

I've also had hardware that you'd think would be problematic, but never was. Everybody I knew kept telling me how awesome Apple's hardware was and problem free etc..

Yet when I finally got around to wanting to purchase one, I kept hearing about graphic card problems, logic board failures and so on. I said whatever, it's a machine... Machines aren't perfect, and if it's the fault of the manufacturer, I'm sure that the likes of an "Apple" will take responsibility and fix the issue and satisfy the customer.

I think for the most part that is true if you speak to the right person at Apple. But YMMV. I'm not sure as to whether or not Apple needs to spiff up their QC, but there are likely other factors involved which others here know more about than I do.

Doug

It's a lot of money for an extended warranty, I would purchase it elsewhere as Doug B suggested. Just be careful with eBay as there are some scam operations that sell it.

As far as being "worth it", I think that's highly subjective. How long do you tend to keep your machines? If at least 3 years, then it might be for the peace of mind alone.

I didn't buy it when I bought my MBP last year, and I have not had a problem with it. I have an G5 iMac without camera, it had AppleCare from my office, I quit the company and "borrowed" the computer, it is still going strong without any problems. A lot of people seem to like the insurance policy of having it though. It is definitely more enticing when you have a student discount to use for it.

If you plan on kepping your machine for a while, buy it. But as others said, it may be a better idea to buy it somewhere other than apple where it is cheaper.

great! Thank u everyone for your input and advice!

I'll throw my two cents in here. Apple Care saved me hundreds, if not more than a grand in the three years it covered my MacBook. I got it much cheaper directly from Apple because of my student discount. I know this won't be an option for everybody, but it's just worth knowing for those who have access to it!

I'm new to the Mac world so I don't know of any trends on what things might break. I have not bought warranties for my Windows computers because I figure by the time it breaks I could buy another one and not worry too much about the cost or knowledge on how to repair or replace basic components of a PC.

But my new MPB 13" cost over 1600 bucks and have no idea on how to fix it if it ever breaks (knock on wood)! I better get a warranty lol. I was able to pick up an Apple Care package from eBay. I activated it successfully and now have some peace of mind for the next couple of years.

I bought Applecare for my previous and current macbooks - for peace of mind and as a aid when I come to sell them.

Glad i read this thread...i was wondering the same question...im planning on buying the apple care right before my 1 year warranty is up..