AppleCare

Simple math: why I never buy AppleCare

I broke the screen of my Apple Watch yesterday. Or maybe more accurately, my two-year-old son grabbed my Apple Watch as I was taking a shower, slipped and fell with the watch hitting our bathroom tile floor face down. It happened all before my eyes, although I didn't know he was holding the watch in his hand. The strange sound I heard when he fell alerted me something wasn't right though. My wife confirmed seconds later that the watch was what I had heard and that the screen was shattered.

Surprisingly, I didn't even yell at my son, or lose my cool, but as I was finishing up showering, I started pondering my options. Because I don't buy AppleCare for any Apple products I purchase, I knew this was most likely going to cost me a pretty penny. Boy was I right!

Why making a support account on Twitter was a great move by Apple

Within just a single day of launching a support account on Twitter, Apple has well over 130,000 followers and is answering over 100 people with questions about Apple products and services per hour.

Although it's taken Apple quite a while to finally use Twitter as a support medium for its main products, depsite having Twitter accounts for Apple Music, Beats 1, and iTunes for quite some time, it's still great to see Apple is using another method of communication to reach its users.

In this piece, we'll talk about why we think creating the support account on Twitter was a great move for Apple.

Apple launches worldwide USB-C cable replacement program

Apple on Friday announced a worldwide replacement program for a limited number of USB-C charging cables that were shipped with 12-inch MacBook with retina display units or sold separately through June of 2015. A design flaw in these cables may cause unexpected premature failure.

As a part of the program, anyone with an affected cable is eligible to gain a free replacement through Apple.

Apple quietly kills Apple Watch + iPhone extended warranty combo plans

In addition to jacking up prices of its AppleCare+ extended hardware coverage for the new iPhone 6s and iPhone 6s Plus by an extra $30, Apple appears to have discontinued the combined AppleCare+ warranty for the iPhone and Apple Watch, as first noted by 9to5Mac.

Following April 2015 debut of the Apple Watch, the Cupertino firm introduced combo warranty plans for iPhones that are up to six months old and Apple Watches for combined prices of $149 (Apple Watch Sport + iPhone), $169 (Apple Watch + iPhone) and $1,600 (Apple Watch Edition + iPhone).

Apple quietly raises the price of AppleCare+ for its new iPhones

If you plan on picking up a new iPhone 6s, you should be aware that the price of AppleCare+ just received an increase.

AppleCare+ is an enhancement to the basic AppleCare coverage that every new iPhone comes standard with. With AppleCare+, customers extend their hardware repair coverage and complimentary phone support to two years, and add up to two incidents of accidental damage coverage. Accidental damage covers anything from water damage, to drops, or other follies.

To take advantage of the accidental damage coverage, customers are required to pay a deductible fee for each accident. This fee is on top of the initial AppleCare+ signup fee.

When AppleCare+ initially debuted back in 2011, the signup fee was $99 and it the per-accident fee was a mere $49 for each event incurred. But over the last four years, the fees have slowly risen to the levels that they are today...

Best Buy said to offer Apple’s extended warranty plans beginning September 13

Best Buy could start selling the AppleCare and AppleCare+ extended warranty protection plans for various Apple products as soon as Sunday, September 13. According to an internal training video obtained by MacRumors, Best Buy's outlets in the United States are gearing up to sell Apple's extended warranty plans for the iPhone, iPad, Mac, Apple Watch and other eligible products, such as the 27-inch Thunderbolt Display.

If the sources are right, Best Buy will become Apple's first non-carrier retailer to sell extended warranty plans which are normally offered via Apple's retail store and on the company's online store.

AppleCare+ now covers Apple Watch batteries that retain less than 80% of their original capacity

AppleCare+ protection for iPhone, iPad and Apple Watch has refreshed its terms to cover batteries that retain less than 80 percent of their original capacity within the extended warranty period. The new rules apply to Apple Watch Sport, Watch and Edition models, as discovered by MacRumors.

Previously, the extended warranty used to cover Apple Watch batteries that retained less than 50 percent of their original capacity. Apple officially guarantees the Apple Watch battery will retain up to 80 percent of its original capacity at 1,000 complete charge cycles. Assuming an average of one full charge cycle per day, the specification gives the device's battery a lifespan of about two-and-a-half to three years.

AppleCare+ pricing for Watches revealed: $1,500 for extended Edition coverage + $1,000 per-incident fee

The full AppleCare+ extended warranty pricing for the Apple Watch is now live on the Online Apple Store. All Watch models include Apple's standard 1-year warranty and up to 90 days of complimentary support, but now these extended warranty plans are optionally available.

For the entry-level aluminum Apple Watch Sport, the AppleCare+ coverage costs $49. The mid-tier stainless steel Apple Watch models command a cost of $69 for the extended AppleCare+ coverage, while owners of the gold Edition models will need to fork out a whopping $1,500.

But that's not all.

Purported pricing for Apple Watch extended warranty leaks

While Apple did confirm during its second Apple Watch media event on March 9, 2015 that it will be offering its AppleCare+ extended coverage plan for the wearable device, it did not present pricing for the extended support plans tailored specifically to the Watch.

Friday, MacRumors shared some purported AppleCare+ pricing information for the Apple Watch models, obtained from a source. According to writer Juli Clover, AppleCare+ for each version of the Watch will be priced differently, with the gold-plated Apple Watch Edition commanding the highest premium in terms of extended warranty coverage.

Anki Overdrive announced with modular track pieces, new cars and more

Following the success of Anki Drive, a slot car racing game which made its debut on stage at Apple's Worldwide Developers Conference in the summer of 2013, Tuesday the company announced  the Anki Overdrive ahead of the next week's New York Toy Fair show. Anki Overdrive is an improved version of Drive with brand new cars, customizable tracks and more.

Apple extends AppleCare+ purchase window to 60 days for iPhone and iPad

As we outlined in a report earlier this month, Apple has gone ahead and doubled the AppleCare+ purchase window for new iPhones and iPads. Customers are now eligible to purchase AppleCare+ for their new iPhone and iPad up to 60 days after purchasing the device, whereas it was previously 30 days. AppleCare+ extends Apple's 90-day complimentary support to two years and includes accidental damage coverage.

AppleCare+ costs $99 for both the iPhone and iPad plans, purchasable through the Apple Store both in-store and online. Apple has updated its website to reflect the new 60-day policy that is now in effect in all regions outside of Japan, where the 30-day window remains. These changes do not apply to Macs, iPods or any other Apple products outside of the iPhone and iPad…Â