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General discussion

Recent reliability article and extended warranty purchase

by fish5055 Dec 7, 2009 3:51AM PST

I just purchased a new laptop from a large retailer. I did extensive research prior to purchase. Recent articles raise concerns with reliability. Also, the battery for my 2 year old laptop is now junk.
The store pushed the extended service contract (I realize most profit comes from service contracts). The cost of the service contract was about $130 for a 2 year service contract which includes battery replacement. The new laptop is a $600 "budget" laptop. Since reliability is a growing concern and batteries are expensive to replace-- Should I purchase a service contract? Is it money well spent? or would the money be better saved and put toward the next one ( are laptops a 2-3 year disposable purchase?)

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3 Posts
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Let's look at the battery specs.
by r. proffitt Former Forum moderator Dec 7, 2009 3:54AM PST

Can you share with us if it's all of 300 cycles? That means about 12 to 24 months and you get another.

Why would you call a battery that had such a spec unreliable?

Now look at Apple's batteries which are about 1,000 cycles and should get you to about year five. Would you pay for this quality?
Bob

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Laptop reliability AND battery life
by fish5055 Dec 7, 2009 4:19AM PST

I am not calling the battery unreliable. A recent article posted on CNET discussed laptop reliability and found that 1 of 3 will have hardware problems within the first 3 years. A service contract would provide insurance against this. As an added bonus, the service contract will also replace the battery. I assume the battery in my new laptop will last about 18 monthes and will then need replacement. I could "pre-purchase" a new battery by getting the extended service contract, and turn it in for a free replacement during the 2 year service agreement. I would also have "insurance" against other possible hardware problems that are referrenced in the CNET article about laptop reliability. I'm just not sure if the $130 pricetag for the service contract is a financially sound investment on a $600 laptop. The service contract is nearly 25% of the cost of the laptop.

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So let's call them unreliable.
by r. proffitt Former Forum moderator Dec 7, 2009 5:57AM PST

If we know the battery life span for most units is about 300 cycles then we will have a problem in 3 years on most machines. The article is true.

We also have issues with the Windows OS (not a doubt here as the forums are flooded with posts about it.)

What is evident is that we have yet to find cheap, reliable and long lasting laptops.

-> But let's use your 130 buck price for target practice or discussion. One battery and certainly any LCD, motherboard, hard drive issue and it's paid off.

Remember that while some owners can change out those parts, most will be at the mercy of a repair counter and 130 bucks is par for an OS reload!
Bob

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