Suggestions on 2015 Macbook Pro with swollen battery

[heizit]

Hi!
I ordered the 2021 Macbook pro 14 inch and selected to trade in my 2015 Macbook Pro 15 inch for $370. But now I realize that the battery is swollen and possibly Apple will give me 0 credit for the macbook and I decide not to send my device.

What options you may suggest that I can deal with my old macbook -- I may replace it with a new battery and keep it as the backup but honestly I don't need the old one as I have desktops at home and at work..

I heard Apple charges $199 for the battery replacement and they may also replace the case for you, that sounds a decent solution.
Maybe later with a new battery I can sell it , not sure how much I can get from the sale.

Do you think it is safe that I leave the swollen battery in the macbook without doing anything (shut it down and put in a box)?

Thanks in advance!

 

[Sheepish-Lord]

By the time you replace the battery and resell it you’ll probably not make much money, if any. Best bet is to take it somewhere local that recycles electronics and give it to them. Swollen batteries may leak and even catch fire depending on the circumstances so I wouldn’t advise against storing it.

 

[chrfr]

Hi!
I ordered the 2021 Macbook pro 14 inch and selected to trade in my 2015 Macbook Pro 15 inch for $370. But now I realize that the battery is swollen and possibly Apple will give me 0 credit for the macbook and I decide not to send my device.

What options you may suggest that I can deal with my old macbook -- I may replace it with a new battery and keep it as the backup but honestly I don't need the old one as I have desktops at home and at work..

I heard Apple charges $199 for the battery replacement and they may also replace the case for you, that sounds a decent solution.
Maybe later with a new battery I can sell it , not sure how much I can get from the sale.

Do you think it is safe that I leave the swollen battery there without doing anything (shut it down and put in a box)?

Thanks in advance!

It's not safe to keep the swollen battery, and yes, if you get Apple to install a new battery, they'll also replace the top case which gets you a new keyboard and trackpad.

 

[velocityg4]

Bring it to the Apple store to trade in. You'll know then and there if you'll get anything for it. Trade in is more of a credit anyways. It won't effect them sending your Mac. As you pay for the Mac. When they get the trade in. They apply the credit to your original payment method.

You can go to the store and just get store credit. If you do it in advance. Then use that credit for your new Mac. Otherwise you can buy your Mac with the trade in program. Then bring your old Mac to the store for them to complete the trade in and credit your purchase.

If they say, "Sorry, It's worth bupkis." Then decline the trade in. Get the computer back. Have Apple replace the battery, find someone who'll do it cheaper or do it yourself. Then keep it as a backup, sell it or give it away (charity, friend, family). Please don't recycle the computer. Reuse is better than recycling.

 

[heizit]

Bring it to the Apple store to trade in. You'll know then and there if you'll get anything for it. Trade in is more of a credit anyways. It won't effect them sending your Mac. As you pay for the Mac. When they get the trade in. They apply the credit to your original payment method.

You can go to the store and just get store credit. If you do it in advance. Then use that credit for your new Mac. Otherwise you can buy your Mac with the trade in program. Then bring your old Mac to the store for them to complete the trade in and credit your purchase.

If they say, "Sorry, It's worth bupkis." Then decline the trade in. Get the computer back. Have Apple replace the battery, find someone who'll do it cheaper or do it yourself. Then keep it as a backup, sell it or give it away (charity, friend, family). Please don't recycle the computer. Reuse is better than recycling.

Thanks! Yes, I tend not to recycle it.
The issue is that I have ordered new macbook onine with the trade in program (to be delivered next week). I have got the trade-in kit but realized that I won't get any credits if I send my old macbook to them (because of the swollen battery).

Maybe I'll bring it to the local Apple store to see what they can offer.

 

[Jumpthesnark]

If you bring the old laptop to the Apple Store, as you said, they can let you know best next steps, such as whether they will accept the trade-in, how to adjust your trade-in deal if they don't accept it, etc.

Whatever you decide, I wouldn't wait too long before replacing the battery if that's what you're going to do. The more the battery cells expand, the more they press on internals, including the motherboard, the trackpad, etc.

That could damage the laptop, plus it could also cause one of the cells to rupture.

 

[Chancha]

It is not official, but Apple Store sometimes is willing to repair swollen battery on out of warranty MacBooks for free regardless if there is a replacement / recall program in place. Matter of fact, 2015 15" even does have such a program also.

Therefore I think you should walkin a Store, without mentioning your intention of trading in, and just ask what they'd do with your swollen unit first. Then if the answer is they only do charged battery repair (which is somewhere around $200), then you can ask if trading it in will render its credit $0 from the supposed $350. These are worth trying because none of these are set in stone, they have guidelines but every case is situational and will depend on the Genius' judgement.

 

[wilberforce]

I replaced my 2015 MBP battery myself for $50, and a year later traded it in to Apple for $260. They had no problem accepting it.

Puredick A1494 A1618 Battery Only for (Mid 2015, Mid 2014, Late 2013) A1398 Replacement Battery for 15-inch A1398 - [Upgraded A1494/A1618 Universal Version]

Puredick A1494 A1618 Battery Only for (Mid 2015, Mid 2014, Late 2013) A1398 Replacement Battery for 15-inch A1398 - [Upgraded A1494/A1618 Universal Version]

www.amazon.com

It's a bit difficult getting the old battery out, and you need to be the type of person comfortable inside computers and such.

 

[Jumpthesnark]

You should also check to see if your battery is eligible for a free replacement under this program.

https://support.apple.com/15-inch-macbook-pro-battery-recall

 

[Freeangel1]

Put it on craigslist and see how much you can get for it.

if you want to learn something. replace the battery yourself and maybe buy it at OWC. its not that hard to replace yourself.

well your at it put in a speedy SSD drive to give the machine new life. also easy to do yourself on a 2015 mac

thats what is good about old Macs. you can repair yourself. unlike all the 2021 Macs

 

[arcite]

It's not that difficult to remove the battery yourself. You can then still use the computer, just keep it plugged in.

The sooner you remove the battery the better, to prevent further damage.
Just buy one of those macbook screwdriver repair kits off amazon, they're only like $20. The entire 'operation' only takes a few minutes.

 

[shadowmatt]

Apple would replace the battery on any laptop they resold and if they are using it for scrap / parts then it isn't an issue for them.

I recently took mine into Apple store for a battery replacement and got one for free as the assistant suggested we put it through the keyboard replacement program as the battery comes with the keyboard & shell that is repalced.

See if they will do that for you.

 

[Fishrrman]

I'd pay the 199 for the battery replacement.
That's actually a pretty good deal.
And then... keep it around as a spare.

As others have mentioned, it -might- be eligible for a free battery replacement (due to a recall).
That's probably unlikely, but you never know.

 

[chrfr]

It's not that difficult to remove the battery yourself. You can then still use the computer, just keep it plugged in.

Apple portable computers run at no more than about half speed without a battery. Using them without the battery is generally not a viable option.

 

[jenelemond]

It's better to replace it right now! Or else remove the swollen battery from the device not sure but the battery can damage the device if you keep it for long!!

 

[velocityg4]

Apple would replace the battery on any laptop they resold and if they are using it for scrap / parts then it isn't an issue for them.

I recently took mine into Apple store for a battery replacement and got one for free as the assistant suggested we put it through the keyboard replacement program as the battery comes with the keyboard & shell that is repalced.

See if they will do that for you.

The trade ins whether shipped or in store. Ultimately end up with Phobio. I'm not even sure what Phobio does afterwards. I've read they are a big recycler. But what about working computers. I can't figure out if they are all ground up or if they sell them in bulk. It would seem idiotic if they had all these trade in value rules and just scrapped them. So, I assume they sell them off to third parties.

 

[jav6454]

Thanks! Yes, I tend not to recycle it.
The issue is that I have ordered new macbook onine with the trade in program (to be delivered next week). I have got the trade-in kit but realized that I won't get any credits if I send my old macbook to them (because of the swollen battery).

Maybe I'll bring it to the local Apple store to see what they can offer.

What did Apple say?

 

[heizit]

What did Apple say?

I'll go to Apple store this Friday or weekend and will update later.

 

[gopcs]

I have the 15" MacBook Pro - mid 2015 model. The battery was replaced under warranty in 2017. Now these batteries are swollen. The battery cycle count is only 370. RATS! I have ordered replacement batteries from OWC. Looks difficult, but not impossible to replace. Otherwise, the MacBook Pro is running fine.

 

[iMacDragon]

I've done it on a 2015, it's quite doable, just need to be slow and steady.

 

[tcphoto1]

I took my Refurbished Mid’15 MBP to the Apple Store and they said the recall didn’t include my computer. They offered to replace the battery for just under $300, I declined and it’s been sitting for the last month. I may make a little money if I sold it after repairing it but I don’t think it’s worth it.