rmbp screen durability
 

Let me start off by saying that the rmbp isnt my first macbook.
Ive had the 2008 13" mbp till now, when ive decided that its time to upgrade for more power and better technology.

My 08 mbp has lasted me till now with no issues whatsoever. No issues! My only ever laptop that ive had no issues with despite daily usage, minor bumps and drops here and there. No issues.

This week i bought the upgraded, top of the line 13" rmbp.
what the salesmen at Apple told me scared me a bit.
he told me that i should consider paying the $279 for the 3yr apple care warranty plan.
he said that the retina display is fragile and that it can cost a lot to fix as they gotta pull the screen if anything were to happen. It could start anywhere from $400+ for any screen repairs.

Ive just spend a tad over $2500 for this rmbp and didnt expect the screen to be faulty within the first few years...
ive done some searching online and havent found any info on the retina display crapping out. Just forums and articles debating whether retina was worth it...

What pissed me off even more was when the salesmen told me that the screen could stary showing issues after the 1st year Apple warranty...

Now the big question. Is the $279 worth it for the 3yr applecare??
It seems like a big chunk of money. But i did just spend $2500.
Any computer techies that can chime in??

Appreciate it. Thanks!!

Typical sales pitch

get it if you're scared. He's just selling you peace of mind.

I have the RMBP and I have never had any major issues with it. Granted I do have AppleCare (Don't judge).

I did have one problem with the screen having a slight ghosting effect that I noticed ~4 months in, apparently this happened with the first run of RMBP. I got the screen exchanged and have not had any problems since.

Besides the minor hiccup, the screen has been great. There's a baby running around the house and he has poked the screen, punched the screen (as hard as a 3 year old can), and slammed the screen shut multiple times and it still works great!

its one of those things if you get it and you need it you'll be grateful. But if you didn't get it and it does go wrong, you'll be kicking yourself.

I got the 1st gen 15"macbook Pro and I didn't get the student discount that you have cause my AppleCare cost more than that. For me I'm grateful cause in my 2nd year I had a dead pixel got it replaced in a day I was pretty happy about that. But that's just my 2 cents at the end of the day its a gamble.

honestly the screen is pretty durable.. any problems you usually notice right away such as backlight bleeding etc etc. apple care is worth or not worth will depend on how you look at it. i replaced the fan in mine twice.. but that doesn't even add up to the cost of apple care.. so for me not really worth it.. but if you have to replace the screen or whatever just once.. then it's worth it

I fucking hate salespeople who use scare tactics. It's bullshit. That's not even a good one, either. The logic board costs way more to replace if you're going to use that tactic.

"Pay $280 now because it might cost you $400 later" ... lulz ...

Either the computer is a piece of shit or the warranty isn't worth getting if that's its main selling point.

The real advantage of an extended warranty is cost certainty (assuming no deductibles, etc.). You know exactly how much the product is going to cost you over the next set number of years.

The likelihood is that, on average, buying warranties will cost you more than paying for repairs, but if you have set budget/income (i.e. departments which have set budgets, retirees on fixed incomes, students with limited/set incomes, etc.) it makes sense to get it since you have that cost certainty and you can't afford to just go out and buy a new one (or pay a $1200 bill) should the unlikely happen.

If you're financing it for more than a year, it should pretty much be a given. Even at the ridiculously high interest rates we had when I worked at Staples, it was less than $15/month over 3 years to extend the warranty to 3 years in most cases. Using BMO's calculator, it would cost just over $10/month at 19.9% interest over 36 months.

for what it's worth, macbooks are some of the most reliable laptops I've ever dealt with. In my family alone we have macbooks from 2008/2009 still running strong with just ram/SSD upgrades

realistically, I'd only be worried if I dropped my macbook or spilled a drink on it, stuff that isn't covered anyways

if you're a dits and constantly drop things and spill stuff, then accidental insurance from bestbuy could be worth it (moot point as you bought it from apple store)
for the regular extended insurance is never worth it to me because my credit card already covers an additional year...look up if your CC is eligible or not. So if it does it's only a difference from month 24 to month 36 of your ownership...by then it's probably only worth $800 anyways

You know you can buy Applecare at anytime before your 1 year warranty is up right? Just wait till month 11 and then get it. That's what I did with my old MBP.

I've read that ghosting is a fair common problem depending if Apple ships the rMBP with alag screens or Samsung screen. Anyone know how I can check this?

normally I wont buy applecare, but if you ever opened up a rmbp you know nothing inside can be a DIY job.

I'd buy it for peace of mind

If I got the basic rmbp no.

if it was the maxed out version yes. It is the same price point to insure a totally different unit.

279 for 1349 maybe depending on circumstances

but 279 for 2500 YES!
also you can get student discount on it so its only $199