2020 Macbook Air won't boot - Opinions on repair

[shzi88]

We have a 2020 MBA (base model) that has been sitting in our house unused since we purchased it. It's essentially brand new. This week I tried booting it up, but it wouldn't boot past the welcome screen, the fan runs hot, and the machine locks up. Took it the Genius Bar who suspects it may be the logic board. Since the device is out of warranty, Apple offered a flat rate price of $448 + tax for any repair on the device.

Apple's repair doesn't seem to be worth it considering we paid $999 for the machine when it was brand new. Is it worth pursuing a repair from a third party?

 

[Bigwaff]

Apple's repair doesn't seem to be worth it considering we paid $999 for the machine when it was brand new. Is it worth pursuing a repair from a third party?

Hard to say.. is it an Intel 2020 MBA? If so, the repair costs are probably more than the resale value. You can probably get a pretty decent price for it on eBay. Parts is parts... if it is a M1 MBA, the repair costs probably come close to the current resale value. If Apple performs the repair, then the repairs are covered for 1 year under AppleCare. A M1 MBA w/ AppleCare is a really great entry level laptop.

 

[shzi88]

Hi, thanks for the advice. Yes it's an Intel 2020 MBA. I'd hate to write off what is essentially an unused machine but it looks like the cost of repair isn't worthwhile and I may be better off considering purchasing a new one.

 

[MacCheetah3]

Took it the Genius Bar who suspects it may be the logic board.

Did they state why that conclusion?

This week I tried booting it up, but it wouldn't boot past the welcome screen, the fan runs hot, and the machine locks up.

Have you done troubleshooting, for example:

Use macOS Recovery on an Intel-based Mac

Learn how to use macOS Recovery on an Intel-based Mac.

support.apple.com

If you can get the Mac to successfully boot into recovery and it performs fine (e.g., no freezing), it will give some hope. If things are okay there, while you shouldn’t have needed to on a ‘new’ Mac, you could do a reinstall. Additionally — while I doubt it’s the cause of instability — I suggest using the Terminal app to check battery stats/info. Even though it shouldn’t be critical as battery tech and maintenance has progressively improved over the years (and you were able to power on the Mac), there is a possibility the battery is not performing well enough after a few years of being dormant.

Store it half-charged when you store it long term.​

If you want to store your device long term, two key factors will affect the overall health of your battery: the environmental temperature and the percentage of charge on the battery when it’s powered down for storage. Therefore, we recommend the following:

• Do not fully charge or fully discharge your device’s battery — charge it to around 50%. If you store a device when its battery is fully discharged, the battery could fall into a deep discharge state, which renders it incapable of holding a charge. Conversely, if you store it fully charged for an extended period of time, the battery may lose some capacity, leading to shorter battery life.
• Power down the device to avoid additional battery use.
• Place your device in a cool, moisture-free environment that’s less than 90° F (32° C).
• If you plan to store your device for longer than six months, charge it to 50% every six months.

Depending on how long you store your device, it may be in a low-battery state when you remove it from long-term storage. After it’s removed from storage, it may require 20 minutes of charging with the original adapter before you can use it.

 

[Fishrrman]

I would not pay $448 (plus taxes) to fix what you have.

If you need another Mac laptop, take it back to the Apple Store and see what you can get for it as a trade-in.

Then... buy something new.

And THIS TIME ... Don't leave it sitting in the box for years before you use it.

 

[BanjoDudeAhoy]

I’d say it’s worth just asking a third party repair shop what it would cost if they did it. I generally do that with repairs. Asking is free, after all.

Apart from that, you may get more than an Apple trade-in if you sell it on eBay. People (successfully) sell all sorts of broken MacBooks on there.