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Water damage cost -- $1200 repair?

R

rgr555

macrumors 6502
Original poster
Mar 8, 2012
274
0
Thought it would never happen but the stars aligned and some water got into my mbp retina.. Don't ask how

Just a little bottled water got in through the keyboard. Long story short everything was working for a few hours but after shut down and restart after a few hours the keyboard was malfunctioning so I couldn't log in. After a shut down it never turned on again. I didn't turn it off immediately n set it upside down like ppl say to do.

Apple store Genius Bar said 1200 set price to fix, a quote given without even seeing my laptop. If its not fixable they will not charge me. But the costs are a set price, no less or no extra charges. Is this correct ??? Or are different Apple stores ran differently???

Thanks
 
1200 is about right for the labor and parts to replace the logic board.

I'm not sure of the apple stores will do the repair or send it into apple for this level of work but the price seems appropriate.

I know its water over the bridge but perhaps if you used a laptop stand you may reduce the risk of water damage in the future.

Bummers on the damage though :(
 
Is there a way to erase the hard drive remotely or in its vegetative state ? Don't really feel comfortable letting them fix it with all my stored passwords and information.

Is "guest mode" enough for apple genius to fix my laptop ?

Thinking of bringing it in today. Thanks
 
If I recall correctly they boot from an external 'test mode' drive for diagnostics and repairs, so they won't even boot up your internal drive.

In other circumstances (dead screen only, etc) I would suggest target disk mode for retrieving your information, but it sounds to me like your computer is pretty well shot so the odds of that working seem low.
 
I just called and now this guy is saying they will only charge me on parts that need to be replaced, so it's not a fixed price. He also said they need to use the main account and not guest. Also said 2-3 days.

I hate incinsistencies. Can ppl chime in on their repair process for damaged retina mbp?
 
rgr555 said:
I hate incinsistencies. Can ppl chime in on their repair process for damaged retina mbp?
Click to expand...
Yes but what good will that do you? We aren't the ones fixing it. :confused:

Won't they tell you how much it will cost before proceeding?
 
I talked to someone who works at the apple store about liquid damage and he said its a fixed $300 "send out fee"... but i have my doubts...i think ill talk to them again and find out
 
rgr555 said:
Is there a way to erase the hard drive remotely or in its vegetative state ? Don't really feel comfortable letting them fix it with all my stored passwords and information.

Is "guest mode" enough for apple genius to fix my laptop ?

Thinking of bringing it in today. Thanks
Click to expand...

Another reason I personally stay away from MBA and rMB so I can always take the HDD or SDD out, and connect it to any other Mac in my house? With the MBA and rMB you need special adapters to get the SSD to work in another machine.

Good Luck hopefully you get yours repaired for the least amount of money but Good Luck anyway.
 
thecurryman said:
I talked to someone who works at the apple store about liquid damage and he said its a fixed $300 "send out fee"... but i have my doubts...i think ill talk to them again and find out
Click to expand...

What did they say ?
 
rgr555 said:
Is there a way to erase the hard drive remotely or in its vegetative state ? Don't really feel comfortable letting them fix it with all my stored passwords and information.

Is "guest mode" enough for apple genius to fix my laptop ?

Thinking of bringing it in today. Thanks
Click to expand...

I had my battery replaced at an apple store for a 17" MBP. I refused to give them my password and told them to use the guest account. They didnt have a problem with that. Its usually enough for the to test that thing turns on.
 
Just set a price ceiling and insist they call if they need to go over that. If you express your concerns they will work with you. Also, I honestly wouldn't be concerned with data on there, they have no need...if they did they would probably already have it.
 
rgr555 said:
Apple store Genius Bar said 1200 set price to fix, a quote given without even seeing my laptop. If its not fixable they will not charge me. But the costs are a set price, no less or no extra charges. Is this correct ??? Or are different Apple stores ran differently???

Thanks
Click to expand...

It's a fixed price. Apple has "tiers" for repair charges. Water damage is the highest tier since they usually need to replace lots of internal parts. It was $755 on the MacBook Air I had fixed a few years ago. They replaced the logic board, keyboard, lower case, the battery, all the water sensors, and the wi-fi chip.
 
Take it to the closest Apple Authorized Service Provider (not an Apple Store). I work for one. If they're good and know what the they're doing, they'll offer a spill-clean service (we do, for $149). The entire machine gets disassembled, then cleaned (each component), dried, then reassembled. Due to the nature of spills, the cleaning won't be a guaranteed fix, but it's your best option at this point. Apple's mail-in is a last resort, if the MLB is KNOWN to be failed (after an Electro Klene bath). Good luck!
 
ThinkPads are designed for such accidents.

If one spills liquid of any amount on the keyboard, it flows out of the drain holes on the bottom of the laptop. No harm done.

This is the type of brilliant design one would expect from Apple. Especially since Apple is far more expensive.

I can foresee the arguments in response to this post now. But the bottom line is accidents happen.
 
maxosx said:
ThinkPads are designed for such accidents.

If one spills liquid of any amount on the keyboard, it flows out of the drain holes on the bottom of the laptop. No harm done.

This is the type of brilliant design one would expect from Apple. Especially since Apple is far more expensive.

I can foresee the arguments in response to this post now. But the bottom line is accidents happen.
Click to expand...

Not just Thinkpads. My office HP Elitebook has the same feature, as do some Toshiba ultra books. I think Apple should, but they seem to be more concerned with putting in liquid sensors than preventing damage. The sealed designs actually trap water. Apparently Jony Ive hasn't tried using a MacBook in the center seat in coach.

Until then, I use a keyboard cover and have a personal articles policy on my MacBooks.
 
It sounds good to me.
You werent suppose to turn on your computer for at least a week.

By the time you turned it back on, you've made your mistake.
But every logic board replacement is around that price.
 
$300 ish is flat rate repair for out of warranty but without any water damage.

When water is issue, cost is dependent on the unit, $1250 or whatever was quoted is about right for yours. They mail it out and fix everything. (Not repaired in store)

I think the other price quoted, where it can fluctuate is for in-store repair, where they charge whatever is replaced.
 
Still deciding whether to fix it for 1200 or pay and wait for the haswell. Besides a small increase in performance do we think there will be other significant upgrades ?
 
rgr555 said:
Still deciding whether to fix it for 1200 or pay and wait for the haswell. Besides a small increase in performance do we think there will be other significant upgrades ?
Click to expand...

Possible 16 GB option on the 13", MAYBE 256 GB standard on 13 inch.
 
I have the 15".

I care more about changes in design or significant improvement for battery life. I'm happy with ram and ssd for now.

I have an appointment in 3 hrs. If money isn't an issue I wonder if its just smarter to wait for the Haswell refresh at essentially a 35% discount considering the 1200 repair cost.

Anyone ?!
 
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