MacBook Pro 17" Unibody Teardown

Geschrieben von: Luke Soules

Veröffentlicht: 25/09/09

Kommentare: 105

MacBook Pro 17" Unibody Teardown

Veröffentlicht: 25/09/09

Teardown

Einleitung

Our MacBook Pro 17" Unibody arrived on February 17. We immediately got to work disassembling it and posting teardown photos here. We comment on interesting changes and show some comparisons with other MacBook parts.

Werkzeuge

Schritt 1

We have it! Our patience has been severely tested by the month-long wait for this MacBook Pro 17".
We'll post updates on twitter about interesting things that we discover as we go. We'll also post interesting notes in our blog over the next few days.
Feel free to comment on specific steps as we go. If you have requests to see specific parts, we'll do our best to accommodate.

Someone please run SwitchResX on a 17" unibody and use the "Export DDC" function to extract the display information. Please post the model number of the LCD panel used.

mm1121890 -

Hi I just did it is an LG Philips LP171WU6-TLA1. No Info could be found via google on this, seems to be too new.

Zitat von mm1121890:

Someone please run SwitchResX on a 17" unibody and use the "Export DDC" function to extract the display information. Please post the model number of the LCD panel used.

Psion -

Hi, I could not see the wifi module, can you identify it?

ibweaponx -

Schritt 2

Look at all the accessories you get for $2799!
An 85-watt power adapter
An 87 page user's manual
Two software restore DVDs
One small black cleaning cloth
We were half-expecting Tim Cook to jump out of the box. Didn't happen.
There is NO Mini DisplayPort adapter included. That'll be $29, please.

You got a cleaning pad!?! Crap, Apple ripped me off again.

Jim - 25/04/14

you get one with an iMac

Seizure Salad - 07/02/19

also, $2799 is ALOT

Seizure Salad - 07/02/19

Schritt 3

Physical dimensions: 0.98 x 15.47 x 10.51 inches and 6.6 pounds.
For comparison, the 15" model measures 0.95 x 14.35 x 9.82 inches and 5.5 pounds.
There's something almost spiritual about the blackness of that screen. Much to our dismay, it is not full of stars and David Bowman is nowhere to be found.

"He [Jonathan Ive, Apple's senior vice president of industrial design] understands that it's not about the object itself. It's about the experience the object will create"

– Victor Ermoli dean of the School of Design at the Savannah College of Art and Design in Dec. 08 Mac|life Magazine, Meet the top 10 Apple Influencers

Mitra Cline -

Can u put up a side by side comparison of the different models? I can't visualize just #'s.

Chris Cline -

Zitat von Locke:

Can u put up a side by side comparison of the different models? I can't visualize just #'s.

Locke, we'd love to do that but sadly we don't have a 15" unibody right now! If you find a picture online, I'll post a link to it.

Kyle Wiens -

Was there anything stopping you from changing the battery, what is that sticker like tag, does that break or indicate you've removed the battery?

RyanD -

Zitat von RyanD:

Was there anything stopping you from changing the battery, what is that sticker like tag, does that break or indicate you've removed the battery?

No, the sticker doesn't break. I don't think there's any way they could tell you took it apart if you were careful.

Kyle Wiens -

Zitat von kyle24:

Locke, we'd love to do that but sadly we don't have a 15" unibody right now! If you find a picture online, I'll post a link to it.

http://www.sizeasy.com/page/size_compari...

garyh -

Zitat von garyh:

http://www.sizeasy.com/page/size_compari...

Thanks! It's a cool site, but the comparison didn't load for me, I just got a spinney wheel. I'll try again later.

Chris Cline -

Zitat von Locke:

Thanks! It's a cool site, but the comparison didn't load for me, I just got a spinney wheel. I'll try again later.

Worked for me in Firefox, not tried any other browsers.

garyh -

Zitat von garyh:

Worked for me in Firefox, not tried any other browsers.

Yup, better now, thanks!

Chris Cline -

Zitat von kyle24:

No, the sticker doesn't break. I don't think there's any way they could tell you took it apart if you were careful.

Many thanks, I had and identical question (probably badly formulated) on page 2

That's exactly what I wanted to know.

didn't recieved mine, but for setting the Glasspad "click", removing the batery seems to be the only way

Thanks again

badmoon -

Schritt 4

Tidbits from Apple System profiler:
12,820 mAh capacity. Yes, that's 12.8 AMP HOURS. Let's hope it actually lasts the 1,000 discharge cycles that Apple claims.
Our battery already had 3 cycles on it! I wonder if the famous factory girl tested ours.
A 2 GB DDR3 1067 MHz RAM chip is installed in each slot, as expected.
The hard drive is a 320 GB Hitachi HTS543232L95A02 SATA drive using the NVIDIA MCP79 AHCI controller.
The model that we bought has the 'low-end', 2.66GHz Intel Core 2 Duo processor with 6MB on-chip shared L2 cache.

The 25th anniversary of the first Macintosh computer was January 24th, 2009... I enjoyed looking at the Evolution of Apple Design Between 1977-2008.

Mitra Cline -

Schritt 5

The lower case. Apple's using wide, thin black rubber feet on the Unibody Pros, a departure from the small stubby bumpers on the Aluminum revisions.
There are ten Phillips screws around the perimeter of the lower case to remove:
Seven 3 mm screws
Three 14 mm screws
Apple's user manual for this computer has instructions to remove the lower case. But they got the length of one of the screws wrong. We promise to get them right in our repair guide.
The computer's serial number is engraved in the aluminum lower case, not the upper case like the other Unibody machines.

Schritt 6

We removed the screws, and we're rotating off the lower case now.
The second picture reveals the beautiful internals. Look how huge that battery is!
The serial number is now engraved on the lower case, not on the Unibody upper case as they do on the 15" Pro and 13" Unibody.

could you take a picture of the motherboard at an extreme close up view and then maybe a straight overall view so that we get an idea of how things are organized inside?

0501701 -

Zitat von 0501701:

could you take a picture of the motherboard at an extreme close up view and then maybe a straight overall view so that we get an idea of how things are organized inside?

Here's a high res closeup.

David Patierno -

Zitat von dave:

Here's a high res closeup.

OMG!! thanks!

0501701 -

How exposed is the vent where the screen is connected to the base? And also, is the keyboard sealed underneath? I've had small bugs fly into my keyboard before and it's driving me crazy to think I could have dead bugs in my computer.

Blank -

yes it is under all this

Seizure Salad - 07/02/19

Schritt 7

Disconnecting the battery connector.
It's probably a good idea to disconnect this cable before continuing to disassemble the machine.
The second photo is removing a 2 GB DDR3 RAM chip.

Can you try running the laptop without the battery, i.e. using only the power cable. Would it run?

Since I only use my laptop while its on my desk, thus always connect to the AC adapter, why shorten my battery's life if it can work without it.

kouma -

Zitat von kouma:

Can you try running the laptop without the battery, i.e. using only the power cable. Would it run?

Yes, it would work fine.

Zitat von kouma:

Since I only use my laptop while its on my desk, thus always connect to the AC adapter, why shorten my battery's life if it can work without it.

You can work without the battery, but it's quite useful to have it in there. The battery's essentially a "backup," powering the computer should anything happen to the AC power. If you accidentally unplug the computer and don't have a battery, you risk ruining your hard drive or just losing information.

It's also not good for the battery to sit there with no charge. Read up on how to prolong the life of lithium ion batteries if you'd like more detailed information.

Miroslav Djuric -

Hi !

Could you tell me where the airport card is connected ? Thanks !

Sof -

Schritt 8

To remove the hard drive, unscrew the two small Phillips screws holding the black plastic hard drive bracket to the chassis. Pull up on the white plastic tab and lift the hard drive out of the case, being careful not to strain the SATA cable.
Carefully disconnect the Serial ATA cable.

Do you have any idea who makes the 256GB SSD that comes as a build-to-order option?

Industro -

Zitat von Industro:

Do you have any idea who makes the 256GB SSD that comes as a build-to-order option?

no evidence, but pretty sure It's the same manufacturer who provides the 128GB SSD : Samsung

badmoon -

Zitat von Industro:

Do you have any idea who makes the 256GB SSD that comes as a build-to-order option?

A budy recieved his UB17 with a 256SSD

It looks like it's a Toshiba

Picture of the Apple's UB17" 256GB SDD : Toshiba 256GB Unibody SSD

Model number :

256GB Fujis 655-1526A

Fujis THNS256GE8BCAA

Screenshots of www.serialata.org validation references

http://www.serialata.org/integratorlist1...

http://www.serialata.org/integratorslist...

The customer who recieved It, seems disapointed, the SSD max out @ 100MB/sec and is 2.5 less performant than the Intel X25 (80GB MLC)

badmoon -

http://www.marketwire.com/press-release/...

Does anyone know if the the 1 TB SSD would fit inside? That would be an upgrade!

niner -

Schritt 9

Ignoring all manufacturer warnings, we are removing the non-removable battery. Hold your breath!
There are three tri-wing screws holding the battery to the Unibody case.

is the Battery removal "visible" : does the sticker broke or stretch easily?

I've heard that the glass trackpad "click" can be refined by gently setting a screw under the battery (actual working tips for the Unibody 15" and 13")

or does this access will remain forbidden for people not wanting to void the warranty?

badmoon -

Would it be possible to replace the annoying slot-in superdrive with another SATA storage device (say, a 500GB HDD) ?

- Would there be enough headroom (9.5mm or better) ?

- What connector/part to use ? Would the existing SuperDrive connector fit a SSD or HDD ?

- How challenging would it be to secure a 2.5" mass storage device in the SuperDrive emplacement ?

Thanks for any help with this, I'm about to buy one of those laptops, and my experience with slot-in drives encourages me to consider alternative uses for that wasted space in the shell. :)

Come to think of it... an extra fan in there couldn't hurt: I'm told the 9600GT tends to run hot, and I'm going for the 2.93GHz version of the processor.

AcD -

Zitat von AcD:

Would it be possible to replace the annoying slot-in superdrive with another SATA storage device (say, a 500GB HDD) ?

- Would there be enough headroom (9.5mm or better) ?

- What connector/part to use ? Would the existing SuperDrive connector fit a SSD or HDD ?

- How challenging would it be to secure a 2.5" mass storage device in the SuperDrive emplacement ?

Thanks for any help with this, I'm about to buy one of those laptops, and my experience with slot-in drives encourages me to consider alternative uses for that wasted space in the shell. :)

Come to think of it... an extra fan in there couldn't hurt: I'm told the 9600GT tends to run hot, and I'm going for the 2.93GHz version of the processor.

Check this out: http://store.mcetech.com/Merchant2/merch...

burgerga123 -

Schritt 10

Removed the battery! That was pretty easy.
It's only a matter of time until you'll be able to buy this battery online from companies like us.
Removing the battery in the 17" is reminiscent of the MacBook Air-- several screws to remove the lower case, a few screws on the battery, and it's free.
The battery is Apple model #A1309, 7.3V 95Wh (12820 mAh).
Tree huggers everywhere will be relieved to know that it "contains no Mercury (Hg)."
The battery weighs 20.1 ounces (1.25 pounds or 570 grams). That's 20% of the computer's weight!

These pictures look great. Everything is so clean in there.

David Patierno -

Zitat von dave:

These pictures look great. Everything is so clean in there.

I'm always impressed with the layout that apple does inside their computers. I've taken apart other "Non-Apple" computers and the insides always seem cluttered and disorganized, with lots of plastic everywhere. Granted, I have a limited number of non-apple take-aparts, kudos to Apple's Engineers.

Cody -

Anatel is the Brazilian telecoms regulatory agency and the logo is the agency's logo:

http://www.anatel.gov.br/

Angelo -

Hi, can you provide exact dimensions of 17" and 15" battery?

maratus -

Schritt 11

The Bluetooth board is right behind the optical drive, next to the hinge.
It's very nice that Apple moved this out of the display assembly (where it is located in the MacBook Unibody and 15" MacBook Pro Unibody). No longer does a Unibody owner need to replace their entire display assembly ($$$) when their Bluetooth goes out.
It has an Anatel logo on it: BCM93046MD MINI 003WWA080264 FCC iD:QDS-BRCM1037.
Like the other Unibody machines, the Airport card is in the display assembly clutch cover.

i am trying to replace my airport card but i don't know how :(

Any help?

Ashley Berthon -

Schritt 12

The 8x slot-loading SuperDrive (DVD±R DL/DVD±RW/CD-RW).
The internal design of this machine is pretty consistent with the 15" MacBook Pro. We'll be posting some part comparison shots later to show relative sizing.

What model optical drive is in there?

Rwilson -

Zitat von Rwilson:

What model optical drive is in there?

The SuperDrive is a SATA SuperDrive just like the other Unibody machines we've taken apart. However, this drive was manufactured by HL, and not Panasonic like the drives we saw in the 13" and 15" Unibody machines. The label printed on the drive says "Model: GS21N." Apple System Profiler reports the model as "HL-DT-ST DVDRW GS21N" and revision "SA17."

Luke Soules -

Zitat von luke:

The SuperDrive is a SATA SuperDrive just like the other Unibody machines we've taken apart. However, this drive was manufactured by HL, and not Panasonic like the drives we saw in the 13" and 15" Unibody machines. The label printed on the drive says "Model: GS21N." Apple System Profiler reports the model as "HL-DT-ST DVDRW GS21N" and revision "SA17."

Do you know of a BD-ROM or BD-RW that we could swap for this older DVD drive? It seems a shame that Apple has such high-end everything but such a run-of-the-mill CD/DVD drive.

Bitflippper -

Oops, I noobed: see comment mistakenly posted in step 9, please.

AcD -

Hi,

I am also interested to replace the optical drive by a BD-Rom DVD/CD writer like this:

http://www.sony-optiarc.eu/products/blur...

Would this fit?

Thanks for your answer

xanthalas -

Hi xanthalas and friends,

The Blu-Ray drive will not fit in the MacBook Pro 17". The drive needs

to be 9.5 mm in height in order to fit into the laptop.

Miroslav Djuric -

Zitat von miro:

Hi xanthalas and friends,

The Blu-Ray drive will not fit in the MacBook Pro 17". The drive needs

to be 9.5 mm in height in order to fit into the laptop.

Thanks Miro. Can somebody tell me what drive is used (Vendor and ID) as I didn't find such small drives in height.

Thanks.

xanthalas -

Zitat von xanthalas:

Thanks Miro. Can somebody tell me what drive is used (Vendor and ID) as I didn't find such small drives in height.

Thanks.

Hey xanthalas,

I stole this from Luke's February 17th post: "The SuperDrive is a SATA SuperDrive just like the other Unibody machines we've taken apart. However, this drive was manufactured by HL, and not Panasonic like the drives we saw in the 13" and 15" Unibody machines. The label printed on the drive says "Model: GS21N." Apple System Profiler reports the model as "HL-DT-ST DVDRW GS21N" and revision "SA17.""

Miroslav Djuric -

On my machine, the big wire going from the left corner to the board covers the screw.

Its a tiny metal connector, and under magnification you can see little tabs on each side

To remove this wire from the board, use your fingernails to hook the tabs and pull (horizontally) towards the DVD drive

anon - 15/10/17

This guide gives details on how to remove each connector:

MacBook Pro 17" Unibody Logic Board austauschen

anon - 15/10/17

Rather than show all of these comparisons, how about showing every single step, every little insignificant piece of whatever that you remove, move to take something out or to make taking something out easier... I've got the MackBookPro 17" back together and have about a half dozen parts that go somewhere, but who knows.

How about putting some arrows pointing out connectors that are being removed??? Not just listing 6-7 of them and assume we know what it is and more importantly where it is...

Richard Rose -

Schritt 13

The bottom of the logic board.
The component density is amazing.
There are four Samsung K4J10324QD-HC12 chips, likely video RAM for the NVidia 9600 chipset.

Large version doesnt work :/

Lucas Hoekstra (Lucas9810) - 02/11/17

Schritt 14

On left: 15" Unibody fan. On right: 17" Unibody fan. Below: A North Carolina 'first-flight' quarter.
The Sunon manufactured fan says 'MagLev' on it. That's interesting! Part #: MG45070V1
Sunon's site says, "By using magnetic levitation force (MagLev), these fans feature zero friction with no contact between shaft and bearing. With excellent rotational stability, the MagLev fan eliminates vibration and typical wobble and shaking typically experienced in fan motors."
"MagLev also provides excellent high temperature endurance that results in long life."
Apple's used similar fans in MacBooks in the past.

I opened a late model iBook G4 the other day and found one of these "MagLev" fans... that's the oldest model I've seen them in (circa late 2004).

Errol -

Does the unibody 15" use a MagLev fan as well then?

SpaceAge -

Zitat von SpaceAge:

Does the unibody 15" use a MagLev fan as well then?

Not that we've seen.

Kyle Wiens -

I'm curious about the airflow on these fans: do they suck in and vent out both through the backside black heat sinks, or is air sucked in through the bottom-side openings (through which you see the fan blades on the pictures) then forced out through the heat sink ?

If the second is true, I'd imagine the fans are generating an "in" airflow all over the motherboard (between the mobo and underside plate), using every available crack in the case joints as intake, which presumably means it will build up a fat air dust crust all over the components in no time.

If the fans both intake and exhaust mainly through the rear ports/heatsinks, how is the rest of the machine cooled (besides CPU and GPUs) ?

AcD -

What screws hold the fans in?

conordml - 19/09/14

Do you need to remove the fans from the board if you are lifting the board? Looks like some screws goto the board & others to the case. I’m headed for the keybard after spilling water…

anon - 15/10/17

Schritt 15

Removing the Phillips screws securing the perforated metal covers to the Unibody. These covers seem to protect the ribbon cable connections for the trackpad, keyboard, express card, and the serial ATA hard drive. Apple hasn't used metal shields like this before.

Can you disassemble the trackpad further? I'm curious to see the pattern of the blue circuit doing the multi-touch interaction

lexxmac -

Schritt 16

Bottom of logic board with fans removed.
Disconnecting a number of connector cables:
LVDS, keyboard backlight, iSight, speaker, IR/sleep sensor, trackpad, keyboard, Express card, hard drive, and battery indicator light

Could you tell which one is the isight connector?

Foxx -

Need the details of how to disconnect the cables. Not obvious which direction to pull or to lift, especially the huge one in the upper right corner.

anon - 15/10/17

Schritt 17

The logic board with all connectors removed.
Remove the following eight screws:
Six 3 mm Phillips from the logic board
Two 7.2 mm Phillips from the MagSafe board
Second image: removing logic board.

Schritt 18

Top of logic board.
The speakers are mounted on the left next to the ports.
The heat sink covers the two NVidia chipsets and the processor.
This machine has 512 MB video memory for the NVidia 9600M. The 9400M chipset shares 256 MB of system memory. You have to log out to switch between graphics chipsets.

Say what? Where are the Preference settings for this?

“This machine has 512 MB video memory for the NVidia 9600M. The 9400M chipset shares 256 MB of system memory. You have to log out to switch between graphics chipsets.”

anon - 15/10/17

Schritt 19

Removing the black heat sink and heat conduit.
Second image: The processor and two NVidia chipsets revealed!
Intel processor: Intel 5831C024 SLGEL AV80576T9550 2.66 / 6M / 1066
No surprises there: 2.66 GHz, 6 MB L2 Cache, 1066 MHz bus, just as advertised.

It looks like they weren't so messy with the thermal paste this time. ;)

jmwolgemuth -

Are both speakers only on one side of the MacBook Pro?

Industro -

Zitat von Industro:

Are both speakers only on one side of the MacBook Pro?

the second set of speakers should be under the DVD burner, the disassembly doesn't show It for now.

badmoon -

Zitat von badmoon:

the second set of speakers should be under the DVD burner, the disassembly doesn't show It for now.

We added a photo on step 22 showing the speaker positioning.

Kyle Wiens -

Any idea what the two components labeled with stickers ('Mac', 'Screen') are? They are to the left of the smaller gpu in the logic board shot.

mobbarley -

What revision is the Firewire chip? They used rev: 6 of the bad Agere/Lucent one. I have read Apple has aknoweledged that there are some problems, and that there are a rev: 7 of the chip already out in some external cards. This could be very important for some firewire audio interfaces e.g. like the RME FireFace 800.

Nooway -

Hi, is there a way to change out the nvidia 9400/9600 for a different chip, say a 8800 or 9800?

this is probably a really noob question but I had to ask

wantsamac -

Zitat von wantsamac:

Hi, is there a way to change out the nvidia 9400/9600 for a different chip, say a 8800 or 9800?

this is probably a really noob question but I had to ask

Unfortunately, the video processor is soldered to the logic board and much too hard to replace without mechanized soldering tools.

steve -

Hey is there a way to remove and put more ram on your logic board? Is that too difficult?

sillydrew -

Can you power the logic board w/o the power button?

svt -

Is there a special guide to change the (hardware) keyboard from qwerty to qwertz?

Bastian

Bastian -

Schritt 20

We removed the heat sink thermal compound so you can see the die markings.
Left image: Intel processor. No die markings!
Middle image: NVidia L901B138 0902B3 PB9487.000 MCP79MXT-B3
Right Image: NVidia 50N3BF 0850C1 NK6791.S1W NB9P-GS-W2-C1

is that cpu soldered on?

navicaph -

Zitat von navicaph:

is that cpu soldered on?

Yes, unfortunately the CPU is soldered to the logic board. Apple hasn't offered a laptop with the CPU on a separate board since the G3 Pismo in 2000.

Luke Soules -

Why there are 2 nvidia chip sets on mother board , and which one is a graphic card among 2 chip sets

Nadendla tharak - 27/09/17

Schritt 21

Left: 15" Unibody logic board
Right: 17" Unibody logic board
What's different? The biggest difference to you is the additional USB port. Oh, and $800.
The low-end 15" board that we took apart in October only has 256 MB video memory (Samsung RAM soldered onto the board). The high-end 15" and this 17" have 512 MB video RAM.

What are the dimensions of the logic boards on the 17" and 15"?

jamesb -

Zitat von jamesb:

What are the dimensions of the logic boards on the 17" and 15"?

The 17" Unibody board is about 5.5" by 9.5" (14 cm by 24 cm). The 15" Unibody board is the same height, but only about 8.25" wide (21 cm).

Luke Soules -

Do you guys have apple tv repairs done yet? They all have the same glitch lately that they keep restarting over and over again and my apple provider here in Iceland is saying it's not apple's fault.

I need to buy a new one they say!

Thank you so much for this web page and very professional work. I enjoy coming here every day reading!

zeolite -

Looks like the 17" has ekstra space for more video RAM, 4 more spaces on the same side as the CPU and GPU's are... So is it possible to "installe" 512MB ekstra video RAM?

Zaico -

Schritt 22

The most famous upper case in the world, Apple's 'brick' CNC-manufactured Unibody case.
The second shot shows the speaker placement. We took the speakers out and put them on top of the case in the same position and orientation that they are internally.

Schritt 23

We removed the display assembly.
Here we have the 13", 15", and 17" MacBook displays stacked together.

Which brand and model of LCD panel is used in the unibody 17" MacBook Pro?

mm1121890 -

Zitat von mm1121890:

Which brand and model of LCD panel is used in the unibody 17" MacBook Pro?

and how is the full screen black overlay and mask attached to the dislay? Optical bonding?

bobcat -

Hiya, Is it physically impossible to dismantle the display section? As yet, I've not seen any images posted by anyone, not even yourselves.

UltraNEO -

Zitat von UltraNEO:

Hiya, Is it physically impossible to dismantle the display section? As yet, I've not seen any images posted by anyone, not even yourselves.

The glass front panel is glued firmly to the rear panel. We haven't tried to liberate it. It is possible that heat might loosen the adhesive, but it's just as possible that the heat will smoke or break the glass. As far as I know, there isn't a feasible way to get in there.

Ben Eisenman -

Zitat von ben:

The glass front panel is glued firmly to the rear panel. We haven't tried to liberate it. It is possible that heat might loosen the adhesive, but it's just as possible that the heat will smoke or break the glass. As far as I know, there isn't a feasible way to get in there.

What if dust particles get between the glass and the LCD panel? Would there be no way to clean that out? This part concerns me.

Thanks

Factor -

What type of connector is used on the display assembly to connect to the logic board.

jamesb -

Zitat von Factor:

What if dust particles get between the glass and the LCD panel? Would there be no way to clean that out? This part concerns me.

Thanks

As far as i can tell from the descriptions of the manufacturing i have come across, the panels are sealed so dust shouldn't be an issue.

Can anyone confirm this?

sacredgeometry -

Zitat von mm1121890:

Which brand and model of LCD panel is used in the unibody 17" MacBook Pro?

We don't know yet. If we disassemble the display further we'll let everyone know.

Kyle Wiens -

Can you please disassemble the LCD so we can see the LED backlight?

thanks that would be much appreciated

keep up the great work!!!

MacManNZ -

Zitat von MacManNZ:

Can you please disassemble the LCD so we can see the LED backlight?

thanks that would be much appreciated

keep up the great work!!!

citing Ben above:

The glass front panel is glued firmly to the rear panel. We haven't tried to liberate it. It is possible that heat might loosen the adhesive, but it's just as possible that the heat will smoke or break the glass. As far as I know, there isn't a feasible way to get in there.

Brady Cabe -

Does anyone know how to take the display assembly further apart? I want to add a Wacom tablet pad behind? How bad an idea is that now with the glass-enclosed displays of the Unibodies?

AlanMoore -

Will the display assembly work if it's not put back on the hinges, separate from the body frame? If it will work can the signal cables be extended? I'd like to make a custom display stand and use a wireless keyboard and mouse and 'hide' the computer body.

GeeC -

It is possible to get the glass panel off the display assembly. It is quite easy to break since it is glued much like modern iphones/ipads. That said, it can easily cheaper to buy just a display panel and a replacement glass than to buy a whole display assembly so even with the risk of breaking the glass, it’s not a bad deal. You can buy the glass at OWC. I’ve bought from elsewhere, but the glue on the other ones didn’t stick well enough. Shop around to make sure you can get the parts you need before you dig in though.

rockinkat - 09/10/19

Schritt 24

Clockwise from top left: Logic board, heat sink, display, unibody upper case, battery, hard drive, speakers. Fans, RAM, and optical drive are in the center.
There you have it! Be sure to check back often for more first looks, guides, and quality parts!

This is clockwise, not counterclockwise :)

wuntorsi -

Zitat von wuntorsi:

This is clockwise, not counterclockwise :)

Thanks ^_^

David Patierno -

Love you guys at iFixit !

One thing :

why it's so hard to find Apple Service Manuals ?

( i really appreciate that you do Teardown but Service Manuals are in a lot more details !).

Iran

Ehsan -

Sorry for the obtus question, but is there a CMOS battery of some sort? or is everything solely powered by the notebook's battery.

Again apologies on the question, I just wanted to know.

Thank you.

18bogbaby -

Savvy writing ! For what it's worth , you are requiring a a form , my friend found a sample form here"http://goo.gl/HM9wjM".

megabox69 - 12/07/16

“Savvy writing ! For what it's worth , you are requiring a a form”

Sounds like a troll hoping you click on malware.

anon - 15/10/17

So how do I remove the KEYBOARD? Want to dry it out. Or should I just put it over a hot air register for a day?

anon - 15/10/17

Tinte & Feder

Luke Soules

106543 Reputation

8 Kommentare

I wonder if the battery can be fitted to the 15" by moving the harddrive to where the superdrive is located and completely removing the superdrive. I would rather have more battery life than the superdrive. Anyone up for the challenge? Can someone please measure the dimensions of the battery?

m3power1 -

Where are the accelerometers located?

ccfman2004 -

Zitat von ccfman2004:

Where are the accelerometers located?

There are none! the only ones are the hard drive sensor which park it for impact but people also use it as accelometers!

apple4life -

Zitat von apple4life:

There are none! the only ones are the hard drive sensor which park it for impact but people also use it as accelometers!

not true, idk where it is, but i removed my HDD, and booted from usb SSD( which stays stationary) and the accelerometer still works

Kyle Walker -

I am trying to replace the memory on a new (2010) MacBook Pro 17". After removing all the screws on the bottom, the bottom still does not want to come off. It feels like something is holding it on underneath the touch pad. Any hints on how to get the bottom off of it? Thanks.

Dan Wilcox -

There are two metal tabs (visible in one of the Step 6 photos) that snap into two plastic clips next to the battery. They should release as you gently lift the bottom cover. Be sure to press them back together after reassembly.

Vern Murray - 11/12/18

if anybody has a teradown of the top case for kb replacement that d be awesome

kevinleroy -

I started getting the RSS problem on my A1297 about a year ago so I finally decided to replace the thermal paste. To my surprise I was missing 1 of the 8 heatsink hold down screws and there is no connector from my heatsink into the main board. The connector on the main board is there (as in your pictures above), but there is no connector coming off the heatsink.

Does the heatsink for the A1297 have a connector to the main board?

Kevin Tsang - 24/04/15