MacBook Hardware Flaws

[nickdj]

I have only had my macbook a couple days now and it is a great little machine. I am however noticing some possible physical flaws.

1. There is a slight gap between casing and keyboard area on left above the ports.
2. Seems to get pretty hot. (heard this was normal)
3. When macbook is closed the top half (display) seems a little loose and shifts slightly from side to side when pressure is applied at front corners. (noticed while whiping)

Are these things normal? Any feedback from new owners would be great.

 

[Sicarius]

From what I've heard, the screen/top casing is supposed to be a little loose. Something to do with the magnets, otherwise it'd be really hard to open. The heat is a wide-spread issue. Not sure about the keyboard though.

 

[iW00t]

It is all normal. If you encounter the same issues on a Dell you wouldn't even give it a second thought.

 

[CaptainCaveMann]

I have only had my macbook a couple days now and it is a great little machine. I am however noticing some possible physical flaws.

1. There is a slight gap between casing and keyboard area on left above the ports.
2. Seems to get pretty hot. (heard this was normal)
3. When macbook is closed the top half (display) seems a little loose and shifts slightly from side to side when pressure is applied at front corners. (noticed while whiping)

Are these things normal? Any feedback from new owners would be great.

Can you post some pictures please of what your talking about?

 

[iBorg20181]

I have only had my macbook a couple days now and it is a great little machine. I am however noticing some possible physical flaws.

1. There is a slight gap between casing and keyboard area on left above the ports.
2. Seems to get pretty hot. (heard this was normal)
3. When macbook is closed the top half (display) seems a little loose and shifts slightly from side to side when pressure is applied at front corners. (noticed while whiping)

Are these things normal? Any feedback from new owners would be great.

#3 sure doesn't sound normal - do you mean that the lid's hinges are loose, or that the screen itself moves within the lid?

iBorg

 

[Abstract]

Can you post some pictures please of what your talking about?

I'm assuming you're only asking for photos of #1, because #2 and 3 are a bit difficult to photograph.



I think 2 of these observations are indeed real issues, and not someone being too whiney. There's no gap on the top left of my keyboard, and when my laptop lid is closed, the lid is as stiff as a........a....really long metal rod. No wiggling.

 

[Nuks]

#3 happens to my macbook. The top feels... flimsy when its closed. You can kind of move it from side to side... I thought it was normal but I guess not. I just figured it was because the magnets weren't as strong as a physical latch.

 

[QCassidy352]

the lid on my MB doesn't move when closed... that doesn't sound normal.

 

[dmw007]

the lid on my MB doesn't move when closed... that doesn't sound normal.

No, that does not sound normal to me either.

 

[dalvin200]

No, that does not sound normal to me either.

my one has an ever so slight movement if you hold it on thje right side of the book..
not enought to bother me, but obviously, if it fell apart, i will be calling apple

 

[nickdj]

To explain further.

On the gap: When looking at the left side from the side. (not looking down) you can notice a slight gap. where the glossy casing meets the off white inner. Very small, almost unnoticable.

Loose Cover: Loose is probably the wrong word. But when the macbook is closed if you were to place your fingers at the front corners and apply pressure from side to side there is a little give. The give is only a matter of millimeters.

Normal?

 

[andrewmulligan]

I have only had my macbook a couple days now and it is a great little machine. I am however noticing some possible physical flaws.

1. There is a slight gap between casing and keyboard area on left above the ports.
2. Seems to get pretty hot. (heard this was normal)
3. When macbook is closed the top half (display) seems a little loose and shifts slightly from side to side when pressure is applied at front corners. (noticed while whiping)

Are these things normal? Any feedback from new owners would be great.

1. I have that as well. A friend with a MB had this happen as well and the Apple Store repaired. I'm taking it in soon to get new palmrests and such so I will bring this up then.
2. Normal. Make sure both firmware updates are installed.
3. That happens to me as well. I got over it fast. ;-)

 

[andrewmulligan]

I'm assuming you're only asking for photos of #1, because #2 and 3 are a bit difficult to photograph.



I think 2 of these observations are indeed real issues, and not someone being too whiney. There's no gap on the top left of my keyboard, and when my laptop lid is closed, the lid is as stiff as a........a....really long metal rod. No wiggling.

I've tried to photograph this but I lack a dSLR and a Macro lens *crosses fingers for chrismtas ;-)* I'll try again with my camera. It's really not that wide.

 

[andrewmulligan]

It is all normal. If you encounter the same issues on a Dell you wouldn't even give it a second thought.

We expect more from Apple.

 

[scott523]

For my MacBook, I'd say the white casing along the side of the ports/SuperDrive aren't firmly secure (you press the white casing along the left side inwards and you can see the plastic moves under the gray bezel.

Besides that, I'd say there's some flaw with the AirPort. The AirPort works flawlessly at my home network since there is minimal security protection (64-bit WEP encryption). However, at my university, they use 802.11b along with 128-bit encryption and a proxy. Here's my situation:

1. Connected to Temple University wireless (wireless4owls).
2. I put my computer to sleep (disconnects from 'wireless4owls').
3. I wake up my computer.
4. The AirPort 'sees' the Temple University 'wireless4owls' network name but refuses to connect while displaying an error message, "There was an error joining the network 'wireless4owls'."

To wrap this up, my previous CD MacBook did not have this problem connecting.

 

[clicq]

On my new (got it today!) Macbook, I haven't noticed the two fit/finish issues you were describing. The area near the ports where the bright white plastic meets the grayish plastic is flush, though if I push in on the area near the ports, it will deflect about 0.5mm (though I see the same thing on my DS lite). When my screen is closed if i push on a corner, the screen moves *maybe* 0.5mm, but it feels pretty rigid to me. As for heat, mine gets warm in normal usage, but it's comparable to most PC laptops I've used.

 

[Jahz]

I have only had my macbook a couple days now and it is a great little machine. I am however noticing some possible physical flaws.

1. There is a slight gap between casing and keyboard area on left above the ports.

I just noticed this now because you called my attention to it. It's hard to even feel the overhang unless you are looking for it. Not visible to the eye on my Mac. This is ridiculously minor... not even worth thinking about...

2. Seems to get pretty hot. (heard this was normal)

Lies... The fans on my 15" MBP C2D are usually at 2000-2500 RPM. They are nearly silent. At that speed, the machine is at 58 C while laying on my bed (thats about the worst place for ventilation). If I open smcFanControl and crank the fans up to 6000 rpm (loud) the laptop drops to very cool 43 C.

I don't know if you guys think these temps are "HOT"... I just upgraded from a PowerBook G4 and I swear that laptop run at 70 C idle! I felt the G4 and then felt this machine and this one felt almost cold in comparison.

3. When macbook is closed the top half (display) seems a little loose and shifts slightly from side to side when pressure is applied at front corners. (noticed while whiping)
Are these things normal? Any feedback from new owners would be great.

Not on mine...
I would say these things are normal, but also that they don't really make a difference. If you cover latch is defective, that sucks. The other two points are things that you will get use to in a day or two and never think about again. These machines are GREAT! So fast in XP (boot camp) and OSX.

OKay. I'm typing this in XP and I really want to reboot to OSX because im starting to get dizzy from this crappy UI. Stop looking for reasons to not buy a MB/P

 

[nickdj]

Just want to clarify the gap with a link to a pic.
http://www.appledefects.com/wiki/index.php?title=Image:Macbook-heatseperation.jpg

 

[4np]

ouch! that's quite a gap!

 

[dan-o-mac]

I have only had my macbook a couple days now and it is a great little machine. I am however noticing some possible physical flaws.

1. There is a slight gap between casing and keyboard area on left above the ports.
2. Seems to get pretty hot. (heard this was normal)
3. When macbook is closed the top half (display) seems a little loose and shifts slightly from side to side when pressure is applied at front corners. (noticed while whiping)

Are these things normal? Any feedback from new owners would be great.

1. I don't have that gap and I wouldn't consider that normal. The left side of my MacBook is slightly buckled outwards, you can actually push it in.

2. They are somewhat hot. Be careful with the new firmware, quite a few people are reporting temperature increase. you can always download SMCFanConrtol to adjust your fan speed. http://www.macupdate.com/info.php/id/23049

3. My MacBook has the same problem, and I was wondering the same thing.

 

[nickdj]

Dan o Mac: is yours loose or just has some give when you apply pressure to the sides? Seems like it could be normal and not a defect, but if we have the one in a hundred that have it than thats a prob. I would be curious to know how prevelant it is.

As for the pic i posted referring to the gap. Mine is not that prevelant but that is the area and type of gap. mine is much smaller. that is an extreme case.

 

[dan-o-mac]

Dan o Mac: is yours loose or just has some give when you apply pressure to the sides? Seems like it could be normal and not a defect, but if we have the one in a hundred that have it than thats a prob. I would be curious to know how prevelant it is.

As for the pic i posted referring to the gap. Mine is not that prevelant but that is the area and type of gap. mine is much smaller. that is an extreme case.

Mine has give when you apply pressure, not so much on the right as the left. There is a slight bow around the bottom left side of the laptop it sticks out just a little more than the rest.

 

[nickdj]

i think i have the exact same thing. except mine bows out a little on the right. I wonder if this is very common?
How long ago did you get yours?
Do you think you will bring it in?

 

[nickdj]

The more i read about macbook issues the more i find wrong with mine. I'm now noticing 2 black pixels.

What the hell Apple!

 

[whawhat]

i think i have the exact same thing. except mine bows out a little on the right. I wonder if this is very common?
How long ago did you get yours?
Do you think you will bring it in?

yeah, i have this with my black macbook as well. i am content for now, however, as i don't have any other of the issues to speak of (knock on wood)