[chasg]

Hi All,

The drive in my MBP C2D has failed ("fatal hardware error", according to Disk Utility). It's fully backed up, so no problems there, but I've got a job in three days and I really need it working (fyi: I'm a photographer, and I use the laptop on set). I purchased this machine online at the Apple Store.

I'm looking for the quickest way to get a MBP serviced in London, any suggestions of places where I can get it serviced (and quickly)?

I used to be a Mac tech and have cracked a few powerbooks open in my time, but this machine is still under warranty.

Thanks in advance for any advice,

Chas

[JonoMarshall]

Head straight to the Apple store and tell them your predicament, they'll either tell you where to go with it (hopefully in a useful way) or at the very least can give you a number of authorised service centres to ring round for lead-times.

Failing that, buy a drive on T. Court Rd, fit it yourself, then re-fit the old drive and get an authorised service centre to fit a new drive in the near future (as if the other one had never been used)... don't get found out and your warranty's still intact.

[Simon]

IIRC somebody mentioned a while back that the Regent Street Apple Store does repairs in house. See if they can do it within the next three days.

In the worst case, could you consider using a fast external FW800 drive?

[chasg]

Hi guys, thanks very much for the quick responses.

Jono, I spoke to Apple's Service line. The guy there wasn't too helpful, but he did try to book me into the service department at the Apple Store but he could only book up to 2 days away, and those 2 days are fully booked (big help). I've called several authorised service centres, but they all say 7-10 days (arrgh). I have several jobs coming up in the next two weeks (heck, over the next two months!), I have zero opportunity to have it sent away for 10 working days.

I considered fitting a drive myself (can always use extra storage). A bit worried about leaving tool marks that might give them an excuse to invalidate my warranty (I've got the dreaded keyboard scratches on my screen, worse than ever, I've been hoping to get that fixed under warranty <fingers crossed>). Hmm, what's the state-of-the art in drives these days? (I've got the 7600 rpm 160GB drive, has a 200GB high speed drive come out?).

Simon, I'm going to head down to Regent's St. and see what's what. I've never been in there for a service, is it the Genius Bar I go to?

I've got a portable FW800 drive already (I use it for photo backup on site). It's a good idea to use that in the meantime, thanks for the suggestion.

And if the Apple Store isn't an option, I'm at least within walking distance of T.Court Rd. :-)

Thanks again guys, you made me feel a bit better about the situation.

Chas

[Aron Peterson]

Yes, go to the Genius Bar. Be aware that area of London has a lot of Mac users (Soho is just around the corner) so there's always a queue of people who need help.

Check your private messages. If you're going to Tottenham Court Road I'll send you to the right people. Mention my name and you'll get a good discount.

[chasg]

Many thanks for that Aron!

Chas

[peeb]

Originally Posted by Simon 

In the worst case, could you consider using a fast external FW800 drive?

Get an external fw - put your backup in that, and boot from it. It's a kludge to keep the machine running, but will work until you can get it fully repaired.

[rach]

Mr Systems in Highbury and Islington are very good as are LogoSystems in Greenwich. Mr Systems is situated like 5 minutes from the station.

Check on the Apple site for a list of authorised Apple repair stores and maybe give some of them a call and see if they will be able to help you.

[chasg]

peeb: a kludge indeed, but dooable (I happen to have a portable fw800 drive, so at least it wouldn't be an extra expense). No need though, I've found a dealer who has taken it in for a rush job, and will have it ready for me Monday (two days from now) <phew>

rach: thanks for those two recommendations. I did work my way through a bunch of dealers from the list at Apple, and luckily I found, as I mention just above, a dealer who's going to have it ready for me just in time (keeping in mind the time it takes to move 120GB around :-)

Thanks to you both,

Chas

[inkhead]

depends if you have ever worked with computer hardware. The absolutely quickest way is to walk into a computer centre, buy a 2.5 inch SATA drive, and open up your macbook pro. I can replace the hard drive in a MBP in under 8 minutes now ;-)