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MacBook Pro 2018 swelling

Sarpdoruk Tahmaz said:
. My battery cycle is 29, health is 95% and[..]
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This is likely why yours is swollen.
Mine also had a ridiculously low battery-cycle (maybe around 35) as I've been mostly using it in a dock, even though I planned on not doing that with the MBP2018 (cause I lost a 2013 one bc of this) it just so happens that I did after all.

Suppose this is why macOS 10.15.5 will bring the battery health feature.
 
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Appledoesnotlisten said:
My 2017 15" is swelling again (this time out of warranty), which makes me want to keep the 16" more and more.
What can I say to increase my chances of getting it fixed by Apple?

Or just sell on Craigslist while the swelling is tiny?
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Selling a dangerous item like that isnt acceptable, you'll be liable. Apple will take care of you just call them this is a serious engineering flaw.
 
Alexander William said:
Selling a dangerous item like that isnt acceptable, you'll be liable. Apple will take care of you just call them this is a serious engineering flaw.
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You are right, but apple will most likely just try to ignore you, definitely not "take care" even if this is obviously serous engineering flaw. At least thats what happened in my case.
 
I have dropped my MBP off to technical service today and waiting for their call. I can see the current status of it and it is marked as "Waiting for spare parta from Apple". They are probably waiting for a brand new battery but I still don't know if the cost is going to be covered by Apple since this is not a user misuse.
 
For this type of repair, Apple doesn't replace just the battery, they replace the entire upper case assembly from my past experience, this includes the metal casing, keyboard and battery (since it's glued in).
 
Ron21 said:
For this type of repair, Apple doesn't replace just the battery, they replace the entire upper case assembly from my past experience, this includes the metal casing, keyboard and battery (since it's glued in).
Click to expand...

So you are basically saying that I will be paying for all those parts if Apple says your warranty is expired I won't cover it, which I still believe they should.
 
Sarpdoruk Tahmaz said:
So you are basically saying that I will be paying for all those parts if Apple says your warranty is expired I won't cover it, which I still believe they should.
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Apple tried to pull this with me, it was a lot of back and forth to convenience them otherwise. They quoted a battery repair at $800+.. :mad:
 
Ron21 said:
Apple tried to pull this with me, it was a lot of back and forth to convenience them otherwise. They quoted a battery repair at $800+.. :mad:
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That is outrageous, did you really pay that amount ? Do you have any suggestions/tips for me to handle the situation in my favor ?
 
Sarpdoruk Tahmaz said:
That is outrageous, did you really pay that amount ? Do you have any suggestions/tips for me to handle the situation in my favor ?
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I didn't pay Apple anything, the support person I chatted with just used this program to have everything repaired free of charge:

Keyboard Service Program for MacBook, MacBook Air, and MacBook Pro - Apple Support

Keyboard Service Program for MacBook, MacBook Air, and MacBook Pro
support.apple.com

However, there is no battery repair program so they automatically view this as an out of warranty repair and you might need to argue with them about this.

It's really outrageous that all these defective battery issues fall on the consumer after spending 2k+ on a computer just ~1.5 years ago.
 
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Hi everyone,

I've just read this entire thread as I've just experienced a similar problem.

I have a late 2018 MBP 15 inches full option. I use it mostly docked to a caldigit TS3 and an external GPU on Bootcamp (windows 10). Today, I've used it unplugged and noticed I had a hard time clicking on the touchpad. I opened it and discovered that all batery cells were a little swollen.

Now that the mackbook is again in charge, battery cells are deflated...

As it's my main work tool and with the covid situation, I wonder if I can keep it plugged and wait a bit before repairing it. Is there any risk of massive destruction through explosion or epic fire event ? :)

Otherwise, this seems to be a major flaw on those kind of Apple products and I don't see how it can change if I get a new battery as in one year or so I'll face the same situation. Do you guys have any advise ? Should I rethink totally my setup ?

Thanks in advance for your answers,

Best regards,

PS : sorry if my english is not great, I'm just french. :p
 
Well I have the same maxed out MacBook Pro 15,3 i9... an the swollen batteries.

So I brought the Macbook pro to an Apple Repair Center in Berlin (Germany).

They were not able repair it and they did not take it because sending to an other Repair Center is "to dangerous".

The Apple Service - Phone Advisor suggested an other Center with a time slot on thursday ( "... just wait 4 working days, it is not our money - we already have yours ... " ).

Good night for people depending on one Apple product by profession ... .
 
The battery is swollen due to flamable gas contained by the touch around the battery. The pouch acts as a safety mechanism and should it be punctured you will have a fire. Do not subject the battery to any force that could puncture the pouch and get it serviced ASAP.

As the battery is a fire hazard different countries may have different rules for what you are allowed to send by mail or courier. Ask Apple for advice on how to get it repaired.
 
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First post! My experience: My MBP Retina 2018 (2.2 GHz 6-Core Intel Core i7, 32GB RAM, 4TB SSD), covered by AppleCare, had the identical swollen battery issues as in the photos in this thread. I went to Apple support chat and described the issue to the agent - you know something's a problem when the tech types back, "That's not good ..."

IMG_1117.JPG


Since it's my main work machine, I was stressed I would be without it for a long time. Apple sent me a box for shipping and I dropped it off at FedEx Friday night (they received it Monday morning). Just got it back today (Tuesday mid-afternoon).

The repair note said Apple replaced the battery and top case. No charge. I can't say enough for Apple's service and quick turnaround.
 
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WestEggFarm said:
First post! My experience: My MBP Retina 2018 (2.2 GHz 6-Core Intel Core i7, 32GB RAM, 4TB SSD), covered by AppleCare, had the identical swollen battery issues as in the photos in this thread. I went to Apple support chat and described the issue to the agent - you know something's a problem when the tech types back, "That's not good ..."

View attachment 910273

Since it's my main work machine, I was stressed I would be without it for a long time. Apple sent me a box for shipping and I dropped it off at FedEx Friday night (they received it Monday morning). Just got it back today (Tuesday mid-afternoon).

The repair note said Apple replaced the battery and top case. No charge. I can't say enough for Apple's service and quick turnaround.
Click to expand...

Every product made has issues, the service is what keeps me around.
Thats why I rock pixel phones vs apple -- google has the best support for their devices - I had battery issues on a 4 year old backup phone used live chat and google sent me a pixel 4 xl for free.

Now, when it comes to portables, Surface from Microsoft gives me the best service I've ever seen.

When it comes to work horse laptops to get real work done, Apple.... and they always keep me happy. It justifies the high price to pay.
 
At least here in Berlin there is no service by Apple. I have to wait 4 days to get an appointment at a second service center. The first one rejected to transport the swollen MacBook Pro i9. Apple itself does not send a shipping box, Apple Stores are closed (o.k. corona - but they could open it for service).
 
Good news everyone!

Today I got a call from Apple Service and they said my MBP is now ready and I can pick it up tomorrow. They have completely replaced the top case including battery, keyboard and trackpad. Although my warranty is expired, they did not charge me anything because it is included in a replacement program.

I was also suffering from sticky keyboard problem seen in newer MBPs, that is why they have included me in a keyboard replacement program. If there was no problem with my keyboard I would probably be charged for the whole replacement.
 
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radus said:
At least here in Berlin there is no service by Apple. I have to wait 4 days to get an appointment at a second service center. The first one rejected to transport the swollen MacBook Pro i9. Apple itself does not send a shipping box, Apple Stores are closed (o.k. corona - but they could open it for service).
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I took mine to one of the Gravis shops in Berlin. It sat there for more than a week(!) before I got word that it was being shipped to their other repair center in west germany due to lack of personnel in berlin. Get ready for a long wait.. If you manage to get it in that is.
 
matthewadams said:
I took mine to one of the Gravis shops in Berlin. It sat there for more than a week(!) before I got word that it was being shipped to their other repair center in west germany due to lack of personnel in berlin. Get ready for a long wait.. If you manage to get it in that is.
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At least Gravis ship it ! May be Apple does not pay enough - Comspot Steglitz was not willing to take it and ship it.
My Appointment today is at Ctdi Meinekestrasse - I will report.
 
matthewadams said:
I took mine to one of the Gravis shops in Berlin. It sat there for more than a week(!) before I got word that it was being shipped to their other repair center in west germany due to lack of personnel in berlin. Get ready for a long wait.. If you manage to get it in that is.
Click to expand...

It seems Ctdi Meinekestrasse is much better, it should be repaired in 5 working days.
 
Yesterday evening i could pick up the "repaired" Macbook Pro (the repair took 1.5 weeks at ctdi because Apple was late sending the parts, for me 2.5 weeks without the Mac). During the restore-procedure I found out that 2 of the 4 Thunderbolt ports are not working ... This is not a machine for "Professionals" at all.
I could use a "backup" Mac mini 2018 during the last weeks - aside from the install-activation nightmare - it worked well.
For small offices with less backup possibilities such a Mac is not useful.
Let's see what will happen with the thunderbolt 3 ports (smc and pram reset did not help).
 
matthewadams said:
This is likely why yours is swollen.
Mine also had a ridiculously low battery-cycle (maybe around 35) as I've been mostly using it in a dock, even though I planned on not doing that with the MBP2018 (cause I lost a 2013 one bc of this) it just so happens that I did after all.

Suppose this is why macOS 10.15.5 will bring the battery health feature.
Click to expand...
It is true, MacBooks, iPads, iPhones should not be constantly on charger. I learned it early on when I ruined my iBook (yeah, that long ago) battery. I kept that laptop mostly as a desktop. Batteries should be used. After that, I ruined a battery by discharging too many times to 0%. This caused battery to not hold a charge anymore. So those two extremes should be avoided and this will give you the longest battery health.

So, keep using your battery, and if you only want to use your MacBook as desktop, then buy something else.
 
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