Apple Care: Should you bite?

— -- Apple is seeing strong sales of the new iPad. If you are one of the millions who have bought — or are planning to buy — Apple's latest triumph, you may wonder if you should include an AppleCare extended warranty.

Extended warranties are about risk tolerance, something that is very personal. But is it a good value? Let's consider the facts:

Apple hardware comes with a one-year warranty. You also receive free phone technical support for up to 90 days after buying a product. At any time before the one-year warranty expires, you can buy an AppleCare Protection Plan — with one exception. But I'll get back to that.

What exactly do you get with AppleCare? An extra two years of hardware service and phone support for Macs and computer displays. The gadget plans provide an extra year of coverage for your iPod, iPhone, iPad or Apple TV.

But do note that you don't buy an AppleCare "plan" to cover all your "iTems." It will include the computer display and router if they're bought at the same time as a computer. Otherwise, you purchase AppleCare separately for each product you buy. Prices vary based on the product. As an example, AppleCare for an iMac is $169.

Apple products have a reputation for quality, but any mass production will spit out a lemon once in awhile. Of course, you'll probably know before the one-year warranty expires whether you have a bad machine.

On the plus side, AppleCare warranties are transferrable, which could help you sell your used computer or gadget, if you choose to upgrade before the warranty expires.

To start, I wouldn't buy AppleCare to protect a Mac mini or a Mac Pro. I'd also stick with the one-year warranty on the generally reliable Apple TV, iPad and iPod. Pay $39 to protect a $49 iPod shuffle? That's pretty crazy.

The iMac is a tougher call. That's because it's a display and computer wrapped up in one. If something goes haywire with the monitor, you lose the whole computer.

You can tell by the way Apple prices its warranties for laptops, however, that something bad is more likely to happen to them. Laptops are bumped, jostled and dropped. Screens can crack, conventional hard drives can lock up and batteries will eventually fail.

AppleCare for the MacBook Air and 13-inch MacBook Pro costs $249. For the 15- and 17-inch MacBook Pro, it's $349.

For someone who just shelled out $2,500 for a 17-inch MacBook Pro, and needs it for business or even school, adding three full years of protection for $349 isn't a bad value. The extended phone support alone could be worth it in a crisis.

While you're mulling over whether to buy AppleCare for a laptop, however, keep in mind that it doesn't protect against theft or loss. It also doesn't cover damage caused by accidental drops and spills. Apple will replace a defective laptop battery, but a battery that wears down through use isn't covered.

Looking at it that way, AppleCare for your laptop isn't such a good deal.

Here's a quick tip: Check with your credit card company. A few issuers automatically add a year to manufacturer warranties if you use the issuer's card to buy the product. You might just decide to buy with the right card instead of adding AppleCare.

Overall, the most confusion seems to center around AppleCare+, the iPhone-only plan. So let's look at it in a little more depth.