Should You Buy an Extended Warranty for iPhone 7?

If you’re an Apple fan, we can imagine how excited you must be about the launch of the new iPhone 7 on October 7. It’s the most awaited smartphone of the year, no doubt, and also one of the most expensive and delicate phones. iPhone’s are fragile and especially, very expensive when it comes to fixing it. They are also subject to drops, spills and other damages. The iPhone comes with a 1 year limited warranty, which does not cover accidental or external physical damage. So how does one make sure that the device is safe and works for a longer time? It makes sense to protect your iPhone with a good Warranty and damage protection plan. Here’s a comparison breakdown of the cost, coverage and claims of AppleCare+ and OnsiteGo Extended Warranty products for a better understanding.

Cost
OnsiteGo is reasonably priced compared to AppleCare+ as far as the extended warranty is concerned. Apple charges a fixed price of Rs 4,500 (inc taxes) for an additional year of coverage, irrespective of the iphone cost. OnsiteGo, on the other hand costs anywhere between Rs 1,999 – Rs 3,999 (inc taxes), depending on the purchase price of your phone. Frankly, this is an excellent deal because if the iPhone 7 (32GB) costs over Rs 60K, the OnsiteGo 1 Year Extended Warranty plan will cost you Rs 3,999. If you’ve already got an iPhone recently and it costed you anywhere between Rs 30K – 50K, the OnsiteGo Extended Warranty plan will cost you Rs 2,499 (inc taxes) only. AppleCare+ and OnsiteGo, both plans offer a full refund if cancelled within 30 days. Here’s what the OnsiteGo 1 Year Extended Warranty plan for iPhone 7 covers…

Coverage
One thing that’s common between both the plans is that you can buy the Extended Warranty plan as long as your iPhone is covered under the manufacturer’s warranty. AppleCare+ and OnsiteGo provide different levels of coverage. The most impressive thing about the OnsiteGo Extended Warranty plan is that it offers free pick and drop, and also has the 14 day repair or replacement guarantee for iPhone’s. If your iPhone can’t be repaired within 14 days, you get a replacement, which is not the case with AppleCare+.
Also, OnsiteGo has a cashless program with no hidden fees or charges.

AppleCare+ charges you a fixed amount of Rs 4,500 but doesn’t give you any service assurance. Nor does it provide the free pick and drop service. But it does cover the included accessories (headphones, charger and battery), which OnsiteGo doesn’t. AppleCare+ also offers phone-based support, starting from the date of the purchase. Phone support assists with issues such as connecting to a WiFi network, using iCloud, and using Apple’s iPhone apps.

OnsiteGo offers two more plans, including the Screen Protection and the Spills & Drops / Damage Protection plan, which is not available with AppleCare+. Both limit the number of incidents but the best part about the OnsiteGo Extended Warranty plan is that there is no limit to the number of service requests you can raise against the 1 Year OnsiteGo Extended Warranty plan. OnsiteGo will repair your iPhone till the total cost of all repairs does not exceed the value of the phone, whileAppleCare+ limits coverage to 2 incidents a year only. At a reasonable price with service assurance of 14 days, free pick and drop and unlimited service requests, buying the OnsiteGo Extended Warranty plan is worth it.

Claims
You might think of buying the AppleCare+ plan, especially when it comes to claims, as they have the maximum number of mobile service centers across the world. OnsiteGo also has a Pan India service and tie-ups with all the authorized brand service centers and assures you of only using original spare parts during the time of repair. For those who do not have an Apple mobile service center nearby, OnsiteGo offers the Mail In service. This simply means, a courier executive will come to your location to pick your iPhone and send it to OnsiteGo. OnsiteGo will then send your iPhone to the nearest authorized service center, get your phone repaired and courier it back to you within 14 working days. So it would be fair to say, that OnsiteGo saves you from the hassle of finding and going to a Apple care center for repairs.

(You can pre-book your iPhone 7 on Apple’s website now or at any Croma outlet across India, starting October 1)