Issue with a 2017 Pro turning on, should I take it to a different tech?

[Jesuslizardjr.]

Hi, I have a Macbook pro 2017 (touch bar model) it's been on the fritz for awhile with certain USB ports stopping working and the touch bar completely disappearing now and again, the battery has long been dead and it basically only runs wired into the mains.

Last week it started turning off completely and then would not power on at all regardless what charger was used- to note it wouldn't power on at all, I can tell as the trackpad wont click on. On occasion it would turn on then would shut down on login before it managed to load, on a couple of occasions it has managed to login and works normally until it powers off and wont turn on again. I havent managed to boot into safe mode as i haven't managed to turn it on recently as that would be my first go to.

I've passed it to a third party tech to check what's wrong with it, he says USB boards were working (therefore powering the mac) and thinks it's a software issue. Now to me, i've had macs die on me for software reasons in the past and it's never stopped them from powering up (usually resulting in the ? folder) so to me this is a hardware issue clearly- which is important as I really need the data on the harddrive.

Am I wrong to doubt the tech? Should I hand it over to someone else to take a look at? To me if the CPU is dead or something along those lines I can just buy the same model and put this harddrive in it. Does anyone have any experience with a similar issue, or thinks maybe this could be caused by a software issue? as I don't see how a corrupt HD could stop the computer from powering on.

 

[Bigwaff]

I'm surprised you haven't considered replacing the battery. Dead battery can lead to weird behaviors. How do you know the battery isn't swelling?

 

[Jesuslizardjr.]

I'm surprised you haven't considered replacing the battery. Dead battery can lead to weird behaviors. How do you know the battery isn't swelling?

I dont, I assume the tech wouldve noticed and mentioned that? Would a swollen battery cause the entire thing to not turn on? The battery's been dead for years and is not easily replaceable on this model.

 

[DeltaMac]

The flash storage on your 2017 MacBookPro is nicely soldered to the logic board, so moving the storage chip to another Mac laptop is not a practical option.
A completely dead battery is likely affecting performance, even if it could boot... (CPU likely will not run at full speed)

You already know this laptop needs a new battery. I suspect that a fresh battery will not fix the problem you have now (won't power on at all?), and ultimately, you will need a replacement logic board, in addition to a battery.
I suspect that your repair tech said "It's a software problem", when he meant "It's a firmware problem".
You can't fix a software problem (probably by attempting to reinstall from a bootable USB installer), when the laptop apparently will not successfully POST (Power On Self Test). With that in mind, do you ever get a boot chime, even after you try an NVRAM reset? (Press and release the power button, immediately hold Option-Command-R-P. You should hear a boot chime. KEEP HOLDING the same 4 keys, until you hear the boot chime 2 more times. If you don't hear any boot chime, continue to hold the keys for 2 full minutes, when you can give up, and release the keys. (It's not going anywhere) If you DO get a boot chime, continue to hold for 2 more chimes. Then, release all keys, except for the Option key. You should get the bootpicker screen. Click on your drive, then press enter. It should continue to boot.
Let us know what you find out...

 

[Jesuslizardjr.]

The flash storage on your 2017 MacBookPro is nicely soldered to the logic board, so moving the storage chip to another Mac laptop is not a practical option.
A completely dead battery is likely affecting performance, even if it could boot... (CPU likely will not run at full speed)

You already know this laptop needs a new battery. I suspect that a fresh battery will not fix the problem you have now (won't power on at all?), and ultimately, you will need a replacement logic board, in addition to a battery.
I suspect that your repair tech said "It's a software problem", when he meant "It's a firmware problem".
You can't fix a software problem (probably by attempting to reinstall from a bootable USB installer), when the laptop apparently will not successfully POST (Power On Self Test). With that in mind, do you ever get a boot chime, even after you try an NVRAM reset? (Press and release the power button, immediately hold Option-Command-R-P. You should hear a boot chime. KEEP HOLDING the same 4 keys, until you hear the boot chime 2 more times. If you don't hear any boot chime, continue to hold the keys for 2 full minutes, when you can give up, and release the keys. (It's not going anywhere) If you DO get a boot chime, continue to hold for 2 more chimes. Then, release all keys, except for the Option key. You should get the bootpicker screen. Click on your drive, then press enter. It should continue to boot.
Let us know what you find out...

Thanks for this, no I can't reset NVRAM or SMC as it simply wont power on, so no boot chime nothing, it's literally a brick- which is why I highly doubt it's a software issue or a firmware issue, I imagine you're right in it's the logic board, or some chip that's burnt out.

The tech has said it's been powering on every time for him currently, although Im skeptical of his feedback so ill give the NVRAM and SMC reset ago when I get it back alongside safe boot then hand it off to a component grade tech as id like to give this guy the benefit of the doubt but i think he's a bit out of his depth with this.

 

[Fishrrman]

It's time to be looking for a replacement.

 

[DeltaMac]

When you try to test the MBPro - have something plugged in to a USB port that will show that there is power to that port when you try the boot test. USB thumb drive, with an LED; or some other external drive, or any USB device that has a power, or activity LED. Most should have a power LED of some kind. If you don't get any evidence of power, be sure to re-check with another power adapter.
Along with THAT, does the LED on the magsafe connector come on? Should be red or orange, should NOT be green, unless it does not detect the dead battery, then it might be green (meaning that it supplies power), SO, does the power adapter show an LED when plugged in to your MBPro?

 

[Jesuslizardjr.]

It's time to be looking for a replacement.

...thanks, very helpful.

 

[Jesuslizardjr.]

When you try to test the MBPro - have something plugged in to a USB port that will show that there is power to that port when you try the boot test. USB thumb drive, with an LED; or some other external drive, or any USB device that has a power, or activity LED. Most should have a power LED of some kind. If you don't get any evidence of power, be sure to re-check with another power adapter.
Along with THAT, does the LED on the magsafe connector come on? Should be red or orange, should NOT be green, unless it does not detect the dead battery, then it might be green (meaning that it supplies power), SO, does the power adapter show an LED when plugged in to your MBPro?

This macbook charges via USB-C, not magsafe.. it's the A1706 model- 2017.
The USB boards are working fine, the tech has tested them. They were intermittently not working leading up to this power outage. (a multi meter he said shows they all work)

 

[DeltaMac]

Good to know that plugging in the power adapter provides power to the circuits.
Measuring voltage at the ports seems like a good sign...
Did the tech tell you if video appears to come on (screen lights up).
Did the tech get ANY response, such as a boot chime, when he tried an NVRAM reset?