Simplo batteries breaking MacBook logic boards?

https://www.ifixit.com/Answers/View/670543/Simplo+batteries+breaking+logic+boards

45 50 6 years ago

seaghost2• 6 years ago

I have also replaced battery from iFixit kit, I don’t know if I have the same brand, my machine sometimes while in sleep restarts by itself and I hear chime sound during the night while I’m sleeping. I have late 2013 MacBook Pro 15” Retina with integrated graphics.

eatbitseveryday• 6 years ago

Are Apple-genuine batteries no longer available?

LIV2• 6 years ago

It costs a fortune because Apple will also replace the top case, keyboard and trackpad while they’re at it

reaperducer• 6 years ago

It seems to depend where you live.

In the United States, there are hundreds and hundreds of Apple authorized repair stores that have access to genuine Apple batteries. But this is not always true in other places, which leads to the HN echo chamber of "evil Apple is forcing obsolescence to sell more computers!"

I had a MacBook Air done at one of these this party authorized repair shops last year, and it cost the same as getting it done from Apple, itself: $129.

seaghost2• 6 years ago

Apple authorised service provider asked me 400€ for the replacement battery and labour costs. So I decided to replace it myself with iFixit kit and it was worth it. The iFixit instructions are really nice and not too complicated if you have a little bit of patience.

corgihamlet• 6 years ago

I had a similar issue with 2012 MBP and an aftermarket battery which in tracked down to the connector being somewhat loose.

macjohnmcc2• 6 years ago

A house in our neighborhood burned to the ground and the fire was started by a laptop battery (replacement) charging. It shot up through the roof of the kitchen into attic and started a fire that quickly consumed the house. I would never put in a battery not from the manufacturer after that not that that is a guarantee.

Nextgrid2• 6 years ago

The problem with bad/unsafe replacement batteries is that Apple intentionally makes it impossible to obtain an original battery.

If you could just walk into an Apple store and buy the original, Apple-endorsed battery at a fair price there would be no reason to go with third-party (and potentially unsafe) batteries.

Fezzik• 6 years ago

I had this same thing happen with a battery from OWC that I dropped in a 2015 MacBook Air. It oddly works perfectly other than rebooting itself and turning itself on when closed. And I followed all the installation/system reset instructions to a T.

random5634• 6 years ago

These are at least credible suppliers. If you replace w an eBay battery the results can be laugh out loud terrible. Years ago I thought of saving money this way - but didn’t - I actually don’t fully understand why apples batteries are so much more reliable than these third party ones - what type of bms is in them?

Ironically HN was railing about the non genuine notification appple provides buyers of used devices - very much worth checking when buying though.

MrBuddyCasino• 6 years ago

Buying cheap LiIon replacement batteries that might burn down your house is a level of living fast & dangerous that I just wasn't made for. Removing an already bloating MBP cell using sharp tools is a terrifying experience. I blame Apple for encouraging this by over-pricing genuine repairs.

14• 6 years ago

This is a worry that almost came true to me last week. My sons Laptop charge cord stopped working so went to Facebook and found someone selling a charger for it. The charger was from amazon they said. It was an obvious fake and looked nothing like the company provided one but tested it and the voltage output was correct so used it. Fast forward several months and last week I noticed the casing around the cords power supply was deformed and had at one point almost melted. Scary to say the least.

infinityplus1• 6 years ago

Apple restricts third party repair shop's access to genuine parts as much as possible. So, it is partly their own fault that high quality parts are not available with third parties.

donaldcuckman• 6 years ago

Probably some bizzare issue with the smc logic.

peterburkimsher• 6 years ago

On the A1466, I can do an extended SMC reset to make the MagSafe light flash green. But it doesn't respond in any other way (no chime). G3 hot is not high.

As for my A1398, I'm going to have to take a multimeter to it tomorrow. Not sure how to diagnose the GPU issue though, other than Single User Mode works, but the computer freezes when switching to NVIDIA.

aluminussoma2• 6 years ago

I had the same issue happen recently: replaced the battery, GPU soon failed. My trackpad also stopped working.

For the GPU, I took it to a repair shop here in the Bay Area. They were able to quickly diagnose and sent it to another shop in the area that specializes in it. Was told it was a simple soldering fix. Apparently a guy makes his living doing this since he knows exactly where to solder.

GPU issues aside, I think the submitter wanted to draw attention to the fake charger posting about a hotel fire. It sounds like a much more interesting story than this battery GPU issue.

jhfdbkofdcho• 6 years ago

Oh man, who is the guy doing the GPU fixes?! I need help...

aluminussoma2• 6 years ago

Call independent repair shops in the Bay Area that specializes in Macs. I could not get the name of the GPU repairer because the repair shop earned a hefty fee being the middleman.

ksec2• 6 years ago

There is a whole industry on fixing Apple's product. Simply because they refuse to admit any of its mistakes ( Especially on the Mac ). And refuse to fix any of its hardware. Literally all repair cost in Apple Store are there to show how it would be better if you just buy a new one. Hence the repair rate ( from Apple's perspective ) are exceptionally low, and the 3rd party repairing industry has been thriving because of it.

coldtea2• 6 years ago

Apple made a very good charger! But it was expensive, People assumed the cheap knockoffs where just as good. Sadly they aren’t! Most issues I’ve seen all come from using a bad charger.

An argument to keep in mind for the "right to repair" and third-party replacements...

aequitas• 6 years ago

All the more reason for Apple to provide parts to consumers and repair shops instead of withholding them only for authorised resellers (which often come with way more restrictions and rules than just how good they repair stuff).

Worst about this personally is how to distinguish between good and reasonably priced or bad and expensive. Because it's easy to know whats bad and cheap.

jimmies• 6 years ago

Given the situation happened, was the fire caused by either the right to repair or the laptop going through a repair? Why did you drag the "repair" and "a bad charger causing a fire" into one category?

What a horrible strawman argument to make.

coldtea2• 6 years ago

Why did you drag the "repair" and "a bad charger causing a fire" into one category?

Because a charger doesn't have some magical ability that makes it the only kind of device to cause this. The fire could just as easily come from an equally poorly made third-party battery...

What a horrible strawman argument to make.

What a horrible, rude, violation of the principle of charity.

vetinari• 6 years ago

You always have to consider what you are purchasing, and Apple parts are not exception either.

During 2000s, I had a Powerbook G4. It's charger was famous for cable fraying, because SJ hated stress relievers. So I went through three original replacement chargers, where each developed the same defect.

The fourth one was third-party pc-like brick, except in white. That one never needed replacement.

varispeed2• 6 years ago

What stops a company to setup a shop somewhere in Asia to develop cheap knock offs of their own chargers that would cause problems like fires, to ensure customers would never buy a knock off?

dan1234• 6 years ago

Probably the PR firestorm that would occur when the knock off company is traced back to them.

varispeed2• 6 years ago

So far I have not heard of such thing - does it mean it's actually working quite well?

bruceb• 6 years ago

Is there any other market where there are plenty of choices of the product but zero trust in any of them such as the 3rd party macbook battery replacement market?

Every option seems to be a gamble. ifixt is the only brand but they don't make the battery so the trust is low on them as well.

I purchased a battery for 2011 macbook on Amazon. Not the cheapest one yet it ended up giving my macbook problems and lasted about 45 mins. The seller sent a replacement and that didn't work. Later I read High Sierra can cause problems for 3rd party replacements?

The cheapest batteries on Amazon start at around $30. Is there not a market for $50-60 replacement that you know for sure work?

Simplo batteries breaking MacBook logic boards?

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