I would hope Apple wouldn’t replace the battery unless they feel it’s not performing, so I would just get it service diagnosed now and then about 2 weeks before the end of the coverage (or anytime you see 75% FCC). If you really think through the coverage, I think you’ll join me in “not wanting to get something for your payments” since the FCC is just one aspect of performance. Of course, you can cancel the coverage any time before it ends (and then the return is pro-rated).
For some needs 40% FCC is perfectly serviceable and causes no real harm.ĪppleCare plans are pro-rated and you’re paying for the term benefit (just like paying in for insurance of any kind) and no one gets to collect for “close to needing care” or a refund if you don’t use the benefit.
The 80% FCC is the standard, so it’s understandable for you to look at things around that as a line, since Apple established that design line and goal, but in practice, 60% FCC still gives a lot of run time and sometimes it’s not even worth paying for batteries below 40% or less.
It’s also not free since you would waste a 80% good battery that might last for years if your assumption that the only thing wrong would be measured capacity below 80% FCC within 3 years of delivery. I also see +- 5% FCC estimate when I run things from day to day, so I wouldn’t worry about +- 1% either to be eligible for a swap on the pooled plan (you are pooling risk - so it’s not free, it’s paid for out of the pool). My feeling and expectation is Apple would not offer to replace things unless you have them perform diagnostics and they see something amiss or feel it’s about to fail. What’s the harm in asking them to diagnose your battery and not even say anything about wanting a free swap? See what they say and document they had a chance to diagnose things before the warranty ends.