Even the 2015 has let me down!

[ge.caroline]

Hi there. Hope you are doing great. I'm having the Enter key being non-responsive at an edge where the button feels solid (non-clicky). It's annoying when I don't always hit the center of the key. I've made an appointment with Apple for them to investigate the issue. I haven't made a full system backup since I don't have an extra Ext. HDD for TimeMachine Backup but my essentials are already in the cloud.

I would like to know how the repair process will be like. Whether they are gonna replace just the keyboard or everything including SSD?

Also since I haven't even hit 6hrs battery life ever in my 8 months usage of mostly stock Apple apps, Is there any scope for me to talk about battery life issue also during this appointment? Because I know how most battery life issue claims will go since there isn't any standard process to measure the battery life but only according to device usage.


Device: Macbook Pro 2015 15-inch

 

[ZapNZs]

They may only clean the keyboard (and replace nothing) or they may in fact replace it. If they replace it, you will get a new battery along with it. However, it is possible that they could find something else wrong, and replace that as well (so there is always some possibility that the SSD will be replaced, and any time a system is worked on there is always some inherent risk of data loss).

Because of that, I feel that it is best to always operate with the assumption that the hard drive will be replaced/deleted and any data not backed up elsewhere will be permanently lost.

As for the battery issue, they can perform a diagnostic that looks at the battery health. You could also compile a list of things you have tried to extend the battery life, so that they have some idea of what you have tried thus far (and can further suggest other options if this is more usage-related.) We can also provide some recommendations if you want to share what you have done to try to extend battery life and what checks you have performed for processes that may be killing your system performance. Also, is your MBP a dGPU model?

 

[ge.caroline]

They may only clean the keyboard (and replace nothing) or they may in fact replace it. If they replace it, you will get a new battery along with it. However, it is possible that they could find something else wrong, and replace that as well (so there is always some possibility that the SSD will be replaced, and any time a system is worked on there is always some inherent risk of data loss).

Because of that, I feel that it is best to always operate with the assumption that the hard drive will be replaced/deleted and any data not backed up elsewhere will be permanently lost.

As for the battery issue, they can perform a diagnostic that looks at the battery health. You could also compile a list of things you have tried to extend the battery life, so that they have some idea of what you have tried thus far (and can further suggest other options if this is more usage-related.) We can also provide some recommendations if you want to share what you have done to try to extend battery life and what checks you have performed for processes that may be killing your system performance. Also, is your MBP a dGPU model?

Hey ZapNZs. Yeah, I don't want to risk data loss. Even though not TimeMachine backup I have backed up all the files now to my Ext.HDD. I will be able to re-download all the apps and redo the settings even if they reset Mac. So that's not an issue now.


Mine is iGPU model. dGPU has been discontinued since the introduction of 2016 MBP models. I was already part of Apple ecosystem therefore I’ve mostly adhered to Apple native apps. Most of my usage involves Safari consisting of Mail, Google Docs, YouTube streaming and then local files playback through VLC or Vox Music player(80% of the usage in background). Also have tried the methods Apple recommends in the following articles for maintaining the battery health.

https://support.apple.com/en-ae/HT201585
https://www.apple.com/ae/batteries/maximizing-performance/

May I know how would they check battery health?

 

[Spudlicious]

Hey ZapNZs. Yeah, I don't want to risk data loss. Even though not TimeMachine backup I have backed up all the files now to my Ext.HDD. I will be able to re-download all the apps and redo the settings even if they reset Mac.

The problem with that approach is you don't know what you've lost 'til it's gone. Given that storage is now cheap as chips, won't you consider a drive clone - Carbon Copy is recommended by me and a zillion others - and/or a Time Machine backup? Both would be good, belt and braces is always a sound strategy.

 

[Fishrrman]

Use the free app "Coconut Battery" to check the battery.

 

[ZapNZs]

Hey ZapNZs. Yeah, I don't want to risk data loss. Even though not TimeMachine backup I have backed up all the files now to my Ext.HDD. I will be able to re-download all the apps and redo the settings even if they reset Mac. So that's not an issue now.


Mine is iGPU model. dGPU has been discontinued since the introduction of 2016 MBP models. I was already part of Apple ecosystem therefore I’ve mostly adhered to Apple native apps. Most of my usage involves Safari consisting of Mail, Google Docs, YouTube streaming and then local files playback through VLC or Vox Music player(80% of the usage in background). Also have tried the methods Apple recommends in the following articles for maintaining the battery health.

https://support.apple.com/en-ae/HT201585
https://www.apple.com/ae/batteries/maximizing-performance/

May I know how would they check battery health?

If you have an external HDD, it might be worth making a bootable clone using a program like Carbon Copy Cloner simply for the convenience of restoring the system if need be? (literally all you do is boot into the clone, clone the clone onto the Mac's SSD, and you're done - settings, OS, Apps, data, and all )

If you have also reset the SMC, booted into safe mode to see if the same drain occurs (or done a fresh reinstall), monitored the drain (of all processes) through Activity Monitor, then it is probably time to have the system's battery tested. You can pull data yourself using an App called Coconut Battery...but it's not very accurate IMO and sometimes it is wildly off. An Apple Store or Service Provider can test the unit using MRI, where it monitors a short series of charges/discharges, and, if need be, the Apple Service Toolkit contains additional diagnostic modules for batteries. In short, Apple will replace the battery for you free of charge if it is, A) within the 1 year standard warranty period or under a 3 year AC protection plan, and B) shows less than 80% capacity (or, alternatively, has gone through certain physical changes, such as pillowing.) There may be other situations where they would replace it - if they wind up replacing your keyboard, presumably you get a new battery because it entails a full top-case replacement.

 

[ge.caroline]

If you have an external HDD, it might be worth making a bootable clone using a program like Carbon Copy Cloner simply for the convenience of restoring the system if need be? (literally all you do is boot into the clone, clone the clone onto the Mac's SSD, and you're done - settings, OS, Apps, data, and all )

If you have also reset the SMC, booted into safe mode to see if the same drain occurs (or done a fresh reinstall), monitored the drain (of all processes) through Activity Monitor, then it is probably time to have the system's battery tested. You can pull data yourself using an App called Coconut Battery...but it's not very accurate IMO and sometimes it is wildly off. An Apple Store or Service Provider can test the unit using MRI, where it monitors a short series of charges/discharges, and, if need be, the Apple Service Toolkit contains additional diagnostic modules for batteries. In short, Apple will replace the battery for you free of charge if it is, A) within the 1 year standard warranty period or under a 3 year AC protection plan, and B) shows less than 80% capacity (or, alternatively, has gone through certain physical changes, such as pillowing.) There may be other situations where they would replace it - if they wind up replacing your keyboard, presumably you get a new battery because it entails a full top-case replacement.

Hey. Just got the device back. They did the top case replacement. Got a new keyboard+battery. Even though I made a backup, all my data are intact. Thanks you guys for participating in this thread. Have a great day everyone.