I’ve used Apple computers and phones since I got out of high school and, despite the escalating price tags, I don’t see that changing anytime soon. That’s why, when my MacBook Pro died this week, I began intensely researching technical information and the costs of replacing one. Now I’m quite confident in fixing my Apple equipment at home.
Early-2013 MacBook Pro Woes
I initially thought the battery, which had been screaming “Service me” for a few months, had finally packed in. Then I travelled to Stratford to get it replaced and, despite my appointment and being ‘in-stock’ on the website, they didn’t have the battery that fit my model. So I immediately decided that I would try to fix it myself, ordered the battery and did some reading up.
Replacing the battery wasn’t easy. The hardest part was separating the battery from the case due to the glue keeping it in place. I got some strong fishing line and powered through, following steps online. Once it was closed up, I hit the power button and my laptop jumped back to life. A fantastic feeling. However, this happiness quickly wore off when I discovered the power adaptor wasn’t charging the new battery. And the power bar continued depleting.
After checking on the Magsafe power adapter (working fine with another laptop), I diagnosed the DC-in port as the source of the problem. I bought a new port and set about breaking down my laptop into several pieces. Scary but also fun.
It took a while, but eventually it was replaced and everything was back together and.. Success! What a feeling!
Confidence Building iPhone 6S Battery Replacement
With my newfound skills (and two precision toolkits I bought from Amazon), I decided to have a crack at my iPhone battery. It would constantly and prematurely deplete in battery-life. About halfway through this procedure I had second thoughts and suddenly had visions of locking myself into a never-ending iPhone contract cycle. But I stuck to the task at hand and finished the job. Now I have a phone that won’t drop from 90% to 19% in the blink of an eye, for a fraction of the cost of taking it to a shop.
Anyway, good fun and now I can get some work done! I’m looking forward to my next project now that my equipment is functioning. I’m not intimidated by fixing my Apple equipment in the future either.
