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Best Buy Product Replacement Plan

Posted by Jake Good
on Sep 22, 08

The infamous Red Ring of Death... the plague that hit the Microsoft Xbox 360 Console and has now become a meme... It's happened to several of my friends... and the first time it happened to me][1], I had a PRP with Best Buy... (read about my first experience).

It was pretty simple, the first time I bought a Xbox 360, I paid $60 for Best Buy's Product Replacement plan... you know, those annoying things the checkers as you about when you get high ticket items. Most people ignore them... as do I. But for items with known failure rates and high frequencies of such failures, it becomes a necessity.

Yes, you can send your Xbox 360 if it still falls within it's short lived warranty... or, for the convenience of getting it replaced same day, no questions asked, for up to 2 years after purchase... the $60 is well worth it "in my humble opinion".

So this last weekend, my fiance was playing on the Xbox Live Arcade, those nice little games that have no graphic intensive features or CPU melting capabilities... and while she was playing, the Xbox 360 made some creepy "HELP ME, I'M DYING" scream in a robot voice, straight from the Matrix. Resets were not working, it wouldn't stay on for more than 3 minutes and then...

The RED RING OF DEATH... AGAIN...

I had ONE MONTH left on my Best Buy Product Replacement Plan from the last time... So yes, I'm on my 3rd Xbox360...this time it was different.

There are new prices for the Xbox 360... My particular model is now $299, $100 less than when I bought it... and thankfully, the BB PRP is based on the price at purchase! So I got a new Xbox 360 with a larger hard drive... and $108 (with tax) in store credit!! Which was obviously spent immediately on a few new games...

So where do I stand?

$400 + $60 for First Xbox 360

$60 to buy the 2nd Replacement Plan

-$100 + $30 to buy the 3rd Replacement Plan

Total = $450

So in reality... to have 3 Xbox 360 replaced, same day, with no questions asked... it cost me a total of $50... Not bad really... not bad...

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  1. Bruce – Jan 06 09 @ 02:36PM
    I have the Best Buy Product Replacement plan for my Xbox 360 Arcade, yet the process that they outlined to me would be that I have to send it in and they will send me back a giftcard for the purchase price... I would much rather just return it in store.
  2. Jake Good – Jan 06 09 @ 02:39PM
    Weird... I took mine (both times) straight to the customer service desk, slapped down my PRP, and they gave me a brand new Xbox each time...
  3. Ed – May 03 09 @ 08:35PM
    I just got my third using the plan, but I had to pay more money to transfer my data from the 20 gig hard drive to the 60 gig HDD. They wanted another 60 dollars for that, after arguing they only charged me 30, but the first time I had to replace it they allowed me to keep my hard drive. today, they wanted more money I e-mailed corporate because I found that criminal that they would force someone to pay for something that wasn't necessary the first time. I know if you deal with Microsoft they even tell you to keeo your hard drive.
  4. Chris – May 22 09 @ 12:23AM
    Ed from what i understand when you use Microsoft to repair the xbox or send it in under the microsoft warranty they will repair it and send it back to you.

    The PRP plan from Best Buy requires your full system, HD, Cables etc, they take this and send it to liquidators to be sold off from what i understand.

    My Xbox popped an error 74, and i had to talk to some liquidation company concerning my plan. After reading this i realize i can just go into best buy and get a new one (since i purchased a PRP in Feb of 08')

    After reading this i think i won't get the Geek Squad protection or whatever you call it, i will just deal with Microsoft since now i guess going into the store and exchanging it straight up is not an option.
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