[maxintosh]

My PB Ti 1Ghz is back in the shop again. Motto of the story: GET APPLECARE! I would have saved so much money!

My PowerBook has had its logic board replaced once, its optical drive twice, and I had to buy a new battery for it. (The damn thing is just over 2 years old.)

But the latest issue takes the cake!

This time the problem is really bizzare. After a while of the PowerBook being on, the Caps Lock and Num Lock indicator lights on the keyboard begin to flicker and glow, even when not activated. They get continually brighter until they are extremely bright and the screen's backlight begins to flicker. Then the PowerBook makes a "click" noise and shuts itself off instantly. It happens faster on A/C power. The PowerBook doesn't even seem to get very hot and the fans stay on low speed generally.

Letting it sit for a while and turning it back on gets a few more minutes out of it, but turning it back on immediately causes it to only work for a few seconds.

This is the wierdest computer issue I've ever encountered. Add to this that the auxiliary fan makes a ridiculously loud groaning/grinding noise when on the higher speed and I've got a pretty sick book.

So it's going to Apple.... AGAIN. I hope they fix it up well this time. Just needed to vent.

[audvidsvs]

It sounds more like you need a priest to me.

Power problems can cause strange things like that to happen in my experience and I would hope they will be able to identify and fix that one for sure.

I am on the fence about Applecare myself. It seems like sort of a mixed message to me.
I use Panasonic Toughbooks when forced to work on the other side and they come standard with a 3 year warranty period. It seems unfair to me for the manufacturers to not just give a decent warranty and build the stuff better for the price they are sold.

[Fozz_uk]

Slightly off topic...

I passed on AppleCare. Instead my PowerBook is covered by the retailer for the same price, but for 5 years, and including accidental damage. I'm fairly sure that if I do drop it, or it goes wrong, that they'll just send it into Apple anyway.

Check out the other options before you rush into getting AppleCare. You can buy insurance from anywhere these days.

[markponcelet]

Holy crap!

At this point, it seems as though it would be a good idea to start pushing through the ranks at Apple tech support. That is, if you still have any sort of warranty left on that machine. That kind of history and that kind of bizarre problem is the sort of thing that would trigger a quest to get the whole demonically posessed machine replaced, lock, stock, and hard drive.

It sounds like you're completely out of your warranty period, though. Yikes.

I'll light a candle for you, man.