EU Justice Commissioner Viviane Reding has called for Apple’s warranty adverts to be examined in the European Union’s 27 states. Reding hopes to establish whether or not the Cupertino company fails to mention a buyers’ right to a minimum two-year warranty for all electronics, including Macs and iOS devices.
If you’ve ever managed to spill liquid on an electronic device, then you’ll know that it doesn’t take too much to kill them completely; liquid and electronics simply do not mix. But you might be surprised by how well your iPhone 5 fares when it comes into contact with its biggest enemy.
If you’re been waiting to get the new iPad from the refurbished section of Apple’s Online Store in an effort to save some cash, then today is your lucky day. The latest device, which is the first and only iPad to get a high-resolution Retina display, is now available with $50 off.
If Italy has its way, Apple’s operations in the country may be shut down for 30 days, following a dispute with Italy’s AGCM competition and marketing authority. According to Reuters, Apple is also being faced with fines up to $377,500 unless a free two year warranty is given to all Italian customers.
While many of us already have our eyes set on the new iPhone, which Apple will likely release this fall, there are still millions of people using the iPhone 4.
Released on June 24, 2010, the first round of iPhone 4’s are about to hit their two-year anniversary. This means that those who purchased an iPhone 4 along with the AppleCare protection plan, which effectively extends warranty protection to two years, are about to lose coverage.
If you bought an iPhone 4 in the summer of 2010 you should take some time to examine it in order to ensure that no part of it is showing signs of defect. Here’s what you need to know.
Before the vast majority of us have even had the pleasure of signing for our new MacBook Pro delivery, iFixit has torn the notebook apart to reveal its internals. Although this is undoubtedly Apple’s best portable yet — what with its stunning Retina display, super speedy solid-state storage, and Intel’s latest Ivy Bridge processors — iFixit describes it as “the least repairable laptop” they’ve ever taken apart.
“Apple has packed all the things we have into one beautiful little package.” For consumers, this means incredible expensive repair bills, and little to no upgradeability at all.
Jailbreakers will rejoice to hear that third-party warranty provider SquareTrade has expanded its coverage to include jailbroken Apple iPhones. Unlike Apple’s own AppleCare+ program and standard warranty, SquareTrade will give you customer support and even replace your iPhone whether it’s jailbroken or not. This is the first time a warranty has been offered that specifically covers jailbroken iOS devices, although it’s currently unclear if jailbroken iPads and iPod touches are included.
Having been fined $1.2 million by Italian regulators late last year over its marketing for AppleCare products, Apple has been forced to clarify its warranty coverage for customers in the European Union, and compare its extended warranty products against statutory EU warranty coverage.
Although many EU consumer laws already guarantee twice as much protection, Apple can continue to rip off customers there by selling AppleCare extended warranties.
Lawyer Carlo Piana told Cult of Mac that although Apple lost its appeal over fines for unfair business practices in an Italian court, that probably won’t affect Apple’s stance in the rest of the EU-27, although consumer laws are “harmonized” across member states.
Buying a new iPad? Be sure that you’re well aware Apple has made some changes to AppleCare. This past year Apple changed the iPhone AppleCare option to AppleCare+ and it has now done the same for the iPad. Unsurprisingly, AppleCare+ offers you more protection for your new iPad than was previously available under standard AppleCare plans, but there are a few differences, which everyone should take a moment to understand.
Apple’s carrier partners in Singapore are removing the front- and rear-facing cameras from the Cupertino company’s latest iPhone 4S before selling it, according to a new report. The doctored devices are aimed at members of the military who are prohibited from taking cameras into their bases.
The saddest moment of my life was when my iPhone 4’s screen shattered to pieces after I dropped it while riding my bike. The second saddest moment of my life was when the Apple Genius Bar guy told me how much it was going to cost to fix it. (What can I say, I’ve lived a sheltered life). Had I known about SquareTrade’s insurance for iPhone the painful blow could have been softened. SquareTrade’s got some great prices on insurance coverage for your iPhone so that you don’t have to worry about what happens when you inevitably do something clumsy like spill your milk on the speaker, or drop it while playing with your kids.
Because our readers have been so amazing to us this year, we’re giving away two iPhone warranties (worth $200 each!). The warranties last for two years, so if you just bought an iPhone 4S you can rest assured that your beautiful new baby will stay intact for the remainder of your contract. Wanna win a free iPhone warranties?
Here are the rules for the giveaway:
The new MacBook Air has the highest number of liquid contact indicators, or LCIs, of any Apple product yet… little stickers that tell a Genius if it’s okay to deny you service on your broken gadget because you dropped it in the drink.
LCIs have always been troubling, since they tend to trigger by humidity alone, making Apple gadgets a risky investment for those who live in the tropics. Apple’s actually been sued about false LCI reports, so the fact that the new Air had so many of them was particularly worrisome: it seemed like Apple was just chomping at the bit to deny you service on the notoriously hard-to-service Air.
However, things may not be as clearly conspiratorial as that.
Apple has never been very happy with the prospect of fixing your iPod or iPhoneunder warranty just because you dropped it in the toilet. That’s why they’ve started cramming so many moisture sensors into the gadgets: the tiny stickers — which change color if they are exposed to an inordinate amount of moisture — give Apple an excuse to deny you service if things get too wet.
Apple’s rationale here is pretty sound. After all, if you trip and spill your iPhone into the drink, that’s pretty clearly not their responsibility. The problem is that those moisture sensors and their accuracy are both highly contentious: Apple’s fighting a lawsuit in which a California woman claims they are trigged erroneously by the humidity, and indeed, those who live in more humid climes have been complaining about false moisture positives for years.
With that in mind, it’s sort of distressing to see that the new MacBook Air uses a record amount of moisture sensors internally. In fact, by my count, there are 9 moisture sensors exposed in the image above alone… and there’s apparently even more hidden underneath connectors.
