Before my last MBP (a mid-2009 17") gave up the ghost in November 2013, its health deteriorated, requiring more frequent SMC resets to come on, and would sometimes turn off mid-sleep. Eventually, it wouldn't turn on at all, regardless of reset, whether through the control-option-shift-Power method, or the "hard reset". And thus it's been since.
All this time, I've been fairly certain it's the SMC at fault (and maybe it is), but - another SMC thread here reminded me that some MBPs apparently won't turn on at all if the battery's disconnected or dead. And if I press the battery status button on the left side, absolutely nothing is lit, ever, not even the first one blinking.
What may also confirm this hypothesis is that what may have brought all this about was a short fall, from the bed onto the carpet - I'm not sure how a physical shock would damage a battery, but maybe the battery's internal controller? Before that, it'd been a solid workhorse, no problems. After, it'd occasionally just turn off abruptly, like pulling the power from a desktop.
So.. how likely do you think it is that it's "just" the battery that's been playing up all this time?
Can anyone confirm or refute that a mid-2009 17" MBP, with its battery disconnected, will refuse to turn on, even with power connected? (But then, the MagSafe LED is lit, bright yellow - doesn't that indicate the SMC believes the battery is charging?)
Ultimately, if it is the battery, that'd be a repair worth performing, when there's money again - the SMC, though, no Apple repair outfit seems able or willing to even quote for, and I'm not hugely thrilled by the notion of desoldering and mounting SMDs beyond the occasional capacitor or resistor, even if I could source the part. (Not that it could hurt to try..)
Any thoughts? I'd love to get it back up and running - as fabulous a system as its successor is, I still miss that 17" display. It's certainly not as fast, but it was still a superb computer, even at four years old.
All this time, I've been fairly certain it's the SMC at fault (and maybe it is), but - another SMC thread here reminded me that some MBPs apparently won't turn on at all if the battery's disconnected or dead. And if I press the battery status button on the left side, absolutely nothing is lit, ever, not even the first one blinking.
What may also confirm this hypothesis is that what may have brought all this about was a short fall, from the bed onto the carpet - I'm not sure how a physical shock would damage a battery, but maybe the battery's internal controller? Before that, it'd been a solid workhorse, no problems. After, it'd occasionally just turn off abruptly, like pulling the power from a desktop.
So.. how likely do you think it is that it's "just" the battery that's been playing up all this time?
Can anyone confirm or refute that a mid-2009 17" MBP, with its battery disconnected, will refuse to turn on, even with power connected? (But then, the MagSafe LED is lit, bright yellow - doesn't that indicate the SMC believes the battery is charging?)
Ultimately, if it is the battery, that'd be a repair worth performing, when there's money again - the SMC, though, no Apple repair outfit seems able or willing to even quote for, and I'm not hugely thrilled by the notion of desoldering and mounting SMDs beyond the occasional capacitor or resistor, even if I could source the part. (Not that it could hurt to try..)
Any thoughts? I'd love to get it back up and running - as fabulous a system as its successor is, I still miss that 17" display. It's certainly not as fast, but it was still a superb computer, even at four years old.
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