AppleCare+ in Thailand

[up-country_sinclair]

Hi,

I'm completely fed up with Windows and Android devices and switching my wife and I over to Apple.

We're both going all in on laptops and phones, and I'm wondering whether or not AppleCare+ is worth it in Thailand.

From what I gather, it's 3 years on the MacBook Air and 2 years on the iPhone 12.

I'm guessing that iPhone screen replacements aren't very expensive in Thailand, but fixing a MacBook likely is. We'll also be getting good cases from Otterbox or UAG.

For those reasons I'm thinking about only getting the AppleCare+ on the MacBook Air.

Does that seem reasonable or will I end up regretting it?

Also, we don't live in Bangkok.  Is it right to assume that AppleCare+ will be honored at the authorized services centers like iBeat or iCenter?

Any advice or suggestions with AppleCare+ and/or service in Thailand would be appreciated.

Thanks!  ????

[4737 Carlin]

Hi there. I had a terrible experience when I bought a new Mac from istudio/studio 7 here in Chiang Mai last year. The computer had a hardware failure after 6 days and the store refused to issue me a refund - which is usually Apple policy. I called Apple and they told me NOT to buy from a reseller in Thailand as they cannot guarantee they will honour Apple's policy. Consumer rights don't exist here. That's why Apple want to get rid of resellers in places like Thailand and only sell direct from Apple stores or online. I was eventually able to get my money back after Apple intervened and went above the heads of the studio 7 store manager. Basically, only order from the Apple website Thailand. I bought an M1 mini recently through the official store and its been great with no problems. As regards Apple care+, I've had it in the past (been a Mac user for 20+ years) but only go with the standard 1 year now as I don't need technical support. Btw, the hardware failure on the Mac last year was the first I've ever had. I reckon studio 7 sold me a dodgy refurb unit. Good luck with your new macbook.

[PJPom]

I can only speak from personal experience regarding my iMac covered by AppleCare purchased in Australia and brought to Krabi. Two years ago my iMac started doing funny things when playing iTunes movies so I contacted AppleCare via phone and spoke to people in Australia , Ireland, USA and the iMac specialist team in the Phillipines numerous times before they asked me to take it to the local authorised dealer. The Dealer was very helpful and sent it to the authorised repairer in Bangkok three times for me without charge , unfortunately the problem was only solved after the next update, all the replacement parts were totally unnecessary.

To summarise, AppleCare is essential especially living here where we only have one Apple Store and the level of repair knowledge seems to be limited.

I have a MacBook Pro, MacBook Air, iMac and an iPad, what gets the most use ?, the iPad, the cheapest of the lot.

Just an addendum...I acknowledge the comments from the previous poster regarding his experience however my local authorised dealer could not have been more helpful. Apple quality has taken a plunge over the last few years as evidenced by the MacBook Pro fiasco and now the iMac pink edged screen, I personally will never buy any Apple product without AppleCare.

Edited February 8, 2021 by PJPom
Additional info

[Peterphuket]

1 hour ago, 4737 Carlin said:

Hi there. I had a terrible experience when I bought a new Mac from istudio/studio 7 here in Chiang Mai last year. The computer had a hardware failure after 6 days and the store refused to issue me a refund - which is usually Apple policy. I called Apple and they told me NOT to buy from a reseller in Thailand as they cannot guarantee they will honour Apple's policy. Consumer rights don't exist here. That's why Apple want to get rid of resellers in places like Thailand and only sell direct from Apple stores or online. I was eventually able to get my money back after Apple intervened and went above the heads of the studio 7 store manager. Basically, only order from the Apple website Thailand. I bought an M1 mini recently through the official store and its been great with no problems. As regards Apple care+, I've had it in the past (been a Mac user for 20+ years) but only go with the standard 1 year now as I don't need technical support. Btw, the hardware failure on the Mac last year was the first I've ever had. I reckon studio 7 sold me a dodgy refurb unit. Good luck with your new macbook.

I 100% agree with you but even order at the website go sometimes wrong as happens with me.

It is already a few years ago I order at there website an MacPro, they tell you they send it to your home.

In my case they send it to the postoffice 25km from my home by DHL.

I have to pick it up by myself (25kg) because the post office told me they don't have transport to bring it to me.

And yes, I'm also a user for more than 20 years, with the first iMac G4, but overal I have mixed feelings about Apple in general.

Edited February 8, 2021 by Peterphuket

[MadMuhammad]

IconSiam is the only legit Apple store in Thailand. They’ve been fantastic with my many busted and waterlogged iPhones 

 

edit: bumped save 

 

I haven’t bothered trying with my Apple Care at any of the resellers so cant help you there. Apple care is absolutely worth the outlay IMO. So much random stuff can and does happen (your fault or not)

Edited February 8, 2021 by MadMuhammad

[PDPA2024]

The only issue I ever had with Apple is inflated batteries. Never paid extra for warranty, but this may be worth noting:

 

The battery on my iPhone 6 and MacBook Pro 2015 got bloated after 3 years (AppleCare+ would've already expired), but my MacBook Air 2018 got "pregnant" after only 2 years. The cost of battery replacement at the local shop is about the same as AppleCare+.

 

That said, I'd only bother with AppleCare+ if you live in Bangkok or don't mind flying there to visit the official Apple Store. I've been to a new one in Central World and service is good there. Wouldn't expect much from partner stores elsewhere. You can use mail-in service, but then you'll be without a computer for a few days.

 

So if your battery dies sooner than in three years, you might score yourself a new laptop via AppleCare+. Though I've heard they don't always cover swollen batteries if it's still charging fine. Maybe someone with more experience in dealing with them can comment.

[sometimewoodworker]

2 hours ago, MadMuhammad said:

IconSiam is the only legit Apple store in Thailand. They’ve been fantastic with my many busted and waterlogged iPhones 

Not correct, as of the middle of last year there is a second Apple Central World Bangkok 

Edited February 8, 2021 by sometimewoodworker

[MadMuhammad]

8 hours ago, sometimewoodworker said:

Not correct, as of the middle of last year there is a second Apple Central World Bangkok 

thanks for the update, I obviously missed that one ????

[unblocktheplanet]

On 2/8/2021 at 2:18 PM, redpill17 said:

The only issue I ever had with Apple is inflated batteries. Never paid extra for warranty, but this may be worth noting:

 

The battery on my iPhone 6 and MacBook Pro 2015 got bloated after 3 years (AppleCare+ would've already expired), but my MacBook Air 2018 got "pregnant" after only 2 years. The cost of battery replacement at the local shop is about the same as AppleCare+.

 

So if your battery dies sooner than in three years, you might score yourself a new laptop via AppleCare+. Though I've heard they don't always cover swollen batteries if it's still charging fine. Maybe someone with more experience in dealing with them can comment.

Exactly. My early Xmas present was denial of my swollen MBP battery claim. They replaced it on AppleCare precisely one year before when it was still in warranty. Now they won't back their batteries even for one year!

 

This is not the Apple we knew & loved!

[PJPom]

5 hours ago, unblocktheplanet said:

Exactly. My early Xmas present was denial of my swollen MBP battery claim. They replaced it on AppleCare precisely one year before when it was still in warranty. Now they won't back their batteries even for one year!

 

This is not the Apple we knew & loved!

I note that you are in Bangkok, are you dealing with Apple direct via the Store, if so that’s extremely disappointing. 
In my previous post I related the tale of my iMac being sent to Bangkok three times without effective repair. The authorised repairers replaced the screen, no change , second trip replaced the main board, no change, third trip seemed to do nothing. The most annoying part apart from being without the iMac was they ruined my original box, I was most annoyed.

The Apple lady in the Phillipines who was handling the case applied twice for a replacement and was refused , I got my Daughter in Sydney to go into her local Apple Store and see what they said, they were horrified and said that at local level they would have organised a replacement in one day. Different countries and different attitudes and better consumer laws.

The problem I now have is the infamous pink edged screen on the two year old replacement, I don’t fancy my chances of getting it replaced but I am going to try, wish me luck...

My first Mac was 1986, in 2011 I bought a MacBook Pro slightly upgraded and it was not cheap, a beautifully designed unit with unfortunately a useless Chip that failed in the majority of them including mine.

It reminds me of a comment from some Astronaut saying we are sat on top of a rocket comprised of parts from the cheapest supplier, Apple seems to be similarly guilty, a pity.

Buy the warranty, you very possibly will need it.

[wwest5829]

I also can only speak to my experience here in Chiang Mai. Apple user since long before retiring here in 2011. I have bought iPad, MacBook Air, iPhones from Studio 7 without issues. Their tech desk has sorted out some seeming software conflicts for me a couple of times without charge. If it is a hardware issue you are sent to the iCare Store here in Chiang Mai. I had a swollen battery replaced on my iPhone 5, and a dying battery replaced on the MacBook Air at a local shop where the guy deals almost exclusively on Apple products. Will be seeing him again shortly to have him download the latest software update as my MacBook Air says I do not have enough free space and to check why my battery is draining so quickly (I suspect leaving an app open for too long). I decision was to forego the extended warranty. If the product does not hold up? Then I question the wisdom from buying from them in the future ...

[khomlong1]

I can recommend  Icare in Saraburi  (Robinson Store) . Very professional replacement of my Mac Hard Drive (SSD).

 

[donnacha]

On 2/7/2021 at 11:45 AM, up-country_sinclair said:

I'm completely fed up with Windows and Android devices and switching my wife and I over to Apple.

It is a big jump but so worth it. No computing product is perfect but the care and craft that Apple put into both their software and hardware makes a real difference to the overall experience. I have never regretted making the switch decades ago and am now astonished that I ever wasted my time on all that unnecessary nonsense.

Some Thai apps are only available on Android, so, make sure that your wife does not rely on any of those.

Apple's hardware is about as well made as any hardware can be. They continually improve their designs and manufacturing processes, and operate at such scale that they can afford to perfect everything. In general, as long as you buy new items directly from Apple, you can expect them to last years without any problems at all.

I used to always buy Applecare but only ever used it one to have a battery replaced in a Macbook Pro just before the three years ran out. After using it practically every waking hour of those three years, the battery efficiency was just below the 90% level that allowed me to get a replacement, so, that worked out well. That Macbook Pro is still going strong and running the latest version of Mac OS at six years old.

I don't think I will bother with Applecare in future. If there is a manufacturing fault you are likely to notice it with the one-year warranty period anyway. If you drop your phones a lot it might make sense, screen replacements without Applecare are very expensive, but I decided not to bother with it for the iPhone 12 Pro Max I bought last year (superb phone).

Apple computers and phones might be more expensive, but they remain useful for far longer and have higher resale values. The new Macbook Airs, the first with Apple's own chips, are particularly good value, far faster, quieter, and more energy efficient than any Intel equivalents.

A lot of guys on here simply can't imagine spending so much money on a device but I honestly believe they work out cheaper overall. Also, the experience is just so much better. You get so much more done when you don't have to waste time on all the problems and nonsense of Windows and Android.

 

Edited February 12, 2021 by donnacha

[brianthainess]

Granny smiths or red delicious? 

[sometimewoodworker]

On 2/12/2021 at 2:09 PM, donnacha said:

I used to always buy Applecare but only ever used it one to have a battery replaced in a Macbook Pro just before the three years ran out. After using it practically every waking hour of those three years, the battery efficiency was just below the 90% level that allowed me to get a replacement, so, that worked out well. That Macbook Pro is still going strong and running the latest version of Mac OS at six years old.

Your experience is rather different from mine, though they were laptops, the service was incredibly fast and superb but I’ve had 6 motherboard replacements and two completely new computers both after the original was over 2 years old, those were the major times I used apple care. The fastest was a computer collected on Tuesday afternoon, returned on Thursday morning with a new motherboard.
 

For iPads and the iPhone the huge benefit is the accident damage replacement option, the machines aren’t as liable to components falling 

[up-country_sinclair]

Thanks for all the advice and suggestions.

I ended up going with the AppleCare+ for the Macbooks and skipped it for the iPhones.  

[PJPom]

Wise man, enjoy your new toy, still the easiest and best to use.