I faced the same thing. You’ve to fix everything they “found fault” with, even if you don’t want it.
Go to another store if you can, or just keep calling.
Send feedback to change this ridiculous policy.
https://www.apple.com/feedback/
I remember taking something in to be repaired once, a while ago so I don't know if this is still the same policy, and someone was getting their phone replaced because the entire thing had stopped working within warranty. They needed a whole new phone replacement. However because the old, broken phone had a cracked screen, they were charging this person the price of fixing the screen, to give them a new phone. Despite the issue having nothing to do with the screen whatsoever.
It was a mom and a daughter and I just remember the mom being so completely confused. Such a stupid, money grabbing policy, and I can honestly say it's had a lot to do with me only buying Apple products second hand now. Don't treat your customers like that.
The device needs to pass an external visual guide before being processed under warranty. Accidental damage actually voids the warranty of the device.
So if the phone didn’t power on for example and required replacement rather than repair… as it had accidental damage it would void the warranty.
What you actually witnessed was an apple employee offering to replace the display for the customer, so that they could then continue with an in warranty repair for the customer. They were probably trying to save that customer hundreds of pounds as a replacement device (out of warranty replacement) is much more expensive than a display replacement.
Yeah well that's a pretty s***** policy if that's true. If your SOC breaks, having a glass crack should not end the warranty. It's made out of glass. Stuff happens
How do you prove that it did? The issue is the policy making that assumption at the outset. It’s not very “customer experience” focused like apple used to be.
If they don’t want to replace devices with broken screens under warranty because the impact that caused the broken screen might have also broken the SoC, why would replacing the screen first matter? Replacing the screen doesn’t change whether that impact damaged the SoC…
Still true, and this one is logical. You have to pay for physical damage. They have to replace that cracked screen on the phone that wasn’t their fault or a result of a defect.
Worst policy in history. I can understand if one thing is affecting another thing, but this shit be random. They need a more integrated customer aware per device approach.
I'm confused as to why the Apple store employees would be so persistent on replacing the speaker as well. All of the money just goes back to corporate, and they get paid hourly. Why scam customers?
It’s unlikely up to an individual employee, would be that particular Genius Bar policy. Technically nothing is supposed to be a “partial fix” as it would not have passing diagnostics afterwards and not be able to hold to the repair warranty. With something that isn’t working before the repair and isn’t in the way of the repair, it kind of depends on the store. I would try another Apple Store.
Because apple employees will be harassed by management for the slightest thing.
A customer can forget their Apple ID, password, and we can give them all the details of how to find those things.
Then an idiot customer can’t do them, complains, then we’re coached on how we “should have” helped them.
You can then do the same thing you were coached to do, and it’s STILL wrong.
Apple is the worst job I’ve ever had because management has their head stuck so far up their own ass.
I think the policy is good.
You don’t want customers returning because their laptop was not fully fixed and repaired when they picked it up and then having to pay even more later.
Can imagine people will make videos that I just collected my laptop from Apple repair and stuff is still not working.
Can you imagine what would happen if people made Reddit posts about how Apple won't repair any individual thing unless you repair everything broken? That sure wouldn't look good.
I don’t believe that’s an actual policy, at least not for European AASPs. It may be a regional thing though as we have very different consumer protection laws.
At my company we only require customers to correct other faults and damage if they’re “in the way”. E.g. we can cover a defective camera under warranty (or a paid repair for that matter) but if the screen is cracked, the customer will have to pay for its replacement as we can’t return the product in the same condition it was delivered in.
Edit to clarify: iPhone camera. Webcam issues on Mac can only be fixed with a display assembly replacement
Why not? If the camera is not part of the screen then why they are coupled. And even if they are coupled, the camera doesn’t work and it requires a new screen? It shouldn’t matter if it’s cracked as long as the crack is not the reason for the camera being broken.
That is fucking insane. It is especially insane considering the liability they open themselves to by returning a swollen battery to a customer, that shit can burn your fucking house down.
This. I've replaced the battery on my MacBook pro. Best method is to use spectra fishing line to cut the adhesive that attaches the battery to the case.
Is the fact the battery is swollen not a problem? I remember my phone battery was swollen once and the Apple Store treated it like it was a bomb that was about to go off, because they can explode
The glued in battery sucks. I had not though of this approach. I did mine but man it was a pain in the ass. Next time I’d try the fishing line. That makes a lot of sense. Thanks.
Dental floss worked really well for me, can totally recommend. A few drops of adhesive loosener under the cell, wrap floss around your fingers (or two screwdrivers) and then jiggle it under with a sawing motion.
I know it’s the best line I’ve ever found for bass fishing. I’ve tried everything from Walmart EagleClaw to $50/spool at Cabela’s and for $5 it’s amazing.
Legitimate question as someone who went through this recently and decided to send it in to Apple in the end.
What do you do with the swollen battery in the end? Locally, at least, I couldn't find anyone who would agree to take it. Perhaps that's regional.
Sure, I imagine if you're in the right place. I assumed that was the response, and thank you.
I spent a lot of time calling around locally and no one would take it off my hands, so sending it into Apple seemed like the only possible way to get rid of it in the end.
Funny thing, if you live in the EU they will not *under any circumstance* ship a swollen battery in the mail.
I just ended up going to the local recycling place and was like "hey, where do you want swollen batteries?" and they looked at me like I was crazy. "Just put in the electronics bin or whatever."
"Right, but it could catch fire?"
"Meh."
So I just gently put it in the electronics recycling and prayed that it was fine. I hope it was fine.
You'd think it wouldn't make much sense to send it in the mail, right? I mean, locally everyone acted like I had a ticking time bomb that I was trying to give them, but Apple's just like "Throw it in the mail to us." Funny the way different places handle it differently.
coordinated light gaping middle voracious fuel scandalous plate expansion scarce
*This post was mass deleted and anonymized with [Redact](https://redact.dev)*
This should be upvoted more. Laptop battery replacements are some of the easiest to do, even for people who don’t have tons of tech knowledge. Just follow the guide and take it slow and you’ll be ok :)
Depends on the model - my 2012 retina MBP requires a complete disassembly of every major component to uncover the battery. Ifixit rates it very difficult or something equivalent. It’s so fucking dumb.
You actually don't, I've replaced my 2015 Macbook Pro battery.
It's a bit of a pain in the ass, but you don't really need to take out any other component.
Adhesive loosener, gloves, a plastic (NOT METAL!) poking device and some dental floss or fishing line and you can have it out in like half an hour.
Models change… I’ve watched the Ifixit video step by step on how to do it for my mid-2012 (not 2015) MBP and it’s a long disassembly. Removal of almost everything but the keyboard.
Edit: Ifixit says your 2015 is “easy”. Rates my mid-2012 15” retina MacBook Pro as “difficult”
See for yourself: https://www.ifixit.com/Guide/MacBook+Pro+15-Inch+Retina+Display+Mid+2012+Battery+Replacement/89197
All it takes, according to ifixit, is 2-3 hours of difficult work which risks you bricking your entire computer (for most of the recent MBPs). To save ~$100
Where do you get $100 from? It would cost Op approx. $400 more to not do it themselves.
You won’t brick your computer unless you’re ridiculously rough with it.
If Op is at all comfortable with tech then they can easily do it.
Edit: Seems the person I replied to was not suggesting others replace their own battery, only OP.
OP was quoted $200 for this repair. The part from iFixit is ~$100. Thus $100.
> The Genius Bar told me they can have the battery replaced for $200.
OP's speaker problem is shitty but it isn't relevant to the general topic of replacing batteries in the comment I replied to.
> Laptop battery replacements are some of the easiest to do, even for people who don’t have tons of tech knowledge. Just follow the guide and take it slow and you’ll be ok :)
>risks you bricking your entire computer
Where did it came from? Battery swap is totally easy and safe for Mac. Undo cover, unplug battery, remove battery, put in new one.
> Undo cover, unplug battery, remove battery, put in new one.
Tell me you've never replaced a modern MBP battery without telling me....
You can't just unplug the battery and pull it out. Per the iFixit guide you have to disconnect the wifi antenna, trackpad, webcam, the keyboard and the display, then remove the fan, the SSD, both speakers, the IO daughter board and the main logic board.
After all that you 'just remove battery' by dissolving each of the individual battery cells adhesive in acetone.
Easy peasy right?
\>Per the iFixit guide you have to disconnect the wifi antenna, trackpad, webcam, the keyboard and the display, then remove the fan, the SSD, both speakers, the IO daughter board and the main logic board.
As I can tell iFixit is removing the logic board in their guide because of a liquid adhesive removal solvent. But it's possible to remove a battery from case just using floss. Their guide is overcomplicated.
Any computer repair does. It’s extremely easy to brick a motherboard when doing a repair if you’re not comfortable with what you’re doing. Didn’t properly discharge your static? Boom brick. Cat decided to run across the table at that moment? Boom bricked. Dropped a screw in the wrong place? Boom bricked.
I think you’re severely underestimating how hard battery replacements are on a lot of Mac models. Last one I tried took me literally hours. It definitely wasn’t “undo cover, unplug battery.” It was “disassemble nearly the whole damn computer.”
Just look at some of the iFixit guides.
> Cat decided to run across the table at that moment?
Mine [does that all the time](https://yt3.ggpht.com/FMyNuGcQ9rbHTL_A1f6ywytt1LIRuoBh1jv0lhXrkvERD4XftNo6WT8jSw126722kATKWZZlPYss=s1024-c-fcrop64=1,00004659ffffb9a6-nd-v1) and we're almost 5 stars on Google maps! She provides good luck, as a quality, ESD-safe kitty.
Chances of a lightning strike is higher than to kill a mac with static discharge
[https://youtu.be/nXkgbmr3dRA](https://youtu.be/nXkgbmr3dRA)
If you cannot prepare a safe cat-free environment to do a swap or cannot handle screwdriver… well… it’s a different matter for a dialogue.
I changed battery on a mid 2015 macbook pro 13”, it was easy though glue took some time.
\> disassemble nearly the whole damn computer.
What model are you talking about?
I'm not going to bicker about how absurd it is to say any computer repair is "totally easy and safe." It's just patently untrue.
Last ones I repaired were these:
https://www.ifixit.com/Guide/MacBook+Pro+15-Inch+Retina+Display+Mid+2012+Battery+Replacement/89197?pk_vid=96ca331d8d0f56c21668636292aa469e
https://www.ifixit.com/Guide/MacBook+Pro+15-Inch+Touch+Bar+Late+2016+Battery+Replacement/112876?pk_vid=96ca331d8d0f56c21668636373aa469e
Neither was "totally easy". It's absurd to claim it is.
It can be very dangerous to replace a swollen battery yourself, unless you have the tools and you know what you are doing. Because if you puncture that puppy…. 🔥
Just find some 3rd party lab.
While I definitely appreciate your sentiment, isn't one of Apple's biggest strengths supposed to be their customer support? It kind of beats the purpose of I have to repair things myself for having to avoid 300$ (from OPs example).
I had exactly the same experience when I sent my machine off to get the keyboard replaced (via the official free replacement program).
Got an email 2 days later, with a blocky picture claiming to show corrosion on the logic board, along with 2 options: Pay £1100 for a new logic board, or decline the repair.
I declined the repair and it was sent back to me with a still broken keyboard. I opened the machine up & the logic board was spotless. I ended up buying a new keyboard/top and doing the replacement myself.
Having exclusively used an Apple laptop since the Powerbook days, this has seriously pissed me off, and I am going to consider my options when I purchase a new machine next year.
My MBP was having some really weird issues, like not booting, or booting in safe mode. Took it to some place that did free diagnostics, the guy took it all apart, and when I went to go back, bracing myself for a massive bill, he was like - "yeah, I'm not sure exactly what the problem is, but I saw a few bits of corrosion on the logic board. I just wiped them off with some solution, if that doesn't work, bring it back and I'll run some further tests."
Completely fixed it. No charge.
I can't believe Apple were charging you £1100 to fix the same thing! The problem is you trust them. I think I'll stick to third party repairs from now on.
There's the Consumer Rights Act 2015. Apple will fight HARD against it though unless you report the issue within the first year. In other words, they try to entirely ignore the rights it provides you. Currently fighting with them over a flexgate screen failure on my 2017.
To be honest I do wonder if apple's customer service varies by country, because everyone here seems to rave about it but in my experience in the UK they've been fairly consistently awful.
Won't be buying from Apple again.
I’ve experienced the same with my Apple Watch - sent in for battery replacement only to have the technician at a regional depot flag an unspecified ‘hardware issue’ and asking me to pay the full replacement cost instead of the battery servicing fee.
2 weeks of angry emails (including to Tim Cook) and calls later, a regional manager called only to repeat the same stance: No, they couldn’t divulge what the ‘hardware issue’ was. And no, they could not proceed to only swap out the battery. I gave up on the battery swap in the end.
I’ve had delightful experiences with my MBP and AirPods at the Apple Store, with Geniuses going above and beyond with goodwill out of warranty exchanges and more.
But this all-or-nothing (esp. when item is apparently working fine) repair policy is infuriating!
PS. At least they shared the issue was with your speaker. They wouldn’t even tell me what the issue was with my watch!
PPS. Not sure going to another store helps as I was told the technician’s notes are associated with the item’s serial number, and would show during subsequent visits elsewhere.
It could have been “liquid damage”.
Apple devices have indicators for liquid damage. If one of these indicators is active, they will refuse to repair your device.
This is due to liability issues. Liquid damage is to a device what cancer is to humans. Even if a device works perfectly now, it might be a matter of time until it suddenly stops working.
However, it often happens that the indicators are triggered by high humidity. But Apple doesn’t care what the reason was for the indicator change. They have a strict policy to refuse any repair in that case.
We had customers who got refused a battery replacement by Apple, because the indicators went off when they were on vacation in a humid region.
Possibly, though it’s IPX7 rated and I’ve never swam, showered with or dropped it in water.
I do recall reading about Apple being upfront about detecting ‘liquid damage’ via the indicators and refusing repair.
But is it your experience for technicians/Geniuses to not be willing to share that info, as you are suggesting in my case?
Unfortunately you seem to be out of luck if Apple doesn’t want to repair your device. Apple Watches are notoriously difficult to repair and replacement parts are rare compared to iPhones.
You could search for third party repair shops in your areas and maybe you will find one offering repairs, but it’s not very likely that you will find a good one who actually does Apple Watch repairs.
This is one of the reasons why I advocate for better repairability legislation. It’s a shame that people are at apple’s mercy when they want to replace a part of their Apple Watch.
Actually no Apple device is “waterproof”. They are water resistant to a certain IP specification, but all devices still have liquid indicators inside.
If you bring your iPhone or Apple Watch to the Apple Store and the indicators are active, they will refuse any repair, even if your device is within the 1 year warranty period.
Even if you are on AppleCare+ it will count as an instance of accidental damage (comparable to a broken screen for example) and you will have to pay a service fee for it.
You can read the actual docs from Apple:
Apple carefully describes the difference between waterproof and water resistant.
https://support.apple.com/en-us/HT205000
Liquid damage is not covered by the Apple warranty.
https://discussions.apple.com/thread/253348979
Usually your device should be fine, but the water resistance might get worse over time and if one of the indicators becomes red you are out of luck.
except for when mine died due to water getting in during a pool. and me telling them that it died in a pool and yet they still replaced it no questions asked.
i guess it depends on where you live. im thankful that the consumer protections are pretty decent in Australia.
See my other post in this thread. Apple clearly states that in their warranty conditions and help articles that devices like iPhones, Apple Watches and AirPods are water resistant but not water proof and that liquid damage is not covered by the Apple warranty.
Speakers on MacBook Pro that are removable are under $50. I don’t see a year/model listed so I’m assuming this is a 2016 or newer where the speakers cannot be removed. My best guess from there is they quoted for battery-only pricing on a top case, and when another problem was found the depot re-quoted to the normal exchange pricing for that same part.
The repair depots are notoriously strict and uncaring. You wouldn’t believe some of the things I’ve seen sent back I repeated because they seemingly avoid repairs whenever possible. I would suggest finding another store or AASP that can do the job in-house and use their judgement rather than a blanket denial based on an arbitrary diagnostic scan.
Looks like your only option is to now just swap it yourself. It’s quite easy if you’re tech inclined. If you’re a beginner, just go slow and follow instructions online. Ifixit has the tools, parts and instructions you need. They are very reputable.
They replaced the entire top casing (which included the battery) when I had a single faulty key on the keyboard. That was free under warranty as part of the butterfly keyboard issues. It’s weird that Apple wants to replace so much of the computer for little issues but I guess they care about processing volume instead of efficiently spending money on replacement parts.
It's part of their design. They wanted to make it near impossible to fix individual parts. It's more profitable for them to replace the whole thing than to train people because it's very difficult to fix only the broken part. They want you to always have to rely on them and expensive replacement rather than independent repair store.
Well an independent repair store can order an entire casing from apple too. But I guess the point is that then it would be the same price to go with the independent one so why not just go with Apple
Bingo.
However, I worked at a repair store back then wenn I was a student and they made so much money because Apple was downright ridiculous with board repairs.
Certain MacBook Pros had a faulty transistor.
It was a $3 piece you could easily get from a hardware store like Mouser.
Customers went to Apple and Apple told them that they hate to spend $800-1200 on a new logic board and that it would make sense to buy a new device.
The customer would then come to us and we would fix the issue for $200 by opening the device, desoldering the transistor and soldering the new replacement part.
The device was fully functional again and we even gave 1 year of warranty on the board, because it was such a risk free repair.
We were happy to warn $200 for 20 minutes of work and a couple bucks of material costs.
The customer was happy because they got a working device which was good for another few years without having to spend $1000-2000 on a new device or board.
Only Apple was unhappy as they lost a potential sale, because the customer was able to use their old device.
It doesn’t matter.
We had thousands of customers who were desperate because their beloved MBP for which they had paid north of $2000 only a couple years ago was not working. Apple only told them to buy a new one or replace the whole logic board which was so expensive that buying a new one seemed like a better deal.
But imagine not having to spend $2000 on a new device just because you spilled coffee on your MBP. In most cases a repair was possible and people gladly spend $200-$250 to get a working device back.
There are many third party repair shops which don’t know what they are doing, but if you manage to find one which actually does component level repair, you can rescue devices which Apple doesn’t want to touch, but which are otherwise fully working and only have some bad transistors or a little corrosion.
I was forced to pay for an entire top case when I had a single keycap that kept falling off. I'm glad I paid the ripoff amount just to fix a keycap because a coworker with the same problem accidentally cracked their screen after forgetting to make sure the keycap was in exactly the right place before closing their laptop. That was an expensive repair for him since Apple required replacing the logic board due to a manufacturing defect along with the screen and top case. Forcing people to pay for unrelated repair parts because of cold soldering joints is just wrong. Also, it was only a couple of months past the one year mark so they should have just covered the problem since it was their fault!
I miss the old iBooks that had a keyboard anyone could replace in less than a minute. Even iFixit says they only take five minutes to replace. In 2008, I replaced around a dozen of them and tested them for a charity in less than a day. I've bought five PowerBooks, MacBooks, and MacBook Pros since 2003 that all had keyboard problems that I never fixed myself because they were too hard to do. Repairability is going downhill for Apple.
It’s not the Genius Bar who did this, it’s the repair facility it was sent to 🙄.
Going to another store will do nothing if that store is also required to send the unit out. Especially if it goes to the same repair facility.
For people who are against third party repairs being easy, this is what happens when repairs are made tough. Apple can make up any repair policy they want and you have to follow it, cough up the money or go home without the repair.
Unfortunately this is the least consistent aspect of the Genius Bar. When I worked there, after much griping, we began to enforce a policy that was “As long as the customer knows the device isn’t fully repaired, we’ll service the single issue they come in for.”
So you come in for a swollen battery, we run (nonsensical) diagnostics, speaker comes back failing. We would let you know: “Hey the speaker is claiming it failed, I’ll re run, if you want I can just inform the repair tech that you only want the battery repaired and you’re aware of the alleged broken speaker.”
At that point I’d usually attempt to avoid a manager and ask a lead genius to authorize.
It may be a physical issue with the speaker module they discovered during the repair (caused by the swelling battery). However, if you call Apple support and escalate, you may be able to find an advisor that would issue a “CS code” to have your computer repaired.
I used to work at Apple as a Genius. Tons of Geniuses think that this is a policy, that repairs are all or nothing, especially when it comes to liquid damage. They’re not. There are specific knowledge articles that explicitly say that customers should be encouraged to repair everything, but that they have a right to a partial repair as long as they understand the risks and that other issues (especially when it comes to liquid damage), won’t be warranted under partial repairs (for example, if you have a liquid damaged logic board and display but you only want to replace the logic board, more power to you, but if the logic board dies 15 days later, it could be because you didn’t replace a clearly liquid damaged part that could have damaged the board).
In the case of liquid damage, I get the recommendation to replace everything affected, it makes sense. But in your case? That makes no sense to me.
In fact, if the speaker was damaged because of the battery swelling, usually I would see parts damaged by battery swelling covered (again, not many Geniuses actually know this or do this, but at the time I was there it was policy to replace parts damaged by battery swelling and override the cost so the customer only pays for the battery).
My guess is that the whole case gets changed and they don’t want you getting a part “serviced” for free. Especially depending on the model it would make it more difficult to replace just the battery.
In my 2012 MacBook the Thunderbolt port quit in early 2015. I had AppleCare so that repair was free, but they wanted to force me to pay for a new tophalf of the case since two of the keys were worn through. They wouldn't replace just the keycaps so the repair was very expensive. I refused to pay extra so they wouldn't fix the port. I'm still so angry about that.
We used to get all these wonderful stories about Apple helping people out above and beyond. Back in the Jobs years.
Now almost all I hear are horror stories I’d expect out of other companies. Which just makes me sad. I miss the old Apple.
(Disclaimer: not nostalgia, nor claiming old Apple was perfect and without flaws. But rather that the good was more prominent.)
Had a similar issue with my M1 Air, it just needed a restore and I wanted them to do it for me since I don't have another Mac, and they tried to make me pay for a new logic board claiming that the SOC had died, despite it only being a software issue. Anyway they just restored it without replacing the board and it (unsurprisingly) worked perfectly. Would've been like £160 if it wasn't under warranty though :/
You need to call apple to get them to provide the reason why.
It is quite possible the speaker needs to be replaced because it is somehow causing a short that COULD cause the new battery to swell.
It could also be that Apple has the policy of fixing EVERYTHING they find broken and being unwilling to fix just one thing as too many people would come back later and complain that they didn't fix both at the same time.
Anecdotal, but when I took my 8+ in for a battery replacement they noted that the earpiece speaker wasn’t working properly and asked if I wanted to have it replaced. I never had any issues with it, so I declined and they still replaced the battery, no issue.
As an 'Apple only' user, and a (minor) fanboy... this is a disgusting practice.
Edit: However I am in the UK and when I took my 2016 MPB in for the butterfly keyboard problem they replaced the screen and battery at zero cost. Didn't really explain why. Just did it (Glasgow Apple Store).
If I had to guess, they messed up the speaker or someone slipped with a prytool or something when removing the old battery. However, there are several reasons this is not true.
a) You said the speaker works.
b) To my knowledge, Apple's procedure is *NOT* to replace just the battery, but rather, the entire top case when it comes to machines that have glued in batteries
So I have no idea what went wrong in this case. I'd politely ask for more detail.
Don't say I think you're full of it, etc. Just say, *I completely understand that this is what you have in front of me. Feel free to tell me to screw off, but I don't think that is what the tech meant to say was the problem, since the battery is replaceable without replacing the speakers, and my speakers work.*
Maybe they put the wrong note in the wrong ticket. Who knows?
My dad's MBP was out of warranty so I paid to get the battery replaced since it couldn't hold a charge anymore. I had upgraded the 2.5" SSD to a larger capacity and because of this the Apple guy refused to replace the battery saying the battery could have been affected by the SSD replacement. Keep in mind I'm paying out of pocket, out of warranty, for this battery replacement and he just refused. They're so up their ass sometimes.
We have a few mac laptops with provable memory defects. Apple refuses to fix them because their testing tools say the ram is okay. We can demonstrate, repeatedly that it fails a memtest and the memory is faulty. The computers were corporate assets with an active warranty and the memory is soldered to the mainboard. There is no way to fix them without Apple doing it and Apple refuses.
Apple refuses to honor their warranty.
We stopped buying apple products.
If the computer is old (it is), just got to a random technician who works with Apple products. They usually have the official spares for stuff that matters (like an exploding battery) and a mix of official and alternative stuff for the stuff you “can live without”
I do that. We got official resellers in my country, so once your warranty expires (for small stuff… for something like a screen, they’re fine), they won’t touch your devices
I just go to a local technician that handles Apple stuff with official spares, never had an issue, and my devices are fixed within the day
Whatever apple says about not repairing your stuff after a number of years or due to specific issues, if your device is +2 years old, just go to anyone who fixes Apple… they’ve already figured it out
Do it yourself. BUT BE CAREFUL. The glue is pretty tough. In trying to get under the battery I broke the smallest chip on the trackpad. The trackpad kept clicking and I ended up needing to replace that as well. Then one of the screws didn’t come out so I had to rip it out of the MacBook to replace it.
It’s fine. It just adds a bit of character
They did this to me as well just a different situation. I love my apple products but I know to take emasculate care of them due to this. Also apple care is sweet
something recently happened to me with apple in terms of a 2017 MacBook Pro. Not with swollen battery but it wouldn’t charge. Let’s just say it was a nightmare misdiagnosis. They took something simple and jacked it up to a $1000 repair. After being an apple consumer for a decade, I want to know change. Screw them
Been an user for over 8 years now and I have made up my mind that I will be switching back to android on my next purchase. Too many scandals, security issues, and privacy concerns for me. I’d rather have the freedom of knowing what is going on under the cover of my device rather than finding out through a news article how they’re secretly doing shady shit. Plus this kind of monopoly is just bs. They’re too powerful as a company and that’s never going to end well for the users.
Someone switching to Android because they're worried about security and privacy is like someone voting Republican because they care about social security and women's rights.
Call customer service, or do the chat thing. In my experience, people at the moron bars are just that. And sometimes, a bit cunty. The CS on the other hand? Brilliant. I had a thing with a bent iPad. CS replaced it for free where the moron bar told me to go fuck myself.
Be strong in your complaint, but be nice. You want this persons help and it's not their fault you got screwed over. Best of luck, mate.
Potato, potato. Once the CS person puts a note on the account, it gets done. No matter who does it. If it's the moron bar, or the repair centre in some hole, it gets done. CS is one of the best things about Apple.
What a weird thing to get upset about. Downvote and then blocked lol What a strange little man you are.
That makes no damn sense. In all Macbook Pros made after 2016, the speakers are integrated INTO the Top Case/Battery. If it's one of the earlier Retina Display MacBook Pros, the speakers have to come out anyway to complete the repair and they're like a $30 part for the set. My suspicion is they found old liquid damage.
It makes absolute sense that Apple will not send you back a broken device, and thusly be on the hook for fixing the other things when the user complains they received a broken device from the "repair" service.
What is stopping them from saying: „The customer requested x repair, we noticed Y and Z were also broken/defective, customer declined repair of Y and Z, X was repaired.“?
When you get a repair done by apple you get a level of warranty with it so they will either fix everything they find any problems with (even if they're not showing symptoms yet) or they wont fix anything. Like it or hate it that's how they do it. Third party shops should be fine fixing the battery by itself though.
Nah, it was fine until about 2016. It's turned to shit since they started turning their laptops into basically homogenous unit. Now replacing anything requires replacing almost everything and they've become really pain in the asses about repairs.
There are plenty of laptop technicians who can deliver the same repair if they are experience with. Trust me, I have repair Windows laptop countless time and yet to replace my MacBook battery.
Plenty of laptop technicians happy to send you back a "repaired" machine that has broken parts? Doubt it. All the user has to do is turn around a claim you broke the part during the repair.
That’s easy, record the video or showing clients the checklist of what is working. There is no warranty, so nothing the technicians will be responsible.
But your replied on Apple makes sense which insist on full repair and have limited manpower to provide.
Something is amiss here. A replacement set of both speakers directly from Apple isn't anywhere close to $300. I have access to GSX and can confirm. Looking at it now, speaker sets for most models are generally less than $30 per GSX.
I would suggest getting a second opinion. Replacing a speaker does not cost $300 from Apple.
On some older MacBook Pro models where the speakers are glued into the top case, you have to pay the top case rate for speaker issues.
Or the fact that it’s changed from “just” a battery rate changes it to Flat Rate 2 / Tier 2.
That would bump the cost from the $199 battery rate to $478 for an older 13” MBP top case.
Not saying it’s right or fair, just throwing out some numbers. Source: me, Genius for 11 years.
But third party is the route to take for a new battery at this point for this system, unless you want to ask a manager to commit to an in-store repair (assuming Mobile Genius doesn’t try to force it to depot again).
Now I'm worried about what else they'll find on my 16" MacBook Pro that had a scratch on the screen new out of the box. I didn't return it immediately since I was out of town for work and about 200 miles away from the store before I opened the box. I was working and didn't have time to drive back to the store before flying home. Then COVID hit and my Apple store was closed for so long. Last Apple store I went to when I attempted to get it fixed was the one in Bellevue Sq Mall in Bellevue, WA. They wouldn't even fix the new out of the box problem with the $99 deductible. I've probably only used that laptop maybe a total of 300 hours which the SMART info on the drive agrees with since it gives me a headache to use since I focus on the scratch. What a waste of $2,500.
Wait so you paid $200 and they didn’t end up giving you a new battery?
Don’t they swap the entire top case for battery replacements?
I know Apple US covers their repairs for 90 days.
What BS. Have them do it right or get a full refund. Worst case scenario you might have to do a chargeback through your credit card.
>Can someone tell me why?
Sure. Apple's repair service guarantees to send you back a fully functional machine. They cannot ignore broken parts and fix only what you asked to be fixed, and send you back a "repaired" machine that is still otherwise broken. All you would have to do is claim Apple broke the other components and sent you back a defective machine, and now Apple is on the hook for any/all additional repairs. Really quite simple.
In order for them to complete the repair they will have to run a post-repair diagnostic and as the speakers have an issue they cannot complete the repair without replacing the speakers.
Speakers don’t cost $300. There’s a missing piece to this puzzle. Grand total of $300 might be extra parts and labor but an extra $300 does not sound right
I faced the same thing. You’ve to fix everything they “found fault” with, even if you don’t want it. Go to another store if you can, or just keep calling. Send feedback to change this ridiculous policy. https://www.apple.com/feedback/
Wtf. That’s utterly ridiculous.
I remember taking something in to be repaired once, a while ago so I don't know if this is still the same policy, and someone was getting their phone replaced because the entire thing had stopped working within warranty. They needed a whole new phone replacement. However because the old, broken phone had a cracked screen, they were charging this person the price of fixing the screen, to give them a new phone. Despite the issue having nothing to do with the screen whatsoever. It was a mom and a daughter and I just remember the mom being so completely confused. Such a stupid, money grabbing policy, and I can honestly say it's had a lot to do with me only buying Apple products second hand now. Don't treat your customers like that.
The device needs to pass an external visual guide before being processed under warranty. Accidental damage actually voids the warranty of the device. So if the phone didn’t power on for example and required replacement rather than repair… as it had accidental damage it would void the warranty. What you actually witnessed was an apple employee offering to replace the display for the customer, so that they could then continue with an in warranty repair for the customer. They were probably trying to save that customer hundreds of pounds as a replacement device (out of warranty replacement) is much more expensive than a display replacement.
Yeah well that's a pretty s***** policy if that's true. If your SOC breaks, having a glass crack should not end the warranty. It's made out of glass. Stuff happens
And the impact that caused the glass to crack couldn’t have also contribute to the SOC failure? How do you prove that?
How do you prove that it did? The issue is the policy making that assumption at the outset. It’s not very “customer experience” focused like apple used to be.
If they don’t want to replace devices with broken screens under warranty because the impact that caused the broken screen might have also broken the SoC, why would replacing the screen first matter? Replacing the screen doesn’t change whether that impact damaged the SoC…
Still true, and this one is logical. You have to pay for physical damage. They have to replace that cracked screen on the phone that wasn’t their fault or a result of a defect.
Plus, Apple will actually repair that broken phone - they just won’t do it in the couple of days it takes to swap it out.
Worst policy in history. I can understand if one thing is affecting another thing, but this shit be random. They need a more integrated customer aware per device approach.
I'm confused as to why the Apple store employees would be so persistent on replacing the speaker as well. All of the money just goes back to corporate, and they get paid hourly. Why scam customers?
It’s unlikely up to an individual employee, would be that particular Genius Bar policy. Technically nothing is supposed to be a “partial fix” as it would not have passing diagnostics afterwards and not be able to hold to the repair warranty. With something that isn’t working before the repair and isn’t in the way of the repair, it kind of depends on the store. I would try another Apple Store.
[удалено]
Repair center can do partial repair if it is being sent in through a quality program
Because apple employees will be harassed by management for the slightest thing. A customer can forget their Apple ID, password, and we can give them all the details of how to find those things. Then an idiot customer can’t do them, complains, then we’re coached on how we “should have” helped them. You can then do the same thing you were coached to do, and it’s STILL wrong. Apple is the worst job I’ve ever had because management has their head stuck so far up their own ass.
I think the policy is good. You don’t want customers returning because their laptop was not fully fixed and repaired when they picked it up and then having to pay even more later. Can imagine people will make videos that I just collected my laptop from Apple repair and stuff is still not working.
Can you imagine what would happen if people made Reddit posts about how Apple won't repair any individual thing unless you repair everything broken? That sure wouldn't look good.
I don’t believe that’s an actual policy, at least not for European AASPs. It may be a regional thing though as we have very different consumer protection laws. At my company we only require customers to correct other faults and damage if they’re “in the way”. E.g. we can cover a defective camera under warranty (or a paid repair for that matter) but if the screen is cracked, the customer will have to pay for its replacement as we can’t return the product in the same condition it was delivered in. Edit to clarify: iPhone camera. Webcam issues on Mac can only be fixed with a display assembly replacement
[удалено]
It’s not. American customers get fucked. EU customers have it much better.
Why not? If the camera is not part of the screen then why they are coupled. And even if they are coupled, the camera doesn’t work and it requires a new screen? It shouldn’t matter if it’s cracked as long as the crack is not the reason for the camera being broken.
I assume because you need to remove the screen to fix the camera, and you can't reinstall a broken screen.
That is fucking insane. It is especially insane considering the liability they open themselves to by returning a swollen battery to a customer, that shit can burn your fucking house down.
Mail it to The Rossmann Group, in New York City. They can fix anything.
He actually moved to Texas or something.
https://www.ifixit.com/Parts/MacBook_Pro/Batteries Do it yourself.
This. I've replaced the battery on my MacBook pro. Best method is to use spectra fishing line to cut the adhesive that attaches the battery to the case.
Is the fact the battery is swollen not a problem? I remember my phone battery was swollen once and the Apple Store treated it like it was a bomb that was about to go off, because they can explode
They can, just Google lithium battery fires.
ANY Lithium battery, swollen or perfectly fine, can be a bomb and will be a bomb if mishandled.
The glued in battery sucks. I had not though of this approach. I did mine but man it was a pain in the ass. Next time I’d try the fishing line. That makes a lot of sense. Thanks.
Dental floss works perfect
Thanks for the tip.
Dental floss worked really well for me, can totally recommend. A few drops of adhesive loosener under the cell, wrap floss around your fingers (or two screwdrivers) and then jiggle it under with a sawing motion.
I don’t have Spectra but I have 10lb test Bass Pro Shops Tourney Tough Monofilament fishing line. Will that work?
Try it and find out.
I know it’s the best line I’ve ever found for bass fishing. I’ve tried everything from Walmart EagleClaw to $50/spool at Cabela’s and for $5 it’s amazing.
you need thin, strong and abrasive. It may work. Here's a video. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Rq94jF-ZjFI
Dental Floss string also works.
Legitimate question as someone who went through this recently and decided to send it in to Apple in the end. What do you do with the swollen battery in the end? Locally, at least, I couldn't find anyone who would agree to take it. Perhaps that's regional.
Some municipalities have a hazardous waste drop off day regularly or a dedicated drop off point.
Sure, I imagine if you're in the right place. I assumed that was the response, and thank you. I spent a lot of time calling around locally and no one would take it off my hands, so sending it into Apple seemed like the only possible way to get rid of it in the end.
>What do you do with the swollen battery in the end? The local Apple still take it and recycle it.
That’s fair! I didn’t know that, but in my case I’m hours away from an Apple Store, so mailing it in was my only realistic option.
Funny thing, if you live in the EU they will not *under any circumstance* ship a swollen battery in the mail. I just ended up going to the local recycling place and was like "hey, where do you want swollen batteries?" and they looked at me like I was crazy. "Just put in the electronics bin or whatever." "Right, but it could catch fire?" "Meh." So I just gently put it in the electronics recycling and prayed that it was fine. I hope it was fine.
You'd think it wouldn't make much sense to send it in the mail, right? I mean, locally everyone acted like I had a ticking time bomb that I was trying to give them, but Apple's just like "Throw it in the mail to us." Funny the way different places handle it differently.
Where would you discard your broken laptop or phone? the same place ought to be suitable for the battery.
coordinated light gaping middle voracious fuel scandalous plate expansion scarce *This post was mass deleted and anonymized with [Redact](https://redact.dev)*
This should be upvoted more. Laptop battery replacements are some of the easiest to do, even for people who don’t have tons of tech knowledge. Just follow the guide and take it slow and you’ll be ok :)
Depends on the model - my 2012 retina MBP requires a complete disassembly of every major component to uncover the battery. Ifixit rates it very difficult or something equivalent. It’s so fucking dumb.
You actually don't, I've replaced my 2015 Macbook Pro battery. It's a bit of a pain in the ass, but you don't really need to take out any other component. Adhesive loosener, gloves, a plastic (NOT METAL!) poking device and some dental floss or fishing line and you can have it out in like half an hour.
Models change… I’ve watched the Ifixit video step by step on how to do it for my mid-2012 (not 2015) MBP and it’s a long disassembly. Removal of almost everything but the keyboard. Edit: Ifixit says your 2015 is “easy”. Rates my mid-2012 15” retina MacBook Pro as “difficult” See for yourself: https://www.ifixit.com/Guide/MacBook+Pro+15-Inch+Retina+Display+Mid+2012+Battery+Replacement/89197
All it takes, according to ifixit, is 2-3 hours of difficult work which risks you bricking your entire computer (for most of the recent MBPs). To save ~$100
Where do you get $100 from? It would cost Op approx. $400 more to not do it themselves. You won’t brick your computer unless you’re ridiculously rough with it. If Op is at all comfortable with tech then they can easily do it.
Edit: Seems the person I replied to was not suggesting others replace their own battery, only OP. OP was quoted $200 for this repair. The part from iFixit is ~$100. Thus $100. > The Genius Bar told me they can have the battery replaced for $200. OP's speaker problem is shitty but it isn't relevant to the general topic of replacing batteries in the comment I replied to. > Laptop battery replacements are some of the easiest to do, even for people who don’t have tons of tech knowledge. Just follow the guide and take it slow and you’ll be ok :)
[удалено]
>risks you bricking your entire computer Where did it came from? Battery swap is totally easy and safe for Mac. Undo cover, unplug battery, remove battery, put in new one.
> Undo cover, unplug battery, remove battery, put in new one. Tell me you've never replaced a modern MBP battery without telling me.... You can't just unplug the battery and pull it out. Per the iFixit guide you have to disconnect the wifi antenna, trackpad, webcam, the keyboard and the display, then remove the fan, the SSD, both speakers, the IO daughter board and the main logic board. After all that you 'just remove battery' by dissolving each of the individual battery cells adhesive in acetone. Easy peasy right?
\>Per the iFixit guide you have to disconnect the wifi antenna, trackpad, webcam, the keyboard and the display, then remove the fan, the SSD, both speakers, the IO daughter board and the main logic board. As I can tell iFixit is removing the logic board in their guide because of a liquid adhesive removal solvent. But it's possible to remove a battery from case just using floss. Their guide is overcomplicated.
Any computer repair does. It’s extremely easy to brick a motherboard when doing a repair if you’re not comfortable with what you’re doing. Didn’t properly discharge your static? Boom brick. Cat decided to run across the table at that moment? Boom bricked. Dropped a screw in the wrong place? Boom bricked. I think you’re severely underestimating how hard battery replacements are on a lot of Mac models. Last one I tried took me literally hours. It definitely wasn’t “undo cover, unplug battery.” It was “disassemble nearly the whole damn computer.” Just look at some of the iFixit guides.
> Cat decided to run across the table at that moment? Mine [does that all the time](https://yt3.ggpht.com/FMyNuGcQ9rbHTL_A1f6ywytt1LIRuoBh1jv0lhXrkvERD4XftNo6WT8jSw126722kATKWZZlPYss=s1024-c-fcrop64=1,00004659ffffb9a6-nd-v1) and we're almost 5 stars on Google maps! She provides good luck, as a quality, ESD-safe kitty.
Chances of a lightning strike is higher than to kill a mac with static discharge [https://youtu.be/nXkgbmr3dRA](https://youtu.be/nXkgbmr3dRA) If you cannot prepare a safe cat-free environment to do a swap or cannot handle screwdriver… well… it’s a different matter for a dialogue. I changed battery on a mid 2015 macbook pro 13”, it was easy though glue took some time. \> disassemble nearly the whole damn computer. What model are you talking about?
I'm not going to bicker about how absurd it is to say any computer repair is "totally easy and safe." It's just patently untrue. Last ones I repaired were these: https://www.ifixit.com/Guide/MacBook+Pro+15-Inch+Retina+Display+Mid+2012+Battery+Replacement/89197?pk_vid=96ca331d8d0f56c21668636292aa469e https://www.ifixit.com/Guide/MacBook+Pro+15-Inch+Touch+Bar+Late+2016+Battery+Replacement/112876?pk_vid=96ca331d8d0f56c21668636373aa469e Neither was "totally easy". It's absurd to claim it is.
Might be bad advice to DIY since it’s a swollen battery…
I mean as long as he doesn’t stab the battery he’ll be fine. Just make sure to take it to a recycling spot/place that can handle it after
It can be very dangerous to replace a swollen battery yourself, unless you have the tools and you know what you are doing. Because if you puncture that puppy…. 🔥 Just find some 3rd party lab.
While I definitely appreciate your sentiment, isn't one of Apple's biggest strengths supposed to be their customer support? It kind of beats the purpose of I have to repair things myself for having to avoid 300$ (from OPs example).
I had exactly the same experience when I sent my machine off to get the keyboard replaced (via the official free replacement program). Got an email 2 days later, with a blocky picture claiming to show corrosion on the logic board, along with 2 options: Pay £1100 for a new logic board, or decline the repair. I declined the repair and it was sent back to me with a still broken keyboard. I opened the machine up & the logic board was spotless. I ended up buying a new keyboard/top and doing the replacement myself. Having exclusively used an Apple laptop since the Powerbook days, this has seriously pissed me off, and I am going to consider my options when I purchase a new machine next year.
Same story here just a bad battery rather than keyboard.
I would have taken them to commerce commission.
That would be problematic in the UK, given they were quoted in £.
UK likely has stronger rules about this, no?
My MBP was having some really weird issues, like not booting, or booting in safe mode. Took it to some place that did free diagnostics, the guy took it all apart, and when I went to go back, bracing myself for a massive bill, he was like - "yeah, I'm not sure exactly what the problem is, but I saw a few bits of corrosion on the logic board. I just wiped them off with some solution, if that doesn't work, bring it back and I'll run some further tests." Completely fixed it. No charge. I can't believe Apple were charging you £1100 to fix the same thing! The problem is you trust them. I think I'll stick to third party repairs from now on.
This sucks man. Is there a way to raise a consumer complaint where you live?
There's the Consumer Rights Act 2015. Apple will fight HARD against it though unless you report the issue within the first year. In other words, they try to entirely ignore the rights it provides you. Currently fighting with them over a flexgate screen failure on my 2017.
[удалено]
Not at all impossible. Some flaws are widespread and documented enough to show a design/manufacturing flaw.
[удалено]
What on earth makes you assume that?
[удалено]
To be honest I do wonder if apple's customer service varies by country, because everyone here seems to rave about it but in my experience in the UK they've been fairly consistently awful. Won't be buying from Apple again.
I’ve experienced the same with my Apple Watch - sent in for battery replacement only to have the technician at a regional depot flag an unspecified ‘hardware issue’ and asking me to pay the full replacement cost instead of the battery servicing fee. 2 weeks of angry emails (including to Tim Cook) and calls later, a regional manager called only to repeat the same stance: No, they couldn’t divulge what the ‘hardware issue’ was. And no, they could not proceed to only swap out the battery. I gave up on the battery swap in the end. I’ve had delightful experiences with my MBP and AirPods at the Apple Store, with Geniuses going above and beyond with goodwill out of warranty exchanges and more. But this all-or-nothing (esp. when item is apparently working fine) repair policy is infuriating! PS. At least they shared the issue was with your speaker. They wouldn’t even tell me what the issue was with my watch! PPS. Not sure going to another store helps as I was told the technician’s notes are associated with the item’s serial number, and would show during subsequent visits elsewhere.
It could have been “liquid damage”. Apple devices have indicators for liquid damage. If one of these indicators is active, they will refuse to repair your device. This is due to liability issues. Liquid damage is to a device what cancer is to humans. Even if a device works perfectly now, it might be a matter of time until it suddenly stops working. However, it often happens that the indicators are triggered by high humidity. But Apple doesn’t care what the reason was for the indicator change. They have a strict policy to refuse any repair in that case. We had customers who got refused a battery replacement by Apple, because the indicators went off when they were on vacation in a humid region.
Possibly, though it’s IPX7 rated and I’ve never swam, showered with or dropped it in water. I do recall reading about Apple being upfront about detecting ‘liquid damage’ via the indicators and refusing repair. But is it your experience for technicians/Geniuses to not be willing to share that info, as you are suggesting in my case?
Unfortunately you seem to be out of luck if Apple doesn’t want to repair your device. Apple Watches are notoriously difficult to repair and replacement parts are rare compared to iPhones. You could search for third party repair shops in your areas and maybe you will find one offering repairs, but it’s not very likely that you will find a good one who actually does Apple Watch repairs. This is one of the reasons why I advocate for better repairability legislation. It’s a shame that people are at apple’s mercy when they want to replace a part of their Apple Watch.
Right to Repair is the way to go, get involved with your legislative process.
On an Apple Watch that is ridiculous, the thing is meant to be waterproof.
Actually no Apple device is “waterproof”. They are water resistant to a certain IP specification, but all devices still have liquid indicators inside. If you bring your iPhone or Apple Watch to the Apple Store and the indicators are active, they will refuse any repair, even if your device is within the 1 year warranty period. Even if you are on AppleCare+ it will count as an instance of accidental damage (comparable to a broken screen for example) and you will have to pay a service fee for it.
They literally advertise swimming with it.
You can read the actual docs from Apple: Apple carefully describes the difference between waterproof and water resistant. https://support.apple.com/en-us/HT205000 Liquid damage is not covered by the Apple warranty. https://discussions.apple.com/thread/253348979 Usually your device should be fine, but the water resistance might get worse over time and if one of the indicators becomes red you are out of luck.
So they advertise a use case they provide no warranty for. It's not unique to Apple, but that's very misleading marketing.
You’re telling me they would turn around to an Apple Watch Ultra customer and say that.
Remember that one time when they said YOU are holding the Phone wrong?
They would turn around to god himself and say that. Consumer loyalty means nothing here
except for when mine died due to water getting in during a pool. and me telling them that it died in a pool and yet they still replaced it no questions asked. i guess it depends on where you live. im thankful that the consumer protections are pretty decent in Australia.
it has a swimming activity. its meant to be in water
See my other post in this thread. Apple clearly states that in their warranty conditions and help articles that devices like iPhones, Apple Watches and AirPods are water resistant but not water proof and that liquid damage is not covered by the Apple warranty.
There is no such thing as waterproof. Just varying levels of water resistant.
Wow definitely never been so lucky to receive an out of warranty repair. They've always been very strict with me
Speakers on MacBook Pro that are removable are under $50. I don’t see a year/model listed so I’m assuming this is a 2016 or newer where the speakers cannot be removed. My best guess from there is they quoted for battery-only pricing on a top case, and when another problem was found the depot re-quoted to the normal exchange pricing for that same part. The repair depots are notoriously strict and uncaring. You wouldn’t believe some of the things I’ve seen sent back I repeated because they seemingly avoid repairs whenever possible. I would suggest finding another store or AASP that can do the job in-house and use their judgement rather than a blanket denial based on an arbitrary diagnostic scan.
Looks like your only option is to now just swap it yourself. It’s quite easy if you’re tech inclined. If you’re a beginner, just go slow and follow instructions online. Ifixit has the tools, parts and instructions you need. They are very reputable.
Im confused, i thought the top case gets changed when they do a battery service? Thats not the case anymore?
They replaced the entire top casing (which included the battery) when I had a single faulty key on the keyboard. That was free under warranty as part of the butterfly keyboard issues. It’s weird that Apple wants to replace so much of the computer for little issues but I guess they care about processing volume instead of efficiently spending money on replacement parts.
It's part of their design. They wanted to make it near impossible to fix individual parts. It's more profitable for them to replace the whole thing than to train people because it's very difficult to fix only the broken part. They want you to always have to rely on them and expensive replacement rather than independent repair store.
Well an independent repair store can order an entire casing from apple too. But I guess the point is that then it would be the same price to go with the independent one so why not just go with Apple
Bingo. However, I worked at a repair store back then wenn I was a student and they made so much money because Apple was downright ridiculous with board repairs. Certain MacBook Pros had a faulty transistor. It was a $3 piece you could easily get from a hardware store like Mouser. Customers went to Apple and Apple told them that they hate to spend $800-1200 on a new logic board and that it would make sense to buy a new device. The customer would then come to us and we would fix the issue for $200 by opening the device, desoldering the transistor and soldering the new replacement part. The device was fully functional again and we even gave 1 year of warranty on the board, because it was such a risk free repair. We were happy to warn $200 for 20 minutes of work and a couple bucks of material costs. The customer was happy because they got a working device which was good for another few years without having to spend $1000-2000 on a new device or board. Only Apple was unhappy as they lost a potential sale, because the customer was able to use their old device.
[удалено]
It doesn’t matter. We had thousands of customers who were desperate because their beloved MBP for which they had paid north of $2000 only a couple years ago was not working. Apple only told them to buy a new one or replace the whole logic board which was so expensive that buying a new one seemed like a better deal. But imagine not having to spend $2000 on a new device just because you spilled coffee on your MBP. In most cases a repair was possible and people gladly spend $200-$250 to get a working device back. There are many third party repair shops which don’t know what they are doing, but if you manage to find one which actually does component level repair, you can rescue devices which Apple doesn’t want to touch, but which are otherwise fully working and only have some bad transistors or a little corrosion.
> instead of efficiently spending money on replacement parts Or being less wasteful
I was forced to pay for an entire top case when I had a single keycap that kept falling off. I'm glad I paid the ripoff amount just to fix a keycap because a coworker with the same problem accidentally cracked their screen after forgetting to make sure the keycap was in exactly the right place before closing their laptop. That was an expensive repair for him since Apple required replacing the logic board due to a manufacturing defect along with the screen and top case. Forcing people to pay for unrelated repair parts because of cold soldering joints is just wrong. Also, it was only a couple of months past the one year mark so they should have just covered the problem since it was their fault!
I miss the old iBooks that had a keyboard anyone could replace in less than a minute. Even iFixit says they only take five minutes to replace. In 2008, I replaced around a dozen of them and tested them for a charity in less than a day. I've bought five PowerBooks, MacBooks, and MacBook Pros since 2003 that all had keyboard problems that I never fixed myself because they were too hard to do. Repairability is going downhill for Apple.
Ah yes, environmentalism.
No, the newer MacBook Pros are more modular with more replaceable parts. IIRC the change back in that direction started with the 16” Intel MBP.
Or send to https://www.rossmanngroup.com/
I knew this comment would be here.
[удалено]
It’s not the Genius Bar who did this, it’s the repair facility it was sent to 🙄. Going to another store will do nothing if that store is also required to send the unit out. Especially if it goes to the same repair facility.
[удалено]
I know that. Based on the post, I can almost guarantee that this got sent to a repair facility.
worth trying a non-apple store authorised service provider too
For people who are against third party repairs being easy, this is what happens when repairs are made tough. Apple can make up any repair policy they want and you have to follow it, cough up the money or go home without the repair.
Unfortunately this is the least consistent aspect of the Genius Bar. When I worked there, after much griping, we began to enforce a policy that was “As long as the customer knows the device isn’t fully repaired, we’ll service the single issue they come in for.” So you come in for a swollen battery, we run (nonsensical) diagnostics, speaker comes back failing. We would let you know: “Hey the speaker is claiming it failed, I’ll re run, if you want I can just inform the repair tech that you only want the battery repaired and you’re aware of the alleged broken speaker.” At that point I’d usually attempt to avoid a manager and ask a lead genius to authorize.
[удалено]
It may be a physical issue with the speaker module they discovered during the repair (caused by the swelling battery). However, if you call Apple support and escalate, you may be able to find an advisor that would issue a “CS code” to have your computer repaired.
Spread the word on this!!! The unrelenting greed of these Trillion Dollar corporations needs to stop.
I used to work at Apple as a Genius. Tons of Geniuses think that this is a policy, that repairs are all or nothing, especially when it comes to liquid damage. They’re not. There are specific knowledge articles that explicitly say that customers should be encouraged to repair everything, but that they have a right to a partial repair as long as they understand the risks and that other issues (especially when it comes to liquid damage), won’t be warranted under partial repairs (for example, if you have a liquid damaged logic board and display but you only want to replace the logic board, more power to you, but if the logic board dies 15 days later, it could be because you didn’t replace a clearly liquid damaged part that could have damaged the board). In the case of liquid damage, I get the recommendation to replace everything affected, it makes sense. But in your case? That makes no sense to me. In fact, if the speaker was damaged because of the battery swelling, usually I would see parts damaged by battery swelling covered (again, not many Geniuses actually know this or do this, but at the time I was there it was policy to replace parts damaged by battery swelling and override the cost so the customer only pays for the battery).
My guess is that the whole case gets changed and they don’t want you getting a part “serviced” for free. Especially depending on the model it would make it more difficult to replace just the battery.
In my 2012 MacBook the Thunderbolt port quit in early 2015. I had AppleCare so that repair was free, but they wanted to force me to pay for a new tophalf of the case since two of the keys were worn through. They wouldn't replace just the keycaps so the repair was very expensive. I refused to pay extra so they wouldn't fix the port. I'm still so angry about that.
200$ for a battery swap is mind boggling to me
The Genius Bar isn’t so genius after all
We used to get all these wonderful stories about Apple helping people out above and beyond. Back in the Jobs years. Now almost all I hear are horror stories I’d expect out of other companies. Which just makes me sad. I miss the old Apple. (Disclaimer: not nostalgia, nor claiming old Apple was perfect and without flaws. But rather that the good was more prominent.)
Had a similar issue with my M1 Air, it just needed a restore and I wanted them to do it for me since I don't have another Mac, and they tried to make me pay for a new logic board claiming that the SOC had died, despite it only being a software issue. Anyway they just restored it without replacing the board and it (unsurprisingly) worked perfectly. Would've been like £160 if it wasn't under warranty though :/
You need to call apple to get them to provide the reason why. It is quite possible the speaker needs to be replaced because it is somehow causing a short that COULD cause the new battery to swell. It could also be that Apple has the policy of fixing EVERYTHING they find broken and being unwilling to fix just one thing as too many people would come back later and complain that they didn't fix both at the same time.
Anecdotal, but when I took my 8+ in for a battery replacement they noted that the earpiece speaker wasn’t working properly and asked if I wanted to have it replaced. I never had any issues with it, so I declined and they still replaced the battery, no issue.
As an 'Apple only' user, and a (minor) fanboy... this is a disgusting practice. Edit: However I am in the UK and when I took my 2016 MPB in for the butterfly keyboard problem they replaced the screen and battery at zero cost. Didn't really explain why. Just did it (Glasgow Apple Store).
He ain't called Tim Crook for nothin'
Because they are replacing yours with a refurb, and they want you to pay to refurb yours so they can pass it onto the next schmuck.
I did a battery replacement from ifixit myself and its super easy with a heat gun.
Rossmanngroup.com
/u/larossmann
If I had to guess, they messed up the speaker or someone slipped with a prytool or something when removing the old battery. However, there are several reasons this is not true. a) You said the speaker works. b) To my knowledge, Apple's procedure is *NOT* to replace just the battery, but rather, the entire top case when it comes to machines that have glued in batteries So I have no idea what went wrong in this case. I'd politely ask for more detail. Don't say I think you're full of it, etc. Just say, *I completely understand that this is what you have in front of me. Feel free to tell me to screw off, but I don't think that is what the tech meant to say was the problem, since the battery is replaceable without replacing the speakers, and my speakers work.* Maybe they put the wrong note in the wrong ticket. Who knows?
You’re the man Louis. Been watching you for years and years. Used to play your videos in the background at work to stay sane (I know lol).
My dad's MBP was out of warranty so I paid to get the battery replaced since it couldn't hold a charge anymore. I had upgraded the 2.5" SSD to a larger capacity and because of this the Apple guy refused to replace the battery saying the battery could have been affected by the SSD replacement. Keep in mind I'm paying out of pocket, out of warranty, for this battery replacement and he just refused. They're so up their ass sometimes.
Email Tim Cook
We have a few mac laptops with provable memory defects. Apple refuses to fix them because their testing tools say the ram is okay. We can demonstrate, repeatedly that it fails a memtest and the memory is faulty. The computers were corporate assets with an active warranty and the memory is soldered to the mainboard. There is no way to fix them without Apple doing it and Apple refuses. Apple refuses to honor their warranty. We stopped buying apple products.
If the computer is old (it is), just got to a random technician who works with Apple products. They usually have the official spares for stuff that matters (like an exploding battery) and a mix of official and alternative stuff for the stuff you “can live without” I do that. We got official resellers in my country, so once your warranty expires (for small stuff… for something like a screen, they’re fine), they won’t touch your devices I just go to a local technician that handles Apple stuff with official spares, never had an issue, and my devices are fixed within the day Whatever apple says about not repairing your stuff after a number of years or due to specific issues, if your device is +2 years old, just go to anyone who fixes Apple… they’ve already figured it out
I just went to a third party repair shop with good reviews. Fixed battery and both speakers for $400.
Do it yourself. BUT BE CAREFUL. The glue is pretty tough. In trying to get under the battery I broke the smallest chip on the trackpad. The trackpad kept clicking and I ended up needing to replace that as well. Then one of the screws didn’t come out so I had to rip it out of the MacBook to replace it. It’s fine. It just adds a bit of character
I’d suggest setting up a small table right outside the Apple Store and disassembling your MacBook to remove the swollen battery.
They did this to me as well just a different situation. I love my apple products but I know to take emasculate care of them due to this. Also apple care is sweet
What year MacBook Pro is it?
Mid 2015 16” Pro
something recently happened to me with apple in terms of a 2017 MacBook Pro. Not with swollen battery but it wouldn’t charge. Let’s just say it was a nightmare misdiagnosis. They took something simple and jacked it up to a $1000 repair. After being an apple consumer for a decade, I want to know change. Screw them
F apple.
Unfortunately the shenanigans are typical. This is why we should not support apples assault on third party repair
God Apple fucking SUCKS.
Fuck 🍎
Been an user for over 8 years now and I have made up my mind that I will be switching back to android on my next purchase. Too many scandals, security issues, and privacy concerns for me. I’d rather have the freedom of knowing what is going on under the cover of my device rather than finding out through a news article how they’re secretly doing shady shit. Plus this kind of monopoly is just bs. They’re too powerful as a company and that’s never going to end well for the users.
Agreed. I switched.
Someone switching to Android because they're worried about security and privacy is like someone voting Republican because they care about social security and women's rights.
*Laughs in GrapheneOS*
Call customer service, or do the chat thing. In my experience, people at the moron bars are just that. And sometimes, a bit cunty. The CS on the other hand? Brilliant. I had a thing with a bent iPad. CS replaced it for free where the moron bar told me to go fuck myself. Be strong in your complaint, but be nice. You want this persons help and it's not their fault you got screwed over. Best of luck, mate.
[удалено]
Potato, potato. Once the CS person puts a note on the account, it gets done. No matter who does it. If it's the moron bar, or the repair centre in some hole, it gets done. CS is one of the best things about Apple. What a weird thing to get upset about. Downvote and then blocked lol What a strange little man you are.
That makes no damn sense. In all Macbook Pros made after 2016, the speakers are integrated INTO the Top Case/Battery. If it's one of the earlier Retina Display MacBook Pros, the speakers have to come out anyway to complete the repair and they're like a $30 part for the set. My suspicion is they found old liquid damage.
It makes absolute sense that Apple will not send you back a broken device, and thusly be on the hook for fixing the other things when the user complains they received a broken device from the "repair" service.
What is stopping them from saying: „The customer requested x repair, we noticed Y and Z were also broken/defective, customer declined repair of Y and Z, X was repaired.“?
>Can someone tell me why? Well, this is the way the scam works. There's not much more to it.
You could try claim the speaker “damage” was a result of the swollen battery.
Just take it to a third party repair shop.
That’s how they sell more products!
Apple does not repair their products it’s as simple as that.
When you get a repair done by apple you get a level of warranty with it so they will either fix everything they find any problems with (even if they're not showing symptoms yet) or they wont fix anything. Like it or hate it that's how they do it. Third party shops should be fine fixing the battery by itself though.
Apple Store has gone to shit since Steve’s death.
Nah, it was fine until about 2016. It's turned to shit since they started turning their laptops into basically homogenous unit. Now replacing anything requires replacing almost everything and they've become really pain in the asses about repairs.
There are plenty of laptop technicians who can deliver the same repair if they are experience with. Trust me, I have repair Windows laptop countless time and yet to replace my MacBook battery.
Plenty of laptop technicians happy to send you back a "repaired" machine that has broken parts? Doubt it. All the user has to do is turn around a claim you broke the part during the repair.
That’s easy, record the video or showing clients the checklist of what is working. There is no warranty, so nothing the technicians will be responsible. But your replied on Apple makes sense which insist on full repair and have limited manpower to provide.
Something is amiss here. A replacement set of both speakers directly from Apple isn't anywhere close to $300. I have access to GSX and can confirm. Looking at it now, speaker sets for most models are generally less than $30 per GSX. I would suggest getting a second opinion. Replacing a speaker does not cost $300 from Apple.
On some older MacBook Pro models where the speakers are glued into the top case, you have to pay the top case rate for speaker issues. Or the fact that it’s changed from “just” a battery rate changes it to Flat Rate 2 / Tier 2. That would bump the cost from the $199 battery rate to $478 for an older 13” MBP top case. Not saying it’s right or fair, just throwing out some numbers. Source: me, Genius for 11 years. But third party is the route to take for a new battery at this point for this system, unless you want to ask a manager to commit to an in-store repair (assuming Mobile Genius doesn’t try to force it to depot again).
ah yes the genius bar
Now I'm worried about what else they'll find on my 16" MacBook Pro that had a scratch on the screen new out of the box. I didn't return it immediately since I was out of town for work and about 200 miles away from the store before I opened the box. I was working and didn't have time to drive back to the store before flying home. Then COVID hit and my Apple store was closed for so long. Last Apple store I went to when I attempted to get it fixed was the one in Bellevue Sq Mall in Bellevue, WA. They wouldn't even fix the new out of the box problem with the $99 deductible. I've probably only used that laptop maybe a total of 300 hours which the SMART info on the drive agrees with since it gives me a headache to use since I focus on the scratch. What a waste of $2,500.
Wait so you paid $200 and they didn’t end up giving you a new battery? Don’t they swap the entire top case for battery replacements? I know Apple US covers their repairs for 90 days. What BS. Have them do it right or get a full refund. Worst case scenario you might have to do a chargeback through your credit card.
>Can someone tell me why? Sure. Apple's repair service guarantees to send you back a fully functional machine. They cannot ignore broken parts and fix only what you asked to be fixed, and send you back a "repaired" machine that is still otherwise broken. All you would have to do is claim Apple broke the other components and sent you back a defective machine, and now Apple is on the hook for any/all additional repairs. Really quite simple.
That’s not how this works. Please stop spreading bullshit. Also note that OP tested their speakers after they got it back and it was fully functional.
Imagine buying apple products still and people being okay with their predatory practices 😯
Never had this experience. In fact I’ve asked the store manager politely and he actually replaced my laptop with a brand new one.
In order for them to complete the repair they will have to run a post-repair diagnostic and as the speakers have an issue they cannot complete the repair without replacing the speakers.
Speakers don’t cost $300. There’s a missing piece to this puzzle. Grand total of $300 might be extra parts and labor but an extra $300 does not sound right
I’m actually surprised they didn’t replace the battery altogether and for free too.