Should I buy this preunibody macbook pro or is it broken?

[Michal11]

Hi guys,

I have a chance to buy Macbook pro 15 inch, 2008 preunibody model with matte display. It is a pretty good piece and looks very well. However when I met with a seller the battery was almost completely discharged so we put it into charger and then try to start it up. However nothing happened. The seller told me it happened to him many times and that we need to wait at least 20-30 minutes to charge it little bit and then it will work.

Today he sent me an email that he did that at home and it is really working. Could you tell me what do you think about that? Because my basic sense tell me that when in charger, macbook should be able to run even when battery is 0% right? So it is kinda strange for me. OR do you think it is normal?

Thank you so much

 

[mape2k]

I would not buy it unless you have seen it working in person. They MBP should work right away, even with a completely drained battery.

 

[Mersailios]

A MacBook Pro should turn on when pressing the power button regardless of whether or not the battery has been completely discharged as long as the power adapter has been connected to a working outlet.

In addition, you should see an illuminated light on the connector of the power adapter when connected to the computer (typically it will be orange if it is charging the battery or green if the battery is fully charged).

For more information on the MagSafe power adapter that ships with the MacBook Pro, please see http://support.apple.com/kb/ts1713.

There is the possibility that there is an intermittent issue with the logic board. Has the owner stated whether the computer has ever been serviced, or have they provided you the serial number of the computer to check its history?

 

[Michal11]

Hi guys,

thank you for the answer. Well when we put it into charger the color of charger went orange which means it was charging right?

Btw the LED which are on the back of macbook and there is like 5 of them I think? were green (just one of them) which means it was drained I think?

Owner did not say anything about logic board issues or stuff like that but I dont know if I can believe.

 

[Mersailios]

Hi guys,

thank you for the answer. Well when we put it into charger the color of charger went orange which means it was charging right?

Btw the LED which are on the back of macbook and there is like 5 of them I think? were green (just one of them) which means it was drained I think?

Owner did not say anything about logic board issues or stuff like that but I dont know if I can believe.

Yes, an orange light on the MagSafe power adapter connector would typically indicate that the battery is charging.

As you noted, there are a series of LEDs on the battery itself. A single flashing LED or solid LED would indicate that the battery has very little charge. Do you know if the battery has been replaced since the computer was originally purchased?

I'd get some more information about the computer (such as the serial number) before purchasing it, and perhaps even take another look at it now that it's reported to be in a working state.