Worth getting an extended warranty on a budget laptop?

[lord of the mark]

We've just bought a new laptop PC, (Toshiba Satellite, 1.6 Ghz, 256 Meg) from CompUSA.

We havent opened it yet, and IIUC the salesguy said we could decide later whether to buy a service plan, as long as its unopened (i guess we'll have to bring it back to the store to show them.

So we're trying to decide if its worth it. For 2 years parts and labor they want about $140. IIUC this is normal wear and tear only, so if the damned thing falls and breaks thats not covered. OTOH they said they would replace the battery, which is significant value. The price of the laptop (after discounts) was only $500 to begin with.

What have your experiences been with laptops needing repairs, and the costs of said repairs?

Thanks in advance.

[SlowwHand]

Don't buy extended warranties on anything.

[alva]

Teh SlowHand speaketh teh truth!!!


...for once

[Nostromo]

Do you plan to run XP on that thing? 256 MB is not enough. Buy some extra ram, instead.

[alva]

and IIUC the salesguy said we could decide later whether to buy a service plan,

Think about it, that's just about the only thing they will let decide later on...guess why.

For 2 years parts and labor they want about $140.

In two years time, you'll be able to buy the same laptop (second hand) for the same price.

[Ming]

Damn... I actually agree with Sloww



In almost EVERY case, and extended warranty is a rip off. If the product is actually not working right, it will be covered under the manufacturer warranty.

[lord of the mark]

Originally posted by nostromo
Do you plan to run XP on that thing? 256 MB is not enough. Buy some extra ram, instead.

Its expandable to 2 gig. We'll upgrade when we run into constraints. OTOH thats also an issue for the warranty - I want to be able to upgrade without voiding the warranty.

[lord of the mark]

Originally posted by Ming
Damn... I actually agree with Sloww



In almost EVERY case, and extended warranty is a rip off. If the product is actually not working right, it will be covered under the manufacturer warranty.

I think thats 12 months limited warranty.

[alva]

30 days only?

[lord of the mark]

Originally posted by alva
30 days only?

dansed

[Dinner]

Originally posted by SlowwHand
Don't buy extended warranties on anything.

I'm with stupid... er, I mean slow.

[:) Smiley]

Cheap laptops tend to go obsolete before they break. Forget the warranty and just remember to back up.

[Imran Siddiqui]

Originally posted by SlowwHand
Don't buy extended warranties on anything.

Teh Truth!

[Ogie Oglethorpe]

Figure this you just bought a $499 laptop right. What is replacement cost of that same laptop 2 years out. For $140 today dollars thats going to be damn near the equivalent of a laptop in 2-3 years time.

Skip the warranty. Used tobe worth it when laptops were multi thousand dollar machines and you cracked a screen but today as cheap as they are not even worth considering.

[SlowwHand]

You need 256 memory just to run XP.
Don't run off and buy a gig of memory thinking more is always better. I have a wheezer that won't support over 512. Check manufacturer's site. A salesman won't point it out.