Can I repair the CHEAPEST Apple Silicon Mac?

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Today we're going to go down the rabbit hole of repairing Apple's latest devices with M1 and M2 chips. I found this dirt cheap broken M1 MacBook Air on Mercari and took a huge gamble buying it, but if things go well this might just be the cheapest Apple Silicon MacBook on the internet...
time stamps
0:00 Unboxing
1:20 Why I got lucky
4:18 This M1 Air has some surprises
5:01 Screen repair and restoration
7:38 Cost of repair
8:31 Why it's hard to find cheap M1 Macs
10:34 3rd party repair caveats
11:20 Effects of Apple Self Service Repair
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[@AlMarche90]

Maybe not as cheap as yours, but I also managed to find a good deal on a broken MacBook Air M1 here in Mexico. Bought the laptop with a faulty keyboard and trackpad for around $270 USD. Replacing the top case costed me around $110 USD. A bit more than yours in total, but prices are way higher here than in the US, and getting a fully functioning M1 MacBook Air for $380 is fantastic no matter where you are. Fixing broken devices rocks.

[@paws315]

Love it! Great job doing it yourself -- it's even harder to find Apple Stores outside of the US. To the executives at Apple responsible for serializing components and subjugating user-repair behind anticompetitive software locks: a big middle finger. The environmental focus at the last Apple event was corporate greenwashing at its ugliest 🙄

[@arturoehr]

@@Halo-yd1rghay buenas promos en hot sale y buen fin. En el pasado hot sale de mayo, compre una Air M1 nueva en 13,000

[@Peluchin-Pelao]

Vale la pena!

[@MrCharlieBros]

Achis, donde conseguiste el teclado?

[@TEKDAD]

And you have a real screen.

[@Evie0133]

the only problem is that the replacement display you got seems pretty substandard. As soon as you booted the machine up, the display looked really green and weird. Maybe you could calibrate it to make it look better, but it certainly isn't the best example of an aftermarket display, could've done better with that one! Still a banger deal tho :D + I’ve seen a lot of comments about the lack of True Tone causing this issue. That’s certainly not it. I’ve replaced many Apple displays with OEM panels (official Apple panels with only the broken front glass replaced), and the display looks virtually identical as the original, only with a tiny bit of blue tint caused by the lack of True Tone. But the difference shouldn’t jump off the screen, since the white balance should look similar to older Macs without True Tone. And the lack of True Tone shouldn’t make a display super green either, True Tone usually turns the display either warm or bluish depending on the lighting around you.

[@trikster.online]

I agree. For day-to-day use, probably not a huge issue. If I was going to do anything that needs proper color, I would lose my mind. Why not just use the warranty and pay for the replacement display via Apple?

[@MJsTechWorld]

i noticed that myself. that would really annoy me if i was using that MacBook.

[@jason-5932]

Where would you recommended getting a replacement screen? All the eBay listing seem to sell the same 3rd party screen

[@scottgriz]

Probably the lack of TrueTone. Custom display profile would fix that.

[@onouphrios]

lol okay buddy. $333 > $1k

[@Gearsandco]

I know why this Mac has a cracked screen, it looks like the previews owner tried to cover the camera with a piece of tape or something, as you can see the damage started around the camera.

[@richardpolonskyi9219]

that is 100 percent the reason, kudos to you !

[@akshajhui]

Agreed

[@SonnyHung]

That is a possibility. My daughter placed a security camera slide cover on hers and that how her M1 Air screen cracked. But that would have limited the damage to underneath the camera. In this situation I would suggest that maybe they closed the Air with a cable sandwiched in between the screen and the keyboard. That would account for the damage going wider across the top of the screen.

[@richardpolonskyi9219]

Do remember, the mb air is a thin device so a decently thick cable and slight pressure could even bend the top case 😇

[@zoruaboy]

@@SonnyHungactually since the camera and the screen are so close together, and the display being so thin, pressure on the camera can actually crack the LCD.

[@bryans8656]

That's a great find. Your MacBook repair videos have always been my favorites, I've used them as tutorials for upgrading old laptops.

[@andi]

Good that you mentioned the apple repair programme and the screen pairing. They really should give us access to the calibration tool or whatever it is to enable true tone for the screen.

[@tgvinfinite2607]

verified?

[@hishnash]

The flip side of that is all/most of the cheap screens for sale are from iCloud locked (possibly stolen) devices. To do the True Tone calibration (if they gave up on iCloud locking) would be a color meter and possibly something that can emit a solid known reference color (like a iPhone screen you hold over the sensor).

[@nadiro]

​@@hishnashMost of them are not stolen, it's from school/organizations that replaced them without taking time to remove icloud

[@hishnash]

@@nadiro For laptops yes but for phone parts the math is different, prior to the intriuciton of iCloud locker there were large gangs expliclty targeting the theft of phones as the main income source for the gang. This stoped very fast as soon as the value of stolen phones dropped, just locking the SOC is not enough as the display is a large part in the devices cost. I think apple should only provide profiles for devices that are not iCloud locked but they should activity market this so that recyclers know how much more valuable a device that is unlock is and push pressure ($) on schools etc to bother to do this or to sign the needed paperwork that would let the recycler do it.

[@sujeewarathnaweera]

Is that program available worldwide? Apple is not officially a company in Sri Lanka, but they conduct business under distributors.

[@willm5032]

it's criminal that they software lock displays. Otherwise, great find!

[@Sloppyjoe96]

yeah its insane apple does it with everything now, like you replace your screen on a iphone and it will disable your face id and selfie camera aswell as the true tone

[@IMDYT420]

@@Sloppyjoe96I believe only changing the front cameras causes Face ID to stop working and I believe they fixed the cameras not working but replacing the screen without transferring the serial number from the old one to the new screen will cause True Tone to not work.

[@khumanthempoireiton5036]

​@@IMDYT420even battery replacement lock true tone and face id the mechanics unlock them for us

[@andi]

@@IMDYT420 I wonder if it is possible to transfer the serial number from the old macbook display to the new one like on iphones to restore the true tone feature :D

[@hishnash]

So stopping you from using a display that is otherwise paired to a device that is locked through iCloud (possibly flagged as stolen) is criminal?

[@SamThe_1st]

Make sure you turn the hinge with your hand 🖐️ if you use spudgers you might risk damaging the screen 😊

[@virusumf]

unfortunately you can tell the difference in the display colour even on video, if I would use this macbook it would be really difficult to ignore, I made mistake once by replacing an Iphone 12 screen with an after market one and it was extremely bad, the colours were off and the battery drained so fast I had to keep charging the phone during the day, now I am not sure if this is applicable to the Macbook, perhaps someone would have information about the battery life using this kind of displays

[@Spice_Monk]

Luke, make more Mac repairs videos! We love them!

[@darijoe1]

Became a subscriber of yours Luke in 2019, purely because of your awesome Mac repair videos. My body starts to tingle whenever I see a new one of these appear. Great result and wonderful work!

[@jidofole]

tingle?

[@robertcampos4722]

@@jidofole lol I was thinking the same thing.😄

[@stevey500]

Nice job! I found the same model macbook air 2 years ago at a local rural pawn shop for $350. The unit did not boot up but it did power on to the "new" recovery menu that had me realizing this was of the m1 series. The tag just said "macbook." They promised money back if it is icloud locked. I offered $280 and they took it. It had 20 battery cycles or so. I've still got truetone. This computer replaced my i7 2018 macbook pro 13" before it. This m1 base model has been the best laptop I've ever had and I've had a lot of laptops of various makes and models. I love this computer.

[@wemelkuan]

This was pretty much what happened with my M1 11-inch iPad Pro where only the display was cracked and wasn't iCloud locked. I won it at an Ebay auction for the same price as a 9th gen iPad today. +$70 for a glass replacement.

[@5urg3x]

I would just use it with an external monitor and call it a day! That’s still a good deal even if you can’t repair it. You got lucky though lol.

[@alemoraesoliveira]

Nice repair!! I Love it!! Always sharing you channel to friends!!

[@laserwizard2]

Great resource and inspiration for a project computer!

[@richarddelloyd3387]

Nice spot dude... been scanning your channel for a while, I refurbished every single Mac desktop and laptop that existed from 1998 to 2015 when the ****s locked everything down. Selling on ebay since 2005 to 2013, then Amazon till 2018 when they (Apple) restricted second hand resellers... love your channel dude, the pushing of the limits in mods and right to repair.. keep on keeping on my man! Much love

[@sujeewarathnaweera]

I am not defending Apple, but isn't this "iCloud lock" such a pain in the a** on these because the person who put it to recycling, did not recycle it and the seller who could be the recycler or someone who bought the laptops from the recycler is not disclosing it when he is selling it to you?

[@anothervisionofthings]

Definitely my favorite kind of videos from you !!

[@ralphdsouza6775]

After the screen replacement, does the screen look like its having a greenish tint overall or is it just the wallpaper?

[@ryancassanelli8324]

Yeah that’s was I was thinking, the color seems weirdly calibrated

[@hishnash]

@@ryancassanelli8324 Yes that is expected each panel needs to be calibrated as they are not identical, that is just how the manufacturing process is.

[@letiziasparks5144]

whoo hoo finally another repair video, my favorite thanks Luke!

[@TimR123]

Am I the only one who thinks the replacement screen has a green/blue cast? I saw that True Tone is inactive. But can this panel be color calibrated without it? If the color shift is as bad as it looks in the video, it can't be used for any visual creator tasks.

[@gregf9160]

I am _sooooooo_ envious!

[@ken1w]

Great deal! Those first M1 MacBooks (Air or Pro) from late 2020 remain more than capable enough for most users. Apple still sells that one (as new) for $999 retail in base config. I have Pro with higher storage/memory specs, can’t imagine needing more for my daily use.

[@SyazaniNazarudin]

Yooo congratulations! That's a very good deal! Glad you got it!

[@ronferry3069]

I bought a MacBook Air M1 Base for $250 a year ago with a cracked screen that I thought about replacing. The problem is the keyboard was damaged as well and a European version. From my understanding the Touch ID won't work if you replace it. Also to replace all those parts is way too much. So for now it's a Mac mini that my kid uses connected to a monitor. Doesn't need to take it on the go so not sure it would even be worth fixing.

[@alan.otoole]

Woo! These are some of my favorite videos!

[@chenchomelo]

So satisfying! 😊

[@ak95purebeatzrecords83]

Just a colour calibration and done, ur a happy guy. nice video

[@michaelolz]

I'm still crazy about my M1 MacBook Air. It's been one of the most handy tools I've ever used. So it's good to see that it's still getting some TLC!

[@mads_ittmann1823]

hi Luke, really love the content you have been putting out lately. I do have a small question: Where do find most of the macbooks you repair in your videos? Im looking to buy one with a broken screen and just use in clamshell mode with an external monitor.

[@CelesteWuff]

eBay, he mostly uses eBay

[@gabrielarizag.decastro5572]

I love your channel man ❤

[@maybelbdidit]

You can reprogram true tone, the hall effect sensor for lid-closing sleep mode and everything else you lose as long as you keep the broken screen to transfer across the serial numbers.

[@ThePolaroid669]

how do you do that?

[@nerd20fromdiscord]

Im in canada and with our substantially smaller population its harder to find used tech deals like this (broken or not) since the competition just isnt as tight but i might have to start keeping an eye out for a broken m1 mac air, ive being doing laptop repairs for a while now and fixing up an apple one would be fun with the added benefit of having a nice laptop to use afterwards!

[@ChengTeoh]

Anyone else wondering why the person who sold this Air didn't use the warranty to save a basically new machine?

[@Portal_3]

Pretty sure the warranty won’t cover the display but idk why they didn’t just replace it

[@harrysmbdgs]

No, because warranties do not cover user damage.

[@paulhorn24]

Maybe the original owner is too lazy and has too much money, so he just orders a new Apple laptop with same day delivery?

[@zoruaboy]

Limited warranty doesn’t cover user damage. Only AppleCare+ does that.

[@kr555wizard]

Wait how could they know it was user damage? or do they immediately just assume it is?

[@anthonymayorgarcia1735]

I found a late 2019 MacBook Pro with an i9, 32 go ram and 2tb of storage for $100 at a local pawnshop. Only caveat was that it was MDM locked… I did bypass the lock but I ended up selling it because it was going to keep showing the profile as long as the server it was tied to would still be up.

[@LaimisMatas]

goddamnit, that's a nice machine..

[@mdwahiduzzaman7315]

I bought an M1 Air last week for 350$ from the Facebook marketplace. It had two dead pixels and some scratches. Later found the previous owner had Apple Care+ but was completely oblivious to that. I cashed in that. Now I've got a perfectly working Macbook M1 Air and I'm commenting here using that. Not only the dead pixels were gone but also all the scratches are taken care of !!! Sweet deal for me !!!!

[@CCC54E]

Luke, I always get excited when you do a video like this one. I think that, yeah, I could do the same thing. Then, I think that there must be some times when you did not get an awesome deal like the Apple Silicon Mac, so the good deals and bad deals would kind of average out. I realize that you are an expert, so you would avoid more of the bad deals than I would. After reasoning it through, I decide to just enjoy your videos and pay up on Apple products to avoid the bad deals. Thanks for your videos, Luke.

[@SankeshwarSivakumar]

it would be interesting if you review the self service repair program for the Macs, there isn't a video about it on youtube, you could do it

[@MrPnew1]

There are videos about that program, you aren’t looking hard enough. Try Hugh Jeffreys and Louis Rossmann for starters

[@SankeshwarSivakumar]

@@MrPnew1 no I haven’t seen anyone repair a Mac with self service repair

[@dylanlindsay1993]

Great Find Luke!!!! this reminds me of my 30$ airpods pro i got a few months ago! i found some airpods pro that were used on ebay for 30$ but they were listed as for parts/non working but the pictures in the listing seemed to show that they were working so i messaged the seller and it turns out that they listed them wrong! so i bought them! and surprisingly they still had about 4.5 months warranty left on them! theres only about a month left on that warranty now though because ive had them for about 3 months...!

[@ajaygadgetech]

Here we go again... 🫠

[@electronights3589]

It would have been even cheaper If it was just used as a bootleg mac mini and connected to an external display as a home PC.🤣

[@curtispazarjr4985]

great review!!!!!

[@Evie0133]

dude this is insane, even the broken ones usually go for way more, so that price is wild! You could either fix it to get a cheap laptop, or just remove the display to make it a $150 Apple Silicon Mac Mini! At that point, it's actually LESS than the price that Apple charges for their Magic Keyboard and Trackpad combined, truly insane :D

[@brentsmithline3423]

Great find.

[@totem168]

Dang what a good video thank you Luke

[@tomwagner4516]

I did the exact same thing for my wife's M1 Air. My laptops cost $250 but that was one year ago. Couldn't be happier.

[@user-bm2vs1ee1g]

Back in 2021 I bought an 2020 13" M1 256GB MacBook Pro for $225 from a pawn shop on 40 battery cycles, only defect was on the bezel where it says "MacBook Pro" there was a tiny crack, there's definitely some gold out there for sure!

[@paulianclarke]

Whats the origin of the replacement screen from Ebay? Remanufactured? Is it as good as the original Apple screens?

[@samhendersonn]

I liked the sponsor, will definitely check it out cause I need this cleaner for my room.

[@1natedoggy]

Do you resell the laptops you fix up or what happens to them?

[@jmattos]

GENIUS!

[@BrianWMay]

You took a chance and it paid off. Well done.

[@KimoKimochii]

he sold it to himself lol

[@simonwilliams2109]

Hi Luke., thanks for the vid. Can you use an iMac(2012) as an external monitor for the Silicon MacBooks?

[@KingsleySmith1]

Great job!

[@francisyuweh706]

amazing what a deal

[@mendyc158]

I wonder if the screen True Tone colour would still happen in Asahi or Windows ARM Because if it works, then getting one like that and installing Asahi would be awesome

[@Alexei-im6dq]

I love your shirt, it's so elegant

[@michvod]

I paid a €120 for a liquid damaged M1 Air few weeks ago. Managed to repair the logic board (pain in the ass, but it works now). Due to liquid damage, the trackpad, the trackpad cable and intermediate board for the keyboard were gone as some of the components fell off due to corrosion. Also the small battery PCB got hit by the liquid and it stopped working. I managed to find a good but mangled top case with all those items for €40. And another €30 for a good used battery. So I guess mine was even cheaper ;)

[@pbatacan]

I was able to get a base non touch bar macbook pro 2017 for only 100 usd. the only issue it had is a non functioning facetime camera. i did not bother repairing it. it's still with me for 2 years now

[@deacbeugene]

Is this replaced display color calibrated like original one? Does it have any screen ghosting without truetone calibration?

[@fotoralf]

Congrats!

[@4knucklehead]

Dude, you always seem to find these great deals on "old" or "damaged" Macs. good for you. Question....what do you do with all those repaired macs...sell, give away? just asking. Keep up the great videos.

[@TheCrazybEd]

Luke this is so cool but alas where I live the price of replacement parts are way to expensive

[@TheKaddster]

Where did you buy the display replacement?

[@GreginLA18]

F’N A that is glorious. Congrats 🎊🍾🎉🎈

[@janeS9773]

Loved the video! What will you do with it?

[@larserikertzgaardringen7426]

I`m about to do the same repair on a M1 MacBook Air. But I´m going to use Apple Self Service Repair program. They have to help me with the software pairing of the new screen after the replacement.

[@WarriorsPhoto]

Doing the math. Depending on how much you made from this videos ads and sponsored content. This computer could be close to or free. Congratulations 🍾🎊🎈🎉 Luke.

[@tvandever2010]

If the computer is in warranty would apple replace the screen? And if so which would be cheaper?

[@ZircoBen]

Under warranty, they wouldn't with physical damage

[@walpoleandworcester]

Ohhhhh boy! Time for another Luke Miani classic.

[@marcusgurley9495]

do you have a fix for a mac that has the firmware lock?

[@ViorelIanasi]

Mmm... so this display can be replaced without the Apple proprietary calibration software like on the MacBook Pro 14/16. Just curious, is True Tone still working? LE: Found out that True Tone is not working but is it still OK that is useable anyway. On the Pro 14/16 sot so much.

[@vxbosskroniksxv6267]

Could've been a cool opportunity to turn the logic board into its own pc and just hook up a display :) mad respect either way, I can't take chances on macbooks for the I loud lock chance

[@RenatoLaporte]

Perfect for a server, run docker on it 🎉

[@bj97301]

The new display looks off. Is that the same as stock?

[@cesartse]

Hey Luke. Wondering how you got the screen for so cheap being such a new model. I have a late 2013 Retina 13 inch (A1502) with a damaged screen and can’t find a screen for less than A$500. Can you suggest where to get a new screen?

[@PiyushSingh-rl7kc]

did you use a apple original display for replacement?

[@mojoblues66]

does the display turn off when the lid is closed?

[@raskyofficial5246]

I found a second hand MacBook Air 2020 for 275€ the listing said “faulty screen”… was just dirty, I cleaned it with product and it’s brand new now, the only thing is the sticker on the back, you can kinda see them

[@mayrokmedia258]

What do you use for cleaning solution?

[@T3CHGY007]

Man thats a wicked good deal!😮

[@tizzi91able]

You should try with another dosdude collaboration , truetone programming the new screen

[@ChandrasekarThodla]

I bought a used M1 Mac Air 16GB RAM + 1 TB storage for 600 Australian dollars (which is 380 USD) - in great condition, genuine one with icloud clock reset. Such a great value find in FB marketplace!

[@KeithCozy]

I was a technician and Apples "OEM" parts were nothing but pre-programmed components (phones still had to be configured regardless) and branding

[@visyen]

looks like this could've been a good headless macbook too

[@pasquale78]

Yeah, it’s now basically a Mac mini M1.

[@MasaDukie]

The seller of this MacBook M1 is a paid actor….. 😂

[@flipkibblez]

i love the apple machines but i can't get around things being not upgradable. they are beautiful machines but I haven't used a macbook newer than a mid 2012 and even then i've moved onto an hp elitebook.

[@Aj8683]

i live in a small non tech town in SW Georgia , My local pawn shop has sold me 2- 3 M1 Macbook Air 2020's for $220 out the door , my recent one i purchased even has Apple Care + on it & 45 battery cycles

[@tr1ck5h07]

Does the lid angle sensor not need to be recalibrated? Does closing and opening the lid correctly turn off and turn on the screen?

[@hishnash]

the sensor is on the mainboard, you only need to recalibrate it if you screw up the screen repalmcent, buy opening the hinges to fair (further than the screen can physically open)

[@Ssin1235]

If I remember correctly, recently Louis Rossman’s German repair shop friend found a way to calibrate the screen and bring True Tone and Lid sensor back.

[@gergemall]

You are amazing ❤

[@GwejeofAfrica]

I have a 2015 MacBook Pro. It shows a red screen after booting. What could be the problem?

[@5ingredients127]

Does the TrueTone work with non genuine display assembly?

[@cheap25]

Facebook marketplace. Found one for 300. Definitely a crazy one of a kind find. Just gotta keep your eyes peeled. It is crazy how cheap the M1 are going for now. People are having a tough time selling them at 500. That is insane Trying to find a buyer for a 512 GB upgraded one now at 650 and it’s just mind numbingly frustrating

[@3vlogs487]

I broke my M1 air and ordered the part from Apple to replace the screen, works perfectly and cost half as much as the Apple store wanted

[@GiancarloCarccamo]

Great video.

[@PeteHSM]

Does warranty not cover this sort of damage? Seems like it was caused by a case or camera cover or something, so is that only covered by AppleCare+?

[@edobosho]

I bought an M1 Air at my local pawnshop for for $380. Only now am i doing some digging to see if it was a good deal and with only 8 battery cycles, think i hit the jackpot on this one.

[@ahmedkambal7322]

I’ve got my sisters broken m1 air laptop. It’s also got a broken screen but otherwise perfect. Should I sell on eBay or repair to sell? Which will have the better profit?

[@savagepro9060]

Me: isn't that a prime candidate for a cheap headless Apple setup?🤔🤨

[@cody3026]

managed to get a m1 macbook air also for $80AUD on ebay. had water damage on the charging port. $10 replacement. Sold for $800 in less than a week.