[Armada]

I'm probably only going to have $200 to spend on upgrading my phone this month. Is AppleCare worth it enough to warrant buying the 5c and passing on the 5s? I generally don't break my devices but I have cracked the screen on one and I've been worried since. My Galaxy Nexus made it this far without being cracked, though. I could live with the 5c for certain but I still feel like future-proofing might be a good idea. See my other thread from this subforum for my use case. Other insurance options don't seem to be worth it as much. So, I'd like to hear some opinions on what might seem good. As a side note, I'll probably be buying from an Apple Store even though Walmart could save me a few bucks.

[warcraftWidow]

It's really all about your own peace of mind and if you have the money to replace the phone without AppleCare. Not including the initial $99 fee for it, you'll pay $79 for a non-warranty replacement with AppleCare. I think a replacement without AppleCare is $279.

[jdbii]

If money is tight, and you expect money to be tight for the next two years, I'd go for the 5c. If you live close to a Best Buy they are handing out $50 in in store gift cards that can be used towards the $99 for the 5c which effectively means you walk out the door for only $50 out of pocket. Add $99 for AppleCare and your total cost is $149. You will be able enjoy your phone worry-free for the next two years which in itself is a kind of future proofing. Best Buy slashes iPhone 5c pricing to $50 with in-store gift cards.

[Armada]

If money is tight, and you expect money to be tight for the next two years, I'd go for the 5c. If you live close to a Best Buy they are handing out $50 in in store gift cards that can be used towards the $99 for the 5c which effectively means you walk out the door for only $50 out of pocket. Add $99 for AppleCare and your total cost is $149. You will be able enjoy your phone worry-free for the next two years which in itself is a kind of future proofing. Best Buy slashes iPhone 5c pricing to $50 with in-store gift cards.

I probably won't be able to get one until after Sunday. I don't think they'll give me one to use at a later date will they?

[jdbii]

Offer is valid until Oct 7th and the it says that it is available either 1) in store or 2) store pick up. Apple iPhone 5c 112173 - Best Buy
So I bet you could order it before the 7th online for store pick up with the $50 promo and pick it up at a later date. I don't know, you might have to pick it up by the 7th but what happens if you ordered a color they didn't have in stock? Surely they'd still give you the $50 promo and you'd have to wait for delivery.

I'm not sure if the terms and conditions link will work but it is on the Best Buy website as well: iPhone

The other thing that is not clear is how you get the gift card, because for the Samsung phone $50 promo it looks like they email you the gift card, but for the iPhone 5c it is not clear how you get it. I think if one went through all the steps of buying online with store pickup it would then become clear at check out, otherwise I'd give them a call before I finalized the buy.

[jdbii]

2nd reply. I forgot to add that I wouldn't sweat it at all. I bet that this $50 promo is one of many to come. If this week Best Buy is selling $50 off, next week somebody else will.