Poll-Have you experienced 2012 MBA SSD failure?

[Saturn1217]

I hope no one minds if I consolidate data in a poll. I'm sure I can't be the only one a bit concerned to see the sudden appearance of so many complaints about 2012 MBA SSD failures on our forum.

I know that forums are a place where people complain about problems and I'm sure that most people have no issues (so please don't post this 100 times thanks!)

I think it would still be helpful to those trying to get out-of-warranty repair to know how many forum members are affected by this issue and if it is only the Toshiba drives or also the Samsung drives that are affected.

I ask because I am trying to gift my old 2012 MBA to my sister and the cost of Applecare for her will be prohibitively expensive but if the issue is dire enough I'll insist on it anyway.

Thanks in advance for your help!

[HarryWarden]

Not yet but I'm only 10 months in so it wouldn't be time yet according to when most of the problems seem to be happening.

[Edmilan]

Yes, MBA 11" 2012 64gb SSD failed 2 months ago. Luckily it was still within warranty, i had a month more to go.

[PBG4 Dude]

Started reading about Toshiba 128GB SSD failures last June so I bought AppleCare for my 2012 MBA. Was only a couple days past one year so they had to get an exception but they still sold it to me.

[SusanK]

How do I know if it is Toshiba or Samsung?

No failure yet on a 128 but I am in warranty until late November.

Thanks

[Spacial]

Mine died at 4 months old. But that's no reflection on Apple, these things happen. They replaced it under warranty. I back up daily so it was no big deal.

[silvershamrock]

No failure on my 2012 128GB SSD ... however, after reading about the problems others have had with this model I immediately went out and bought AppleCare for it.

It's currently 2 weeks past original warranty, and I've got my fingers crossed...

[magbarn]

Originally Posted by Spacial

Mine died at 4 months old. But that's no reflection on Apple, these things happen. They replaced it under warranty. I back up daily so it was no big deal.

It may not be Apple's fault entirely, but the rash of failures of these Toshiba/Sandforce drives is just too high to be simple 'wear/tear & manufacturing defect'. The Samsung drives of the same vintage have nowhere near the reported failure rate of the Toshiba drives.

[Spacial]

Originally Posted by magbarn

It may not be Apple's fault entirely, but the rash of failures of these Toshiba/Sandforce drives is just too high to be simple 'wear/tear & manufacturing defect'. The Samsung drives of the same vintage have nowhere near the reported failure rate of the Toshiba drives.

We have hundreds of SSD equipped laptops in our company, the Samsung brand has been unbelievably reliable. It's a shame Apple has to maintain its acerbic attitude towards them. Especially given how many component parts Samsung supplies for the iPhone alone.

[HarryWarden]

Originally Posted by Spacial

Mine died at 4 months old. But that's no reflection on Apple, these things happen. They replaced it under warranty. I back up daily so it was no big deal.

How long does it take to restore a backup to a new laptop?

[filmbuff]

I need to change my vote. I put Samsung in by accident. I actually have a Toshiba 128GB SSD and have had no problems. I use time machine just in case, but this seems like a very reliable machine so far.

[magbarn]

Originally Posted by HarryWarden

How long does it take to restore a backup to a new laptop?

Fast if you have an external USB 3.0 HDD or even faster if you use an external SSD with thunderbolt. Slow if you're restoring from a time capsule.

[Saturn1217]

Originally Posted by SusanK

How do I know if it is Toshiba or Samsung?

No failure yet on a 128 but I am in warranty until late November.

Thanks

I think that if you go to system information (search for it via spotlight) and select SATA/SATAExpress from the side menu you will see lots of info on your internal drive.

The key bit of info is the Model #. For example mine is says "Apple SSD SM0256F" so I know it is a samsung drive based on the "SM" letters. I think Toshiba is "TS" (someone correct me if I'm wrong).

And thanks to everyone who has participated in the poll thus far. I am kind of surprised that with only 28 people voting thus far 12 have had SSD failures. Thats like over 40%?!

Obviously not enough numbers to make any conclusions but it is concerning particularly for MBAs with Toshiba drives. If you have an issue make sure Apple knows even if you don't decide to get it repaired by them!

[CAPkuang]

So I went to the Apple store today to figure out my dead SSD dilemma as seen in my thread and they gave me a quote of 280 dollars to fix it. My question is, is it worth it because they will be replacing my dead SSD with a refurbished one and it will be up to lady luck again if I get a Toshiba or Samsung SSD. After going through this ordeal, I don't want to go through losing all my data especially since I'll be going to college this fall.

Thoughts?

[Calady]

For anyone with dead SSD, were there any signs before it happened? or did it just went blank out of the blue?

[flowrider]

^^^^You'll want to look the this thread:

http://forums.macrumors.com/showthread.php?t=1633507

Lou

[SusanK]

Originally Posted by Saturn1217

I think that if you go to system information (search for it via spotlight) and select SATA/SATAExpress from the side menu you will see lots of info on your internal drive.

The key bit of info is the Model #. For example mine is says "Apple SSD SM0256F" so I know it is a samsung drive based on the "SM" letters. I think Toshiba is "TS" (someone correct me if I'm wrong).

And thanks to everyone who has participated in the poll thus far. I am kind of surprised that with only 28 people voting thus far 12 have had SSD failures. Thats like over 40%?!

Obviously not enough numbers to make any conclusions but it is concerning particularly for MBAs with Toshiba drives. If you have an issue make sure Apple knows even if you don't decide to get it repaired by them!

Thanks for the info. I think mine is TS. I'll double check when I get home.

There is a thread on MBA SSD failures on Apple's site. Many people with failures from 2 weeks to 2 months post one year warranty.

[coldjeanzzz]

What constitutes as an SSD failure?

My 2012 128 GB Toshiba MBA just froze for the first time ever while watching Apple's Keynote. That was a bit unsettling, hope it's not a sign of things to come

[l.a.rossmann]

I've never seen one fail!

[forestsprite]

Originally Posted by Calady

For anyone with dead SSD, were there any signs before it happened? or did it just went blank out of the blue?

No warning. I got the swirly-wheel of death, had to do a hard-reboot, and when it restarted it was gone. RIP.

[VNM]

I guess I'm a bit unique as I had simultaneous logic board and SSD failure of my 2012 MBA (luckily under warranty, work order was for more than a new MBA...). I did have to book into recover to repair disk a couple times prior to the failure, but not true warning. Doing some writing one day, dead the next.

[Mighty Anderson]

Originally Posted by magbarn

It may not be Apple's fault entirely, but the rash of failures of these Toshiba/Sandforce drives is just too high to be simple 'wear/tear & manufacturing defect'. The Samsung drives of the same vintage have nowhere near the reported failure rate of the Toshiba drives.

I am not very sure on the statistics of sandforce failures with MBP. But what I am really can see is many people on the forum have not really faced this issue, but are being adviced by only a few of them. Ideally, this really means it is a mis perception being seeded into many innocent users. I can confidently quote this because we have been using the same variant of MBP in our organization & have not faced any sort of issues till date.

[magbarn]

Originally Posted by Mighty Anderson

I am not very sure on the statistics of sandforce failures with MBP. But what I am really can see is many people on the forum have not really faced this issue, but are being adviced by only a few of them. Ideally, this really means it is a mis perception being seeded into many innocent users. I can confidently quote this because we have been using the same variant of MBP in our organization & have not faced any sort of issues till date.

I know we have anecdotal evidence here mostly, and the internet is known for vocal complainers, but it is somewhat eyebrow raising that the vast majority of MBA failures aren't Sandisk or Samsung SSDs, but Toshiba/Sandforce. Put it this way, not all Toshiba SSDs are failing, but almost all the failed SSDs are Toshiba.

Also, I assume you meant MBA not MBP, right?

[Jimbo47]

I just noticed all of these threads about failing SSD's. Unfortunately they all seem to happen within 12-13 months of usage. I am now on my 12th month of usage with a Toshiba SSD, so I am in that timeframe.

[Mr Rabbit]

I have several mid-2012 MBAirs, almost all with 128GB drives, under my supervision at work and have yet to experience this.