Apple Has Fully Restored Inventory of Mid 2012 and Early 2013 MacBook Pro Batteries

[MacRumors]

Following over a year of shortages, Apple has fully replenished its supply of top case assemblies with glued-in batteries for Mid 2012 and Early 2013 models of the 15-inch MacBook Pro with Retina display.

Mid 2012 MacBook Pro and its top case with battery via iFixit​

A top case is the aluminum enclosure that houses the keyboard, trackpad, and speaker grilles on a MacBook Pro. For the two aforementioned models, the battery is affixed to the underside of the top case with strong adhesive, meaning the entire assembly needs to be swapped out for a simple battery replacement.

Now that inventory of the top cases is widely available again, Apple is "no longer offering free, delayed repairs" to customers with new service orders, according to its internal memo distributed to Apple Stores and Apple Authorized Service Providers on Tuesday and obtained by MacRumors from a reliable source.

Instead, Apple has resumed charging its standard out-of-warranty fee for all 15-inch MacBook Pro battery replacements, which is $199 in the United States. The fee is waived if the notebook is covered by an AppleCare+ plan.

Apple first notified service technicians about the "severe constraint" of the top cases in March 2017, when it temporarily stopped facilitating battery replacements. Apple expected the shortage to be resolved by September 15, 2017, but it later extended the date to November 15, 2017, and it evidently took longer.

As a temporary solution, Apple permitted customers to delay service until inventory became available, in exchange for Apple covering the full cost of the battery replacement. If a customer was unwilling to wait, however, Apple permitted them to exchange the MacBook Pro for a functionally equivalent model.

This generous policy resulted in many customers being able to exchange a 2012 MacBook Pro for a much newer model, such as a maxed-out refurbished 2016 MacBook Pro with Touch Bar, for just the $199 cost of a battery replacement. The only requirement was that the battery failed Apple's diagnostic test.

Apple stopped offering replacement units for repairs initiated after July 26, 2017, due to a temporary improvement in top case availability, but it began offering free, delayed battery replacements again for repairs initiated after August 25, 2017. That policy is what appears to be ending as of this week.

All in all, customers with a Mid 2012 or Early 2013 model 15-inch MacBook Pro who are in need of a new battery should be able to pay for the service without significant delays or other issues going forward. The process can be initiated from the Contact Apple Support page by selecting Mac -> Mac Notebooks.

Article Link: Apple Has Fully Restored Inventory of Mid 2012 and Early 2013 MacBook Pro Batteries

 

[SamRyouji]

Once the stock shortage has been cleared, they start charging the repair-fee again. Well... it seems that free delayed repair was a gesture of apology and not a permanent move then.
Can't blame them either. If I were in their position I will likely do the same. The labor fee definitely isn't free and I won't make my saved cash reduced. Talk about being stinky but that's a dark side of doing business. It's not a non-profit charity organization.

 

[TrentS]

I just hope that when it is finally time for me to buy a new MacBook Pro, Apple will have brought back a new 17" version. I can't go back to a smaller screen.

 

[TheShadowKnows!]

$199 is a great deal as as one receives a completely new keyboard, trackpad, speakers, and aluminum top -- all unapologetically glued in.

The shame, of course, is that the Mid MBP 15-in is now EOL, after 5 years from Apple's official end of sale.

Otherwise, replacing the aforementioned top is nothing but all aces.

 

[Aluminum213]

Th glory days of the MacBook Pro lineup

 

[Rudy69]

Well... it seems that free delayed repair was a gesture of apology and not a permanent move then.
Can't blame them either.

It was only them going the extra mile because they couldn't offer a fix in a timely matter. There was no underlying issues, the batteries are failing the test because the battery has reach its end of life (laptops are from 2012-2013) not because of a defect.

 

[shareef777]

Th glory days of the MacBook Pro lineup

Ain't that the truth. I remember when I bought my 12rMBP and I had my initial complaints. "How could they get rid of ethernet and the CD drive!". "I gotta carry this ethernet dongle everywhere now!". "What's the point of making it thinner". Within a couple months I was sold. I found myself on wireless everywhere I went and ditched the dongle, found all my media available electronically, and the size actually improved my day to day function when going from meeting to meeting.

This 2016 MBP I've had since day one is a different story. A year and a half later I don't even look at the touchbar (literally, only touched the ESC, which sucks when it's not physical, and power button). I'm still carrying around an even bigger dongle then what I had originally bought for my 2012 as I need both HDMI and USB-A for meetings, and the size made no difference (especially when I have to have a dongle velcroed to my laptop lid SMH). This laptop is the definition of poor functionality.

 

[RudySnow]

I wonder if all this glued-together waste will find its way to Apple’s quarterly sustainabilty reports.

 

[Baymowe335]

Amazing they are even supporting hardware on devices that are 6 years old, EVEN if it's $199 now. Good job Apple.

 

[ilikewhey]

props to apple when given, this is why i stick with apple products. i'm all for a new mbp if they fix all the issues with the current line up, ie keyboard travel and durability

 

[alphaod]

Makes total sense.

 

[HappyPig]

I tried last week to get the battery on my 2012 rMBP replaced at this $199 price, and Apple couldn't do it in anything in a remotely useful manner. My options were:
1) Pay $375 (not $199) to have an Authorized Apple Service Provider replace the battery.
2) Pay $199 but have 9 hours of driving to get the work done at an Apple store. This consists of drive 3h roundtrip to the closest Apple store and have them verify the battery is dead. Then driving 3 hours roundtrip back to this store 3 days later when they get the part in stock, whereupon I would leave the (work-necessary) laptop there for 4 business days. I'd then drive 3 hours round trip back to this store to pick up the laptop when the repair was done.
3) Mail in the laptop to Apple, but several levels of technicians could not get their system to accept the repair at $199. Their computer system would only accept the repair with the note that the laptop was dropped (it never was, nor did it ever come up in discussions leading to this price) and the repair would be $400.

So screw all of that - I'm going to try the complicated and difficult iFixit replacement.

 

[magicschoolbus]

Classic Macbook Pro mid 2012 still kicking.

 

[needsomecoffee]

I wonder if all this glued-together waste will find its way to Apple’s quarterly sustainabilty reports.

Amen. Recently people are beginning to study the total impact (e.g. C02 emissions) caused by consumers having to replace phones (and computers) rather than batteries. The environmental impact is substantial. Sadly Apple IS NOT a leader in true environmental stewardship. If they were, they would be the leader is showing how design prowess can be used to reduce and reuse devices. Sadly no economic incentive to do this, Tim gets to travel around and speak as a leader of an environmentally conscious company, and Jony gets lauded for essentially being the King of Thin despite his obvious disregard for the many pernicious affects this has had on durability and lifetime usage.

 

[RedTomato]

Did anyone manage to buy a 2012 MBP with dead battery from an unsuspecting seller specifically to swap for a free 2016 MBP? And successfully complete the swap?

 

[Woodcrest64]

I ended up replacing my 2012 Retina MacBook Pro's battery a couple years ago. Hoping to keep this machine going until it dies. My wife is still using her 2011 17" MacBook Pro.

 

[itsmilo]

„For the two aforementioned models, the battery is affixed to the underside of the top case with strong adhesive, meaning the entire assembly needs to be swapped out for a simple battery replacement.“

How very environmental of them

—-

A few years ago they replaced my battery and the casing, keyboard etc for free when I „simply“ got in to get my display replaced for the known coating issue. Apparently the battery was loose and literally fell out when the Genius was doing his mandatory check up beforehand.

 

[phillytim]

Th glory days of the MacBook Pro lineup

YOU AIN'T KIDDIN'!

 

[Non-Polar]

> Claims to be environmentally friendly
> Has to remove the entirety of the top assembly for just a battery replacement

Just Apple things.

 

[ignatius345]

I'm still happily rocking a 2012 retina MBP and very happy to see I could still get it serviced by Apple -- for now anyway.

 

[kemal]

I had an Apple sales engineer indicate the gluing in was a safety feature. So the customer doesn't mess with the thinly cased dangerous battery.

My take:
So when the customer violates the pentalobe screws and drives a putty scraper into the battery and starts a fire, Apple won't be responsible.

 

[Millah]

Amen. Recently people are beginning to study the total impact (e.g. C02 emissions) caused by consumers having to replace phones (and computers) rather than batteries. The environmental impact is substantial. Sadly Apple IS NOT a leader in true environmental stewardship. If they were, they would be the leader is showing how design prowess can be used to reduce and reuse devices. Sadly no economic incentive to do this, Tim gets to travel around and speak as a leader of an environmentally conscious company, and Jony gets lauded for essentially being the King of Thin despite his obvious disregard for the many pernicious affects this has had on durability and lifetime usage.

Which is precisely what Apple IS doing. Isn’t that the whole point of their disassembly and recycling robots?

I don’t recall any other company claiming to retrieve the lithium from recycled batteries, copper from recycled boards, etc. Nor has any other company stated a “closed loop supply chain” goal.

Their closed loop supply chain intends to do exactly what you claim they’re not. Reuse and extract raw materials back from dead components.

How might Apple achieve that if they put recycling and repairs in the hands of users? 9/10 users will probably just dump old batteries in the trash. Explain to me how that is a more environmentally conscious approach again?

 

[Sedulous]

Well that was worth it, eh Apple? Why hold consumable battery in with a couple screws when you can glue it to the top case! It is a good design where the entire guts of computer are removed and installed in a new top case every time a battery needs to be changed.

 

[shareef777]

Which is precisely what Apple IS doing. Isn’t that the whole point of their disassembly and recycling robots?

I don’t recall any other company claiming to retrieve the lithium from recycled batteries, copper from recycled boards, etc. Nor has any other company stated a “closed loop supply chain” goal.

Their closed loop supply chain intends to do exactly what you claim they’re not. Reuse and extract raw materials back from dead components.

How might Apple achieve that if they put recycling and repairs in the hands of users? 9/10 users will probably just dump old batteries in the trash. Explain to me how that is a more environmentally conscious approach again?

lol, and how many iPhone users do you think actually give their used iPhones back to Apple for close to nothing? Odds are it ends up in a landfill. Those recycling robots are built as marketing material first and foremost. And based off your post, they're doing a great job.

I should add that I think iPhone's longevity is awfully underestimated. Sure they build them where it's harder to replace components, but time and again I find people still using iPhone 4/5/6 devices over an Android or other phone of the same age.

 

[RudySnow]

9/10 users will probably just dump old batteries in the trash. Explain to me how that is a more environmentally conscious approach again?

Actually with these MacBooks, 0/10 users are dumping batteries into the trash because THEY CAN’T REPLACE JUST THE BATTERY ALONE. And while Apple may be recycling *parts* of the assembly, a whole new one has to be procured before the replacement can happen, which just adds to the environmental impact—which is not “environmentally sustainable” if you ask me.

If your car needs a new battery, you don’t take it in to the mechanic for a brand new chassis, do you?