Slashdot Mirror
Apple Begins Fixing MacBook Pro Issues
Hack Jandy writes "For those of you who bought one of the first generation Macbook Pros, a new replacement may be in your future. Flickering LCDs, overheating and intermittent WiFi connections are all common place for many of these first generation machines, but apparently Apple is fixing the problem. The article claims 'According to Apple, it has begun replacing the mainboard inside its MacBook Pros with a new revision. It calls the updated product "revision D," which is identifiable by product serial number.' If you have a reservation at an Apple Store, they may even replace your MBP with a new one."
Sweet. Apple's warrenty and repair service has never managed to let me down. Most other companies would state that the problem is in the users head, and save themselves $$$ by ignoring the issue.
This signature was left intentionally blank.
they may even replace your MBP with a new one. ;)
That's nice, what do I have to do to get them to replace my 3 year old iBook with a new Mac Book Pro? That's infinitely more interesting to me
Why do people even buy first generation products anymore? Why not just wait until the 2nd or 3rd generation when these problems are weeded out? This is commonplace among products nowadays (Apple not excluded)...
My global opinion of Apple is that they're extremely innovative, but repeatedly when the rubber hits the road they start to have problems. Same thing happened back in the late 1980s, again in the late 1990s, and I predict it's coming once again. Their products are beautiful and wonderful, but they never can get over that hump that other big companies surmount to being able to mass-produce a product while maintaining its greatness.
Free Conference Call -- No Spam, High Quality
Hopefully this means that we'll get some sweet, sweet refurbished lovin from the Apple Store. I can't imagine that Apple will simply scrap the defective machines - or am I just not imagining hard enough?
How long will the repair take?
/bots are barely willing to part with their precious laptops while they sleep, much less for a week to get the mobo replaced.
I know some of the
[Fuck Beta]
o0t!
Beware first generation hardware, and if you decide to load the chamber and pull the trigger, get Applecare. I went through *three* iBook G3's before Apple replaced it with a shiny new iBook G4. Nice of them, but I would really rather have my 40 hours of lost productivity back.
...the vast majority of MacBook Pro owners don't have any issues at all, and Apple typically addresses issues the inevitable issues that do exist in product revisions.
Flicking LCDs, overheating and intermitting WiFi connections are all common place
If you people would stop flicking your LCD panels around they probably wouldn't break so often. They're quite delicate you know.
The higher the technology, the sharper that two-edged sword.
Not every company will (without hesitation) own up to its mistakes and be generous enough to offer repairs. Even good products can have problems early on. I have owned many laptops over the years and have found IBM Thinkpads and Apple iBooks/Powerbooks to be some of the best. I currently own a G4 iBook as well as an older Wallstreet Powerbook 233 MHz G3 (great for running Darwin). These only problems I have had with either machine have been the CD tray failing to eject once on the iBook (I am running Debian PPC Sarge) and a dead PRAM battery in the old Powerbook (to be expected due to its age). Both of these computers are running 24/7 except when I put the iBook to sleep to keep the disk parked when I transport it each day. Some of my other laptops I own, like my Dell Latitude and Armada have suffered from hinge problems, display problems, etc. I have taken apart the Latitude so many times to repair it that the screws are loose. I plan to buy a Macbook in the near future if I don't see any Intel-based iBooks soon. Even though iBooks require significant disassembly to replace things such as the HDD or logic board, I haven't had to do this. And if I ever do, it will be fun. I think we can expect the next generation of Macbooks to be very reliable. Even this generation should be suitable with the logic board revision applied.
Powered by caffeine and sugar; BSD
It's the PowerBook 5300, not 5200.
There was no PowerBook 5200.
A stock copy of Windows XP won't install on my MacBook.
I have contacted Apple numerous times without any response.. what the hell kind of support is that?
I really hope they fix my issue or I am going to be a pissed off Apple customer.
..I was in the libraries basement working on a project, and the macbook pro kept making the intermittent "moo" sound. It was about 11 at night, and no one else was around, so it scared the crap out of me, it sounded like a distant ghost. I felt like an idiot after searching the whole library trying to find out what the noise was when it was right in front of me! I guess I need to make an appointment with the closest apple store to get a replacement.
Sig: I stole this sig.
I'm glad I didn't have the urge to get one of these. They replaced the innards of my iBook last year, something like 2 years after it started acting up. I think it took a lawsuit to get them to do the right thing. Does that mean the Macbook problems are even worse? The whole time I was having trouble with the iBook their support system was telling people to replace memory, re-install the OS and a dozen other time-wasting exercises hoping that you would just give up and go away, which is in fact what I finally did.
I'll say this though, the surprise announcement that they were replacing iBooks and finally having one that worked reliably DID convince me to spring for a Powerbook G4. I think I'll just stick with it until there is independent verification (not from Apple) that these new systems are stable. Much more likely that by then I'll be tempted by a dual-core AMD from Acer etc that are already hitting the shelves.
I'm buying a new laptop and I'm waiting to see what the new MacBook (was iBook) is going to be like.
What I really want is an
If Apple can't deliver in the next few weeks I'm going to have to get a Dell and (once again) Apple misses me on my "every-two-years" buying cycle.
boxlight
Wouldn't it have been cheaper to just, say, test it a bit more extensively before releasing it to the public? Granted, 1st gen products usually have their quirks, but I would have thought Apple would make the extra effort to test their machines harder, seeing as this is the 'pro' product line. It's a lot cheaper to find out you messed up in a closed test group, rather than having to recall things.
Is it just me, or are a lot more companies having recalls recently?
Mine came on friday (UK) and luckily I checked the serial just now and it is REV D main board....
I've been using it on my lap already and didn't notice any issues, it doesn't get that hot.
This is by far the nicest laptop I've ever had, it's got teh snappy something bad and just feels fast.
And no mystery announcement April 1st... I'm very happy I decided to get one now.
"Most other companies would state that the problem is in the users head"
Uh. Sure. And now that we've painted this portrait of a miserable, grinchy, hypotetical company, we can then turn around and say "Well, apple is better than *that* hypothetical company".
And then you wonder why people make fun of kooks^H^H^H^H^H Apple fanatics.
1: More Flaming Laptops? (And This Time They're Not PowerBooks!)
The PowerBook 5300 has been unfairly saddled with a reputation as "the incendiary PowerBook" since one test unit caught fire in an Apple lab back in 1995. Actually, it was the Sony-supplied lithium ion battery and not the 5300 itself that started the conflagration, but that hasn't stopped even some Mac advocates who ought to know better from propagating the "flaming 5300s" myth.
So wearily, once again, are the facts:
- Only one 5300 caught fire
- Apple quickly recalled the few machines in distribution channels at the time and replaced the suspect li-Ion batteries with NiMH units.
- No consumer machines caught fire
- The 5300 has proved to be no more fire-prone than any other laptop -- less so in fact than the G3 Series 'Books, a handful of which actually have caught fire in consumer use.
2: a few units used at Apple actually burst into flames [2] due to problems with then-novel Lithium Ion batteries made by Sony (earning the 5300 the nicknames "FireBook", and "HindenBook", after the Hindenburg disaster). While no consumer models suffered this fate, Apple was forced to recall the entire product line and delay its availability while they downgraded to proven nickel metal hydride batteries
3: Before the system was released in a few rare instances the battery caught fire. This was fixed before the computer was released, but this problem helped create a lot of bad press for Apple.
4: Given the hysterical and mythologically persistent exaggeration of the problem with the PowerBook 5300 back in '95, it's understandable that Apple would be hypersensitive about this matter. The reality check is that, as far as I've been able to determine over the past 11 years of following this story, there was one Sony Lithium Ion PowerBook 5300 battery that spontaneously caught fire in an Apple test lab. The 1000 or so 5300s that were in distribution pipelines at the time were immediately recalled and refitted with Nickel Metal Hydride batteries (which were already in production for the lower-priced but identical form factor 68k-based PowerBook 190), which proved completely reliable. The PowerBook 5300 had other issues, but catching fire in consumer hands was not one of them, despite it's mythological "blazing PowerBook" reputation.
5: Apple announced it has stopped shipments of the new PowerBook 5300 product line due to potentially dangerous problems with the product's lithium-ion battery packs. The problems do not impact any other PowerBooks, including Apple's new PowerBook 190 and Duo 2300 models (see TidBITS-292). Apple has recalled the roughly 1,000 units shipped to dealers and resellers, and reports indicate only about 100 units actually reached customers.
It calls the updated product "revision D," which is indentifiable by product serial number.'
I think they mean "unidentifiable."
I'm just nitpicking I guess.
I'm not sure what indentifiable is.
Care to explain?
I'm a longtime PC user who has been lured to the darkside. Can anyone recommend a reputable used Mac retailer online? Preferably in North America? I think I'm ready to make the used plunge :)
The fact you don't remember the model number somewhat undercuts the authenticity of your story. I think I'd remember the model number of a computer that caught fire in class...
AFAIK there were only two incidents nationwide of the problem with the PB5300, and the same problem occurred with other makes of bleeding edge laptop at the time.
I guess you prefer a company that produces consistently sucky, unoriginal machines consistently over one that produces awesome machines with occasional exceptions. Heck a few bad products in twenty years is actually very good going. Indeed, it's a rare product that Apple produces that is critically acclaimed OR commercially successful (the new $99 leather iPod case being such a product).
I had a Powerbook 5300 and it sucked in many ways (mainly the hinge that held the screen up was wonky, as was the case with numerous other laptops I've owned or used), but it never caught fire.
Yeah, I always thought this machine got a little hotter than it should. My serial# starts W8607...so that's well before the ones the article talks about. So, time to call apple I guess...
This sig intentionally left blank.
Still going strong since 1999! Gotta love it. Blue Clamshell. Takes a knockin' and keeps on rockin'. That's what Apple engineering is at its best.
Knowledge is power. Knowledge shared is power multiplied.
welcome.x86 ;)
This story is bullshit. Most week 12 machines still have the problem. It is NOT fixed yet.
"For those of you who bought one of the first generation Macbook Pros..."
I ask, what the hell's the matter with you? Don't buy first generation apple stuff, that's just insane.
If anyone's interested, I just picked up a new 2GHz Macbook Pro yesterday, serial number starting with W8612.
I have the CPU whine, which is fixed by running MagicNoiseKiller. Not a problem at all, since I just set it as a startup item.
My screen is perfect, no flickering or dead pixels, really bright and vivid. Once MagicNoiseKiller has done its thing, this laptop is really pretty incredibly quiet - a lot better than the Toshiba P4 mode it's replacing.
I think the recent cries to the effect that Apple's build quality is slipping are pretty overrated - this laptop feels incredibly solid and well built. I'm a very happy Apple customer - to the point of chuckling madly.
>>There was no PowerBook 5200.
There was no PowerBook 5200 left, after the fire.
Fixed.
I warned about getting 0 Revs but this is what I got...
This isn't just a "first rev" like so many Mac users seem to think. Honestly, Apple did a really smart thing by keeping the previous form factor: it effectively means that the new-architecture notebooks inherit a huge amount of engineering from their predecessors.
Actually, if you knew the majority of hardware problems with the initial G4 PowerBook were all related to the case (which had problems with it's hinges - which got stiff and cracked, the plastic border round the side which split apart due to stress from the hindges and weak points such as the audio port, the cable for the LCD panel which got streched leading to the displays breaking down, the rubber feet were always coming off and this lead to overheating and stability problems - and this is just a partial list), you'd understand why it's significant, and why the OP has an valid point.
Intel has been shipping fundementally the same motherboard for a few years, so this isn't exactly a brandnew system under the hood.
If it was a PowerPC-based Mac with internals done by PowerPC-partner then I'd wait. Seeming this is designed by Intel with way way more in debt experience making personal computers I wouldnt worry as much. The external casing is still basically a tried & tested Apple Albook so I wouldnt worry too much.
If you're a pro user with a need for native Adobe & Macromedia apps then I'd wait for the universal binaries that are expected late this year or 2008. By that time OS X 10.5 Leopard is expected to be out.
No everyone say to yourself Apple is just a companies not a God.
If something is so important that you feel the need to post it on the internet... It probably isn't that important.
What does this have to do with x86 or PPC? There is quite an extensive list of problems that have occured with Apple's PPC machines over the years.
To be fair, the laptops only caught fire because they got too close to the light that shines out of Steve Jobs' asshole.
well microsoft managed to fuck it up with the 360 and the overheating power supply. sony managed to screw up first gen ps1's - how many ps1's did you use to see back in the day upside down because the cd drive was screwed.
that said, the point i'm trying to make is i guess anyone can mess up, even a company we actually like such as apple
They have the marker for it, but nothing is up for purchase yet. Hmmmm. I guess they are sold out or they are about to post them.
-----BEGIN PGP SIGNATURE-----
12345
-----END PGP SIGNATURE-----
To beat people like you over the head. Nice metal casing...
You mean you take the word of zealots of any faith seriously?
"Call us when the New age is old enough to drink" Beck
I am still waiting for a lower priced machine so I can have an excuse to run OS/X. Yeah I need an excuse and the current one is price. I just don't see the value in buying the Mac Book Pro's when similar machines running XP can be had for half the price. Yes I know that the OS is very good and could be better than XP for many things but the issue remains, the "Mac Tax" is just too stiff in this incarnation.
As such I am waiting for an iBook or equivalent. I would still like to be able to upgrade the the graphics through options as I don't want to deal with integrated graphics. I need something I feel is a good deal versus the price points show in the Intel/XP world. I am willing to pay a small premium but not an exhorbinant one. I am sure others are in the same camp as I am. Wanting to have an OS/X portable but not willing to fork out the dough at the current price point. A Mini is out of the question and an iMac isn't portable. While both are good solutions for the areas they address Apple is losing out on the one major area they haven't covered and that is a reasonably priced notebook. Apple could do much better with their laptop offerings. Options are slim in the Mac Book Pro line and I fear any iBook coming out will have very little in the way of customization.
Give us a dual-Core machine where we can choose to pay for better screens, better graphics, and perhaps some other internals; like FW800, internal modem, etc. That should not be too difficult and it would allow people to choose a lower cost solution or a maxed out one.
I need a new laptop and the duals from Dell are just so amazingly priced its hard to ignore. C'mon Apple, tempt us!
* Winners compare their achievements to their goals, losers compare theirs to that of others.
OMG!!! PONY!!!
Granted, this is nothing new around here ;) ...
But over on the Apple support forums, there are many people getting week 12 MBPs (starting about a week ago) that still have the wifi issues, and most notably the whine issue. It seems that the whine is the most common complaint. Some people are super unlucky and seem to replace their whining week 12 MBP with another one that still whines...so either it's just really crappy luck or the whining ones are actually pretty common.
But then again, they didn't say they fixed the whine :/
Out of my offices 25 iMac's, 15 have gone in for repair, 5 of them twice, all for 2 weeks, except 1 for 2 months! Dead logic board, power CPU's dying. I dont care about apple warranty, but the down time equates to more than their price.
One even died 1 month after the warranty finished. The logic board was $1000 or something. I'll never buy mac again on mid-range products. It's only worth it if you spent $6000 on a proper workstation.... then you better get revision Z.
Unless you need to run an app which is apple only, my advice is seriously don't bother.
The macbook seems ok, and I hope it changes my mind about them. But for now, I've been lied to enough by Apple over the years, to realise they're great for browsing the web, and reading email.
Their products are beautiful and wonderful, but they never can get over that hump that other big companies surmount to being able to mass-produce a product while maintaining its greatness.
I was wondering why the iPod never really took off . . . That was a neat little music player. Such a shame.
I just recieved my Week 13 W8613 and don't have screen issues, wifi issues, or screen noise, but have processor noise (easily jerryrigged for now) and a rather warm (luckly use the carrying case as a rest) MBP. If they're replacing them finally I think I might wait a bit until they get it down pat, as some people returned early revisions and got back partially improved ones just last week when the Week 12s rolled out, among the issues still present was the odd processor noise. I'm just happy they don't suffer from the wierd reflector line issues of the final Pb revisions, which I returned since it was so annoying to me when I tried to do design work on it. I'd take a quickly remedied cpu noise over a never remedied LCD issue. *Admittedly it seems to become the hottest on the highest preformance setting, which seems obvious, I guess. Supposedly resetting the PMU actually reduces the heat a bit, but I've yet to try it myself, and sort of feel it has a placebo effect, but hey, worth a shot.
Why this "first generation" phenomenon with Apple, which users seem to take for granted? I mean they're not exactly short of resources so why on earth haven't they tested these things? Is it too much to expect a technician to sit down with one of the new Macbook Pros and, duh, see it gets too hot? Isn't that one of the first things Apple should have tested when releasing a model with a new chip architecture? It seems Apple are walking on water right now to the extent that they can get away with releasing untested products. Why is no-one outraged by all this?
I've got a half a dozen 5200s, none of them have such problems.
Then again my 5200s are desktop all-in-ones.
You're thinking of the PowerBook 5300.
The only batteries that had problems were the Sony Li-Ion, which according to info at the time, caused two fires on the bench at Apple, but never caused a fire in any consumer machine.
And as it was a recall direct from Apple, I'm guessing you must have ignored it.
Yep, that would be embarrasing.
"Win treats sysadmins better than users. Mac treats users better than sysadmins. Linux treats everyone like sysadmins."
Buy a good quality laptop, and load linux on it. Lots of help on how to load Linux on any laptop is available. E.g.:
http://www.linux-laptop.net/
Point is that Apple mixes up software with hardware. On paper this may look good. In practice, this may result in compromise in either the software quality or hardware quality. Kind of like why SGI went down the tubes.
There's already one model of Intel iMac up. But saving is saving $200 worth it? ($1299 -> $1099)
Wouldn't it have been cheaper to just, say, test it a bit more extensively before releasing it to the public?
So far as I know, there are no design defects with the product. The problems seem to be assembly. Flickering displays and intermittent network connections could be something as simple as lousy soldering, for example. (Disclaimer: I have no special knowledge and am speculating.)
Things like that only happen once you start mass production.
Is it just me, or are a lot more companies having recalls recently?
Anecdotally, I'd say yes. I'd lay the blame at outsourced manufacturing, cost-cutting, and tighter production schedules.
The US free market: two halves of a government-granted duopoly are free to set the market price.
First of all I will say you have some legimate gripes with the power adaptor and the keys leaving marks on the screen. It's obviously too late now because I'm sure your Titanium PowerBook is out of warranty but you could have gotten the power adaptor replaced for free. Some time after the Aluminum PowerBooks (AlBooks) came out Apple changed the plug design a bit to include strain relief. I believe the marks on the screen though are not rubber but are skin oils. Apple also corrected this with the AlBooks by leaving more of a gap between the display and keyboard. You can however buy some soft cloth protectors to put between the halves of the laptop before you close it if it bugs you. Or you can just take a soft cloth and wipe the screen off from time to time.
As for the power adaptor taking up 3 outlets I have no idea what you are talking about. If your power strip has the outlets positioned side by side then it takes up one. If they are positioned one on top of the other then you can just plug it in to the outlet on the end of the strip. If neither of these is acceptable you can just use the included extension cable.
As for the icons I guess to each his own. I find the icons in OS X to be soft and visually appealing. They are brightly colored and do stand out but I don't feel they "scream" at you like the icons on Windows XP tend to nor do they just fade into the background like the icons on Fedora Core tend to.
And as for the design, I guess again to each his own. Personally I like the use of metal and the clean cut look. I am not sure how one can describe any of Apple's designs (save for the iMac and the iPod mini) as flamboyant. I find them to be more minimalistic.
There were a whole bunch of them up there this weekend. Core Duo 1.83 MacBook Pro for $1699, and the 2.0 for $2299. They had iMacs with Intel procs starting at $1099 also.
Keep in mind that it's very easy to get a 40% discount on them, and I'll tell you how right now. If you use it for your job, and have it shipped to your work address, you can write it off on your taxes next yet. It depends on what tax bracket you are in, but for a lot of the people on here it will save them 40%. Of course, you should only do this if you legitimately use it for work.
Need Free Juniper/NetScreen Support? JuniperForum
Bought and set-up a 2.1GHz MacBookPro for a client. Managed to arrange things so I had the machine at home for three days as my little perk. Machine was great - best laptop I've ever used - but then on day3..... Dead Pixel!!
Couldn't believe it - it was right in the centre of the screen aswell. Had to give it back to the client and knew he was going to blame me for it as I knew he had no understanding of the dp concept. Got to his place and said there's some bad news, there's a dead pixel and proceeded, after his obvious shock and dissapointment had settled down a little, to fire it up to show him. A miracle occoured and the pixel was 100% working again. I just couldn't believe it.
I mean what happened there? Was I touched by the hand of Jobs?
2 weeks later the pixel is still fine . . .
Anyone ever had this on a screen before I really would like to know.....
spoonerize "magic trackpad"
A unit (ONE, 1, Uno) AT APPLE caught fire because the BATTERY MANUFACTURER (Hi Sony!) LIED about the specs of the Lithium Ion battery. ~1000 units had shipped to resellers and ~100 made it to customers, but Apple was able to get them ALL back. None of them caught fire except the lab unit.
http://www.tidbits.com/tb-issues/tidbits-295.htm l#lnk2
In short: 1)Apple's supplier was at fault, not Apple. 2)Apple caught the problem and acted immediately instead of waiting for consumers to discover the problem.
Seems like they did everything right, chief. Next time, troll harder.
Please help metamoderate.
Hello Everybody!
Anybody else have the problem of the keys popping off after very minimal use? My return key came off and I can put it back but its loose and doesn't work propely.
-Andy
clicky
There is another kind of evil which we must fear most, and that is the indifference of good men. -- Boondock Saints
Comment removed based on user account deletion
You mean like when "Dual USB" iBooks started dying, getting new motherboards almost every month, how Apple just LEAP up and took care of the problem?
Apple certainly did not "take care of it without hesitation"; they wouldn't admit any faults (just kept "servicing" the units until they went out of warranty- often times breaking unrelated components, loosing computers altogether, taking weeks to do the repairs, somehow not doing the repair at all, etc.) and only after (among other things) a petition with 3800 signatures did Apple extend the warranty, but not for all the models affected nor all the problems people are having. In short- Apple's reaction was purely token.
Nice revisionism there, chief.
Please help metamoderate.
How long will the repair take?
/Users partition mount was disabled, probably because they needed to boot of an external drive to verify the fix. So after a scare I remounted and all was well.
I live in New York. My Powerbook needed a new screen and a new keyboard a few months ago. DHL picked it up from my office Tuesday morning and arrived back in the office by 9:58 Thursday. This with a round trip to Texas, IIRC. Incredible how well-tuned the system is.
Of course, all my data was gone*, but who's counting?
* It was there, but the
Ew, your troll's comment reminded me to turn "show link domains" back on. Gross. I guess he "won" over me too.
:-p
Just in case: everyone else, don't click on the sibling's link for flaming powerbooks
Read Heinlein's 1953 Revolt in 2100, now more than ever.
because of that awful screaming of the lambs... er... noise. I googl0red for a fix too, but didn't find either of the ones on that page or i might have been able to fix it (I don't care about 1-2 percent of battery time if that's the only impact).
Based on the 1800SOSAPPL response of "oh that's normal" (after over 20 minutes hold time) while at the same time reading on the web that they were replacing logic boards because of this, I decided this was a pretty filthy cover-up and that I didn't deserve the hassle of sending a $2.5K computer in for repair the day after buying it. The guys at the Apple store were VERY resistant to taking the machine back and tried every way to get me to take store credit, pay a restocking fee, etc. Finally they did take it back though - there was a long line of customers behind me so it would have cost them more to keep fighting.
Maybe other people can't hear it but my first reaction when I heard it was "you've got to be kidding me - the hard drive is burning up already?" because that's exactly what it sounds like. I guess the engineers were all deaf or something - I know some people can't hear anything above 5KHz but to me it sounded worse than fingernails on a chalkboard.
I wasn't upset that there was a bug, but I was steamed that they were lying to me and trying to weasel out of taking the return. Those Apple Store people look and talk real friendly-like, but they will rape you in the cornhole you with extended warranties, restocking fees, gift certs instead of refunds, etc unless you know the game. CAVE TURTLENECKEM.
Yes, it is that hard.
Most likely, all the systems they tested seemed to work fine. Once they've got thousands of them being used by theousands of different people, minor defects become noticeable on some machines but not others.
$x='S24;r)>63/* h@<5+oZ)32"5cz';$me='phroggy'x$];
$x=~y+ -xz+\0-Tx+;print$_^chop$me for split'',$x;
The article only mentions serial numbers beginning with W8610 or W8611. My MacBook has a serial number beginning with W8609. I wonder if that means I have a Rev B mobo? I experience all of the problems mentioned in the article, except for the LCD flickering. I didn't actually realize that these were actual problems. I just always thought of them as oddities. I'll probably wait a few years to complain to hopefully get a shiny new replacement that's better than what I started with.
Pretty much what I expected, so I passed on the first go-round.
They're cool, they're not Microsoft, but they're not immune from all the normal shit that happens in new product manufacturing and deployment.
I did pop for an Intel mini, no problems with that so far. Actually it's pretty awesome.
The revolution will NOT be televised.
It's NEVER Apple's fault!
They did a similar thing with the iPod screens getting sctratched. So let me get this, rolling out defective a product and then doing excellent service to fix it, is a good business strategy ? No wonder Apple could never make gross profits.
Essentia non sunt multiplicanda praeter necessitatem.
That's pretty funny. Sorry you got modded down, although it was inevitable.
Slashdot - where whining about luck is the new way to make the world you want.
This is one reason why I tell people in my .sig at MacRumors that the Willow Bend store sucks, because they push so hard on you to accept less. I had a problem with something totally different: the case I had just bought from them for my iPod didn't have the right size hole on top, so my hold button wasn't reachable. I walked in and saw a guy with what looked like a manager tag, and he listened to my problem and assured me that they'd refund my money, but I'd need to stand in line at the counter first. So at the counter, I got the store credit push hard from two people, one of whom went to go ask the manager whether I really talked to him, when I complained about this uneven treatment. He came and stood behind the person and pushed buttons to make it happen. Unreal.
"Best" part? I had bought it less than 10 minutes before, walked out to a nearby bench, and tried it on my ipod. And they still treated me like someone who'd used it for weeks.
If you're going to be such a slob and slosh your koolaid around like that in public, at least wear an iBib.
But other than that, welcome to computer paradise. =)
It's not offtopic, dumbass. It's orthogonal.
Lesson:
Buying a first generation Apple product is, in effect paying for the privilige of owning one of their "ready for the public" prototypes.
Seriously, look back in time through all major Apple releases - especially those since the NeXT takeover.
Value is understood in relation to the marketplace, not the "usefulness" of the product.
How's that "investing" in computer hardware going? Have any of those old Sun Servers appreciated in value yet? No? Well, just hold on to them. Someday they'll be collectors' items.
It's not offtopic, dumbass. It's orthogonal.
Yo genius: maybe you should reread the post. I believe they mean the replacement battery only holds charge for a few minutes. He didn't say the original battery didn't hold charge when it was replaced.
I'm a huge "Apple" fan myself. Switched to a PowerBook in 2000 running OS 9. Since then, I've purchased a PowerMac G5 and a PowerBook G4. While I'll be the first to praise OS X, and Apple software (Final Cut Pro, DVD Studio Pro, etc.), I've become hesitant to do the same for Apple, the company. Trust me, I would never switched back to a PC running Windows. However, I do like to share a story about the second PowerBook I purchased, and hopefully to get through to the Mac Fans that Apple isn't all holy and mighty...that, they are a company, and their intentions is to make a profit and make stock holders happy.
My second PowerBook, a 12" version, was great from day one. The packaging, from the exterior to unpacking, was a real treat. Got to love Apple in their attention to detail. I ran the Hardware test, and everything passed. I then re-formatted the PowerBook and re-installed all the software (removing fonts, printer drivers, and other things I never would have used...)
From start up, the thing recognized my wireless network, and everything was great.
Well, about three or four months later, I decided to set up the PowerBook as a dual boot with Ubuntu. Getting Ubuntu on the Mac was extremely easy. Everything worked perfectly. However, there are no drivers available for the "Airport" card installed in the PowerBook. No problem! Just hook it up to the Ethernet port.
AND, this is where my horror story begins...
The Ethernet port didn't respond. I thought it was an issue with Ubuntu. So I jump back into OS X, and sure enough, nothing. I ran the hardware test again, and everything passed. Went back into OSX and checked the system preferences, and OS X said the Ethernet port was there, but could not obtain an IP. Okay...
So, after racking my head around this issue, I finally break down and visit a "genius" at an Apple store. He takes the PowerBook, and starts jamming an ethernet cord, wiggling it around and what not. Finally, after he consults another "genius", he informs me that he'll need to send it out. Fine with me. I'm covered through warranty.
After about a week, I get a response from a tech. The problem, it appeared, was the Ethernet port was broken from the Logic board. Cost to repair: $900.00. I paid 1300.00 for the machine. "Okay, repair it..." Well, because it was broken, it was not covered under warranty. Because, it obviously had to be MY fault. I must have did something, as far as the tech was concerned.
After I refused to pay for the repair, they sent it back, where I picked it up. I then went to a local apple store, and talked to a tech there, who agreed that Apple should fix it. So, she sent it back in, with intentions of getting it repaired.
After a month of going back and forth, she finally informed me that they would not budge...that they wanted me to pay for it. And infact, they wanted to speak to me. But, she gave me some advice and what to say.
When I called back the second time, I was again informed that the logic board was damaged, and it would cost near 900.00. I explained that from day one, everything appeared okay. That the Apple Hardware test passed. That the "Geniuses" at the Apple Bar even said the Ethernet Port was fine (the software they ran said it was fine) - and in fact, it could have been the genius, fussin garound with the ethernet cord, trying to get the thing to work, who could have broken it. She finally agreed that maybe, just maybe, it could have been the Geniuses fault, and transferred me to another department.
After explaining my situation again, I was informed that Apple would repair it (but not admit to any wrong - while it COULD have been the Geniuses fault, it COULD have been might fault too) - so, they were willing to compromise. They'd repair it, but I would no longer have a warranty (with four months left...) - I agreed.
After three-four months from finding out I had a bad ethernet port, I finally got my PowerBook back. I opened it up, checked the port, and everything was great. I was happy...un
But,you have to be very persistent. I had similar problems and the tech guy wouldn't/couldn't do anything about it. I made it clear to him that I was not satisfied and that I would not go away. He said he was going to send my case somewhere, i.e. the customer relations dept, but just connected me instead.
I explained my problem again making it clear that my "switching experience" was less than stellar. After a long conversation apple fixed all of the problems and gave me some merchandise for my trouble.
You have to get to the customer relations deptartment if you want anything done at apple.
That said, I'm not ready to buy another mac yet.
Wanted: Clever sig, top $ paid, all offers considered.
I have a 2.0Ghz Mac Book Pro. How many extra packets of ketchup do I need to down a large order of McFries with my Mac Book Pro?
I supposedly have a rev "C". I call bullshit on the story.
Jesus was a compassionate social conservative who called individuals to sin no more.
I've heard a lot about apple computers having hardware failures of one kind or another (including, and I find this particularily embarrassing, computers crashing during builds of large software packages because of overheating). This is a little bit of a scandal considering what they cost and how they are hyped.
I've heard quite a bit less stories about new dells, acers, etc failing so soon. I'll not say it doesn't happen, but a simple informal sampling seems to sugest that a modern apple has a far higher probability of breaking than other computers.
Has anyone done the actual stats?
If the "Celeron" brand makes you wince, "Celeron M" CPUs (based on the Pentium M architecture) have always been very good performers and an outstanding value. At launch, the new Celeron M CPUs will clock at 1.73GHz and 1.60GHz, have 1MB L2 cache, and 533MHz FSB.
TO START
PRESS ANY KEY
Where's the 'ANY' key? I see Esk, Kitarl, and Pig-Up...
Any news yet on the arrival of the 17" model? I decided to skip early adoption and wait it out, the two co-workers I have who bought the 1st generation Macbooks have had no problems so how significant are these problems?
Is anyone out there experiencing similar problems with the Intel iMacs? I just bought one yesterday, all this talk about new revs and hardware problems has me worried. At least I got a free 2-year warranty.
damn typos :(
May contain traces of nut.
Made from the freshest electrons.
This network issue is a software issue which was fixed by the update. Heat? Only at the top of the keyboard at the display hinge where the fan outflow is. Hello McFly? Anybody home? No display or whine issues other than from other users whining in various forums.
Why is your comment so long? All you've just said is, "Mine works, therefore everybody else's works too".
With a little bit of thought, you could be an arrogant prick whilst using much less bandwidth. Try harder in future.
To be fair, the laptops only caught fire because they got too close to the light that shines out of Steve Jobs' asshole.
I hereby nominate this as the best Slashdot comment ever. Seconds?
He wrote what you wrote, but the "you can't post that quickly" message poped up, so he expounded.
Shame really, I like your version better too.
Religion and politics, without the flame. godgab.org
Testing drugs, that is. In the US drugs are tested in vitro, in animals, in small clinical trials (hundreds of patients) and in big clinical trials (thousands) before being certified by the FDA as safe enough for sale.
When they go on sale, the size of the population taking them goes up by a factor of at least 100. Things that had a 1/10000 chance of happening were all but invisible in the final clinical trial, and now tens or hundreds of patients may show bad effects.
The analogy to computer manufacturing (hundreds of prototypes vs. hundreds of thousands of sold units) is obvious.
To a Lisp hacker, XML is S-expressions in drag.
Don't go through the Apple Store - just do it direct with Apple and have them do it through the "mail" (DHL these days).
The space unintentionally left unblank.
a) Those threats aren't remotely funny. b) If dude can't see it, he can't see it. My mechanic's the same way. Of course he's paid more, so maybe it's easier for him to put up with adolescents like yourself. *) If you aren't 12, my bad; for some reason thought you were.
...Hopefully these new computers won't suffer the same mysterious fate of the iBook G3, where every six months the logic board has to be replaced.
I love Apple products, but I wince at the thought of "mainboard" problems, just from experience.
Those who believe the Internet is private,
find their privates are on the Internet.
My MBP has same whine as all others, in addition when I hook it up to my 30in. HDCinema Display the signal degrades after the MBP heats up.... I'm thinking it's all from the same hardware problem... leaking electricity somewhere, which causes a) electrical hissing b) the case to gain a charge and heat up beyond what it's supposed to c) dirty signal through the dual DVI port
I have a *10 serial number, so I'm expecting to be able to just swap it out with a new MBP at the Apple store.... I've already done so once, since an Apple Genius saw the pixel sparking and pronounce my first MBP DOA.
This is really great news to me, as I love everything else about the machine.... excepting the lack of photoshop performance, but I knew that going in...
A fool throws a stone into a well and a thousand sages can not remove it.
Apple is celebrating their 30th anniversary by fixing problems in a shipping product.
I thought that Apple's anniversary would pass with little excitement, but even this is a bit much.
There isn't even mention of their anniversary on Apple's website. I mean, you would at least expect a company that once created an entire computer based on their 20th anniversary to at least mention it.
But it is still early on Tuesday April 4, and Apple traditionally makes product announcments on Tuesdays, so one could always hope that someone at Apple was awake enough to remember to celebrate, or are they all just too busy counting their money over at Apple.
I haven't thought of anything clever to put here, but then again most of you haven't either.
"maintained a fairly consistent number one position in initial quality, lack of need for repairs, and product support, according to Consumer Reports"
Everybody who owns an ipod will need a repair if they use it for anything like "jogging while listening". Which is pretty crappy, because for $300-400 the thing should last for 10 years with no problems.
I think I saw someone mention it earlier, but taking a photo of the error has helped me get intermittent problems fixed before. Like the powerbook that would get a green tinge on the whole display, but only after it had been running for many hours. A photo of that got Apple to accept there was a real problem and try to fix it... of course, I had to ship it back to them 4 times over this issue, and then a fifth to ultimately return it when they replaced it with a new one... but without the photo, that one would likely still look like a classic green screen. :)
well my £2k macbook pro just lasted a week then **poof** it died right there in my arms. i wait with batted breath to see if the warranty service is a bad as acer' who took two attempts at getting a bluetooth replacement right, total time wasted 4 weeks.