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rMBP Case Popping

I have the same problem on the right side near the trackpad (and around it). Glad to know I'm not the only one with this problem. I'm usually not the OCD type but after having used a Unibody MBP for three years, I definitely noticed it right away.

Also, am I crazy or is there a slight bit of flex at the bottom middle (near the trackpad) on the MBPR? If you press down slightly above or below the trackpad, (where mine creaks the most) you can see the case flex ever so slightly, compared to my old MBP which had zero flex. I suspect it has something to do with the chassis being so thin.

Having said that, it's not a dealbreaker for me, I'd rather not take a chance at returning it for a different one and ending up with a bad screen or something worse. Just wondering how others with this problem are dealing with it.
 
Mine has the same problem. It's really, really annoying too. I'll have to make a Genius appointment to get it fixed. All you need to do is take the cover off the bottom and put it back on. When putting the screws back on, make sure you tighten each screw evenly. I would do it myself but I don't have a torx screwdriver that small.
 
Dangerous Theory said:
Yeah there's been several posts about a 'creaking' sound like this.
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One of my fellow engineers at work got one that does this. Being a BTO model, he called in, Apple gave him a RMA and it's on it's way back.

The good news is there are only two drawbacks.

First is that he will be without his primary laptop for six weeks according to Apple. Second is he has to place a new order in a week or so, the same as starting all over.

The procedure is to return his, wait until they receive it, inspect it, and issue a credit.

Once he receives the credit, he then places a new order. The other option is to place the order now, but he would have two laptops charged to his credit card which is rather expensive.
 
Mine has a similar problem but it is extreme minor when compare to some of you guys' problems. No creaking sounds what so ever when I applied pressure by typing on a flat surface or on my laps. It doesn't even make any noise when I picked it up. But however, there's a spot at the bottom right cover where when I pressed the area a little that's when I will hear that small creaking sound.
 
mac3609 said:
But however, there's a spot at the bottom right cover where when I pressed the area a little that's when I will hear that small creaking sound.
Click to expand...

That's the same location as my friends. His was nearly unnoticeable till just a few days ago when suddenly it became very loud.

Hopefully yours will not get any worse. These laptops are still too new to know what patterns are likely to develop.
 
ixodes said:
That's the same location as my friends. His was nearly unnoticeable till just a few days ago when suddenly it became very loud.

Hopefully yours will not get any worse. These laptops are still too new to know what patterns are likely to develop.
Click to expand...

It is in the area where the bottom right center screw is located. It's been almost 2 weeks now, so fingers crossed.
 
Whomperz said:
Hey guys,

Well, I was in the same boat. I had a creaking/popping (near the vents on the right side) like the bottom case wasn't screwed together tight enough. So I just went to the apple store and basically just squeezed that side of the case and obviously they heard the sound.

They sent me to a technician and all I figured they would do was make the screws tighter. Low and behold she came back and told it the screws were already tightened and the creak was still there. She basically told them to give me a brand new Retina Macbook. Though it took ONE HOUR to do my exchange I eventually walked out of the store with a brand new one (tested it for the creaking) and a bonus $8.25 refund (I chalked that up to my inconvenience fee for waiting an hour lol)

They basically told me they'd rather give me a new one than have the creak be something worse in a brand new product....

P.S. This was Houston by the way
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Which store did you go to? I might have to pay them a visit.
 
thatguy215 said:
Which store did you go to? I might have to pay them a visit.
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I can tell you with great confidence, it doesn't matter which Apple store you go to. They're all excellent, eager to set things right. I do a lot of traveling & have been to well over 50 Apple stores all over the US. It's mainly because I enjoy seeing what the various stores are like. Yet because I always buy at least one new MBP each year, there've been times when Ive taken my laptop in to the store closest to where my hotel is. In every case I've received nothing but world class service.

Therefore if any of you have this noise / creak or other bothersome condition, I'd strongly encourage you to take it to an Apple store. Even if it involves driving some distance, you'll be very glad you did.

Finally, if you do decide to go in, first go online or use the app on your iPhone to make a genius bar appointment. That assures you'll be seen by a genius. Not to mention they appreciate it when you use the system provided.

Good Luck To All :)
 
ixodes said:
I can tell you with great confidence, it doesn't matter which Apple store you go to. They're all excellent, eager to set things right. I do a lot of traveling & have been to well over 50 Apple stores all over the US. It's mainly because I enjoy seeing what the various stores are like. Yet because I always buy at least one new MBP each year, there've been times when Ive taken my laptop in to the store closest to where my hotel is. In every case I've received nothing but world class service.

Therefore if any of you have this noise / creak or other bothersome condition, I'd strongly encourage you to take it to an Apple store. Even if it involves driving some distance, you'll be very glad you did.

Finally, if you do decide to go in, first go online or use the app on your iPhone to make a genius bar appointment. That assures you'll be seen by a genius. Not to mention they appreciate it when you use the system provided.

Good Luck To All :)
Click to expand...

So I took my mac to the Apple store today to tell them about this popping problem and I think I got lucky because the genius bar guy realigned the bottom cover for me and now the popping noise is gone completely.
 
mac3609 said:
So I took my mac to the Apple store today to tell them about this popping problem and I think I got lucky because the genius bar guy realigned the bottom cover for me and now the popping noise is gone completely.
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That's great to hear. Customer service at the level of the genius bar, and AppleCare can be better than that of the sales department. :)
 
I had a bunch of (minor?) creaking that would happen around either side of the trackpad whenever I put pressure on it, and it was driving me nuts. I picked up a pentalobe screwdriver from iFixit and went to work on my MacBook today. Turns out the screws were over torqued, and the creaking is now gone after loosening all of them and torquing them to similar levels.

All is good now. :)
 
Mine did this. I removed every screw on the bottom, applied a bit of lock tight (be VERY VERY sparing if you take this approach, on this size screw, it goes a long way.) I then reapplied the screws and tightened them back down. (do not over tighten. )

Once I did That, the problem went away.

----------
Wheezy13 said:
I had a bunch of (minor?) creaking that would happen around either side of the trackpad whenever I put pressure on it, and it was driving me nuts. I picked up a pentalobe screwdriver from iFixit and went to work on my MacBook today. Turns out the screws were over torqued, and the creaking is now gone after loosening all of them and torquing them to similar levels.

All is good now. :)
Click to expand...

Felt like this needed quoting as over torquing was the problem on my MacBook air, and undertorqued loose screws were the problem on my pro.
 
tillsbury said:
Hah! Mine pops a bit. I have to get exactly the right place about half-way down on the left-hand side. Nowhere else does it. It's just where the battery packs have been glued down (or not glued down). Certainly not worth getting out of bed for, even if there was an Apple store next door. The case is utterly solid. Never noticed it until I read this post.

As a first-time Mac user, I find it interesting how this forum seems to be like a medical self-diagnosis website for OCD users. Someone mentions a tiny issue like a dead pixel, a miniscule mark on the surface, or a creak at a specific place on the computer, and everyone piles in with "ooooh mine does that, I must immediately return it". It's no wonder Apple has to charge so much for their computers, because their users take them back at the drop of a hat. Get a grip, guys and gals!
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HP or Dell can make a creaking notebook and it costs you like $400. But most people won't go back just for the problem since it's an acceptable problem. You got what you paid for.

Now you're talking about a Macbook which said to have a nice solid build quality. And it costs $2000 or more. So please give people a pardon for being an ***** and complain about the same creaking problem found on $400 notebook :rolleyes:
 
Mine went back.... Waiting again...

Well, I had creaking around the middle screw on the right hand side (SD Card side let's say...). It's was bad, anytime I handled the case, anytime i tried to type(pressure on the palm rest) or move the screen. Took it to my local apple store. The guy was great, tried to fix it by opening the case. While the case was opened he noticed that the speaker enclosure was just not quite right. He tightened it.

I checked it out in the store, everything was fine but when I got home noticed that the noise was at the bottom now :eek: Oh well. He would have replaced it but it's a 2.3/16 Gigs/256 so had to call Apple. THe issued me a UPS voucher and I returned last night. They re-ordered right away but it says 2-3 weeks, aug 13 to 16 :mad: Oh well more waiting. It's too bad besides that the unit was perfect!

How long can I expect to wait to get a replacement? What are your experiences with rMBP replacements shipping speed!?

I keep waiting..... Hee Hee....
 
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Mine makes a noise at the bottom too. I'm really hesitant to have it exchanged since the computer is perfect otherwise - no display ghosting, new dead pixels that I can see, white point seems about right, etc...

It seems like that the bottom might just need to be tightened a little more. So maybe I'll take it into an Apple store this weekend.
 
mine flexes so much on the bottom it feels like the bottom plate makes contact with whatever is underneath... is that normal?
 
I came across this thread while researching the issues I was having with my Retina MacBook Pro. Since buying it I've had it replaced twice, once for a defective spacebar which they told me wasn't something they would replace as it's not supposed to be replaceable. It was the new (second) Retina MacBook Pro that made popping sounds.

I tightened the bottom plate, tried loosening it a bit, etc all to no avail. I took it in to the Apple Store on Keystone in Indianapolis and the tech took the laptop to the back where it was quiet and was able to reproduce the issue. He suspected it was the grounding pins so he removed the bottom case and to his surprise the laptop still made the sounds.

Ultimately the issue, in my case, was the battery adhesive that holds the battery to the upper case. He didn't disassemble it enough to see what was 'wrong' with the adhesive, but said that it's the only thing left in the area that the sounds are coming from that would make any sort of sense.

When I got to thinking about it, it did sound a lot like when you're peeling something off that has a LOT of adhesive and is sort of goopy - it makes that sort of 'pop' sound.

They went ahead and swapped my laptop out rather than making me leave mine there for repairs over a few days. They said that the repair itself would be one of the most invasive repairs they could do, and it simply didn't make sense to make me go without my brand new laptop over a manufacturing defect that shouldn't have even happened.

I tested the new laptop, admittedly in the hall outside of the store at the mall where it was quiet, to make sure it did not suffer from the same issue. All keys are quiet (as expected) and the new machine does not pop or creak at all.

A more detailed outline of my experience is available on my site (100% non-commercial, not even any advertisements) at http://www.mikedvb.com/2012/10/23/a...5-manufacturing-defects-popping-and-creaking/

Short version: If your laptop is making popping sounds, and you have an Apple Store nearby, take it in and have them look at it.
 
i believe the reason for this is there was a batch of screws that were slightly too long, so there was no way to tighten them. mine pops and creaks, the one i returned for IR didnt make any noises at all. i took my current one into the apple store. they said some of the screws were a bit loose and they tightened them but the creaking is still there. i would suggest asking apple store to try to simply replace the screws with new ones. perhaps youll get lucky and get a set of proper screws.
 
Mine had this issue about 90 days after purchase (about 30 days of normal use). In addition, there was a bit of "give" on the bottom front right side - that is, if I squished it, you could see the panel moving in.

Took it to the San Francisco Apple Store, where they really didn't perceive it as a problem. This was partially my fault for holding my tongue - what I should have said was, "Look, this is an issue I'd expect out of a 400-500 dollar Dell or HP laptop..."

When the technician took the machine to the back in an attempt to tighten the screws, he accidentally scratched the bottom panel. We decided that ordering a replacement panel would do (hopefully to fix both issues).

Fast forward 4-5 days, I get the laptop back, the "give" on the right side is still present, though definitely less than before. The squeaking/creaking noises are gone.

I point out the give to the new technician who returned my laptop, and she flatly replied "Well, at some point we're going to stop replacing the bottom panel." I decided not to push further since the noise appeared to be fixed.

Fast forward two weeks to today, and suddenly the squeaking noises (though not as common as before) are back, especially on a flat surface, emanating from the left side of the laptop. I am able to reproduce it by putting some pressure on the front left "foot" of the machine, where there is also some give.

Any suggestions/recommendations what to do? I'd like to first call up AppleCare, and then perhaps take it to a different Apple Store. If anybody has encountered this issue (and a technician who is familiar with it) in the Northern California Bay Area (and resolved it successfully, either with a repair or a replacement), please let me know the location and name of the technician.

I am in Orange County right now for Thanksgiving, and am tempted to take it in to one of the Apple Stores here to get their take on it.

Thanks all,
Supratik
 
I recently purchased the 13" retina and I'm having a similar issue.

The new 13" retina is an upgrade from a 2011 MacBook Air 11" BTO i7 model which did not have any problems whatsoever with the build quality. Actually, I've never had build quality issues with any Apple notebook ever in the past, except for a G4 TI book long long ago. But I digress..

I don't want to be OCD here (even though I am and obviously can't help it), but this seriously annoys the snot out of me. I'm going to try tightening them myself and then I guess if that doesn't resolve it, I'll make a genius bar appointment. It just seems like such a trivial thing to complain about though...I mean honestly I even think I'm foolish for even caring about it, but every time I hear the noise it seriously just drives me nuts. I guess if I end up going into the store they'll prob. think I'm a nutjob...oh well, hopefully they will be able to fix it if I can not do it myself. Thanks to everyone for the suggestions and I am glad to know I'm not the only one having this problem and is irritated by it!

Supratik, after reading your post, it kind of makes me angry to hear a support person from Apple saying that to you. We should not have to justify our unhappiness with a device that costs thousands of dollars..."at some point we're going to stop replacing the bottom panel." -- how about instead, at some point, you do your job and tell your manager that this end user has a build quality issue with their multi-thousand dollar "premium" Apple laptop and they need the issue resolved as it has been ongoing! Sheesh...I know it can be a tough thing to do but you really do have to stand up for yourself sometimes when dealing with people like that. The key is to be polite, never rude, but aggressive in terms of letting them know that you're not satisfied with the product you purchased, or with the support that they are providing.

The *ironic* thing about issues like this is, they exist for here today gone tomorrow bargain bin tech companies because they don't have enough capital to pay for high quality manufacturing -- and also for tech companies that have more money in the bank than some states / governments! And their reasoning is entirely different -- the demand is so great and the supply is so low, that they must get products out the door no matter what, even if they do have problems. So for an end user looking to purchase a new device -- it's basically a craps shoot no matter what brand you get...That's what I've come to find out from being in this gadget game all these years :D Nothing is certain, and "quality" is seriously relative to supply / demand; and also people who have brand loyalty in the gadget business are completely delusional.
 
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I ordered a screwdriver set off Amazon :) Got it this morning..I gently unscrewed every screw on the bottom then screwed them all back in as tight as they could go. Problem has been solved -- for now. No more clicky noises.
I have a feeling it's going to come back though...but maybe I'll get lucky and it won't.

I think the lock-tite solution mentioned would probably be viable, but just don't use too much...I would say to use a q-tip or a tong and unscrew the screw completely then dip it in a cup of lock-tite, or use a qtip and coat the screw -- then put it back in.

EDIT:

After a few hours of use, the problem returns. Sigh. Guess I'm off to the Apple store..
At this point I don't know if it's the screws or something else, but it's all in the upper right hand corner of the device. Either way I'm screwed -- I have the 13" Retina i7 2.9GHz BTO model which I'm pretty sure they're not going to have at the stores, so if I need a replacement I'm going to have to get a brand new one in from China...

EDIT2:

I think I have fixed the issue for good. I did not end up using loctite but what I did was I unscrewed the screws and then I did not screw them in all the way super tight. I screwed them in maybe about 7\8 of the way and I did not overtighten. This seems to have worked well for over 1 day now -- hopefully it will stay that way. Going by this evidence I think it's easy to see what the real problem is.
 
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srgz said:
EDIT2:

I think I have fixed the issue for good. I did not end up using loctite but what I did was I unscrewed the screws and then I did not screw them in all the way super tight. I screwed them in maybe about 7\8 of the way and I did not overtighten. This seems to have worked well for over 1 day now -- hopefully it will stay that way. Going by this evidence I think it's easy to see what the real problem is.
Click to expand...

Hopefully the fix for yours was a simple one! I tried tightening the screws differently and had no luck as my cracking/popping sound was coming from around the right palm rest rather than along the edge. Check on those screws often though, my buddy has lost some of his due to them backing out...seems like they walk easily on these newer machines.


I think my cracking/popping noise was due to the battery not being glued in correctly. Maybe too little glue? I took mine in to the Genius Bar 4 times before a tech acknowledged that the sound was there. Case had been tightened/loosened/reseated/etc all the other times. Finally they said they would replace the top case and the bottom case for good measure. Got the laptop back, and it feels more solid than before with no noise. The reason why I think it was the battery is because the new top case comes with a new battery glued to it as 1 part (also includes the keyboard apparently).

Hope this info helps someone. Be persistent, get them to replace the top case. $2000 gives you the right. If they're gonna brag about manufacturing processes and precision/perfection...then we get to demand it when we pay for it.
 
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