AppleCare + Express replacement (or similar) in store?

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Artemis

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Unfortunately dropped & cracked my iPhone 16 Pro’s display on some rough pavement. NBD, I have AppleCare, but it has some huge nicks on the side that make it uncomfortable to hold — not sure what the side is made of, if it’s titanium or aluminum (should just be titanium right?) but at any rate that’s a bummer because it’s like sandpaper on my fingers and there is no add-on or separate option for replacing the shell.

I would just Express Replace this for $100 but don’t want to deal with the full retail hold at the moment in case something goes wrong etc.

Well for the time being I did a $29 display replacement, got the display and, while I hate to do the Display Lottery BS, there is absolutely a noticeable yellow hue at angles that was not at all present prior, and colors are less punchy.

Again, even that is NBD in isolation, I can do another repair or whatever, and it’s not the end of the world, but paired with the sandpaper-esque Knick i can’t fix it makes me want to get a replacement.

Is there any way to get a replacement iPhone in the Apple Store without any of the express delivery stuff? I mean, you can make Genius appointments for e.g. water damage under AppleCare — surely they have a protocol for swapping without any of the shipping & hold shenanigans?

I understand why, from a risk pooling & insurance perspective, there is that barrier to entry with Express Replacement (which is also convenient regardless yes), probably making it obvious & straightforward to replace an AppleCare-covered iPhone in store for $99 would be too much.

Even so, just asking for experience/anecdotes or any details & routes I could take with AC+ I might be missing.
 
And no, I do not want to use a case lol. These iPhones are quite durable broadly and also bigger than ever. I’ve had a 12/13 and now 16 and this is the second time I‘ve cracked a display, but first time I’ve had such a massive abrasion right where my fingers hold the phone. Bad luck. In general they’re tanks and case + Apple engineering + AC+ is overkill, I pick two.
 
Also (in case I didn’t make this clear) would love to hear experiences with Express Replacement, the time for delivery + hold etc. I’m aware the phone may be “used” internally other than the battery, that’s no issue. The shell/battery/display are the only thing that matter in this context, and I’m pretty sure Apple takes care of that and replaces them.
 
Cmaier said:
Several times I’ve walked in with broken phones and other devices and they’ve given me new devices at the Genius Bar. If they have it in stock they just give it to me.
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I should note one additional thing: “in stock” means they have it in their replacements stock. They don’t give me a brand new one in consumer packaging (at least not usually, though it’s happened once or twice). They keep a stock of replacements in back. I believe they are typically refurbs, but not always. They are packaged in different packaging, and they keep the packaging.
 
Artemis said:
Also (in case I didn’t make this clear) would love to hear experiences with Express Replacement, the time for delivery + hold etc. I’m aware the phone may be “used” internally other than the battery, that’s no issue. The shell/battery/display are the only thing that matter in this context, and I’m pretty sure Apple takes care of that and replaces them.
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Did this with my iPad Pro a few months back when a dead pixel was driving me insane. Got the replacement iPad next day (or maybe two days?) and I sent back the old ipad the following day. Totally worth it for me as it's a two hour, three state trip to the nearest Apple store.
 
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