So if a MacBook boots to a solid grey screen...

[silvarios]

Winston wrote:
Removing a drive from an original MacBook really is nice, isn't it? I wish iBooks had been like that.

No kidding. I've done both. The MacBook was much easier. I wish the Mac mini was similarly simple.

[DP]

silvarios wrote:
[quote=Winston]
Removing a drive from an original MacBook really is nice, isn't it? I wish iBooks had been like that.

No kidding. I've done both. The MacBook was much easier. I wish the Mac mini was similarly simple.
Easy as a Pismo?

[Winston]

M A V I C wrote:
DiskWarrior is currently telling me "Speed reduced by disk malfunction: 5" so I'm pretty sure it has problems. I wish SMART worked over USB.

Didn't Apple have a notice about the drives in some MacBooks? There may be a repair program even if the Mac is out of warranty. You might want to look into that.


Good luck.

- Winston

[Winston]

Found it:
http://www.apple.com/support/macbook/hd/...extension/

Apple has determined that a very small percentage of hard drives that were used in MacBook systems, sold between approximately May 2006 and December 2007, may fail under certain conditions.

If your MacBook was purchased in the date range listed above and shows a flashing question mark on the screen, please take it to Apple or an Apple Authorized Service Provider and they will examine the hard drive to confirm if it is eligible for a replacement, free of charge, under this program.

Identifying Affected MacBook Systems
Symptom
A flashing question mark appears on screen when the MacBook is turned on.

Affected MacBook models
13-inch black and white MacBook models with the following processor speeds and hard drive capacities:

Processor speed - 1.83GHz, 2GHz, or 2.16GHz
Hard drive capacity - 60GB, 80GB, 100GB, 120GB, or 160GB

[M A V I C]

Winston wrote:
Found it:
http://www.apple.com/support/macbook/hd/...extension/

Apple has determined that a very small percentage of hard drives that were used in MacBook systems, sold between approximately May 2006 and December 2007, may fail under certain conditions.

If your MacBook was purchased in the date range listed above and shows a flashing question mark on the screen, please take it to Apple or an Apple Authorized Service Provider and they will examine the hard drive to confirm if it is eligible for a replacement, free of charge, under this program.

Identifying Affected MacBook Systems
Symptom
A flashing question mark appears on screen when the MacBook is turned on.

Affected MacBook models
13-inch black and white MacBook models with the following processor speeds and hard drive capacities:

Processor speed - 1.83GHz, 2GHz, or 2.16GHz
Hard drive capacity - 60GB, 80GB, 100GB, 120GB, or 160GB

Thanks. It is a 1.83 with a 60GB drive. I'm not sure when it was originally purchased... system profiler doesn't seem to list a build date.

[deckeda]

I'd expect Apple to be able to narrow down the build, if not purchase, based on serial number. It's worth a try.

You didn't mention a flashing question mark, which seems to be a qualifier under the extension program. But maybe that's just because a flashing question mark is more common for bad HDs.

[M A V I C]

deckeda wrote:
I'd expect Apple to be able to narrow down the build, if not purchase, based on serial number. It's worth a try.

I was able to convert the serial number to see it does fall within the date range.

You didn't mention a flashing question mark, which seems to be a qualifier under the extension program. But maybe that's just because a flashing question mark is more common for bad HDs.

Yep. I'll let the owner discuss it with Apple. Otherwise a replacement HD is only $30-50.

[Winston]

M A V I C wrote:
Yep. I'll let the owner discuss it with Apple. Otherwise a replacement HD is only $30-50.

In my experience Apple sometimes replaces older drives with a larger one, because that's what they are stocking. A 60 GB drive is starting to be quite small by todays standards. Maybe your friend will get lucky and get a new larger drive. Definitely worth a call to Apple or trip to an Apple store.

We have three MacBooks in the family which fall into the spec for this repair. They've all been upgraded by us and the original drives are now being used in external cases for miscellaneous backup. I need to make a mental note to keep an eye on them.

Let us know what happens with Apple.


- W