[GLLUG] So the new Macbook Pro...

Bryan Laur bjlaur at mtu.edu
Fri Jun 15 14:35:04 EDT 2012


This article hits many of the points we've been discussing and brings up
some valid new ones.
http://www.wired.com/gadgetlab/2012/06/opinion-apple-retina-displa/

On Fri, Jun 15, 2012 at 2:27 PM, Bryan Laur <bjlaur at mtu.edu> wrote:

> Looks like it costs $200 to replace the MBP battery.
> Not all that unreasonable, but still quite a bit more than the $100
> claimed.
> http://www.apple.com/support/macbookpro/service/battery/
>
>
> On Wed, Jun 13, 2012 at 11:30 PM, Bryan Laur <bjlaur at mtu.edu> wrote:
>
>>
>> (1)Source for $100 replacement for battery?
>>
>> (3-4) Did you upgrade them ram on either of those machines?
>> If you did, they are sort of out of the scope of discussion.
>>
>> (5) Thats interesting, because I know multiple people whose apple laptops
>> crapped out of them.
>> Especially the first/second gen macbook airs.
>>
>>
>> On Wed, Jun 13, 2012 at 11:10 PM, Eduardo Cesconetto <
>> eduardo at cesconetto.com> wrote:
>>
>>> 1- Batteries on the compares are replaceable for around $100 bucks by a
>>> certified tech with free service, try to get an IBM battery(original) for
>>> that price… Good luck with that… And one more thing: they last over 1000
>>> cycles, not the 200 that a good IBM battery will...
>>>
>>> 2- I can take the white iMac apart in 15 minutes(the whole thing), if
>>> you can't or can't afford the extra tools, it six to be you…
>>>
>>> 3- I have a 12 year old PowerMac G4 sitting on a basement running as a
>>> web server with over 1100 accounts.. how is that not a long life computer?
>>>
>>
>>>
>> 4- My oldest daughter's computer is a 5 year old iMac(the white one…) and
>>> run EVERYTHING a new Mac can, so it seems you guys are very misinformed…
>>>
>>> 5- Life cycle of Apple laptops is waaaaayyyyyy longer then any PC laptop
>>> BECAUSE they are built better…
>>>
>>> 6- Apple computers will outlast any PC in the "hand me down" category..
>>>
>>> 7- Been smoking that crack pipe since 1979, still happy :D
>>>
>>> 8- My customers want to be productive, and they are soooo glad they
>>> smoke from the same pipe… They can actually spend time making $$$ instead
>>> of troubleshooting a shitty OS or geeing out.
>>>
>>> 9 - Good day! I said GOOD DAY!!! (as Fes from That 70's Show)
>>>
>>> [image: Profile Picture]
>>>
>>> Miss you guys!
>>>
>>>
>>> On Jun 13, 2012, at 9:25 PM, Marr wrote:
>>>
>>> On Wednesday 13 June 2012 20:34:08 Taylor Burke wrote:
>>>
>>> Apple is slowly turning the world of computing into a crapshoot. Their
>>> new
>>>
>>> Macbook features a fused display [...]
>>>
>>>
>>> Normally, I would not comment on this, given my limited experience with
>>> Apple
>>> hardware. But, by complete coincidence, just today I happened to be
>>> trying to
>>> get at the hard disk drive in an iMac (one of the polycarbonate-encased
>>> ones
>>> with a 20" LCD and a little webcam built in). It turns out to be a
>>> friggin'
>>> nightmare and I soon decided that it wasn't worth the effort.
>>>
>>> For starters, there are 6 screws on the bottom of the monitor (which is
>>> where
>>> the HDD is ensconsed -- deeply, as it turns out) that have to be
>>> removed. No
>>> problem, but slightly odd that 2 are Phillips and 4 require a #9 Torx.
>>> (Yes, I
>>> know why they do that, but it's still annoying.) Then, of the 4 Torx
>>> screws, 1
>>> is slightly longer than the other 3 so make sure you're paying close
>>> attention
>>> as you remove them because, unlike my 12-year-old Toshiba Satellite
>>> laptop
>>> which I recently disassembled, the position for the longer screw is not
>>> marked
>>> near the hole in any fashion. And the longer screw seats easily in 2 of
>>> the 4
>>> holes, so just hope that it's not shorting anything out if you happen to
>>> pick
>>> the wrong 1 of the 2!
>>>
>>> The next obstacle to the HDD access comes with the plastic surrounding
>>> the
>>> LCD, which cannot be easily removed because there are 2 hard-to-access
>>> interior clips inside at the top (which I only learned about after
>>> trying to
>>> remove the plastic, encountering resistance, and watching a 7-minute
>>> YouTube
>>> video that only covered removal of the outer plastic, not even getting
>>> anywhere close to the HDD access/removal!). Releasing those clips
>>> requires
>>> what us mechanically inclined types would call an SST (Special Shop
>>> Tool).
>>> It's $30 at Apple, but discontinued. YouTube has a video about how to
>>> make one
>>> from an old credit card, so get out a pot of boiling water, some tongs,
>>> and 3
>>> old CD jewel cases. (Don't forget the old credit card!  I actually have
>>> a
>>> couple of those for cracking the cases of things like remote controls
>>> and
>>> briefly considered making this SST.)
>>>
>>> However, at that point, before wasting too much (more) time on this
>>> endeavor,
>>> I figured I should dig a little deeper and found this website showing
>>> the
>>> involved process just to get access to the HDD:
>>>
>>>
>>> http://www.ifixit.com/Guide/Repair/iMac-Intel-20-Inch-EMC-2105-and-2118-
>>> Hard-Drive-Replacement/1092/1
>>>
>>> That's an excellent guide, but still... "No, thank you", Apple.  Anyone
>>> contemplating an Apple purchase and ever wanting to repair or upgrade
>>> should
>>> take a good look at all 23 steps involved in that guide. I sure hope
>>> that's
>>> atypical for Apple, but I think I know better, based on what I've heard
>>> over
>>> the years and continue to hear, right up to today's thread-starter.
>>>
>>> On Wednesday 13 June 2012 20:44:24 Eduardo Cesconetto wrote:
>>>
>>> We call it innovation for those who want innovation
>>>
>>>
>>> That's what Microsoft called it too. It doesn't make what they do
>>> innovative.
>>> Or useful. Seeing that nightmare just to get a peek at the HDD made me
>>> swear
>>> off ever buying any Apple product. I'm glad that this iMac is a loaner
>>> and that
>>> it never cost me a dime because I'd be rather annoyed (correction, "more
>>> annoyed") right now.
>>>
>>> On Wednesday 13 June 2012 21:22:31 Eduardo Cesconetto wrote:
>>>
>>> Upgrading RAM to the same motherboard is a waste of time and effort for
>>>
>>> most people, maybe not for us geeks, dweebs, nerds, etc… Do you believe a
>>>
>>> lawyer, dentist, doctor, engineer o any other professional would spend
>>>
>>> time even thinking of gaining 3.765% speed by replacing RAM?
>>>
>>>
>>> Funny you mention RAM. That's the _ONLY_ thing on this iMac that's easy
>>> to
>>> upgrade! Not counting the mouse or the keyboard, of course. :^)  There
>>> are 2
>>> Phillips screws and a couple of pop-out levers to leverage out the RAM.
>>> If so
>>> few people upgrade the RAM, then why is that the thing that they make so
>>> easy
>>> to upgrade? Yeah, I know you're talking laptop and I'm talking desktop,
>>> but I
>>> think the point is still applicable.
>>>
>>> On Wednesday 13 June 2012 21:22:31 Eduardo Cesconetto wrote:
>>>
>>> Think about Taylor, if you are not building your PC and you decide to
>>> buy a
>>>
>>> brand name one, it'll have a warranty seal on it, so technically, you
>>>
>>> can't upgrade that unless you WANT to void your warranty…
>>>
>>>
>>> Huh?!? The last 2 laptops I bought (both Toshiba, but I have no
>>> affiliation with
>>> them) had easily accessible doors to upgrade the RAM with no
>>> warranty-voiding
>>> whatsoever.  Just how long have you been smoking the Apple crack-pipe,
>>> Eduardo?
>>>
>>> Still, I'm glad that Apple is out there for some competition. And, of
>>> course,
>>> people are free to buy what they like. Some people never even think
>>> about
>>> touching the "innards" -- more power to them if that is what they
>>> want/like
>>> and can live with and/or are willing to pay Apple to repair/upgrade. But
>>> I'm a
>>> DIY guy deep in the core and just cannot fathom such unmaintainable and
>>> (effectively) non-upgrade-able hardware. Reasonably easy RAM and HDD
>>> access is
>>> _required_ on even a laptop PC and especially on a desktop PC. And yes,
>>> I'm
>>> old enough to remember when even Apples were called PCs and I still
>>> consider
>>> them PCs.
>>>
>>> Bill
>>> _______________________________________________
>>> linux-user mailing list
>>> linux-user at egr.msu.edu
>>> http://mailman.egr.msu.edu/mailman/listinfo/linux-user
>>>
>>>
>>>
>>> _______________________________________________
>>> linux-user mailing list
>>> linux-user at egr.msu.edu
>>> http://mailman.egr.msu.edu/mailman/listinfo/linux-user
>>>
>>>
>>
>
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