This $60 Retina MacBook Pro is INSANE

[@TarynnElizabeth619]

It is absolutely NOT easier to replace the top assembly on a retina series MacBook Pro, versus replacing the battery itself. I’ve replaced tons of these batteries. Even the most recent models up to 2018. With a little bit of patience you can have the battery out with a few minutes. The only pain is cleaning up the adhesive strips.

[@gunnarliljas8459]

This

[@GoobyPlzz]

Goo Gone + Isopropyl alcohol does wonders

[@TarynnElizabeth619]

@@GoobyPlzz I just use Alcohol. Although I do have Goo gone for other things.

[@tahaak]

I had a spicy pillow MacBook Pro 2012 and after trying to remove the battery for 15 Minutes I just got pissed off and yanked it out out the case. I knew I could have burned my house down but I could have thrown it into the cat litter box and burry it, throw it outside.

[@Aethertenshi]

if you have a bad luck, maybe you can damage the trackpad, even with plastic cards

[@bgs1381]

Hi Luke, I am a small business owner (music teacher) that has had their 21.5" iMac core duo since 2011 (it is a late 2009 model). With your tutorials, I was not only update the hard drive and ram, but I was able to get this machine to run Catalina, which prior to last week felt like an impossibility. It feels like a brand new computer in comparison now, I can't believe it! I wouldn't have been able to do this as easily without the information on your channel, so you deserve a heart-felt thank you! I hope that all is well with you and that you continue making this great content!

[@Errcyco]

Woah.. it is totally time to upgrade. You got every bit of use out of a 2009 and should be proud of yourself. Let that be a backup. You can find a like new used 15” MacBook Air M2 for like $850-$900… maybe $1,000 if you want 512gb And seriously you’ll notice everything is MILES better. Wifi6, new retina displays, Magic Keyboard, high end speakers.. it’s a massive upgrade. You’ll fall in love. Unfortunately they don’t make those massive screens anymore but you don’t need it.. hard to explain til you see one. Do you have a Best Buy in town? If so, go check out a display model. You can get a new 16” but even used the price will jump to double.. ~$2,000 (worth it, but quite expensive). Godspeed Mr Music

[@zoltanvarga1967]

I loved this video. I own the same, late 2013, 15" retina MP, with the identically same hardware upgrade, love my 1 TB SSD, and I'm so glad that you were able to bring one of this great, like you said it, one of the best MP design. I love mine, won't trade it for a brand new, other than MP. thanks for the video, and bravo Luke!❤❤

[@ammaarlaheri]

This video has the most unexpected sponsor of all time lol 😂

[@TrulyS2345]

Lol.. i didn't even notice that.. my youtube vanced just skipped them automatically..

[@nandor690]

@@TrulyS2345 yeah I at least use the ad block for the normal ads if it’s sponsored. But, and I don’t know about you, I get enough hello freshly ads on twitter and Facebook. So maybe I’ll skip that too 🤣

[@movdqa]

Those services cater to very busy people that want to do some of the meal preparation. So you spend a bit more for convenience. It makes sense given that those with the disposable income to by Apple products may be willing to spend more for meal prep convenience.

[@urbantreasurehunter4447]

Luke, its crazy that you made this video because I did the exact same repair to a DG 2015 15 inch last week. Its a great machine and i’m loving it!

[@richardkeith7571]

I've saved those batteries by jump starting with same voltage then plug back in to completely charge works everytime. What usually happens is people run the charge so low and there's built in safety if the voltage is too low it won't charge by jump starting it with the same or slightly higher voltage it brings up the volts to a chargeable voltage

[@aelaan12]

What a missed opportunity to refresh the thermal paste.

[@Siansonea]

I assume that happened and it just wasn't filmed.

[@zapod20]

I have the 2.4Ghz 16Gb 512Gb dual graphics version of this and it still rocks. I still get a couple of hours out the battery which is remarkable for a 9 year old laptop.

[@GrandpaJeffrey]

I just did this with my 2014 MBP with retina and dual graphics/Nvidia. We still use it to manage our business. when you are running spreadsheets and the like these are awesome machines that perform well. still fast. My total cost for battery only (no top case) was 105 dollars. No matter, it was still a bargain compared to buying a new machine.

[@dylanlindsay1993]

ha! my battery was 26$ off amazon! with free prime shipping too!

[@jamesfiegel9675]

Removing battery is easier use a heat gun but cover logic board area....it loosens adhesive and it is easy how they do it at Apple repair :)

[@njlouch]

That is the exact spec I had. After about 9 years, there was a fault with the IO board. Apple fixed it, swapped the entire top case, battery, etc - so had a charging cycle of 1. Sold it for £550!

[@vovs3167]

I don't think this MacBook will ever exceed 85W power consumption. The reason it throttles so badly may have something to do with the fact MagSafe adapters come in different flavours, going as low as 45W. It does work, I tried it, and indeed I've seen battery charge going down under heavy use. So perhaps it may be capping the power usage to not turn off even with the smallest power brick.

[@amberisvibin]

mac's may not be easy to repair but they sure are satisfying when you get it working

[@WireHedd]

I see a dozen or so of these each month thru my repair lab. they're quick and easy and work great so long as the graphics subsystems haven't shit the bed. I have 2 myself.

[@jotato703]

I just got a used 2013 MacBook Pro 15 inch for $200 and I gotta say its actually perfect what it cost. Display is nice and bright and the typing experience is exactly the same as my old 2012 MacBook Air. The reason I got this computer is because I accidentally cleaned my MacBook air's display with a Clorox wipe and it ruined the display and I wasn't going to pay close to $400 for a new screen on an old MacBook Air. I checked on Facebook marketplace and I lucked out on finding a MacBook Pro for $200 and aside from couple dings on the front by the apple logo, the computer runs smooth and fast enough. This is my first 15 inch MacBook anything and I gotta say that Im starting to like the size.

[@jethrot100]

Thanks

[@FiberCaps]

Kinda had the same situation with a 2011 model i acquired from ebay. Received it, was slow as molasses, even after an OS reinstall, which also took way too long to install. Linux worked fine on it, so I decided to replace the battery to make it a linux machine. Installed the battery, boot up macOS and was many times faster. Never really did much more research on it, but this video confirmed it for me.

[@ReverendJasper]

I did a battery in a 2015 13" Retina recently. CRC's QD contact cleaner and a plastic putty knife got the spicy pillows out in two minutes. The glue has a foam pad built in, the contract cleaner makes it easy to push through. Cleanup took a few minutes, but since this was a free machine that I was keeping for personal use, I didn't care very much!

[@catrees8201]

I must say I have a 2011 MacBook Air 11 inch it used to be my mums old laptop it says the battery needs servicing and that it only holds a full charge for 30 mins plus all the other issues I thought the slowness could be due to old thermal paste but now I know the real problem but I still will replace the thermal paster you have helped me save a laptop and you have saved many more over the internet I am sure. Keep up the good work.

[@williameverets2736]

I just changed the battery in a 15.4 inch late 2015 MacBook Pro with 2tb Fledging M13 ssd, repasted the cpu gpu, installed Monterey, when talking to apple help he said that apple is changing battery on this MacBook Pro late 2015, o'well, My first MacBook and It was fun doing this work. Thank You for Video's on how to work on items.

[@angelisdania]

I have a 2012 Retina. Still works, and I still use it for administrative tasks at home. Battery is reasonably good for the age, and boot-up time is ok.

[@nowave7]

Having recently replaced a battery on exactly the same model, I'd argue that it is easier to replace the battery, than the top case.

[@Beyonder1881]

I have this exact model and I love it. The only thing that irks me about it is: When you connect it to an external display, it automatically selects the discrete graphics (the NVIDIA GForce) which causes the machine to heat up much more than if it would use the IRIS Pro integrated grapics. I have run 2 screens with the only Iris version (another logicboard) and it runs so much cooler than the dual graphics version. I guess it depends on what you use the machine for, but a manual switch between the two graphics card options would have solved that issue.

[@xavierorejarena3801]

even with the lid closed?

[@Beyonder1881]

@@xavierorejarena3801 I don't know tbh. I use it with open clam - using the display and keys is crucial for me.

[@megatryn]

If you haven’t: Change the thermal paste. It should be done at least every two years, as it becomes more inefficient over time. I do this regularly on my ‘15 15" MBP and it does make a significant difference.

[@Beyonder1881]

@@megatryn Hej, In fact due to your comment I went back in and replaced thermal paste I had put on a few months ago. At that time, I put way too much. This time I replaced with paper thin (or even less) paste. And so far, its around 5-7 degrees cooler already under similar load and the benchmarking is significantly improved. So thank you!

[@megatryn]

@@Beyonder1881 That’s awesome! I’ve also found that different thermal paste quality can make a difference. I usually use Noctua as I’ve found it good and easy to get a hold of. I’ve tried some no-name brands as well and had a 2-3 degree difference.

[@weholmes5315]

Great idea replacing the top case! Wish I thought of it before replacing the battery on my late-2013 MBP last week. Battery bulging was affecting the trackpad function. Thanks!

[@halami2149]

I’d recommend getting something like Al Dente (Mac app) and setting a charge limit. 80% is really good, but even 90% is fine (if you want to have more use per charge, you probably wouldn’t notice a huge difference between 90 and 100), and is much better than always charging to 100%. Up to you if you want to do that, I just find that I’m using my laptop on a charger because I know it won’t last me all day anyway, so I’d rather it hang at a lower safer percentage

[@fc-dz4wd]

Another nice repair video. These videos help understand the products. I

[@beeshepard]

Thanks for this! As someone with arthritis in my hands, I couldn't see how I was going to be able to get that old battery out of mine. This procedure (while more involved), looks a lot easier.

[@dash8brj]

Ahhh limp mode - posted on My Mate Vince's channel about this very issue. When the battery dies in a macbook, my commodore 64 will beat it to loading stuff. He swapped the battery and it ran great. Keep this in mind folks, the computer isn't stuffed, just needs a new bowl of ions to chomp on when it wakes up in the morning. :)

[@jjjacer]

Had a similar issue with a 2012 macbook pro, temps were not being read correctly (issue on mainboard) so it would thottle like it was overheating (cpu was fine at 120degF), SMC reset did not work so i ended up just removing the thermal profiles from the OS after i made sure it was on its most recent update, as updates or reinstalls took around 20hrs

[@jjjacer]

@Ken Ninane true, although the one i worked on battery was not swollen, It just came down to, how many hours was i gonna put into it (i dont charge much for friends and family), although i felt like they got ripped off as they paid over $400 for it. I also replaced the hard drive cable as it was a known failure on that model

[@MrRelevance02]

Mymatevince yas haha

[@mattbosley3531]

You say you bought the top case on eBay for $60 but what condition was it in? Used? How is the keyboard? The trackpad? How many cycles are on the battery? The problem with buying a used topcase on eBay is you don't know for certain what you're going to get. For $50 more you could get a new battery and replacement kit with instructions and tools from iFixit and know for sure what you're getting. And, in my opinion, replacing the battery is a lot easier than replacing the topcase for someone without your experience.

[@dabur872916]

I guess the longest way was for internal parts explanation, cause removing the battery is not that hard... even cheaper . A week ago I've replaced on my early 2013.. patience and few expired credit cards :) Thanks for the video!!!!

[@rickygarbaj]

Watching this was like almost therapeutic! Thanks for sharing

[@lukemiani]

Glad you enjoyed it!

[@SCU3A_S7EVE]

4:40 - Damn, this disassembly montage music is a bop!

[@Zebra_Paw]

Man, go ahead and patch this to macOS Monterey! Its graphics support Metal so it would run flawlessly!

[@kentbyron7608]

Luke, love your channel. Might you please make a video about what you did to get so educated and skilled to fearlessly tear apart and refurb computers? Were you trained at Apple? What was your path? I’m a mac nerd, since 1982, and while I’ve been brave and made some cool, time consuming repairs that frightened me because of the cost of the computer and the risk of a mistake, I can’t compete with your skillset. Can you tell us about yourself, your history, to inspire me and others? You’re unstoppable. Keep up the excellent work! Love your frugal mac computing slant! I almost always buy used Apple and then I want to upgrade the machines. Courage is necessary. Gratitude!

[@JamesAngelo]

A few months back, I found one at a thrift store for $9.99, $10.67 with tax. It has 16 GBs of RAM and 500 GB SSD. All I had to do was reinstall the OS and upgrade to Big Sur. I damaged the little cable that connects the keyboard to the motherboard trying to clean the fans and apply thermal paste. Now the keyboard and power button don't work. The good thing is that it turns on on it own once I attach the charger. I attached an Apple keyboard to it and connected it to this 27-inch monitor that I have. I have been using that way. I may replace the little cable in the future, but I'm scared that it might get worse.

[@RealPixelDude]

i got a late 2013 15 inch macbook pro. its the core i7 model with 16gb ram, 500gb ssd and the gt750m graphics. paid 130 for it fully working and the battery only has 250 cycles on it. it was sold as spares or repairs by the seller but they showed it as fully working. the reflective coating hasnt even come off the screen yet

[@davidnemcsik6581]

I just changed the battery on my 2014 15 MBP last friday. I tought that wont be an easy task reading the ifixit manual. BUT it turned out, that you can skip the 2/3 of steps. I skipped the most part of the steps, unscrew the case, disconnect the battery, unscrew 4 speaker screws and voila! I got access to the battery. It was not easy to take it out due to it is glued to the case but the whole process was under 1 hour work for me. So after I successfully made a battery change now I don't think it is a "big work".

[@ultraviolettp3446]

Further evidence why you are my favorite Fruit company Fruit fly - you bring old Macs to life and repurpose them instead of having them end up in refuse. Great job! Keep up showing why you are the best Fruit Fly on youtube!

[@alexc06]

Fruit company fruit fly! I like that!! lol 😆

[@factayoutube1983]

Great video, I have a similar issue with my 2014, gave it to a friend to fix, he replaced the battery, but then it started throttling again after a few hours of use. It was running sooooo good...very snappy...We now don't know why it is doing that

[@surena9451]

Did you replace thermal paste?

[@factayoutube1983]

@@surena9451 Thermal paste was replaced as well. Last I heard he was going to try to change the charging port as the mac started throttling again and would not charge the new battery

[@surena9451]

@@factayoutube1983 Well it is weird for it to throttle after hours of use when it works fine in the first few hours... Also tried SMC reset?

[@factayoutube1983]

@@surena9451 yup its crazy to me

[@gabesz]

Your hypothesis is right, all MacBooks throttle if they don't have a battery or their battery condition is "service now". I made many tests and the amount of throttle is approx 50%, and even if they display for example 2,4Ghz core i7, the processor actually working on a maximum 1,2 Ghz, and most notably the FSB speed also reduced and the DGPU models force IGPU mode.

[@LarryGanz]

In 2020 had a 2014 MBP 15" that the battery was so swollen that it was pressing up into the trackpad, and the "E" key barely worked as well. So I had to do a topcase. It cost me $200 for used "refurbished" topcase with a battery over 90% capacity, and $150 in labor to do the swap for me. A new battery alone would have been about $200 with labor. I'm amazed that you got one for $60 just 2 years later.

[@nikopol1009]

This is the first video shot using the kitchen!!!! I hope he made more promotional videos of hello fresh with him cooking.

[@KingCez100]

I bought my wife a brand new Macbook and as soon as she got it instantly switched her data over from her laptop. She has a 2020 MacBook pro for work and her new one. So I figured I ask what she was going to do with her old 2014 (MBP). Me being a pc guy looked at the specs and asked if it could be any better and see if what she used to complain about could have been fixed. Sure enough I upgraded the logic board to a i7 8GB one and the memory from the apple SSD to a M.2 2TB Evo. I'm in about $200 in and dang I have a fast do it all Macbook. I see why they are the standard in multiple lines of occupation. All in all this was a dope learning experience into what Macs are capable of even 8 years later.

[@ctcards2636]

Wow. This model is complicated compared to my 2012 13in Macbook pro. I was able to just change out the battery in my model in like 2 mins literally. Battery was not hard to remove. After watching this i am thanking myself for not getting a 15in model lol ! Great video as always :-)

[@gmdrandom6287]

You can also just remove the adhesive with some isopropyl alcohol

[@gregordiseth6651]

I have this machine as my daily driver, bought new on release day. It is the lower spec 2 Ghz Core i7 8/512. I probably shouldn't admit this, but it stays plugged in at my desk 99% of the time. Whenever I check the battery health, it still reports normal health (178 cycles) and 7715 mAh full charge capacity. I don't think this is a "surface" charge, when I take it off battery, it still has the expected runtime. I'm either lucky, or perhaps debunked the myth that keeping lithium polymer cells fully charged shortens their life. I think the low cycle count is a contributing factor as well.

[@jpdemer5]

You'd have to run it on battery until it died to know if the battery capacity has been affected. Right now the Mac itself lacks any information to support the "good health" indication. It's basically reporting "OK last time I checked, although that was two years ago."

[@ejofhia]

omg Luke! thank u for doing this video/tutorial because I have in my Macbook collection this exact MBP late 2013, same specs & same issue, dead battery. I had been on the fence on what to do or if i should fix it. Now u taught me how to replace the top case! After seeing this vid, I hoped on ebay & just bought a used, in mint, top case w the battery with just 4 cycles for mine!! I'm excited for it to arrive! will have to re-watch this vid just to make sure i do it right lol, so yea thanks Luke!! love ur channel been following since around 2017 - i think yea long time. I enjoy every video u do & I've learned a thing or two from watching though the yrs! Always entertaining to watch ur content!! - EJ in Miami.

[@IageF]

Maybe I'm the weird one, but I just wouldn't be able to accept a free macbook from a relative or friend knowing it could be fixed for a small amount of money, while they were convinced it was broken. Aside from that, good vid.

[@CC86CA]

At the 11:50 mark of the video, he mentioned he plans to resell this cleaned up and spruced up Macbook - and as a surprise, hand over the funds of the sale to the relative that gave him this computer.

[@shaun-wv6de]

Hey Luke could you do a video on the 2016 MacBook Pro in 2022 to see if it can rival the 2015 MacBook Pro Love your work

[@nbraa]

The logic board actually doesn't need to come all the way out, just remove enough screws to tuck it in there and your good. Source AASP.

[@troyladoux1953]

I have an early 2013 MacBook Pro that I still use as my main computer. Love it. It has the i7 processor which is still viable for most tasks in my opinion. How do you wipe a drive and do a fresh install?

[@NormanF62]

Next to the 2012 pre Retina 2012 MBP, the late 2013 Retina MBP with discrete graphics is the ultimate MBP! I own both of them, with upgraded specs and modern MBPs are not on the same level in terms of performance and build quality.

[@Rareparrot]

Luke - love your videos. Every time I watch one of your videos you have a different Mac. Can you come clean and list (to us mortals) your entire mac collection, :) Which industrial warehouse/hanger are they stored in again? Cheers from Australia

[@MACBoricua]

Nice! I have the same 2012 first retina now and have a bad battery…. Looking forward to change it soon and make a video about it for my Spanish audience

[@mattpipes5106]

Great video, I love these fix it videos because it demystifies the process of opening one of these up… I would love to see the process of battery replacement without getting a new top case, but it’s great to see you breathe new life into an old Mac!

[@ariethekid]

Still rocking my late 2013 15 inch. Works fine.

[@atharvagangan1777]

Luke ur so underrated

[@justwatchingnothingmore]

Awesome video as always

[@AllanAdamson]

good work Luke, thanks for the video

[@frankgarcia8418]

I too have a late 2013 MBP 15" high end model. Almost 2 years ago It was dumped in a trash can and I rescued it. It had severe delamination so I spent almost 2 days removing it. I just purchased a new battery from iFixit as I notice trackpad was not clicking like it should. I opened bottom and noticed a swollen cell which was cause. Now I have cleaned this baby inside out and applied new paste as well. Upgraded SSD to a turbo 1TB. What it does have is a solid horizontal line when you boot. After a while it goes away but I am left with several very thin lines (4 or 5) that are on the screen. Using the right wallpaper you can barely see the but one does obstruct the display contents in apps. I was thinking of getting a new display but damn they are anywhere from high $200 to $400 on eBay. Not going to do that for this machine. Does anyone know where you can get the cheaper? Luke seems to find them real cheap. Otherwise very nice machine, nice display albeit the issues mentioned and running Monterey 12.6.1.

[@peat381low8]

I love your channel. You give so much love to the mac. And after being an iPad Pro user since 2019 every time I use the Mac is so easy and better to use in many cases. I just wish the apps and games would transfer. I don't think PUBG Mobile will ever make it to mac. My friends play that and we have so much fun. That's why it's difficult to switch to mainly mac.

[@larine4459]

My 2012 retina that I bought on eBay one month ago just started having GPU problems where the screen freaks out if I'm playing HD video at full resolution, got it for 200 bucks and replaced the battery. It was working great, it really sucks that I paid $200 only to have something break in the next month month. I really wish that they made a 17 inch retina MacBook, the whole time I was using the 15-in retina I really wanted something a little bit bigger so I used that as an excuse to get a 2011 17-in. It's fine, it's noticeably thicker and way way heavier, and the fans are super loud on it, also obviously the display isn't as nice as the 15 inch retina, but I'm willing to make all those compromises to have the bigger screen. I think it would be awesome if maybe the next gen MacBook pros (or airs the recent rumor of the 15-in air) had a 17 or 18 in option, the 17 is really good for work but it is so damn heavy and thick lmao

[@劉興鎧]

I have a mid-2015 MBP, everything runs smooth, with a still more than capable CPU. While I am still happy with it, I am having a hard time finding accessories which can be used with the TB2 ports. Would you be able to make a video on what accessories can be found to work with TB2 ports?

[@JasonLefevers]

This is like taking out the entire engine of your car and replacing it just because your oil needs to be changed.

[@mrbojangles1391]

Very informative video...though it would have been nice to see how quickly it booted once fixed.

[@hiddenleaf2]

Love your vibe Lukey

[@skesinis]

It took me last year $200 AU (~$148 US) to change the battery In Apple for my 2015 MacBook Pro because, although it was still keeping its charge for hours, it was swelling dangerously! It had curved the bottom cover from the swelling and it was a potential fire hazard. They changed the whole top assembly completely, which was a good refresh after all those years! I had a 2TB Seagate Firecuda 510 with an adaptor in it, and I was getting close to 3GB/sec read/write on file system level. This was almost double the 1.6GB/sec that I was getting with the Apple SSD on that model, and it made Catalina, Big Sur and Monterey to run smooth with the 16GB RAM! The first “upgrade” was to replace the thermal paste a few years ago, and it made it much more silent! The difference in speed between the 2015 and the 2014 model when I tried to use the same fast SSD. (It caps at 3450MB/sec) was that the SSD slot was using 2 PCIe lanes in the 2014 model vs 3 PCIe lanes in the 2015. The Apple SSD on the 2014 model was getting 750MB/sec, while the Seagate was reaching 1.6GB/sec. Since it was an overkill to use the Seagate in the older model, I replaced it with a Crucial 2TB SSD which was also getting the same performance. However another caveat was that the EFI on the 2014 had an older driver for the NVMe and although it did boot Big Sur with no issues, I couldn’t install Windows 10 on Bootcamp in that one. Windows 10 was installed fine in the Bootcamp on the 2015 model and for some strange reason, it was also installed with no issues in the 2014 model too when I swapped the Seagate SSD with the Crucial! The other option that I had if I still wanted to keep the Seagate SSD in the 2014 model, was to extract the NVMe driver from the EFI of the 2015 and import it on the EFI of the 2014, which was a bit of a risky process. Since the Crucial SSD was still running at the 1.6GB/sec on the 2014 model, just as the Seagate would on the same one because of the 2 PCIe lanes, I decided not to try that upgrade. Finally, the only time I’ve seen the battery being drained while I had the 85W power supply plugged in was when I was using Teams with the camera turned on, and about 10+ more participants at work had their camera on too! :) I finally upgraded to the last Intel i9 MacBook Pro from 2019 last week, because I needed an Intel based Mac, to run an intel based VMWare virtual machine for my work. Unfortunately the M1 Macs can’t run an intel VM, at least not in any decent speed to be usable.

[@colinmountford5176]

when someone tells you the aging laptop 15 inch Mac, 256 plus 8 thingys crashes all the time you offer to buy it. No, they say you have it. it turned out Sonoma and Sequoia were on at the same time. I reinstalled Sonoma. Da! Da,! Works like a dream.

[@dtesta]

Yeah, only 65 USD... and a friend that gives it to you for free...

[@TechVidK]

I really want to buy one of these "Compters" to fix, but I still do need to find a deal on them.

[@TaylorBrauer]

great video, Luke!

[@EverythingWhoKnew]

so i just bought a MacBook Pro (Retina, 13-inch, Late 2013) 8gb ram 256gb ssd for 80$ . The battery life is about 4 hours heavy use , what are the recommended replacements / upgrades i can do budget or not , have improved performance with gaming (just the 3DS Emulator) i haven't found not one video on my model

[@ScottLahteine]

I love my mid-2012 Retina MacBook Pro enough that I spent $500 to replace the display a few years ago, and I'd be happy to continue using it if I hadn't been able to afford an M1 Pro machine. I keep the old machine around -booting into Mojave- so I can run 32-bit Intel apps (e.g., Steam games). However, it is becoming easier every year to run old apps in QEMU, so maybe someday I'll finally be able to give it away.

[@liangzh]

I have the same 15in rMBP (Late 2013). I replaced the battery several years ago because it swelled up very badly. I still used it occasionally and it works fine. Of course, I am not using it for any heavy-duty tasks. The only complaint I have though is the staingate. Any suggestion on how to solve it effectively?

[@BackpackandGear]

I can't believe you did all this just to replace the battery! I did have a hard job replacing my wife's clock battery in her 2010 17" Dell laptop. I literally had to take the entire computer apart just to replace the clock battery! I just hope the new battery lasts longer than the laptop! My 2013 HP 17" laptop battery just pops right out. I tried replacing my dead battery with a smaller capacity battery that I got off of eBay but when I turned on my computer and tried out the battery, the computer died before the battery would run down. I had to send it back to the seller and now I just use the wall power.

[@JustSheilz]

love these videos!

I have the same one now, upgraded with ram and ssd, battery & os x ventura

[@megatryn]

No replacing the thermal paste while at it? It’s guaranteed old and crumbly. I’d bet the temp would go down 5-10 degrees if you do and it wouldn’t turn the fans on as much.

[@56932982]

I beg to strongly disagree. I have a MacBook of the same vintage with the same specs. It is on its third battery. Swapping the battery is _much_ simpler then swapping the logic board and display to a new top case. Give it a bit of solvent, time to soak and careful prying and the battery just pops out.

[@brettlewis5157]

I agree ive done about 8 of these macbook pros its way easier never have I damaged any.....

[@jethrot100]

How many cycles were achieved on the battery before it died please. Is it correct Apple suggest 2000 cycles before the battery is compromised? I own the exact same model.

[@rottyonamac]

Replacing only the battery is definitely less work than transferring all other parts to the new top case, and cost less too.

[@CF542]

I have two MacBooks older than this that still have original batteries and still hold a charge. Where do you sell your used gear from your channel?

[@ahujapradyut]

Luke is surprisingly a good cook.

[@metzlyov6959]

Great video content.. I have been following your channel for few months now and I tell you, learned a lot. I have been Windows user for my entire life except now I converted to MacBooks and using them exclusively. Kids had old MacBooks that did not work - from 2007 through 2013 - total of 6 machines. I started tinkering with all of them few months ago and what I discovered ease of which these older machines can be upgraded and recovered. You covered many videos for these years of MacBooks and it was very helpful. Now I am using 2013 MacBook Pro for every task both personal and business. Looking for 2015 machine that I can buy and then perform full upgrade... any thoughts anyone? I personally do not trust what eBay offers, so any suggestions will be greatly appreciated. Great job Luke and keep up the good work.

[@sky.london]

I’m glad you found a use your that kitchen

[@shadetree1175]

wish i would have gone this route instead of removing the battery. the black trackpad cover started to come off. hope the trackpad will still work after installing the new battery.

[@ClarkCabin]

Hey, You fix a ton of macs on your channel. Just wondering what happens to those and are they available to purchase?

[@andresshamis4348]

Just sold my mid 2014 retina for $300 here in the dominican republic last week 😂 all funcional but the screen was scratched af and someone still bought it

[@austinstroup5665]

Yea I would have gone with a brand new battery. Changing out the entire top case is not worth it. You also never know what the CC will be with the used top case. A brand new battery is $40-50 and probably doesn't take as long too install compared to the top case... just my 2 cents.

[@Polydeukes68]

This was maybe 57.8x more complicated way to do it than just to change a new battery. It takes about 5min to remove old battery to 2013-2015 Retina with IPA and a plastic card. Then 5-8 minutes to clean the 2-sided tape residue off. And I have done it only to less than 5 machines. Also, there is dozens of more possibilities to screw things up when you are changing the logic board and other stuff to another machine than when you are just changing batteries. And in any case I don't see the wisdom in buying a used battery. Could be good but its a crap shoot anyways.

[@pouriyanaderi4232]

is it ok to buy 2015 model for logic works ?? or even lower model like Macbook pro 2013 ?! i just want to use logic pro and i dont want to spend much money , any model sugeste ?

[@nerdyneighbor]

"Do it the easy way: disassemble the entire thing and reassemble it somewhere else." lol

[@basically_chris]

I still use this macbook, and edit 4k iphone clips to create 1080p KZbin videos, with almost 0 lag.

[@peacetrip5049]

I also have the same. I use it for word processing, email, internet, and music composition/creation with Logic and FCP video editing (it’s original main use). Since the new M1 pros are have appeared and are so much more able to deal with music and video I was questioning Apples recycling program. My wife just upgraded to 14” M1 pro. $400 for it? Or would it better serve around the house? What do you do with yours?

[@ianmac51]

Yeah, I was thinking of getting rid of mine but tbh with the new battery it’s still very capable and apple very kindly gave me a new screen in late 2017 due to the lamination issue(early 2013 model). It no longer gets updates though I did get big sur on it via a hack, but, will probably install Ubuntu so I don’t have to worry about security updates as it’s a pain to manually manage OS updates.

[@peacetrip5049]

@@ianmac51 I too got a new screen. I have taken care of it and it’s just under powered for Logic w/ my orchestral VI. I can still edit simple video etc. I have kept all my old laptops and desk tops back to a Mac LC from 92, a 98 B&W tower, black plastic PB fro 2000. And many more. This 2014 PB pro retina was the best until I got a 6 core Trash can. It still handles Logic w/ VI and fcp stuff so far. I’m lusting after a new 16”MacBook pro And a Studio but it sounds like the 16” MBP could pull double duty and run my multiple display. Been using Apples since 1983

[@peacetrip5049]

@@ianmac51 what is unbutu. Lack of software security updates are a main reason for considering recycling. 🙁

[@marcusgurley9495]

is it possible to replace the screen on these MacBook Pros WITHOUT replacing the top case?

[@davidm.d.hyskell8983]

Still my fave style of Luke Miani video.

[@td_kdname5197]

This is kinda crazy. Putting a new battery in is much less work than putting a whole new top case in the computer.

[@MrMeowNow]

What about thermal paste? And why wouldn’t you replace the battery it self? Why to get the top case plus the battery? Replacing the battery is a bit tricky but it’s not too hard… good video tho…

[@alessioacri.]

Just out of curiosity, where can I get reliable 3rd party Mac batteries? iFixit shipping is too expensive and they don't have batteries for M1...

[@NullTypeError]

I have 2015 15", still amazing powerhouse. But it's much much slower in any direction than M processors. I don't think that buying such laptop is a good choice if you need powerful machine. But yes, healthy battery = stable laptop, I have configd issue with ifixit battery and that drives me crazy:D

[@Notkdenben]

Luke: “we’re gonna take the slightly easier route and design, then build a new computer”

[@naquirodriguezdelatorre2958]

Totally the reason why I dislike those machines. After 2012 Apple likes to solder down RAM and glue in batteries. Hard pass. Was that top case battery combo you put in even new? Why didnt you repaste the thermals?