Kindle Review – Kindle Fire Review, Kindle 4 Review

Amazon has begun to display an option for a 2-year extended warranty for the Kindle 2. This is really interesting to me since I wonder whether it’s worth it, and whether the warranty would make a Kindle 2 owner more likely to be careless with their Kindle.

Kindle 2 2-Year Extended Warranty Vs Kindle 2 1 year limited Warranty

Basically, the big advantage of the Kindle 2 extended warranty is that it runs for 1 more year, covers 1 occurrence of accidental damage or drops, and also covers lightning and power surges. It does of course cost $65. Here are some further details and contrasts -

1. The 1 year limited warranty is free. The 2 year extended warranty costs $65.
2. The 1 year warranty covers -
   

   either (i) repair the Device using either new or refurbished parts, (ii) replace the Device with a new or refurbished Device, or (iii) refund the purchase price of the Device.

3. The extended warranty covers -
   

   Two years of coverage for failures due to normal operation of device.
   Two years of coverage for damage attributed to lightening or power surges.
   Two years of coverage (limited to a single claim) for accidental drops or damage.

4. The 2 year Kindle 2 warranty allows you a full refund after 60 days, and a pro-rated refund after 60 days – provided no claim has been made. 
5. With either warranty the damaged Kindle 2 has to be returned.
6. With the 2 year extended warranty, Kindle 2 shipping to the service center and back is covered. I thought this was a nice touch.
7. Currently, within the warranty period dropped Kindles are sometimes replaced for free, and sometimes for $180.
8. The 2 year extended warranty must be bought within 30 days of buying your Kindle 2. Also, not sure if it covers any problems with the battery, and whether they’ll replace it for you – My understanding is that Amazon will replace defective batteries for either $65 or $85.

My thought is that the peace of mind of 1 case of accidental damage or drops being covered and the extended year makes this a viable option. Before You actually purchase it though, you should look at another option.

Kindle 2 Official Extended 2 year Warranty Vs SquareTrade Kindle Warranty

Thanks to Andrys at BookSummit for pointing this out – It seems that ServiceNet (that provide the Kindle 2 2 year warranty) aren’t the only company doing this. In Andrys’ words -

 http://squaretrade.com warranty for 2 extra yrs is good and only about $35 or so and if bought within 30 days of a purchase covers an accident.

Here’s the information that I could find -

1. It covers mechanical and electrical failures that occur during normal use. 
2. They seem to indicate a 5 day service agreement – however, I can’t confirm this for the Kindle. 
3. They did blog about covering the Kindle – however, you’ll have to use ‘Other’ category as its not in the drop down  – It is covered though.
4. They cover Kindle purchases from Amazon or EBay. They cover used Kindles too.
5. They are NOT the official insurers Amazon recommends – that would be ServiceNet.
6. They seem to have the option for 3 year warranties – I couldn’t confirm whether they offer only 2 year or only 3 year on the Kindle. 3 year warranty would be $49.
7. You can buy accidental coverage for accidents – however, you must buy this within 30 days of buying the Kindle (regardless of when it arrives).

SquareTrade seems like a good option too. If the price difference isn’t a big deal, I’d recommend going with the ServiceNet warranty for your Kindle 2 - just because it’s through Amazon. However, SquareTrade is a good option too.

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