The AppleCare+ warranty extension program looks pretty sweet and straightforward at first glance. For an iPhone 6s or 6s Plus, it covers two accidental damage incidents up to two years from your original purchase date, and it only costs $130 upfront, as well as $100 for each major repair.
Repair isn’t exactly the right word, since Cupertino will replace your broken 6s or 6s Plus with a brand-new unit under the terms of this agreement. Or any other iDevice, for that reason, with varying fees.
Meanwhile, standard AppleCare warranties merely have your backs for 12 months, and offer no discounted protection as far as cracked screens or water destruction goes.
But according to two disgruntled customers, neither policy is completely honest about the condition of replacement iPhones and iPads. These are routinely refurbished copies, allege Vicky Maldonado and Joanne McRight, in their class action complaint filed at the US District Court of California individually and on behalf of others similarly afflicted.
The lawsuit claims “refurbished” is synonymous with “reconditioned” and “secondhand”, and thus cannot be considered “equivalent to new in performance and reliability.” Sounds more like a semantic issue than a legal one, though it could mark the beginning of yet another lengthy, highly publicized court war with iFans Apple needs to win or sweep under the rug to maintain its reputation.