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Apple is yet to announce how much its AppleCare+ warranty plans will set back Apple Watch owners seeking to protect their fancy new wearable.
However, reports on Friday have suggested those opting for the top-end Apple Watch Edition devices may have to fork over a small fortune in order to keep their watch safe from faults or damage for an extended period.
Alleged Apple Store screenshots from obtained by 9to5Mac show the AppleCare+ protection plan at a whopping $999, which works out at about £600 in proper money.
For their outlay, the extended warranty will give buyers a three years of tech support, plus coverage for two separate occurrences of damage. There’ll also be a 24/7 hotline set up especially for these folks, according to the report.
While the plan seems pretty steep, it’s probably not going to be all that significant for Apple Watch buyers splashing out upwards of £8,000 for the 18-carat gold smartwatch.
At the lower end of the scale the protection plans seem entirely reasonable, by comparison. Folks buying the standard Apple Watch will be able to snap an AppleCare+ protection plan for just $59 (around $40), while the Sport edition plan will be $79 (around £53).
However, those customers will only receive the second year of support and won’t have access to the super awesome Genius hotline, the rumour claims.
Read more: Apple Watch vs Android Wear
According to 9to5Mac, even if an AppleCare+ customer needs their Apple Watch replacing, there’s likely to be a deductible. Of course, all users will get one year of technical support then they buy any iteration of the Apple Watch.
The device goes on sale on April 24 and will be available to pre-order from April 10.
