Macbook Air Screen Cracked

So long story short: my screen is cracked, what are my options for getting it replaced?

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I let a friend borrow my MBA this summer because her HP went haywire and she needed something to take notes on in class and I had no need for it as I am not taking classes and have a desktop for home use.

Well summer ended (kinda) and she left for an exchange program in China and didn't have a chance to get it back to me (I saw her 2 days before she left but it slipped my mind that I needed my laptop) so she left it with another friend so I could pick it up from her.

I tried to pick it up from this other friend a few times over the past week or so, but since both of us were in the process of moving I didn't get a chance to pick it up until last night.

Turns out the battery was dead so I had to wait until I got home to turn it on. When I turned it on I the screen was cracked in the upper left. It is about an inch or 2 long crack that sends lines along the to inch or so of the screen and the left 2 inches of the screen. I have no pictures as I have no internet at home due to the recent move.
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So, what are my options with getting the screen replaced? I have an appointment with the local Apple Store today to have the Genius bar look at it. It this type of thing covered under the 1 year warranty? Is there anywhere online that parts out used / broken Macs where I can find a cheap screen and replace it myself? I found some Macbook Air screens on eBay for around $200.

Just looking for a point in the right direction here.

Thanks,
Stephen

 

If it was an accidental damage, Apple won't cover it. If it was a defect with the MacBook air's hardware itself, then they will cover it.

 

Thanks for the heads up. I guess I'll just take it into the genius bar and see how much they want to charge me then. Its obviously damaged. Although I don't know how it happened, I can't see it being a defect with the screen.

You don't have to pay for a genius bar appointment do you?

 

*D'oh* that hurts!

 

No. The only good side to this that I can see is that Apple is usually very quick with its repair work. You shouldn't be without your machine for long. Good luck.

 

Eh I don't really NEED my machine for another 3 weeks anyways. I've found the screen online from retailers for around $230-$300. eBay is as low as $180 but that makes me quite suspicious. There are also multiple model versions for the screen so I am going to have to determine which version I need before purchasing. From what it looks like, Apple will charge in the range of $600 for the repair, when I can do it myself for a third of the price.

 

did you confront your friend about this? I cant see how she would let you pay for it when she or her friend inflicted the damage. :/

 

Yeah, you should seriously consider asking your friend(or friend's friend) to pay for the repairs.

 

Oh course I am in the process of contacting her. She is in China after all so I can't just call her up on the phone. I know her and her parents well so I'm sure there won't be much of an issue, I am just merely looking for the most cost effective solution, and I am in no way afraid of opening my MBA and doing surgery on her.

Does anyone know of a reputable TFT LCD screen supplier? I have the model number of the screen (AU Optronics B133EW03) I just want a safe place to buy it from now.

 

I hope you realize that if you attempt to fix it by yourself and end up damaging it ain any way so that Apple could find out. That would mean that your warranty would be void.

 

Well that would now require me to get a new front Bezel, or get it repaired somewhere

I removed the screen last night with the instructions from iFixit.com and where they state that the front bezel is a pain in the @$$ to remove, they were not lying at all. Mine is now bent in multiple places.

It seems like this is quite the norm, as a review of TechRestore.com's (i think that's the name) repair service (which cost $400 + shipping) resulted in the same malformed front bezel.

From what I have seen through doing a little research is that Apple supplies ceertified repair shops with the lid / screen / front bezel pre-assembled for screen replacements, and this is what Apple does when they replace screens as well. These peices cost ~$600, making the repair at an Apple store close to $800.

I'm hoping to find a new bezel on eBay (I have found a good supplier for my screen already and may purchase a newer revision of the screen) of will take my bezel into a jeweler / metalsmith to see if repairs can be made.

It looks like this repair may take more time than expected, and if anybody has to go through the same situation, I recommend not doing it yourself.

I will keep you updated on the progress and maybe try to get some pictures up of the damage that I have added to the situation.

 

Pictures would definitely be nice.

 

have apple do it, no questions asked.

give her the bill politely.

why risk doing it yourself when you can mess it up more, and just void your warranty to start? not worth it IMO. Not to mention, WHY didnt your friend get it back to you in the first place?

EDIT: just saw you already damaged the bezel. Good luck!!!! If apple ever checks the serial number of the display, theyll X you.

 

I knew that when I started. I'm not really worried about Apple checking the serial number of the display. In fact, I would be surprised if Apple could remove the display themselves without ruining the bezel. And so my bezel search begins. Wish me luck! I can actually just purchase the whole display housing with a display if it actually comes to that.

I'm hoping that Apple uses the same bezel in the new aluminum MacBook. That may make the bezel more widely available.

 

Haha at this rate, I see you using up enough money to pay for a brand new Macbook Air... Best of luck nonetheless!

 

Under $200 for the screen and whatever the bezel costs to replace / fix is way better than the ~$800 Apple charges for a replacement.

 

Maybe She means him lot

back to the topic.

My friend recently replace his Air display unit due to accidental damage & apple charge nearly $500 for that.

So no luck for you unless it's product damage

 

I don't agree. The $200.00 plus all the trouble plus a voided warranty isn't worth it. You haven't completed the job as of yet so there's no telling what your success will be. Possibly 2-3 days in Apple's repair shop (or even a possible Air replacement) and you'd be back in business with your warranty guaranteed to be in tact is well worth the $800.00.

 

It's more fun to do it yourself. Get to learn in the process, and save money.

If he gets a new bezel, he'll have the warranty back. Unless Apple started a new policy for checking serial numbers on LCD panels (doubtful), he won't have problems. If he does, he should take it to a third party repair facility that is Apple Authorised.

We would make stuff a warranty job even if it was somehow voided... Apple paid a good rate per hour (more than our customer hourly rate at the time), and we didn't pay for parts. It made more financial sense to make sure all computers that could be under warranty at Apple were considered warranty jobs. (Plus, all the guys in the service department were all modders, and enjoyed hacking our computers apart to do cool stuff with. It's how I got really good at soldering... and we didn't care if somebody else had misadventures inside their Mac either.)