New MacBook Air Smells of Mildew

Perhaps inquire from reseller (if not official Apple retail or online purchase) their

return policy. ~ Apple has a good return policy, while authorized resellers do not

have the same; because 'authorized sellers' are independent business entities.

Ask for exchange/return of this unit, since it may have questionable service life ahead.

Good luck & happy trails!

🌞🌿⛵️🎣🌻🐢⛄️🌤🌎

YES. I also have a smelly Macbook Air. Just opened it - I will be calling Apple this morning. it is awful. I just posted this messages in an AAPL stock discussion group.

" I ordered one of the new MacBook Airs in early December and got a delivery date range of January 6 - 10. I got it yesterday.

This

morning I opened the plain brown shipping box. Apple's packing always

amazes me. I saw that one only one side was sealed, So i cut that

sealing and the end flap of the box opened up.I looked around the box

and that was the only place it was meant to be opened. No other

indication of any cardboard hinging other than that one side flap. I

wondered for a second about how do I get the white box out. I then

noticed there were two inner cardboard flaps on either end. These flaps

turned out to be levers which then lifted the inner MacBook Air box up

so you could grab it and remove it from the box. Amazing!

Now

to open the white box and see my new MacBook Air. The top of the box

lifted straight up to reveal the beautiful Space Gray MacBook air. BUT

WAIT, what is that ... smell? It got worst. I bent over and smelled the

inside of the box and sealed MacBook Air. Horrible. I think I was

feeling slightly nauseous. Chemical smell but can't really describe it. I

feel like I have to put the box and the MacBook out on my back porch

for the day to have it "off-gas."

Anyone else have a smelly new Macbook Air? (I have never experienced an odor from a NEW

Mac product but many years ago the old white Mac iBooks had a tendency

to smell after a few years - I still have two of those in storage and

they still smell too - a different odd smell than the new Macbook Air

though).

I am thinking it is the packaging material but I can't believe Apple could goof up like this.

In the meantime, I have put the box cover back on and put it back into the exterior cardboard box.

I guess I will be calling Apple about this. Annoying."

Similar problem, I just bought a USB-C Charge Cable (2 m) from the Apple Store online and the package, the box and the charging cable wreak of mold /Mildew. The cable and connectors look fine. I haven't tried it yet as just picking it up makes my hands smell like mold. I'm leaving it in the garage for a while and will probably wipe it down at some point. What a disappointment.

I just received a charging cord I purchased to go with my new Macbook Air which is to arrive later. I opened it and immediately smelled mildew. There was also a powdery substance on the cord which also felt sticky. After reading some of these posts, I hope my new Macbook Air doesn't smell of mildew as well. It will be my first Apple computer. I've been using PC until now.

Yes! I ordered mine online from a Black Friday sale in November and just received it. The packaging was all in perfect condition but reeks like must and mildew. I'm thinking the stock sat somewhere in dank storage for way too long.

Yep, me too, new MacBook Air. Upon opening a fully sealed box it smelled like it's been stored in someone's musty basement. It makes me wonder if mold is lurking inside the laptop. Way too much money for this kind of quality control.

I did call Apple about mind and they said "we can't have that" and I returned my MacBook Air to a local store. since I had order 16Gb and 500Gb hard drive, I had to wait another month to get my replacement MacBook Air. When it arrived NO SMELL - PERFECT. I am using it right now. All's well that ends well BUT I really like to know what happened to cause these odors.

Thank You Juan. I just called Apple Support and I'll be exchanging my MacBook Air. I too would like to know the source of the smell. I'm guessing it's the packaging that is sitting in an area that's not humidity controlled. Oh well. I hate to be without a laptop while I return this one, but if I have problems later there's no way to prove it was mold/mildew.

I just purchased a MacBook Air from Burlington, MA Apple store and noted a very strong mold/mildew odor when it was opened at home. I returned the MacBook Air to the store the next day and the employees agreed that the packaging and products inside smelled of mold. They offered me an exchange for another new MacBook Air, which also smelled strongly of mold/mildew when we opened it in the store. Ultimately they gave me a store credit and I plan to purchase a laptop online, but I'm wondering how many other Apple products out there have been stored in moist enough conditions to grow mold/mildew. And what long term effects might that have on the products?

I ended up keeping my MacBook Air because I was concerned a replacement would smell worse. I can't smell the mildew on the laptop, but the charger that came with it still smells. The smell was especially strong on the tissue paper that was in the box.

Hello Green42,

Can I ask you if you have any update about this issue (did you return the product, or you just keep it. if so works good or any issues? I just bought a MacBook Pro M1 and inside the box I have smelled the same moldy smell...)

Thank you!

Hi Andriandrei,

I kept my MacBook Air. I am really sensitive to smells and I no longer smell anything off of the laptop, but the charger still smells if I put it up to my nose. So I avoid doing that! The USB adapter also smelled and still has a slight odor although I rarely use it. I ordered everything directly from Apple. And I'm having no issues with any of the products. Just disappointing for the price we pay.

Hi Green42,

Thank you for the reply. I also kept the laptop, noticing that the main reason of the smell was the charging cable it should't be a problem for the machine, i suppose .

Working in an electronic store i checked the boxes already open and i've noticed the same smell in 3 boxes. Disappointing at this point indeed.

Yes! Same experience with two MacBook Airs, ordered two months apart. Awful. They both still reek of mildew.