[dustrho]

Un-freakin'-believable! I just get off the train, I'm walking to my parked car in the train's parking lot, I open the car door with my laptop backpack in hand, and the damn thing slips out of my hand and falls on the ground. It was about a 1-1.5 foot drop, so I thought nothing of it. That's until I got home, took out my MBP, and noticed this nice freakin' dent on the left side where your arm rests while typing. It's not the biggest dent in the world, but it's enough to piss me off something fierce. The worse looking part of it is that the dent pushed the front casing out just a bit, so that dirt and other nasties can get in there.

What should I do? I've had this less than one year, it's my first Mac computer, and I can't really afford to sell it and buy another one. Sure, the stimulus check has arrived and all, but there's no way I can persuade my wife to let me buy another MBP to replace something that I f'n dropped myself. Should I try to fix the dent myself by lightly banging it with a rubber mallet since it protrudes in the front? Should I take it to an Apple store to get an estimate of what it would cost to fix it (where I've read here that someone else was quoted $650 to fix it!)?

Any thoughts, idea and/or condolences would be greatly appreciated right now.

[jwpacker]

Man, that does suck something fierce!

If it's any consolation, back about four years ago, my wife got a new PC laptop and after two weeks managed to dump a glass of milk into it. Your issue is primarily cosmetic - hers damaged the lower-right corner of her LCD and the keyboard never did work quite the same again.

I would be tempted to try to fix the ding, were it me, but it would depend on just how comfortable you are tearing your laptop that far apart. They're not easy to get back together.

Buy after-market parts from iFixit or the PowerBook Medic:

Case Components for MacBook Pro 15" 2.4 GHz - iFixit

MacBook Pro Bottom Pan 15" Case - NEW &nbsp - Powerbook Medic

Should cost you around $250 at most.

- Mason

[Zeeb]

I wouldn't try to replace the case on your MBP unless you have previous experience. The cases have a million screws and its easy to cause further damage while performing that operation.

Getting it fixed at a third party authorized Apple repair center will probably be cheaper than having Apple do it -- and will much safer. I bet they would do it for less than the amount of your rebate check.

[dustrho]

Originally Posted by Zeeb 

Getting it fixed at a third party authorized Apple repair center will probably be cheaper than having Apple do it -- and will much safer. I bet they would do it for less than the amount of your rebate check.

Know of any good well-known repair centers that can do this? I'm sure it's something I can simply google, but thought I'd ask to hear thoughts from others here. I live in the Chicagoland area, so somewhere around here would be good. Too bad CompUSA is gone now, as I could've taken it there. How much money do you think it would cost?

That dent is such an eye sore.

[olePigeon]

I found a PDF manual online complete with pictures and everything. I took apart two PowerBooks with no prior experience, and put them all back together again.

It's pretty straight forward, I bet you could do it yourself.

[The Placid Casual]

I'm sorry to say it, but welcome to MBP ownership

I have dented 3 MBPs that were in sleeves and in cases in similar ways, and after my recent experiences, have decided that I will never own a metal shelled laptop again. They are just too fragile and susceptible to dents and ding from the slightest thing.

Also, I am an ex-tech. Without some serious experience, anti static environment, and a service manual, I would in *no way* recommend a DIY case swap (even if you could get the part).

[SierraDragon]

Just be thankful that you got away with dropping an expensive piece of complex electronics and it still works! You could have had a lower end plastic box that seriously cracked, and/or damaged the internals; the metal deforming absorbed a lot of the crash energy that you subjected it to.

Me, I would simply live with it and let the (cosmetic) battle scar remind me to be more careful in the future. Also, a thousand different case choices are available that range from sleeves like the Incase that provide negligible cushioning but make a laptop easy to hold on to, all the way to Pelican cases that are water and bombproof.

-Allen Wicks

[SierraDragon]

Originally Posted by The Placid Casual 

...I will never own a metal shelled laptop again. They are just too fragile...

Yes metal shows dents and dings if subjected to physical damage, moreso than plastic at the low end of applied damage. However, aluminum/titanium PBs and MBPs are not "fragile."

IMO folks worried about small cosmetic issues should use a quality case or simply leave the laptop home. Switching to a lower end plastic model is a bit silly.

[Tibooks, Albooks and a MBP carried everywhere and used hard daily; no significant physical damage here except multiple failed power cord connectors prior to the MagSafe connectors. And over years a coworker wore the paint off a Tibook with her metal bracelets, duh.]

-Allen Wicks

[cms]

If you have accidental damage cover on your household insurance, it will cover the cost of Apple-certified repairs (less any excess) and, if it's really bad, you'll get a brand spanking new one....

[peeb]

Learn to love the dents and scratches - they add character!