Do we like the 2018 MBP with Touch Bar?

[Rolando]

Is there any way to run these without a battery? Maybe just run a wire across the battery leads?

[Lew Zealand]

Diana wrote:
I have a 2015 MBP that suffered from a swelled battery. It would rock if it were sitting on a flat surface and I tried typing; it wasn’t bad until the keyboard began having issues, and the trackpad began to be less responsive.

I got my parts and tools from iFixIt (it’s been a while so I could be mistaken here) and did the deed while at work on a day I had very little to do and since work had an empty space I could work in. If I remember correctly, the hardest part was remembering to use the directions provided by iFixIt to change the battery out—I’m not the most patient person—followed by getting the battery unstuck (a laminated card worked well, as long as I gave it enough time and used the provided solvent). Did I mention that I’m impatient?

It really wasn’t difficult, just a bit fiddly. A magnifying light would have been nice as the space I had was not that well lit, and contributed to the difficulty level.

I don’t use it now, and could be talked out of it. I must warn that it has the international/Taiwanese keyboard…

I did the iFixit 13" 2015 MBPro battery replacement for the same reasons and Diana's experience was similar to mine. However that battery did not last as long as I'd have liked and I got a second replacement battery, this time from our good sponsors.

And promptly was handed a practically brand new 13" 2015 MBPro before the OWC battery even arrived, typing on it now. Battery and screen in perfect shape (some screens were prone to anti-glare rubbing/falling off, mine other one is). I really will install the OWC battery.

Soon. Will totally happen.

[Lew Zealand]

Rolando wrote:
Is there any way to run these without a battery? Maybe just run a wire across the battery leads?

You can run most/all Intel Macbooks without a battery but they will run at a very low CPU speed (usually ~800 MHz) so will be frustrating to use. Mac laptops use the battery as a buffer to level off high instantaneous CPU draws and without that buffer, they default to their slowest possible speed. Been that way since the first Intel Macbook/Pros back in 2006.

[raz]

As above, a brand new M2 Air is $799 right now, and will be faster and last far longer than the a new battery or used 2018 MBP.

[Robert M]

Hi everyone,

I see recommendations for moving to an M series mac. Prior to making that recommendation, we really need to know if Lost is ready to move to Apple Silicon. For all we know, he's using the 2015 MBP because it can still run Mojave and he has to stay with Mojave for compatibility with certain apps. It's still a thing even after so many years.

'course, money is also money. If he can replace the battery in the 2015 MBP for $50 or less and the machine will still do what he needs it to do without any issues, then that's an excellent route. I've had the battery in my 2015 MBPr replace twice now and it's doing everything it needs to do without any issues at all. Well worth the bucks.

I'd try replacing the battery before spending many times that much for an Apple Silicon Mac. If this was me, I wouldn't go near a 2016 to 2019 MBP of any kind because of the keyboard. SO, a 2018 model would be out of the question.

Robert

[PeterB]

Robert M wrote:
Hi everyone,

I see recommendations for moving to an M series mac. Prior to making that recommendation, we really need to know if Lost is ready to move to Apple Silicon. For all we know, he's using the 2015 MBP because it can still run Mojave and he has to stay with Mojave for compatibility with certain apps. It's still a thing even after so many years.

This was exactly me. I have a 2018 Touch Bar MBP that developed gradually worsening / eventually severe problems with its GPU (thanks to Tiangou, who helped me a lot with diagnosing and figuring out what to do about it) ... I also noticed when I opened it up to clean out the innards that the batteries were swelling. I ended up buying the same exact model except with more RAM / a larger SSD, because I need to stick with Mojave for the time being.

The new machine cost a pretty penny -- these machines ARE holding their value. No problems whatsoever with the keyboard on either the old machine or the new one. The only thing I've noticed so far with the new machine is that the touch ID sensor is slightly loose... apparently that was a bit of an issue with some of these MBP's, but I also bought an extended warranty with the new machine, just in case.

[lost in space]

Thanks for all the replies! Really helpful.

TL/DNR: I'm going for the DIY. Hold my beer!

I'm falling, kicking and screaming, into the "replace it yourself" camp. I've done really delicate, fiddly (as Diana puts it) work in electronics. The big one was when I was working at the mothership, the only way I could have my own 128k was to build it from scratch, including the motherboard. It was around 1983, shortly before the release. I had all the pieces I needed from prototypes and evaluation samples, like the case, power supply board, CRT, etc. The only thing I couldn't get was the motherboard. There were plenty of bare prototype boards around, and all the components needed to stuff it, even schematics to complement what was silkscreened onto the bare board. Took me a week of evenings, and it worked! Too bad I had to leave it behind when I left the company. But I digress.

The issue now is my poor vision and shaky hands. For example, with the shakiness, hitting the letters on an iPhone Xs keyboard is a real challenge. This is a recent thing I'm getting checked out. I aim for a spot on the screen, and often miss my target. I did a battery replacement about ten years ago that was an easy success. After the last one, years later, the 2011(?) MBP was dead, attibuted to the vision and/or nerve problems, so that gives me cold feet.

The 2015 does everything I need to do, so I wouldn't suffer much from its antiquity, and it's in great shape in every other way. I can risk the parts cost, and if it didn't work out, I'd only be out less than $100 and the dead 2015. I think I'll go for it. Wish me luck, and thanks for all the replies.

[sekker]

lost in space wrote:
Thanks for all the replies! Really helpful.

TL/DNR: I'm going for the DIY. Hold my beer!

I'm falling, kicking and screaming, into the "replace it yourself" camp. I've done really delicate, fiddly (as Diana puts it) work in electronics. The big one was when I was working at the mothership, the only way I could have my own 128k was to build it from scratch, including the motherboard. It was around 1983, shortly before the release. I had all the pieces I needed from prototypes and evaluation samples, like the case, power supply board, CRT, etc. The only thing I couldn't get was the motherboard. There were plenty of bare prototype boards around, and all the components needed to stuff it, even schematics to complement what was silkscreened onto the bare board. Took me a week of evenings, and it worked! Too bad I had to leave it behind when I left the company. But I digress.

The issue now is my poor vision and shaky hands. For example, with the shakiness, hitting the letters on an iPhone Xs keyboard is a real challenge. This is a recent thing I'm getting checked out. I aim for a spot on the screen, and often miss my target. I did a battery replacement about ten years ago that was an easy success. After the last one, years later, the 2011(?) MBP was dead, attibuted to the vision and/or nerve problems, so that gives me cold feet.

The 2015 does everything I need to do, so I wouldn't suffer much from its antiquity, and it's in great shape in every other way. I can risk the parts cost, and if it didn't work out, I'd only be out less than $100 and the dead 2015. I think I'll go for it. Wish me luck, and thanks for all the replies.

Go for it!

Happen to have any teenagers in your network to help be your eyes and hands? I bet they've never taken a computer apart.

[datbeme]

lost in space,

You may have already gone the DIY route, but please see mattkime's post here about how he got his 2015 MBP battery replaced due to a recall:

https://forums.macresource.com/read.php?1,3003995