The svideo out on my MacBook has never, as far as I know, worked. I didn't bother getting it repaired because I never needed to use it. Now a larger problem has cropped up: I no longer seem able to connect my flat panel to my MacBook. I can use my work flat panel, presumably because I'm using an analog connection. At home, using a DVI connection, it fails. Another laptop works on my flat panel, but I can only test it with analog. I need to get someone with a DVI out on his laptop to come swing by.
Of course this has come up about two days after my AppleCare expired. Fortunately American Express doubles the warranty on all my purchases, up to an additional year. I called to file a claim, and I'm not sure how this will work. I got the impression that they might just replace the device or refund the purchase price, both of which would probably leave me with a better model. That would be fantastic. Even if they just cover the repair charges, that's great. I really enjoy the extra benefits programs that American Express sprinkles here and there. I use them very rarely, but they're always great when I do.
Also, this week I declined to renew my AAA membership, because AmEx has introduced their own free roadside protection. It's not quite as good as AAA, but for $130 less each year, I'm all over it. Heck, with that and some huge savings on laptop repair, maybe I'll use those savings to upgrade to a platinum card... then again, almost all of its benefits are geared toward travellers, and I'm hardly one of those. Still... some silly little part of me imagines that I'd get rushed through call queues, called "sir," and that I'd one day benefit from free use of the airport admiral's club.
