When it is time to push for a replacement notebook?

I have had:

1 superdrive replacement
1 motherboard replacement (due to gpu failure)

now i'm going to have to take it back in for two new issues:

trackpad and keyboard stop working every minute for about 20 seconds. who knows why? i have a wireless logitech vx nano and an apple wireless keyboard, so i am OK for now, but i want it to work right of course.

fans always run at full speed, regardless of temperature. poor cpu thermal paste application maybe? who knows. reported temps seem fine. i can force a max fan speed of 2500 rpm's using smc fan control and the terminal so it doesn't make my classmates give me weird stares, (have you ever heard a macbook pro at 6k rpm's in a quiet room? ) but i want it fixed so that the fan speed can change based on heat like its supposed to, and run between 2k and 4k rpm's without me having to do anything.

...

im getting bored of the issues with this machine. the dvd drive broke early on, and then after about a year the gpu died, and shortly thereafter this weird stuff started happening.

plus i don't like the idea that the same defective model gpu that forced me to get a mobo replacement is now back inside my laptop.

thoughts?

 

Yea, I've had the same things replaced on mine, and the thought of another gpu failure down the road gets me a bit annoyed. And even after it fails, the next one probably will as well.

What my friend did, is that he phoned up apple and basically complained. GPU died, and it will continue to die, etc etc, its a known issue, and basically he got a new mbp out of it (late 2008)

Although his was technically registered under a business, you could probably argue a similar case and get a new laptop. I was going to, but havn't had the time to, and I still dont know if can live with a glossy screen.

But give it a try, and just sound like you know your stuff, and you might get lucky.

 

The problem with thermal paste is, it can harden and crack over time. So a problem with overheating may not show up right away. It could be poor thermal paste, or poorly applied, or none of the above. Imagine being heated and cooled over and over and over day in and day out and you'd understand why that could eventually happen.

 

That's too bad... when did you purchase it?

 

If you can afford it, the new MBPs are quite nice. As for arguing with apple for a replacement: I've really only heard of it working when the computer was still under warranty and it had to be fixed three times or more.

 

mid 2007.

its actually been a rock solid machine until about two weeks ago. so it lived for 1.5 years before getting serious issues. now the gpu died once, the keyboard and trackpad work only intermittently, and the fans run full blast unless i force them to do otherwise using 3rd party apps and the terminal.

i'll bring it BACK to the apple store this week for yet another repair. then i'll evaluate its state when i get it back... if its a problem again, i'll see what i can do.

is it better to call apple care or to talk to the people in the store as far as getting a replacement?

the computer is still under warranty. this will be the third fix.

 

It almost sounds like they didnt fully connect the keyboard/trackpad back when they replaced the logicboard. Could be an issue with the fans too, kinda weird, but maybe they didnt plug in all the connections tightly enough and thats causing the problems.

And you'd probably have better luck on the phone, then instore. No idea though, because I havn't actually done it myself.

 

Masterchef, when you say it's still under warranty I am assuming correctly that you have purchased AppleCare? You said it was a mid 2007 and since we are at the end of 2008 I am assuming you have Applecare?

 

Taking it to the genius bar in the apple store would, in my opinion, be your best bet. If it needs to be sent out for work, they'll take care of it. And nobody says you can't argue with support over the phone while they're working on getting your baby working again.

 

yeah. 10 char.

also, good idea about sending it out and then calling apple care.

 

In that case having Applecare sorta gives you carte blanche. Apple bends over backwards for customers with Applecare. At this point upon your visit to Apple for this upcoming repair you should talk to the manager or Apple customer relations about a replacement. It's been fixed multiple times. It worked for me.

 

i can figure out where to find the manager. where can i find apple customer relations?

thanks guys so much. this is actually a big deal to me because i really want- nay- need, a working laptop.

 

You have to call Apple customer relations. When you call Applecare tech support 800-275-2273 (for us folks in the U.S) ask to speak to the customer relations department. Customer relations generally make the call on a product replacement and they have to send it to the store. My Powerbook was sent out to service twice and both times Apple damaged it in service. The store recommended for me to contact customer relations since I didn't want it repaired a 3rd time and taking the chance of them damaging it again and inconveniencing me. So while in the store I phoned customer relations and explained my issue. At first they tried to get me to agree to yet another repair but I stayed firm on a replacement yet very calm.
Finally they gave in and agreed to replace it. They sent my replacement to the store and gave me the next model up since mine was discontinued. It wasn't until customer relations looked up my serial number and found out I had Applecare that they agreed to the replacement.

 

very interesting story. so i think what i will do is this:

ideally i will just get a working machine. so i'll go ahead and give them the laptop once more to repair. if there are more issues when i get it back, im going to do the phone call to customer relations and try and get a replacement. easy as done.