My wife's 2009 unibody Macbook Pro is coming apart on the bottom corner. I think I already know the answer but...can we replace the casing and simply put her current screen in that? Or...do we have to replace the whole thing?
The monitor works fine and we're not having issues with it working, but I can see the hinges in there and it seems to be opening up more.
Thanks ahead of time!
MacBook Pro, Mac OS X (10.6.7)
Anyone have any ideas after seeing the pictures?
It's hard to visualize where the problem might be, but it's certainly possible to fix the issue. You have several options. You can go to the Apple Store, and they'll be able to come up with some kind of estimate. Or you could find a vendor to do it more cheaply, at your discretion.
I took it to one apple certified repair shop and they said they would replace the whole monitor/casing ($600-$700). It just seems like, theoretically, it wouldn't take a complete replacement. Here are pictures of it:
http://www.flickr.com/photos/joshbrickey/5853563499
My macbook pro is doing the same thing. Were you able to find a solution that didn't cost a million dollars?
So far I have not, but I haven't given up yet. If I don't find anything, we may sell it as is and put what little money we get towards a new one. It would cost over $700 with labor to fix locally.
I've got a MBP that is doing the exact same thing. And a friend of mine had one do it too. I'm still trying to see if I can either fix it or I don't know...But there is no way that this is normal.
I'm guessing this is a stupid question but is this covered under Apple Care Warranty? Sorry to read about your situation
That's a good question. I'm a tech at my work and I just got my hands on this Mac myself so I haven't even had a chance to see if it has AppleCare on it or not. Even then, I can see it being a bit of fight getting them to cover it.
In my case, there's no signs of abuse on the case so I think it's more of a design flaw.
I took my 2008 mbp in to the Vancouver, (Canada) Apple Store and they checked its serial number and then, even though it's out of Apple Care, took it and replaced the screen for me. They had the part in stock and had it back to me before they closed that evening. All with no charge. I was very happy with Apple that day!
Unfortunately, now that I've had it for a few weeks I'm noticing a screen flicker, which is detailed on this thread: https://discussions.apple.com/thread/1807105?start=1290&tstart=0
I fear they may have damaged the graphics card while fixing the screen. Back to the Apple Store, hope my luck holds.
I am currently dealing with this issue. My applecare expired one and a half months ago and now the casing is detaching from the moniter in the lower right corner. I was pretty upset. You need to contact apple tech support, let them know the situation. They will give you a case number and they told me if it turns out to be product defect that they will pay for it. This was a big relief to me as I invested almost 4 grand into my laptop including the applecare, and I depend on mac to produce quality computers. With the case number I am to go to a local apple store or certified mac repair store and if it is found to be a product defect rather than my fault. Which it is not, (This computer has never been dropped, bumped, or injured in any way as I have a good case for it and the aluminum shows no signs of damage, it is simply detaching, and is getting worse each time it is opened.) Apple will replace the monitor casing for free. They were very nice about it, but it did take some coercion on my behalf to get high enough on the chain to were the case number was issued. I haven't taken it in yet as this is a problem i noticed yesterday. I am glad to hear others have had this covered. Mac is definitly looking at a design flaw here. I have a titanium power book from 2002 that operates perfectly it is just slow, and that computer did take a good bump to the side enough to dent it. I would have to assume if on of these laptops were to incur similar damages that this casing would break off completely
Well mac lost a customer. After 10 years of loyal service apparently the corporation I once had respect for died along with steve, my computer, and my faith in the apple company. Regrettably I am forced to buy a pc. They want $800 to fix my monitor told me it was from regular wear and tear. I can get a pc laptop that is faster than mine for less and if apple is not willing to see to their customers satisfaction then why the **** would I pay four times the price for their equipment. Truly sad about this. I bought two computers from them in the last five years. Both came apart at the casing. The first was a regular mac book. Turned into a class action law suit for several defects including the casing breaking apart. They helped us with this one. Then I bought a souped up mac book pro. and the casing came apart again. SOL this time. (sorry our hands are tied they told me) SO R.i.P. Steve jobs and R.I.P. The philosophy of customer satisfaction that died along with you. Mac is truly another greedy corporation that builds products to fail after warranty and charges you obscene prices for their hardware which no longer can be the industry standard if it falls apart from regular wear and tear.
Sorry mac off to buy a pc
Sorry my hands are tied on this one
This seems like a potential design flaw to me.
I'd like to know more about this issue, in the hope of avoiding stress and breakage on my machine.
1. Where on the hinge did the damage occur in your MBs?
2. Do you open your MBP to around 45 or 50 degrees, or wider than that?
3. Do you open your machine slowly, quickly, or somewhere in between?
Thanks!
Im having the same problem with my 2009 MBP. Ive tried carefully super gluing it together, but came back apart several days later. I dont really recommend doing that, FYI. But im afraid i may be another faithful Apple customer that may be losing faith in the company and the poor customer care provided (unless you pay and pay and pay for Applecare). But i have yet to get a case number from Tech support, but from what others have posted, it doesn't seem promising of gettting Apple to do anything to correct their defective product. But i will still give it a shot. For Apple to say "their hands are tied" is ridiculous.
This is clearly a design flaw and should be replaced/repaired for free, or recalled. Or at least repaired at a minimal charge. Like under a $100. $700 or anything close to that is absurd. Or a huge discount on a new macbookpro in exchange for my old one, at least wouldnt be a complete insult.
Yes, superglue is a no-no for a portable. Making a compelling case for your issue is another issue. In any case, I think you'll identify with this post:
http://randyzwitch.com/broken-macbook-pro-hinge-fixed-free/
...and perhaps get some inspiration from it.
FYI: The hinge issue isn't isolated to the MacBook Pro; you'll find the problem outlined in dozens of posts, Mac and Windows. Like many problems like this, the fault can lie anywhere; some hinges go bad early and for no apparent reason; others get them fixed them early or for free, while others wait until the aluminum is bent out of shape before going to the Apple Store; and there's one case, outlined in the Support Communities, where one user says it's happened on every Macbook he's ever owned - he can't figure out why.
MBP Monitor Casing is Coming Apart...
