Replacing MacBook Screen

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Slartibartfast

Supreme [H]ardness
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I opened up my MacBook yesterday to discover that the screen had been cracked. It looks like somebody took a small, blunt object (like the base of a pen) and pushed on the screen, causing it to tear. How this happened is beyond me - I never leave it unattended, I've never put anything on top of it, and nobody uses it but me. There are no other signs of physical damage at all.

I called AppleCare, and they said to bring it into a store. So I did, and they want $800 to replace the screen. Of course I told them to f off, as the computer would only be $1600 brand new. They did give me a list of a few other places authorized to repair Apple computers, the cheapest I could get was $675 for a replacement. Totally not worth it.

So I was wondering if anybody knows of a way I can get a new screen. I know somebody who can replace it for me for free. Of course it would void the applecare warranty, but I imagine if anything breaks Apple will just say it's my fault and the warranty doesn't apply, so I don't really care. I checked around on eBay and I found this:

http://cgi.ebay.com/Apple-MacBook-1...0090792007QQcategoryZ4601QQrdZ1QQcmdZViewItem

I can "buy it now" for $200, so I might go for that, but seeing as how this is the first laptop and the first Mac I've ever owned I thought I would ask for opinions first.

What do you think, should I go for it?
 
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If you're careful and follow those instructions, Apple will never know you had your MacBook apart and your warranty will be fine.
 
Well, my cousin is a Mac Genius and does hardware repairs at an Apple store, so I think I would be more comfortable having him do it, but thanks :)
 
I wouldn't think that something as extensive as a display replacement would be done by one of the "Geniuses" at the Apple store anyway.
 
My friend dropped a wooden pencil box on his macbook, like heavy big thing, and sharp edges... and cracked his screen and a whole 1/4 of the screen is wavy and dead and broken and fucked up.

So yesterday he was all calling around his mom and apple and his insurance and everywhere, turns out his insurance doesn't cover him here, and his mom used a debit to purchase the computer so he can't get coverage from a credit company, and he went to a Apple certified tech and they said 2 grand... he told them to fuck off and he'd just buy a NEW macbook pro for that kinda cash.

Anyway, he then called Apple and they quoted him 700-900 $ and he was like umm... fuck that too; so he called his mom with both sets of bad news. I found a website called dt&t services that does the replacement for 450 with a 6-month warranty, and his mom wasn't too thrilled about that kinda money either.

So we went on ebay and found this guy with like 5k feedback selling them for 239+25 overnight shipping, so we're going that route and I'm going to be installing it using the iFixIt guide above (one of my favorite websites).

Conveniently my 802.11n airport arrives today as well; but i've got the removal of the top-case memorized so I won't need to use the site for this one. Anyway, yeah, we're doing the ebay thing with the guide because 800$ to replace the screen is the same price as a refurb Core Duo MB anyway, so why would I pay for it to get replaced when I get just pick up a refurb for the same price; and then i could hook up an external display to the broken MB and just use it as like a wall-based PC; gosh.

My roommate is an idiot though, he doesn't take very good care of his things...
 
I'd like to make some comments and feel I can speak with some authority. Before starting my own company, I spent 7 years working for two different Apple Specialists, both of whom are Apple Authorized Service Providers. Before that, I spent 5 years in computer sales with two $1b+ companies.

Based on the comments from both Slart and Optional, the pricing you were quoted sounds about right. I don't necessarily agree with why the prices are so high, but based on my experience those prices sound like what Apple charges their service providers for those parts. Any computer manufacturer, whether Apple, HP/Compaq, etc charges out the wazoo for service parts. For example, Apple usually wants something like $200 for a SuperDrive as a service part. Believe it or not, there are reasons for the prices of service parts being so high. The biggest one is to keep their warranty repair expenses and parts inventory under control. Not so much by selling parts. Rather, by holding a big stick over their warranty service providers. Most service providers have to send back the problem part they replace. Because in most cases Apple takes the defective part and refurbishes it, tests it, and sends it back out. So getting parts back can be pretty important. By charging the provider a crazy price in the event they don't send the part back, it's one way of ensuring the service provider plays ball. It also explains why if you want to buy a logic board, there's one price for outright sale and another price if you give them the old one.

Now. . .that's only one of the reasons I'm really not interested in becoming an authorized service provider. While some things really don't matter if they're replaced with Apple service parts - like a SuperDrive (just buy a std. DVD burner and run PatchBurn) - some things really do matter.

Now. . .to the problem at hand. One of the companies I worked for used DT&T quite a bit for older parts and some older PowerBook repairs. Our experience was a bit more hit-and-miss than we liked, but most of the time they were OK. Their web site gives a price of $450 installed, with a 6 month warranty, tho if you need a bezel or case, those pieces are additional. That's the route I'd go. Web site - http://www.dttservice.com/macbook.html

Good luck. . .whichever route you go, I hope it works out for you.
 
Well, I'm not willing to pay very much for this. I would rather pay zero and live with it then pay $450 to get it fixed. At that point, I would be better of selling the thing for $1200 or so and buying a brand new computer.
 
Slartibartfast said:
Well, I'm not willing to pay very much for this. I would rather pay zero and live with it then pay $450 to get it fixed. At that point, I would be better of selling the thing for $1200 or so and buying a brand new computer.
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You're not going to get 1200 for a MacBook with a broken screen that's for sure, in fact you'd be lucky to get 500/700 for it.

It sucks that that happened, but if you didn't break it and nobody else did, maybe it's a defect on yours? It's happened, and I actually reccomend checking out consumerist.com for the bit on contacting Apple's executive support lines, see if those get you anywhere.
 
Optional87 said:
You're not going to get 1200 for a MacBook with a broken screen that's for sure, in fact you'd be lucky to get 500/700 for it.
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It's still usable, just irritating. It doesn't cause any color distortion or anything. It's like having an inch-long hair in the middle of your screen that you can't wipe away. And it shows up regardless of the background - on black it looks white, on white it looks black.
 
Slartibartfast said:
It's still usable, just irritating. It doesn't cause any color distortion or anything. It's like having an inch-long hair in the middle of your screen that you can't wipe away. And it shows up regardless of the background - on black it looks white, on white it looks black.
Click to expand...

That doesn't make it any less broken...
 
Optional87 said:
You're not going to get 1200 for a MacBook with a broken screen that's for sure, in fact you'd be lucky to get 500/700 for it.

It sucks that that happened, but if you didn't break it and nobody else did, maybe it's a defect on yours? It's happened, and I actually reccomend checking out consumerist.com for the bit on contacting Apple's executive support lines, see if those get you anywhere.
Click to expand...

In every case of a cracked screen that I've ever seen, I've never ever seen Apple classify it as anything other than customer abuse. The only exception being if damaged in shipment, which is taken up with your place of purchase at the time of delivery.

The way I see it, the OP has three choices. . .
1 - Use it as is, putting up with the screen and/or using an external display. External display adapters are $20 (MiniDVI-to-VGA or MiniDVI-to-DVI).
2 - Have the thing fixed. You have appropriate information on the cost options.
3 - Sell it for whatever you can get out of it and use that money toward a new machine. Refurbed 2GHz C2D MacBooks are down to $1100 - or - refurbbed 15" 2GHz MacBook Pros are $1350 now.
 
Optional87 said:
That doesn't make it any less broken...
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That's true, but the machine is less than six months old and as-configured worth upwards of $1650. Either way, it's a moot point for the time being ;)

My cousin is going to talk to his managers tomorrow and see what they can do for me. Worst case scenario I learn to live with it, I guess.
 
Slartibartfast said:
That's true, but the machine is less than six months old and as-configured worth upwards of $1650. Either way, it's a moot point for the time being ;)

My cousin is going to talk to his managers tomorrow and see what they can do for me. Worst case scenario I learn to live with it, I guess.
Click to expand...

Unfortunately it ain't what you paid, it's what it's worth today.
I think if your cousin is a Mac Genius, having him go to bat for you is probably your best bet if getting it done for free/under warranty is what you're looking for.

Can you post a pic(s) of the cracked display?
 
CreativeMac said:
Unfortunately it ain't what you paid, it's what it's worth today.
I think if your cousin is a Mac Genius, having him go to bat for you is probably your best bet if getting it done for free/under warranty is what you're looking for.

Can you post a pic(s) of the cracked display?
Click to expand...

Srsly on the what its worth comment. I paid $1600 for my Macbook and when I sold it to move to the Macbook Pro, I received $1000. I got nobody on craigslist at the $1200 posting, and kept dropping it until I listed it on eBay. It was in brand new condition (with no broken screens :rolleyes:)

Good luck getting $800.
 
you say there is a line, and that the screen isnt cracked
try pressing right above and right below the line on the bezel of the display
 
killa62 said:
you say there is a line, and that the screen isnt cracked
try pressing right above and right below the line on the bezel of the display
Click to expand...

I'm pretty sure the glossy coating is cracked, not the actual LCD. I can try that, but the line isn't straight. It's very squiggly and approximates a right angle.
 
Apple fixed a dent in my LCD where a bottle of shampoo fell on it from the front. I took it to the store and told the guy there was a problem with the LCD (there was, it had the dent in it) and he said he'd send it to the repair depot for me. When it got there, they called me and said that it was "customer abuse". I told them it didn't matter because the guy at the Genius Bar said they would fix it and that it wouldn't cost anything. After repeating this several times to various reps, they told me they'd fix it and send it back to me, which they did.
 
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