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Damaged 15-Inch 2015 MacBook Pro Demonstrates Why Apple Initiated Battery Recall Program
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I remember years ago when I had an Powerbook G4, put it in the case in sleep mode, I guess something kicked in and the thing started smoking. Brought that and the power cable back to the Apple store. The cable had a black spot in it. Apple replaced them both, no questions asked. Even gave me a new brenthaven case.
Saw notice of the recall here on MR, checked out my machine’s serial number against the relevant dates and even though there was no symptomatic behavior, no swelling battery, etc., she was determined to be “eligible” for the recall, so I trotted her over to the Apple store, where diagnostic testing demonstrated that, yes, she needed a new battery. She was sent away to Texas and will be returning to me later this week. I am very relieved and pleased that this problem was discovered and that Apple has taken action to alert owners of 2015 15” MBPs which may have the problematic batteries and that the company is being so responsive and proactive now to replace those potentially dangerous batteries.
Apple needs to institute a push notification system alerting customers of recalls. They already invade our desktops with constant reminders of new OS versions without any way of turning it off unless you want to also turn off other things. The least they could do is notify you of a safety recall on screen.
Are customers being mailed safety recall notices? Car owners are required to be notified by mail by law.
Are customers being mailed safety recall notices? Car owners are required to be notified by mail by law.
It'll be so nice once we get beyond our current Li ion battery tech, for thermal runaway and also capacity loss. We need both of those fixed.
The power bricks of the Razer Blade 15 and 17 (2019) are overheating reaching 67 degrees (Celsius), and has received considerable attention, yet Razer's response is to tell their customers that their bricks are on par with other manufacturers, and they got proper certification. (Tell that to Galaxy Note 7!) If it were Apple, they would have issued a recall by now.
Apple has had bulging battery issues forever. They NEVER learn. They continue to focus on thinness rather than battery containment. I’ve had multiple powerbook/macbook/ibook/mbp with swelling batteries. And one iphone and a watch series 0 that was replaced due to bulging batteries.
At least when the batteries were removable you could get them replaced without the batteries destroying your mac. They would bulge and make the battery hard to remove or reseat.
swingerofbirch
macrumors 68040
A long time ago I sent in a 13" MBP for repairs to the display, and while it was the depot they found the battery was swollen and replaced it.
But it wasn't at all visible from the outside. Sort of scary that this could be lurking in your laptop and you wouldn't know about it.
I really miss user replaceable batteries—and user replaceable hard drives.
But it wasn't at all visible from the outside. Sort of scary that this could be lurking in your laptop and you wouldn't know about it.
I really miss user replaceable batteries—and user replaceable hard drives.
Yup! It's definitely an issue with my mid-2014 MBP Retina! It was rocking on the desk because the battery was so bloated. I was even cleaning out the inside before the battery bloat issue to keep the machine from overheating. Apple replaced it...a year an a half later...it's bloated and rocking again!
I am now on my 4th Apple lemon during my adult life. I have a laptop subject to this recall and was told "leave it for up to a week at your nearest Apple store or ship it to us and you should have it back in 2 weeks." I am an attorney, use the machine daily in my work, and don't have another machine. Does Apple have loaners? No. Do they plan to compensate me for shutting down my business for up to a week or two? No. Do they particularly care? in my opinion, no, as well. Fortunately I found a service provider (though not currently on Apple's approved list) who has ordered a replacement battery for me and will install it "while I wait" once it comes in. If there were a decent alternative to Apple, I'd run, not walk, towards it.
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Man, people will complain about anything. So what if your computer explodes into a fiery catalyst potentially burning down your house and family in your sleep? It's THINNER, people. That counts for something, you know.
I hope this doesn’t happen to anybody else... The consequences this can can cause are absolutely disastrous if you simply leave it at any place especially home.
I wished everyone used this logic towards american cars.... oh wait
My 2015 did not qualify for the program. I think they were just a bad batches of batteries.
We have approx 750 of this exact model Mac in service, 107 were affected and eligible for recall. We were lucky it was such a low percentage.
That would not be good in an airplane
Better in a plane when there are alert people around with fire extinguishers, rather than in your house while you are sleeping or away. But definitely bad in either case.
FWIW - I use a Mid 2015 15" MBP for work and mine shows as not eligible for the recall, so apparently this does not effect all Mid 2015 15" MBP's.
Right....it only affected some which were manufactured during a specific time frame (and usually also purchased during that same time frame).
Not a hole. It’s the dark brown finish off of the surface it was sitting on. You can see the surface on the bottom of the photo, with the same exact pattern. Looks like a sticky lacquer finish that got stuck to the bottom of the unit after it got that way due to the heat.
That’s actually a really good question. Next time I go to an Apple store if I remember I’ll definitely ask one of the employees there.