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12" PowerBook Warping

N

njs177

macrumors newbie
Original poster
Jan 19, 2004
15
0
State College
SO I finally got Apple to take back my 12" PowerBook to be repaired for warping. This has taken several months and elevated symptoms, but they are sending me a box to ship it back to them in. I guess my question, then, is for anyone who has actually had this repair work done. What level of quality should I expect on this repair? Will it come back right or is this going to be one of those ridiculously complicated games of tech support tag? I am including some photos so you can gauge the level of damage/repair.

Warp 1

Warp 2

Warp 3

Warp 4

Warp 5

Thanks in advance.
 
Wow, is that the 867MHz rev or the 1Ghz? I've actually seen that problem on another 12" 1GHz PB, and I think it was caused by excessive heat. The owner said that he had the PowerBook on for a few days at the maximum processor setting to do some distributed processing work, and when he checked in on it, it was very hot, and the case was warped, exactly as yours looks in the pictures. He called Apple, and they sent out a box, no questions asked. However, he has yet to get it back (it's been just over a week). I think that is longer than repairs usually take for Apple, but maybe they are doing some more extensive testing on it. I mean, I thought they had the heat issues figured out in the rev. B, but maybe not.
 
Actually, this is a Rev. A with a combo drive. The case was not right from the start, being as it is depicted in Warp 3 and Warp 4. I took it in to my campus repair center to have it assessed for a warranty repair. However, Apple would not repair the machine, as the damage was said to be 'cosmetic' and not worth a repair. Now, without actually showing them the machine, they are dispatching me a box and repair service. I have never left this machine run any more extensively than 3 hours of Photoshop with iChat and Safari running in the background. It does/has gotten hot, but the warping was never much more than the occasional 'wobble' which was corrected by applying a bit of force to opposing corners or just letting the machine heat back up. I am dumbfounded as to why this is occuring, but glad it is still within the warranty.
 
when ppl mentioned warping i thought they meant just the case slightly bending or that grey plastic not firmly clamping onto the case but wow (!), you're has really been mangled.
 
I see it in mine now

My latch area is warping exactly where you pictured but not that bad. It is a very slight bend hardly noticable right now. Interesting, I wonder how it will develop. I will definately get applecare now. I bought mine on Dec 30th so it is warping a little after 3 weeks.
 
#'s 3, 4 and 5 are probably within the design tolerance - the way PB is put together, i don't see how it's a "defect" at the level you see in the picture. #5 is a very common "problem" - i fixed mine by just nudging the Al plate that's attached to the battery. i don't see how apple can "fix" this other than doing the same. i've seen much worse case of #3 - so much that you can see the backlight unit. compared to that, i think yours is ok.

#1 & 2 (the same problem) is a strange one i haven't seen. i'd say this is probably caused by the heat. i'd have them replace the unit for that. it's quite ugly. :(
 
I have a Rev A 12" and have noticed a slight warp, but hardly noticeable and it doesn't affect anything (performance, closeing the lid, ect). At first i thought about taking it back, but since it's only notceable if you are looking for it, I decided not to.

On a side note, a friend of mine recieved a 12" 1GHz with a dent in the screen lid. There was no effect on the screen or anything else, and you could only notice it if the light shined just right.

Overall, not a huge deal. On mine it doesn't do anything to appearance or performance so I'm cool with it.
 
I got a the battery 'lid' standing out a TINY bit (Rev B), but I am not worried about it, guess it is part of the tolerance... that first defect of your PB looks pretty bad, though, did that just appear or did you drop it somehow ? Do you keep your machine running for long times, does it get very hot ?
 
You know, I never expected this much of a response! I am so impressed, especially compared to Apple's Support site and Macfora, where this topic is running concurrently.

To answer: I have never dropped this PowerBook. It has never been so much as looked at in a mean way. Seriously...it lives inside of my Sportfolio case and inside of the case, I keep it in a hand made, Jaguar-spotted furry sleeve (to keep the zipper from scratching while in the case.) I clean it with an air compressor everytime I can visit my dad's garage, I wipe down the entire case with iKlear and an optical grade, lint free cloth every week. So, in short, it is babied.

I really can't imagine what happened to the latch, but it certainly was nothing that I have done. I have to assume that the normal heat of operation combined with a constant warping/unbending of the bottom weakened the aluminum strapping around the 'side' of the machine enough to 'bulge' out. Very odd, yes. My fault, no.

NO box today as it is MLK. Hopefully it comes tomorrow so I can get this PowerBook drought overwith.
 
I've never seen the kind of warpage reported here on my 12" 867 over the month I've owned it, but it does rock just a bit on a flat surface. Not so much that it bothers me. Now here's a weird one: After playing a game on the PB for a few hours, it got about as hot as I've seen it -- and the keyboard stopped working abruptly. Some of the keys typed characters, but the wrong characters, and many did not work at all. I shut the PB down and let it cool for a while, and when I started it up again, all was well again. Anybody else seen this happen?
 
Re: I see it in mine now

Originally posted by zapp
My latch area is warping exactly where you pictured but not that bad. It is a very slight bend hardly noticable right now. Interesting, I wonder how it will develop. I will definately get applecare now. I bought mine on Dec 30th so it is warping a little after 3 weeks.
Click to expand...

I bought it exactly on the same date and aswell i have a slightly warped hinged. almost unnoticeable, about half if even that a millimetre out and about an inch long. At the oment i'm just pushing it back in slightly bit by bit. hope this works.
also anybody else have the problem with the battery sticking out a bit on the fron fo the book?
 
Well folks, I got it back. Here is the good news: Apple replaced the top case, bottom case, screen bezel and battery for free. Everything looks great, with very minimal uneveness in the plastic trim and perfect metal. It sits on my desk rock solidly.

However, the bad news: The battery does not sit flush with the right side of the machine. I am not sending it back to Apple again, so I have taped it flush with a piece of clear packing tape. I guess that I will just buy another battery and hope that it sits more flush. I could use two anyway.

So, there you go. Apple did very well on this repair. If you are still under warranty, I recommend it greatly. Turn around time was very quick, too. 3 days from ship in to getting it in my hands.

Thanks for posting in response to this thread.
 
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