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chopstick2000

macrumors newbie
Original poster
Aug 7, 2007
14
0
Milwaukee, WI
so last night i am sitting, doing something or other as i usually do, and CRASH. from the shelf above, my table-top painting easel comes flinging downward. my immediate concern: the oil painting i have been working on for a week or two is face-down on the carpet. i pick it up, examine in, and—thankfully—it is unharmed. i stand up to put the easel back on the shelf with the painting atop it as it was before it fell, and my roommate makes the exclamation preceded by an expletive, "your computer!"

i look down to my precious macbook pro to see a horrific dent on the right corner palmrest, right above the superdrive. the dent itself is a dark crease about an inch across, and the resulting ripple of destruction formed a wave of aluminum across the right corner edge of my computer. what's more, the aluminum strip above the superdrive opening has bowed downward, barring the entrance and exit of DVDs.

alas, my macbook, which had been just as shiny and pretty as it was when i received it in the mail in august, has been defiled. everything seems to work okay, except that whole i-can't-use-CDs thing, and of course the aesthetics are ruined. it's almost like having a dell laptop now. :(

i have an appointment at the genius bar tomorrow... i assume this isn't covered by warranty, which genuinely sucks. anyone have a clue how much it might cost to repair?
 
Ultimately...

oh my, those are almost too painful to view

Ouch.. :eek: Ultimately the Macbook Pro, being Aluminum, may have absorbed a fair amount of Shock while sustaining the damage shown... a plastic Case would have undoubtedly Shattered!!

Internally the Drive may actually still work, depending upon "the depth of the Destruction"... That being said, it will likely mean some Fancy Metal Working to find out... most likely via Authorized Repair/ Apple Store I guess..??!!! If you feel Dangerous and Adventurous, I know there are some Online Help Videos which show the Dismantling of a MBP... might be worth a try to see what you can before "shelling out the Big Bucks!!"... Somewhere like this:

http://www.ifixit.com/Guide/Mac/MacBook-Pro/85 (Old series; not sure if exactly the same>>??) or also:

http://media.macsales.com/medres.html

Good luck and Please advise how it goes!! :(
 
wow, I never thought pictures of some metal would make me cringe.

I hope you don't have to spend too much money for repairs. let us know what Apple says about it! I'm really interested to know how this goes
 
I share your pain...

I used DTT to get all 4 case parts after dropping my MBP. (topcase, bottomcase, lid and bezel.) It cost about $820 all told.

I did the repair work myself. It was a serious bitch and required a lot of focus. Find online instructions before attempting to disassemble it yourself.

The happy news is the machine is as good as new! It got dropped AGAIN two months later...this time only the 2 bottom case parts dented. Got them (again from DTT) and again good as new. You'd never know.

GOOD LUCK
 
You know from the picts it looks it might be fixable enough to at least get the drive working again with some dismantling and bending and straightening the metal back out that is. Probably could do some with a rubber mallet. However it will never look as perfect as it used too ;)
 
If you can get the cd drive working alright, the topcase is a really simple swap so if you buy a replacement it'll fix alot of the dent it seems.

the best of luck, makes me feel lucky that my drop only crippled my lid latch.
 
I share your pain...

I used DTT to get all 4 case parts after dropping my MBP. (topcase, bottomcase, lid and bezel.) It cost about $820 all told.

I did the repair work myself. It was a serious bitch and required a lot of focus. Find online instructions before attempting to disassemble it yourself.

The happy news is the machine is as good as new! It got dropped AGAIN two months later...this time only the 2 bottom case parts dented. Got them (again from DTT) and again good as new. You'd never know.

GOOD LUCK
it seems you're the proud owner of the most expensive stock MacBokPro :eek:
 
it seems you're the proud owner of the most expensive stock MacBokPro :eek:

That's true...but it was cheaper than the quoted price from Apple to repair it! They wanted to see it first and said it would be at least $1000.

Rebuilding it was stressful, but having done it twice now I am pretty confident I could replace any part.
 
Look on the bright side: if your laptop had been closed, your display would be done for.
 
Look on the bright side: if your laptop had been closed, your display would be done for.
very true; thanks for the optimism!

--------

thanks for the messages, guys. unfortunately, the apple store wouldn't let this slide under warranty (i thought it best not to make up some elaborate story about how apple's defective aluminum is the real culprit, or some nonsense. oh, and the poor-college-student card didn't appear to have any effect)... the genius i talked to was very sympathetic though, and recommended another store that probably could do the repair cheaper than the apple store, and would not void the warranty. (not that a warranty ever did me much good...)

anyway, costs. for your info, outside warranty apple charges:

top chassis: $233 to replace
bottom chassis: $186 to replace
repair cost for top chassis only: $50
repair cost for both: $135

i have, through my girder-bending skills (futurama, anyone?), slightly un-bowed the aluminum strip of the bottom chassis enough so that a DVD can slide in and out of the drive... so that works fine. so in the end, the damage seems purely aesthetic. a real shame, but it could have been much, much worse.

:apple:
 
Insurance

Do you have Homeowner's or Renter's insurance? I don't want to make an incorrect assumption, but if you are a student, are you covered on your parents' policy?

I think this is worth filing a claim. You will have to pay your deductable. Ask if filing a claim will increase your premiums. It might not be worth it.

FYI - insurance isn't that expensive. IF you don't have it, get it. "Call out" or list your computer equipment with the policy. Ask if you need to list your iPod, external drives, TV, XBox, etc.

Be sure to get REPLACEMENT VALUE INSURANCE.

This way, if your stuff is stolen or burned or whatever, you get it replaced. There isn't a depreciated value for old stuff, you just get it replaced. If you paid $2500 for a TV six years ago, you get to replace it with a $2500 TV.

Good luck.
 
I share your pain...

I used DTT to get all 4 case parts after dropping my MBP. (topcase, bottomcase, lid and bezel.) It cost about $820 all told.

I did the repair work myself. It was a serious bitch and required a lot of focus. Find online instructions before attempting to disassemble it yourself.

The happy news is the machine is as good as new! It got dropped AGAIN two months later...this time only the 2 bottom case parts dented. Got them (again from DTT) and again good as new. You'd never know.

GOOD LUCK

I'd advice you to stop dropping your MBP :rolleyes:
 
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