Macbook pro failure - never buying Apple again

[John]

So, this is in the off-topic section but since I do the majority of work on this web site using my laptop, I think it's appropriate to talk about it.

I've been using computers since about 1983 (I was 6). I started using PCs in 1988 and built my first with my father in 1990. I got my first laptop in December 2004 (a Dell) that served me and my wife faithfully until it was stolen this past summer.

Back to the matter at hand. I got the bright idea to buy a Macbook pro in 2007 because (a) it was a very nice computer and (b) I could run Windows on it, as well as having my own little Unix computer (I worked professionally as a network and Unix administrator for a while and it was always a hobby of mine). Truth be told there was a significant portion of vanity in there too - those aluminium computers look great and who doesn't want to be as cool as Justin Long (the "Mac" guy in the American Mac+PC ads).

Within 6 months I noticed my battery's life had greatly decreased, despite regular cycling as per the directions (I had a Dell laptop battery for 3 years that lost about 1/3 of its capacity in 3 years so I am not clueless). I snagged a used second battery for the macbook from a photographer friend to bolster my own. Within another 6 months both batteries were holding at most 50% of their original charge. Within another 6 months they barely held a third of the charge (this now puts us in May this year, only 18 months after purchase of the computer). By July this year the computer started to suddenly die on battery power, even though the batteries stated 50%+ charge. And in the last month I basically couldn't use the computer without having it plugged in all the time.

Tonight, just 2 years and a month after purchase, my charger stopped working. So now I have a sleek, stylish brick instead of a computer. I didn't purchase "Applecare", Apple's extra 2 year warranty on top of the basic 1 year warranty. As things stand, even purchasing a charger and a battery right now, I would still have saved money by not paying that $2xx fee for the extra "warranty" for my computer.

I should add that my computer is in immaculate condition (I'm one of those people who never even scratches a computer, camera or anything). The charger looks the same as the day I opened the package. A battery for this computer is $125 + tax + shipping, and the charger is $79 + tax + shipping, total $204 + tax + shipping. A brand new decent PC laptop is $450 right now. My Macbook pro cost me about $1800 with my education discount and at the time a comparable PC laptop cost almost half that. What on Earth was I thinking?

And did I mention that Macs crash? Yes, Apple would have you think they've made the perfect machine but aside from seriously flawed batteries and chargers (I've looked into both and I assure you that both are widespread issues), Mac OS is not as great as they would like us to believe. In fact I have to laugh at the recent advertisement campaign lambasting Microsoft Windows 7 as the same old unreliable Microsoft, when just a month before Windows 7's release, Apple came out with their own new operating system, Mac OS Snow Leopard, which, as it turns out, irrevocably deleted people's personal files if they logged in as a guest after upgrading (it's as bad as it sounds and while it was fixed a few days after release, I can't think of any Windows problem in the last few years that even vaguely compares).

So what am I going to do about my brick? Sorry, I mean my macbook pro. I can't decide whether or not to throw good money after bad by purchasing another battery and charger. After all, they're just going to fail again in a year or two and by that time it's possible I won't be able to replace them due to obselesence. One thing's for certain, I won't be purchasing another Apple computer any time soon, especially after reading all of the horror stories posted by people on apple.com and elsewhere regarding Apple laptops from the last 4-5 years.

At times like this I find myself relating to the great man who coined this timeless pearl:

There's an old saying in Tennessee — I know it's in Texas, probably in Tennessee — that says, fool me once, shame on — shame on you. Fool me — you can't get fooled again.

 

[blueberlin]

So what am I going to do about my brick?

Well, were you naughty or nice this year? Christmas is very near - go to the mall and have a chat with Santa. A shiny new PC will surely make you feel better than constantly feeding a lost cause. There are fewer games available for Apple anyway.

In reading this I realized you are seven years younger than I am! Although at first the sheer rudeness of that fact irked me, I feel better now that I have realized it means you have to be respectful to me. Otherwise I get to whomp you with my granny cane. :rofl:

-Eva

 

[Abrahm]

I bought an iBook back in 2004(?) because I too was caught up in the shiny prettiness of it and I really wanted to mess around with OS X. They were only on 10.2 at the time. I initially loved my little machine despite the fact it was slower than my 3 year old desktop. Within a year I had the same battery death problem that you had and within two years at most the battery wouldn't hold a significant charge at all. Shortly thereafter my charger also died and after purchasing a new one (a third party device for significantly cheaper) I was again somewhat happy.

Of course by then OS X 10.4 was out by machine was incapable of running it. Now no software was being produced that my machine could run. No Skype, no VLC, not much at all besides old versions of stuff if you were lucky enough to find them. I stripped the computer and reinstalled linux which sped my computer up greatly and gave me another year out of it before the computer side of the power cable failed. Now it only works if you wiggle the plug to get the connector to line up inside the computer.

I will not buy another Apple laptop. They're awfully expensive for what they are and I've heard too much about the battery/charger problems. Give me a PC laptop and let me dual boot Linux Mint and Windows 7.

In short, I empathize with you, John.

 

[Greewok]

It's Christmas time, no better time of the year to sell an Apple product. Put it up on ebay with some nice pictures, a fair price and watch it go fast. Then, I would buy a windows machine (Lenovo) with some kind of decent warranty and maybe a spare battery. You would still probably have spare cash left over.

 

[darwinthesun]

That sucks! I have always been happy with my macs (I have to run a mac for certain programs, plus I just like them better). Selling it seems to be the best option, there will be someone who wants it for parts or just to fix it.

Definitely don't get a new pro, the battery is part of the machine now (I thought this was a terrible design, but only time will tell!).

 

[oceanblue]

My wife is of the throw good money at it school. The macbook pro 15 inch (vintage June 2006) on which I write this was showing a failing battery and while contemplating getting a new one it started making a dentist's drill noise and died.

Of course not everything was properly backed up but that is not Apple's fault. A trip to the "genius bar" -(an exotic name for the repair and service section which took me ages to puzzle out) resulted in - New hard drive, new battery, labour and charges total £205.85.

I like the relative malware free experience the Apple provides, though I sometimes think this is paying a fortune for style not substance. Nonetheless we now have a working computer looking as sleek as ever which took the last upgrade in software effortlessly and few PCs of the same vintage have the specifications to make them worth considering saving from the scrapheap.

 

[John]

Thanks for the feedback everyone. Eva, I have a soft spot for the older ladies .

Abrahm - from what you've said, my worst fears are now confirmed. Apple really does seem to plan obsolescence for the consumer as well as its own production.

Nonetheless we now have a working computer looking as sleek as ever which took the last upgrade in software effortlessly and few PCs of the same vintage have the specifications to make them worth considering saving from the scrapheap.

I find myself forced to argue that point with you. Our 2004 Dell laptop that got stolen this summer was a superb little computer that took everything thrown at it with gusto.

 

[SludgeMunkey]

I have been an anti-Apple guy since the Apple IIe days. I have serious issues with proprietary hardware and operating systems that offer a false sense of security to their users.

In Apple's defense on laptops though- all laptops are guilty of planned obsolescence.

 

[John]

In Apple's defense on laptops though- all laptops are guilty of planned obsolescence.

However, it would seem that Apple have planned less than a year of lifetime for their laptop batteries.

 

[jaster]

I have a Macbook Pro from 2006. Battery did the same thing about one and a half years ago. Granted I beat mine to hell (it has been left on for days at a time while downloading)...

I also had the warranty, batteries are not covered, but power cables are. Mine actually started to rip apart at the computer connection end.

Other than needing a power supply to turn it on, it has not had any other problems. I use Garageband on it frequently and it does alright. Don't know if I will keep on the mac train for long though...

 

[oceanblue]

I find myself forced to argue that point with you. Our 2004 Dell laptop that got stolen this summer was a superb little computer that took everything thrown at it with gusto.

I can empathise and feel your pain, however my experience of Dell desktops has not been a particularly smooth one, failing fans and widows driver problems affecting sound and several glitches with the wireless keyboard and other original peripherals. At times I have felt like throwing it with gusto!