My Problem

I tend to be a klutz. I spilled water on my MacBook that I had just bought in August 2011. I guess I made it 6 months without destroying it! haha.

To make matters worse, I don't live in the United States anymore. My wife and I live in Costa Rica, and there is a store here called iCon that is authorized to sell Apple products. After hearing of terrible experiences my friends have had there, I looked into ifixit.

My Fix

I could not be happier. I was concerned that the water had caused more damage that it actually did. I followed the very clear directions, and it was a piece of cake.

Even better, ifixit included some extra pieces in case something went wrong. Good thing! I stripped one of the screws and ifixit had included some extras.

My Advice

There is not too much to add to this. The directions are plain and simple.

The enlightenment might be that I am able to fix a lot of things myself instead of having to wait to send my laptop back to the United States. Thanks ifixit!

My Problem

Being Mac-minded for decades now, I've ordered one of the first sleekly unibody Macbook Pro from the Apple store in 2009.

What a joy when it arrived! Unpacking - pure delight .. Booting - Boom and up it went .. Now show that part to my family - Grab the opened lightweight with one hand, lift it up from the desk and CRACK! the trackpad was broken by my thumb ...

Although it still worked and I told everybody that Apple has invented the two button trackpad (see picture), this was a thorn in my side for years until ifixedit!!!

My Fix

This was my first Notebook repair ever and I was quite uncertain if it wouldn't be a better idea to get this job done by a pro instead.

My fear decreased a bit while reading the repair guide on ifixit.com: Using a screw driver and unplugging some connectors should be a feasible challenge.

To be on the safe side, I've ordered the Pro Tech Base Toolkit in addition - Equipped to such an extent, what could go wrong?

After having taken a deep breath I started to unbolt the first screw and worked though the ifixit guide step by step. Less than half an hour later the job was done. Neither collateral damages nor mental breakdown occurred. Just a happy me holding my refurbished Macbook - This time with both hands!!!

My Advice

It is simple when you've got the right tools.

Sure, the spudger isn't a rocket science tool whereas the availability of the correct screwdrivers is a crucial must-have!

Some remarks regarding the guide:

Step 5: You need to detach the Warning label before you can lift the battery and you should use the attached plastic lash to do this.

Step 10: Fumbling the cable through the case and past the logic board is the most difficult part of the job. After several fail attempts with the described procedure, I tried to route the cable through the case first and then put the trackpad into its brackets.

That was much easier than to route the cable with the pad already fixed to the case. At least if you don't have 4 hands and spider fingers...

My Problem

So while doing a treatment (I have Cystic Fibrosis.) I spilled some medication on my trackpad. It went straight crazy from the overdose. Mouse bouncing all around, button click not working. Just plain ugly.

My Fix

Recieved my new trackpad and within 25 minutes I was back to running smoothly. Followed the online guide step-by-step without issue.

My Advice

Now I try to cover my keyboard while I am watching movies during my treatment so that we don't have a repeat issue. Just say no to drugs and trackpads.

My Problem

The crack started to craze to other areas

My Fix

Took only about 30 minutes.

Relatively easy to replace.

The screws are really tiny, glad I had tweezers.

Instructions were easy, read thru twice and

My Advice

Recommend working on a towel to stop and catch escaping screws.

My Problem

Click function on the trackpad had stopped functioning. I didn't want to pay $215 + taxes to have someone else fix it... I only paid $900 for the laptop.

My Fix

I followed the steps provided on the site. Great confidence builder.

However, there is an important detail missing on some of the trackpad-replace guides. There is a 'screw' or unit at the bottom - thumb position of the trackpad that needs to be screwed in a certain distance in order to get that 'click' sound/flex amount to the pad. Our office engineer helped me with that part, otherwise, I would not have quickly solved my problem. I don't know what the part is called - see photo.

Otherwise, I was happy to save about $150 by doing it myself.

My Advice

Since it was that last center, bottom screw that made all the difference, I'd try to include more guidance around that step.

My Problem

My Mac Book Pro 13" unibody trackpad wasn't working anymore. (clicking was ok, movement not)

My Fix

Using the iFitIt guide, I change the TrackPad and every problems has been fixed.

My Advice

Be careful to the TrackPad alignment. It's not so easy to have it correctly placed (same place on the 4 sides).

My Problem

Perhaps because of time, the button on my Macbook Pro's trackpad beame unresponsive, although the trackpad's multitouch functions were working correctly. I know almost everything you do with the button can be done with multitouch gestures, however for those few things you really need it, like dragging files from a window to another through exposé, I felt the need to fix it.

My Fix

Everyrthing went well until I reached the screws that holds the trackpad in place. In one side I could remove them without effort, however on the other side the screws were so tight that when I tried to remove them I actually damaged the screws making it almost impossible to remove them. Fortunately iFixit provided a replacement for the 4 screws an the metal strip that hold each side of the trackpad, because the solution I found to be able to remove the trackpad, was to remove the other 2 screws tha hold the strip to the aluminum body and cut it with a metal cutter. Then I replaced the strip and the screws and installed the new trackpad which worked flawlessly.

My Advice

For iFixit I recomend to include a solution to the problem I experimented just as an addon to the simpler instructions for people that like me run into that kind of scenario. And for the ones that are thinking about changing their trackpad be sure to center it the best you can but leave a little more space to the bottom part(where the actual button is) before thightening the screws, because since this part is the one that moves the most when clicking if it is too near the macbook's aluminum body it can get stuck.

My Problem

I've been a long-time Mac user and never once had any issues with hardware. But I guess there's always a first for everything. While casually surfing the web, I noticed that the trackpad wasn't clicking down as it usually should. It seemed to be stuck and any attempt to move the cursor resulted in highlighting everything. My trackpad was stuck and the warranty had expired two months ago! I knew getting this repaired would have cost an arm and leg so it was straight to Google for me. That's when I came across iFixit and found the part I needed. $140 including shipping for the trackpad and the tools. Not bad at all...

My Fix

The order took about a week for me to receive it. Not bad considering I live in Australia :) Upon receiving the replacement part and the tools, I got straight into tearing my MacBook Pro apart. 10 minutes later (5 of which was waiting for the iFixit guide to load up on the crappy family pc...) my Mac was as good as new. Trackpad in full working order, yay! :)

My Advice

Follow the iFixit guide and you'll have no problems whatsoever! It's a lifesaver! I was able to fix my Mac myself for half the price. Money well spent! :)