MacBook Pro replacement battery -- worth it?

December 26, 2017 12:33 PM

I have a MacBook Pro (Retina, 13-inch, Late 2013). A little slower it seems than at purchase, but otherwise fine. I'm considering taking it to the Genius Bar to have them replace the battery -- I believe it will cost $200. Has anyone done this? Is it worthwhile? Note: I'm planning to purchase a new MacBook Pro mid-year (if they come out with something worthwhile).
posted by Unsomnambulist to Technology (9 answers total)

I recently replaced the battery in my late-2013 15" MPBr, and while it didn't make much of a difference performance-wise, having the full six or so hours of battery life again made the computer much more usable. I installed it myself (very difficult), so I spent less than $100. I'm not sure it would be worthwhile for $200.
posted by bradf at 12:49 PM on December 26, 2017 [1 favorite]

I have a 2012 Air and 2.5 years after I bought it the battery would discharge very fast (50% after an hour of medium intensity use) and the computer would "shut down" by losing power randomly below 50% charge (the battery was cutting out). Super annoying! I got mine replaced and the new battery lasted another 2.5 years, it's whining at me to get the service done again but I'm hoping to have it limp along until [life stuff happens].

For me it was worthwhile to do, I'm not sure what state your battery is in - if it's just not holding a charge as long, they pop in a new battery so that will be fixed. Since I'm on a grad student salary the $200 isn't worth it for me but the peace of mind might be more valuable to you. Hope this helps!
posted by threementholsandafuneral at 12:51 PM on December 26, 2017 [1 favorite]

It's possible the unit is still under AppleCare (if you bought AppleCare and it was less than 3 years ago). In most cases a failed battery is covered if that's the case.

For what it's worth, I always steer clear of any aftermarket or discount replacement batteries for Apple machines as I see them swell / rupture / create other issues pretty regularly.
posted by churl at 1:40 PM on December 26, 2017

I have a mid-2011 Macbook Air and getting the battery replaced was the best thing I could have done for it. But I'm someone who wants to keep this thing running as long as possible, and replacing it would be financially doable, but painful. Also, my battery was having all kinds of issues so it was an obvious thing that needed to be done. I can't tell from your question if that's the case for you.
posted by misskaz at 3:31 PM on December 26, 2017

If it’s just the performance that’s slow, that won’t be the battery’s fault (though replacing the battery is probably a good idea if you want to keep your laptop for the next several years — I have a late 2009 and it’s hard to find batteries for it anymore). The best performance upgrades are increasing the RAM to the max it will take, and replacing the hard drive with a solid state drive. You can transfer all the files using an external so you won’t lose data or programs.

With a good Mac screwdriver kit from Amazon (~$15) you can do all this yourself, btw. There are loads of detailed tutorials on YouTube. I’m not particularly handy with computers and I managed to do it myself. Much cheaper than Genius Bar. Good luck!
posted by ananci at 6:49 PM on December 26, 2017

Are you really really going to replace it with next year's MBP as soon as they come out? If so, depending on how you use it out of the office, you might just limp along and bring your power cable everywhere.

But you don't know what bad ideas Apple still has in store for us, so a new battery is good insurance.

I replaced the battery for a mid-2013 MacBook Air earlier this year (and also replaced the keyboard since the "E" key was flaky). I used Apple to do it and it was fine but maybe $500 for both? However, it was a good investment because I avoided getting this year's models and it's awesome and the mid-2013 Air is still super useful for me as my daily driver and runs High Sierra fine. Both my wife and I are running out of disk space but we're going to hold on until the machines impede our productivity -- we're not looking forward to replacing all our power cables or losing our useful ports.

My aging iPhone 6s Plus on the other hand - I think I'll upgrade rather than replace the battery.
posted by troyer at 9:35 PM on December 26, 2017

the computer would "shut down" by losing power randomly below 50% charge

You can fix this by re-calibrating the battery. This will make the percentage remaining more accurate, but the battery won't necessarily last any longer.

The best performance upgrades are increasing the RAM to the max it will take, and replacing the hard drive with a solid state drive.

The OP's computer doesn't have user-replaceable RAM, and it came with an SSD.

With a good Mac screwdriver kit from Amazon (~$15) you can do all this yourself, btw. There are loads of detailed tutorials on YouTube. I’m not particularly handy with computers and I managed to do it myself.

The OP's computer has multiple battery pouches glued to the case. You can either dissolve the adhesive with acetone and risk damaging the trackpad, or you can "garrote" each battery pouch off. The removal is not only fairly difficult by itself, but it's also very easy to damage nearby components in the process.
posted by bradf at 9:36 PM on December 26, 2017 [3 favorites]

I've replaced the battery in my early 2011, mmm, around a year ago? Together with an internal SSD and 16G memory upgrade, this little guy keeps trucking along, which is good because I am super pissed about this memory soldered on the motherboard nonsense in later MBPs. On mine, it's trivial to do and honestly I wouldn't bother with the Genius Bar, but yours is a PITA and the Genius Bar seems like a good money-for-less-PITA-and-fire-risk tradeoff. It will also help you if you intend to sell this MBP once you buy a replacement; you can give the receipt to the buyer so they have the maintenance history.
posted by sldownard at 12:15 AM on December 27, 2017

I recommend battery + SSD and it's like a new machine. And boy do you want to baby that 2013 MBP, or find one from 2015 or earlier to replace it. I own the current 13" rMBP and it is the first Apple laptop I have actively disliked and wished I hadn't "upgraded" to in a long, long time (30 years of owning Apples, there were some other duds in there!). The keyboard is awful, just nearly unusable for me. The battery life brand new is shockingly poor. The killing off of mag-safe was the dumbest thing in Apple history. And having only USB-C just to shave another catfish whisker off the thickness just sucks in every way. The screen is gorgeous and the machine is fast, but in every other way it feels like a step back from my 2015 rMBP.
posted by spitbull at 5:01 AM on December 27, 2017