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SOLVED - uMBP Hinge Problem - "Genius" refuses to acknowledge issue.

Relznuk

Relznuk

macrumors 6502
Original poster
Sep 27, 2009
391
0
UT, USA
I have a loose LCD hinge on my new uMBP 15" Matte. Sometimes the screen will even close under it's own weight. This is especially troublesome as I often use reclining. Propped up on my knees, and any shift of my body weight requires me to re-adjust my screen.

I took it into the Apple Store, and demonstrated the issue, and the punk college kid behind the desk, without even having a look at it said, "They all do that. Nothing we can help, guy."

I asked if I could please have him show me that his, which he had on the desk, does the same thing. He said no, and asked me to leave, as he was behind in appointments.

What should I do about this? Are all 15"'uMBPs really like this?

Thanks,
J. Glenn Kunzler
 
thats bad service. but from what ive heard, they all seem to close if you put it move it to the wrong angle..
 
go back to the store and ask to speak to the manager. complain about the guy and hopefully the issue will resolve on its own. If the manager backs the kid up, then you can call applecare and it will likely resolve there. If it doesent, and you are able to confirm that your macbook is out of spec through comparison with another macbook, march down to your small claims court, create a case, and serve the manager. THAT will likely resolve the matter.
 
you should get good service.

I have no idea if this is a guaranty eligible, I think so, but that is just me, but the big thing here is the BAD service. As I read it from your post it's far, far, FAR below the usual Apple service. And not even proper etiquette. Everybody can have a bad day, but you don't have to take it out like that on your customers.

I've had pretty good service at one shop in town and the other shop in town is horrible. It's so bad the shop-guys are telling to get to the other shop if you have a legitimate repair! I don't understand that kind of behavior, well, until a guy I vaguely know did bring in his MBP17" in there which had the faulty nVidia processor. It took them "just" 4 weeks to get the logic board repaired. reason? the repair shop was moving (well, moving within the building).
So file all complaints you like to file, make the genius' live difficult and try to find another shop that has it's own apple authorized repair shop at the back. Apple, with some quirks, has given me excellent service so far. And I'm a difficult customer at times.



DoNoHarm said:
go back to the store and ask to speak to the manager. complain about the guy and hopefully the issue will resolve on its own. If the manager backs the kid up, then you can call applecare and it will likely resolve there. If it doesent, and you are able to confirm that your macbook is out of spec through comparison with another macbook, march down to your small claims court, create a case, and serve the manager. THAT will likely resolve the matter.
Click to expand...
 
How old is it? Did you buy anything else with it?

Mentioning that I was considering returning my week-old MBP and all it's accessories and taking my business elsewhere to the general manager changed their tune fast after I spoke to 2 other employees who refused to have it looked at the same day for a grey-screen-of-death Kernel Panic.

"Well, you'll just have to make an appointment, and come in in 2 days..."

I don't think so. I'm not going to accept a week old machine not being able to start up, and you shouldn't have to live with a clamshell that won't stay open.
 
I'd complain (politely) that the hinge issue is not normal and not something you're willing to live.

Another alternative is to call apple get service that way - may be a bit slower though
 
It is not a problem it is a feature and not the reserve of 15 inchers so please less of the hating.
 
Mine does not do this either. The ubmp's do open and close easier with less effort but the screen still does not move on its own.
 
I can confirm that the hinge of my MacBook Pro does not fall down either, even while held at an extreme angle.

It does close and open a lot easier than my old Whitebook though, which I like.
 
I don't know if if it has changed in the mid-2009 models but going into an Apple store and finding out myself, most if not all closed on their own if you held it at an angle but won't if you have it sitting on a desk with the lid closed at a 45 degree angle. So it depends on what the OP is experiencing. If it's closing while sitting on a desk that's a problem, if it's closing while holding it at a specific angle, kind of hard to call it a problem because there are so many that do it and some don't. It's not just Apple, Dell's, Toshiba, HP's all do it.
 
Never let any employee in any store tell you to go away! Ask for the Manager and explain your problem to the manager if the low level peon doesn't provide help.

If that happened to me, I would have been walking out of the store with a Brand New laptop because I would have let the manager have it. The manager is responsible for all the employees under him/her!
 
Thanks everyone for your help. After going through one "Genius," three AppleCare Product Specialists, and one Customer Relations person, I have reached a resolution. After half-a-dozen phone calls and almost an hour of negotiating, Apple has agreed to replace the laptop with a brand new one.
 
Not to burst your bubble, but the new one is likely going to do the same thing. The genius was an @ss to you, but when you angle the 15'' unibody mbp up past 45degrees, the lid shuts itself. It's the crappy hinge design.
 
Jottle said:
Not to burst your bubble, but the new one is likely going to do the same thing. The genius was an @ss to you, but when you angle the 15'' unibody mbp up past 45degrees, the lid shuts itself. It's the crappy hinge design.
Click to expand...

Also, VERY surprising that they're giving you a new one. But like Jottle said, strong chance that the next one is going to do the same. If you wish to use your computer in bed with the computer on your lap/knees which on an angle, MacBook Pro is not for you.
 
If the hinge were so tight that this never happened, I guarantee you that there would be just as many people complaining about "How hard it is to open their display"

You just can't please 100% of the people 100% of the time.

Maybe if you didn't use your computer while lying on the floor you wouldn't experience this problem.
 
Relznuk said:
I have a loose LCD hinge on my new uMBP 15" Matte. Sometimes the screen will even close under it's own weight. This is especially troublesome as I often use reclining. Propped up on my knees, and any shift of my body weight requires me to re-adjust my screen.

I took it into the Apple Store, and demonstrated the issue, and the pink college kid behind the desk, without even having a look at it said, "They all do that. Nothing we can help, guy."

I asked if I could please have him show me that his, which he had on the desk, does the same think. He said no, and asked me to leave, as he was behind in appointments.

What should I do about this? Are all 15"'uMBPs really like this?

Thanks,
J. Glenn Kunzler
Click to expand...

That's crappy customer service, but I have one question... what the heck is a "Pink College Kid"?

The lid on my MacBook Pro is very tight by the way... I love it so much compared to the old style aluminum PowerBooks. I love how it doesn't wiggle either.
 
TheSpaz said:
That's crappy customer service, but I have one question... what the heck is a "Pink College Kid"?

The lid on my MacBook Pro is very tight by the way... I love it so much compared to the old style aluminum PowerBooks. I love how it doesn't wiggle either.
Click to expand...

This was meant to say "punk college kid."
 
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