The Nightmare of Replacing a Battery on a Mac Laptop • Hacker News Board

Re: The Nightmare of Replacing a Battery on a Mac Laptop

#161

Post by larrybud » Wed, Oct 28, 2015, 5:16 PM UTC

I'm no fanboy, but I've had excellent service at my local Apple store. Earlier this year, my son's 4 year old Macbook Pro started flaking out (screen glitches, random hanging, etc). Did not have Applecare. Took it to the Apple store, was told it was a known problem with the video card. They said they would repair it for free (!) but needed to ship it to the central repair center in Texas. We dropped it off on a Saturday, and had it back in our hands on Tuesday, all at no cost to us.

Then, just this month, the same laptop's power supply cord started fraying and even sparked a little. Took it in to the Apple store; gave them the serial number, and in 5 minutes, I walked out with a new power supply. Again, no cost to me.

I couldn't have asked for better service.

Re: The Nightmare of Replacing a Battery on a Mac Laptop

#162

Post by pbreit » Wed, Oct 28, 2015, 5:20 PM UTC

Daishiman wrote: post #83

rayiner wrote: post #11

Out of warranty battery service on a Mac ranges from $130-200: https://support.apple.com/kb/index?page=servicefaq&geo=Unite... . I think that's a reasonable price considering Lenovo charges $140 for a 75-watt hour 68+ battery for the T450s: http://shop.lenovo.com/us/en/itemdetails/0C52862/460/D91DC49... . And for $130-200, they will replace your top-case (including keyboard and touchpad). I have had it done more than…

The difference is that the T450s takes literally 5 seconds todo a battery swap and you can keep using the machine during the time. No downtime, no bureaucracy, just go to Amazon and wait 2 days for your battery arrive.

Much smarter to optimize for every day use than the 0 or 1 time you replace the battery.

Re: The Nightmare of Replacing a Battery on a Mac Laptop

#163

Post by AnthonyMouse » Wed, Oct 28, 2015, 5:21 PM UTC

freehunter wrote: post #139

AnthonyMouse wrote: post #101

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> If you want easily swappable batteries, get a different machine. Apple doesn't make a different machine. Obviously what you mean is to buy from a different vendor, which is what I expect to do when the time comes for a new laptop. But how is it good for Apple that they got my money last time and won't get it next time?

Judging by the increase in sales year over year for the Macbooks, it doesn't seem like it's bad for Apple. How many sales has Apple gained by making the laptop thinner and lighter and giving it a longer battery life compared to sales lost from not making a few parts user-replaceable?

> Judging by the increase in sales year over year for the Macbooks...

...you get a number that tracks the economy in general and the consumption of luxury electronics in particular, is affected by the relative strength of Apple's ecosystem against Microsoft and Google, how badly Superfish has affected Lenovo's reputation, etc. etc.

And in any event the numbers aren't particularly optimistic:

http://blogs.wsj.com/digits/2015/10/08/apple-mac-sales-slow-...

> How many sales has Apple gained by making the laptop thinner and lighter and giving it a longer battery life compared to sales lost from not making a few parts user-replaceable?

We don't even have all the data yet. Customers don't realize they want a user-serviceable battery until they've had to replace one that isn't. Apple started selling glued batteries three years ago, which means they're only starting to have to be replaced now and the largest effect will be seen going forward when the people affected are buying new laptops.

But you're asking the wrong question anyway. The interesting question is: What would their sales look like if they had both ultra lightweight models and slightly heavier models with user-serviceable parts?

Re: The Nightmare of Replacing a Battery on a Mac Laptop

#164

Post by metalliqaz » Wed, Oct 28, 2015, 5:21 PM UTC

adrianmacneil wrote: post #148

This article seems a bit unreasonable. AppleCare not being automatically associated with a device when it isn't purchased from an Apple store is pretty clearly marked on both the AppleCare box, and every third party dealer I've bought from has either pointed this out or offered to register it for me on the spot. Later in the article he mentions that the Apple tech said they could resolve this issue, so it was really…

I could be wrong but I don't think "cycles" implies complete charge and discharge every time. If I alternated between desk work and meetings all day long, I think the laptop would record several cycles as I went on and off of wall power.

Re: The Nightmare of Replacing a Battery on a Mac Laptop

#165

Post by N0RMAN » Wed, Oct 28, 2015, 5:22 PM UTC

larrybud wrote: post #161

I'm no fanboy, but I've had excellent service at my local Apple store. Earlier this year, my son's 4 year old Macbook Pro started flaking out (screen glitches, random hanging, etc). Did not have Applecare. Took it to the Apple store, was told it was a known problem with the video card. They said they would repair it for free (!) but needed to ship it to the central repair center in Texas. We dropped it off on a Satur…

Me too. Got my display replaced for free within an hour. A Premium Reseller/Service changed my logic board at no cost within 12 hours.

Re: The Nightmare of Replacing a Battery on a Mac Laptop

#166

Post by Daishiman » Wed, Oct 28, 2015, 5:23 PM UTC

Bud wrote: post #106

Daishiman wrote: post #83

Earlier quoted context omitted.

The difference is that the T450s takes literally 5 seconds todo a battery swap and you can keep using the machine during the time. No downtime, no bureaucracy, just go to Amazon and wait 2 days for your battery arrive.

Yes, and because of that, the entire design of the case is compromised, it feels like it's flexing all the time in use, it's far less durable, it contains additional cheap plastic mechanical failure points and extra connectors for said easily-replaceable battery, and all this for a part which, in the normal lifetime of most well-built laptops (aka Macs), will never ever need to be replaced.

Your "cheap plastic" is my "case that just gets a little dent when it falls", which in the case of an MB deforms the entire case and probably breaks something in the process.

Re: The Nightmare of Replacing a Battery on a Mac Laptop

#167

Post by massysett » Wed, Oct 28, 2015, 5:23 PM UTC

mbrock wrote: post #89

thearn4 wrote: post #3

I'm curious what other people's perspectives are on the (what appears to me anyway) dominance of Macbooks among developers these days. Is it the convenience of a Unix-y machine with decent drivers, or something else?

I got tired of it and looked up the best Linux laptop available, which seemed to be the Dell XPS 13 developer edition, with a handful of contenders. The trackpad is laughably horrible. I wonder if anyone at Dell ever tried using it. Or maybe my fingers are weird or whatever, but I just cannot for the life of me make the goddamn cursor go where I want. I feel like I'm arthritic. And I haven't managed to get suspend to…

"simple functioning laptop that works with a plain Linux kernel."

Pick up an old Thinkpad, like an X220 or X230. The key is "old". For something old, even the conservative distros like Debian will have a kernel and Xorg that support your hardware. Thinkpads are built well.

For years I used old Thinkpads. The hardware and kernels worked fine. But the desktop environments became a disaster area with KDE 4 and GNOME 3. I hand-rolled setups with FVWM and then i3, but after getting tired of futzing with that and the lack of decent compositing window managers I switched to the Mac and haven't looked back.

Re: The Nightmare of Replacing a Battery on a Mac Laptop

#168

Post by Daishiman » Wed, Oct 28, 2015, 5:24 PM UTC

pbreit wrote: post #162

Daishiman wrote: post #83

Earlier quoted context omitted.

The difference is that the T450s takes literally 5 seconds todo a battery swap and you can keep using the machine during the time. No downtime, no bureaucracy, just go to Amazon and wait 2 days for your battery arrive.

Much smarter to optimize for every day use than the 0 or 1 time you replace the battery.

4 days of battery downtime for replacement is inexcusable. There is no way I can take that time off from being productive. Whereas I can carry a machine that's literally 3 millimiters thicker.

Re: The Nightmare of Replacing a Battery on a Mac Laptop

#169

Post by Daishiman » Wed, Oct 28, 2015, 5:25 PM UTC

bluedino wrote: post #153

Daishiman wrote: post #83

Earlier quoted context omitted.

The difference is that the T450s takes literally 5 seconds todo a battery swap and you can keep using the machine during the time. No downtime, no bureaucracy, just go to Amazon and wait 2 days for your battery arrive.

T450S is a totally different machine. Use the X1 for your example.

The difference is that you can buy an X250 that does exactly what I want. What's the Apple equivalent of an X250?

Re: The Nightmare of Replacing a Battery on a Mac Laptop

#170

Post by josu » Wed, Oct 28, 2015, 5:29 PM UTC

blowski wrote: post #10

Just as a side-note (IANAL), in the EU, retailers can't refuse to fix something just because it's past their warranty period. If you can establish that the product has broke under reasonable use then you can argue that the product wasn't fit for purpose when you bought it, and therefore it is still the retailer's responsibility to repair it, replace it or give you a partial refund. I did this with Apple when my logic…

>I did this with Apple when my logic board failed just under two years after buying a Macbook Pro 2009 model.

If it was under two years, then it was covered by the warranty. [1]

[1] http://europa.eu/youreurope/citizens/shopping/shopping-abroa...