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This teardown is not a repair guide. To repair your MacBook Pro 13" Touch Bar 2018, use our service manual.

  1. MacBook Pro 13" Touch Bar 2018 Teardown, MacBook Pro 13" Touch Bar 2018 Teardown: step 1, image 1 of 2 MacBook Pro 13" Touch Bar 2018 Teardown, MacBook Pro 13" Touch Bar 2018 Teardown: step 1, image 2 of 2
    • Before we put this one under the knife, let's review what we exspec to find:

    • 13.3" LED-backlit IPS Retina display with True Tone, 2560 x 1600 resolution (227 dpi), P3 wide color gamut

    • 2.3 GHz quad-core Intel Core i5 (Turbo Boost up to 3.8 GHz) with integrated Intel Iris Plus Graphics 655

    • Apple T2 custom coprocessor

    • 8 GB of 2133 MHz LPDDR3 SDRAM

    • 256 GB PCIe-based SSD

    • 802.11ac Wi-Fi and Bluetooth 5.0

    • Four Thunderbolt 3 (USB-C) ports supporting charging, DisplayPort, Thunderbolt, USB 3.1 Gen 2

  2. MacBook Pro 13" Touch Bar 2018 Teardown: step 2, image 1 of 3 MacBook Pro 13" Touch Bar 2018 Teardown: step 2, image 2 of 3 MacBook Pro 13" Touch Bar 2018 Teardown: step 2, image 3 of 3
    • Spoiler alert! As always, we like to start off with a superhero's-eye-view of our victim's internals.

    • These X-ray images come to you thanks to our ingenious pals at Creative Electron.

    • Don't worry, we're still going to take it apart. Hold that thought ...

    how many fans in ‘2018 macbook pro 13’ without touch bar

    qinbinlai - Reply

  3. MacBook Pro 13" Touch Bar 2018 Teardown: step 3, image 1 of 3 MacBook Pro 13" Touch Bar 2018 Teardown: step 3, image 2 of 3 MacBook Pro 13" Touch Bar 2018 Teardown: step 3, image 3 of 3
  4. MacBook Pro 13" Touch Bar 2018 Teardown: step 4, image 1 of 3 MacBook Pro 13" Touch Bar 2018 Teardown: step 4, image 2 of 3 MacBook Pro 13" Touch Bar 2018 Teardown: step 4, image 3 of 3
    • Our teardown begins in earnest—we dispatch a sextuplet of pentalobe screws, and dash through what by now is a pretty familiar opening procedure.

    • At first glance, the internals look very similar to the 13" MacBook Pro from last year ... and the year before that.

    • At second glance, we decide to go in closer for a third glance.

    Internal air vent / fan circles seem like an angry face. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=djVjHOwL... Reminds me of Roberto from Futurama.

    Nick Richards - Reply

    Can you share a high-resolution version of image three above? This would make a great laptop skin.

    Marc Jacobs - Reply

    @marcja We upload all iFixit images in their original, full resolution (usually about 40 MP). Just click the image to expand it. If you see a .huge extension in the image URL, delete it and refresh the page for some additional resolution.

    Jeff Suovanen -

    Hi, I´d like to know the name of the protocol used to connect usb c/thunderbolt flex to the mainboard

    lechuss - Reply

  5. MacBook Pro 13" Touch Bar 2018 Teardown: step 5, image 1 of 3 MacBook Pro 13" Touch Bar 2018 Teardown: step 5, image 2 of 3 MacBook Pro 13" Touch Bar 2018 Teardown: step 5, image 3 of 3
    Tool used on this step:
    Marlin Screwdriver Set - 5 Specialty Precision Screwdrivers
    $22.99
    Buy
    • We disconnect the battery without any drama—it's buttoned down with a T5 Torx screw, so we use one of our blue and black Pro Tech specialty drivers to dispatch it.

    • At 58.0 Wh, this battery has gotten a significant boost over the 49.2 Wh unit we found in our original 13" Touch Bar teardown.

    • Turns out that extra 'oomph' comes from a slightly bigger battery—arrayed into six cells this time, instead of five. It's also heavier, weighing in at in at 232.7 g, versus the old battery's 196.7 g.

    • And yet this MacBook Pro's total weight hasn't changed one iota. We're not sure which parts of this device have been on a diet, but it does look like Apple shaved some mass off the top case.

    • Despite all that, Apple still rates battery life the same as the prior model. Those extra processor cores don't come for free.

    • The new-and-improved speakers (on the right) have grown, too—they're longer and narrower, filling all the remaining space, and bumping right up against the logic board thanks to the revised top case design.

    We're not sure which parts of this device have been on a diet, but it does look like Apple shaved some mass off the top case.

    Could you show us visually the difference if you’ve spotted it?

    Kenneth - Reply

    @vipersonic We haven’t done a comprehensive comparison, but I can tell you one or two things off the top of my head. Take a look at this image and note the thin divider separating the logic board from the battery/speaker area. On the old model at left, the divider is thicker and extends all the way to the edge of the case. In the new model it’s not only thinner and smaller, but Apple has carefully hollowed out large holes all along its length. (You can’t see the holes in the photo, but they’re very obvious with the components removed.) I’d guess they removed roughly half the mass from that inconspicuous little strip of aluminum.

    Jeff Suovanen -

    Am I correct that in order to swap the battery, the logic board needs to be completely take out unlike the new MacBook Air 2018? I can’t find a single video of complete MacBook Pro 13-inch 2018 disassembly and/or full steps to replace the battery.

    Roman - Reply

    I used the battery remove guide for the previous years MBP 13” when I did mine and it was on the spot.

    David Uebel -

  6. MacBook Pro 13" Touch Bar 2018 Teardown: step 6, image 1 of 3 MacBook Pro 13" Touch Bar 2018 Teardown: step 6, image 2 of 3 MacBook Pro 13" Touch Bar 2018 Teardown: step 6, image 3 of 3
    • In a lone piece of happy repair news: the trackpad is replaceable as ever. Twirl away a few Torx screws, and off it flies.

    • We get our first taste of some chips under the trackpad (looking virtually unchanged from their first outing back in 2016):

    • STMicroelectronics STM32F103VB ARM Cortex-M3 MCU

    • Broadcom BCM5976C1KUFBG Touch Controller

    • Maxim Integrated MAX11291ENX 24-Bit, 6-Channel Delta-Sigma ADC

    • Meanwhile, we can't help but notice the earlier model's port to nowhere—which turned out to be for data recovery—is mysteriously absent.

    • Given this MacBook's non-removable storage, Apple must have a new recovery method?

    • Update: They didn't—until they did.

    It’s missing because of the new T2 chip managing drive encryption. I don’t know if there’s a new recovery method or not, but perhaps there’s a new port-to-nowhere near the T2 chip?

    Phillip Rosenthal - Reply

    Looks like one of the Thunderbolt ports on the right-hand side, probably the one closest to the headphone jack, is connected to the T2 by way of a USB switch. This is probably the port that is used to perform a DFU restore of the iBridge, like on the iMac Pro ( https://help.apple.com/configurator/mac/... ) It’s possible that data recovery could also be performed via that Thunderbolt port given the right tools.

    repoman27 - Reply

    Nah. The MacBook Pro is becoming like iOS devices: outside of backups, nothing will be recoverable.

    Given the T2, having a service port or a Thunderbolt port form which data can be extracted would amount to having a backdoor.

    Dean Lubaki -

    With the benefit of new info, I think we can safely say repoman27 nailed it.

    Jeff Suovanen -

    Ummm… Isn’t the port-to-nowhere on the other side of the board, next to the right-side cooling fan? Looks like it to me in the photos presented here.

    shamino - Reply

    @shamino No. The port on the right side of the fan screwed down by a metal plate is a port where a flex cable to the Touch Bar is connected to. The Touch Bar has two cables, one that sends input to the logicboard, and another that sends display signals and power to the Touch Bar.

    just1ed - Reply

    Added to the teardown. Thanks! :)

    Jeff Suovanen -

  7. MacBook Pro 13" Touch Bar 2018 Teardown: step 7, image 1 of 3 MacBook Pro 13" Touch Bar 2018 Teardown: step 7, image 2 of 3 MacBook Pro 13" Touch Bar 2018 Teardown: step 7, image 3 of 3
    • Apple was careful to mention its latest third-gen keyboard in its press release. The added quietness seems a bit underwhelming to our ears, and we suspect there's something more going on.

    • After three years of key-cap removal, we're able to pop this lid open without damaging the delicate clips, and boy are we rewarded.

    • As you may have heard, there's a brand new silicone barrier under here.

    • Apple says this new addition is purely for soundproofing, but it bears a suspicious resemblance to their 2016 ingress-proofing patent—one that might help prevent the keyboard failures we keep hearing about.

    • This bears further analysis. We'll have a deeper dive on the keyboard situation later in the week. Stay tuned!

    Are you able to put a more detailed guide on key cap removal?

    Matt Hall - Reply

    I can confirm the keyboard is not a ‘trapped dirt’ issue. I have a late MacBook Pro 2018 13” touch.

    After hearing the issues with the keyboard early on, I meticulously cleaned my keyboard with frequent vacuum and wipe down with optical wipes, and visual checks.

    After almost 2 years of using the keyboard, the problem of repeated key presses started. Despite turning off the settings in macOS for auto repeat key presses, the problem persisted. Pretty disappointed because this was what I tried my best to prevent.

    I relented and sent it in to an Apple authorised service center. Working fine ever since for the past 3 months.

    Victor Po - Reply

  8. MacBook Pro 13" Touch Bar 2018 Teardown: step 8, image 1 of 3 MacBook Pro 13" Touch Bar 2018 Teardown: step 8, image 2 of 3 MacBook Pro 13" Touch Bar 2018 Teardown: step 8, image 3 of 3
    • Time to liberate that logic board and look around!

    • As usual, a relatively modest-looking heat sink handles cooling for the CPU and integrated graphics. Another par for the course: Apple's typical glut of thermal paste.

    • And our first peep of silicon reveals: the touted T2!

    • Seen previously in the iMac Pro, Apple's custom T2 chip has taken over an impressive number of functions—but, we still expect to find a lot of other silicon on this board. Let's check it out!

    Hello,

    is it possible to make a full teardown video from the logic board with all steps/screws/cables needed to remove shown? I want to repaste my MacBook but without a proper guide to remove the logic board I’m not that confident?

    Atlan - Reply

    @atlan This model is brand new, so it’ll probably be a while before we have much for you in the way of guides. Not many people looking to take these apart while they are still under warranty.

    Jeff Suovanen -

    Do uou know what the motherboard number is line 820-xxxxxx ?

    Cédric Delecole - Reply

    Anybody have a video/direction on how to remove the heatsink?

    mdcruze - Reply

  9. MacBook Pro 13" Touch Bar 2018 Teardown: step 9, image 1 of 2 MacBook Pro 13" Touch Bar 2018 Teardown: step 9, image 2 of 2
    • Here's a familiar mustache full of chips:

    • 8th-generation Intel Core i5-8259U CPU with Intel Iris Plus Graphics 655

    • Apple T2 APL1027 339S00533 coprocessor, layered over 1 GB Micron MT53B256M32D1TG-062 XT:C LPDDR4

    • Toshiba TSB 3226 J86404 TWNA1 (likely 2x 64 GB flash memory, 128 GB total on this side)

    • 4x SKhynix H9CCNNNBJTALAR-NVD 16 Gb LPDDR3 2133 MHz (8 GB total)

    • Intel JHL7540 Thunderbolt 3 Controller

    • Apple/Universal Scientific Industrial (USI) 339S00428 Wi-Fi/Bluetooth module

    • 338S00267-A0 (likely Apple PMIC)

    No SSD? What is this, something like eMMC??? O_o

    preziremprokletigugl - Reply

    8.0 GT/s NVMe PCIe x4. The T2 chip includes Apple’s own NVMe PCIe SSD controller.

    fastasleep -

  10. MacBook Pro 13" Touch Bar 2018 Teardown: step 10, image 1 of 2 MacBook Pro 13" Touch Bar 2018 Teardown: step 10, image 2 of 2
    • And we flip it around for some bonus silicon:

    • 2x Toshiba TSB 3226 J86404 TWNA1 64 GB flash memory, for 128 GB on this side and 256 GB total)

    • 2x Texas Instruments CD3215C00 83CFZST

    • Cirrus Logic CS42L83A Audio Codec

    • Intersil ISL95828AHRTZ PWM controller

    • 2x NXP Semiconductor CBTL06142F display port multiplexer

    • Texas Instruments TPS51980A synchronous buck controller

    • NXP Semiconductor PN80V secure NFC module

    Any know why they have an NFC module in here? Some googling suggests it may contain a secure element, but surely Apple would put that in the T2 instead?

    Karl B - Reply

    You’re confusing Secure Element and Secure Enclave. The Secure Element is used to store Apple Pay information whereas the Secure Enclave is used to store cryptographic keys and is part of the A, T or S series chip (e.g. A12, T2, S2). What’s on the picture is the Secure Element. You can read about both on Apple’s iOS Security Guide (https://www.apple.com/business/docs/iOS_...)

    Dean Lubaki -

    @Karl B I’m guessing it’s to assist with continuity features. Like if you’re wearing an Apple Watch, you can just sit down at your MacBook Pro and it will unlock for you. https://support.apple.com/en-us/ht204681 I believe this also works via Bluetooth by calculating time of flight, but NFC is probably easier / more secure.

    repoman27 - Reply

    No. Continuity and the Apple Watch Mac Unlocking feature use Bluetooth.

    Dean Lubaki -

    How far can NFC work? A quick Google search says 10 cm, but Wikipedia says active NFC can be evesdropped on from as far away as 10 m - I’d assume the “legitimate” communication range would be about the same.

    jimwitte - Reply

    Efi IC intersil? Modelo?

    agustin capone - Reply

  11. MacBook Pro 13" Touch Bar 2018 Teardown: step 11, image 1 of 2 MacBook Pro 13" Touch Bar 2018 Teardown: step 11, image 2 of 2
    • IC Identifications, continued:

    • ON Semiconductor FDMF5808A, FDMF5804, and Vishay SIC532 power stage

    • Apple 338S00438 ? power management

    • Bosch Sensortec BMA282 accelerometer and Texas Instruments TMP464 5-Ch. remote/local temperature sensor

    • Diodes Incorporated PI3USB32 dual SPST USB 2.0 switch

    • Winbond W25Q80DV 8 Mb serial NOR flash memory

    • Texas Instruments TASxxxx audio amplifier

    • Texas Instruments TPS51916 DDR memory power management

  12. MacBook Pro 13" Touch Bar 2018 Teardown: step 12, image 1 of 3 MacBook Pro 13" Touch Bar 2018 Teardown: step 12, image 2 of 3 MacBook Pro 13" Touch Bar 2018 Teardown: step 12, image 3 of 3
    • And for our dessert course we have: a brand new USB-C power adapter!

    • The A/C adapter included with this 13" MacBook Pro does indeed sport the new model number A1947 (vs. A1718, bottom), so it's time to bust out the ultrasonic cutter and go to town.

    • After clawing painfully through more layers and rubberized filler than we've ever seen in one of these things, we finally free the internals.

    • Opening the previous adapter (on the left) was a walk in the park compared to this unit, but it does look like this model benefits from redesigned internals, some additional shielding, and lots of impact-resistant foam rubber.

    • That said, Apple has also swapped the aluminum USB-C port for a plastic one ...

    That “foam rubber” you are referring to is most likely silicone rubber. Silicone rubber is a type of potting compound that forms a gel-like substance once set. This substance serves as a non-conductive material that helps fix electronic components on a circuit board in place and has the added benefit of impact resistance and moisture resistance. Silicone rubber compounds can also be rated to various levels of fire retardant properties as well. This compound is commonly found in power supplies and can be referred to as “silastic” compound, which is a trademark held by Dow Corning.

    more info here:

    https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Potting_%2...

    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1xpcHgDP...

    Anthony Kouttron - Reply

    That said, Apple has also swapped the aluminum USB-C port for a plastic one ...

    It seems like a aluminum USB-C port covered by plastic/silicon

    Tuan Le Nguyen Anh - Reply

    swapped the aluminum USB-C port for a plastic one

    Could that be for some thermal reason (overheating ports?)

    jimwitte -

  13. MacBook Pro 13" Touch Bar 2018 Teardown: step 13, image 1 of 1
    • Here's what's left after the 2018 MacBook Pro gave up its secrets, including:

    • A bigger battery that squeezed the speakers into a narrower form factor.

    • A keyboard decked out with a thin silicone barrier, which could be for sound baffling, but matches Apple ingress-proofing patents.

    • And a seemingly unchanged thermal management system, despite the extra power under the hood.

    • Teardown Update: we wanted to drill a bit deeper into the new keyboard, so we did some testing and then gave it another teardown all to itself. Check it out!

    • And if we missed something, check out our teardowns of the 2016 and 2017 models—you may well find it there!

    With the obscene amount of thermal paste apple puts on these things (WHY APPLE WHY?), would you recommend reapplying it—especially with an i9 on the 15” model. I’ve already seen one report about CPU throttle on the MBP 15 i9 and am wondering if I should do this as a preventative.

    steve.benfield - Reply

    Depends on how important it is to you and also your level of risk tolerance. If you’re experienced and confident in your ability to do this without damaging anything, sure, go for it. I personally hesitate to ‘‘‘recommend’’’ doing something like that on a brand-new machine that’s still under warranty, especially given that the throttling reports have been a bit inconsistent—if it’s as bad as some people say, an improved application of thermal paste is unlikely to make much difference. Might want to wait a bit and see how things shake out.

    Jeff Suovanen -

  14. Final Thoughts
    • The trackpad can be removed without first removing the battery.
    • The processor, RAM, and flash memory are soldered to the logic board. Repairs and upgrades will be impractical at best.
    • The top case assembly, which includes the keyboard, battery, and speakers, is glued together—making all those components impractical to replace separately.
    • The Touch ID sensor doubles as the power switch, and is paired with the T2 chip on the logic board. Fixing a broken power switch may require help from Apple, or a new logic board.
    Repairability Score
    1
    Repairability 1 out of 10
    (10 is easiest to repair)

Adam O'Camb

Member since: 04/11/15

195,345 Reputation

416 Guides authored

53 Comments

RAID 0 SSD? From Samsung?

Peter Gamble - Reply

Hi Peter,

The “SSD”/flash memory is made by Toshiba.

Arthur Shi -

Not in this series.

Keep in mind the T2 is a flash controller, so Apple is side stepping the PCIe/NVMe issue of the SSD instead using raw flash chips which are interleaved simular to how memory is done. The T2 presents the PCIe/NVMe interface to rest of the system.

In truth it’s like RAID, but it’s not! It’s something newer! As it’s soldered to the logic board Apple can get away with this.

Dan -

To elaborate on what Dan said, the T2 chip includes Apple’s own NVMe PCIe SSD controller, which they developed in house. Like most SSD controllers, it uses multiple channels (maybe 8 in this case?) to address the NAND flash dies and increase performance through parallelism. Both the T2 and the NAND flash packages are soldered directly to the logic board. It is also likely that the drive can tolerate the failure of individual blocks and pages, or perhaps even whole NAND dies by using parity data.

This is a different concept than RAID though, which employs Redundant Arrays of Independent Drives to increase availability and in some cases performance. RAID 0 in particular ditches the redundant bit and stripes across an array of independent drives purely for increased performance. Apple decided to put the NAND flash packages for the iMac Pro on a pair of removable modules, however they were in no way independent drives. There was still only a single SSD controller located in the T2 chip on the logic board.

repoman27 -

The T2 processor should not be NAND Flash controller here. T2 is more like a RAID controller. Refer to https://duo.com/blog/apple-imac-pro-and-... The Toshiba chip here could be a PCIe/NVMe SSD in BGA chip package(like the one in the iPhone/iPad). The physical interface between T2 and Toshiba chip could be PCIe interface. T2 processor is also used to replace TI’s SMC controller.

JJ Wu -

@JJ Wu, The SSD controller is in the T2. To quote Apple: “Introducing the Apple T2 chip, our second-generation custom Mac silicon. By redesigning and integrating several controllers found in other Mac systems — like the system management controller, image signal processor, audio controller, and SSD controller — T2 delivers new capabilities to the Mac.”

The notion that the iMac Pro used independent drives in RAID 0 is a widely held misconception that is entirely inaccurate. Look at the packages on the modules. They are commodity multi-chip NAND packages that connect to the SSD controller in the T2 using a typical NAND bus architecture. This is essentially the same SSD as in the iMac Pro but the NAND packages are on the logic board instead of on independent modules.

repoman27 -

@repoman27  i talked to Apple store employee. The SSD module used in the Apple iMac Pro can be replaced by other PCIe SSD(Apple does not recommend doing that) and the employee said it is PCIe interface which means it can not be typical NAND interface.

This is an example of BGA SSD on M.2 module https://www.anandtech.com/show/12819/the...

JJ Wu -

@JJ Wu The SSD in the iMac, Mac Pro, MacBook Air, and MacBook Pro (Late 2013 - 2015) is a PCIe SSD with a proprietary form factor and connector. If you have installed macOS 10.13 High Sierra or later, the firmware will be updated to unofficially support 3rd party NVMe PCIe SSDs. Then you can use an adapter to physically convert from Apple’s proprietary interface to M.2 2280 or whatever and replace the drive. Third party solutions emulating Apple’s form factor and connector are also available for these models.

That is not at all the case for the *iMac Pro*. No adapter exists because the NAND flash modules are not independent drives and are not connected to the T2 via PCIe. Look at the iFixit teardown of the iMac Pro. Try searching for an adapter or third party SSD upgrade solution. You will not find one.

repoman27 -

Data recovery from a failed logic board is probably handled by the T2 chip, since it serves as the flash controller. If the T2 chip is toasted, the contents of the flash memory are probably beyond recovery, since the T2 almost certainly uses a hardware key as part of the encryption scheme. No idea about how service techs would communicate with the T2 on an otherwise failed board. Maybe via an existing bus connector?

Andrew Morrow - Reply

Intel JHL7540 Thunderbolt 3 Controller? The new Titan Ridge controller? Does that mean these MacBook Pros support DisplayPort 1.4?

Razvan Dudas - Reply

Wow, new TB3 controller, really? Does that mean these 13-inch notebooks now have full-speed on all four TB3 ports?

Faberge Fabulous -

That was already confirmed, yes. The new 13-inch MacBooks have full-speed on all four TB3 ports (as fas as I know, the previous generation didn’t not because of the controllers, but because the Intel CPU itself only had 12 PCIe lanes, which weren’t enough to have full-speed on all 4 ports). But I haven’t seen the DisplayPort 1.4 support mentioned anywhere, which is why I presumed that Apple didn’t update the controllers to the Titan Ridge generation.

Razvan Dudas -

Ok, it seems I was too optimistic. According to Anandtech:

It's also worth noting that since the DP 1.4 spec is not supported by Intel's iGPUs, Intel-powered notebooks and desktops looking to take advantage of Titan Ridge's DP 1.4 functionality will have to use dGPUs to drive their TB3 controllers. This will somewhat increase the complexity of these designs, since previously most vendors only needed to route the iGPU to the TB3 controllers.

So it's certain that the 13-inch MacBook Pro does not actually support DisplayPort 1.4, because the integrated Intel GPU does not support it (and you cannot add a dGPU to the 13-inch MacBook Pro). As for the 15-inch MacBook Pro, it remains a possibility, but I don't think that Apple did in fact decide to use the dGPU to drive the Titan Ridge controller, which means that the 15-inch MacBook Pro doesn't support it either, I presume.

Razvan Dudas -

External displays are always driven by the discrete GPU on the 15-inch, so there is still hope there. I believe the internal display is connected to the Intel integrated GPU via eDP to allow graphics switching, but 4 DisplayPort main links from the AMD GPU feed the two Thunderbolt controllers.

repoman27 -

Any ETA on the 15” 2018 model teardown? Specifically, I’m wondering if the SSD on the 15” is soldered as well! If it’s non-upgradeable SSD like this 13”, then I need to invest in higher storage to last me over the years but I’d definitely prefer not to have to if possible! I hate how these beautiful machines are becoming less and less upgradeable.

helio - Reply

Hi Helio,

The “SSD” on the 15 inch follows the same setup: flash memory chips soldered onto the motherboard, with the T2 chip acting as the controller.

Arthur Shi -

Are we getting a Blackmagic Design eGPU teardown?

msscheeren - Reply

Can‘t way to see the analysis of the new keyboard. If it does fix the sticky issues, I am more than willing to buy a 2018 mbp. But if it’s not a reliable solution, I guess I’ll have to wait for the next gen.

Eager Wu - Reply

Is this model can stream 4K iTunes movie ready?

Ming - Reply

The Apple/Universal Scientific Industrial (USI) 339S00428 Wi-Fi/Bluetooth module is the same chip used in the iMac Pro. The iMac Pro specs out Bluetooth 4.2. The 2018 MPB has Bluetooth 5.0. The chip is clearly capable of a software upgrade. Apple/USI have been very secretive about this chip. The Pro designation means that creatives would be using their computers requiring increased throughput in dense user environments. High-Efficiency Wireless (HEW), IEEE 802.11ax provides 4x throughput in these environments which will be widely available in 2019 before the next yearly upgrade. Broadcom, Qualcomm, Marvell and Quantenna currently all have 802.11ax chips which Apple passed over. 802.11ax has the same antenna matrix as 802.11ac so the 2018 MPB can accommodate 802.11ac. Is the USI 339S00428 Wi-Fi/Bluetooth module upgradeable to 802.11ax (like MBP chips supporting 802.11g were surprisingly able to upgrade to 802.11n)?

Malibu Art - Reply

How many spatial streams are supported on 802.11ac? 3 or 4?

Raoul H -

Newer specs often adopt and standardize features that already existed as proprietary extensions to the previous version. Thus a quick firmware or driver update can bump up the revision number because some of those features were already supported by the silicon. (e.g. 802.11a/b/g hardware that included “draft n” features could become 802.11a/b/g/n via a software “enabler”. ) That appears to be the case with this USI module and Bluetooth 4.2 > 5.

It is incredibly unlikely that this module contains certain functionality necessary to implement the more compelling aspects of 802.11ax. In particular, OFDMA isn’t something that can just be bolted on via a firmware update.

Apple’s use of 3x3:3 Wi-Fi modules in MacBook Pros already makes them 50% faster than any integrated laptop solution from other vendors.

@Raoul H, 4 spatial streams are supported under 802.11ac, but usually only by access points. Apple is the only OEM I am aware of to ship a laptop with support for more than 2 spatial streams.

repoman27 -

Thus a quick firmware or driver update can bump up the revision number because some of those features were already supported by the silicon. (e.g. 802.11a/b/g hardware that included “draft n” features could become 802.11a/b/g/n via a software “enabler”. ) That appears to be the case with this USI module and Bluetooth 4.2 > 5.

It is incredibly unlikely that this module contains certain functionality necessary to implement the more compelling aspects of 802.11ax. In particular, OFDMA isn’t something that can just be bolted on via a firmware update.

The question is whether the silicon already supports 802.11ax which can be accessed through a software upgrade just like Bluetooth 5.0.. Apple is already part of the consortium of manufacturers supporting Draft 3.0 of 802.11ax. Most OEMs have chips now and will release hardware this year in time for the holiday season. Why wouldn’t Apple/USI reward its Pro lines with the shiniest new silicon for a Pro environment next to a six-core CPU?

Malibu Art -

Do you mind reviewing my question regarding the MBP 2018 vs. 2017 Power Adapter? Interesting issue I discovered, not sure if it’s something well known. Eager to hear any/all thoughts.

Here’s the link: Difference Between 13" MacBook Pro 2018 and 2017 Power Adapters

Thanks!

Jay - Reply

It's the new charger got any different with the voltage or something?

zuxijun - Reply

I’d reckon it’s a complete redesign to be (more) compliant with the latest USB Power Delivery Specification Rev. 3.0, Version 1.2. That might have ramifications for charging iOS devices from these newer power adapters. AFAIK, Apple’s proprietary divider methods are no longer allowed, and to get certification, chargers must provide power according to the USB Battery Charging 1.2 spec instead.

I imagine this model also supports all of the normative voltage and current levels expected of a 60W USB Type-C charger according to the latest specs. So it probably provides better interoperability with non-Apple devices.

It may also include a programmable power supply. Hopefully someone manages to coax Benson Leung or Nathan K. into doing a little write-up on this.

repoman27 -

Why isn’t it possible to install the new keyboards with the protective membranes to the 2027 MBPs?

zjbird - Reply

I’m curious about this second generation T2 chip. Most folks never noticed, but an early generation of the Intel based MBP, I believe the (1,2) and/or (1,3) laptops produced in 2007 or so, also included the T2. It prevented non-blessed systems (i.e., Linux) from being installed. Only OSX and blessed MS Windows systems would work with those boxes. The only folks who noticed were those who tried to install Linux via rEFInd and a few other documented methods for modifying Apple’s UEFI. I still own a MBP (1,1) which I bought in 2006, and which has been running Linux ever since Apple discontinued OSX system updates. A friend acquired a (1,2) and was absolutely unable to use rEFInd as I had done for an install. With investigations and inquiries on the network, we discovered the T2 chip had been the problem. It looks like Apple again wants to “secure” its hardware from third party (Linux, Unix) OS installations.

William Vaughan - Reply

I have an early 2008 MBP, and it is very picky about booting Linux. I too have wasted many an hour messing around with various distros and bootloaders only to wind up frustrated. However, AFAICT it is due to the NVIDIA dGPU and chipset, not an evil plot by Apple. I recently booted Ubuntu 18.04 Bionic Beaver from a USB thumb drive successfully by simply adding the nomodeset boot option. You may want to give it a try if you’ve still got that hardware kicking around.

But I can pretty much guarantee that if there is a chip called T2 in the MBPs from that era, it shares absolutely no lineage with the current T2.

repoman27 -

The hottest laptop of the year.

Eliapple Techkid - Reply

Is there a guide anywhere here or on the web on a screen/LCD replacement? I’m not sure if this is possible, and if it is, if the part would be available to the general public this early.

GP16 - Reply

it’s pretty much the same as a 2017 LCD assembly, the internal Apple guides for both year models are the same, I just checked

rnikkel -

So the display assembly with previous models is compatible?

Mattis -

What is the clearance/distance between the heatsink and the bottom cover? I want to know to put the right thickness of thermal pads in between the two to transfer heat more effectively..

fastpowers94 - Reply

I just bought a 2018 15” MacBook Pro. But I opted for the lowest configuration of the highest tier. Mainly because I specifically asked the guy at the Apple store if I can upgrade the RAM and SSD later. He said I could. Is it really not possible to upgrade the SSD?

tylerv055 - Reply

As the RAM and “SSD” are now chips soldered onto the motherboard (see steps 9 & 10), upgrading will unfortunately look like turning in your MacBook for a new one.

Arthur Shi -

You could opt for external storage, but I wouldn’t consider that a true upgrade, and there’s no recourse for RAM at all.

Sam Goldheart -

Are any of the removable components secured by tape? The guide only lists Torx screws for fasteners.

Josh ❱ - Reply

Buonasera, io ho questo modello e stavo prendendo in considerazione l’idea di migliorarne le prestazioni, dato che per il lavoro che svolgo non sono sufficienti (mi occupo principalmente di video editing e motion graphic design)… Volevo chiedervi quindi, per migliorare le prestazioni di questo mac, è consigliabile sostituire fisicamente RAM e SSD? O è meglio acquistare un mac più prestante?

Grazie anticipatamente,

bell’articolo!

Stranementi - Reply

hi guys, this mac book pro cannot be upgradeable at all. So if you buy 128  gig of space your stuck with 128 ?

aleks - Reply

That is correct. You will have to expand with external/cloud storage.

Arthur Shi -

Good article, so my question, I can't change the processor, memory and hard drive?

Eulises Sanchez Jr - Reply

Hi Eulises,

Correct. The processor, memory, and hard drive are all chips soldered onto the motherboard.

Arthur Shi -

how to secure Erase ssd …When the MacBook pro 2018 no power. ?

Vu Phan - Reply

@vuphansj Either repair it so you can power it on, or start drilling holes through the main board storage chips. There’s no other option I’m aware of. Just one more way in which this design inflicts maximum hurt on both customers and the environment.

Jeff Suovanen -

Is it possible to just remove the battery without taking the keyboard away? Because in the picture it seems to be in one piece .

Phuwanart Larpmark - Reply

You do not need to remove the keyboard to remove the battery. You do have to remove the motherboard, as the battery connector is trapped underneath it.

Arthur Shi -

I did not notice any photos showing how the display connects to the system card. Is the cable integrated into the display unit? I heard what used to be a $6 repair if the cable went bad is now $500 to $700 repair since the flex cable is now integrated into the display unit and so you can no longer replace just the flex cable if it fails. :(

Joseph Luciano - Reply

Hey Joseph,

Check this post out for all the details details on Flexgate!

Arthur Shi -

So you can’t change the SSD of this macbook then?

Nick Bral - Reply

Could you give me some tips to replace A1989 model's speaker?

muse1209 - Reply

Can keyboard (Key Cap) from 2017 be used on 2018 (A1990) EMC 3215, 15" with touchbar.

(Yes I know 2018 has plastic underneath..https://www.macrumors.com/2018/07/19/app... )

with;

MacBook Pro 15" Touch Bar 2017 Keyboard Key Cap Replacement. ??

And is it possible that after changing the keyboard and changing the battery, (at APPLE REPAIRER!), THE BATTERY CURRENT CYCLE DROPPED FROM 100% TO 87% AFTER CHARGE STATUS OF 114.

Full charge capacity (mAh): 6338

Charging status (%): 87% (from 100% approx. 1 year ago)

Information about condition:

Number of cycles: 114

Condition: Normal

jarleiceman4 - Reply

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