Tuesday, January 15th 2008

No User Replaceable Battery for MacBook Air

There's been a barrage of Apple stories today, but here's one that people won't be quite so pleased to hear: the battery in Apple's new MacBook Air will not be user replaceable, much like the iPod and iPhone. Apple has clarified the issue, saying that the price of a replacement will be $129, just like the MacBook Pro battery, and installation will be free. This shouldn't be too much of a problem for most users given that the battery will probably be fairly durable and the notebook does boast five hours of battery life, but would cause a slight inconvenience of having to send the machine off to Apple if it does need replacing, and would prevent people from using a backup battery.
Source: Engadget
Add your own comment

35 Comments on No User Replaceable Battery for MacBook Air

#26
cdawall
where the hell are my stars
somethin tells me ebay will have these for $50 or so and you can do it yourself for free

you know like all the other apple products :roll:
Posted on Reply
#27
Ravenas
cdawallsomethin tells me ebay will have these for $50 or so and you can do it yourself for free

you know like all the other apple products :roll:
What usually happens is another company comes in and makes a remake product of Apple's and sells it at places like Newegg.com. I'm just glad it's not soldered in. :toast:

The thing is, Apple isn't really worried about the competition because people love Apple's warranty services. Just like Dell warranties. Most people who buy retail computers want warranties and support.
Posted on Reply
#28
newtekie1
Semi-Retired Folder
RavenasGood news, the battery isn't soldered to the board, and takes as little as three minutes to replace (the whole replacement process takes 5 buisness days, not a month):
Good news, but still not good enough. You still have the problem of people that need longer than 5 hours of run time and being without a computer for a length of time. The process might take 5 business days, but shipping will take time also. You can estimate about 3+ days to ship it to them, and at least another day(assuming Apple springs for overnight shipping) for the return trip. Add that to your 5 days to replace the battery, and your up to 9+ business days. That is a long time to be without a computer.
cdawallsomethin tells me ebay will have these for $50 or so and you can do it yourself for free

you know like all the other apple products :roll:
Yes, but does it void the warranty on the computer to do it yourself? My guess is: Yes.
Posted on Reply
#29
cdawall
where the hell are my stars
newtekie1Yes, but does it void the warranty on the computer to do it yourself? My guess is: Yes.
yes it will but this was for the out of war which means it wont matter anymore
Posted on Reply
#30
Ravenas
cdawallyes it will but this was for the out of war which means it wont matter anymore
Exactly, it costs 100 something dollars to replace the battery out of warranty, so at that point it won't matter anymore.
Posted on Reply
#31
Ravenas
newtekie1Good news, but still not good enough. You still have the problem of people that need longer than 5 hours of run time and being without a computer for a length of time. The process might take 5 business days, but shipping will take time also. You can estimate about 3+ days to ship it to them, and at least another day(assuming Apple springs for overnight shipping) for the return trip. Add that to your 5 days to replace the battery, and your up to 9+ business days. That is a long time to be without a computer.



Yes, but does it void the warranty on the computer to do it yourself? My guess is: Yes.
Were talking an ultra portable notebook here, not someone's desktop PC. Yes it would suck to be without the laptop, but I doubt this would be someone's primary computer.
Posted on Reply
#32
cdawall
where the hell are my stars
RavenasWere talking an ultra portable notebook here, not someone's desktop PC. Yes it would suck to be without the laptop, but I doubt this would be someone's primary computer.
no it probably will be a lot of people's workhorse PC ie jobsites, interior design maybe some light cad viewing?
Posted on Reply
#33
Ravenas
cdawallno it probably will be a lot of people's workhorse PC ie jobsites, interior design maybe some light cad viewing?
I personally think this computer is going to be used by buisiness execs, for video confrencing and power point presentations. After all, that's what Steve Jobs talked about in the Mac World Expo.
Posted on Reply
#34
newtekie1
Semi-Retired Folder
RavenasExactly, it costs 100 something dollars to replace the battery out of warranty, so at that point it won't matter anymore.
It matters to the people that buy the 3 year Apple Care warranty that will be void when they have to replace their battery that starts to fail after 2 years. The $129 is the price for replacement of the battery, warranty or not.
RavenasWere talking an ultra portable notebook here, not someone's desktop PC. Yes it would suck to be without the laptop, but I doubt this would be someone's primary computer.
Once again, I have to disagree. There are going to be a lot of people that will use this as their sole computer. There are going to be a lot of college students that can't go 2 weeks without a computer. A lot of business people that can't go 2 weeks without a computer. And even if they do have a desktop at home, or even at work, they usually can't go without their laptop because they need it to do business. In the business world, most people's primary computer is their laptop, and their desktop is their secondary computer.

The whole idea behind the computer is portability. Perfect marketing for a student that doesn't want to lug a large laptop between classes, or a business person that travels a lot, or spends most of his time in meetings.
Posted on Reply
#35
Ravenas
newtekie1It matters to the people that buy the 3 year Apple Care warranty that will be void when they have to replace their battery that starts to fail after 2 years. The $129 is the price for replacement of the battery, warranty or not.



Once again, I have to disagree. There are going to be a lot of people that will use this as their sole computer. There are going to be a lot of college students that can't go 2 weeks without a computer. A lot of business people that can't go 2 weeks without a computer. And even if they do have a desktop at home, or even at work, they usually can't go without their laptop because they need it to do business. In the business world, most people's primary computer is their laptop, and their desktop is their secondary computer.

The whole idea behind the computer is portability. Perfect marketing for a student that doesn't want to lug a large laptop between classes, or a business person that travels a lot, or spends most of his time in meetings.
That's what this is for:

www.apple.com/batteries/
Posted on Reply
Add your own comment
May 8th, 2024 13:10 EDT change timezone

New Forum Posts

Popular Reviews

Controversial News Posts