Broke the screen on Macbook, what to do?

[EB66]

My brothers macbook fell off of his bed and the screen is absolutely totaled. The insides of it are broke and it does not work at all just shows weird colors and cracks.

We called apple and they said it was not covered because he doesn't have apple care and it was going to cost a ridiculous amount of money i don't remember the cost but the guy said hes almost better off buying a new computer.

what would you do? is that it, the computer is toast after one fall?

 

[killmoms]

The LCD is the most expensive part of a laptop, and accidental damage wouldn't be covered even if he did have AppleCare. Unless you want to try to replace the screen yourself by buying the part (still very pricey on eBay), yes, you'd be better off learning from this very expensive mistake.

 

[Manzana]

I've used these guys before, their guides are great.

 

[Manzana]

one more thing, what type of macbook is it? the link i posted if for a 2ghz core duo, $400

 

[MacDanielG]

wow... the horror. I can only imagine.

The death of my macbook would be followed by a continous lack of nutrition followed by suicidal thoughts. (well not THAT far but you get the point)

 

[KompleX]

sounds like the macbook is irreparable. it's time to let it go on to macbook heaven and get a new one unless the cost of fixing it is significantly less than buying a new one.

RIP

 

[Alistair1990]

If I'm right, the ifixit guide replaces the screen by opening the laptop from the bottom case and removing an awful lot. I found a guide (sorry I have forgotten where from) that shows how to replace the lcd panel by removing the bezel (plastic around the screen, it pulls off). The screen can then be taken off by removing several screws which is fairly easy - I did the whole thing with nothing more than a small screwdriver. Unplug the screen from the inverter and two cable (for video input and webcam i believe).

Simply do the reverse to fit the new panel - I got mine off eBay for £160 delivered next day. The whole replacement took about 30 minutes and I am by no means a computer expert.

EDIT here is the link I used http://www.screentekinc.com/lcd-removal-instructions_en,macbook.shtml

 

[KompleX]

wow... the horror. I can only imagine.

The death of my macbook would be followed by a continous lack of nutrition followed by suicidal thoughts. (well not THAT far but you get the point)

i would feel the same way. *hugs macbook*

 

[EB66]

thanks for all the help guys....its not mine so im not sure exactly the specs on it but i think its a 2ghz

 

[Alistair1990]

No worries, mine is the 2Ghz and the only difficult part was the removal of the hinge cover but it came out eventually. Are you based in the UK? As the eBay seller I bought my screen off seemed very good and offered a free repair service if the screen is bought from them, just means you have to send your macbook to them.

 

[EB66]

anyone know a way i could possible control it in the meantime? i don't have an external screen to hook it up to so that is not an option

i have remote desktop on my computer but i cant connect to that computer because it is not enabled in the sharing preferences and i cant find a way to get to it

any suggestions?

 

[Spritey]

anyone know a way i could possible control it in the meantime? i don't have an external screen to hook it up to so that is not an option

i have remote desktop on my computer but i cant connect to that computer because it is not enabled in the sharing preferences and i cant find a way to get to it

any suggestions?

Do you have a relatively new tv you could try hooking it up to? Newer tvs often have the right ports

And feel your pain. My bro bought my MBP, fell on the ice and landed on top of his backpack which had his MBP in it. Screen cracked, so that was $1500 in repair costs...

 

[Alistair1990]

anyone know a way i could possible control it in the meantime? i don't have an external screen to hook it up to so that is not an option

i have remote desktop on my computer but i cant connect to that computer because it is not enabled in the sharing preferences and i cant find a way to get to it

any suggestions?

Sounds obvious but don't open or close it if you don't need to, the flex and movement will cause the screen to get worse.

 

[aross99]

How about taking the MB over to a friends house and using their monitor? Only problem is that I suspect you don't have the special cable you need to hook up a monitor. That is probably your best bet though...

I suspect you can probably get it fixed for something like $400 like other people have said, and while that is certainly not cheap, it is better than buying a new $1,000 laptop...

 

[j26]

Ouch!!

That's a big loss to swallow.
Even if your brother has to get a new macbook, the old one might be still usable as a desktop if he does pick up a monitor, so it's not necessarily a total loss.


Small consolation, but it's something.

 

[heatmiser]

Steps 1-3:

1. Recover the hard drive.

2. Sell MB on eBay.

3. Buy refurb from Apple.

That's what I'd do.

 

[Prost264]

^ not a bad idea, considering a refurb SR 2ghz Macbook is only $849, just depends on how much you get from the ebay sale.

 

[AlexanderTgreat]

My brothers macbook fell off of his bed and the screen is absolutely totaled. The insides of it are broke and it does not work at all just shows weird colors and cracks.

We called apple and they said it was not covered because he doesn't have apple care and it was going to cost a ridiculous amount of money i don't remember the cost but the guy said hes almost better off buying a new computer.

what would you do? is that it, the computer is toast after one fall?

You should be able to find a new screen from an internet vender of 200-270 dollars and then just install it yourself. It's not overly difficult, just print off directions and follow all the steps. If you send to to apple for the repair they will charge you almost as much as you could buy a new macbook for

 

[brendanryder]

You should be able to find a new screen from an internet vender of 200-270 dollars and then just install it yourself. It's not overly difficult, just print off directions and follow all the steps. If you send to to apple for the repair they will charge you almost as much as you could buy a new macbook for

no
i highly doubt it
i broke my mb screen and it cost 900$ to replace it.
the good thing is that my "ex" friend broke it so he had to pay
your better seeing how much it will cost to fix the innarnds and not the screen and use it as a desktop

 

[Alistair1990]

no
i highly doubt it
i broke my mb screen and it cost 900$ to replace it.
the good thing is that my "ex" friend broke it so he had to pay
your better seeing how much it will cost to fix the innarnds and not the screen and use it as a desktop

From what I understood it was just the screen that was broken and the innards are fine? In which case the OP should be able to pick up a screen for $300 or there abouts and, as some have said, fit it himself.

In this situation I would not consider the machine dead by any means, unless I am miss-reading something?

 

[aross99]

I found a screen replacement service here:

http://www.dttservice.com/macbook.html

Click on the LCD Screen tab at the top. Look like $450 to get it repaired. Don't know anything abotu them though.

I know that's a lot of cash, but its half the price of getting a refurb new one. Screen replacement is NOT a simple thing to do, and from the tone of your questions, it doesn't sound like you guys are probably going to be able to handle a do-it-yourself repair.

You might be able to find a cheaper one too - I just googled for it...

 

[EB66]

ya i definetly don't want to do the repair, ive worked on my powerbook before and took the whole logic board and everything out to reconnect my airport card and it was a pain in the ass to say the least, i also bent the casing a lil bit in the process

thanks for that last link it def looks like the way to go, thats most likely what hes gonna do

 

[heatmiser]

^ not a bad idea, considering a refurb SR 2ghz Macbook is only $849, just depends on how much you get from the ebay sale.

You could easily pull $400-500 on eBay for a broken book. From there, it would cost the amount of a new screen to get an entirely new computer. Easy decision, IMO.

 

[Prof.]

That sux, dude.

As I lay here typing this, my MacBooks is on the corner of my bed and I just pushed it towards the center of my bed so the same thing doesn't happen to me.

 

[gkarris]

Parts is parts....