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IFixit: Self Repair Program makes M1 MacBooks less repairable

9to5mac.com

71–80 of 140 posts

Re: IFixit: Self Repair Program makes M1 MacBooks less repairable

#71

Earlier quoted context omitted.

So it's a temporary situation to do it this way until they can get enough stock and work their supply chain to provide additional batteries? What a non-story.

I don't see anything to suggest that this policy will change in the future, they probably don't want to risk someone burning their house down while trying to remove a glued in pouch battery and then blaming Apple for it. Incidentally on the flip side of this, I got a free new battery out of the keyboard replacement program because they replace this whole top case assembly for keyboard replacements as well. I hoped th…

They do say on the website they're planning on selling the batteries individually in the future.

Re: IFixit: Self Repair Program makes M1 MacBooks less repairable

#72

Earlier quoted context omitted.

There are many service manuals for cars that recommend procedures that independent auto shops and shade-tree mechanics do not follow. Get a short in a wiring harness? The service manual for your car will almost certainly recommend replacing the entire harness which is a very labor intensive and expensive procedure. Will mechanics do this? Depends on which shop you're at and who is paying. If there are multiple ways t…

Well, part of me wishes this particular "car" wasn't separated into two replaceable pieces. A fender-bender or bad battery shouldn't warrant replacing half of my car ! Not only is it ridiculously expensive, but it's insanely wasteful if the half it's replacing isn't being salvaged for components. Apple has the resources to fix this. They choose to actively neglect it, since they have a very successful side-business d…

That's a fair criticism of the design of the device, but I fail to understand iFixit's argument that this is the repair program's fault.

Re: IFixit: Self Repair Program makes M1 MacBooks less repairable

#73

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> iFixit praises the M1 MacBook Air service manuals by saying “they’re in-depth, mostly logical, and well worth an additional repairability point,” This is the service manual you're referencing. The one they're complaining about it is the M1 MacBook Pro. Here's the actual manual referenced: https://manuals.info.apple.com/MANUALS/2000/MA2085/en_US/mac... And here's iFixIt's actual complaint: > it’s not 162 pages becau…

So it's a temporary situation to do it this way until they can get enough stock and work their supply chain to provide additional batteries? What a non-story.

No post body was provided.

Re: IFixit: Self Repair Program makes M1 MacBooks less repairable

#74
post #71

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I don't see anything to suggest that this policy will change in the future, they probably don't want to risk someone burning their house down while trying to remove a glued in pouch battery and then blaming Apple for it. Incidentally on the flip side of this, I got a free new battery out of the keyboard replacement program because they replace this whole top case assembly for keyboard replacements as well. I hoped th…

They do say on the website they're planning on selling the batteries individually in the future.

Whoops, so they do. That's a repair I wouldn't want to touch by myself but good luck to anybody who does!

The last Mac laptop I did repairs on was a snapped hinge and man that a painful process. Similar boat with having to take the entire computer apart (including the screen assembly). These days I'd be much happier to pay someone to deal with that, but doing it yourself is certainly the affordable solution and I'm glad that self repair continues to be an option.

Re: IFixit: Self Repair Program makes M1 MacBooks less repairable

#75

Earlier quoted context omitted.

So it's a temporary situation to do it this way until they can get enough stock and work their supply chain to provide additional batteries? What a non-story.

What's your source for Apple planning to provide individual batteries?

I know that you're a weird anti-Apple contrarian but it literally says this in the article that we're discussing here.

Re: IFixit: Self Repair Program makes M1 MacBooks less repairable

#76

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I replaced a screen on an iPhone 4 or 5 with a kit from iFixit. It was painful with the very basic tools provided and no magnifying glasses or understanding of what success was supposed to feel like. The parts aren't small, they are tiny, like 3mm screws, tiny bits of adhesive, things that are very fragile, etc. It took me like 3 hours. Experiences like that make me nope out of some DIY things.

I replaced the keyboard on a unibody era MBP. (2011 ish, the one with the dvd drive that needed to have the hard drive cable replaced every few years because it would wear at a corner and short against the case). It had 50+ absolutely tiny screws, requiring a 000 Phillips head, probably about the size of the little ones in iPhone 6s, but all about 2mm long.

I, too, suffered through this ordeal in the name of self-repair. The worst of it was having to, every now and then, file a slot into a tiny screw I'd stripped (#%!*) so I could continue with a flathead screwdriver.

Re: IFixit: Self Repair Program makes M1 MacBooks less repairable

#77

Earlier quoted context omitted.

>The quote you pulled out is specifically about the fact that battery replacement alone takes 162 pages to get through. But that's not true. The table of contents has links to the small subset of pages needed to be read to replace the battery. There are over a dozen chapters and the page count includes parts lists, safety and regulatory notices, and information about tools. My Webster's Unabridged Dictionary has 2,12…

You must be reading a different manual than what they're talking about. https://manuals.info.apple.com/MANUALS/2000/MA2085/en_US/mac... You'll note that at the beginning of the three-page battery section, it says that you must have already removed every other part from the other 159 pages. The battery section is basically just "whatever's left doesn't come apart, so replace all that for a new battery". I think saying…

There are ~25 pages about how to change keyboard keys before even touching the bottom case.

Most of the pages are very much slide-like, extremely well done and don’t have the density one would expect from a typical electronic device manual. The statement is not fair at all.

Re: IFixit: Self Repair Program makes M1 MacBooks less repairable

#78

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> leaving it where it is won’t cause any harm But that's apparently not the case here: > If you can’t retrieve the rest of the strip, replace the top case

Their lawyers probably didn't like: > If you can’t retrieve the rest of the strip, forcefully remove the battery by jamming a pry tool under it. This is what other people do when those strips break. This is a service manual, not a binding contract. You can choose to service your device differently if you feel inclined to do so.

True, though you may void the warranty depending on your chosen fix. :)

Re: IFixit: Self Repair Program makes M1 MacBooks less repairable

#79
post #46

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Which is a relatively new phenomenon when it comes to batteries. It's only been a handful of year since I could swap them out with a couple of latches.

To be fair, batteries back then lasted a lot shorter than they do now. For my first MBP I had to buy multiple replacement batteries, for my newer ones I didn't have to do that a single time while using them much more.

Even today, replacing the batteries on a laptop from a competing manufacturer is a 10 minute job with an ordinary screwdriver. Many people can do it themselves, and if not, a computer/phone repair shop will do it for $10 (or free, if you buy the battery from them).

Example: https://www.ifixit.com/Guide/Dell+Latitude+7480++Battery+Rep...

Re: IFixit: Self Repair Program makes M1 MacBooks less repairable

#80

>This time, along with the manuals, Apple is presenting DIY repairers with a excruciating gauntlet of hurdles: read 162 pages of documentation without getting intimidated I read the PDF. https://manuals.info.apple.com/MANUALS/2000/MA2083/en_US/mac... It seems highly likely to me that anyone claiming this document is intimidating either has not read it or is lying for some reason. In many respects, the Apple document…

Why in every story about Apple are their contrarian head burying. No other company would get this amount of support for finally after 20 years allowing a supposed owner of the product to change the battery
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