1. Take a picture of your products and serial numbers

Whether you want to inventory your items or need a handy reference when there’s a problem, taking a picture of the product as well as its serial number means you won’t be in the awkward position of trying to talk on the phone while on the floor with a flashlight trying to read those teeny tiny numbers.

Plus, if you should have a theft or disaster, having a visual record of your items makes it easier for your insurance company to settle your claim.

2. Schedule your items with insurance

Speaking of insurance, I suggest contacting your homeowners, renters, or business insurance provider to see about separate insurance for your most expensive technology items. While insurance providers and policies vary, typically scheduling an item provides it extra protection and covers it separate from your regular deductible. If your computer is scheduled, many times it will even cover data recovery should your computer be dropped or damaged.

3. Track key information in your Address Book and iCal

If only you’d contacted tech support before the warranty expired, the broken gadget would have been repaired at no charge! There’s an easy way to make sure you have all your info on hand when you need it.

As you take pictures of your items in step 1, put the serial number and warranty expiration date in your Address Book along with tech support’s phone number (create custom fields for Serial Number and Tech Support if you wish). Attach the picture of the item to the address book entry.

Then put the warranty expiration in your iCal Now you’ve got all the info you need in one place and won’t miss that warranty expiration date.

A bonus outcome of this tip is that if you are at the electronics store and you have questions about compatibility or which model you own, the information will be handy so long as you sync your address book info manually or through iCloud.

While these tips won’t prevent problems from occurring, they’ll help protect you from further cost and inconvenience when they do.

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The BBC reports that in Italy consumers are guaranteed two years of warranty protection for all purchased products, but Apple had guaranteed only one year of warranty support — equal to what it offers here in the U.S. and in other countries. Instead of recognizing the second year of free warranty support, Apple was reportedly telling Italian customers to purchase AppleCare to cover any warranty claims after the first year.

The Antitrust Authority said Apple was misleading Italian consumers about what their rights were, which would ”induce consumers to sign an additional contract.” As a result, Apple was fined €400,000 for not explaining the two-year warranty guarantee to consumers at the time of the sale or on its website, and the additional €500,000 fine was levied for offering AppleCare without a complete explanation of consumers’ rights. Apple has also been given 90 days to update its Italian website with information about the two-year guarantee.

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If you purchase the plan, you’ll be covered for up to two incidents of accidental destruction of your device — i.e. dropping it down a bunch of stairs. Water damage is likely also covered under this plan. You’ll be liable for a $49 service fee to get the replacement devices, but at least you won’t have to fork over for a whole new iPhone.

AppleCare+ replaces the basic AppleCare package, which used to cost $69 but didn’t provide any coverage in case of accidental damage.

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1. Know the computer’s serial number

Apple products are hot on college campuses, and can easily get stolen. Once stolen, it’s hard to retrieve your serial number after the fact, and it’s one of the first things a police officer will ask about. To obtain this information, go to the Apple () menu in the upper left hand corner, choose “About This Mac” and then click twice on the OS Version and the serial number will appear. Both student and parent should keep a copy of this information.

2. Know the computer’s warranty expiration and make sure Apple’s info is correct

Most Apple products have a one year warranty, extended to three years by AppleCare. Generally if you purchase both the computer and AppleCare at the same time directly from Apple, your AppleCare will be registered. It’s important to know if it was registered properly and the expiration date is correct before a problem develops. Go to http://support.apple.com and then click “Check Your Service & Support Coverage” in order to find out when the warranty expires. If this information is incorrect, contact Apple to get it corrected. Typically you need to fax them the receipt if there’s a discrepancy.

3. Get AppleCare if you don’t already have it

AppleCare is really a great value, especially for college students. Not only does it cover hardware failures, but it also gives you three years of phone support. That support will come in handy when a paper is due and you can’t figure out how to get iWork to play ball.

If you didn’t purchase AppleCare when you purchased your Mac, you can purchase it at anytime during the initial one-year warranty period. AppleCare is highly discounted in the educational market, either directly from Apple or from campus bookstores.

4. Insure your Mac against loss

Even if your Mac isn’t stolen, an inebriated roommate, an out-of-hand party, or plain carelessness can result in a damaged Mac. The two most common problems I see are liquid spills and laptops being dropped. Neither of these are covered by Apple’s original or extended warranty.

Most homeowners or renter’s insurance companies will allow you to specifically “schedule” a student’s computer while at the dorm. Typically this costs just a few dollars a year and results in a lower deductible and protection against more perils. Before you have problems is the time to talk with your insurance agent about it.

5. Bring a pound of uncooked rice

No this isn’t for an emergency late night dinner; that’s what ramen is for. Liquid spills are common in college environments, and the best known remedy for that is a bag of uncooked rice. Not instant rice, but the inexpensive uncooked plain white rice. Should a spill occur, immediately cut power to the computer and remove the battery. If the battery can’t be removed, shut it down. Put the device in a sealed container (typically a trash bag) with that uncooked bag of rice and wait 48 hours before trying to turn it on. The device may be okay after that. Though I shouldn’t have to say it, it is advisable to throw away the rice when you’re through.

6. Time Machine is required, but is just a first step

College is a significant investment, and a late or missed assignment can be the difference between passing a class and failing. Time Machine is a quick and effective primary backup system that comes with every Mac running Leopard or above, and enabling it will help you prevent delays due to data corruption.

However it really isn’t enough — again, college have a way of attracting “accidents.” If the Time Machine drive is sitting next to the computer, it could get damaged or go missing along with the computer. Students who use portable computers may go days at a time without connecting to their Time Machine drives, too. For the average going rate of $50 a year, I highly recommend that you buy an online and offsite backup solution. Read my recent articles for recommendations.

7. Know where to take your Mac when problems arise

In those years at college, a computer problem is likely to develop that may or may not be covered by Apple’s warranty. Before a problem occurs, it’s good to know who to call for Mac help. The obvious choice might be a local Apple retail store, but that might be far away, and in college, time is of the essence. Many campuses have college bookstores that also provide Apple warranty service, but you need to ask first. Additionally, you can use Apple’s Authorized Service Provider locator to find the closest repair center. If you have a choice between more than one, it’s a good idea to get to know them. Just ask a few questions and find out their procedures and turn around time.

8. Bring all recovery media that came with the Mac (if applicable)

Although Lion has recovery over the Internet, older Macs still need those DVDs or flash drives in order to reinstall or repair the operating system. These are typically in the box that came with the Mac and are often overlooked. When you call for support, the friendly Apple support technician will be expecting these to be close at hand. This can avoid a trip to a service provider if the problem can be diagnosed or repaired with a restore or reinstall.

9. Turn off automatic software updates

Although it’s rare, a software update can introduce new problems to a system. A recent example are numerous problems that came with 10.6.8 — enough that Apple introduced 10.6.8 v1.1. Apple eventually fixes problems with later software updates, but running software update right before a paper is due is a bad idea. Better to plan updates right before a visit home or scheduled downtime. Be sure if you don’t already know your Administrator password, you find it out now. You’ll need that for troubleshooting and updates.

10. Have a spare power adapter

This tip is for laptop users. Inevitably in the hustle and bustle of going about your studies, a power adapter is going to be left in class, at home, or at the coffee shop. A nice $1,000 + laptop can be rendered completely useless by the lack of a simple power adapter. Having a spare one can give you time to get a new one or retrieve your old one. I generally recommend keeping one at your residence, plugged in, and one in your laptop bag. If you lose the laptop bag, you can always retrieve the one from your residence.

Those are ten handy tips to make sure that you and your child never have to tell the prof “the computer ate my homework.” Got any others to add to the list?

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The MacBooks displaying the problem are said by Apple to have shipped between October 2009 and April 2011, and the problem is described as “the rubber surface on some MacBooks [separating] from the bottom case of the system.” Customers who qualify (Apple will check your serial number to see if you’re in the affected crop) can get their bottom case replaced free of charge either at an Apple Retail Store or at an Apple Authorized Service Provider. Customers also have the option of ordering a replacement kit online, which includes a new bottom case, a Phillips head screwdriver, screws and instructions.

MacBook owners should not that Apple is also offering refunds for customers who’ve already paid for a repair due to the issue described above, and that anyone who thinks they’re eligible for getting some money back should contact Apple directly.

It’s not clear how widespread the problem is exactly. A search at the Apple Support Communities site turned up numerous threads related to the issue (at least six by my count), but it’s not a problem that has attracted the spotlight as much as the reported signal attenuation issues with the iPhone 4, for example. Apple says in its note that customers who aren’t seeing problems shouldn’t take any action, even if they purchased their MacBooks during this time, so it’s possible only a small subset of product was affected.

Anyone seeing their MacBook’s bottom rubber cover separating from the case?

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The tool Apple uses to determine whether or not a defective Nvidia GPU is responsible for your MacBook Pro’s problems might not be accurate in a number of cases, according to Mobile Magazine. Apple evaluates machines for the problem using a USB stick running Nvidia’s diagnostic software. Once the drive is inserted, it runs tests and provides printed reports on the nature of the problem. However, the test may not be returning accurate reports in every instance.

In some cases, according to Mobile Magazine, the faulty GPUs can overheat, leading to a short in your logic board when heat-transfer material ends up on parts of your computer’s internals where it shouldn’t be. That would lead to a diagnostic result indicating the logic board had failed, not the GPU. Logic board failures entail a non-warranty repair that can cost more than $1,000.

Mobile Magazine describes one specific case in detail where this occurred, but a call to Hi-Tech Electronics, the shop which performed the diagnostic and repair in question (it replaced the faulty GPU and cleaned the logic board for $260 including shipping, instead of the $1,000 Apple was asking) confirmed it has seen many similar cases, and continues to repair multiple MacBook Pros with problems stemming from the same issue each week.

Apple couldn’t be reached for comment as of this writing. If these reports are accurate, a simple fix would be to open up and inspect the internals of any MacBook Pros potentially affected by faulty Nvidia GPUs, rather than simply performing a software diagnostic test using a USB drive. It would be more costly and time-consuming, but also probably better for customer loyalty in the long run.

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On the support page created to describe the problem and the resulting warranty extension, Apple doesn’t mention which brand of hard drives are affected by name, which could mean that the problem doesn’t lie with the hard drives themselves, but with some other system components. Another indication that this is indeed the case is that all capacities of hard drive are also affected.

If you’re wondering whether or not you have an affected unit (Apple says only a “small percentage” of users will experience problems), it’s very easy to identify. Your MacBook will just stop working altogether, and any attempts to boot it will result in a screen that displays a folder icon with a question mark over top of it, as in the image below. As someone who’s seen this screen many times while fixing up old PowerBooks, I can tell you it isn’t a heartening experience.

Apple describes what you should do if you’re greeted with such a screen:

Please take your MacBook to the Apple representative most convenient for you:

• Apple Authorized Service Provider – Find one here.
• Apple Retail Store – Set up an appointment with a Genius.

If Apple or an Apple Authorized Service Provider confirms that your hard drive is affected, Apple will replace it with a new hard drive. You will need to have the original OS installation discs that were shipped with your product in order to re-install your operating system, other applications, and any backed up data.

If you need assistance finding the best service option in your area, you may contact Apple Technical Support for more information.

It sounds like any data you may have stored on the drive will be irrevocably lost if this does happen to you, so if you have one of the affected models and you haven’t yet implemented any kind of backup system, you should probably consider doing so.

If your machine has already had this problem, and you’ve already paid out of pocket to get it fixed or replace your drive, you can contact Apple Technical Support and inquire about a reimbursement process. No word on whether that extends to at home HD replacements, which is how I would’ve tried to solve the problem, but if you haven’t kept your old faulty drive, I highly doubt it would. Mostly I expect this will apply when people have taken their machines through official Apple repair channels to correct the problem.

The extension period covers affected Macs three years from the date of purchase, for this specific problem alone, or until August 15, 2010, whichever comes last, so you still have about six months in which your HD can fail and you’ll still be covered. It may seem like an arbitrary window, but Apple does include a caveat that it will be evaluating the repair need on an ongoing basis and extend that deadline if circumstances require.

Anyone experienced the symptoms Apple is describing with this model MacBook?

I quit smoking four years ago, but before that, I was a dedicated smoker for a solid decade. Luckily, I never had any Mac trouble that would necessitate a warranty replacement during those 10 years, or I might’ve been out of luck. Apple has denied Applecare warranty service in at least two separate instances due to the effects of secondhand smoke, according to Consumerist.

In both cases, smoke was to blame for repairs not performed, but not because the malfunctions the computers suffered were due to damage related to cigarette smoke. Instead, the fact that the Macs had existed in houses where people smoked had resulted in the machines being labeled health risks, which was grounds for repair personnel to refuse to work on them.

It’s unclear whether or not smoking is specifically covered in the terms of Applecare, but it appears that the grounds upon which service refusals have been made is the classification of nicotine as a hazardous substance on the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) list. At least, that’s what one of the people affected heard from Steve Jobs’ office, though she clearly disputes the logic used in that justification:

Dena [from Jobs' office] did advise me that nicotine is on OSHA’s list of hazardous substances and Apple would not require an employee to repair anything deemed hazardous to their health. However, OSHA also lists calcium carbonate (found in calcium tablets), isopropyl alcohol (used to clean wounds), chlorine (used in swimming pools), hydrogen peroxide (also used to clean wounds), sucrose (a sugar), talc (as in powder), etc…as hazardous substances.

Consumerist couldn’t get an Apple representative to make an official statement regarding the company’s policy on Macs used in a smoking environment, but considering the similarity of both responses to the inquiries of the two people affected, Apple repair personnel at least reserve the right to refuse service, even if they don’t always choose to exercise that right.

As a longtime smoker (who never smoked indoors anywhere I lived, mind you), and as someone who’s had to get the cigarette smell out of at least one car before selling it, I can see people objecting to working on a computer that’s been saturated with smoke for an extended period. The smell isn’t pretty, and it might feel like the machine might be hazardous to your health — feel being the key word.

I’m no scientist, but I’m assuming it isn’t like the Apple techs cracked the case and a puff of smoke shot out. Is there really a significant danger associated with the inert remnants of what smoke leaves behind? I remain highly skeptical. Anyone else ever run into this excuse for refusing an otherwise valid Applecare repair?

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For many of us, the iPhone has become a staple item in our daily assortment of tech gear. Like any product that gets heavy use on a daily basis, sometimes it can fail. For the iPhone, that means a trip to the often-crowded Genius Bar for help. Now, as more consumers are adopting the digital device, Apple is facing an increasing number of iPhones in need of repair. The good news for consumers is, the majority of those repairs can now be done by your local Genius.

When the iPhone first launched, Apple offered a “loaner” program (with a fee) for consumers who had iPhones that needed to be repaired. This program, which received little attention in the press, finally disappeared from Apple as it began offering instant iPhone swaps, instead of asking a consumer to wait a few days for an offsite repair. (Come to find out, the “waiting” technique may work well for iPods, but doesn’t fly for iPhones). In an even more efficient move, Apple now offers a new service allowing Geniuses to perform actual repairs of the screen assembly to your iPhone at the store.

What? No more free swaps?

For the business-minded, the talk of your Genius Bar appointment being even longer while a Genius dissects and operates on your iPhone may make you scream, “No fair! Usually you just give me a new one and I’m on my way.” We all knew, though, that it would not be cost-effective for Apple to simply swap out an iPhone on a whim when things went bad. With the ability to perform certain repairs in-house, this means you keep your original iPhone and won’t need take the time to sync up a replacement iPhone before you are back in the game.

Cracked screen? No worry!

The biggest component likely to either fail or be damaged is the screen. Similar in construction to the screen on the iMac (minus the touch-sensitive components and newer oleophobic coating on the iPhone 3GS), the screen can be removed from your iPhone via a large suction cup. (Though I’m sure Apple has a very “specialized” device that does this — much like the infamous unbent paper clip that doubles as the SIM card ejection tool). Geniuses can now replace a defective screen for free if your iPhone is under warranty or, if not warranty-related, for a nice hefty $199. (Standard disclaimer: Defective doesn’t mean cracked beyond belief because your estranged ex drove over it in her Hummer. That does void your warranty, as does liquid damage and jailbroken phones.)

Before Apple began offering this service, consumers faced choices like iFixIt or iResQ, which offer similar repair services (or just components) at rates cheaper than Apple. However, such solutions do void your Apple warranty. These solutions also require you (in repair instances) to send off your iPhone, so you will be without it for a few days. Going the Apple route, provided you can actually find a Genius Bar appointment at your local Apple Store, they should be capable of (provided the parts are in stock) replacing your screen assembly within five to 10 minutes. When a Genius graces your iPhone, your warranty remains intact.

Apple’s talented Genius team can also perform other repairs to the iPhone, as the screen assembly contains other parts that can fail, including the receiver or touch sensors. In order to continue to reduce costs and provide quicker turnaround to consumers, Apple will likely follow its trend of performing more repairs in store. As crowded as the Genius Bars usually are, Apple will have to keep repair times under consideration. Most stores allocate 10 minutes per iPhone or iPod appointment. When times are busy and the Geniuses get behind, taking the time to swap the screen may only extend wait times for others. At the time of this writing, the Apple Store is unable to do screen replacements on the iPod touch or the classic iPhone due to slight construction differences. (Hint: These models do not feature the same two screws found on the bottom of the 3G and 3GS.)

Most importantly, please remember to back up your iPhone before going to the Genius Bar. You never know when your iPhone may need more than just a simple screen replacement.

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Clayton’s ‘Book fell victim to what evidently is a not uncommon defect in the NVIDIA GeForce 8600GT graphics processor units in May 2007 and Early 2008 revisions of the MacBook Pro, combined with a simultaneous hard disk issue which rendered the machine unbootable. The good news is that Apple came through with a repair that involved replacing the entire logic board under a recently announced extended service program for these models even though Clayton’s computer was out of warranty. The bad news is that it seems many owners of these MacBook Pro models are experiencing similar difficulties to such a degree of frequency that Apple announced in October:

“In July 2008, NVIDIA publicly acknowledged a higher than normal failure rate for some of their graphics processors due to a packaging defect. At that same time, NVIDIA assured Apple that Mac computers with these graphics processors were not affected. However, after an Apple-led investigation, Apple has determined that some MacBook Pro computers with the NVIDIA GeForce 8600M GT graphics processor may be affected. If the NVIDIA graphics processor in your MacBook Pro has failed, or fails within two years of the original date of purchase, a repair will be done free of charge, even if your MacBook Pro is out of warranty.”

Apple and NVIDIA stepping up and taking some responsibility for this defect is a good thing as far as it goes, but it almost certainly does not go far enough. There seems not much probable cause to believe that (a) this problem will not eventually afflict most examples of those MacBook Pro models if they are used long enough, and (b) that once repaired there’s any guarantee of the issue not repeating itself after the two-year extended service eligibility or even three years of maximum AppleCare extended warranty coverage.

I expect my computers to provide reliable service much longer than two or three years. My present main workhorse Mac is a model originally debuting in September 2003, and I have a couple of more than eight year old Pismo PowerBooks in daily service as well, none of which have ever been troubled with hardware defects. With devices costing as much as Apple notebooks do, one should expect nothing less.

An extended service program more along the lines of the seven-year one Apple implemented for the PowerBook 5300 and 190 models back in 1996 after that model proved plagued with a constellation of hardware and software problems including bad motherboards, power and circuitry problems, inadequate AC power adapters, enclosure issues like flimsy display screen hinges, power adapter plugs and trackpad buttons that broke, would be more in order,

In 2004, Apple announced a more modest three-year Extended Repair Program for G3 iBooks manufactured between May 2002 and April 2003, with Apple CFO Phil Schiller acknowledging that “We have determined that a small number of iBooks introduced in 2002 have a display problem caused by a component failure on the logic board.” Unfortunately, numbers weren’t all that small, and I had readers report that logic boards in their G3 iBook G3s had serially failed two, three, even four times.

Arguably, this GPU issue with the NVIDIA GeForce 8600M GT equipped MacBook Pros is as bad or even worse than the PowerBook 5300 troubles. I bought a 5300 in late 1996. At about the 4 1/2 year mark it developed the loose power adapter jack, broken trackpad button and screen hinge issues, and the entire case plastics were replaced by Apple for free under the extended service program. I’m happy to report that the old 5300 provided eight years of useful service, the first three and a half for me and the remainder as my daughter’s high-school and university freshman year computer. We still have it and it still works. I’m wildly pessimistic that there will be very many May 2007 through September 2008 MacBook Pro’s that will still boot and run come the year 2022. People who purchased these machines deserve better.

Personally, I’m now of a mind that my next system will be a MacBook unless I can scrape up the scratch to get one of the new unibody 15″ MacBook Pros, whose NVIDIA GeForce 9600M GT GPUs we hope will not be afflicted with a similar issue down the road.

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My work is a Mac shop. Everyone has a Mac, some people even have two (desktop and laptop). Anyway, I recently decided to do an inventory to see what we had and what was/was not under warranty.

I started by making a Google docs spreadsheet and named it “Office Macs.” (Creative…I know). I then went around to each workstation and recorded the the type of mac, admin username & password, the OS version, GHZ, RAM, and serial number:

1. Click the apple in the finder bar
2. Click “About this Mac” (that will pop up a smaller window that tells you: OS Version, processor, Memory)
3. Click “More Info” (that will pop up another window, which you can get the serial number from)
4. Record all of this information in your Google doc

After you have all your info, you can go to this link, where all you do is input your serial number and country, and then click continue. After a few seconds you will be shown the type of Mac and the type of warranty on it. Have fun!

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