MacBook Pro 13" Unibody Late 2011 Trackpad Replacement

Written By: Phillip Takahashi
  • Comments: 78
MacBook Pro 13" Unibody Late 2011 Trackpad Replacement

Difficulty

Moderate

Steps

13

Time Required

30 - 45 minutes

Introduction

Use this guide to replace a broken trackpad.

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    • Remove the following ten screws:

    • Three 14.4 mm Phillips #00 screws

    • Three 3.5 mm Phillips #00 screws

    • Four 3.5 mm shouldered Phillips #00 screws

    • When replacing the small screws, align them perpendicular to the slight curvature of the case (they don't go straight down).

    How much weight can I save by removing the optical drive?

    gunes314 -

    You can save a lot of weight if lets say your installing a solid state drive or putting in a second hard drive but if you know that you use the CD/DVD disc drive a lot then you might just want to leave the drive alone.

    Marshall WahlstromHelgren -

    Tip: Use one of those weekday pill holders to have a cheep way to store screws you remove and each day of the week can be for different sizes or parts. It has been handy to have (much less expensive than the magnetic mat.

    Robert Wacker -

    Hello, where can I buy the screws I need in case I lose one of them?

    taylornya -

    iFixit sells a kit: MacBook Pro Unibody Lower Case Screw Set

    Darrell Johnson -

    I have one stripped screw... How opening without drill it?! Any suggestions please?

    rodrigosady -

    I also stripped a couple screws. I wasn’t able to open it up without drilling. After drilling the heads and removing the cover it was easy to hacksaw the tip and unscrew with a standard driver.

    Michael Wilkens -

    We have a guide for that!

    How to Remove a Stripped Screw

    Sam Omiotek -

    My top tip - make sure you buy good quality Phillips screwdrivers and a magnetic holder. Cheap screwdrivers won’t get the screws undone safely. Without a magnetic holder you have no chance of getting the tiny crews in and out safely.

    jeremyyoung -

    A good Phillips 00 is your friend here. Also, when reinserting the screws, gently start anticlockwise and you wil feel a click at the start of the thread. This tells you you’re in the right place and less likely to cross-thread through force in the wrong place.

    Iain Boyd -

    I feel like these are 000 screws. Amazon sales describe them as such and my 000 screwdriver fits better

    cam2000deluxe -

    Before ordering a new Trackpad remove the existing battery and try clicking the Trackpad. If it clicks OK with the battery out the source of problem is likely a swollen battery, which should to be replaced even if it still works to some degree. From the side of the battery you will likely see the soft part of the battery bulging beyond the hard case.

    Patrick Langvardt -

    That’s absolutely correct as I can testify. With the battery removed I also adjusted the T6 set screw that adjusts the sensitivity of the trackpad click, evidently someone had cranked mine down tighter than the factory setting.

    Gary Register -

    Le quatrième paragraphe dans les instructions en français n’est pas correct : ce ne sont pas les 2 petites vis, mais les 7 petites vis qui sont inclinées. Et les 3 grandes sont bien verticales.

    Degeorges -

    Bonjour ! Merci de votre observation. J’ai corrigé la traduction. iFixit étant un wiki, n’hésitez pas à modifiez si vous remarquez une erreur :) Encore merci de votre attention et à bientôt !

    Claire Miesch -

    Tip: if you have a magnetic screw mat or similar, lay the macbook over the mat to make sure it catches any screws that may decide to fall of and hide under your table

    Moritz -

    Funny, it's not her hands that are doing the close ups. :)

    Cinemated Man -

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    • Use your fingers to pry the lower case away from the body of the MacBook near the vent.

    • Remove the lower case.

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    • Use the edge of a spudger to pry the battery connector upwards from its socket on the logic board.

    • It is useful to pry upward on both short sides of the connector to "walk" it out of its socket. Be careful with the corners of the connectors, they can be easily broken off.

    Is this step of removing the battery connector required?

    manodh -

    yes - as with disassembly of any electronic component you have to remove any power source. You don't want to accidentally turn the Mac on

    khull -

    Prying the battery connector off does not take much force. I did exactly what the guide suggested (walked it off back and forth) with the spudger without any problems. Just be very gentle, much like with anything inside laptops, they are very fragile and need to be worked with carefully. A+ instructions, battery replacement was a success.

    aekinaka -

    Be patient on disconnecting this one. It worked for me step by step, little by little.

    Phil Wagner -

    I used the nails of thumb and pointer finger simultaneously - worked pretty fine

    Reinhard Kaune -

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    • Bend the battery cable slightly away from its socket on the logic board so it does not accidentally connect itself while you work.

    I put some tape between the connector and socket while working on the drive.

    Stephen Smith -

    That's a good tip

    Anrothan -

    Great tip, I did that too

    Ahmed Mahran -

    One other note: The screw heads fit flush with the curvature of the case -- which means that they aren't exactly horizontal. In other words, they aren't perpendicular to the table that the computer is resting on. Don't try to force them straight in vertically, because you'll risk cross-threading them. (nearly ruined one screw hole myself!)

    lelandjordon -

    On my MacBook Pro, the connector seems to be an integral part of the battery.

    Jerry South -

    I suspect it’s just like the special screwdriver required for seatbelts on cars – to discourage regular consumers from attempting repairs. Of course, this only encourages consumers to use the wrong tool to attempt to repairs

    colleenthompson -

    Dissambling my MacBookPro Premium Mid 2012 (i5-3210M 2.5Ghz) was easily, Careful with the screws, use screwdriver fitting exactly with the screws, you damage them very fast. Work very exactly, relaxed with time, consentration, good Tools and with feelings in your hands. Disconnect the Akku was easy if you take care, remove it to be safe, Two screws more, more space to work & haven`t to think about damaging someting. Apple use diffrent screws, you should have many difffrent scewdrivers. It is also good to clean everything inside, With time everything gets very dusty & dirty, don`t forget the sides and little fittings at the case. Use a pinsel, alcohol, soft peace stuff, it will look like new. If you have knowledge & experience, you can paint it in any colour or airbrushing for individualizing. You can also just polish it with a soft Politure (Sonax car Polish No1, NOT with wax or take an other light Politure you familiar & can do the job, A Laptop should serviced once a year, keeping it good working over years

    Stefan Lindner -

    First thing i do is open & cleanig everything inside,specially the cooling & fan, renew the thermal paste with an high quality product. Install the Nain System, clean up Bloatware and other unnecessary things, install standard software for daily use, additional change system components against better one (Edge to Firefox, Windows Media Player to VLC , an Office Suite and configuring everything for Data Protection, Privacy- & Indentety Protection, install Drivers from the component Manufactur (incedible effect, disable limitations, more functions, work better & faster, increasing performance, additional change the WiFi & Bluetooth Card to a better one a UMTS WWAN to an LTE Card, increase RAM with two Dual-Channel working SODIMMs, Use M2 or 2,5" SSD if no M2 Slot aviable) as System- and Software iDrive, a FAT32 formatted 32GB Partition to be safe of metaviruses comes with harmless downloads, and a big 2,5 HDD to store the user data. What does you guys think about this? Old Computer become a new life,

    Stefan Lindner -

    I livein Austria, near Vienna, if someone needs help or anything else, i would be glad to help. I always searching old or broken devices to bring them to new live. I also searching for spare parts, specilly a Bottom & Side Case and a 256GB or higher NGFF Storage Card for a Sony Vaio Tab 11 SVT1144HE (2014), some 14,1" Displays for a HP Probook 440G5 (2016), Elitebook MT 43 Mobile Thin Client, (2011), Dell Vostro 3460 (2012) Lenovo Thinkpad T440s (2014), and a Logic Board for an Lenovo Ideapad 330-15ARR (2017, damaged by Water i think) and a Logic Bord for an Alienware 17R4 with i7-6870HX & Nvidia 1080 (2018, CPU dead, maybe there is a repair Guide or workaround to bring it back to Life). I need always 8GB or 16GB DDR3 and DDR4 RAM Storage (perfectly two ident one for Dual-Channel use for Laptops, M2 SATA 6GB/s and NVMe PCIe SSDs 500GB or more and 2,5"SSD or HDD with 1TB or more and 3,5" HDD with 4GB or above. If you have some of this or other useful parts and doesn`t need them, please make me an offer, maybe

    2

    Stefan Lindner -

    an change something you need. This is not a Business what i do, it`s more a Hobby with challenging new Excercices.. Thats the best Point. Plase forgive me as a Newbie this very long Post in the wrong Section, but if you are start writing you cannot stop.... But now i have to come to an end and would be happy if someone wants to get in contact. My E-Mail is: udontknowme@gmx.at (the adress name is just a notice against Big Data and for Privacy Protection!

    Stefan Lindner -

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    • Remove the following two screws:

    • One 5.6 mm Tri-point screw

    • One 13 mm Tri-point screw

    Something isn’t right here. On my MacBook Pro, the connector is an integral part of the battery.

    Jerry South -

    Verify that this is the correct guide for your specific model—if not, we’ve got guides for all the other models, too.

    Jeff Suovanen -

    And which Apple “Genius” decided that a tri-wing screw would be just perfect for the job of holding the batter in place? Not smart for a genius.

    Jerry South -

    These tri-point screws are Y0 size. You’re welcome :)

    Rossi Macri -

    The 13 mm Tri-point screw was very tricky to screw back into place. I had to make several attempts, unscrewing and realigning the battery to get it right. The rest of this fix was very easy, but this one screw was the hardest part.

    Raymond Rinaldi -

    As per Rossi Macri’s comment, I also observed for step 5 that both screws are Tri-point Y0 for my MacBook Pro 13 inch mid-2012 model.

    Tim Telcik -

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    • Carefully peel the battery warning label off the upper case between the battery and the optical drive.

    • Do not remove the label from the battery.

    What is the reasoning behind not removing the label from the (old) battery?

    tom -

    Probably to help you remove it? Not sure, but I used it along with the clear tab to pull the battery out. Worked pretty good.

    aitorrecalde -

    One of the main thing is that it can weaken an already old battery which is never a good thing, especially if people try to remove the label using a pointy device and piercing the battery (can explode !). Also it is not useful to remove it and it allow tracking of old parts (recycle, dispose, …).

    Cajuteq -

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    • Use the attached plastic pull tab to remove the battery from the upper case.

    • If you're installing a new battery, you should calibrate it after installation:

    • Charge it to 100%, and then keep charging it for at least 2 more hours. Next, unplug and use it normally to drain the battery. When you see the low battery warning, save your work, and keep your laptop on until it goes to sleep due to low battery. Wait at least 5 hours, then charge your laptop uninterrupted to 100%.

    • If you notice any unusual behavior or problems after installing your new battery, you may need to reset your MacBook's SMC.

    My replacement battery came with a clear protective film that should be removed before installation. Be sure not to overlook the film on the bottom of the battery as it covers only a portion of that side and might be easy to overlook.

    Do not over-tighten the bolts holding the battery in place. One of the tabs on the original battery was broken, presumably due to over-tightening.

    Patrick Langvardt -

    The calibration suggestion given in this guide differs a bit from what iFIXIT sent with the battery. What came with the battery went like this…

    For optimal performance, calibrate your newly installed battery. Drain battery below 10%, then charge it uninterrupted to 100%.

    Daniel Lavelle -

    I recommend disregarding those instructions and following the steps in this article:

    1. Charge it to 100%, and keep charging it for at least two more hours.

    2. Unplug your laptop and use it normally to drain the battery.

    3. Save your work when you see the low battery warning.

    4. Keep your laptop on until it goes to sleep due to low battery.

    5. Wait at least five hours, then charge your laptop uninterrupted to 100%.

    Sam Omiotek -

    would it be dangerous to use the macbook without a battery in the meantime?

    724 F -

    It’s not dangerous (assuming you have put the back cover back on), though the computer will run slower. The charging assembly cannot supply as much amperage as the battery, so the processor will be throttled.

    Sam Omiotek -

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    • Use the flat end of a spudger to carefully pry the trackpad connector up from its socket on the logic board.

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    • Open your MacBook Pro and set it on a table as shown.

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    • While holding the edge of the trackpad closest to the logic board with one hand, remove the four 1.2 mm Phillips screws highlighted in red.

    A word of caution if you are replacing your trackpad due to a bulging battery. This guide assumes that the original mounting tabs are not damaged and it does not look like the iFixit trackpad replacement kit comes with new tabs. My MBP had a bulging battery, which pushed up on the bottom of my trackpad, deforming one of these tabs. Now that I have removed the battery, the trackpad still works, but it is not flush with the case and the physical clicks are not as responsive as I would like. Does iFixit sell just the replacement tabs?

    Matt Marchese -

    Same here luckily the trackpad still works but the taps have deformed. Anyone find a place to pick up just those tabs? Edit: found them MacBook Pro Unibody (Mid 2009-Mid 2012) Trackpad Mounting Screws

    iAndrewC -

    Be careful with this step. The very tiny screws are very hard to remove with a #00 screwdriver. I tried with mine and I mashed the srews heads, it was then very very hard to remove it. Better to use a #000 screwdriver. If the heads are mashed like me, I suggest you use a 0.1 flat screwdriver, it worked well in my case.

    Jonathan -

    I couldn't even begin to use the #000 as the edges were not deep or narrow enough for the condition of the screws from factory install. The .1 flat screwdriver worked like a charm though and didn't mess up the screws further at all. I was getting nervous that I'd need to get another screwdriver beyond what's in the iFixit toolkit, but this worked as a better solution.

    Thom Merrick -

    I used a #0 screwdriver, and it worked fine.

    TIP: Remove and insert the screws over a large, clear work surface. The slightest pressure off center an the screws will suddenly fly off and vanish.

    ALAN VOORHEES -

    Yes, I have found a very small flat head screw driver works brilliant.

    Cary B -

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    • If necessary, carefully dislodge the edge of the trackpad closest to the keyboard from its recess in the upper case by pushing it away from the brackets attached to the upper case.

    • Carefully push the trackpad connector and cable down through the slot cut into the upper case.

    • It may be necessary to use a spudger to help get the trackpad connector past the edge of the logic board.

    • Once the cable has been completely pulled through its slot in the upper case, pull the trackpad away from the outer edge of the upper case and remove it from the machine.

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    • If you are installing a replacement trackpad that didn't come with the attached flex cable, you'll need to use the cable from your old trackpad.

    • To remove the flex cable from the old trackpad, first flip open the latch on the ZIF connector, opposite the cable. Then, apply a little heat from a hair dryer or iOpener to soften the adhesive securing the cable to the trackpad, and carefully peel off and remove the cable.

    • When installing your new trackpad, routing the cable through the upper case and past the logic board may be difficult. It is helpful to use the tip of a spudger to guide the connector past the logic board while pushing the cable through its slot in the upper case with your other hand.

    If your replacement trackpad comes with the cable separated and loose, the connection to the trackpad needs to have a tab pressed down which keeps the connection snug. It won't work without it. It's a tab on the trackpad part of the connection. Tab might be the wrong word; the connection has to be in all the way, then clamp it closed with the tab... oops! LOL

    Mark -

    Tip: Getting the cable nicely through the slit to the top is much easier, if you take a tiny cable binder, form half a loop in that little space the cable has to come up and lift it gently with it.

    Plum Pudding -

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    • Next, reinstall the four 1.2 mm Phillips screws along the inner edge of the trackpad.

    • Tighten the screws all the way, then back them out about 1/4 turn.

    • Check the alignment of the trackpad on the keyboard side of the upper case. Once you have centered the trackpad in the upper case, tighten the four Phillips screws all the way.

    trackpad still doesn't click. I've tried two separate parts.. but what makes it pop back up after depressing the pad? It just lays there. I've taken it apart four times to adjust the tork screw... nothing. HELP!

    Gail -

    two options here :

    _adjust the screw which control the deepness of the click

    or

    _the back panel put pressure on the battery which prevent the movement of the trackpad

    Sebastien CHAPUIS -

    My trackpad was driving me up the wall, bouncing all over the place. Ifixit Trackpad comes with extra screws, hinge and adjuster. You won't believe how tiny these screws are! If one falls in the carpet-it's GONE! Bless you Ifixit! To center when re-installing adjust by sliding a thin piece of paper (scotch tape?), under bottom of trackpad, let Trackpad rest on it's own weight and then tighten one top and bottom screw a little bit, and eyeball it, just the tiniest crack of daylight on each side. I strongly suggest the highest quality magnetic screwdriver you can find. The little torx screw disc is an adjuster. If too tight, trackpad won't 'click.' On a Mac, click is not really essential as long as tap and slide are working right. Needs a small amount of clearance. When properly installed you can 'feel' the click if it's right. Probably won't need to mess with it at all. Now my trackpad works like it should, I am a happy camper!

    ovenwally -

    I replaced the trackpad with a new one: the arrow moves but was not possible to click. I putted back the old trackpad and it works with. The solution: the eleventh picture shown a gray Torx type screw to the left of the connector where there is the recess in the back of the mouse. This screw is used to increase or decrease the depth of clicks. in my case it was too screwed and it was as if I held continually pressed the truckpad: therefore, it was enough to loosen it. At this point I ask myself since in the old truckpad I had problems with the physical click, I probably would have been enough to adjust the screw.

    caronte88 -

    Vielen Dank, dies hat mir sehr beholfen :-)

    Frederik Häger -

    ifitit is once again amazing. My trackpad just stopped working on my four year old machine. Bought a new trackpad from iFitit, followed the guide and now I have a functional laptop again. One thing to note. 1.2mm is small very, very small. The screws for the trackpad *will* get lost if they fall of the table. Make sure that doesn't happen.

    Jerry -

    I was having trackpad issue on my 2010 machine, did the replacement from ifixit which arrived broken (bummer) but they replaced it no problems. It worked great for just under a year but now I'm having the same issues again of poor finger tacking, jumping, and lack of sensitivity. I've tried cleaning the whole unit, rebooting in safe mode, refreshing code, and anything else the web has provided. I'm starting to wonder if it's something else on my machine or if the trackpads just don't hold up well enough. Overall I'm super frustrated to have a newer pad crap out this early.

    eastern117 -

    I don't have a magnetic head driver so I had a terrible time trying to get the screws in. I found getting the screw on the table Phillips side up, I pushed my finger tip into the head til it stuck and placed the screw into the thread that way. The screw stayed in long enough for me to tighten with the driver ! Oh, what a relief! I only lost one screw; thank god for replacement screws! Order your trackpad with screws! They fall and get lost easy! Now I'm happy! :)

    Mark -

    Next time rub the tip of the screwdriver against a magnet about 10-20 times in the SAME direction (A fridge magnet works)

    Karan Kakkar -

    For some reason the black material under the tabs were enough to stop the track pad from being able to click. I removed that material and now have a track pad that clicks.

    blrmisc -

    I installed the trackpad, but it was not behaving correctly. Took it apart again and reinstalled, using the 2 new foils that go under the trackpad keeper screws (my old ones were kind of mangled, probably from all the force I had to use on the old trackpad). I also made extra sure the trackpad was precisely lined up this time. Voila! A nice, sensitive new trackpad.

    Thanks, iFixit!

    Felix -

    I found it difficult to adjust the trackpad’s position so that it had just the same amount of space on every side to move freely when being clicked.

    What worked for me was putting all four screws in - but a little loose as suggested - and then putting the button case back on (without screws) for protection. Turn the laptop in normal position, open it, adjust the trackpad, fix its position with one large strap of of easy to remove tape - approximately 15 x 4-5 cm e.g. masking tape.

    This will hold the trackpad in position while turning the MacBook Pro around and tightening the screws.

    Jörn von Spreckelsen -

    Watch this Youtube, it shows an additional issue with the click mechanism pressure contact that may be causing the Track Pad to not register clicks. https://youtu.be/awihkz3aYkg

    Macrepair SF -

    I installed my trackpad and am having trouble getting it to work properly. At first it wouldn’t click at all but I readjusted it and now I can use it mostly, but there seems to be small portions of the trackpad that don’t register my touch (mostly noticeable when I try to scroll with 2 fingers - it just wont). Can you give me some pointers?

    bea -

    Still having this same problem with no reply. I sometimes can’t use the zoom function on my laptop because the trackpad doesn’t recognize that I am touching it at all. In certain parts of it my touch is not being recognized. I have tried to readjust several times without success. Would love some recommendations if anybody has any.

    bea -

    I have followed every step of this guide, word for word, and my for some reason the new replacement trackpad is unresponsive. Any tips?

    andrescruz -

Conclusion

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

Author

Phillip Takahashi

Member since: 22/08/11

85502 Reputation

8 comments

any tips on adjustment of the height screw?

bennettmara22 -

don't turn the screw too much, or you'll destroy your trackpad

Athaariq Ardiansyah Ramadhani -

I had a lot of trouble getting the new trackpad to work. The left side of the track pad (about 2cm) was responsive. The rest of the track pad was dead. I played with the torx screw to adjust the click pressure and it had no effect. I cleaned all the gunk out from around the perimeter of the trackpad when it was removed. I tested without the battery in place to ensure that battery pressure was not the problem.

The actual hardware remove, reinstall took about 15 minutes at most and was very straight forward.

The trouble shooting has been the tough part.

Steven -

What was the fix?

Jocray -

I replaced the track pad successfully, but it did not fix the problem I was having. When I want to drag and drop a file, I really have to push down on the track pad hard to hold on. Its a little bit better with the new pad, but I still have a hard time with the lower left corner of the track pad grabbing stuff. Anyone have any ideas of what the issue could be?

Thomas Reese -

I am assuming it was the battery. Put in a new one and now no issues.

Thomas Reese -

Easy to change the trackpad, but internal screen and keyboard and trackpad then no longer worked and has to use an external display and mouse and external keyboard. It worked at first, but upon restart it stopped working. Resetting SMC doesn’t help as keyboard is no longer responsive. Disabling the trackpad makes the internal screen work again. Will see if I can return the trackpad … it was better without one.

Jerry Nilson -

Replaced as directed... a couple of tips that helped me:

* when installing the flex cable into the new trackpad, it needed some force to seat it all the way. I installed it once and the trackpad did not work at all, so went back and applied more force and the trackpad worked correctly afterwards.

* when installing the new trackpad, put the 4 screws in, but do not tighten until the trackpad is properly placed.

Andrew Elmore -