What type of warranty did you choose?

Greetings Everyone!
I'm curious to hear about what type of warranty you choose for your computer and why?

I personally went with the 3yr depot warranty for my T61 14.1 SXGA+ since I felt it was the best value in terms of price and and length of protection.

 

i picked the 4 year thinkpad protection. I have a 16month old and another baby due in march. i also got smoking deal on the warranty. nuff said

 

edu comes with a 3yr warranty so... i stuck with it

 

I’m curious about what people have to say on this – I opted out, but I’d feel better with a warranty. However, I’ve never had real problems once I settle into a computer I’m happy with. The only things with moving parts are the hard and optical drives and both can be had for less than the price of a warranty.

Also, Consumer Reports urges to skip the warranty because the failure rate is so low. They say laptops seldom breakdown in the first three years and, if they do, the repair cost is about the same as the warranty.

Any thoughts on this?

 

That does not sound right. I've read/heard multiple places that say laptops are more likely to break after the first year... I could be wrong about that, but saying that the repair cost is the same as warranty is ridiculous. Laptop repair costs are insane and unless it's something very very simple like a new battery or such... it will far exceed the cost of warranty.

Warranty is worth it.

 

Consumer Reports received feedback from more than 50,000 users with repair rates from 16 to 19 % for all brands (17% for Lenovo). Those numbers are based on laptops bought between 2002 and 2006 that have ever been repaired or had a serious problem.

I don’t know how much it costs to fix a laptop – I’ve never had to have one repaired. The two laptops I owned lasted beyond three years. One broke after four years because I dropped it and the other became obsolete before it broke. An 85% chance my laptop will last five years doesn’t sound bad. I probably won’t keep it that long so the odds of it lasting without problems should be higher.

 

I suspect when a laptop does breakdown the repair cost is far more than the $85 for the three year warranty upgrade.

What you are betting on is that any failures will occur in the first year while the machine is under warranty.

I'd spend the money and get the three year warranty. I know of one too many mother board replacements on laptops at a cost of $500+ but to be fair to the manufacturer I don't know how many of them have occurred in years 2 and 3.

 

No extra warranty. I don't plan on my stuff breaking. Warranty on computer products=scam. Unless you do something stupid your computer should never break. So just don't do anything stupid.

 

I purchased through edu as well and the upgrade to 4 year onsite was free so of course I took it. Having spilled an entire extra large cup of coffee in laptop before 126 dollars for onsite TPP was a steal so i added it. One LCD issue will make the upgrade seem inexpensive as hell.

 

What CR actually said...

Feedback from more than 49,000 users shows minor differences in reliability among the major laptop brands, with repair rates ranging from 16 to 19 percent (see page 36). Most laptops come with a basic one-year warranty for parts and labor, typically with mail-in service. Free tech support for one year is the norm. Apple support is free for 90 days but after that costs $49 per incident.


There’s more variation in tech support, according to our latest survey of more than 5,000 subscribers. Apple’s laptop support has been by far the best; Lenovo (IBM) has led the Windows-based laptop brands. The same is true of extended warranties. Lenovo’s plan and Apple’s three-year AppleCare plan were more successful than most brands at resolving user problems. For other laptop brands, skip the extended warranty and save the money for third-party support. Nearly 90 percent of users who bypassed manufacturer tech support and went to an outside service said their problems were solved.

 

All computer products will break "randomly". Warranty on computer products (especially laptops) are the only warranties worth anything other than auto warranty.

Doesn't matter how you treat computers, they will break even if it's not your "fault."

So what would you rather do, spend less than $100 now?? Or spend $800+ when your system board fails?

 

I second this... I have two Thinkpads here (T60 and T60p) which came with a 3 yr RTD warranty, so extended warranties are not an issue here... I also have a 3.75 yr old Dell 600M. Fortunately I bought a 3 yr on that one, because it is now on its 3rd MB... two of the three replacements happened after the 1 yr 'standard' warranty expired. Before the Dell I owned a Compaq... It also made the trip 'home' twice... once after the standard 1 yr warranty had expired ( I had an add-on 3 yr on that one too)

I don't normally buy extended warranties on anything, however I will never own a laptop with less than a 3 yr warranty... not the 'all perils (read $$$ one)', but the cheaper hardware only version.

Maybe I'm an anomaly, however my total savings from extended warranties on laptops far exceeds my cost of purchasing them

 

I’m not sure what you’re trying to prove by adding this, but the warranty advice I have is from a magazine issue that goes into more detail than the webpage you pasted.

 

Why would anything ever possibly break. I have never ever had a computer on me (laptop or not) break unless it was my doing.

 

You are a lucky man indeed... I've had five laptops. Compaq, Dell and IBM / Lenovo. All but one has 'broken' on its own, requiring a trip back 'home' under warranty. Power problems, USB problems, HD replaced are my issues to date... My 9 month old T60 has had a battery replacement already (less than 50 cycles). Maybe I'm a lot less lucky than you... IMHO laptops take a lot more abuse than desktops. I spend aproximately half my life on the road. When a laptop is subjected to the normal 'wear and tear' of such a life I believe that reliability takes a hit. Thats my personal experience to date.

My extended Dell warranty cost me $130... in the two years after the standard warranty expired it saved me buying 2 motherboards (quoted by the tech at $600 ea), and 1 80G HD... I didn't cost that but 2 yrs ago I'm sure it was worth at least $150... I think I'm ahead on my Dell warranty.

Desktops are much more reliable, however over the last 10 yrs I've replaced two power supplies, one video card, and one HD... I build my own systems (desktop), so this isn't a big deal, and I'd never recommend an extra warranty on a desktop.

Re the CR quote... simply an overview of laptop warranties from their own site (conclusions). I posted it because someone made reference to CR not recommending extra warranties... that statement was inaccurate as in evidenced in this short quote... BTW nice to see Lenovo is near the top here...

 

Warranties are definitely worth it, especially on a notebook with a lot of usage. The warranty is very inexpensive compared to the repair costs. I've had two motherboards, a hard drive, a wireless card, a chassis, and 3 keyboards replaced over the course of 3 years.

 

What evidence? CR does recommend against extended warranties for repair. They say electronic products are reliable and a small percentage ever need to be repaired in the first three years.

That bit you pasted is saying Lenovo tech support is better than others. So if you need someone to help walk you through a problem, then get their warranty.

We're talking about two different things - tech support vs hardware reliability. Personally, I don't use tech support. If I have a serious problem I can't fix, I reinstall windows.

 

Sorry... I'm not going to get into a bun fight here... You have your opinion, and I have mine... My personal experience regarding laptops and warranties has been stated. BTW I subscribe to CR myself, so I've read the same stuff you have... I simply pasted their conclusions. Read them any way you want!

Over and out!

Edited for Icysmits enjoyment: 'Bun Fight' http://www.worldwidewords.org/qa/qa-bun2.htm

 

bun fight?

Edit: That's a good expression, I like it! I agree it's a silly arguement - a warranty does give you piece of mind for something that's carried around a lot.

 

Just the basic 1 year depot warranty with my T61p (8891-CTO).
I would like to purchase the 3 year warranty if they had offered the international warranty on the 8891 model. I'm moving to another country next month and the warranty Lenovo is offering to the 8891 model doesn't have IWS there.

 

I got the standard warranty but since I purchased my machine with an amex card it is automatically extended an extra year.

 

I got the 3 years because I wanted Accidental and I got a good deal. Took the depot because there's at least 3 IBM service providers in my area and mine is covered by IWS here (Canada).

 

I went with the 3 year protection plan. On my replaced T40, I have had the optical drive replaced (drop shipped to me at a hotel on a biz trip), a broken monitor hinge (replaced in month 35 of my 36 month warranty), and a new keyboard (letters wore off, and as long as it was in for the hinge). While it was in depot they also replaced a cracked up baseboard, split straight through at the weak spot near the ultrabay. Under warranty, I did not get my failed USB ports fixed - they were probably fried by the 16 oz glass of lemon water I accidentally dumped through the keyboard.

So, for my new 61p I went with the 3 year protection plan, so I can continue to drink next to my laptop

 

I choose 3 year warranty as I felt it was reasonably priced.

And using my Visa card made it 4.

 

I went with the 1 year warranty to see how I liked the system first. Turns out I liked it quite a bit, I have tried upgrading the warranty to 3 years now that I plan to keep the PC and have ended up in Lenovo phone tree hell a couple times. I wish I could just buy the additional 2 years of coverage online without having to call in =/

If the 2 year extension is a lot of $$$ after the purchase, I will just use the T61 for ~9 months, then sell the system with remaining warranty and buy another Thinkpad.

 

I got the three-year for parts and labor (not accidental), because of some reviews I've read (I can't remember where), experience with computer parts randomly breaking, and the cost. I got the 3-year on an EPP for $66, which is FAR less than it cost me to get the HD in my desktop replaced when it failed (physical failure...the dreaded clicking). I've had 2 desktop HDs quit (lost my entire thesis on one of them), and the fan in my business laptop quit after about a month. Luckily, I had an IT person just fix it for me, but since I'm leaving this job and won't have that convenience, I opted for the warranty. Plus, I get accidental coverage through my renter's insurance.

 

Got the 2 year depot warranty. My Visa card covers an additional year, thus I'm covered for 3 years....around then, I'll probably be upgrading anyway.

 

I got the 3 year depot & Thinkpad protection. Price seemed very reasonable. Plus I get another year from VISA.