Brand new 15 inch Mbp does not sit flush on table

[turbineseaplane]

My 12" MacBook has this issue to a small degree. I have cut a piece of felt the size the laptop to put under the machine which completely solves the problem. Not elegant but effective.

Are you serious?
How old is it?

I would absolutely blow a gasket at Apple if my very expensive new notebook wasn't sitting flush on surfaces.

What's the point of all these fancy/expensive processes and materials they are using if they can't even beat out plastic at simply "being flat".

 

[DeltaMac]

Plastic is - well, plastic, so would have the flexibility to be assembled a bit off, yet still sit flat.

Seems like a simple fix to me...
Why not just try a little "persuasion" on the case by opening the lid, and gently stressing the case back to flat?
I would loosen the bottom cover screws, so the chassis will move more easily.
Flex it gently, corner to corner, until flat, then snug the screws back down.
I suspect that Apple doesn't do this at assembly, as there's some mechanical stress during shipping, and that can be relieved by the new owner - (Your life changes when you get something new, and that does not mean that you can't allow for adjustments in return. Is that being too philosophical? )

 

[turbineseaplane]

Plastic is - well, plastic, so would have the flexibility to be assembled a bit off, yet still sit flat.

Seems like a simple fix to me...
Why not just try a little "persuasion" on the case by opening the lid, and gently stressing the case back to flat?
I would loosen the bottom cover screws, so the chassis will move more easily.
Flex it gently, corner to corner, until flat, then snug the screws back down.
I suspect that Apple doesn't do this at assembly, as there's some mechanical stress during shipping, and that can be relieved by the new owner - (Your life changes when you get something new, and that does not mean that you can't allow for adjustments in return. Is that being too philosophical? )

I'm sorry but Apple deserves no leeway on this.

They are charging a literal arm and a leg of markup on these things and I've never had one of their notebooks have any problem like this at all.

Maybe they are making them too thin now? (their idea, not mine)

 

[Mike Boreham]

Are you serious?
How old is it?

I would absolutely blow a gasket at Apple if my very expensive new notebook wasn't sitting flush on surfaces.

What's the point of all these fancy/expensive processes and materials they are using if they can't even beat out plastic at simply "being flat".

My MacBook is nearly two years old and often carried in bags. The degree of non flatness is such that a single sheet of paper under one foot is enough to stop it. I notice the issue when typing as it makes the keyboard noisier if all four feet are not in contact with the surface.
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My MacBook is nearly two years old and often carried in bags. The degree of non flatness is such that a single sheet of paper under one foot is enough to stop it. I notice the issue when typing as it makes the keyboard noisier if all four feet are not in contact with the surface.

And of course the felt also covers the situations where the surface is not flat anyway.

 

[DeltaMac]

Everyone can have an opinion. I have one, too.
The laptop is a manufactured thing, with both tolerances and standards as part of being a manufactured thing. So, rather than thinking of the thing as a perfect, I prefer to make whatever mechanical adjustments that might be necessary from time to time (just my opinion. I also will attempt to adjust my car door hinges for proper fit, with varying degrees of success. )
Don't misunderstand me - perfection is a goal, or even an expectation, but (despite costing a lot of money) it still remains a manufactured thing. It's not about giving a company leeway, it's simply working with what you have - that tool that you use, called a laptop. If you can do a simple adjustment on your own to make that tool "fit" better, and in the end make you a happier user, why not do that?

OK, sometimes an opinion can be formed from the wrong idea. If that's me, then I get to live with it...

 

[vemac575]

Nonsense. This isn't a wide spread issue. I meet people who've warped their Macs and then I meet MOST people who's Macs are just fine. Apple would never get away with that kind of issue if it were even kind of a thing.

 

[gatorjwade]

My 2018 MacBook Pro has a similar issue as well... so far to date I've used it just sitting to the side, and I use a separate keyboard/display. However, recently I"m using just the laptop and keyboard and noticed that when I put the weight of my hand on the corners of the keyboard, it wobbles on a flat surface which is aggravating. I used a metal straight-edge and amazingly when I put it across the "feet" on the bottom diagonally, it can't touch both feet because the "belly" of the laptop is too big! So this is not a twisted case situation, but rather the underbelly of the laptop is too big! Has anyone seen this case? I got this provided by my employer, so not like I can just take it down to apple and return/exchange it. For the moment, I place that metal straightedge underneath between the two front feet and that provides enough support to keep it level, but a bit of a pain. :-(

 

[0906742]

I used a metal straight-edge and amazingly when I put it across the "feet" on the bottom diagonally, it can't touch both feet because the "belly" of the laptop is too big!

You are feeding it too much and now it has a fat belly.
No, seriously it sounds like battery in your unit is swelling. Take it to service asap if that is the case, it can even dangerous if it is a battery swelling (fire hazard).

 

[stevemiller]

i've been using apple laptops for over a decade, and the bendiness of the 2016 and onwards chassis is really noticeab le. i can loudly hear popping of components in the bottom left palm rest even lightly touching it. i can press it down but it re-warps several minutes later. i replaced the top case for it a few months back, but the issue re-developed.

i'm sure some here will claim i probably did something to it. but i didn't, and its pretty clear compared to all my previous macbook pros that its just not as sturdy of a body.

 

[gatorjwade]

You are feeding it too much and now it has a fat belly.
No, seriously it sounds like battery in your unit is swelling. Take it to service asap if that is the case, it can even dangerous if it is a battery swelling (fire hazard).

Good idea... I have a 7pm appt tonight at the Apple store to check it out...

 

[gatorjwade]

Good idea... I have a 7pm appt tonight at the Apple store to check it out...

Results of Apple store visit: passed diags, but clearly failed the visual inspection - he said very, very likely it's an expanding battery. They were going to send it for repair (2-3 days), but since I'm a corporate account, supposedly a repair person will come to me to fix it.
Thanks for the recommendation!

 

[kryptticAZ]

I took two MBPs into Apple this week—a 2016 and a 2018. BOTH had swollen batteries. The 2018 had a fat belly just like you’re describing and the front feet were not touching the desk. I suspect this battery issue is bigger than they are letting on as neither of these models are on the recall list.

 

[Nacho98]

Sometimes the wobble is just bad lower case alignment.

I've had a wobble out of the box. Lower case alignment looked fine upon inspection. But just taking it off and putting it back on somehow allowed it to seat better and it was perfectly fine and sat level on every surface thereafter.