Macbook Battery Problem
Recently, my four month old Macbook has been experiencing battery problems. Basically, whenever my Macbook is not plugged into a power source via the AC/DC connector, my Macbook would not turn on, or if it was already on, it would crash. After trying all the online solutions, including resetting the PRAM and the Power manager, I phoned Applecare.
Time Spent on Phone: 31 minutes.
After being forced to listen to obscure music for about 15 minutes, I was helped by a very nice man named Robert. I explained to him the problem, and how I had already tried everything online. Regardless, he still had me reset the PRAM. When that didn’t work, he authorized a shipment of a brand new battery. I’m pretty happy with Applecare; even though the phone wait was longer than I desired, it was still fairly short for a help-line.
End Result: Awesome New Battery.
Apple Replacing Stained Macbooks?
After many complaints from disappointed Macbook Users, who bought brand new macbooks and found– to their dismay– that their brand new macbooks had begun discolouring at an alarming rate (within 1-3 weeks), it appears that Apple is beginning to replace stained/discoloured macbook top cases (the plastic covering of the area around the keyboard). You can see some photos of discolouration below. The discolouration ranges in colour (it has been reported normally grey or orange, but sometimes can be pink or even blue). There are several theories to the cause of discolouration, including: “Porous plastics used in the MacBook allow tiny skin cells and sweat to accumulate within the microscopic openings, Skin melanin rubbing off and staining surface plastics, Acidic sweat damaging the plastic, or even Chemical reaction between the polymer and skin oils.”
A group of Macbook users, who all had discoloured laptops, started a web site called Stained Macbook. As their purpose, they state, “This site was born as a way to give pressure to Apple regarding recent QA issues with the new white MacBook. Many people all over the world are complaining about stains appearing in their newly acquired piece of Apple hardware.” The site includes a list of customers with problems, and these customers serial numbers. It is interesting to note that the last member with this problem recieved her laptop on June 12th. A forum at Apple’s discussion boards hypothesizes that the newer Macbooks are being made with a different type of plastic (they are “smoother” in texture than the older ones, which are compartively “rough”). This leads me to believe that Apple has fixed the plastic problem in their assembly lines, and I strongly hope (as my white Macbook is arriving June 30th) that this problem will no longer occur.
However, for those of you white Macbook owners with discolouration, it appears that Apple is now recognizing the this as a manufactuaring problem, and not a “cosmetic problem” (caused by the owner through ie dirty hands/negligence, and thus not covered under the Apple Care warranty). According to the Stained Macbook blog, two members have sucessfully contacted Apple, and the Apple representative said they were now authorized to replace the discoloured/damaged areas of plastic of the top case. A member stated: “I just called up Applecare and informed them of my stain problem. The rep told me that they were aware of the problem and provided me with a case number for a replacement top case. Hopefully the new one won’t have the same issues =/”. While this appears to only affect a small percentage of Macbook owners, it is good to know Apple’s on top of the issue now. If you like the article, feel free to digg it!
