You'll Now Need Your Apple ID to Check Your Product Warranty Coverage

Prior to this change, you could check the warranty status of an Apple product by using its serial number or IMEI. As 9to5Mac rightly notes, this was useful for second-hand buyers.

Before the changes, second-hand buyers could use the AppleCare coverage checker utility as a way to see if a device being sold online (through eBay etcetera) was as described.

However, this was never a foolproof method. A known scam would see the seller apply for an AppleCare protection plan, and let the buyer check its validity, only to refund the plan and cancel after the sale was confirmed.

Still, it is now harder to find out the coverage status of devices including those owned by friends and family as it requires the Apple ID username and password. For an individual owner, the new My Support experience is greatly improved.

You can use the warranty coverage utility to check the status of your warranty. You can also find recent activity regarding repairs or support sessions within the last three months.

You can also check your Apple warranty status using the Apple Support app, which is available in the App Store.