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I got a Sony extended warranty for my PRS-500, and yes it included accidental damage coverage. But it had a nasty limitation that I learned about the hard way.
I had reduced battery life problems after 1 year (which I now understand are standard) and they lied to me and said that they could fix it.
I got back a REFURB that had the same problem, and it took me a couple of months to verify it. By the time I called Sony back, it was after the 90-day warranty period of a REFURB. But wait a minute, didn't I have a 3-year extended warranty? NOPE, not any more. The warranty only covers ONE INCIDENT and then it's toast.
Then, 2 weeks after the 90-day REFURB warranty was up, the screen developed a microcrack in the E-Ink substrate. They said I was S.O.L. The only thing they would do for me is give me a trade-in deal (and I had to beg for that because of the battery-problem misrepresentation) which was ~$125 plus the broken 500 for a new 500. Aaack.
BE CAREFUL WHAT YOU USE YOUR WARRANTY FOR. IT'S A ONE-TIME DEAL. And it'll probably result in you getting a REFURB of questionable quality -- pre-stressed and pre-damaged internally.
It's a lot different than laptop service extended warranties.
The story has a happy ending, though. I got a shiny, new PRS-505 through Sony's credit-card deal where I got $150 credit back on the account, and I got $100 back for trading in my screen-cracked PRS-500 in a special upgrade deal. So the 505 ended up costing me only $50 extra. Much better deal than the original trade-in they offered me on the 500.
- The Inspector
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