Need your opinion guys: my 13" aluminum Macbook, bought in Nov. 08, has started to show major cracks/peeling on the outside portion of the black plastic hinge. I have babied this laptop since I bought it. It hasn't been dropped, left in car, or anything. Has anyone else seen anything like this before? Do you think Apple will/should cover this under warranty? I took it to the Genius bar yesterday and the tech doubted it is-he seemed to passively-aggressively accuse me of abusing my laptop and guessed that Apple wouldn't cover the damage. I think it's a defect. It's purely cosmetic but it's really ugly and I think the problem will only get worse. Here's a picture:
Got a tip for us?
Let us know
Become a MacRumors Supporter for $50/year with no ads, ability to filter front page stories, and private forums.
Cracks on my unibody Macbook hinge: is this covered under warranty?
- Thread starter nytivofan
- Start date
- Sort by reaction score
ouch.
what happened man?
cause i know hinges just doesn't crack automatically.
maybe you opened it too fast, or close it hard.
idk.
but i would definitely get it fixed asap
what happened man?
cause i know hinges just doesn't crack automatically.
maybe you opened it too fast, or close it hard.
idk.
but i would definitely get it fixed asap
I honestly don't know-I keep it in a sleeve *and* a laptop bag whenever I travel. And these days, I don't even travel much. The rest of the laptop is in perfect condition-the aluminum case, screen, etc. look fine, which is another reason why I think this is some weird defect in the plastic of the hinge.
I posted a post about this a month ago, but man, yours is way worse than mine, I only have minor cracks in my hinge. Havent checked yet with an apple store, but it should definitely be covered by the warranty
I also have some cracks in my aluminum macbook hinge. They are not nearly as bad as yours... Just three hairline fractures running vertically within about an inch of each other. I haven't bothered taking it in to an Apple store b/c I figured the geniuses would laugh at me. That said, yours is terrible, and I hope they replace it for you.
To be honest, OP's cracks don't look like cracks that would occur on their own. In some pictures it looks like there's some serious scratching like it was dragged or something was used to scratch it. This is very different from what others have been reporting. The hairline cracks look like the MacBook cracks but OP's look like it was done by someone or something. Still, I'd have it checked hopefully Apple will support you.
I don't think we're getting the full story here.
But wow, that looks horrible!
If the OP didn't abuse his notebook, then I would start to worry because I have one from February and it doesn't show any cracks. However... my hinge does make noises at times which makes me believe that there could be some stress. This could be the cause of those cracks (if there is no misuse).
But wow, that looks horrible!
If the OP didn't abuse his notebook, then I would start to worry because I have one from February and it doesn't show any cracks. However... my hinge does make noises at times which makes me believe that there could be some stress. This could be the cause of those cracks (if there is no misuse).
Good God I hope he did drop that thing, i definitely dont want that happening to mine! Looks like it got smacked with a hammer a few times!
mine is doing something similar.
i will try to snap a picture of it after i charge the camera up. mine is a little different.
i have vertical cracks that are able to be seen when the screen is open, from 1/2 an inch to the left of the word Macbook, to about 2 inches to the right of it. with the screen closed, if you look at the plastic from the back, it makes a upside down V going from the bottom to the top, about an inch to the right of the word macbook.
in addidtion, i just noticed that there is a tiny edge on the plastic, tha alligns with the edge of the unibody, that has a large amount of cracks like the OP's as well.
i need to get off my rump and take it in and see about getting it fixed..
i will try to snap a picture of it after i charge the camera up. mine is a little different.
i have vertical cracks that are able to be seen when the screen is open, from 1/2 an inch to the left of the word Macbook, to about 2 inches to the right of it. with the screen closed, if you look at the plastic from the back, it makes a upside down V going from the bottom to the top, about an inch to the right of the word macbook.
in addidtion, i just noticed that there is a tiny edge on the plastic, tha alligns with the edge of the unibody, that has a large amount of cracks like the OP's as well.
i need to get off my rump and take it in and see about getting it fixed..
I am curious on what happened too. I have developed the same issue with the unibody macbook pro and the Genius bar tech dismissed it as being dropped (it wasn't), an hence not covered by the Apple Care warranty.
It does look like heating or heating+humidity damage. Worse still, it appears to be affecting the airport as well.
I am hoping contacting Apple Care directly rather this Genius blockade. I wondered if people had any luck getting it fixed.
Thanks
It does look like heating or heating+humidity damage. Worse still, it appears to be affecting the airport as well.
I am hoping contacting Apple Care directly rather this Genius blockade. I wondered if people had any luck getting it fixed.
Thanks