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Dented 13 MBP need advice

R

Retzius

macrumors newbie
Original poster
Aug 28, 2009
19
0
Alright time to vent,

I placed my macbook pro on a counter, on top of my workout shorts and next thing you know, "boom!". It sounded like a gunshot, I see my 13 mbp on the marble floor tile with a closed lid. It had slid off of my shorts :( I pray that there isnt a crack on the screen, and to my luck, no crack but there is a really bad dent on body and outer lid/glass. Here are the pics....

IMG_0287.jpg

IMG_0289.jpg

IMG_0290.jpg

IMG_0291.jpg


So...I researched and it looks to be about $500 if I repair it on my own which I am confident I can do (have repaired many computers before). This includes new unibody keypad, outer lid casing, and glass bezel. However, I am not sure its worth it to repair for $500.

Should I just live with it?
Sell it? If so, how much? Its the 2009 midsummer MBP unibody, have had it less than a year.
Repair?

I am thinking of selling it but how much or what's a competitive price? I'd love to replace it with the new 13 mbp, my g/f has one and I like the trackpad better, ie scrolling.

Thankfully, the hard drive was the only thing that broke and already got replaced with a temporary WD 500gb scorpio drive that is going to be returned, ordered a hitachi instead.

Let me know guys :)
 
You'd probably do better selling it either on Craigslist or Ebay and take the money and use it towards the new one. No guarantee how well it would come out with you repairing it or how much trouble it is. The screen bezel is usual not replaced, the LCD and bezel are incorporated.
 
Thank you for actually posting some photo's when you started the thread.
From the looks of it, I just wouldn't worry about it. I know it doesn't look too great, but you should just keep it. It's not that terrible, plus if its a $500 repair, you could really just sell it for $600 or so, and then you pay $500 of your own money, you could just get yourself a new one. Hell, I know I'd buy a Macbook Pro for $600 even if it had that dent.

But honestly, it's not that big of a deal.
 
HLdan said:
You'd probably do better selling it either on Craigslist or Ebay and take the money and use it towards the new one. No guarantee how well it would come out with you repairing it or how much trouble it is. The screen bezel is usual not replaced, the LCD and bezel are incorporated.
Click to expand...

Not true...the bezel and glass are together while the lcd is seperate. I checked it out, here is a link of glass with bezel, http://www.powerbookmedic.com/Unibo...lacement---Front-Bezel---13-Inch-p-17333.html

They use a strong suction cup to pop open the glass and expose the lcd. Luckily, no damage to my LCD which is expensive.

Thanks for your help...How much do you recommend I sell it for? Its in excellent condition except for the dents.
 
wordoflife said:
Thank you for actually posting some photo's when you started the thread.
From the looks of it, I just wouldn't worry about it. I know it doesn't look too great, but you should just keep it. It's not that terrible, plus if its a $500 repair, you could really just sell it for $600 or so, and then you pay $500 of your own money, you could just get yourself a new one. Hell, I know I'd buy a Macbook Pro for $600 even if it had that dent.

But honestly, it's not that big of a deal.
Click to expand...

Thanks wordoflife,

I will think about it but it does bug me. I might test the waters and post it on craigslist to see if someone will bite. I will try a price point and go from there.
 
This seems like a really personal decision. To most it wouldn't be worth it, to me it would. Is it worth it to you?
 
Retzius said:
Not true...the bezel and glass are together while the lcd is seperate. I checked it out, here is a link of glass with bezel, http://www.powerbookmedic.com/Unibo...lacement---Front-Bezel---13-Inch-p-17333.html

They use a strong suction cup to pop open the glass and expose the lcd. Luckily, no damage to my LCD which is expensive.

Thanks for your help...How much do you recommend I sell it for? Its in excellent condition except for the dents.
Click to expand...

Ah I see, after seeing this it makes me understand better that Apple is tying to make people pay money for repairs. They say the whole screen needs to be replaced if the bezel is damaged. My hinge on my 13" MBP was making a cracking sound and Apple said they had to replace the entire screen and lid as they are all one piece. The Applecare covered it but I think they are just BS'ing customers.
Post the specs of your computer and I'm sure many of us could give you an idea how much you might be able to sell it for. As others mentioned the ding is not a huge deal (it may be for you) but to others it might not be a big deal so you might be able to get a fair price for it under these circumstances.
 
Thanks HLdan,

Here are the specs from cnet, its the 2009 summer model 13 mbp

Price as reviewed / Starting price $1,199
Processor 2.26GHz Intel Core 2 Duo
Memory 2GB, 1066MHz DDR2
Hard drive 160GB 5,400rpm
Chipset Nvidia MCP79
Graphics Nvidia GeForce 9400M (integrated)
Operating System OS X Leopard 10.5.7
Dimensions (WD) 12.8x8.9 inches
Height 0.95 inch
Screen size (diagonal) 13.3 inches
System weight / Weight with AC adapter 4.5/5.2 pounds
Category Thin and light

Oh yeah, and refurbished with same specs sells for 929.00 at apple,

http://store.apple.com/us/product/FB990LL/A?mco=MTA4MzIzMzA
 
you can probably get 600-700 for that and buy a new one (or use this as an excuse to upgrade. whatever you do don't repair it, not worth the price of two decent net books to repair a ding in a laptop. i could never live with that though (unless I knew exactly why it happened and i caused it)
 
Yeah, Microcenter is ruining it for anyone selling a recent 13" MBP, that $999 deal is amazing. I would think the OP could sell his for about $700-750. Also, OP your ram is actually DDR3.
 
biggest problem is the aluminum metal. it dents easily and is a cause for concern b/c bumps just do occur in normal use (maybe not like yours) but look around for any used macbook pros. almost all of them have dents of varying sizes.
 
Jason Beck said:
Not with dents like that.
I'll give you 400 cash for it if your interested :D
Click to expand...

I just sold a year old 2.0 uMB (I had upgraded it to 4GB and 500GB) for $650 with a dent in the palm rest. There's a market out there for used Macs at a great price. Many switchers don't care about dents and sometimes parents will buy an inexpensive system for the kids. As long as it was in good working order you're bound to find someone who'll pay a decent price.

Cheers,
 
robotmonkey said:
This seems like a really personal decision. To most it wouldn't be worth it, to me it would. Is it worth it to you?
Click to expand...

I agree, I think it is more of a personal decision and I am the picky type, so it really bugs me and I may end up selling it.
 
Thanks for the info. guys,

I think I will try the market. I will probably start with craigslist and go from there. Maybe post it on here too.

I've read apple has a better resale value than PC, so we will see. The dent bugs me and I like the new MBP's, this can be my excuse for a new one. Maybe I will go with the 15".
 
I'd say just keep it and use it. I know it looks bad but thats when I first saw it yesterday and now taking a look at it again today its not as bad as I thought it was at first. As long as its still functional.
 
Retzius said:
I agree, I think it is more of a personal decision and I am the picky type, so it really bugs me and I may end up selling it.
Click to expand...

You'll feel a lot better when you have one that isn't, no matter how much it ended up costing. I think me and you are very similar
 
I'd just get a pliers and bend it back. You may grow to love the scar. As long as it closes, I don't see it being a problem.
 
ndstrenge said:
I'd just get a pliers and bend it back. You may grow to love the scar. As long as it closes, I don't see it being a problem.
Click to expand...

+1 a good pair of pliers and a pair of needle nose too with some rubber covers you could probably bend it back. Those tools were a must have with the pre-unibody MBP's.
 
ndstrenge said:
I'd just get a pliers and bend it back. You may grow to love the scar. As long as it closes, I don't see it being a problem.
Click to expand...

It's impossible to bend it back perfectly and fix the finish, and I think that is what the op is concerned about.

OP: it bothered you enough to post it, so it seems to me that its bothering you enough to spend some money to fix it.
 
I'd recommend some creative bending, then selling it when the next MacBook Pro revision comes out so you can feel like you're getting more for your money. You've only had it for a year. Live with it for another few months, then you'll get a decent upgrade from this, rather than getting a very slightly better MacBook Pro for a few hundred. If that happened to me, I would get a rubberized plastic case, then upgrade the next time that the MacBook Pro is revised.
 
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