Reasonable Repair Estimate for MacBook Air Display Problem?
September 29, 2014 10:19 AM   Subscribe

Help me figure out if my Mac repair place is on the level.

My MacBook Air (13" late 2010) has a display problem that has been getting worse over time: unless I open the case to the exact right angle, the display shows the wrong colors (looks like the red channel cuts out) or lines/"noise" in the display.

That exact right angle has been getting harder and harder to find, so I took it in for repair. I guess I was hoping it was just a connection problem, because that's what the angle thing feels like. But the technician says the display needs to be replaced to the tune of $500 ($400 for a new display + $100 labor).

My questions: Does this sound like a reasonable diagnosis and cost (in Portland OR dollars) for the problem as described?

If I can find a MacBook Air display for cheaper than $400 (which seems to be the case on eBay), is it reasonable to ask them to do the repair with parts I provide?

Is it even worth making such a major repair to a four-year-old machine, or should I sell it for parts and buy a new one?
posted by ottereroticist to Computers & Internet (13 answers total)
 
I'd agree with you. If it were truly a display problem, it wouldn't be so easily remedied. I would probably try fixing it myself to see if there's a loose or frayed wire that can probably be tightened or replaced.

It's probably not worth paying for it, and certainly not worth replacing the entire screen for. I'd probably say that even if your screen had a giant hole in it.
posted by thewumpusisdead at 10:25 AM on September 29, 2014


MacBooks are definitely expensive to repair. When I was doing some research for a colleague with a broken MacBook (she ultimately bought a new one), I remember reading glowing reviews of iResQ. They're based in Kansas and do repairs by mail. I have no experience with them. You might contact them for an estimate.
posted by alex1965 at 10:26 AM on September 29, 2014 [1 favorite]


Hey can you get the model number? With the model number from your old receipt or usually under the battery we can find the exact part number you need to replace it.

Personally I feel you are being ripped off, and I also feel that at 500 dollars considering a new computer or external moniter is a better idea. But this is all personal.


100 dollars for labour is a decent quote, replacing a screen involves completely taking apart a laptop, very carefully and not breaking another else. Laptop cables aren't like desk tops, they rarely are able to be swapped so likely you do need the entire part.

But since I don't have the part number a search MacBook Air display part for gave me 50 bucks to 500 bucks. I'd assume you cab get the proper replacement for 50 to 125 dollars online and they are using OEM parts or something overly expensive. I don't believe the shop will agree to using your parts.

A much cheaper option is to get the model number of your laptop and Google the teardown or repair guide, find the exact part number and order it from Amazon / Ebay / China. It's probably a used part that's tested to work. Tools are about 20 bucks but if your not comfortable with computer repairs Universities are full of tech savey people willing to do work for beer money.

Your paying a premium for the name, and possibley warrenty, and twice as much as I'd personally pay.
posted by Liger at 10:30 AM on September 29, 2014 [1 favorite]


Best answer: Maybe you can take it to the Apple Store in Portland and get a quote. They often charge a flat fee for out-of-warranty repairs — around $300, on average. More, depending on damage, but I doubt those tiers apply to your situation as described.

I suspect you really need a new video cable or, maybe, a logic board replacement, not a new display. Whether or not you go to an Apple Store, you should definitely consider getting a second opinion at another shop, because I don't think you need a new display.

The angle that you open the laptop to is the key here — if the display is bad, it wouldn't matter what angle you opened it to. You'd get bad pixels at all angles. So a display replacement seems like a questionable diagnosis.

In any case, unless you know what you are doing, rewiring the insides is not often a DIY job, particularly at the hinge where video and power cabling runs between logic board and display. Best to leave it to a repair shop.
posted by a lungful of dragon at 11:00 AM on September 29, 2014


Best answer: Definitely go with Apple's flat fee repair.

I had a MBA 11" of that vintage which had a shattered screen. I bought just the LCD panel for about $100 and did the repair myself.

The LCD on these is glued in on top of a sandwich that includes sheets of plastic diffuser and a backlight which is integrated into the back shell. The bezel around it is basically throw-away unless you are supremely careful peeling it off without bending it.

I consider myself to be at the upper-end of electronics repair capability, and this repair was one of the hardest I've ever done. I wasn't happy with the result either - I put the display in slightly off center (you get one chance to put it back into the glue) and the bezel was bent and wouldn't stay attached in one corner.

Your easiest DIY repair is to replace the entire screen half of the laptop, and that will run you about $300 by itself.

If you go through Apple's flat fee repair, they will fix the screen issue and anything else wrong with the machine.
posted by tomierna at 12:06 PM on September 29, 2014 [1 favorite]


Best answer: This iFixit guide can give you a taste of what would be involved in rerouting video and other cabling along the hinge. IMO, this is definitely not a job you give to some college kid for "beer money", but something you want a licensed and bonded repair shop to do.

In addition to fixing the screen issue and anything else that might be wrong (mention at the Store if you have any problems with the charger light, stuck keys on the keyboard, etc.) the repair work includes a 90-day labor and parts warranty, which you won't get from an unbonded DIYer.

If it costs more than the flat $300, I'd say scrap it for parts. But $300 for another 2-3 years of use seems reasonable (to me), compared with the cost of a new laptop. It's also a means to hold out for Retina display MBAs that will come online by that time.
posted by a lungful of dragon at 12:30 PM on September 29, 2014


This is most likely not a display problem as much as it is a connector or cable problem. I'm not sure of the Air's biology, it is possible you would have to replace the whole screen if the connector were bad, but not if the cable is causing the problem, just replace the cable. The labor is about the same either way.
posted by Gungho at 12:50 PM on September 29, 2014


Best answer: Yeah, try the flat fee repair for $300. I took in a MacBook with display issues and they replaced the screen, logic board and optical drive (they fixed everything that was wrong with the whole machine) for the flat fee. Well worth it, IMHO.
posted by homesickness at 12:57 PM on September 29, 2014


Best answer: I had my MacBook display replaced by Apple a few weeks ago under what they called "depot repair" (the flat fee others have referred to). The receipt showed what the raw cost would have been ($321.95, of which $39 was labor), though the charge was less because the depot repair was at a flat fee.
posted by chimpsonfilm at 1:29 PM on September 29, 2014


Not a Mac, but when I had the same problem with my Thinkpad, they did indeed replace the display. It was under warranty, so I assume they didn't do a way more expensive repair than necessary.
posted by ktkt at 1:48 PM on September 29, 2014


Video cable between base and screen pinched.
That's what Apple diagnosed on my Powerbook, same situation as you describe (a little thwack now and then would get the screen angle to display correctly).
Never had it repaired, just kept it around as a second.
But I know, this may be Apples to oranges.
posted by artdrectr at 11:06 PM on September 29, 2014


Best answer: Take it to the Apple Store and ask them to check if it falls under any "known issues" because then they will repair it for free. I've had that happen twice, most recently last year, when the screen of my mid-2009 MBP started to separate from the case. Even if it's old they will fix it for free, but not all the Geniuses seem to know to check for that. It can't hurt to ask.
posted by Room 641-A at 5:18 AM on September 30, 2014


Response by poster: Apple depot repair for the win. $280 to replace the display, I/O board and cable.

It did take 8 days, though, and I found out they don't offer depot repair for machines older than 5 years.

Thanks everyone!
posted by ottereroticist at 2:46 PM on October 8, 2014


« Older Salsa out overnight   |   Can I get a city and state out of a list of... Newer »
This thread is closed to new comments.