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MBP got a dent :(

Dmac77

Dmac77

macrumors 68020
Original poster
Jan 2, 2008
2,165
3
Michigan
So I woke up this morning to discover that my new (less than 2 weeks old) 13" MBP had tipped over in the night and got dented (I leaned it on the side of my bed when I went to sleep, it fell flat onto the floor):mad: The dent is really tiny (smaller than a fingernail) and is on the top case (LCD housing) of the MacBook.

So I have three questions.

1) Is there anyway I can fix this? Can I take the aluminum housing off the display and massage the dent out?

2) Will this affect the status of my AppleCare? I don't want to have my logic board die in a year or something and be told that I've abused my MBP because of the dent. Should I go to a genius bar and get them to put it in writing that this is only insignificant cosmetic damage (which is the case)?

3) How much does this affect the resale value of my MBP? If I were to sell it today, mac2sell.com says it's worth $1,400; so would I knock $100 or something like that off of the price? I don't actually plan on selling it anytime soon, it's just something I'd like to know.

Thanks,

-Don

photo.jpg
 
Sorry that happened to your new MBP :(

1) Don't know but it seems like that might be tough to do

2) No

3) Probably not much if at all

Good luck and take care of that baby!
 
I wouldn't bother trying to fix it. Going to the genius bar and getting that in writing (or at least giving it a try) would probably be a good idea though. Companies will do anything to try to get out of doing a warranty repair.

Edit - after seeing the dent, you have nothing to worry about. It's small enough that it won't affect anything.
 
OP I guess if you're really worried about it then setting your mind at ease by taking to the genius bar won't hurt... seems like a waste of time though. I don't think Apple is going to deny your future warranty coverage is the damage is really as slight as you described.
 
That dent looks even better than the dent my MacBook Pro 13' sustained about a year ago.

If there was any complaint I'd lodge against the unibody design, it would be the choice of materials. Aluminum dents too easily. Perhaps they should have gone for a different alloy instead...
 
nwbusa said:
OP I guess if you're really worried about it then setting your mind at ease by taking to the genius bar won't hurt... seems like a waste of time though. I don't think Apple is going to deny your future warranty coverage is the damage is really as slight as you described.
Click to expand...

I know it seems paranoid, but I've had issues with the geniuses at my local Apple Store before. They fought me on an iMac repair (smoke coming out of the superdrive, they claimed I had done something to make it do that purposely) until my parents threatened legal action, and they also fought me on an iPhone 3G replacement (cracking around the dock connector and the vibrate rocker which was a common problem). I just want to avoid having to fight with them if something does go wrong (knocks on wood).

-Don
 
Dmac77 said:
I know it seems paranoid, but I've had issues with the geniuses at my local Apple Store before. They fought me on an iMac repair (smoke coming out of the superdrive, they claimed I had done something to make it do that purposely) until my parents threatened legal action, and they also fought me on an iPhone 3G replacement (cracking around the dock connector and the vibrate rocker which was a common problem). I just want to avoid having to fight with them if something does go wrong (knocks on wood).

-Don
Click to expand...

I don't think you can avoid the fight, they seem awful "geniuses". You bring your new macbook pro to them with a dent they're gonna wanna fight you even more :p but as other posters said, no worries. It's a small dent anyway...
 
orfeas0 said:
I don't think you can avoid the fight, they seem awful "geniuses". You bring your new macbook pro to them with a dent they're gonna wanna fight you even more :p but as other posters said, no worries. It's a small dent anyway...
Click to expand...

Yeah I guess that's true. Maybe I'll just put a graphic skin over the lid if I ever need to take it in for anything. I don't think they'd peel it off to check for dents.

-Don
 
If you don't like the Genius Bar at the store you've gone to, try another one or deal with Apple Care directly. I've had their genius bar refuse repairs that AppleCare and/or Customer Relations later said was indeed covered. (ex. cracking plastics on white Macbook) I have also been accused of opening the computer with a screwdriver when it was their techs who damaged it in the repair.

When all else fails, deal with AppleCare.
 
if only you had the hard case :(

i wouldn't worry about it. it will affect resale, of course, but you have other stuff to worry about, like the refreshed mba and a posible redesign of the mbp in the spring. those will have far more effect on our prices than your "character" mark.
 
XX55XX said:
That dent looks even better than the dent my MacBook Pro 13' sustained about a year ago.

If there was any complaint I'd lodge against the unibody design, it would be the choice of materials. Aluminum dents too easily. Perhaps they should have gone for a different alloy instead...
Click to expand...

it beats cracked plastic. i've got no complaints about the aluminum. that's why i bought it! but, i suggest a hardcase...
 
Now I feel like to snap my Speck Hard Case back into my MacBook Pro 15".

paranoid!


Guess what. Never sleep with your MacBook on your bed. It's not humanly sleepable with.
 
DJRiful said:
Now I feel like to snap my Speck Hard Case back into my MacBook Pro 15".

paranoid!


Guess what. Never sleep with your MacBook on your bed. It's not humanly sleepable with.
Click to expand...

yeah. hardcase is one of the best investments i made in this computer. not sleeping with my precious is probably my second-best decision :)
 
Dmac77 said:
So I woke up this morning to discover that my new (less than 2 weeks old) 13" MBP had tipped over in the night and got dented (I leaned it on the side of my bed when I went to sleep, it fell flat onto the floor):mad: The dent is really tiny (smaller than a fingernail) and is on the top case (LCD housing) of the MacBook. /snip/
Click to expand...

Wow, that looks just like the really small, really shallow dent in my 13"MBP except mine's a little closer to the top edge... I have NO IDEA how it happened. I usually just put the machine to sleep on my coffee table at night. I can't think of some time when I put it somewhere else or laid something on it, although I have sometimes just set an iphone or a checkbook or something on top of it during the day. Mystery.

Anyway don't feel singled out. Sounds like not an uncommon "feature" of our tender little darlings. Who knew. Guess I was more used to the sturdy casing of the Macbook or the old iBooks. Weird, my MBA doesn't have any marks on it and I haven't treated that with a whole lot of respect, I cart it around all day long up and downstairs. And my G4 powerbooks stood up to a fair amount of getting set on one edge or getting tossed onto the couch, etc. The MBP just sits here on a table most of the time and suddenly it turns up looking like someone sorta popped it one with the big end of a chopstick. Go figure! Maybe it's a MacBook Pro chickenpox scar. ;)
 
palpatine said:
yeah. hardcase is one of the best investments i made in this computer. not sleeping with my precious is probably my second-best decision :)
Click to expand...

Well I wasn't sleeping with it, lol. Normally I go set it on my desk, but I was just too exhausted last night so I just set in on the floor, on it's side leaning against the bed; in retrospect it would have been a lot wiser to just set in on the floor flat:eek:

I would have gotten a speck case or similar for it, but I feel like that just kind of destroys the aesthetic of the MBP; plus I've heard that dirt/grime gets into the case really easily and scratches the heck out of the aluminum.

-Don
 
There's a dent on mine by the corner; long story short, my logic board was replaced under AppleCare and they just put a note in that said something like "laptop is used, dent in left corner."

So I wouldn't really worry about them giving you a hard time.
 
They sell this thing that is made for pulling dings out of car doors. It's $30 or $40. A friend of mine bought it at an auto parts store. It consists of a bar with 2 suction cups, one on either end. In the center of the bar there is a threaded hole with a bolt in it that also has a suction cup attached to the end of it. You apply some adhesive (that comes off completely and easily)to the suction cups and put the cup attached to the bolt over the dent. wait for the adhesive to dry , then crank the bolt out. Dent comes out completely. I witnessed the before and after. You could still see the dent if the light was just right. His dent was worse than yours, it was causing a rainbow effect on his screen. But it was a nice circular ding just like yours. I highly recommend it. Work slowly and carefully. Go to see the Geniuses first. Good luck 
 
palpatine said:
yeah. hardcase is one of the best investments i made in this computer. not sleeping with my precious is probably my second-best decision :)
Click to expand...

I don't move much when I sleep. I have my computer on my bed cause I listen to music before I sleep. So yeah, but just in case I have an incase perforated hardshell on my MBP
 
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