I have had my Macbook Pro since early November. Recently when picking it up, shifting positions or sometimes typing, there has been creaking/cracking noises. It is really annoying. I was wondering if this is a wide spread quality issue or what.
I'm no repair guy, but I've seen a uMBP opened and there are little springs that press up against the bottom plate to keep it from touching the logic board. That's one guess, and if so, it's completely normal.
Mine also creaks and clicks when I type or lift the machine. Mine is also from November and started developing this in Feb 09. I have taken it to the store and the Genius reseated the bottom panel. Of course, I have tried that already so I know reseating the panel wouldn't fix it. He then had it shipped to the depot to get it checked out.
When I got it back a week later, there was no clicking and creaking. And I noticed the larger bottom panel was replaced with a new one. But about a week later, the click and creak came back.
The aluminum body bends slightly when held. And if you are like me who carry the laptop EVERYWHERE for work and school, that kind of movement could have caused subtle misalignment. I must also note that I baby this machine and it has never been dropped, bent, or abused in anyway.
If this were to happen on a $499 HP laptop, I wouldn't be complaining -- they creak and click fresh out of box, anyway. But at $2000, this precision machine should be able to handle more. I suspect we will be hearing more from others about this as their machine "age"
Yeah, I completely agree! I found that the problem for me was fixed by messing around with the battery cover. Once I had messed around with that the creaking went away.
Hmmm, Im not entirely sure I understand what you mean by '+messing around w/ the battery cover+'. My macbook has been creaking so badly the last 3 months that Im going to have to do something about it. It ONLY creaks on the right hand side under the dvd drive.
Has anyone found a solution to this, or why its creaking... or what Apples response has been. I unfortunately dont live anywhere near an apple store so this could kinda end up being a hastle.
Would love to get more thoughts on this to know if Im just going to have to 'Live with it'
That's the motion sensor on the HDD located on the lower right-hand corner. It disengages the HDD heads from the platters, because it may be expecting a drop (to the floor, maybe?). The noise is totally normal and is only heard when there is a sudden motion. Its use is only to save your HDD if your computer is dropped.
i know what the motion sensor sounds like. Im referring to the frame being loose and the right hand side right next to the cd rom.
its the case that is coming incredibly lose, like most people here are mentioning... Im just trying to figure out if anyone has taken it in and apple has done anything about it.
I was trying to figure out what the other guy meant by 'messing with the battery...' as to how he fixed a creaking/cracking case.
I just bought a MacBook Pro 17" unibody last month and I lay down with it on my chest in bed while I chat. Anytime I move a tiny bit the computer creaks terribly. The bottom plate is curious too.I am able to push on it with my finger and it moves in about 1/4" toward the body and makes a metal rubbing noise.
From time to time i will hear a "tink tink tink" noise on the front of my MacBook Pro while I'm listening to iTunes. It's not the normal hard drive noise. I'm afraid something wasn't machined properly.
I am 3 hours away from a real Apple store.
What should I do? Are these the symptoms you are having?
I am having the exact same problem with my brand new macbook. When I have it on my chest the bottom case makes a creaking noise, I just hope it doesn't get worse over time. I would take it in for repairs but Im scared that it will come back with more serious problems. I have had bad experiences with apple repairs in the past.
I have the same problem on my 2009 MBP 15 inch. It's minor, but it drives me insane. Im OCD and noises like this are a big annoyance. I don't know if there's any merit though for apple to fix it for me and I hate dealing with the hassle.
My 13'' I got yesterday is also making the noise when i lift it. So is this not a "problem"? is it really just the motion sensor? Something apple can/should fix?
Thanks
Edit: a little more research leads me to believe that this noise is normal 🙂 Thanks anyway
Ya! Exact same problem here. I got a macbook pro exactly 2 weeks ago and same symptoms. I first noticed the creaks when I had it on my chest and now I notice it all the time..Anytime the surface it is sitting on is not perfectly flat and even sometimes when the surface is flat, and some pressure is applied by typing, clicking the trackpad or gently resting a finger on the top panel, it emits this tick sound.
Really annoying. I finally decided to open it up yesterday and had a look. I noticed a bunch of metal spikes with springs on them, a bit all over the place, that are supposed to keep the bottom case away from the electronics..What a brilliant plan! If only it worked....
My guess is the sound is coming from these springs or the impact of the bottom case with these springs..
I am getting pretty frustrated with apple. My old intel MacBook Pro had 3 repairs done on it: 2 screen replacements and 1 motherboard replacement in the span of a year. 6 month later, I required another motherboard replacement for the SAME problem (faulty logic board). This computer was sent as a replacement..And here we go again!
Has anybody heard anything more about this issue from Apple? This has been driving absolutely crazy - hearing this creaking noise everytime I'm using my Mac on my lap or lying in bed. Its extemely annoying to hear this noise, and I'm quite unhappy that I've just spent £2200 on this machine, and its not even two months old and this is happening!
This is precisely what I am experiencing with my 3 day old MBP. If this "tink, tink, tink" is just a spring mechanism to keep the panel away from the logic board, that I think I can cope with it... but I am afraid that it is something more. 0.o
Why don't you try putting a small piece of tape on the springs so they won't make a noise?
My guess is that the springs you speak of are not for the purpose of keeping anything from touching anything else. My guess is that they are to ensure that as little RFI as possible emanates from the computer so it will comply with FCC regulations.
My mid 09 15" MBP does not have these springs you speak of.
I was just reiterating the theory of someone earlier in the thread. I have not seen the springs first hand, nor do I really plan on cracking open my new MBP anytime soon. :P
