New owner has some "is this normal" questions

[Zetaspawn]

So I just barely got myself a new 13 inch MacBook Pro. Base model. Barely 2 weeks old and I am noticing a few strange things I wanted to run by everyone to see if a few of these things are something dumb I am doing, or an easy fix, or even something that's normal.

Whenever I open my MacBook my disc in the drive ejects itself. Am I touching it in a weird place that ejects the disc? Is there some feature I may have turned on that causes this?

There is a brownish spot on the bottom right of the screen. Will that fade away as I use it or will it be there forever?

It seems to take a long time to restart(varies wildly from 30 seconds to around 2 minutes), and it is a bit slow to respond when I open the clamshell from overnight (15-30 seconds before it responds), am I just expecting too much from my MacBook? Was I wrong when I had assumed it would be faster than its being? I mean it is 2 weeks old and it's taking longer to boot than my 3 year old monster windows laptop did?

Are there any other common issues I should look out for? Do I have a valid set of issues for a replacement? How do I transfer licenses like for office to a new one if I have to get it replaced? Any other tips or helpful words would also be appreciated

 

[dusk007]

Spots on a screen are here to stay. If you cannot get rid of them now they won't disappear. Just the same as any other LCD.

Disk seems weird. Possibly a software bug.

Bootup takes quite a while and much longer after updates. Some variation is normal. Only with an SSD you get quick boots.
If I boot from my backup HDD it also takes seemingly forever. Feels like 3 min probably about 1 and something.

Sounds a bit lemony though.

 

[FYDave]

At the very least I'd bring it in to an Apple store to have them take a look at it.

Personally, I'd bring it back in give how long you've had it and see if they'd be willing to exchange the machine given the discolored pixels of the screen panel and odd behavior of the disk drive.

 

[KPOM]

Yes, I'd schedule a Genius Bar appointment. It doesn't sound "normal."
As for the disc ejecting, on Macs with DVD drives the disc eject button is usually to the right of F12. On Macs without DVD drives that's where the power button is.

The boot time seems unusually long. I'd try going into Disk Utility (in the Utilities folder of your Applications folder, or search for "Disk Utility" by clicking on the magnifying glass on the upper right corner of the menu bar) and running "Verify Disk" and "Verify Disk Permissions." Run the respective repair operations if it finds issues.

 

[mattopotamus]

Yes, I'd schedule a Genius Bar appointment. It doesn't sound "normal."
As for the disc ejecting, on Macs with DVD drives the disc eject button is usually to the right of F12. On Macs without DVD drives that's where the power button is.

The boot time seems unusually long. I'd try going into Disk Utility (in the Utilities folder of your Applications folder, or search for "Disk Utility" by clicking on the magnifying glass on the upper right corner of the menu bar) and running "Verify Disk" and "Verify Disk Permissions." Run the respective repair operations if it finds issues.

The screen and disk error are not normal, but if you do not have an SSD the boot/shutdown times can very drastically. Pop an SSD in there and get about 10-12 for bootup and about 3-4 for shut down.

 

[Zetaspawn]

Alright. It definitely seems like a machine swap may be in the cards if possible. Being able to afford getting a decent Mac has been something that's taken a long time to build up to and having these issues have definitely concerned me. I guess the honeymoon is over and I need to look more objectively at my machine and realize it needs some work done.

 

[WDP1954]

Don't even consider doing anything to your machine such as one reply suggested put in an ssd. The spot on the screen alone is is enough reason for a new machine. Your machine has a one year free warranty. This warranty has excellent hardware coverage. Due to the expense of replacing the screen (may not even be possible) I'am fairly positive they will replace your machine. Just take it back to an Apple Store or call Apple if you don't live near enough one.

 

[makaveli559m]

When you have warrenty Apple basically treats you with priority care you should go and take ur computer in. Apple would do anything to please to keep you happy.

 

[Zetaspawn]

I really appreciate the advice. I am taking it into the apple store on Saturday. It's been getting notably worse in even just these last few days, the disc has been popping out even more often, and now opening the clamshell sometimes doesn't wake the system up so I have to keep closing and opening the lid with about 10 second increments and keep doing it until it lights up. Plus it took the laptop 10 minutes to open the save as function of word for Mac.... It's leaning pretty heavily towards lemon territory in my opinion. I'm really hoping they don't replace it with a used computer though, being that I just spent 1200 dollars on the thing 2 weeks ago, I would be pretty upset if they wanted to give me a used one.

 

[stuaz]

I really appreciate the advice. I am taking it into the apple store on Saturday. It's been getting notably worse in even just these last few days, the disc has been popping out even more often, and now opening the clamshell sometimes doesn't wake the system up so I have to keep closing and opening the lid with about 10 second increments and keep doing it until it lights up. Plus it took the laptop 10 minutes to open the save as function of word for Mac.... It's leaning pretty heavily towards lemon territory in my opinion. I'm really hoping they don't replace it with a used computer though, being that I just spent 1200 dollars on the thing 2 weeks ago, I would be pretty upset if they wanted to give me a used one.

Apple don't give 'used' machines. They give refurbished ones, very different. They will go through the same QA as a 'brand new one' and come with one year warranty. However if you have only had it two week, I know when that happen to me they just sent a brand new replacement (This was dealing with Apple Online Store though, I never took it to see a Genius).

 

[KPOM]

IIt's leaning pretty heavily towards lemon territory in my opinion. I'm really hoping they don't replace it with a used computer though, being that I just spent 1200 dollars on the thing 2 weeks ago, I would be pretty upset if they wanted to give me a used one.

If it's beyond the 14 day return period usually they ship it out for repairs. It's a bit annoying since you are without the Mac for a few days, but they do a good job with it, replacing whatever needs to be replaced and sometimes a little more.

 

[Spink10]

If it is outside the 14 day return period and they want to ship it out to be fixed/repaired. Kindly asked for there an exception be made for an exchange. May need to ask for manager.

 

[Zetaspawn]

Well unfortunately I require my computer for school, so I really hope they work with me. I hope I have an advantage for having opened a ticket over the phone before my 14 day limit, the only reason I'm even missing the exact 14 day window is that it will take until the 15th day before I can actually get physically up to the store itself. So here is hoping the genius I get is having a good day and works with me.

 

[Zetaspawn]

I made it into an apple store today after all. of course a reality distortion field caused half my issues to suddenly disappear or lessen considerably. enough was still wrong with it that they started discussing repair options, with how much of a pain it was sounding, I asked if there was any way I could just exchange it. He didn't seem to psyched about it, but said it was no problem and brought over a different guy to complete the exchange. I had expressed hesitation to pay a restocking fee, but he had said they haven't enforced a restocking fee in a long time. So they treated it as a return and me purchasing a new one at the same price. So here I am getting my new system set up.

Thanks again for everyone's advice.

 

[thatoneguy82]

I made it into an apple store today after all. of course a reality distortion field caused half my issues to suddenly disappear or lessen considerably.

Lol. Funny how that always happens. Problems always disappear when tech support arrives. Haha.

Glad to hear it. Hope this one gives you better performance. I believe that your 14-day return/exchange (or just exchange) restarts again just in case this machine is once again faulty. But, I'm not sure.

This is probably a bit premature, but should be considered since SSD prices are dropping. Also, it doesn't void your warranty. The boot-up speed/shut down and overall system performance can really be improved by two things: SSD and RAM. Max/upgrade your RAM and upgrade to SSD

 

[Zetaspawn]

I am definitely keeping an eye on ssd and and ram upgrade options. I will sit tight with the new machine for a while to make sure everything is going well. once I am comfortable, I fully intend on sticking those inside.