new 16" MBP

[nickyr]

My wife's ageing MBA died today. SSD failure :-(

On the plus side though, she now has the MBA I bought in July and I have a new 16" MBP with the 8 core i9 processor.

I've never had such a lovely laptop as this. The display is just mind blowing and the new keyboard? Superb.

Early Christmas present to myself

 

[chscag]

Enjoy it Nick. Sounds like you have a great machine. I thought about getting one myself until I began to look at my other payments I need to keep up with.

 

[nickyr]

thanks chscag - I'm sure I'll enjoy it.

PC World here in the UK has a 24 month (!!!) interest free purchase option which was just too good to turn down.

 

[Slydude]

Nice early present. Congrats. Since you're in the mood to play Santa how do I get on your nice list?

 

[nickyr]

Nice early present. Congrats. Since you're in the mood to play Santa how do I get on your nice list?

you already are. you mean you didn't get the gifts over the last 10 years?!

 

[Slydude]

Not a one. It must have gone to the same address the box of money my brother swears he sends for my birthday every year.

 

[NSMacGuru]

nickyr, congrats on your new baby.

And now, a note of caution - did you get AppleCare?

If it wasn't added at time of purchase, there's a limited window and a few hoops you need to jump through. Some of us old-timers who haven't bought a new machine in years discovered (too late) Apple's new process. It's essentially, like memory and HD options, a "get it at moment of purchase or you're outta luck".

I know it's expensive (and may not be necessary if your credit card carries consumer protection insurance), but Gen-1 of any machine, particularly after Apple's less-than-stellar couple of years with laptop keyboards and display problems, it may be worth it. There are apparently some issues emerging with the 16" model. Apple is working on a fix for a recognized audio problem (should be a software fix, so no biggie), and I've seen some posts -but nothing confirmed yet- of "ghosting" issues with the display.

 

[krs]

nickyr, congrats on your new baby.

And now, a note of caution - did you get AppleCare?

If it wasn't added at time of purchase, there's a limited window and a few hoops you need to jump through. Some of us old-timers who haven't bought a new machine in years discovered (too late) Apple's new process. It's essentially, like memory and HD options, a "get it at moment of purchase or you're outta luck".

Sorry, but you are confusing AppleCare with AppleCare +
AppleCare+ has the 60 day window for purchase which makes sense when you check what is covered - AppleCare can still be baought up to a year after you buy the Mac the way it has always been.

From the link you posted:

AppleCare+ can be purchased within 60 days of your device purchase where available. In Japan, AppleCare+ can be purchased within 30 days of your device purchase. AppleCare Protection Plan can be purchased within 1 year of your Mac purchase where available.

 

[NSMacGuru]

krs, thanks for weighing in. I should first note that the link to AppleCare above applies to Japan (even though it's in English). Here's the link for Canadian AppleCare products.

Apple's AppleCare messaging is a bit of a mess, and they have changed the way it's applied.

Previously, you could purchase the 3-year extension to AppleCare anytime before the end of the 1-year limited warranty. Some of us of meagre resources would wait until that first year is almost up to make the decision whether to buy the extended warranty based on how the device held up in that first year (i.e., exhibited odd symptoms or required service).

You can no longer do this. The extended warranty is, as you noted, called AppleCare+ - and you have a limited time in which to purchase it if you did not do so at the time of purchase. Purchasing it after the fact requires interaction with an AppleCare+ agent and may require them to run remote diagnostics on your device to see if it qualifies, and/or actually bringing the computer into an Apple service centre for evaluation.

You note -and on that Japanese page it does say: "AppleCare Protection Plan can be purchased within 1 year of your Mac purchase where available."

What on earth does that refer to? The Mac has a 1-year limited warranty. The extended service option is AppleCare+. So what is this "AppleCare Protection Plan" that can be purchased within 1 year of your Mac purchase?

It also does not appear on the Canadian AppleCare support page.

I'd appreciate clarification...

 

[IWT]

I came across this article a month or two ago and wondered if it only applied to the USA (+/- Canada).

Is Your AppleCare+ Expiring? You Can Now Renew It - TidBITS

Ian

 

[NSMacGuru]

Ian - good find! Just for clarity, note that this does not apply to Mac computers, only "iPhone, iPad, or Apple Watch".

 

[IWT]

Sorry. Yes, I should have remembered that

Ian

 

[krs]

krs, thanks for weighing in. I should first note that the link to AppleCare above applies to Japan (even though it's in English). Here's the link for Canadian AppleCare products.

I don't think that is an Apple webpage that only applies to Japan.
The URL is essentially "support.apple.com/en-us" - which to me means US in English.

The Japan reference is only about having to get AppleCare+ within 30 days as opposed to 60 days.

But like you said, the whole "AppleCare" thing is royally confusing, based on the "Canadian" link you posted, it seems only AppleCare+ is now available in Canada, no option for just AppleCare.

However, neither of that really matters since the OP's location is shown as South Wales. So wehat are the AppleCare options in the UK?

 

[krs]

I find that article that Ian linked to also confusing - the author uses the terms AppleCare and AppleCare+ interchangeably.
Seems very sloppy reporting.

I remember a discussion about this very subject quite a few years back.
At that time there wasAppleCare+ which had to be purchased within 60 days of buying the Mac and coverage included damaged screen, damaged case, even damaged logic board - all for an additional fee if that service was required, and also
AppleCare (no +) which just extended the normal 1 year warranty by 2 years (not covering the extras that AppleCare+ included)

But having a choice between AppleCare and AppleCare+ doesn't seem to be a choice anymore - at least not in Canada.

 

[chscag]

But having a choice between AppleCare and AppleCare+ doesn't seem to be a choice anymore - at least not in Canada.

I may be wrong... but I believe the same holds true for the US. The UK and EU come under different rules so I am not sure what their choices are.

Also, there are two different choices for Apple Care +: One covers damage as you stated above, the other choice also includes loss and theft at an additional cost. There is a deductible associated with both.

All very confusing (to me anyway).

 

[NSMacGuru]

Also FYI - apparently today's software update has fixed the popping sound issue...

macOS 10.15.2 Update solved the "Popping" issue on my 16-inch MBP (Reddit)

 

[Nehalem]

Hi sounds really cool, I got a 27" iMac for an Early Xmas Present - I love it!