AAAAAAHHHHHHH NOOOO!!!! THE PAIN!!

[Mechcozmo]

Nope, no pets, it's just me!

I hate to think that I might have done this...I'm trying to think really hard if I slammed my bag into anything, or did something that could cause a dent like that, but I just can't! Oh well...

Can't hurt, I guess I'll call Apple. If they say "we'll fix it," fine. If not, I understand.

It wasn't you. My PowerBook did the SAME THING. 12" Rev. C.

But it did it on both sides. That entire front part was kinda bendy.

They fixed it though... It took about an hour and a half of talking with various people but they finally said "OK, we will fix it."

Don't make up stuff. Tell them how you treat it, etc. And don't say you treat it like a baby... that sounds like crap. I told them that I keep it in a laptop bag, it started a few months ago, and then it spread, and that was when I called them.

 

[Bern]

I had the Rev C PowerBook and it did get very hot indeed, but never warped because of it. A nasty accident caused a significant dent in the lid and along the ports side so I sold it cheap.

I now have the Rev D and it is so much cooler. When not in use I keep it in a Shinza Zero Shock Sleeve which in my opinion protects it better than any other sleeve on the market.

 

[cmvsm]

Maybe something crawled in from the outside. Think about it...

 

[jefhatfield]

being a computer techie for six years, i have to say i have seen everything

that thing, whether you want to admit it or not, was dropped

somebody used it and dropped it when you were not looking...i hate to say it, but somebody is not being completely honest with you

 

[mcgarry]

I got my rev. C 12" PB in October. It has been physically great, I have no real complaints. BUT, as I mentioned in this previous thread on PB "perfectionism," it does have a small gap in the trim at the same spot as your apparent warping. Now, I have not noticed my small gap growing at all, but I wonder if it could get like yours ever ...

If not, I can easily keep it in perspective, as there are all sorts of such minor imperfections (and then some) on every PC laptop I have owned or used, as well as the iBooks. Look hard enough and you can always find something.

If so, I will follow iGary's advice and complain until it gets fixed.

Did you have any possible warning signs?

 

[jefhatfield]

mcgarry,

is the gap/warp/dent as big as the one in the picture?

that looks like a dropped, or banged laptop to me

 

[mcgarry]

mcgarry,

is the gap/warp/dent as big as the one in the picture?

...

No. In the picture, you can see black between the trim and the aluminum, mine is nowhere near that big (plus, he says the pic was after he'd banged it back into place). I can post a pic of my own if necessary.

Anyway, my gap allows a piece of paper in (only as deep as the width of the trim itself), but not my thumbnail. So it's pretty small.

EDIT: I took a picture. I have to admit, it looks worse in the picture than it does to my eyes, but this is an extreme closeup:

EDIT2: to better put in in context, here's a pic from an angle similar to his. My imperfection is decidedly minor, and invisible from this angle:

My point about all this was did his start like mine and get worse? Mine has not grown at all, as far as I know.

 

[Mechcozmo]

being a computer techie for six years, i have to say i have seen everything

that thing, whether you want to admit it or not, was dropped

somebody used it and dropped it when you were not looking...i hate to say it, but somebody is not being completely honest with you

I was afraid I had banged it at first. But then the other side started open and the original side got wider.

I was kinda scared because it was just kinda sitting on my desk or on my desk at school when it "grew" them. It was much like falling damage, but when I showed the AppleCare guy (emailed pictures) that one side, the metal was stressed and the other side it wasn't, he agreed with me.

But I'm not encouraging you to lie about your PowerBook because some guy on the internet had a similar issue. If you really didn't do anything, then start taking pictures. Measure it. Mine grew worse.

 

[puckhead193]

on my pb on the right near the palm rest, where the plastic meets the Al....do you know what i mean..... that is out of shape, if i put my finger nail in between and it clicks so their is a small opening (it doesn't happen on the other side) Also when i close my screen if i press down on the screen it can go down more, and its not even, should i be concered about this....I never dropped it (i swear)

 

[Mechcozmo]

Alright... here is what happened to my PowerBook. Only one side, but it was like this on both sides. Sorry about the extreme compression too...

 

[minesgeek]

Do you really think it gets so hot it warped it? Apple was supposed to have all the heat and warping issues solved by now. Its also warped on the right side. The 12 inch pbs are supposed to get the hottest on the left palm rest above the hdd.

yeah, i can second that emotion and it makes sense. apple agrees as well because there is a nice vent on the left wall of the case next to that hd

 

[CaptainCaveMann]

No. In the picture, you can see black between the trim and the aluminum, mine is nowhere near that big (plus, he says the pic was after he'd banged it back into place). I can post a pic of my own if necessary.

Anyway, my gap allows a piece of paper in (only as deep as the width of the trim itself), but not my thumbnail. So it's pretty small.

EDIT: I took a picture. I have to admit, it looks worse in the picture than it does to my eyes, but this is an extreme closeup:

EDIT2: to better put in in context, here's a pic from an angle similar to his. My imperfection is decidedly minor, and invisible from this angle:

My point about all this was did his start like mine and get worse? Mine has not grown at all, as far as I know.

I went to the Apple store today, and all the new 12 inch pbs on display all had that exact same gap in the exact same place. Its only on the right side as well. Weird. They all must be like that. I even tried to push it down to seal the gap and it worked. I pressed down and the metal closed together. Then when i let go it bounced back up and the gap remained. By the way, after playing with them for a while, those suckers are really warm. Not on the bottom, not on the top, but ALL OVER.

 

[mcgarry]

I went to the Apple store today, and all the new 12 inch pbs on display all had that exact same gap in the exact same place. Its only on the right side as well. Weird. They all must be like that. I even tried to push it down to seal the gap and it worked. I pressed down and the metal closed together. Then when i let go it bounced back up and the gap remained. By the way, after playing with them for a while, those suckers are really warm. Not on the bottom, not on the top, but ALL OVER.

Yeah, I really think it's nothing ... unless it grows into what that other guy had. I've seen worse stuff on most every other laptop I've ever seen, if not in the same exact fashion, in the form of creaks or misalignment or whatever. I really think something as small as this gets noticed all the more precisely because the computer as a whole is so nicely consructed.

Like I've said, the whole warmth thing is super-subjective. I mean it, my PB has never bothered me with any warmth/heat issues. The part that gets the most hot, as I've said, is on top by where the power cord plugs in ... where I never have any reason to touch, anyway. I'm not alone in this impression either, but neither are you in yours. If it's too warm for you, don't get it. On the other hand, if you're expecting to be a certain way and having certain expectations going in, your experience could be colored for the worse. By the way, in my limited experience, the iBooks run cooler, but P-M and P4-based laptops tend to run hotter. But, I've only used a few.

 

[CaptainCaveMann]

Yeah, I really think it's nothing ... unless it grows into what that other guy had. I've seen worse stuff on most every other laptop I've ever seen, if not in the same exact fashion, in the form of creaks or misalignment or whatever. I really think something as small as this gets noticed all the more precisely because the computer as a whole is so nicely consructed.

Like I've said, the whole warmth thing is super-subjective. I mean it, my PB has never bothered me with any warmth/heat issues. The part that gets the most hot, as I've said, is on top by where the power cord plugs in ... where I never have any reason to touch, anyway. I'm not alone in this impression either, but neither are you in yours. If it's too warm for you, don't get it. On the other hand, if you're expecting to be a certain way and having certain expectations going in, your experience could be colored for the worse. By the way, in my limited experience, the iBooks run cooler, but P-M and P4-based laptops tend to run hotter. But, I've only used a few.

I know the ibook runs cooler, since i own one. Also, I decided not to buy the 12 inch powerbook. Simply because the heat it produces is unacceptable to me. But hey thats just me. I have a pretty tight budget so i tend to be tight with my money. So i probably have higher standards for what i spend it on.

 

[JFreak]

*sigh*

when the 12" powerbooks were first introduced, i said to my friend that apple has released new ibooks in powerbook disguise. i was so right, these are not powerbooks at all. they just look like the real thing but really aren't.

my 15" 1.25GHz powerbook has taken so much on-road use and has so often had to handle +80% cpu loads for +12 hours a day (i use protools, that eats cpu cycles for breakfast), and the thing never gets too warm, ever.

i really hope apple fixes those errors, no matter if they look like dropping damage. the 12" powerbook model is imho very badly designed and shouldn't even exist...

 

[mcgarry]

... So i probably have higher standards for what i spend it on.

To clarify, you mean higher standards for heat sensitivity, which puts you in quite a niche market indeed, nothing wrong with that. A consumer with higher standards for performance, for example, would get the most powerful, best-spec'd computer their budget allowed. Earlier, you sounded a bit like a keyboard-feel-priority person yourself, which is why you said you were ditching the iBook: and that too is not an issue that everyone agrees is critical to laptop choice, but maybe to you it was important, if not as important as heat.

Anyway, you think the computers you saw get too hot; I think mine doesn't. Who's right? Both of us: you're right for your tastes, and I'm right for mine. No one should have to use a computer that makes them uncomfortable, if they have a choice in the matter. But as far as either of us can tell from these boards-- which can otherwise be quite the complaint magnets-- most people are not upset with the temperature of their 12" PBs (except maybe the rev. A folks). Sorry it didn't work out for you; you don't need me to tell you that the iBooks are fine machines anyway.

 

[Chappers]

Bummer. You start with perfect and then.........

I guess we all feel for you.

 

[chaosbunny]

*sigh*

when the 12" powerbooks were first introduced, i said to my friend that apple has released new ibooks in powerbook disguise. i was so right, these are not powerbooks at all. they just look like the real thing but really aren't.

my 15" 1.25GHz powerbook has taken so much on-road use and has so often had to handle +80% cpu loads for +12 hours a day (i use protools, that eats cpu cycles for breakfast), and the thing never gets too warm, ever.

i really hope apple fixes those errors, no matter if they look like dropping damage. the 12" powerbook model is imho very badly designed and shouldn't even exist...

I have my 12" Rev A now for almost 2 years and it never let me down doing my design work and occasional gaming. You can't say they should not exist just because you don't like it. Different people - different needs. I often travel to clients for presentations with my pb where I have prints, dummies etc. in my bag too, so the size issue is an important one for me. Personally, I would never buy an iMac for various reasons, but I'd never say they should not exist. There are always people with different aesthetics/needs/likings than yourself and I think "should not exist" comments are never justified.

 

[aaandrewww]

Just got a Rev D 12" and the same thing happened to mine. After about a week and a half there is a slight buckling of the metal right above the optical drive. I didn't drop it or bump it or anything like that. From the moment I got it my PB rocked on flat surfaces and I think this has a similar cause. A warped body + heat causing a buckling of the metal. I'm taking it to the local Apple Store tomorrow I'll let you all know how it goes but I am predicting that it will get fixed. Seems like a rare but not unheard of fault and they should be able to fix it in no time.

-Andrew

 

[ham_man]

Sorry for what happen to your PB, as I myself would not know what to do if that happened to my PB. I would suggest calling AC and going crazy to their people until they agree to give you a new one.

 

[nightdweller25]

And don't get discouraged, it's jsut bad luck, my PowerBook (Rev. D 12-inch With 768 RAM) is literally P E R F E C T in every single way

 

[WinterMute]

*sigh*

when the 12" powerbooks were first introduced, i said to my friend that apple has released new ibooks in powerbook disguise. i was so right, these are not powerbooks at all. they just look like the real thing but really aren't.

my 15" 1.25GHz powerbook has taken so much on-road use and has so often had to handle +80% cpu loads for +12 hours a day (i use protools, that eats cpu cycles for breakfast), and the thing never gets too warm, ever.

i really hope apple fixes those errors, no matter if they look like dropping damage. the 12" powerbook model is imho very badly designed and shouldn't even exist...

My 17" 1Ghz has been doing much the same thing for nearly 2 years now, AND it's been dropped, it's corroding where my right hand rests, all the feet fell off and it runs hot under loading (usually ProTools or Final Cut).

The Power supply input is dented in where my dog caught his paw in the cable and dragged it off the sofa, and the trim on that corner is lifted.

This is a tool, it wears it's scars with pride, the more dinged it gets the better I like it, the Al machines are tough enough, it rides in a Brenthaven every day across London, it's used in lectures in studios and on location and it's never complained.

I love this machine, it's getting a bit slow now, but I'll have to think very carefully before I change it.

People are too precious about keeping their tools perfect.

 

[aaandrewww]

I took mine to the Apple Store today and had no problems. The tech said that it was heat damaged and it was sent back to Apple for repairs. He also said that if it wasn't custom (I added more RAM) I would have been able to just walk out of the store with a brand new one. Didn't seem that surprised at the warping and apologized for having to send back my new computer. All in all a painless experience. I would sign up for an appointment before I left though because otherwise I would have had to wait for a half hour.



-Andrew

PS also said I should get it back within a week.

 

[orijinal]

i notice a gap above the ports on my 12" notably above the firewire/ethernet ports. is this the same for others?

 

[FocusAndEarnIt]

My 17" 1Ghz has been doing much the same thing for nearly 2 years now, AND it's been dropped, it's corroding where my right hand rests, all the feet fell off and it runs hot under loading (usually ProTools or Final Cut).

The Power supply input is dented in where my dog caught his paw in the cable and dragged it off the sofa, and the trim on that corner is lifted.

This is a tool, it wears it's scars with pride, the more dinged it gets the better I like it, the Al machines are tough enough, it rides in a Brenthaven every day across London, it's used in lectures in studios and on location and it's never complained.

I love this machine, it's getting a bit slow now, but I'll have to think very carefully before I change it.

People are too precious about keeping their tools perfect.

Boy am I glad I got an iBook

I know that doesn't make the situation any better...