Q: macbook pro 13" not starting up or charging

Hi Plunjer

It worked!  Thanks so much!  I was dreading the trip to Apple to fix this and your directions worked EXACTLY as you described.  It was easy too!  (I'm not a tech/computer guy)  The harderst part was keeping up with the tiny screws!

And my issue started the same as Kokoglace.  I was backing up my daughter's iPhone through iTunes.  I saw for a brief moment the "usb is drawing too much power" error and it shut down.  No green/amber LED light on the charger...nothing.  I'm thinking it could have been an off brand/convenience store iPhone cable that we have WAY too many of around my house.  Those are bad news I'm discovering. 

Anyway...thanks again!  You saved the day.

Blessings!

Dear plunjer,

I think I have the same problem as yours, so, my macbook pro 13'' does not start charging, when I plug the mag safe charger most of the time nothing happens.... If I do not charge it for two or three days, it starts charging only for about 15 min to half an hour.... So after a frustrating search on the net, and seeing that many had solved similar problems using your way, I was hoping that my problem would also disappear following your instructions.... so I removed the bottom cover, and disconnected the battery ... then waited for about a min or two, then reconnected it... nothing happened... the laptop did not start as you said yours did, finally I put the bottom cover back on.... and turned on the mac ( some battery charge is still left)... there was a message saying that your computer date is set to some time before 2008 which might conflict with some application... this message reassured me that I removed the battery correctly... But still the charger does not charge normally... it is exactly as before.... can you please let me know if you took any steps more than what I have already done? I need to finish my BS project and this laptop issue is eating me alive!!!

Btw, the option of referring to an apple genius or dummy or whatever is completely off the table for me because I am currently residing in Iran

Hi there !

Sorry to hear your problem seems to be a little different. The issue that myself and quite a few people here had was that the laptop was doing absolutely nothing, no charge, not starting, no charge lights, anything. Just totally dead.

From what you say, at least yours seems to be starting, but having a problem charging ?

You should try an SMC Reset, as this COULD take care of issues like charging anomalies, fan speeds etc...

See this Apple link... http://support.apple.com/kb/HT3964?viewlocale=en_US&locale=en_US

As an additional measure, when you start up, reset the PRAM. When you hear the startup tone, hold down the OPTION-COMMAND- P & R keys together until the screen goes black and you hear the startup tone again, then release all of them.

Sometimes, the chargers themselves also have an issue if there is a power spike, where they trip as protection. You can unplug the charger from the wall and leave it at least one minute or more to reset. Plug it back in and check.

I hope something here helps. Good luck.

Hi there,

       I just wanna update my girlfriend Macbook pro 13" to you guys.  As I took my gf Mac to Mac services center in Hat Yai, Thailand. They said, I had to changed Motherboard.  When, I'm back home.  I was looking for the other shops in the internet which can fix Macbook pro 13".  I found one in Bangkok, and I took it there.  The shop said, I have to changed power switching rather than to changed the new motherboard.  Problem solved, paid for 150 US dollar.  But I got a bad feeling for Mac service in Hat Yai, to paid for 35 dollars for examination and got the wrong investigated.  Paid for nothing !!

i have a macbook pro 13", just yesterday my cousin connect an ipod and automatically my mcbook pro shut down, according to her my laptap has low battery before she connect the ipod, now i tried to charge but the charger light is dim green blinking as it wants to be orrange. now i dont know what to do, is this step applicable to my case?  thank you

Hi Plunjer,

     I have a macbook pro 13", just yesterday my cousin connect an ipod and automatically my mcbook pro shut down, according to her my laptap has low battery before she connect the ipod, now i tried to charge but the charger light is dim green blinking as it wants to be orrange. now i dont know what to do, is this step applicable to my case? 

     I hope you can help me, i am waiting for your response. Thank you

Hello. Thanks Plunjer. Your solution has saved my macbook pro :)

Hello,

Yesterday I upgraded RAM on my Macbook Pro 13 inch (Late 2011). After that, my MBP does not recognize the battery. It says "Battery not available" over the battery icon with an X. It works fine with AC conector but if I unplug it, computer turns off.

The battery was working fine before the upgrade. I even tried the battery on another MBP and it works fine (only does not work on my MBP).

There is no problem with RAM either. On "About my Macbook Pro" it appears the new RAM, it is compatible with my MBP.

I have tried a lot of times Plunjer's solution with no luck.... reset SMC and PRAM.

I also tried to use my old RAM but nothing changed on my battery status.

Nothing helped me.

On the App Store everything is updated.

Is there a software update or anything available for this problem?

Macbook Pro 13 inch (Late 2011)

OS X 10.8.5 Mountain Lion

Nombre del modelo:          MacBook Pro

  Identificador del modelo:          MacBookPro8,1

  Nombre del procesador:          Intel Core i5

  Velocidad del procesador:          2,4 GHz

  Cantidad de procesadores:          1

  Cantidad total de núcleos:          2

  Caché de nivel 2 (por núcleo):          256 KB

  Caché de nivel 3:          3 MB

  Memoria:          16 GB

  Versión de la ROM de arranque:          MBP81.0047.B27

  Versión SMC (sistema):          1.68f99

Before you upgrade the new RAM, have you pull out the MBP battery?  And, have you tried to put a new battery into your MBP?  If you you do both, and it won't work.  I think, your case is not the software.  Maybe the power switching is broken.  Its task is to switch the power to be charge into the battery, and switch off when the battery is full.  If it is broken, your battery will not charge, and the status will show "Battery not available". The Mac shop will charge you only the new power switching not the motherboard even the warranty is expired.  Take it to Mac shop.

Sorry it took me a while to respond as am on a course so not checking in often. I agree with Wittaya and was going to suggest the same thing. Resets may not solve a problem that might be a hardware issue. And if you have already tried the SMC resets and such then you should get the hardware checked.

As for the problem with the iPod being connected, the USB ports should provide enough power for an iPod, and in any case, if the port cannot supply the required power there is usually a dialogue message indicating this. However, with a dead battery on the laptop perhaps something did happen although this sounds weird. This is when everything should be unplugged including from the wall outlet, and then follow the SMC RESET procedure as listed in Apple Support "SMC Reset MacBook Pro". Your problem sounds like a temporary anomaly but if all resets fail, then best to get the laptop checked. Let's know if a reset works.

Thank you, but my mcbook pro is ok now, after 5 days it work again, i try to charge it before i bring it to the store, then it charged, may be its the battery just drained. But then thank you for the response.

Thank you very much!!!! this save my life!... cheers!

Plunjer THANK YOU SO MUCH. i woke up to the same problem...macbook pro would not charge and would not start. i did exactly like you indicated, unscrewed the bottom panel, pulled off the battery plug for about 10 secs, and the laptop started! thank you for not making me go to the apple store and paying them hundreds of dollars just to reset my battery! xoxox

Glad it helped