Ask LH: Will Apple Upgrade My iPad 3?


Dear Lifehacker, I purchased an iPad 3 on September 18, a little over a month before the new iPad was released. I have read that in some countries Apple is willing to replace them if purchased within a certain period, but that they will not replace it if you purchased from one of their resellers as I did. I rang Apple about Wi-Fi issues and asked while I was on the phone and I was told to contact the reseller I purchased from. Is there any point to doing so? Thanks, iPad Disgruntled

Picture by Kevork Djansezian/Getty Images

Dear ID,

Our basic rule in this department is that there’s never any harm in asking. I suspect the reseller involved is going to say “no”, because Apple itself would certainly say no. But you won’t know unless you ask.

Let me elaborate. In terms of the specific policies which Apple applies in Australia, the answer would be “no” even if you had purchased directly from Apple. It will offer you a refund if the price of a specific model drops , but not because a new model has been introduced. (The same restriction applies to trying to use credit card price protection insurance, by the way.) And even if Apple had reduced the price on that model, you’d still miss out: it only offers that option for 14 days.

The advice we gave when the latest iPad was first announced remains true: you have to be content with a technology purchase at the time you buy, and avoid assumptions about when the next model will appear. That’s becoming increasingly difficult to predict. There are ways to upgrade frequently without spending a fortune, but nothing beats making a purchase that you’ve thought through carefully.

Cheers
Lifehacker

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