Which size screwdriver to open back of MacBook Air
FWIW, Apple has begun a self repair program and the M1 MacBook Air and M1 MacBook Pros are the first ones that will be "officially" eligible (also iPhone12s and 13s):
Self Service Repair - Apple support
Such a fundamental question suggests perhaps opening your Mac is something you should not do.
We literally cannot comment regarding DIY hardware repairs on this site anyway. However, if you describe what's wrong with your Mac perhaps there is something we can help with.
Condescend much? I just wanted a simple answer but needed to pick the right one from my set of tools.
needed to take the back off to replace the battery. A simple repair that does not need a ‘genius’ to sort out.
anyway thanks for the ‘helpful’ answer. I’m sure I’ll be back for more discussion.
the repair is done. Took five minutes.
The moderators tend to edit many DIY posts which makes it difficult to assist. Plus I believe @John Galt figured if a person is capable of doing the repair, then the person probably would be capable of locating the information online.
Seems like you could have informed the community which size driver was needed so it would help others who find your post.
I believe it is a Pentalobe 5, but not certain. Also, I've seen some tool suppliers use a different sizing chart so it may actually vary by some tool providers (especially the one who provides tear downs of many new systems -- again, not allowed to post names or links or the moderators will remove them). OWC is one vendor who provides a lot of products to support Macs.
FYI, it is best to have Apple replace the battery whenever possible since the quality of third party Lithium-ion Batteries is extremely poor even when purchased from a reputable vendor. The next best option is OWC who also supplies a kit and video instructions. I personally will always choose an OEM battery over a third party battery every time if an OEM battery is available (applies to non-Apple products as well).
I use a set of tools for MacBook Air access. You are probably right about the Pentalobe 5 but my set is not labelled as such. I found the 1.2 (star shape) had the snuggest fit for removing the back (this is also the turquoise one supplied with my new battery - size not marked on it) and them the 'purple' one for the battery. This one is marginally bigger and marked T5 (star) on my set. Please check to make sure you are NOT using a small phillips (my eyes are not what they used to be) as this might strip the screws which are made of soft metal aluminium (?). Not sure why there needs to be two sets of different sized screws - I guess it helps not putting the wrong ones back. Back ones are silver and battery screws are black. You'll also need to disconnect the battery from the motherboard.
Look for an OEM battery and not one that says for 'a genuine macbook air' instead it should be 'a genuine macbook air battery'. of course your macbook air is probably genuine. The one I got came from Cork, Ireland via China (of course) just like all quality Apple parts and products. There are also instructions for optimising your new battery so it might be good to look out for those.
As these intel macbook air's become end of life - I just bought a new M1 macbook air which of course has been superceded by the M2 at time of writing - you can still get some use of of them with new battery, upgraded flash drive etc but of course not upgraded memory as its welded to the motherboard :-)
My first upgrade with for my Macintosh Plus going from 1meg of ram to a lightning fast 4meg. Still runs flying toasters.
I hope this helps if someone stumbles across this.
Thanks. That should be interesting for the future - hopefully not near future. My M1 MacBook Air is just a week or so old vs my 2012 and 2017 intel Macbook Airs which are 10 and 5 years old by model. I am using iPhone 8 without issues - the iPhone 6 was problematic (battery life was rubbish). Might jump to iPhone 12 purely for the camera - when prices reach a satisfactory level - hopefully the new iPhone will push the price down as everyone salivates to get the newest shiny one.
Note that now that the new iPhone 14 models have been released, the iPhone 13 modes have dropped by $100 while supplies last, with the exception of the iPhone 13 which Apple will continue to carry.
Also note, that Apple now has iPhone 12 models available as refurbished which can result in a significant savings. The advantage of the Apple refurbs is that they will have the full Apple 1 year warranty and eligible for AppleCare.
Which size screwdriver to open back of MacBook Air
