Zachary Lunte

A while back I took the 2018 ACMT exam via Pearson Vue using a Tech ID, having first worked through the ATLAS training...

We opened up this machine to inspect the internals and found this strange tube floating freely inside the system. It was...

Machine was unable to power on. I tried an SMC reset, and the charger light changed so I know it went through and that the...

The machine has failed in a way that makes it unusable (shuts off when in use, soon after powering on). I believe the...

When connected to a 12W wall charger the iPad will power on and show the Apple logo for about 5 to 8 seconds and then it...

The main issue here is that sometimes during boot up it fails and shows the prohibitory symbol (circle with slash through...

The machine itself will not power on. I have tried an SMC reset, but it had no effect. I’ve tried multiple chargers in all...

I recently replaced the top case on a MacBook (Retina, 12-inch, Early 2015). The original top case had sticky keys and I...

I’m assuming the issue is caused by a damaged display and that I would need to replace the display assembly to resolve the...

The machine was not charging - charger LED remains black when connected to the machine (tried multiple known good...

Try using an 85W charger instead of a 60W. The 60W charger is not designed for the 15-inch MBP.

I would suspect the display cable has failed. This is a known issue with the 2016-2019 USB-C model laptops commonly referred to as “Flexgate.” Apple has a service program that I would recommend taking advantage of if you can. The service program only officially covers one two 2016 models, but the same design defect is known to be present in the 2017 models. Here is the link to the service program. It may also be worth contacting an Apple Authorized Service Provider and talking to them about the issue.

This is a risky model to upgrade - the 15-inch 2011 MBPs have a known problem where the GPU tends to fail after so many years of use. It’s very possible that after replacing the hard drive and the display the GPU could go out, which would render the computer unusable. That being said, if you want to replace the hard drive I would recommend a Western Digital or Samsung SSD. Replacing the display is typically a bit more expensive and might not be worth the investment on an older model, but you can find options on eBay and other online retailers. You can also work around this by using an external monitor which may be cheaper to acquire. Hope this answer helps!

Problems with the trackpad or cables that route through the trackpad can cause power on issues. If you suspect any of these cables are damaged that could be a good place to start troubleshooting.

My guess is that it will take a while for the guides for this model to be created. Since guides are often user created it can take a while for newer machines. Maybe you can use the motivation to make a guide for the rest of us!

The ports are discrete and should be replaceable without soldering. It looks like you will need to temporarily remove the logic board in the process though to remove them. Look at Steps 30 to 32 in this guide.

Alright, I think I figured it out. The loops around the green tube are the same kind of loops you see highlighted in this picture. There’s also a peel-able adhesive strip on the back, so my guess is this is something the manufacturer sometimes uses to apply those little loops. May have been a leftover piece that accidentally fell into the machine.

There is a similar post MacBook is slow after upgrading to SSD. The general conclusion was that the hard drive cable may be at fault. They tend to be damaged pretty quickly by the bottom plate of the machine (it rubs up against the cable where the cable routes over the optical drive). You can try booting the drive externally through a USB port to see what speeds you get through a different connection point.

What color is the MagSafe LED when it's connected to the system? Does it change when you perform an SMC reset? Sometimes a bad battery can prevent a machine from powering on. Try disconnecting the battery, holding the power button for 30 seconds, release, then reconnect the battery and connect a power adapter, then try to power on. If this doesn't work you can try an SMC bypass. To do that, disconnect the battery and power adapter, then hold the power button for 10 seconds, reconnect the power adapter while still holding the power button, continue to hold for 10 seconds, then release. If successful the machine should bypass SMC sensors and force a powered on state.

I would recommend checking out this page. It lists out a few things you can try. If none of these steps work for you then your machine may have been damaged from the fall, in which case you will need to open it up and inspect the interior for signs of damage. There are also some additional steps you can take to try to power on the machine, including performing an SMC bypass, triggering the power on pads, and disconnecting various components from the logic board to isolate the issue. Hope this helps!