When you finally get the highly anticipated iPhone X in your hands, whatever you do, don't drop it. Why? Because Apple will hold you back by $279 to replace the screen or $549 for damage beyond the warranty.
That's a scary thought, but the Cupertino brand does have a solution for some peace of mind: AppleCare+.
iPhone X Repair Costs
To put things into perspective, the screen repair for the iPhone 8 is $169 and for other damage is $399, according to Apple's updated service pricing page. In the iPhone X's case, that's $110 and $150 more respectively.
That shouldn't come as much of a surprise considering that the iPhone X sports a Super Retina OLED as opposed to the iPhone 8's IPS LCD, not to mention that its TrueDepth camera, which powers Face ID, is at risk when it's dropped.
In short, the iPhone X has some fairly expensive components, and that means the $279 to get a screen replacement and the $549 to repair others such as liquid damage, which is more than half of the handset's original price, are within good reason.
AppleCare+ Becomes A Must-have
Now to keep the costs down, that's where AppleCare+ comes in handy. The warranty service is still more expensive for the iPhone X at $199, though. In contrast, it's $149 for the iPhone 8 — a $50 difference.
However, the benefits of having your iPhone X under AppleCare+ outweigh the cost. That's because you'll fork over only $29 for screen repairs and $99 for other damages regardless of what iPhone model you have, including the iPhone X.
In other words, you'd save a lot of moola if you do drop your iPhone X and shatter its screen or damage its other components.
The Bottom Line
Paying up $199 for AppleCare+ seems to be worth it since repairs for the iPhone X are costly at $279 for a screen replacement and $549 for other damages outside of your warranty.
Think of it this way: If you do break the iPhone X's TrueDepth camera, then you're stuck with a Face ID-less version of the flagship that doesn't even have Touch ID, leaving you with no other choice to rely on codes for security like on older iPhones — that's unless you cough up an exorbitant amount for repairs, though.
Long story short, all you butterfingers out there who managed to snag an iPhone X preorder or plan to get one in the near future, it's recommended to get Apple's extended warranty service to potentially save a couple of bucks in the long run.
