2-Year Protection Plan plus Accident Coverage for Kindle Paperwhite 3G (Previous Generation)

Yesterday I did a boneheaded thing. I fell asleep on the couch while reading a book on my Kindle. The Kindle dropped to the carpeted floor. That isn't the boneheaded thing. Waking in the middle of the night and stepping on the Kindle on my way to the bedroom. THAT was boneheaded. The display was shattered and, while it lit up, no longer worked as a touch screen.Since I was in the middle of a book, and since Amazon couldn't immediately deliver the new one I was going to buy to replace it, I swung by my local Fry's and bought another. While registering the new Kindle I saw the broken one in Manage your Kindle. I'd forgotten that I'd added Service Net's 2 year extended protection plan. I re-read the coverage details and, Surprise!!!, the plan covers accidents. The plan description even mentions stepping on the thing.So, still dubious, I called the plan's toll free number. I'm put into a phone tree for about thirty seconds, at which point a very friendly guy named Jason answers at a US-based call center. He asks for the email address used on my Amazon account, then the exact name on the account. He waits very patiently while I fumble around for a minute to find the exact name I registered by Amazon account under. Then, the name of the Kindle. I tell him. He sees that it has a protection plan in place.Then he asks "What's the problem with your Kindle?" "Well, actually, I stepped on it." "Oh, don't you hate that? Did the screen break? Touch screen doesn't work?" "Right." Then he says "No problem, I can have a replacement sent out immediately. You should have it in two days."He told me that I had two options. If I agreed to let him secure the order with one of my credit cards on file with Amazon, he said the replacement out in advance. The card would only be charged if I didn't return the broken one within 30 days. I could use the packaging the replacement came in. He'd send me an email with a link to a postage-paid return label. Or I could send in the defective one and receive a replacement within two days of their receipt of it.The credit card thing is standard on advance exchanges so I chose that option. Jason just asked me to confirm the last four digits and the expiration date on the card. Then he said "If you want to stay on the line another thirty seconds, I'll get the order placed and let you know when you'll receive the replacement. Still rather flabbergasted at the painlessness of the process, I waited the half-minute. Then our man Jason says "I'm sorry to say that, with the weekend, the new one won't be there 'til Tuesday. Is that OK?" This was late Friday night. "Yes. Tuesday's terrific!"Now it's Saturday as I type this. I've obviously not received the replacement Kindle yet. (I'll update this review when the process is complete.) So far, however, this plan has been perfect and the process has been totally painless. No long wait on hold. No trying to communicate with someone in a third world call center. No need to find the plan number. They had that already. No need to find the serial number of my Kindle. They had that from the nickname I'd given it. And, best of all, no hassle at all for having stepped on the thing. The entire call lasted less than ten minutes and the rep was incredibly friendly.I could not be happier.Before I sat down to write this review, I took a look at the one and two-star reviews. There you'll read complaints that the plan is being misrepresented as a two-year plan when the Kindle comes with a one year warranty. None of the reviewers had actually purchased the coverage and, I guarantee you, none of them had stepped on their Kindles or dropped them in the bath. Service Net is very clear in the description of the plan that this is a two year extension to Amazon's one year manufacturer's warranty. I find the pricing for both the 3G and non-3G versions of the plan incredibly cheap. Really: I STEPPED ON MY KINDLE. BROKE THE CRAP OUT OF IT. THEY'RE REPLACING IT, IN ADVANCE, FOR NO CHARGE! Not even for shipping. This was a GREAT purchase! I highly recommend you add it to any new Kindle purchase.[Note: this review is for the coverage on a non-3G Kindle. I just bought a 3G version and have added coverage to it based on my extraordinary experience with the non-3G coverage.]

It seems that either my kindle is STOLEN (Brashly with proof, but I can't get it back), or the screen flakes out Every 3-6 months. I'm not sure why but once you get lines in the screen you are screwed. I wish I knew how to fix it once the Etch-a-Sketch look takes over, and then I'd have 2 other kindles for backup! Anyhow, I can't stand being without a kindle, and the paperwhite is by far my favorite.I'm not slightly a kindle fan, but I've purchased 6 kindles, and 2 for other people. I've read almost 400 books on my kindle in 2.5 years, so I'm over the top addicted to my kindle. I sometimes think I'm going to need to get a job on the Kindle team to support my reading habit one day.Why do you want to PAY for protection? Because the screens on kindles are a bit flimsy. The priority is for them to be GREAT for your eyes. They are awesome for reading, but that means making them drop proof wasn't the priority. I've seriously had a kindle slip onto the CARPET from a tiny table that was 14" above the soft carpet & THAT took a screen out. Trust me. Get a protective cover, treat your kindle carefully, and just buy the protection plan. Otherwise, you'll be like me sitting with a beautiful kindle cover you don't want to lose, with a messed up screen that has lines & pixels that refuses to refresh. Yet technically--it WAS dropped. Even if it was from 14" on carpet. Still--I want to ENJOY my kindle, not be worried about it. That's why 5 stars for this plan. I'm going to keep buying this.

I bought this just in case, but frankly, I don't expect to use it, as the Kindle case is really great, and likely to protect the Kindle in most any situation it is likely to find itself in.However, it is cheaper than the alternative - that is, buying a new one. My experience with extended warranties is that I almost never use them, so I am sure they are a great money maker for people who are very careful like me. But when you need one, you better have one!I didn't have one on my wife's iPad, and had to buy a used one ($199 - good deal from Apple store). I had one for my Sony camera when the viewfinder broke, so that worked out great. I had one when the refrigerator broke, so that also worked out great.Any extended warranty is insurance - you pay, and hope you don't need it. I paid for homeowners insurance all my life, and never have made a claim yet. Wow, that is a lot of cash! But I would NEVER not have it: the cost of replacing a house is huge. Replacing a Kindle is not so bad. BTW, the "paper white" Kindle is really cool, and the 3G capability in addition to wifi is fantastic, keeps you connected everywhere you go!

I'm always doing something to mine, so I always get one. On my first one, the software started acting goofy and Kindle tech support was, well, lame... and then I thought, wait a minute, I have it covered 100%. Sent it in and got a new one and the coverage started over again. Amazing. My son has that one. Guess he will get my first Paperwhite when I upgrade, soon. I like it can be transferred. Keep your emails. They keep astoundingly good records, but it is always good to know you can find the email that notes a promise.Kindles are pretty sturdy and if in a case of any kind, it will likely survive a fall to the floor. Probably not survive backing your car over it in the driveway. I'm always sitting on mine. Or flinging it from the covers of the bed. Or dropping it. In the sand. I guess I shouldn't say that, as I intend to get a new (my third) plan when I get it. I've had one claim on two Kindles and the one was a problem on their end.If you always read in the same chair with your cat in your lap, maybe you don't need it. If you drag it everywhere you go, you probably should. Soccer Moms, are you reading this? I mean you. That's my opinion.