is it worth replacing the battery on my 2012 mba?

[estockme]

it's getting a little long in the tooth... so i'm looking at replacing the battery, which i expect to run around 120$. i've also had some suspicion that there is a problem with the ssd since i got it, but lately i've been having semi-regular crashes (2x/week or more on heavy use). i've read through the crash logs and can't isolate any specific process. it also runs hot with the fan on almost all the time.

is this machine worth bothering with a battery replacement? pretty sure i don't want the new macbook, but if a new air is released next year i could probably wait until then.

 

[motrek]

it's getting a little long in the tooth... so i'm looking at replacing the battery, which i expect to run around 120$. i've also had some suspicion that there is a problem with the ssd since i got it, but lately i've been having semi-regular crashes (2x/week or more on heavy use). i've read through the crash logs and can't isolate any specific process. it also runs hot with the fan on almost all the time.

is this machine worth bothering with a battery replacement? pretty sure i don't want the new macbook, but if a new air is released next year i could probably wait until then.

Of course the fan is always on in every MBA, I assume you mean the fan noise is audible.

If the machine is running hot and the fan noise is audible, you should be able to track down the offending process(es) using Activity Monitor. Once you sort that out, it will increase your battery life by a huge amount too.

 

[brotherjoe]

it's getting a little long in the tooth... so i'm looking at replacing the battery, which i expect to run around 120$. i've also had some suspicion that there is a problem with the ssd since i got it, but lately i've been having semi-regular crashes (2x/week or more on heavy use). i've read through the crash logs and can't isolate any specific process. it also runs hot with the fan on almost all the time.

is this machine worth bothering with a battery replacement? pretty sure i don't want the new macbook, but if a new air is released next year i could probably wait until then.

Have you turn-in your MBA 2012 for SSD replacement?
https://www.apple.com/support/macbookair-flashdrive/

 

[estockme]

Have you turn-in your MBA 2012 for SSD replacement?
https://www.apple.com/support/macbookair-flashdrive/

I tested it using the firmware update a few years back and it didn't seem to apply... which was sad because the issues seemed similar.

 

[motrek]

I tested it using the firmware update a few years back and it didn't seem to apply... which was sad because the issues seemed similar.

The "issues" are that the SSD stops working suddenly and completely. I'm guessing this is not what you are seeing.

 

[bigmikeyp]

...lately i've been having semi-regular crashes (2x/week or more on heavy use). i've read through the crash logs and can't isolate any specific process. it also runs hot with the fan on almost all the time.

I've been experiencing the same thing for the past couple of months. As strange as it sounds, it 'comes and goes' from week to week. Some weeks it will run fine, others it will crash often; without making any changes that I'm aware of.

I'm waiting for El Capitan to release, at which point I'll do a fresh install. I'm sure it's software related.

As for the battery; at $120 or so, that seems quite reasonable to extend the life of an otherwise brilliant piece of hardware (depending on your usage requirements, at least).

 

[kohlson]

is this machine worth bothering with a battery replacement? pretty sure i don't want the new macbook, but if a new air is released next year i could probably wait until then.

My daughter has a 2011 MBA, which took her through college. I upgraded the SSD to an OWC 480GB about a year ago, and the battery, after a 1000 cycles, finally indicated it needed to be replaced (though it still lasted about 2 hours between charges). It had bulged, and put pressure on the trackpad, which was also replaced. She's now back to a happy user.

 

[Mrbobb]

Ur SSD woe maybe related to hot and loud fan. Keep an eye on Activity Monitor, if CPU load is normal and it still gets hot, then I would say a disassembly and re-paste heatsink would help. If you are not into that kind of thing, then I myself would not deal with intermittent SSD failure.