Ipod - Extended warranty

[sk!mom]

Thanks to all of the great advice here- I bought my DH a Shuffle for his birthday to use when he works out and he loves it.

Due to the recent reports about screen problems with the Nano, I decided on a Mini for my DS. An added bonus- it will store twice as many songs for less than the Nano.

Now I need more opinions- Is the Extended warranty at Best Buy a good idea for the Mini. I know that financial advisors usually advise against these and I never buy them. But for something electronic that is this costly and will be carried all over the place, I'm wondering if I should get it.

All opinions appreciated.

 

[Cindy B]

I bought the extended warranty directly from the Apple store. I bought it with a discount with my educator discount.

I'm not one who usually pays for the discounts, but for this case it is worth it. I don't know how Best Buy does it, but I bought my from the Apple store.

I was picking up my kids, and my Ipod fell out of my pocket. I bought it in June and it was out of warranty (this happened two weeks ago). The screen was blank, dark and a lock icon came on. I called my apple store who then transferred me to the Apple Care company. They gave me some telephone support (would not get phone support if I didn't have the warranty), and then they told me to go to the store.

I went to the Apple store, and was able to fix my ipod for free. If it wasn't able to be fixed, I would have gotten a new replacement Ipod.

 

[strasfamily]

I normally don't buy extended warranties but felt with the Ipod it was a good idea. Since I use mine when working out, it may be prone to being dropped and I liked the extra piece of mind that if Best Buy cant fix it they will replace it.

 

[sk!mom]

Thanks for the quick responses. You both made me feel better. I never get the warranty either but I just felt that maybe I should for this.

 

[aka-mad4themouse]

Normally, I'm not a big believer in the extended warranties but for my DS13 & small electronics they're an absolute must! In the past year, he's had two new cell phones (one lost/stolen and one that went DOA for "no reason"). He also has to replace his iPod mini when it "just froze up", again for "no reason" and his PSP was replaced early on due to pixel problems on the screen (not his fault).

 

[Soccer Princess]

Would you recommend it on the shuffle or just those with screens?

 

[nowellsl]

My daughter is on her 3rd Ipod mini. The warranty paid off big time for her!

 

[maggiew]

Thanks to all of the great advice here- I bought my DH a Shuffle for his birthday to use when he works out and he loves it.

Due to the recent reports about screen problems with the Nano, I decided on a Mini for my DS. An added bonus- it will store twice as many songs for half the price of the Nano.

Now I need more opinions- Is the Extended warranty at Best Buy a good idea for the Mini. I know that financial advisors usually advise against these and I never buy them. But for something electronic that is this costly and will be carried all over the place, I'm wondering if I should get it.

All opinions appreciated.

How did you get the mini for half the price of the nano?? I am thinking about getting my older DD one. (Got my younger DD the shuffle from Aldi's deal.)

Maggie

 

[DebMcDonald]

I used to work at Best Buy in customer service so have lots of experience on this one. They are very good if you ever need to use them. Most of the time people do not use them, so it's more money is Best Buy's pocket, but regarding the IPOD I wouldn't buy one without a service plan or product replacement plan. With the product replacement plan you get a check back for the amount you paid and can repurchase it with your check/voucher. With the service plan, alot of those items are not fixable so you will end up with the newest item for no additional money. IPOD's came back often and because Best Buy has such a strict return policy there is no room for error.

 

[Cindy B]

Would you recommend it on the shuffle or just those with screens?

The warranty price is almost the same price as the shuffle. So really, it is more "disposable" compared to the $400 Ipods. But there is a possibility of it breaking so that would be an out of pocket expense to replace.

Really, that would be your call.

 

[Soccer Princess]

Thanks for your input. I think I will not worry about it with the shuffle. I got the shuffle for $59, so while it would be a loss, it would be one I could deal with.
I *think* I am getting the 30 gig video for Christmas and will make sure to get the extended warranty on it!

 

[Cindy B]

Thanks for your input. I think I will not worry about it with the shuffle. I got the shuffle for $59, so while it would be a loss, it would be one I could deal with.
I *think* I am getting the 30 gig video for Christmas and will make sure to get the extended warranty on it!

I have the 30 g photo and it was well worth the warranty for that.

 

[sk!mom]

How did you get the mini for half the price of the nano?? I am thinking about getting my older DD one. (Got my younger DD the shuffle from Aldi's deal.)

Maggie

I'm sorry, I typed that wrong. The mini stores twice as much for less than the Nano - not half.

Best Buy has the 4gb Mini (1000 songs) for $159. The 2gb Nano (500 songs) was $199.

I didn't get the warranty on the Shuffle because it is not as costly and DH will be much more careful than DS.

 

[maggiew]

I'm sorry, I typed that wrong. The mini stores twice as much for less than the Nano - not half.

Best Buy has the 4gb Mini (1000 songs) for $159. The 2gb Nano (500 songs) was $199.

I didn't get the warranty on the Shuffle because it is not as costly and DH will be much more careful than DS.

Was the $159 ipod Mini at the B&M Best Buy store? I tried online and it doesn't look like Best Buy sells the Minis any more. That is a good price for a mini.

Maggie