I had my keyboard replaced a few months ago on my MBP--it sounds like a similar process since they replaced my battery, too. It was going to be like a week to

I had my keyboard replaced a few months ago on my MBP--it sounds like a similar process since they replaced my battery, too. It was going to be like a week to make an Apple Store appointment. I was able to walk into a local Mac shop on Apple's list of official service centers. At that time they sent it to the same offsite shops for service and they said it would take 1-2weeks. I asked about a loaner or if Apple had any sort of program since I need something in the meantime (even with different specs). I know Apple has a 14day return policy on new hardware, but I hate to abuse that. That local Mac shop was able to work something out with me with some refurbs they had on hand, but I don't think their supervisor was happy about it. I got my computer back 5 days later. Since then, I've heard theres been a push to do more of these kinds of repairs in store to decrease the turnaround time by a lot. A lot of this has to do with the original design. Old cars had oil filters you could take off with your hand, then you needed a special tool, then a stick thing with a strap, then you needed to take something off before you can use that tool. Apple keyboards used to lift up to expose the RAM, the batteries could be removed by sliding a tab (this was when the battery life was only a few hours and the life of the battery was like 200 cycles). Personally, I was much happier when maintenance was somewhere between that and what we have now.