Hi everyone,
I stopped using my 2011 Macbook Pro a few months ago because the charger broke, didn't replace it since someone gave me a Surface Pro shortly after. Today I took it out to dust and noticed the battery has gotten very swollen that it pushed one side of the trackpad out of the Macbook's body.
I'm thinking of bringing it to Apple to see if there is anything they can do about it, but I don't really know what to expect in term of repair costs or if they'll fix it at all. Has anyone had this problem with their Macbooks before?
Thanks in advance.
Macbook Pro's swollen battery, out of warranty.
Ldracoknight92 on 08/12/2014 - 22:46
Comments
Ya, I had that, went to the app store and got it replaced for a $100. Mine was 2011 MBP model as well. Have already spent a fortune on it.
Regards.
Batteries die after a while…this one is close to being catastrophic failure, I'd be removing it immediately.
Because it's a 3 year old battery, I think you'll have a tough time convincing anyone for a free replacement.
Definitely worth buying a replacement and selling the laptop though.It's still worth trying though, especially if they see a potential law suit it is more than enough to convince the for a replacement, but as scubacoles said it is best to remove it and buy a replacement, but worth a try at the apple store for a free replacement.
3 years is a long time for any battery, let alone one that can get fully discharged and charged on a regular basis.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lithium-ion_battery#Battery_lif…
Not sure what these apple batteries look like.. I don't touch their stuff.
If it is like a regular say laptop rechargeable battery then it should never expand/bulge even if it is stuffed. That is just a product fault and should be replaced regardless of age.
Apple products are grossly overpriced so they should provide the appropriate service to go with it.
3 years is very young for such a battery.
Take it to them and point that out and ask for a replacement. If they refuse to replace it then log a complaint online with DOFT as it is not reasonable to expect such a failure after such a short time.
If you had used a unsuitable alternate charger while your original one was broken then that makes it another matter altogether.
That's crap xywolap… Your Apple hate is coming out (for the record, I'm ambivalent to brand.. I currently don't own any Apple products, but I have done so in the past and would do so in the future if the need arose).
Apple PC's are on the high side, but certainly not unreasonable and in some cases (eg Macbook Air) are the best Price:Performance you can buy.3 years for a battery is getting long in the tooth (no matter the brand). It shouldn't be bulging, but we don't know where/how it was stored or how it has been used.
Certainly after 3 years of use, its capacity would be expected to be severely reduced and definitely past the industry standard of reasonable life expectancy.
It's worth trying to get it replaced for free, or at a discount, but it would not be unreasonable for them to refuse and I anticipate that Fair Trading would agree.Each to their own opinion but I would be rather pizzed if a laptop battery karked it after a miserable 3 years. Under normal use that is nowhere near the life to expect unless it is of poor quality in the first place.
I have never had this happen, ever, but then I don't use apple stuff.
One laptop (HP) is over 7 yrs, used daily, and battery still perfect. Others, Acer, Dell and main lappy now, a Asus all perfect.A bulging battery after 3 years is not on unless you are used to second class products.
It's up to the op here if he wants to pursue the matter or just fob it off as appleitis.. LOLI also mentioned re his substitute charger may have had something to do with it… did you read that?
Apple hate aside, he is right about one thing.
The charging circuit shouldn't allow the battery to discharge\charge to a point of damage.The circuit should also notice a super low or super high resistance, a sure sign of a dying battery.
These are Lithium Ion batteries.
I have countless Lithium Polymer batteries (much more unstable) which are well beyond 3 years and go through WAYYY more charges than your average laptop.It's not about the brand, could be apple, HP, or Alienware. Its about a bad battery design in this case.
A little scary…..Yup,
But it sounds like it was just in a cupboard, not charging, so inappropriate handling (eg. sharp, heavy, compressive force on the battery) or storage (ie above the hot water service getting baked for months) could be to blame. Not necessarily a flaw in battery production or management.From an educated IT standpoint, You're correct.
Though, I think consumers have a right to demand a 'fix' for free.
If it simply outright failed, sure, but what's happened here is dangerous.Working in the industry, I dont think consumers are warned\educated nearly forcefully enough about Lithium care.
I dont think I've ever heard anyone tell anyone "Don't put your apple into storage, at anything other than 75% charge!"
I know this, I assume you know this, but no one else seems to.You're right about the science, but I think the company, no matter who, needs to step up when an item becomes dangerous.
If you look at it as "3 years for battery fail" its kinda ho-hum.
If you look at it as 3 years from Laptop, to leg removing hand grenade; shit gets a bit more serious.
my mate had the same problem with his iphone battery. although the phone was out of warranty, after talking on the phone with tech support and making them aware that if the battery blows up they will be in big trouble eg. sued, they decided to replace the battery free of charge. worth a try for your case. good luck