4 ms·
Careful on the mid-2012 MBPs... as much as I love that machine, they also have their own flexgate [1]. The internal SATA flex cables bend across the Superdrive
by SyneRyder 8y ago
Careful on the mid-2012 MBPs... as much as I love that machine, they also have their own flexgate [1]. The internal SATA flex cables bend across the Superdrive and rub against the slightly abrasive back plate, so they have a high failure rate if you actually use your device as a laptop (eg travel with it, keep it in an backpack). Apple seems to have had a problem with flex cables for nearly a decade now.
My MBP 2012 has had 6 SATA flex cable replacements by Apple in 3.5 years (I bought mine in 2015). The last few repairs have all been ~3 months apart. It's easily the most unreliable laptop I've ever owned. Thankfully Apple did all the SATA cable replacements free as required by law in Australia.
That said, you should be able to find mid-2012s for about $450 - $650 US refurbished from mom & pop Mac repair stores. [2]
[1] https://forums.macrumors.com/threads/sata-cable-problem-in-macbook-pros.1616970/ https://forums.macrumors.com/threads/sata-cable-problem-in-m...
[2] https://www.macofalltrades.com/apple-macbook-pro-13-inch-glossy-2-5ghz-core-i5-mid-2012-md101ll-a/ https://www.macofalltrades.com/apple-macbook-pro-13-inch-glo...
- kilburn 8y agoI'm still on a late 2011 13". I hit the SATA cable issue once, and called in a lot of favors to get an official replacement (the quote was absurdly high). The second time it happened, I ordered a couple more cables through ebay. That was 2 years ago, and the second one is still sitting in my drawer...
- magnusja 8y agoSame here, have an early 2011 and this thing breaks usually after 1 year. I am only using the bay where the SuperDrive was these days because it broke once again a couple of weeks ago.
- nzealand 8y agoMy wife's mid-2012 MBP's SATA cable failed last week, and it made me wonder if Apple deliberately started soldering hard drives down to avoid these sorts of issues.
- adjkant 8y agoOkay real talk do people just not take care of their machines or have my friends and I been insanely lucky? I use my computer daily and travel with it in a backpack all the time and have never once had anything on 5 Mac's I have owned (3 different work computers, 2 personal) break up until this year with the keyboard on the 2016/2017 MBP which in indeed a mess/huge fuckup. I still own both my personal Mac's and besides being pretty slow the 2012 can still run great in a pinch. Many of my friends also own Mac's and not one has had issues with flex cables, screens, speakers, ports, you name it, until the butterfly keyboard issues. I can't help but wonder if it's a matter of treatment and defining what "regular" use is.
- SyneRyder 8y agoI mostly agree - I have a Pismo G3, 2006 Black MacBook & 2007 Black MacBook that are still in working order. The 2006 had one minor repair but has been fine ever since. I've been that guy who evangelized Mac reliability & AppleCare service to others. I've been scratching my head trying to work out what I might be doing differently with my 2012 that others don't. The only thing I can think of (besides the backpack) is that I still make use of the internal DVD drive, and that I still have a spinning disk rather than an SSD (I need storage more than I need I/O speed). Perhaps the vibration from those devices causes some of the abrasion on the flex cables.
- TMWNN 8y agoOnly the 13" has the cable fail issue. I've had my 15" 2012 for three years, and hope it lasts for a long, long, long time.