[P1] screw loose problem :-)/warranty issues

[Mark Kippert]

maizychicken on 1/19/03 9:25 AM wrote:

>> DO NOT GO THERE UNLES YOU ARE WILLING TO FORFEIT YOUR ENTIRE WARRANTY.
>> If you are near an apple store, go in there on a quiet day and ask the
>> genius for help. Depending on a bunch of variables, (S)he may be able
>> to help you to save some of the cost at least and will definitely help
>> you to preserve our warranty.
>> 
> 
> Hiya,
> 
> I called Applecare twice and asked two different people who both put me on
> hold to ask senior technicians if ME opening the case would void my
> warranty, and both times I was told no, it would not void the warranty if I
> took the case off.  The second guy said that although going into the case
> itself would not void my warranty, if I damaged anything in the process the
> warranty obviously would not cover damage that I did.
> If anyone can show me something from Apple in writing that says that opening
> the case will definitely void my warranty I'd really appreciate it, because
> I am on my way to the hardware store to get the tools.
> 

I thought I would share my experience with you regarding your warranty and
any risk involved.

Last April I called Apple about DIY upgrading to a larger hard drive. They
told me the same thing. I can do it myself, BUT, if I damage anything in the
process, my warranty is void. My first thought was, if something goes wrong
a month or two after I do it (or a year or two since I bought AppleCare),
will they still be able to put the blame on me?

Well, I went ahead and replaced the drive myself. In the process of
disassembling it, I discovered that the lead to the AirPort antenna had been
crushed between two points where the case came together. I had been using
AirPort and it worked fine. A couple months later my AirPort connection
started to fail. I had to be within 10 feet of the base station to get a
signal. I knew what the problem was but how the heck would I be able to
prove I didn't crush the antenna lead?!?!?!

Well, I called Apple and they had me send it in for repair. Rather than go
through trying to explain what I found, I decided my best option would be to
play dumb, reinstall the old drive, and send it in. Thankfully it was
repaired, no questions asked.

When I put the 40GB drive back in, I saw that they had indeed replaced the
lead that had been crushed.

One more word to the wise. I've taken apart almost every PowerBook Apple has
produced except for the Titanium and Clamshell iBook. They were all a walk
in the park by comparison. The first time I took my iBook apart I was
sweating bullets. The part I found to be most difficult was all the prying I
had to do. Using my fingernail to separate the case halves and such.
Everything is extremely tight and there is very little room for mistakes.
And whatever you do, don't mix up or loose any of the screws. I don't think
there was more than one or two screws alike. I took a piece of corrugated
cardboard and poked a row of tiny holes in it (about 30 or so holes). I
inserted the screws into the cardboard in the order they came out. I also
made rough sketches of the inside as I removed them so that I would know
what screw came from which hole (I number the holes and noted it with the
corresponding screw stuck in the cardboard.

The first time I swapped in the 40GB drive it took me just about three and a
half hours. The second time (to send it to Apple) about two and three
quarters hours. The third time (when I got it back) just over 3 hours
because I got cocky and thought I knew what I was doing so I missed a couple
screws and nearly broke the case.

Anyhow, that was my experience. Go slow, make notes, keep good track of what
you're doing and BE PATIENT.

Good luck,
-Mark