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MBP DEAD AS A DODO, Urgent Advice Needed

T

tylerdurden9

macrumors member
Original poster
Nov 19, 2007
33
0
hey guys,
So i have my mbp just over 3 months now and its packed it in. Ive had issues with the graphics card from the start but did nothing about it but yesterday my mbp just suddenly turned off (had a full charge) and would not turn on. It will not take a charge as the light on the charger will not turn on. I know its not my charger as it works on other macs perfectly. My hard drive is fine ive checked it on another mbp and my battery is also fine,
I contacted apple and as there is no apple store in ireland they are sending me to an apple authorised service provider tomorrow.

My question to you guys is, What is wrong with my laptop? I want to have a fair idea whats going on before i go in and secondly will this combined with my graphic card issues deem me acceptable for a replacement? How will i convince them to give me a replacement. Im a college student and have a feeling this is going to be one of those macs that is just cursed.

Any help will do
Cheers
 
Could be a number of issues, it's impossible to say exactly what it is. It could be the logic board, graphics card, fans, CPU... Literally anything.

Do you have Apple Care for the machine?

As for going about a replacement, you just have to be very nice and ask. Though there are some users who have had the laptops repaired multiple times, before being replaced. Sometimes they don't even get it replaced. There's no hard and fast rule, it's up to the discretion of Apple when they get the machine and view it's history.

Good luck!
 
You will have a hard time getting a replacement unless it's your 3rd or 4th repair for the same issue.

So your best bet is to have it repaired.

Probably either the DC board or the motherboard.
 
You won't be getting a replacement right away if this is your first problem. (If it's within the first month, chances are you would be able to).

To help get you in the right direction, I would simply try a few troubleshooting steps before bringing it to the Genius Bar or calling AppleCare to "speed" up the process.

- Try to do a SMC/PRAM reset.
- May sound weird, but try removing the battery and connect the MagSafe, does the LED illuminated?
 
Well i have it 3 months now, its one of the unibodys and from day one i have had trouble with the graphics card, ie it freezes and i get alot of black screens, but this problem is a whole new one, it literally turned off while powered from the battery and wud not turn back on. I have tried everything, taking out the battery plugged in the charger but i get nothing, it wont even boot so i cant do a pram reset or anything such. When i plug in the charger i dont even get a light and my battery indicator wont light up either. So its something serious.
Im not going to be happy with a repair. Im a college student and really cant afford apple care, I want a good reliable machine not my epic failure of a machine you know.

I really would like a replacement as when i get it back il still have trouble with the graphics card, i have not been happy with it from the start and i know i will be back and forth with apple in the near future with it.

Im going to bring it in tomorrow and do my best for a replacement. Any Tips?
 
I mean you can try to explain the situation to them but chances are slim. Right now, you're still under the 1-year limited warranty so repair won't cost you anything.

Again, if this was within the first month, you would have a strong case in getting a replacement but 3 months, hurts to say, is just another problem.

Might just be bad power management; take out battery and disconnect MagSafe connector and press/hold power button for 5 sec then reseat the battery and connect MagSafe again and try to power up again and see what happens. If no improvement is found, you're looking at a repair.
 
Sounds like you need to reset the SMC. When the computer seems dead or certain functions no longer work like the EyeSight cam then the SMC system management controller needs to be reset. Most likely that's your issue. Here's the link below for how to do it. As others said, put it out of your mind about getting an exchange, Apple has to honor the warranty for a repair only.
http://support.apple.com/kb/HT1411
 
thanks for all the help guys, i tried the smc reset and really thought it mite work, but to no avail!!!! Yeah i suppose getting a replacement is going to be hard to get, i should of brought it back at the start with my graphics card issue. If my problem is a logiic board or motherboard problem will that not be a big repair? jst easier to give a new model?
Do you guys think its woth my while getting apple care,as after my year is up im screwed if this happens again and believe me i feel something ele will happen
 
No way, no how will they hand you a new computer out the door, no matter how unhappy you might be. Be thankful you're under the year warranty, and save your pennies and BUY THE APPLE CARE. Don't eat lunch for the next several months. What ever you have to do, but if you're having issues 3 months in, you may have trouble for this point out, and to not get the Apple Care now, you other option would be to get it repaired, and sell it on Ebay, and use the money to get a new one. Of course, you'll have to add to it, but at least it might not be a lemon.
 
Daremo said:
No way, no how will they hand you a new computer out the door, no matter how unhappy you might be. Be thankful you're under the year warranty, and save your pennies and BUY THE APPLE CARE. Don't eat lunch for the next several months. What ever you have to do, but if you're having issues 3 months in, you may have trouble for this point out, and to not get the Apple Care now, you other option would be to get it repaired, and sell it on Ebay, and use the money to get a new one. Of course, you'll have to add to it, but at least it might not be a lemon.
Click to expand...

Hah! (To the OP...) WELCOME TO THE APPLE CULT! Not to be rude or anything but Apple's hardware isn't cheap. You're better off either getting AppleCare or sell your computer and get a new one. Cause like someone already stated, already 3 months in, you most likely gonna have more problems..
 
HLdan said:
You can get Applecare for the Macbook Pro for a lot less on Ebay. I found many sellers offering it for around $180 U.S. I buy Applecare on all my Macs and based on your situation that should be a big hint for you to get it. Even if by chance that Apple replaces your Macbook Pro you should still buy Applecare.


http://shop.ebay.com/?_from=R40&_tr...plecare+macbook+pro&_sacat=See-All-Categories
Click to expand...

I bought my AppleCare off of eBay for $180 saving $120 over the best price I found anywhere else. The AppleCare was for a MBP.
 
I'm wondering....

why didn't you exchange your machine when it got a problem since the day one? since it's considered a defective product and i think you would be able to get a new machine back then.

I agree with above posts, get an apple care. It's a very good investment in your case.

Good Luck
 
tylerdurden9 said:
thanks for all the help guys, i tried the smc reset and really thought it mite work, but to no avail!!!! Yeah i suppose getting a replacement is going to be hard to get, i should of brought it back at the start with my graphics card issue. If my problem is a logiic board or motherboard problem will that not be a big repair? jst easier to give a new model?
Do you guys think its woth my while getting apple care,as after my year is up im screwed if this happens again and believe me i feel something ele will happen
Click to expand...

well, it cant just be a "cursed" MBP as you said, some parts of it will be cursed...
Id buy the applecare for it now, also!
But yeah, if you take it in, theyll replace all the necesary parts, getting rid of the aforementioned "curse" :p
And if you still have problems, justtake it in again...
If it is "cursed" and they do so many repairs on it, theyll just give you a new one eventually.
Dont worry, i had to pop my brand new Uni MBP into applecare, and it was fine :)
 
latempete said:
I bought my AppleCare off of eBay for $180 saving $120 over the best price I found anywhere else. The AppleCare was for a MBP.
Click to expand...

THANK YOU! Did the same. Figured I'd need it for the notebook (MBP), more than a desktop (which I had before). Thanks for the tip!
 
Ok guys heres the update. I left the house this morning to go to the apple service provider at 10am and I am only back now at 6pm. So long story short my head is wrecked and my closet apple "store" is in the back end of nowhere.

To top things of the place was a joke, the receptionist didn have a clue what i was talkin about. they have never seen a new macbook before and the guy fixing my macbook had a beard down to his chest, was wearing a sleeveless top and was working on a table filthier than my wheely bin. Hardly the sterile environment i wud of hoped for.

So conclusion is im not a happy chappy!
My utter love and admiration for all things apple has takin a massive dent.

Im seriously thinking of getting some apple care now, had a look on ebay but dont know who to trust and how does it work for me buying apple care from the U.S? Do they not have serials? Im Very catious about being ripped of for a usless box of apple care, Anyone poin me to an ebay seller thats trust worthy in particular?

Also had a look on the education store and its very expensive there too. Why is the mbp apple care the dearest? I can access the Apple on campus store from my college but i doubt it will be much cheaper on there?
 
tylerdurden9 said:
Ok guys heres the update. I left the house this morning to go to the apple service provider at 10am and I am only back now at 6pm. So long story short my head is wrecked and my closet apple "store" is in the back end of nowhere.

To top things of the place was a joke, the receptionist didn have a clue what i was talkin about. they have never seen a new macbook before and the guy fixing my macbook had a beard down to his chest, was wearing a sleeveless top and was working on a table filthier than my wheely bin. Hardly the sterile environment i wud of hoped for.

So conclusion is im not a happy chappy!
My utter love and admiration for all things apple has takin a massive dent.

Im seriously thinking of getting some apple care now, had a look on ebay but dont know who to trust and how does it work for me buying apple care from the U.S? Do they not have serials? Im Very catious about being ripped of for a usless box of apple care, Anyone poin me to an ebay seller thats trust worthy in particular?

Also had a look on the education store and its very expensive there too. Why is the mbp apple care the dearest? I can access the Apple on campus store from my college but i doubt it will be much cheaper on there?
Click to expand...

Normally we don't chastise people here for their grammatical or typographical mistakes but TBH, I had to correct a lot of stuff in my head to understand a lot of the words you misspelled just to make it easier to understand what you mean. For instance, what do mean by asking why the Applecare is the "dearest"? What do you mean "dearest"?

At any rate, you never mentioned where you lived because you seem to be concerned about buying Applecare from the U.S. There's no non-U.S version of Applecare and buying it from Ebay has been very legit. I even renewed my Mobileme subscription for half the price on Ebay from what Apple charges.
Since you don't live close to a decent Apple repair facility you should contact Apple and send it off to them for repair.
 
Im sorry Im from Ireland, Dublin to be exact. Which is probably why the word "dearest" is not translating accurately for you. Dearest i suppose is a vey "irish" term and basically means the most expensive. ie. Why is apple care for the mbp the most expensive in comparison to the mac pro, imac etc? Im sorry I should re-translate my vocabulary into a more universally understood language before I post. These are words I speak every day so I tend to just type the same. My apologies, as for spelling errors, I am currently on my desktop pc and it does not have the convenient auto spell check feature my mac had, so there will be a few errors. Again my apologies.
 
re: ^^^All good.

Hey, so you can get MBP Applecare for $170 US Buy it Now on eBay. Less if you bid. I did, and I'm not in the US. It's a worldwide warranty. When you get the code via email (after you pay), you log onto a site, put the code in, put your product s/n in, say what country you're in, and within minutes you're registered for AppleCare with a confirmation from Apple.

eBay for Apple care. Do it. Buy from a Power Seller with MANY positive ratings and items sold.
 
Sorry to hear about your MBP trauma. I got my AppleCare off eBay UK for around £120. Pay with PayPal and a Credit Card and you should be ok. Once you get your package, register it straight away. Any problems you should be able to get your money back easily. I just picked the seller with a good feedback score, that has a history of selling AppleCare.

It might be worth speaking to someone on the Educational phone line, as I've got AppleCare for £50 with them before. Although that was when bought with the laptop.

I think thats strange that there's not Irish Apple Store when most of the UK online orders are shipped from Ireland.

Oh and if the authorised service provider is no good, tell Apple! They tried to fob me off the last time I called telling me to go to my nearest one. My nearest one is an hour away, and only open when I'm at work. I politely complained until they agreed to send a courier box out for my laptop :)
 
tylerdurden9 said:
Why is apple care for the mbp the most expensive in comparison to the mac pro, imac etc?
Click to expand...

The reason it's so expensive is that most repairs, including repairs to the graphics card, require replacement of the entire logic board. To save space, almost everything is soldered to one board. On a mac pro the parts are separate (and cheaper to begin with since they can be bigger). Applecare is insurance, just like car insurance, if the repair costs are more expensive, the insurance is more expensive.

Which leads me to a question of yours at the top. There's a pretty good chance they'll have to replace the logic board. If that is the case, the graphics card will be replaced right along with the logic board.

In the US if you live farther than 50 miles from an Apple Store, they will send you a box to mail it to their closes repair depot. Check to see if they offer the same service in Ireland.
 
Hey guys sorry for the late reply, I had forgotten how painfull it was to go back to windows!! Anyway thanks a million for all the support, be lost without it. Its comforting to know that at least when my logic board gets replaced they are effectively replacing the whole interior, but I do still feel a little dissapointed with apple as im sure many of you do.

My laptop is in for repairs now and was given an estimate of 2 weeks for completion, that means i have to put all college work on hold for 2 weeks!
Which is just ridiculous!

The reason I saved up and went with apple is because its synonymous with being "the best". In anyones estimation, the durability of the product is highly questionable. The mere fact it had a hardware fault after only 3 months poses serious questions as to wether I actually purchased "the best". I know that every one in a thousand will experience trouble but it seems to me that a large majority of people who got the unibodies in the first few shipments are having alot of difficulty. I feel with apples reputation it would be in their best interest to replace these laptops and clear the minds of their owners.

I read a post a short while ago on here mentioning that apple were cracking down on purchasing applecare from 3rd party sellers. That they where now asking for proof of purchase on the applecare? Is this correcct? I need to be sure im not throwing away 150 on a number! It does seem like ebay is the best route to take as even the educational store is quite expensive.
 
you should have asked applecare for onsite service when you called them, I always do, and in about 2 days theres a apple tech at my door fixing whatever I need fixed
 
On-site repairs are not applicable to portables only to desktops as stated in AppleCare protection plan manual/disclaimer. Portables are only subjected to carry-in and mail-in only.
 
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