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Next we pulled out our favorite flavor of RAM: user-serviceable.

While you can only configure your MacBook Pro with up to 8 GB of RAM from Apple, you can install up to 16 GB yourself with no issues.

This is another sigh of relief from those DIYers who want need to upgrade their RAM on an annual basis.

While the individual RAM modules here are thin (~3.15 mm), the "stacked" RAM slot is a whopping 9.15 mm thick.

• When your entire device is only 18 mm thick, allocating half of that dimension to RAM slots can be too much of a sacrifice, as we have witnessed in the MacBook Air and now in the MacBook Pro with Retina display.
• Don't lose hope! An individual RAM slot is only 4.27 mm thick. If the design of the logic board would feature the RAM slots side by side, we could still see user-replaceable RAM for years to come.

The spudger is back out as we remove the fan.

Three standard Phillips screws and a connector are all it takes to remove the fan for dust bunny extermination.

• Just in case you didn't know, dust can be a real threat to electronics by clogging air passages. Without enough air to cool heat sinks, internal temperatures can soar, severely shortening the life of electronics. Dust bunnies may also be hazardous to humans as they may contain toxins, mites, and parasites.

Unlike its cousins, the 2012 MacBook Pro does not have irregularly-spaced fan blades. Just boring old fans in here.

It doesn't take a genius to figure out how to remove the last few Torx screws securing the logic board to the upper case.

Every time we remove a logic board from an Apple device, we like to pretend that we are more logical than the computer. For now, at least.

Front side of the logic board:

• NVIDIA GeForce GT 650M GPU
• Intel Core i7-3615QM 2.30 GHz quad-core processor with Turbo Boost (labeled as Intel C208A046 SR0MP)
• What appears to be an Intel E2088369 Platform Controller Hub
• Intel L206IA58
• Broadcom BCM57765B0KMLG Integrated Gigabit Ethernet and Memory Card Reader Controller
• Parade PS8301
• Texas Instruments Stellaris LM4FS1AH microcontroller with integrated ARM core

Back side of the logic board:

• Hynix H5GQ1H24BFR 1 Gb GDDR5 SDRAM (Total of 4 Gb = 512 MB)
• Maxim MAX15119 Apple-specific IMVP7 CPU/GPU power controller
• Cirrus Logic 4206BCNZ Audio Controller
• SMSC USB25138 USB controller
• Lattice Semiconductor LFXP2-5E Low-Cost Non-Volatile FPGA
• Cypress Semiconductor CY8C24794-24L - a Programmable SoC
• Infineon 62882C

The hinges are the last thing securing the display assembly to the case.

While the display may not be a Retina, a damaged LCD will still be the most expensive—besides the logic board—repair on this machine. Display replacement is arguably the most difficult MacBook Pro repair, as even the most experienced technician risks shattering the glass panel during removal.

There you have it, all the screws from the MacBook Pro Mid 2012, on our fancy magnetic project mat. As you can see there are no pesky pentalobe screws, just Phillips, Torx, and Tri-Wing.

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MacBook Pro 15" Unibody Mid 2012 Repairability Score: 7 out of 10 (10 is easiest to repair).

Easily removable bottom panel and readily accessible battery, optical drive, hard drive, fans, and RAM.

Standard screws were used for all components, save for the battery.

Significant amounts of thermal paste may be a pain in later repairs.

Tri-wing screws on the battery require a specialty driver that an average user may not have.

LCD replacement is still the most difficult repair. Inexperienced (and even experienced) technicians may shatter the glass during repair.