MacBook Unibody Model A1278 Hard Drive Cable Replacement

Geschrieben von: Walter Galan
  • Kommentare: 32
MacBook Unibody Model A1278 Hard Drive Cable Replacement

Schwierigkeitsgrad

Moderate

Schritte

20

Zeitaufwand

Keine Schätzung

Einleitung

This guide will show you how to remove the hard drive cable from your laptop.

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    • With the case closed, place the Unibody top-side down on a flat surface.

    • Depress the grooved side of the access door release latch enough to grab the free end. Lift the release latch until it is vertical.

    This is not a a1278 unibody MacBook Pro. A1278 MacBooks backs are one solid metal piece not two separate pieces. This guide is for a different MacBook Pro.

    Brad Burgeson -

    This guide isn’t for a pro; it’s a MacBook unibody.

    Nicholas -

    So, it turns out that Apple used the model code A1278 for quite a few different Mac models, including both Pro and non-Pro versions! This guide is for the non-Pro Macbooks. There’s also one for the Pro models with the same A1278 identifier.

    tempelmann -

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    • The access door should now be raised enough to lift it up and out of the Unibody.

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    • Be sure the access door release latch is vertical before proceeding.

    • Grab the white plastic tab and pull the battery up and out of the Unibody.

    Great tutorial ! great step !

    Leo Etcheverry -

    Even though it’s specifically stated, you have to make sure the access door latch is vertical or the battery won’t be removable.

    Henry Kim -

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    • Remove the following eight screws securing the lower case to the chassis:

    • One 3 mm Phillips screw.

    • Three 13.5 mm Phillips screws.

    • Four 3.5 mm Phillips screws.

    On my model, it seemed the top-left was 3.5mm and the bottom 4 were 3 mm.

    Jim -

    Make sure you have a good quality Phillips screwdriver. Mine had removable tips and had a small play at the connection. As a result I didn't have a good feel and damaged my screws (those securing the fan and the top left in step 23). Game over for me installing new thermal paste...

    Be very carefull with your screws! Especially those on the inside.

    Nickolas Michelinakis -

    You can get away with a Phillips #00 for many of the screws involved but the 4 at the bottom case split are likely to strip if you don’t use a JIS #00 or, in a pinch, a Phillips #000.

    Bill Cole -

    I used the Phillips #00 tip from my Pro Tech Toolkit, and it worked well enough. But yes, maybe #000 might have been better on the lower row of screws. Note to myself: Always read the comments first.

    Les Kitchen -

    When replacing these screws, the order to replace them in is as follows:

    1, Top left

    2. Top right

    3. Top center-left

    4. Top center-right

    5. Bottom center-right

    6. Bottom center-left

    7. Bottom right

    8. Bottom left

    I hope this information is helpful.

    facebook -

    I followed my usual process of putting in all the screws loosely, then tightening them gradually in distributed pattern, to help ensure that the panel settles in place evenly. But maybe some orders are better.

    Les Kitchen -

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    • Using both hands, lift and remove the lower case off the upper case.

    Thanks for the guide!

    It's implicit in the two photos, but worth mentioning because it blocked my progress in this step for a bit: You have to put the release latch back into its horizontal, closed position before you can lift off the lower-case panel.

    Les Kitchen -

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    • Using the flat end of a spudger, pry the subwoofer connector straight up off the logic board.

    • On some models, the subwoofer connector is soldered to the logic board and will break if you pry it off. If you need to replace the speaker/subwoofer, you can pull back the foam padding on the connector and remove the red and black wires to disconnect. You will need to reinsert the wires from the new speaker to reconnect.

    • If you are only removing the optical drive and not replacing the speaker/subwoofer, you do not need to disconnect this connector.

    Me, too, broke the subwoofer connector from the motherboard. I'd suggest removing the padding first so that you can see what kind of connector it is, then pry it loose (insert spudger where the cables enter the connector).

    petterwolff -

    DO NOT REMOVE THE SUBWOOFER CONNECTION. Step 6 IS NOT NESCESSARY.

    You can complete this guide without doing step 6 just BE CAREFUL as you already should be.

    kenneth rhem -

    The subwoofer cable is NOT removable on some models, attempting to remove it, brakes it off the circuit board and them you are @@%#$$, like me. Thanks iFixit. Also it is not necessary to remove it to replace the optical drive.

    todd -

    Oops, I followed Step-6 and my subwoofer connector came off from the motherboard!!! Please suggest me what needs to be done now?

    Srinivasan -

    Happened the same to me ... step 6 is a @%#$$. You should put now a way to repair the damage done. I just have four small tin marks on the board ...

    stratorick -

    Happened the same problem to me ... step 6 is a @%#$$**%%#. You should put now a way to repair the damage done. I just have four small tin marks on the board ... and looking to sky for help

    Badruddin Hisbani -

    Just “4 small tin marks” is what the the motherboard half of the subwoofer connector looks like.

    Bill Cole -

    There are two variants of this connector. In one, there are pins that come up from the motherboard and the connector can be pried directly up without damage.

    The other variant of the connector that everyone commenting here has is soldered to the motherboard. To repair this type, first pull off the small square of foam padding on top of the connector. Then gently pull out the four black and red wires, leaving the soldered connector attached to the logic board. After you have installed the new speaker and subwoofer, you will remove the connector on the replacement component and carefully feed the red and black wires into the connector that is still attached to the motherboard (paying careful attention to their correct order). Then replace the square of black foam.

    If you have removed the soldered on the connector, your two options are to solder it on yourself or to find a repair shop that can do that for you. There are instructables online for soldering tiny components that can help you.

    bike -

    Reading all of these comments prior to beginning the work, I didn’t even try to investigate the type of connector my laptop had. I just DIDN’T attempt removal of this connector, worked around it, and as others have mentioned, it is truly unnecessary to remove this connector. You can move the subwoofer (after removal of its other screws) out of the way just enough to slip out the old drive and slip in the new drive.

    Henry Kim -

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    • Disconnect the camera cable by pulling the male end straight away from its socket.

    The lack of warning “Be careful not to pull up on the cable as you remove it from the socket.” here, as is displayed on a similar step on the “MacBook Unibody Model A1278 AirPort Card Replacement” guide, has caused me to break the cable. My WiFi is not working anymore. How can I replace only this cable? Thank you.

    Ismael Neiva -

    https://www.ebay.fr/itm/Cable-Airport-iS...

    christophe.arnaud -

    Bonjour J’ai eu le malheur de toucher à ce câble et depuis je n’ai plus de retro-éclairage sur mon écran. Est-ce lié ?

    Hello I had the misfortune to touch this cable and since then I have no more backlight on my screen. Is it related? (but the computer works fine when I plug in a screen)

    christophe.arnaud -

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    • Use a spudger to pry the optical drive connector straight up off the logic board.

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    • Remove the two Phillips screws securing the subwoofer to the upper case.

    • The longer of the two screws is on the right.

    Longer screw was on the Left for me.

    amiller770 -

    Left: 3.7 mm

    Right: 4.0 mm

    As I measured with a vernier caliper.

    nickjg -

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    • The subwoofer is still connected to the right speaker, so don't completely remove it just yet.

    • Lift the subwoofer off the optical drive, and set it above the computer.

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    • Remove the two Phillips screws securing the camera cable bracket to the upper case.

    • The leftmost screw may remain captive in the camera cable.

    This step is not necessary. Drive can be released without removing the screws.

    mcbohdo -

    If you’re replacing the subwoofer, you DO need to remove the left screw but not the right screw. This is fortunate, because if you are stuck with a Phillips #00 instead of a JIS #00 screwdriver, you may well strip the heads of these screws.

    Bill Cole -

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    • Remove the three 2.5 mm Phillips screws securing the optical drive to the upper case.

    The lower left screw hole of the replacement drive purchased from iFixit doesn’t align with the screw hole of the body of the computer. Doesn’t seem to be a problem as the drive seems to be quite stable with the other 2 screws, and the “fit” within the drive area.

    Henry Kim -

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    • Lift the optical drive from its right edge and pull it out of the computer.

    • The hard drive cable may become disconnected from the logic board when removing the optical drive. Ensure it is connected during reassembly.

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    • Remove the single Phillips screw securing the hard drive bracket to the upper case.

    • This screw is captive in the hard drive bracket.

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    • Lift the hard drive by its plastic pull tab and remove the freed hard drive bracket.

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    • Lift the hard drive out of its supports and disconnect the SATA cable by pulling the connector straight away from the hard drive.

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    • Remove the four 10.3 mm Phillips screws securing the mid wall to the upper case.

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    • Lift the mid wall out of the upper case.

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    • Use a spudger to pry the hard drive cable connector straight up off the logic board.

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    • Peel the hard drive cable from the adhesive securing it to the upper case, and maneuver the plastic retaining block out of the upper case.

    • During reassembly, be sure the two pins on top of the plastic retaining block mate to the holes on the underside of the midwall.

Abschluss

To reassemble your device, follow these instructions in reverse order.

Tinte & Feder

Walter Galan

685540 Reputation

3 Kommentare

My mid-2012 MBP MD101LL/A a1278 doesn’t look anything like this, nor does the cable.

RICHARD CHAN -

These instructions are not for the Mid 2012 A1278, but for a much older MacBook Pro. Pretty confusing.

Tor Willy Austerslått -

big up to the 2 ppl a day that want to run their 08 uni on ssd. 1.5 upload, was it really that slow back then!?

dtdt -