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15-Inch MacBook Pro Battery Recall Program

170 points by mindgam3 7y ago

dawnerd 7y ago
Interestingly if you've had your keyboard serviced it looks like they replaced the battery already.
- ceejayoz 7y ago
  Yeah, it's all one piece. I had my battery replaced a few months ago and it came with a new keyboard (basically, the entire body except the removable door on the bottom. They also threw in a new monitor section for kicks. I was pretty happy with that.
  - cronix 7y ago
    Yep, it's why they're so expensive to repair. Everything is basically a single piece, so if a $2 part goes out you replace basically the entire system. Sounds economical, and consumer friendly!
    - sigjuice 7y ago
      What a terrible waste. All this just so they can brag about how thin they are for a couple of minutes during a keynote while customers suffer the consequences for many years after. I remember the time time when a key became defective on my 2013 MacBook Air. I brought it to an Apple store and they replaced the problematic key and sent me on my way in 5 minutes.
      - olliej 7y ago
        A lot of it is also the structural rigidity and cooling. That said I suspect it is more cost effective and fast for them to just pull out the known functional core and put those in a new shell, then use the old shell as all/part of a refurb system. It makes the customer happy: They get a whole bunch of new stuff, and they get it quickly. It also means the store doesn't have to stock some arbitrary amount of each component - they just have a single heap of shells come in, and a bucket the goes out to be refurbed/recycled as appropriate. As for replacing individual keys I'm still not sure if that can be done easily now (I've not had any problems with the butterfly keyboards, but it's clear that a couple of people might have ;) )
        keldaris 7y ago
        Except it's not fast - apparently it takes 1-2 weeks and if this thread is anything to go by, the customers seem not happy at all. Gluing batteries is just crazy, I didn't even know they do that these days (old Thinkpads for life). Still, people keep buying useless shiny things for exorbitant prices, so Apple must be doing something right. I just don't know what it is - maintainability or easy repairs definitely isn't it.
        olliej 7y ago
        I assume that that's to give them leeway if anything goes wrong. I think the bigger issue that it's a mail-in repair, so you end up burning a bunch of days on that: * First they send you a shipping box. * Then you put your laptop in it, and get it to a drop off, then you have a few days shipping (I can't imagine they're doing overnight), plus weekend delay. * However long it takes their receiving to get the delivery to wherever they're doing the repairs/replacement * the repair - I suspect that's going to be measured in minutes, but you have a latency due to volume of repairs, which I assume depends on how many machines need to replacements. * I assume some technician puts it back in a box, and it gets sent to their shipping facility * a couple of days for shipping. Put that together, 2 days to ship there, 1 day processing + repair, 2 days to return. So you easily hit the weekend, so now you're at 7 days. If anything goes wrong you've exceeded one week. Which means saying "1-2 weeks" gives them a buffer to ensure it doesn't take longer than they've stated. If they did it in store I imagine it could be same or next day, but by doing it as a ship in/out repair makes it absurd. (I don't think they're exorbitantly priced, yes they cost more, but it's not like the old PPC prices)
      - dangus 7y ago
        The disingenuous part about your comment and the parent to your comment is the implication that thin and light computers aren't something consumers prefer and demand. If you actually go back to using a 2015 MacBook pro, especially the 15" model, it actually does feel thick and heavy in comparison. The new model is a full half a pound lighter (22% reduction). The physical length and width dimensions are also much more portable. In a backpack or on carry-on luggage, that matters a lot. The 2013 MacBook Air you got repaired so easily? That computer has two fewer processor cores and is actually thicker than the current 13" MacBook Pro. The other disingenuous aspect is the idea that this repair is a full system replacement. It's not: while it does replace a lot of parts that wouldn't normally need to be replaced, you're still left with the same logic board, ports, bottom case, and display assembly as before. iFixit noted that the new MacBook Air model, using the same design language as the other MacBook Pro models, is actually a good amount more repairable than the previous design. It really follows quite closely to how a lot of designs happen in the tech world. The first version tends to be the most complex and difficult to repair (get the product out the door), and subsequently the design gets streamlined over time. The 2015 Retina MacBook Pro is, from my understanding, easier to repair than a 2012 model. The original iPhone was a nightmare inside, while the iPhone 6s is regarded as being incredibly easy to work on. I get it. Apple isn't being friendly to those who demand simple, inexpensive, modular repairs. That is bad, and it should not be encouraged. But make no mistake, consumers do not want to see their computers get thicker and heavier.
    - FireBeyond 7y ago
      And a great opportunity to upsell! When my laptop got a water splash on it, that killed the charging circuitry (laptop still ran perfectly on AC, battery health/test was excellent, it just couldn't charge). Thought maybe $200-300 including labor. "That's going to be $890. Perhaps we should look at getting you into a new MacBook Pro?" No, thanks (for that laptop, which was permanently connected to a digital piano, charging wasn't strictly necessary).
mindgam3 7y ago
> Customer safety is always Apple's top priority, and we have voluntarily decided to replace affected batteries, free of charge. Cool! > Service may take 1-2 weeks. Wait, what?
- skyyler 7y ago
  I imagine they're shipping them to a central location for repair.
- mciancia 7y ago
  Lack of NBD service from Apple really sucks
- stickydink 7y ago
  Half our company are still using these, what's the smart thing to do here? I assume actual risk of fire is very minimal, but the advice is to "please stop using it". Losing our machines for a couple weeks would be pretty impactful...
  - nickdandakis 7y ago
    I had both speakers blown out, three keys with chipped paint, and a couple sticky keys, so I got it replaced and fixed with their latest keyboard replacement program. I was told that the way to go about getting a "loaner" machine is to ship out your broken machine, buy a new one on a credit card, and then bring the new one back once you receive your replacement. Apple has a 30-day full refund policy. I never went through with buying a new one and returning it, but it's something to look into or ask about! (After some quick Googling, it looks like it's a 14-day return policy, not 30..)
    - RealWorldPolice 7y ago
      >I was told that the way to go about getting a "loaner" machine is to ship out your broken machine, buy a new one on a credit card, and then bring the new one back once you receive your replacement. Who told you to do that? (Are we talking, like, a friend? Or an actual Apple employee?) The only reason I ask is because I thought that was "return fraud."
kjhughes 7y ago
Related: Here's last year's 13-inch MacBook Pro (non Touch Bar) Battery Replacement Program: https://www.apple.com/support/13inch-macbookpro-battery-replacement/ https://www.apple.com/support/13inch-macbookpro-battery-repl... The program covers affected MacBook Pro models for 5 years after the first retail sale of the unit.
- ArmandGrillet 7y ago
  To be precise: only computers manufactured between October 2016 and October 2017 are affected. I think that apart from the now standard keyboard replacement program no MacBook made since 2018 has a replacement program yet.
  - olliej 7y ago
    And only specific serial numbers, so presumably they've identified the exact batches of batteries that were involved?
Shank 7y ago
Honestly the worst thing about it is that you have to manually check to see if your battery is affected. A proactive email might be better than telling people to enter their serial on a site to check.
- inlined 7y ago
  I can’t imagine Apple, a champion of privacy, wants to keep a mapping of serial number to user emails. Even if harmless or if it already exists, it might taint Apple with a creepy vibe.
  - bluedino 7y ago
    My iCloud account shows all my devices
    - reaperducer 7y ago
      iCloud ≠ email. I have an iCloud account with a non-functioning e-mail address.
      - gghddrttr3 7y ago
        Did you set it up a long time ago? It appears new iCloud accounts require a phone number for 2FA.
      - tillinghast 7y ago
        LOL, you're one step away from writing a cautionary Medium post.
        saagarjha 7y ago
        I believe you can set up an iCloud account with just a phone number.
    - sixstringtheory 7y ago
      I had to check myself, and there are serial/IMEI numbers there, at least the last-five version of each... maybe they store partial hashes instead of the full numbers (hopefully, but I'm a pessimist)
bocklund 7y ago
I bought a refurb i7, 16GB in summer 2016 that site says the has already been serviced. Too bad because I really need a battery replacement and I'm otherwise completely happy with the computer.
- stevewodil 7y ago
  Say you're having problems with the keyboard, and have them replace it. I think that they are replacing the whole top case in these instances which includes the battery. I'm sure someone will correct me if that's not the case
  - bdcravens 7y ago
    If it has already been serviced, that may be due to a keyboard replacement already. Do they do unlimited keyboard replacements?
    - stevewodil 7y ago
      Yep
jmull 7y ago
1-2 weeks for the service is brutal and effectively means a lot of batteries will not be replaced. You'd really need a loaner for that, and to spend some extra time to set it up (and later to clear it out and return it). I think they need to figure out how to turn these things around a lot faster at least in the great majority of cases.
- dep_b 7y ago
  Thought it was 5 workdays tops? Perhaps they're expecting a ton of people turning in their machines since batteries usually need to replace by now anyway.
- vbuwivbiu 7y ago
  they should provide an option where they send you a new battery and you replace it yourself
  - msbarnett 7y ago
    Maybe if the procedure didn't look like this: https://www.ifixit.com/Guide/MacBook+Pro+15-Inch+Retina+Display+Mid+2015+Battery+Replacement/89284 https://www.ifixit.com/Guide/MacBook+Pro+15-Inch+Retina+Disp...
    - mrguyorama 7y ago
      Over 60 steps and the battery hasn't even been touched yet. I don't think I've ever seen an iFixit teardown take more than 20 steps, and both my 2009 and 2012 era consumer laptops can be broken to base components in even fewer
      - wtallis 7y ago
        It's amazing how much more complicated that procedure is than for the 13" MBP of the same vintage. You would think the smaller notebook would be harder to disassemble, but there are actually fewer cables and parts that need to be moved out of the way to get at the battery.
morcutt 7y ago
I have the 2016 15" MacBook Pro model and the battery won't take a charge. I have to keep it always plugged in. Apparently I'm not in this recall. It is a total bummer because it takes Apple 3-5 days to fix this. The batter has 476 cycles on it and Apple rates it at 1000.
nullbyte 7y ago
I have this exact MBP 2015 model and my battery is in the process of dying. It has about 45 minutes of usage from full charge to zero. Looking forward to a free replacement ;)
- FireBeyond 7y ago
  Looking forward about two weeks, to be precise... ;)
asadkn 7y ago
I have a MacBook Pro Mid-2015, bought in 2015 and had (a) swollen battery (b) green pixel on screen (c) bad sectors on SSD, in early 2017 - that's just 1.5 years. Got everything replaced after under Apple Care in late 2017 as they wouldn't acknowledge all the faults so it took multiple visits and having to wait for things to get worse. The repair took ~15-16 days too, since that's how it goes in third world and I had to arrange a backup for work. Now I have the swollen battery again, but Apple Care has expired and I have to shell out $500-750 (quotes from different authorized partners) and have to arrange a backup for another 2 weeks. I wonder if they dump low quality hardware for the third world or is it really that bad globally. Two of my friends have also had the battery issues, though none with display or SSD. Unfortunately, it seems like I don't qualify for this recall program (as it's from July 2015), but I am sure they have had battery issues all over. Batteries failing in 1.5 years with just 40-50 cycles is not okay.
- Macha 7y ago
  Lots of third world countries are in warmer parts of the world - I wonder if Spain or Australia have similar failure rates to your country.
- msbarnett 7y ago
  Anecdotally, my MacBook Pro Mid-2015 has had zero problems (other than apparently being eligible for this recall, now) and I've ridden it hard daily.
- gurkendoktor 7y ago
  > I have to shell out $500-750 (quotes from different authorized partners) That's crazy. I have the same Mac and just got a swollen battery replaced, and had them also clean up the machine and replace the thermal paste ... for a grand total of €258 (taxes included), at a random third party shop in Germany. And I thought we were being ripped off vs. US prices!
  - asadkn 7y ago
    I was expecting ~$250 from what I had read on internet. But I suppose it's the same in places where there's no official Apple presence - we have these 3rd party "authorized service providers". Or perhaps it's something to do with local customs/duties on imports.
anonfunction 7y ago
The serial number you entered may be eligible for this program. Please choose one of the service options below. Choose one of the service options below to have your battery replaced. In all cases, your device will be sent to an Apple Repair Center for service. Your MacBook Pro will be examined prior to any service to verify that it is eligible for this program. Service may take 1-2 weeks. It doesn't even tell me if my computer is actually affected, just to lose my work computer for up to two weeks, when it might not even be eligible for replacement.
- pfranz 7y ago
  I feel like that's the standard language they've used on these pages previously. I imagine that's just room for them to deny you in case you had swapped out the battery yourself or otherwise disqualified yourself. But I'd love to hear back from others. I'm sure talking to someone at Apple could also clarify. 1-2 weeks sucks even if they had an option for a loaner (which they tend not to)...especially for "pro" equipment. Also, I tend not to trust repair shops in general. I backup and often wipe my equipment before handing it over. This also means I don't have to hand over passwords.
- jmull 7y ago
  I think they're trying to head off people who send in a computer that ends up not actually matching the serial number entered (for whatever reason), or have severe damage or other issues that would make it infeasible to actually replace the battery.
somehnguy 7y ago
My 2015 MBP battery ballooned up about 6 months ago. I just bought a replacement battery and swapped it out myself. Looks like my serial is included in the recall, guessing they won't touch it anymore though..
- msbarnett 7y ago
  > I just bought a replacement battery and swapped it out myself. How much of a pain in the ass was separating the glued-in battery from the chassis? iFixit makes it look infuriating
  - michael_michael 7y ago
    I did it a couple of months ago and it was an evening's worth of work with Netflix on in the background. Not infuriating at all, but there were definitely a couple of sweaty palm-inducing moments. That said, iFixit's instructions and pictures were faultless. If Apple doesn't release a MacBook Pro refresh that addresses some of the widespread concerns (touchbar and keyboard, notably), I would have no hesitation about swapping the battery again in another few years.
  - somehnguy 7y ago
    I didn't think it was too bad. I tend to enjoy these types of projects though. I did manage to puncture the battery slightly at one point, Luckily I thought ahead and let the MBP drain to ~0% to reduce the chance of a lipo related fire. So nothing happened. I wasn't gentle about removing it, if you took the time to properly heat the glue and pry carefully it could be done with no drama.
  - TomVDB 7y ago
    Here are a bunch of comments related to changing the battery: https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=19973236 https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=19973236 In short: it didn't take too long, but it was still a pain. Most people seem to take the shortcut where they don't completely remove all internal electronics before peeling off the battery. They just try to be careful to not have the acetone touch the plastic speakers (which would melt in the process.) It's not super complicated, just scary.
asadkn 7y ago
This is possibly what triggered it - MBP in flames: https://twitter.com/whitepanda/status/1133847982317723648 https://twitter.com/whitepanda/status/1133847982317723648
black_puppydog 7y ago
Seriously? Nobody points out the obvious "don't fucking glue batteries into laptops it's a stupid idea?" Instead everyone complains about the long processing times? That time should have been the time it takes the clerk to reach under the counter for your new battery pack!
- scblock 7y ago
  Even when you can swap a battery out in 5 minutes you may have a long processing time. I had to wait over 4 weeks for Dell to get me a replacement battery this year for a similar issue because battery supply itself was constrained.
  - baroffoos 7y ago
    At least you can still use your computer while you wait for the replacement.
hinkley 7y ago
Yeah, and what if I've already paid to have my bulging battery replaced? Three months ago I did this, and the repair center charged me full price for the thing because Apple covered jack all.
- pathartl 7y ago
  How much did they charge you? Do you have a receipt? Can you try running your serial number through the form?
  - FireBeyond 7y ago
    If the repair center wasn't Apple/authorized, the result is likely to be "Oh well. Sorry".
  - hinkley 7y ago
    About $400.
mrguyorama 7y ago
I miss user serviceable laptops
- dahfizz 7y ago
  There are still plenty if you don't buy from Apple.
  - baroffoos 7y ago
    I was actually shocked to see how easy it is to repair dell XPS laptops considering they are just as thin as macbooks (I think even thinner) The battery is secured with a few screws and a metal bracket. Also the ram was socketed.
    - brokenmachine 7y ago
      The thinness is a red herring but people who don't know better believe that. Apple is clearly doing these things in order to make their products unserviceable so they can upsell.
  - exergy 7y ago
    It's a shame Apple chose 'sexiness' as the hill to die on with their products. They've long been a company that has done so much right with regards to pushing the tech industry kicking and screaming into the future, with high PPI displays, with getting rid of things like floppy and disk drives etc, and most recently with their stance on privacy. But it seems they're going too far recently. Shit keyboards. Gluing everything making it neither repairable nor upgradeable, greatly increasing the environmental footprint of their products. Getting rid of the headphone jack to trap people into biannual upgrade cycles of new headphones. I'm not even sure what their end goal is anymore.
mettamage 7y ago
> Our records show that your device has already been serviced as part of this Program. Hmm... I bought a new Apple Macbook Pro via the Apple store. It was a MBP 2015 which I bought in 2017 (I didn't want the touchbar), but I find this particular message weird from Apple. This is not a refurbished MBP, why is Apple treating why it is?
- dpkonofa 7y ago
  Did you have anything else serviced during that time? This was automatically flagged if you had a logic board or top-case/keyboard replacement done. In some cases, it was also done for trackpad replacements so it's possible it was already completed during another repair. If you haven't had another repair, you may want to check with Apple.
henryfjordan 7y ago
The UX on that site is horrible. I put in my serial number and a bunch of red text appears. > The serial number you entered is not eligible under this program Is that supposed to be a bad thing? Why is that red? Would it be happy green text if I needed to stop using my laptop right now and send it in?
- ballenf 7y ago
  Valid point, but you would probably get a lot of people showing up to the apple store believing they needed a replacement. Because the text was green (or just not red) and no one really reads anything. And then they'd be really pissed off customers who would really believe that the website response changed since the first time they checked it. At least I've had the misfortune of being on the receiving end of those kinds of interactions (not in Apple stores but in software support in an earlier life).
graeme 7y ago
I bought mine in early 2015, before the start of their program. I entered the serial and it said it may be eligible. Is the form wrong or their date range wrong?
- Someone 7y ago
  FTA: Affected units were sold primarily between September 2015 and February 2017 (emphasis added) Given that, ‘early 2015’ still feels early to me, but it isn’t necessarily impossible (certainly not if you mean April or May)
  - graeme 7y ago
    Oh, thanks, missed that. That could explain why I got the notice. Yes, it was April.
- veb 7y ago
  I too, bought mine in early 2015. It says it's not eligible. > September 2015 and February 2017 Which isn't early 2015 - that's how I saw it.
davidf18 7y ago
I have one of these machines and they are great. My battery was already replaced in a repair, with just under 500 cycles on it. The battery is the key replenishable that would wear out and so the replacement program effectively adds several years of life to an great computer. To get cycle count: check under (Apple symbol) > About this Mac > System Report > Hardware > Power
nraynaud 7y ago
It's not been mentioned here, but there was a program to replace those batteries for a fee before, it has been transformed into a recall.
- pathartl 7y ago
  Is there any page (possibly archived if need be) that displayed this? It's completely not out of character for the company when it comes to this sort of thing.
josephjrobison 7y ago
My mid-2017 15" MBP battery life is atrocious if I have 10 Chrome tabs open. Doesn't last more than 3-4 hours. Huge disappointment, but thankfully it's plugged in 95% of the time. Checked my serial number and it's not part of the recall but still got major quality issues.
supernes 7y ago
I have that exact model, website says it's not eligible and/or already fixed. Manufacture date is listed as 8 May 2015, 84% health at 615 cycles. Still not feeling very reassured, though.

170 points by mindgam3 7y ago

dawnerd 7y ago

Interestingly if you've had your keyboard serviced it looks like they replaced the battery already.

ceejayoz 7y ago
Yeah, it's all one piece. I had my battery replaced a few months ago and it came with a new keyboard (basically, the entire body except the removable door on the bottom. They also threw in a new monitor section for kicks. I was pretty happy with that.
- cronix 7y ago
  Yep, it's why they're so expensive to repair. Everything is basically a single piece, so if a $2 part goes out you replace basically the entire system. Sounds economical, and consumer friendly!
  - sigjuice 7y ago
    What a terrible waste. All this just so they can brag about how thin they are for a couple of minutes during a keynote while customers suffer the consequences for many years after. I remember the time time when a key became defective on my 2013 MacBook Air. I brought it to an Apple store and they replaced the problematic key and sent me on my way in 5 minutes.
    - olliej 7y ago
      A lot of it is also the structural rigidity and cooling. That said I suspect it is more cost effective and fast for them to just pull out the known functional core and put those in a new shell, then use the old shell as all/part of a refurb system. It makes the customer happy: They get a whole bunch of new stuff, and they get it quickly. It also means the store doesn't have to stock some arbitrary amount of each component - they just have a single heap of shells come in, and a bucket the goes out to be refurbed/recycled as appropriate. As for replacing individual keys I'm still not sure if that can be done easily now (I've not had any problems with the butterfly keyboards, but it's clear that a couple of people might have ;) )
      - keldaris 7y ago
        Except it's not fast - apparently it takes 1-2 weeks and if this thread is anything to go by, the customers seem not happy at all. Gluing batteries is just crazy, I didn't even know they do that these days (old Thinkpads for life). Still, people keep buying useless shiny things for exorbitant prices, so Apple must be doing something right. I just don't know what it is - maintainability or easy repairs definitely isn't it.
        olliej 7y ago
        I assume that that's to give them leeway if anything goes wrong. I think the bigger issue that it's a mail-in repair, so you end up burning a bunch of days on that: * First they send you a shipping box. * Then you put your laptop in it, and get it to a drop off, then you have a few days shipping (I can't imagine they're doing overnight), plus weekend delay. * However long it takes their receiving to get the delivery to wherever they're doing the repairs/replacement * the repair - I suspect that's going to be measured in minutes, but you have a latency due to volume of repairs, which I assume depends on how many machines need to replacements. * I assume some technician puts it back in a box, and it gets sent to their shipping facility * a couple of days for shipping. Put that together, 2 days to ship there, 1 day processing + repair, 2 days to return. So you easily hit the weekend, so now you're at 7 days. If anything goes wrong you've exceeded one week. Which means saying "1-2 weeks" gives them a buffer to ensure it doesn't take longer than they've stated. If they did it in store I imagine it could be same or next day, but by doing it as a ship in/out repair makes it absurd. (I don't think they're exorbitantly priced, yes they cost more, but it's not like the old PPC prices)
    - dangus 7y ago
      The disingenuous part about your comment and the parent to your comment is the implication that thin and light computers aren't something consumers prefer and demand. If you actually go back to using a 2015 MacBook pro, especially the 15" model, it actually does feel thick and heavy in comparison. The new model is a full half a pound lighter (22% reduction). The physical length and width dimensions are also much more portable. In a backpack or on carry-on luggage, that matters a lot. The 2013 MacBook Air you got repaired so easily? That computer has two fewer processor cores and is actually thicker than the current 13" MacBook Pro. The other disingenuous aspect is the idea that this repair is a full system replacement. It's not: while it does replace a lot of parts that wouldn't normally need to be replaced, you're still left with the same logic board, ports, bottom case, and display assembly as before. iFixit noted that the new MacBook Air model, using the same design language as the other MacBook Pro models, is actually a good amount more repairable than the previous design. It really follows quite closely to how a lot of designs happen in the tech world. The first version tends to be the most complex and difficult to repair (get the product out the door), and subsequently the design gets streamlined over time. The 2015 Retina MacBook Pro is, from my understanding, easier to repair than a 2012 model. The original iPhone was a nightmare inside, while the iPhone 6s is regarded as being incredibly easy to work on. I get it. Apple isn't being friendly to those who demand simple, inexpensive, modular repairs. That is bad, and it should not be encouraged. But make no mistake, consumers do not want to see their computers get thicker and heavier.
  - FireBeyond 7y ago
    And a great opportunity to upsell! When my laptop got a water splash on it, that killed the charging circuitry (laptop still ran perfectly on AC, battery health/test was excellent, it just couldn't charge). Thought maybe $200-300 including labor. "That's going to be $890. Perhaps we should look at getting you into a new MacBook Pro?" No, thanks (for that laptop, which was permanently connected to a digital piano, charging wasn't strictly necessary).

mindgam3 7y ago

> Customer safety is always Apple's top priority, and we have voluntarily decided to replace affected batteries, free of charge. Cool! > Service may take 1-2 weeks. Wait, what?

skyyler 7y ago
I imagine they're shipping them to a central location for repair.
mciancia 7y ago
Lack of NBD service from Apple really sucks
stickydink 7y ago
Half our company are still using these, what's the smart thing to do here? I assume actual risk of fire is very minimal, but the advice is to "please stop using it". Losing our machines for a couple weeks would be pretty impactful...
- nickdandakis 7y ago
  I had both speakers blown out, three keys with chipped paint, and a couple sticky keys, so I got it replaced and fixed with their latest keyboard replacement program. I was told that the way to go about getting a "loaner" machine is to ship out your broken machine, buy a new one on a credit card, and then bring the new one back once you receive your replacement. Apple has a 30-day full refund policy. I never went through with buying a new one and returning it, but it's something to look into or ask about! (After some quick Googling, it looks like it's a 14-day return policy, not 30..)
  - RealWorldPolice 7y ago
    >I was told that the way to go about getting a "loaner" machine is to ship out your broken machine, buy a new one on a credit card, and then bring the new one back once you receive your replacement. Who told you to do that? (Are we talking, like, a friend? Or an actual Apple employee?) The only reason I ask is because I thought that was "return fraud."

kjhughes 7y ago

Related: Here's last year's 13-inch MacBook Pro (non Touch Bar) Battery Replacement Program: https://www.apple.com/support/13inch-macbookpro-battery-replacement/ https://www.apple.com/support/13inch-macbookpro-battery-repl... The program covers affected MacBook Pro models for 5 years after the first retail sale of the unit.

ArmandGrillet 7y ago
To be precise: only computers manufactured between October 2016 and October 2017 are affected. I think that apart from the now standard keyboard replacement program no MacBook made since 2018 has a replacement program yet.
- olliej 7y ago
  And only specific serial numbers, so presumably they've identified the exact batches of batteries that were involved?

Shank 7y ago

Honestly the worst thing about it is that you have to manually check to see if your battery is affected. A proactive email might be better than telling people to enter their serial on a site to check.

inlined 7y ago
I can’t imagine Apple, a champion of privacy, wants to keep a mapping of serial number to user emails. Even if harmless or if it already exists, it might taint Apple with a creepy vibe.
- bluedino 7y ago
  My iCloud account shows all my devices
  - reaperducer 7y ago
    iCloud ≠ email. I have an iCloud account with a non-functioning e-mail address.
    - gghddrttr3 7y ago
      Did you set it up a long time ago? It appears new iCloud accounts require a phone number for 2FA.
    - tillinghast 7y ago
      LOL, you're one step away from writing a cautionary Medium post.
      - saagarjha 7y ago
        I believe you can set up an iCloud account with just a phone number.
  - sixstringtheory 7y ago
    I had to check myself, and there are serial/IMEI numbers there, at least the last-five version of each... maybe they store partial hashes instead of the full numbers (hopefully, but I'm a pessimist)

bocklund 7y ago

I bought a refurb i7, 16GB in summer 2016 that site says the has already been serviced. Too bad because I really need a battery replacement and I'm otherwise completely happy with the computer.

stevewodil 7y ago
Say you're having problems with the keyboard, and have them replace it. I think that they are replacing the whole top case in these instances which includes the battery. I'm sure someone will correct me if that's not the case
- bdcravens 7y ago
  If it has already been serviced, that may be due to a keyboard replacement already. Do they do unlimited keyboard replacements?
  - stevewodil 7y ago
    Yep

jmull 7y ago

1-2 weeks for the service is brutal and effectively means a lot of batteries will not be replaced. You'd really need a loaner for that, and to spend some extra time to set it up (and later to clear it out and return it). I think they need to figure out how to turn these things around a lot faster at least in the great majority of cases.

dep_b 7y ago
Thought it was 5 workdays tops? Perhaps they're expecting a ton of people turning in their machines since batteries usually need to replace by now anyway.
vbuwivbiu 7y ago
they should provide an option where they send you a new battery and you replace it yourself
- msbarnett 7y ago
  Maybe if the procedure didn't look like this: https://www.ifixit.com/Guide/MacBook+Pro+15-Inch+Retina+Display+Mid+2015+Battery+Replacement/89284 https://www.ifixit.com/Guide/MacBook+Pro+15-Inch+Retina+Disp...
  - mrguyorama 7y ago
    Over 60 steps and the battery hasn't even been touched yet. I don't think I've ever seen an iFixit teardown take more than 20 steps, and both my 2009 and 2012 era consumer laptops can be broken to base components in even fewer
    - wtallis 7y ago
      It's amazing how much more complicated that procedure is than for the 13" MBP of the same vintage. You would think the smaller notebook would be harder to disassemble, but there are actually fewer cables and parts that need to be moved out of the way to get at the battery.

morcutt 7y ago

I have the 2016 15" MacBook Pro model and the battery won't take a charge. I have to keep it always plugged in. Apparently I'm not in this recall. It is a total bummer because it takes Apple 3-5 days to fix this. The batter has 476 cycles on it and Apple rates it at 1000.

nullbyte 7y ago

I have this exact MBP 2015 model and my battery is in the process of dying. It has about 45 minutes of usage from full charge to zero. Looking forward to a free replacement ;)

FireBeyond 7y ago
Looking forward about two weeks, to be precise... ;)

asadkn 7y ago

I have a MacBook Pro Mid-2015, bought in 2015 and had (a) swollen battery (b) green pixel on screen (c) bad sectors on SSD, in early 2017 - that's just 1.5 years. Got everything replaced after under Apple Care in late 2017 as they wouldn't acknowledge all the faults so it took multiple visits and having to wait for things to get worse. The repair took ~15-16 days too, since that's how it goes in third world and I had to arrange a backup for work. Now I have the swollen battery again, but Apple Care has expired and I have to shell out $500-750 (quotes from different authorized partners) and have to arrange a backup for another 2 weeks. I wonder if they dump low quality hardware for the third world or is it really that bad globally. Two of my friends have also had the battery issues, though none with display or SSD. Unfortunately, it seems like I don't qualify for this recall program (as it's from July 2015), but I am sure they have had battery issues all over. Batteries failing in 1.5 years with just 40-50 cycles is not okay.

Macha 7y ago
Lots of third world countries are in warmer parts of the world - I wonder if Spain or Australia have similar failure rates to your country.
msbarnett 7y ago
Anecdotally, my MacBook Pro Mid-2015 has had zero problems (other than apparently being eligible for this recall, now) and I've ridden it hard daily.
gurkendoktor 7y ago
> I have to shell out $500-750 (quotes from different authorized partners) That's crazy. I have the same Mac and just got a swollen battery replaced, and had them also clean up the machine and replace the thermal paste ... for a grand total of €258 (taxes included), at a random third party shop in Germany. And I thought we were being ripped off vs. US prices!
- asadkn 7y ago
  I was expecting ~$250 from what I had read on internet. But I suppose it's the same in places where there's no official Apple presence - we have these 3rd party "authorized service providers". Or perhaps it's something to do with local customs/duties on imports.

anonfunction 7y ago

The serial number you entered may be eligible for this program. Please choose one of the service options below. Choose one of the service options below to have your battery replaced. In all cases, your device will be sent to an Apple Repair Center for service. Your MacBook Pro will be examined prior to any service to verify that it is eligible for this program. Service may take 1-2 weeks. It doesn't even tell me if my computer is actually affected, just to lose my work computer for up to two weeks, when it might not even be eligible for replacement.

pfranz 7y ago
I feel like that's the standard language they've used on these pages previously. I imagine that's just room for them to deny you in case you had swapped out the battery yourself or otherwise disqualified yourself. But I'd love to hear back from others. I'm sure talking to someone at Apple could also clarify. 1-2 weeks sucks even if they had an option for a loaner (which they tend not to)...especially for "pro" equipment. Also, I tend not to trust repair shops in general. I backup and often wipe my equipment before handing it over. This also means I don't have to hand over passwords.
jmull 7y ago
I think they're trying to head off people who send in a computer that ends up not actually matching the serial number entered (for whatever reason), or have severe damage or other issues that would make it infeasible to actually replace the battery.

somehnguy 7y ago

My 2015 MBP battery ballooned up about 6 months ago. I just bought a replacement battery and swapped it out myself. Looks like my serial is included in the recall, guessing they won't touch it anymore though..

msbarnett 7y ago
> I just bought a replacement battery and swapped it out myself. How much of a pain in the ass was separating the glued-in battery from the chassis? iFixit makes it look infuriating
- michael_michael 7y ago
  I did it a couple of months ago and it was an evening's worth of work with Netflix on in the background. Not infuriating at all, but there were definitely a couple of sweaty palm-inducing moments. That said, iFixit's instructions and pictures were faultless. If Apple doesn't release a MacBook Pro refresh that addresses some of the widespread concerns (touchbar and keyboard, notably), I would have no hesitation about swapping the battery again in another few years.
- somehnguy 7y ago
  I didn't think it was too bad. I tend to enjoy these types of projects though. I did manage to puncture the battery slightly at one point, Luckily I thought ahead and let the MBP drain to ~0% to reduce the chance of a lipo related fire. So nothing happened. I wasn't gentle about removing it, if you took the time to properly heat the glue and pry carefully it could be done with no drama.
- TomVDB 7y ago
  Here are a bunch of comments related to changing the battery: https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=19973236 https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=19973236 In short: it didn't take too long, but it was still a pain. Most people seem to take the shortcut where they don't completely remove all internal electronics before peeling off the battery. They just try to be careful to not have the acetone touch the plastic speakers (which would melt in the process.) It's not super complicated, just scary.

asadkn 7y ago

This is possibly what triggered it - MBP in flames: https://twitter.com/whitepanda/status/1133847982317723648 https://twitter.com/whitepanda/status/1133847982317723648

black_puppydog 7y ago

Seriously? Nobody points out the obvious "don't fucking glue batteries into laptops it's a stupid idea?" Instead everyone complains about the long processing times? That time should have been the time it takes the clerk to reach under the counter for your new battery pack!

scblock 7y ago
Even when you can swap a battery out in 5 minutes you may have a long processing time. I had to wait over 4 weeks for Dell to get me a replacement battery this year for a similar issue because battery supply itself was constrained.
- baroffoos 7y ago
  At least you can still use your computer while you wait for the replacement.

hinkley 7y ago

Yeah, and what if I've already paid to have my bulging battery replaced? Three months ago I did this, and the repair center charged me full price for the thing because Apple covered jack all.

pathartl 7y ago
How much did they charge you? Do you have a receipt? Can you try running your serial number through the form?
- FireBeyond 7y ago
  If the repair center wasn't Apple/authorized, the result is likely to be "Oh well. Sorry".
- hinkley 7y ago
  About $400.

mrguyorama 7y ago

I miss user serviceable laptops

dahfizz 7y ago
There are still plenty if you don't buy from Apple.
- baroffoos 7y ago
  I was actually shocked to see how easy it is to repair dell XPS laptops considering they are just as thin as macbooks (I think even thinner) The battery is secured with a few screws and a metal bracket. Also the ram was socketed.
  - brokenmachine 7y ago
    The thinness is a red herring but people who don't know better believe that. Apple is clearly doing these things in order to make their products unserviceable so they can upsell.
- exergy 7y ago
  It's a shame Apple chose 'sexiness' as the hill to die on with their products. They've long been a company that has done so much right with regards to pushing the tech industry kicking and screaming into the future, with high PPI displays, with getting rid of things like floppy and disk drives etc, and most recently with their stance on privacy. But it seems they're going too far recently. Shit keyboards. Gluing everything making it neither repairable nor upgradeable, greatly increasing the environmental footprint of their products. Getting rid of the headphone jack to trap people into biannual upgrade cycles of new headphones. I'm not even sure what their end goal is anymore.

mettamage 7y ago

> Our records show that your device has already been serviced as part of this Program. Hmm... I bought a new Apple Macbook Pro via the Apple store. It was a MBP 2015 which I bought in 2017 (I didn't want the touchbar), but I find this particular message weird from Apple. This is not a refurbished MBP, why is Apple treating why it is?

dpkonofa 7y ago
Did you have anything else serviced during that time? This was automatically flagged if you had a logic board or top-case/keyboard replacement done. In some cases, it was also done for trackpad replacements so it's possible it was already completed during another repair. If you haven't had another repair, you may want to check with Apple.

henryfjordan 7y ago

The UX on that site is horrible. I put in my serial number and a bunch of red text appears. > The serial number you entered is not eligible under this program Is that supposed to be a bad thing? Why is that red? Would it be happy green text if I needed to stop using my laptop right now and send it in?

ballenf 7y ago
Valid point, but you would probably get a lot of people showing up to the apple store believing they needed a replacement. Because the text was green (or just not red) and no one really reads anything. And then they'd be really pissed off customers who would really believe that the website response changed since the first time they checked it. At least I've had the misfortune of being on the receiving end of those kinds of interactions (not in Apple stores but in software support in an earlier life).

graeme 7y ago

I bought mine in early 2015, before the start of their program. I entered the serial and it said it may be eligible. Is the form wrong or their date range wrong?

Someone 7y ago
FTA: Affected units were sold primarily between September 2015 and February 2017 (emphasis added) Given that, ‘early 2015’ still feels early to me, but it isn’t necessarily impossible (certainly not if you mean April or May)
- graeme 7y ago
  Oh, thanks, missed that. That could explain why I got the notice. Yes, it was April.
veb 7y ago
I too, bought mine in early 2015. It says it's not eligible. > September 2015 and February 2017 Which isn't early 2015 - that's how I saw it.

davidf18 7y ago

I have one of these machines and they are great. My battery was already replaced in a repair, with just under 500 cycles on it. The battery is the key replenishable that would wear out and so the replacement program effectively adds several years of life to an great computer. To get cycle count: check under (Apple symbol) > About this Mac > System Report > Hardware > Power

nraynaud 7y ago

It's not been mentioned here, but there was a program to replace those batteries for a fee before, it has been transformed into a recall.

pathartl 7y ago
Is there any page (possibly archived if need be) that displayed this? It's completely not out of character for the company when it comes to this sort of thing.

josephjrobison 7y ago

My mid-2017 15" MBP battery life is atrocious if I have 10 Chrome tabs open. Doesn't last more than 3-4 hours. Huge disappointment, but thankfully it's plugged in 95% of the time. Checked my serial number and it's not part of the recall but still got major quality issues.

supernes 7y ago

I have that exact model, website says it's not eligible and/or already fixed. Manufacture date is listed as 8 May 2015, 84% health at 615 cycles. Still not feeling very reassured, though.