Apple is about to give customers much more time to decide whether they want to sign up for its extended warranty program, AppleCare+. A report by Bloomberg states the company sent out a memo to employees notifying them of the expansion, augmenting the waiting period massively from the original 60 days.
AppleCare+ builds on the regular warranty by covering accidental damage as well as manufacturer defects, as well as providing premium support options. In the case of the iPhone, an extra tier also offers coverage against stolen and lost products as well.
The memo seen by Bloomberg says the expanded signup period “gives customers another opportunity to protect their device and have access to all the AppleCare+ benefits.”
That said, it does not seem the expanded offer is available to everyone, but instead only those customers who choose to sign up for AppleCare+ in full or who pay using installments on the Apple Card. Those making regular monthly payments won’t be able to sign up.
Tim Cook recently commented on how coronavirus has hurt AppleCare+ revenue, so expanding the signup period seems like a logical way to help drive more subscribers.
Note that the AppleCare+ page does not yet reflect these changes, but we imagine it’ll be updated any time now.
If interested, the plan still costs about $199 for an iPhone 11 Pro ($299 with theft and loss protection) but the price varies by device. According to Bloomberg, you’ll have to visit an AppleStore for an employee to verify your device is not damaged before signing up for the new expanded coverage.
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Published August 17, 2020 — 21:53 UTC