Seeking Advice on Repair of Logic Board of MacBook Pro

[PointZero]

I would like to seek for advice on the repair of my MacBook Pro 15" Early 2008 model.

My MBP has broken down, and the problem is that it cannot power up. When I pressed the power button, the white light infront will lit up for a short while, and then the MBP will power down by itself. If I continue to hold on to the power button and not release it, the white light will start to blink rapidly, and then the MBP will still power down.

I sent the MBP to an official Apple service center for repair, and the diagnosis was that there is a problem with the power circuitry in the logic board, and the solution given was to replace the logic board with a new one. As the warranty of the MBP has already expired, the cost for repair is almost equivalent to the price of a new MBP, so I did not choose to have it repaired.

I subsequently approached a few third-party repair shops and just verbally described to them the problem. All of them told me that they can repair it and the estimated cost is not high relative to the repair cost quoted by the Apple service center (but it will still cost me about USD200).

Now my dilemma is whether I should even bother to try to get the MBP repaired, the main question in my mind being whether it is feasible to repair the logic board. I had a previous problem with my MBP (at that time it was the 2007 model), which is that one day the display just went blank, though the MBP still could be used through an external monitor. The MBP was under warranty at that time so I sent it to the Apple service center for repair. I was told me that the logic board was faulty, and instead of repairing it, Apple just gave me a new early 2008 model MBP as replacement, which is the one that has now broken down.

Does anyone try to have their MBP logic board repaired before and have any positive or negative experience to share?

Thanks.

 

[c7aea]

I would like to seek for advice on the repair of my MacBook Pro 15" Early 2008 model.

My MBP has broken down, and the problem is that it cannot power up. When I pressed the power button, the white light infront will lit up for a short while, and then the MBP will power down by itself. If I continue to hold on to the power button and not release it, the white light will start to blink rapidly, and then the MBP will still power down.

I sent the MBP to an official Apple service center for repair, and the diagnosis was that there is a problem with the power circuitry in the logic board, and the solution given was to replace the logic board with a new one. As the warranty of the MBP has already expired, the cost for repair is almost equivalent to the price of a new MBP, so I did not choose to have it repaired.

I subsequently approached a few third-party repair shops and just verbally described to them the problem. All of them told me that they can repair it and the estimated cost is not high relative to the repair cost quoted by the Apple service center (but it will still cost me about USD200).

Now my dilemma is whether I should even bother to try to get the MBP repaired, the main question in my mind being whether it is feasible to repair the logic board. I had a previous problem with my MBP (at that time it was the 2007 model), which is that one day the display just went blank, though the MBP still could be used through an external monitor. The MBP was under warranty at that time so I sent it to the Apple service center for repair. I was told me that the logic board was faulty, and instead of repairing it, Apple just gave me a new early 2008 model MBP as replacement, which is the one that has now broken down.

Does anyone try to have their MBP logic board repaired before and have any positive or negative experience to share?

Thanks.

If that place you mentioned is legit then $200 is cheap. Sounds a little too cheap to me though. I know logic boards can found online that you can fix yourself that are more then $200. When I had my logic board replaced by apple it was at a fixed repair cost of less then $300. And they replaced other parts that I didn't even know were faulty

 

[alexxn]

I personally have experience with this company: http://www.dttservice.com/

They replaced a logic board for me on a 2008 NON Unibody MBP that suffered from a slight liquid spill.

4 Months later it's running just fine.

 

[Seoulman]

I would like to seek for advice on the repair of my MacBook Pro 15" Early 2008 model.

My MBP has broken down, and the problem is that it cannot power up. When I pressed the power button, the white light infront will lit up for a short while, and then the MBP will power down by itself. If I continue to hold on to the power button and not release it, the white light will start to blink rapidly, and then the MBP will still power down.

I sent the MBP to an official Apple service center for repair, and the diagnosis was that there is a problem with the power circuitry in the logic board, and the solution given was to replace the logic board with a new one. As the warranty of the MBP has already expired, the cost for repair is almost equivalent to the price of a new MBP, so I did not choose to have it repaired.

I subsequently approached a few third-party repair shops and just verbally described to them the problem. All of them told me that they can repair it and the estimated cost is not high relative to the repair cost quoted by the Apple service center (but it will still cost me about USD200).

Now my dilemma is whether I should even bother to try to get the MBP repaired, the main question in my mind being whether it is feasible to repair the logic board. I had a previous problem with my MBP (at that time it was the 2007 model), which is that one day the display just went blank, though the MBP still could be used through an external monitor. The MBP was under warranty at that time so I sent it to the Apple service center for repair. I was told me that the logic board was faulty, and instead of repairing it, Apple just gave me a new early 2008 model MBP as replacement, which is the one that has now broken down.

Does anyone try to have their MBP logic board repaired before and have any positive or negative experience to share?

Thanks.

Try to find a much better option!

I am on my "second" logic board replacement on my MBP 2007 model. Truthfully, I don't think it's the logic board. I had a kernal panic and my screen froze a couple of times. TekServe tried to recreate the issue since they could not find it on the system error reports. They told me that they put my system in sleep mode and it wouldn't wake up, so they are replacing the logic board????? If you don't know what the issue is why are you replacing parts. Will they give me some sort of discount for future repairs based on "their" misdiagnosis? Yeah, I think so, like 90-days. And we all know how those stories go.

I believe you may have a lemon on you hands and constant reinvestment on a system that is just a money pit may not be worth it in the long run as I have come to realize with my MBP 2007.

I am shaking my head at Apple on this one and am really neutral about the way Apple is handling all this.

I hope you find a solution and would be interested in knowing what you come up with...please post.

 

[PointZero]

I subsequently went the baking route (see http://russell.heistuman.com/2010/04/27/cooking-the-books-or-baking-my-macbook-pro-logic-board/
) and became an expert in the disassembling and assembling of my MBP . On average, I have to do it once every two or three months.

Before the Apple warranty expired (it was three years of warranty because I had purchased Apple Care), the logic board would break down almost once every year. The first time (i.e. after one year) Apple gave me a new MBP, and the subsequent times they replaced the logic board.

I think it is an over-heating issue because the failure to boot symptom would usually appear after a long stretch of heavy usage, for example, the MBP running straight for a day with heavy CPU load.

I have also invested in a better notebook cooler (CoolerMaster NotePal U3) and good thermal paste (Arctic MX-3).