2017 MacBook Pro logic board failure under normal use

[pshufd]

Indeed. What did you end up doing about yours?

Mine decided to stop working last week, so now I need to find out what avenues I have, before shelling out the £500

My 2008 MacBook Pro screen died in 2018. It still works with an external monitor. That's the level of quality that I expect from MacBook Pros. We have 2 2007 MacBook Pro 15s, 1 2008 MacBook Pro 17, 2 2014 MacBook Pro 14s, 2 MacBook Pro 15s (one is a work system), 1 2015 MBP 13 (work machine), a 2010 MacBook Pro 15 and a 2011 MacBook Pro 17 (which is dead but I may have fried it working on it).

I haven't touched the newer systems because of the reported problems preferring to stick with older models.

 

[Nomie]

My 2008 MacBook Pro screen died in 2018. It still works with an external monitor. That's the level of quality that I expect from MacBook Pros. We have 2 2007 MacBook Pro 15s, 1 2008 MacBook Pro 17, 2 2014 MacBook Pro 14s, 2 MacBook Pro 15s (one is a work system), 1 2015 MBP 13 (work machine), a 2010 MacBook Pro 15 and a 2011 MacBook Pro 17 (which is dead but I may have fried it working on it).

I haven't touched the newer systems because of the reported problems preferring to stick with older models.

Interesting. Thanks for explaining.

I really hope it doesn't pack up on me again after I get it fixed

 

[Sully]

Did you purchase it with a credit card? Sometimes there are extended warranties with these cards. Mine matches extends the manufacturer's warranty by a year.

 

[pshufd]

Did you purchase it with a credit card? Sometimes there are extended warranties with these cards. Mine matches extends the manufacturer's warranty by a year.

This is a 2017 though.

 

[Nomie]

Did you purchase it with a credit card? Sometimes there are extended warranties with these cards. Mine matches extends the manufacturer's warranty by a year.

I actually bought it with an American Express credit card.

How can I find out if there’s a warranty through the card?

 

[Sully]

I actually bought it with an American Express credit card.

How can I find out if there’s a warranty through the card?

extended-warranty-terms.html

 

[Nomie]

extended-warranty-terms.html

Thanks. It turns out it only applies to Amex users in the U.S .

 

[mick2]

If you're in the UK, you should try making a claim to Apple under UK consumer law,aka the Consumer Rights Act 2015. See here: https://www.apple.com/uk/legal/statutory-warranty/
Under this, you're claiming a repair / refund because the product did not conform to the contract of sale (ie it wasnt of reasonable quality); you're not claiming under Apple's 1 year warranty.
Going this route, you have to make the claim to the *retailer* you bought the laptop from, rather than from Apple (unless you bought the MBP directly from Apple, in which case you claim against Apple).

Other EU countries may have similar arrangements. Good luck!

 

[Nomie]

If you're in the UK, you should try making a claim to Apple under UK consumer law,aka the Consumer Rights Act 2015. See here: https://www.apple.com/uk/legal/statutory-warranty/
Under this, you're claiming a repair / refund because the product did not conform to the contract of sale (ie it wasnt of reasonable quality); you're not claiming under Apple's 1 year warranty.
Going this route, you have to make the claim to the *retailer* you bought the laptop from, rather than from Apple (unless you bought the MBP directly from Apple, in which case you claim against Apple).

Other EU countries may have similar arrangements. Good luck!

Thanks a lot for this. I’ve already authorised the repair. I’ll see if there’s any way I can evoke these rights to get a refund for the repair payment

 

[Nomie]

Update. The Apple store emailed to say my macbook is fixed and ready to collect. That didn’t take long at all. The email didn’t include the invoice...

They haven’t told me what exactly the issue was. I asked the technician on the phone yesterday and he said they aren’t sure. They just know the logic board needs replacing.

I’m going to have to ask them to email me details of what caused the issue, if I’m to make a claim using the consumer protections that Mick shared.

Should it be standard practice for them to send a report outlining the cause of the issue? Or is this something I will have to fight tooth and nail to get?

 

[jerryk]

Update. The Apple store emailed to say my macbook is fixed and ready to collect. That didn’t take long at all. The email didn’t include the invoice...

They haven’t told me what exactly the issue was. I asked the technician on the phone yesterday and he said they aren’t sure. They just know the logic board needs replacing.

I’m going to have to ask them to email me details of what caused the issue, if I’m to make a claim using the consumer protections that Mick shared.

Should it be standard practice for them to send a report outlining the cause of the issue? Or is this something I will have to fight tooth and nail to get?

Most of the time techs just swap the Field Replaceable Unit (FRU) specified in their troubleshooting guidelines and training. With computers that is often the main logic board and it usually fixes the issue. Techs do not have time, and often the tools necessary to troubleshoot below the FRU level to specific components on the board. And really it does not matter since Apple (and most tech companies) does not repair specific components, they just swap assemblies.

 

[Nomie]

Most of the time techs just swap the Field Replaceable Unit (FRU) specified in their troubleshooting guidelines and training. With computers that is often the main logic board and it usually fixes the issue. Techs do not have time, and often the tools necessary to troubleshoot below the FRU level to specific components on the board. And really it does not matter since Apple (and most tech companies) does not repair specific components, they just swap assemblies.

I see. Thanks for the explanation.

Does the logic board swap mean my computer would have been wiped out to factory levels?

 

[jerryk]

I see. Thanks for the explanation.

Does the logic board swap mean my computer would have been wiped out to factory levels?

If you mean will the disk be at initial state I don't know. If the drive modules are part of the main board then yes.

 

[McScooby]

Update. The Apple store emailed to say my macbook is fixed and ready to collect. That didn’t take long at all. The email didn’t include the invoice...

They haven’t told me what exactly the issue was. I asked the technician on the phone yesterday and he said they aren’t sure. They just know the logic board needs replacing.

I’m going to have to ask them to email me details of what caused the issue, if I’m to make a claim using the consumer protections that Mick shared.

Should it be standard practice for them to send a report outlining the cause of the issue? Or is this something I will have to fight tooth and nail to get?

I got burned by the 2011 MB Pro 17 inch fiasco. If fixed means replacing it with a board with exactly the same issues that it's only a matter of time before it goes again (had mine replaced 4 times, 1st time they wanted £500 or so before the recall, so it was consigned to doorstop duties) then I'd sell that sucker before it goes again.

I've still got it, but is used very sparingly as a back up machine, not for what its intended use was. Unfortunately for apple the next MB Pro I buy will have to be one without dedicated graphics which aims me squarely at 13" territory as they've now removed the entry 15' without dedicated gfx, but looks like I'll have to wait until they move back to the scissor switch mechanisms!

 

[Nomie]

I got burned by the 2011 MB Pro 17 inch fiasco. If fixed means replacing it with a board with exactly the same issues that it's only a matter of time before it goes again (had mine replaced 4 times, 1st time they wanted £500 or so before the recall, so it was consigned to doorstop duties) then I'd sell that sucker before it goes again.

I've still got it, but is used very sparingly as a back up machine, not for what its intended use was. Unfortunately for apple the next MB Pro I buy will have to be one without dedicated graphics which aims me squarely at 13" territory as they've now removed the entry 15' without dedicated gfx, but looks like I'll have to wait until they move back to the scissor switch mechanisms!

Oh goodness me. There was an inherent issue which eventually led to a recall, and yet they were demanding £500?

I’m really disappointed with Apple for the first time. I’ve never had a gadget of theirs die in this way before. I’ve never had any of their phones die for me and whenever I’ve upgraded, my existing phone would still be working. My iPad from 2012 is still working. I just don’t understand what would have gone wrong this time.

 

[ghanwani]

I have the 2017 MBP without touch bar, with 16GB of RAM. All of a sudden, the laptop wouldn't power on or take a charge. I suspected logic board failure, and took it to the "Genius" bar for diagnostics. They couldn't figure out what was wrong with it either, but also thought it was probably the logic board. They wanted to charge $500 to send it to the repair facility for further diagnostic work. Additionally, when either the logic board or SSD fail on this particular model of the MBP without touch bar, both components need to be replaced simultaneously. I argued that this is clearly a design flaw for a less than 2 year old computer to basically self-destruct. They wouldn't budge and said that it was out of the manufacturer 1 year warranty.

This is ridiculous, to invest $1700 on a laptop expecting it to last 5-6 years, and having it blow up due to poor engineering. Is this is quality of products that Apple has come to accept? You would think that they would admit to screwing up, and offer to foot the bill for repairing the machine.

Has anyone else had a similar issue with Apple? I'm at a loss here, as I'm worried the laptop will just end up blowing another logic board if I pay to repair it, as this seems to be a major design error. As a lifetime Apple user, I am incredibly disappointed with the quality of products Apple is selling, and the customer service is just awful. I don't think I will be purchasing any Apple products in the future. I'd rather buy an XPS and put Linux on it. Apple really dropped the ball with these new model MacBook's.

I think something is amiss with Apple's quality for sure.

iPhone 4 - used for 3 years with no issues.
iPhone 5s - used for 2.5 years with no issues.
iPhone SE - replaced multiple times due to quality issues.

Macbook Pro 2010 - used for 7 years with no issues.
Macbook Pro 2016/2017 replaced 4 units due to defects, eventually got a unit that worked. (I started in 2016 but eventually gave up and then waited till 2017.)

Only problem is their OS is still the best (IMO) and parts of the hardware (e.g. touchpad) are so much better than the competition. I could give up some on hardware, but giving up the OS is tough.

You might have better luck calling Apple customer service, but I doubt it. They will say you should have purchased AppleCare. If it is under 2 years, you could maybe see if your credit card offers an extended warranty that would cover you.

If you want to buy an XPS and put Linux, look at the developer edition -- it already comes with Ubuntu pre-installed.

But how will you play your iTunes music.

 

[McScooby]

Oh goodness me. There was an inherent issue which eventually led to a recall, and yet they were demanding £500?

I’m really disappointed with Apple for the first time. I’ve never had a gadget of theirs die in this way before. I’ve never had any of their phones die for me and whenever I’ve upgraded, my existing phone would still be working. My iPad from 2012 is still working. I just don’t understand what would have gone wrong this time.

Not quite, they wanted the £500 to repair, so I refused & left it in a “broken” state for about a year. The recall was then issued & I took it in then (in fairness if a future recall is introduced then they refund the amount you pay them) but that doesn’t soften the blow any. When it got ‘repaired’ with the same part (where it didn’t fix the issue) it failed further times over the course of 1.5years. My main issue was I bought it used otherwise consumer law would’ve got me a replacement.

 

[pshufd]

I think something is amiss with Apple's quality for sure.

iPhone 4 - used for 3 years with no issues.
iPhone 5s - used for 2.5 years with no issues.
iPhone SE - replaced multiple times due to quality issues.

Macbook Pro 2010 - used for 7 years with no issues.
Macbook Pro 2016/2017 replaced 4 units due to defects, eventually got a unit that worked. (I started in 2016 but eventually gave up and then waited till 2017.)

Only problem is their OS is still the best (IMO) and parts of the hardware (e.g. touchpad) are so much better than the competition. I could give up some on hardware, but giving up the OS is tough.

You might have better luck calling Apple customer service, but I doubt it. They will say you should have purchased AppleCare. If it is under 2 years, you could maybe see if your credit card offers an extended warranty that would cover you.

If you want to buy an XPS and put Linux, look at the developer edition -- it already comes with Ubuntu pre-installed.

But how will you play your iTunes music.

I have two 2007 MBPs that work fine. My iPhone 5 still works. My iPad 1 and 2 still work though are very slow. I have an iPod Nano 1 that still works. Also a Nano 5, iPod Touch 1, iPodt Touch 2 and iPod Touch 4 that still work. The 2011 and 2016-2018 - I just say no. Apple had a nice earnings report but it wasn't based on hardware. They need to get their act back together again.

 

[ApplesandOranges]

Over the last 15 years all of my Apple laptops were retired or sold due to old age. In all the years I have been using Apple laptops the only thing that ever went wrong on any of them was a bad hard drive in one of my white 2006 MacBooks. The drive didn't go bad until 2010. It was a hard drive with a spinning disk. I also eventually had to replace the battery on that same Macbook. Another thing to point out. Things went bad and I replaced the defective part myself. Not any more. I also had a black Macbook around the same time that never gave me issues. I've also owned several Macbook pros, three MacBook airs, and so on. No issues. Ever.

Not until 2019 did I start to have any issues. Just purchased a 2017 Macbook Pro 13" new at Best Buy a few weeks ago. Had a white line streak across the screen while using a browser. I immediately took it back considering the alleged issues with this model year. I now have a 2019 13", and for the first time ever I purchased Apple Care. Never needed it in the past, but it seems I do now.

It is my opinion Apple's current quality is not as reliable now as it was in years past.

 

[ghanwani]

I now have a 2019 13", and for the first time ever I purchased Apple Care. Never needed it in the past, but it seems I do now.

I usually wait till near the end of the first year of ownership to buy AC. I don't buy AC+, which must be bought within 60 days. I hope they don't stop offering AC.

 

[buran-energia]

I think something is amiss with Apple's quality for sure.

iPhone 4 - used for 3 years with no issues.
iPhone 5s - used for 2.5 years with no issues.
iPhone SE - replaced multiple times due to quality issues.

Macbook Pro 2010 - used for 7 years with no issues.
Macbook Pro 2016/2017 replaced 4 units due to defects, eventually got a unit that worked. (I started in 2016 but eventually gave up and then waited till 2017.)

There were faults even back then. You were just lucky you didn't get them or buy the faulty model.

My iphone 4s's wifi and bluetooth stopped working (due to overheating?).
Then some macbook models (2011?) had faulty GPUs, etc.

I guess many of these failures were due to overheating and more specifically because of new regulations forcing factories to use lead-free soldering. I wonder how many GPU failures were because of that change.

 

[Nomie]

I’ve been looking into making a claim for the costs of getting my device repaired, via the Consumer Rights Act 2015.

The burden of proof lies with me to demonstrate that there was an issue with the device and it wasn’t caused by me.

I’m a light MacBook user, mainly for word processing, browsing the net and emails. It’s never had any damage and is in good condition. When I booked it in, the guy at the Genius Bar said it was on good condition. On the booking form he wrote minor cleanable marks.

I was wondering if there’s any more I could take into consideration to demonstrate that the issue wasn’t caused by me?

 

[mick2]

A common way of doing this is by getting a report done by an independent PC repairer. In this case, its gonna be difficult as you're making the claim *after* having the fault fixed, so there's no fault for an independent to give an opinion on.
There's some general advice here but i'm not sure its gonna be easy for you to demonstrate a fault at this stage. The article mentions collecting reports of similar faults mentioned on social media etc, but the difficulty is in persuading Apple to accept this as sufficient evidence. You can take your claim to the small claims court or the Ombudsman, but you need to have a strong case to win with these and I'm not sure you have tbh.

 

[Nomie]

A common way of doing this is by getting a report done by an independent PC repairer. In this case, its gonna be difficult as you're making the claim *after* having the fault fixed, so there's no fault for an independent to give an opinion on.
There's some general advice here but i'm not sure its gonna be easy for you to demonstrate a fault at this stage. The article mentions collecting reports of similar faults mentioned on social media etc, but the difficulty is in persuading Apple to accept this as sufficient evidence. You can take your claim to the small claims court or the Ombudsman, but you need to have a strong case to win with these and I'm not sure you have tbh.

Thank you.

So started exploring avenues. The store refused to reimburse me because they say that I never reported the fault within 6 months of owning the computer. They claim consumer law requires me to report the fault within 6 months of owning the computer which is why they didn’t offer me the repair via consumer law in the first place. Sounds like a misrepresentation of the law on their part.

I spoke to Apple care who spoke to customer relations. Customer relations simply say it’s a fault with the logic board that needed to be replaced, and that’s that. They have no case to answer for.

 

[mick2]

Sounds like you've tried all the obvious options. At this point i'd probably chalk this one up to experience and walk away. Its not gonna be easy to 'prove' the failure was at their end. It sucks but it is what it is.