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I iSight removable in Unibody MacBook Pros?

M

michaelnbg

macrumors newbie
Original poster
Jan 15, 2009
3
0
Hi all,
I am consulting customers with a very strict "no camera" policy and I want to upgrade my 3 years old MacBook Pro to the new Unibody one. However I haven't found any hints or tutorials on how to remove the embedded iSight camera. The ifixit tutorial on the new MBP doesn't show a teardown of the display.

So my question is: can the isight be removed or not? It was possible with all of the "non Unibody" models.

Cheers,
Mike
 
It'll be a lot lot harder than the previous generations anyway. You'd have to be careful the glass front doesn't fall out if you do manage to get the back off.
 
How about whiteout over the lens? You could possibly remove the white out later if you desire (but the picture will probably suck)
 
You could probably talk to an Apple business consultant about that and see if they can provide you with a modified solution.
 
michaelnbg said:
Hi all,
I am consulting customers with a very strict "no camera" policy and I want to upgrade my 3 years old MacBook Pro to the new Unibody one. However I haven't found any hints or tutorials on how to remove the embedded iSight camera. The ifixit tutorial on the new MBP doesn't show a teardown of the display.

So my question is: can the isight be removed or not? It was possible with all of the "non Unibody" models.

Cheers,
Mike
Click to expand...

Hey, I'm just curious as to their reason(s) for wanting the internal camera to be removed.
 
Not sure if it still applies, but here's something from Oct '07 mac.forums:
 

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What do they do about your cell phone? Seems like every cell phone has a camera in it these days.

Maybe you will have to use your old MBP for these customers.
 
miamialley said:
Hey, I'm just curious as to their reason(s) for wanting the internal camera to be removed.
Click to expand...

GregE said:
What do they do about your cell phone? Seems like every cell phone has a camera in it these days.

Maybe you will have to use your old MBP for these customers.
Click to expand...

There are plenty of places that don't allow cameras to be brought inside. My company only recently allowed cell phones with cameras, but we're basically on the honor policy not to use that feature. Of course more restricted areas disallow phones entirely, so that's not an issue.
 
Thanks for the iresq link. They told me that the iSight is not removable in the new MB (Pro) line.

Thank you Apple, for forcing professionals working in security sensitive areas into crappy Dell / Lenovo laptops. :mad:
 
michaelnbg said:
Thank you Apple, for forcing professionals working in security sensitive areas into crappy Dell / Lenovo laptops. :mad:
Click to expand...

Don't think Apple ever catered that area. But you could always email Steve Jobs (aka whoever that Mail alias) ;)
 
michaelnbg said:
Thanks for the iresq link. They told me that the iSight is not removable in the new MB (Pro) line.

Thank you Apple, for forcing professionals working in security sensitive areas into crappy Dell / Lenovo laptops. :mad:
Click to expand...

Um, your situation is very unique so you can't expect Apple to accommodate you. Also people here are mentioning putting a piece of electrical tape over the lens which makes more sense than possibly damaging your computer by trying to take apart the screen but you seem to be ignoring that help.
 
michaelnbg said:
Thanks for the iresq link. They told me that the iSight is not removable in the new MB (Pro) line.

Thank you Apple, for forcing professionals working in security sensitive areas into crappy Dell / Lenovo laptops. :mad:
Click to expand...

you could be a older model refurb.
 
michaelnbg said:
Thanks for the iresq link. They told me that the iSight is not removable in the new MB (Pro) line.

Thank you Apple, for forcing professionals working in security sensitive areas into crappy Dell / Lenovo laptops. :mad:
Click to expand...

If you want, you could probably open it up and disconnect the appropriate cable.
 
Well, I took my MBPro to a repair shop couple of days ago for my Display replacement.
After I got it back home, my display was functioning perfectly except for iSight and AirPort card (They're both behind the screen). I took it back to the shop, and they said they forgot to plug in some cables.

I'm sure if you took it to a local Service Provider (not Apple store) and ask them nicely, they might just disconnect it for you?

You can see that they're just non-existent when you start up Photobooth or System profiler...
 
HLdan said:
Um, your situation is very unique so you can't expect Apple to accommodate you. Also people here are mentioning putting a piece of electrical tape over the lens which makes more sense than possibly damaging your computer by trying to take apart the screen but you seem to be ignoring that help.
Click to expand...

Yeah, like putting a piece of tape over a functioning camera is going to satisfy any kind of security requirement. The hard-wired removal is the best option, whether done by Apple or a local shop. The important thing is to be able to demonstrate that it's completely non-functional.
 
I know the situation is sort of unique but I know many companies that don't allow cameras at their sites.

However the rule is "no camera" that does not include a taped lens, a destroyed lens or a disconnected camera.

edit: I think I'll check out a refurbished one... but dammn I wanted that new 17'' with 8 GB RAM.
 
I guess if you're really up to it you could always drill a hole through the camera, then fill it up with something black, if you make it right you'll barely notice it :)
 
HLdan said:
Um, your situation is very unique so you can't expect Apple to accommodate you. Also people here are mentioning putting a piece of electrical tape over the lens which makes more sense than possibly damaging your computer by trying to take apart the screen but you seem to be ignoring that help.
Click to expand...

Whatever. His situation is not unique.
I work at a large company (150k+ employees globally) and no cameras are allowed. No cell phone cameras, no laptop cameras, etc. Visitor laptops have their ports secured so they can't be used.

I can assure you that there are many 1000s of people working in areas that do not allow cameras. It is disappointing that Apple doesn't sell notebooks without a camera.
 
HLdan said:
Um, your situation is very unique so you can't expect Apple to accommodate you. Also people here are mentioning putting a piece of electrical tape over the lens which makes more sense than possibly damaging your computer by trying to take apart the screen but you seem to be ignoring that help.
Click to expand...

Gotta agree with everyone else that his situation is very certainly not unique. The reason it hasn't been a huge issue in the past is the non-presence of Macs in enterprise in the past. With growing adoption, more people are considering them, but the iSight camera is very certainly gonna be a deal killer.

My current company is a huge multinational with almost 150K employees and we have zero Macs outside marketing, all of which I can only assume are Power Macs and Mac Pros. Almost all of our work is done via Microsoft Office, Lotus Notes, and web-based apps, so our adoption of Macs certainly isn't due to software. The security issues due to a built-in camera, the lack of a hot-swappable dock, the inability for any of the MacBooks to open 180 degrees are.

It's not a huge problem so long as Apple's not serious about Mac becoming a real competitor to Windows in enterprise. If it is, it's gotta make some major compromises for security, functionality and usability.
 
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