Our survey spanned every laptop capable of running Mac OS X, encompassing 41 models sold over seven and a half years. A challenge in ascertaining the reliability of any device is that more time gives them more opportunity to break, so new devices should always look more reliable at first glance. Our survey asked participants when their laptop first needed a repair — "first year", "second or third year", and "fourth year or later." These correspond to the duration of Apple's standard one-year warranty, the AppleCare extended warranty program, and any repairs that might happen outside any warranty coverage period.

We also asked participants if they purchased AppleCare for their laptop. MacInTouch readers have strong opinions about whether or not AppleCare is a good investment; we hoped to quantify how often it is invoked for service. Hoping to gauge which models might have had repeat problems, we also asked how many times a laptop was repaired (regardless of warranty status) — as well as providing an option for "It broke, but I didn't have it fixed." (Thus, repair numbers do not always exactly match problem reports.)