Teardown of Retina MacBook Pro Finds Low Repairability with Custom Components

[vpro]

We don't represent..

I guess non of us here represent any fraction of the market for apple products,or is this it right here at mac rumors? (Giggles)

It is always so curious that there is so much innovation and technological advancements, revolutionary and forward developments in this field - yet the consumer continues to accept paying more for no means to upgrade, where upgrade means buy their 'latest and greatest', or pay the insurance premium which covers the life span of that particular model's trend setting date. When both expires a 'newer and better' machine pops out of no where totally making the last one obsolete, does this sound familiar to anyone? (Wink & Nudge)

There is so much 'awesome technology' in this product right now, just right now though, because we all know the successor is already in the making. Some of us make the most out of the technology today and some of us are able to continue to use this machine well into the distant future. So I dread and fear that many more or too many of us are too easily giving our consumer power over to Planned Obsolescence.

Or I guess in this 'case' something less sinister(?) Just that it is the epitome of the typical fashion trend factor: 'look what we made and what will ultimately make you look better and produce better images with'... ... 'But uh uh uh - you can't upgrade it, uh uh uh - you have to pay the premium insurance in case it fails because only WE CAN do ANYTHING about IT mwahahahaaa haaa haar!'

The whole notion of PC (personal computer) became wiped out. I guess that is why those 'other' computers are more customizable after you paid for it but 'these' computers are very much geared to the 'luxurious few'.


I am still waiting for my $4000 new retina 15" mbp to arrive any minute now. I saved up way too long for the premium 17" mbp and it was taken from me to early (sob), I will survive - as this decision will have to do (pout).


Exciting times of greater awareness and power to the people! (Hopes)


Thanks. ^_^

 

[840quadra]

I would imagine that the majority of the general public does the following.

1. Buy a computer that fits the needs now
2. Replaces computer when it feels slow / doesn't fit the needs anymore

My clients, co-workers, family, and most friends run this way. Even though this forum is huge (with regards to active members), compared to the overall population of users that buy Apple computers (and other consumer electronics), this is still only a tiny sample.

While many of us worry about upgrading our laptops, I would venture a guess, that most consumers simply don't care, they will likely replace it when the next best thing comes out.

I don't agree with it personally, but I can totally see why Apple feels justified with such a hardware lockdown.

 

[palmerc]

Doesn't cover wear and tear.

I've been a loyal purchaser of AppleCare for years. When you take a mac into the Apple store in the US with AppleCare they will replace nearly anything.

Here in Norway electronics purchased here have a three year guarantee by law, but unfortunately the companies take 2-3 weeks to repair stuff. I would gladly pay for the overnight service AppleCare in the US provides.

 

[dollystereo]

Cmon, its a nice machine, with 8GB standard. 200 more and you get 16GB that is totally futuro proof!.
About the drive, who cares, you have USB3 and Thunderbolt, both are as fast as an internal HD or even an internal SSD.
So yes, it's a pro machine, cheap for apple standards and pretty damn sleek!

 

[D.T.]

Non removable ram and ssd sucks ass, absurd prices for memory/ssd upgrade in the online applestore

I would have at least liked the ram and 'ssd' to be upgradable.

So a year from now if need a larger SSD and prices drop I would then have to sell this and buy a new one Not for me!!!

The “SSD”/NAND chips are not soldered in (you can see the modular edge connection in several photos), so it will just take a 3rd party company to reverse engineer the interface. OWC provides upgrades to the previous MBA SSD.

A RAM upgrade to 16GB is $200 ($180 for students) - much less than it used to be, from what I remember. I think I paid a little less than that for an 8GB upgrade from a 3rd party supplier last year. Not a bad deal.

Yeah, the RAM upgrade is not totally insane, and since that component +is+ soldered in, I’d definitely go 16GB OOTB (but I’m a heavy VM user combined with a number of dev tools and services).

It's worthy to note that I did not see an upgrade option for the slower Retina display Mac Book Pro, so if you want larger than 256GB internal harddrive you'll need to go to the top end model. I don't know why Apple has left off the upgrade option for the lower end model.

I think we’ll see some additional BTO options for storage in the future, i.e., base CPU with 512GB SSD (high end machine with 1TB SSD!)

 

[charlituna]

For laptops - applecare was always justifiable.

What would make it even more justifiable is if they did some kind of Apple Care + for laptops. Liquid damage on a laptop can be a $500-1000 fix depending on how much there is. Being able to get a flat rate repair at say $500 can be a life saver for many.

 

[blackcrayon]

As for RAM, this is pure bs. There are plenty of smaller thinner machines out there that have user-upgradable RAM. Many Air imitators for example. They want you to pay a major premium upfront for their memory and then throw away the machine once the RAM amount in it becomes insufficient for newer software. Just Apple being its greedy self again.
.

I wonder why they put two thunderbolt ports on it, allowing unprecedented expansion to a laptop computer. Them being greedy consumer-screwers & all

 

[charlituna]

So if you have any battery problems they essentially have to replace the entire machine?

No, the machine comes apart. And the batteries are likely separate from the board.

iFixit is whining that the logic board, RAM and GPU are all soldered onto one base plate so they can't teach you out to rip that stuff up and fix/upgrade it yourself. That's their bread and butter after all.

Personally I know few pros of the type that would buy this machine that have any desire to do any of that kind of work themselves. Hell most of them don't even make the drive over to Apple themselves. that's what assistants are for.

 

[CrAkD]

All expected but now that repair ability is nonexistent people would serve themselves well flipping these things every few years because once apple care expires if anything happens you'll have a 3-4k paperweight

 

[charlituna]

I would have at least liked the ram and 'ssd' to be upgradable. Those are the only things I upgrade anyway. As the previous poster noted, it sure makes Applecare more justifiable.

apple Care wouldn't upgrade those for you either. You have to buy it with the top specs if you want the top specs.

 

[varera]

they kinda tell yua

do not screw with that laptop...

 

[avanpelt]

I would imagine that the majority of the general public does the following.

1. Buy a computer that fits the needs now
2. Replaces computer when it feels slow / doesn't fit the needs anymore

My clients, co-workers, family, and most friends run this way. Even though this forum is huge (with regards to active members), compared to the overall population of users that buy Apple computers (and other consumer electronics), this is still only a tiny sample.

While many of us worry about upgrading our laptops, I would venture a guess, that most consumers simply don't care, they will likely replace it when the next best thing comes out.

I don't agree with it personally, but I can totally see why Apple feels justified with such a hardware lockdown.

For a $500 laptop, sure. For a $2,100 laptop? I'm not sure that's as readily abandoned and replaced. Keep in mind that for $2,100, you get 8 GB of RAM. That would be considered the absolute minimum for any professional machine these days; and if you buy that machine, you're stuck with that amount of RAM.

Maybe Apple really is aiming this laptop at the company that can buy these every year and have it be only a very small blip on their books.

 

[torana355]

Its a ultra thin high power laptop people, if you want a computer you can customize and repair then you should be looking at a tower, if you need a laptop just order it with 16gigs of ram and the largest ssd to future proof it. Im more pissed that Apple have not updated the Mac Pro.

 

[Celf]

Cmon, its a nice machine, with 8GB standard. 200 more and you get 16GB that is totally futuro proof!.

Please define "future proof"

I've bought computers were it was an option to upgrade the harddisk to a whopping and future proof 40 Mb!!!!

 

[charlituna]

I doubt seriously it was designed JUST to thwart current third party upgrades, although no doubt that is considered a side benefit to Apple.

That is most likely correct. They did what they thought was best. That it screws with folks being able to tinker and possibly screw something up by breaking a connector or using a bad part is just icing.

 

[rdlink]

It's a give and take. If you want newer, slimmer, lighter form factors, the manufacturer needs to break away from the designs we've been seeing the last 10 years. I'm all for it, I quit fiddling with the physical aspects of computers a long time ago.

This.

While I understand that there are still some geeks out there who want to tinker, the vast majority of people just want good, easy, solid computers that run and help them do what they need/want to do. Think of it like an appliance in your life. Do you bitch because you can't easily replace the compressor or coils in your fridge? Do you want to replace the compressor or coils in your fridge?

 

[fleshman03]

I don't really care that the RAM is soldered in and that the SSD is a new proprietary piece. I came to terms with that kind of thing with my MBA. The battery though. I just can't bring myself to buy a computer with a non-replaceable battery. No way. I've spent the last couple days talking myself into selling my Air and buying this machine. Not now.

Buying a $1k non-user serviceable appliance (MBA) is a wee bit different from plucking down $2.5k on a beast (MBPR). This is a pro machine and expected to be used by pros; not the general consumer. I guess it's too much for Apple to allow Pros to user-service Pro machines...

My early 2008 silver MacBook Pro just got a life extension. Looks like I'll be upgrading the HHD to 1or2 TB, putting in 6GB of RAM and buying a new battery. 4 years is a great run for a laptop, I'm expecting mine to go another 2 with those user-serviceable upgrades. Can't do that with the MacBook Pro Retina.

 

[pandamonia]

What can we expect when the battery dies? Very expensive battery change by Apple? replace Macbook?

Batteries still have a max loading cycles. On my current Macbook Pro I had to replace the battery just after two years of use.

After 2 years of use i have 379 charge cycles and have only lost 50mAh of total capacity.

I really don't see the problem.

 

[torana355]

Keep in mind that for $2,100, you get 8 GB of RAM. That would be considered the absolute minimum for any professional machine these days;

Not true, we are running just 6 gigs of ram in our Mac pros for our prepress dept in a large printing company. More then enough. If people actually ran istat and saw how much ram they are actually using many would realize there is no need for more then 8 gigs of ram unless running multiple VM's or heavy video editing.

 

[840quadra]

For a $500 laptop, sure. For a $2,100 laptop? I'm not sure that's as readily abandoned and replaced. Keep in mind that for $2,100, you get 8 GB of RAM. That would be considered the absolute minimum for any professional machine these days; and if you buy that machine, you're stuck with that amount of RAM.

Maybe Apple really is aiming this laptop at the company that can buy these every year and have it be only a very small blip on their books.

My response was in regards to people I know who do own a 15' MPB, many of which paid over $2,000 for them new.

I can't speak with regards to others outside of people I know, but that core group simply replaces their entire systems. I have tried to get them to hold onto them longer by suggesting an SSD replacement, or more memory, but they usually just replace .

 

[vpro]

I respect!

I really - absolutely - totally respect Apple's approach to such custom attention to detail and components it is so humbling! As a musician I appreciate the custom made instruments to my specs so I really always give kudo where deserved like in the case of this new mbp. WOW! It is set for life - at least for my needs. I am able to make a computer last a LONG LONG time, I am still able to produce very quality full length albums on my HP from 1998, it still works like the gem it was when it first made the headlines (laughing).

Yeah with USB3 and all the Thunderbolt this and that, you have so much expandability for sure, it doesn't always have to be from the inside all the time, the external peripherals do everything to catch up / compliment and are doing a fine job!!

I am happy with my decision to spend $4000 on this new mbp, very HAPPY. It is the best investment for my music career. Just like my 17" 08 mbp STILL is to this date! In my entire life I only had 3 computers now with the addition of the new mbp to the family. We are a happy unit thank you very much!


Best,

Vi An.

 

[Celf]

After 2 years of use i have 379 charge cycles and have only lost 50mAh of total capacity.

I really don't see the problem.

Mine had little over 400 cycles and lost half of the capacity. 45 minutes max between charges. battery was tested in a store and they said they couldn't do anything about it. 170 USD for a new, user replacable, battery.

 

[foodog]

It's a give and take. If you want newer, slimmer, lighter form factors, the manufacturer needs to break away from the designs we've been seeing the last 10 years. I'm all for it, I quit fiddling with the physical aspects of computers a long time ago.

Me too. Once I figured out it cost me less per hour to pay someone to build stuff, fix stuff, do car maintenance, etc... than my hourly rate. I moved all these items to pay someone to do it category.

 

[dollystereo]

16Gb of ram is enough for almost any task you are going to do with a portable mac. I do performance computing (optimization in real life really large problems) and with this machine I can test and run my codes with no problem (I can with my actual MBP).
this update should have come with the awaited Mac Pro at the same time, so really video hungry users could get best of both worlds.
I think that 16GB should be included for the 2199 fee, but remember last model came with 4Gb for that price! with no retina or ivy bridge, so is classic apple way.
Hard Drives shouldn't be a problem since Thinderbolt and USB3 are super fast I/O.
I think is a nice machine for the price, the best that apple has ever made, and if it doenst suit your needs just get the regular MBP.
Now, get us a comparable Mac Pro, that;s what we really need, am tired of installing Sata cards in mine. =(

 

[JHankwitz]

So if you have any battery problems they essentially have to replace the entire machine?

That's why you should always buy AppleCare.