Apple - down in flames

[BlueSkyJaunte]

Originally Posted by speeder

Post a picture of the keyboard and screen of that thing. There is definitely an issue there, but the photo of battery compartment looks like my old Powerbook G4, so not even a Macbook.

It's an Intel-based 17" MacBook Pro. I don't know what revision, though. I'll post a pic when I get home.

The battery definitely wasn't dead the last time I used it.

Originally Posted by stomachmonkey

Apple replaced every one for free without question even after being several years out of warranty.

Yep. My concern (?) is that this has happened twice with our two plastic MacBooks - and Apple just replaces the blown batteries with batteries that blow AGAIN later.

[J1NX3D]

everytime I renew my IATA DG for air travel (every 2 yrs) the restrictions are getting more and more complex and indepth, the instructors have more and more stories of lithium battery fire fires. I don't think apple is alone. It depends on the age, design and batch of the damn things.

for example, the movement by air of lithium batteries for recycling or disposal as freight is forbidden. Even trying to move something that hasd 0.030kg of lithium metal batteries contained within equipment is a no-go with a lot of commerical carriers which has you looking for cargo aircraft only

im by no means an expert but as far as the aviation freight world goes, lithium batteries are a known problem.

[BlueSkyJaunte]

A little serial # decoding reveals the info below. According to my brother-in-law this is battery #2.

Model Family: MacBook Pro
Processor: 2.5GHz Core 2 Duo (T9400)
Model Number: A1261
Sales Number(s): MB766LL/A
Production Year: 2008
Production Week: 48 (November)

[stomachmonkey]

Originally Posted by BlueSkyJaunte

A little serial # decoding reveals the info below. According to my brother-in-law this is battery #2.

Model Family: MacBook Pro
Processor: 2.5GHz Core 2 Duo (T9400)
Model Number: A1261
Sales Number(s): MB766LL/A
Production Year: 2008
Production Week: 48 (November)

Not a bad box.

Have 2 of them. Still use them daily.

Just take the battery to an Apple store and ask them to exchange it.

If you get a newer employee, one that was not there when the initial problem first surfaced few years ago, and he/she tries to sell you a new battery just tell them it's a known recall issue and you just want the exchange.

[BlueSkyJaunte]

Thanks.

Performance-wise the box is great (faster than my iMac) but it's just unwieldy. For being productive I stick with the 20" iMac and for surfing I have been using a Lenovo Yoga 13--which is an awesome piece of hardware that has been saddled with the worst OS since the dawn of time.

[BlueSkyJaunte]

Update: took this thing to TWO Apple stores.

First one insisted my wife pay $99 for the privilege of getting a replacement (I was not along for the visit).

At the second store I talked to one of the Dumbasses -- he insisted it was not under warranty (despite being purchased in 2010, according to their records), not covered under any recall, and that the $99 he was offering me was some sort of favor because the batteries list for $129.

I asked for his manager. I started up sweet & nice but within a few minutes I pretty much opened up on him with both barrels (my wife calls it "going into Jersey mode"). After much pressure from me he admitted that in all his years he had seen a total of TWO batteries behaving like this one. (Yeah, right )

He then started trying to wheel & deal with me on the price. I was dumbfounded--as if I had been magically transported to a Jordanian bazaar. He offered $49 in the end and frankly at that point I would've paid that just to get him away from me. He went to their stockroom to get the battery and in the meantime another Dumbass came over from the back of the store and said, "Oh snap, check out your battery, man. I had a MacBook 15 that went through like 5 batteries the same way. Totally."

I asked him why he didn't point that out when his boss was around.

I paid my $49, took my battery, and left.

F*(kers.

[HardDrive]

We have had at least 5 Mac laptops. Never had that happen. Have you ever checked your line voltage? Are your laptops plugged into a circuit that also has electric motors on it?

[widgeon13]

Maybe this will help your case.

Macbook Pro Battery Recall: Best Buy Recalls 5,100 Batteries That Caused 13 Fires

[legion]

If I'm going to be treated like crap by a retailer, I at least try to make my initial purchase as inexpensive as possible.

Apple is a lot like Ferrari in that they rely on brand mystique and devotion to cover any faults in their products.

[Scott R]

It's a problem on that model with the DC/DC convertor. You need to replace the left side IO board entirely and I also recommend you replace the AC/DC power pack as well.

If you measure the current coming out of the charging circuit it will be over by about 10 amps. We have a pile of these with the same problem but most aren't worth the repair cost in 2013 dollars.

You really need to fix this before you get a fire. At the very least leave the battery out for now when it's unattended.

Installing MacBook Pro 15" Core Duo Model A1150 Left I/O Board - iFixit

[onewhippedpuppy]

I've been blown away by the service provided when sending products to Apple for service. Both an iPhone and iPad were received back (refurbs) within 3 business days of sending them. Of course both were non-warranty damage and $200+ for repair. Maybe they're better if you pay them?

[Shuie]

How can you tell if your battery is part of the recall? I found a webpage about the batteries in the machines that were sold at BestBuy, but what about the Apple batteries?

[BlueSkyJaunte]

The good news is that the new battery hasn't blown up yet.

The bad news is that the wifi adapter in the thing is flaking out, and I'm going to have to buy a USB wifi adapter. Only 10 bucks, but still...I don't need the aggravation this POS is giving me. I'm starting to think my brother-in-law doesn't like us.