Upgrade MBP hard drive while keeping warranty?

Posted:
in Current Mac Hardware edited January 2014
I have a C2D MBP which I want to upgrade the hard drive in to a 250 GB one. It doesn't look like it will be hard at all (I've worked in notebooks before, and upgraded the memory on a macmini) but I would like to keep the warranty. Does anyone know if I can get the Apple store to upgrade my hard drive for a reasonable fee, or someone else who is apple certified to do it? I believe doing it myself will void the warranty, and I don't want that because its my only machine right now.

Comments

  • Reply 1 of 9
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by StuBeck View Post


    I have a C2D MBP which I want to upgrade the hard drive in to a 250 GB one. It doesn't look like it will be hard at all (I've worked in notebooks before, and upgraded the memory on a macmini) but I would like to keep the warranty. Does anyone know if I can get the Apple store to upgrade my hard drive for a reasonable fee, or someone else who is apple certified to do it? I believe doing it myself will void the warranty, and I don't want that because its my only machine right now.



    It won't void the warranty as long as you don't break anything while installing it (which wouldn't be covered), and if you ever need to send it to Apple to get repaired, you might want to put the original back in because from what I've heard, they might take it out and put a regular one back in (from what I've heard in other threads) claiming that was part of the problem or something. I do not know if the Apple people will do it with a HDD that you supply (they might do it with an "Apple" one that will cost you like $300 or something), but it's worth a shot unless you are confident in your ability to not break anything.
  • Reply 2 of 9
    stubeckstubeck Posts: 140member
    Thanks for the info. I called up the local apple store and found out that "upgrading the hard drive is not an option, the only solution is to get an external drive."



    I'm going to try and find someone else to do it, but I'm guessing I'll have to do it by myself.
  • Reply 3 of 9
    filburtfilburt Posts: 398member
    This is one of the main reasons why I opted to get middle-of-the-pack MacBook (120 GB) instead of the base model (80 GB upgraded to 160 GB on my own). I have no use for SuperDrive on the MacBook (I can use the iMac for relatively rare instances when I do) and 0.16 GHz difference is also of no concern to me. But I do care about not breaking the 3-year Apple Care.
  • Reply 4 of 9
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by filburt View Post


    This is one of the main reasons why I opted to get middle-of-the-pack MacBook (120 GB) instead of the base model (80 GB upgraded to 160 GB on my own). I have no use for SuperDrive on the MacBook (I can use the iMac for relatively rare instances when I do) and 0.16 GHz difference is also of no concern to me. But I do care about not breaking the 3-year Apple Care.





    MacBook Hard drive is user upgradable. Mac Book Pro is not.
  • Reply 5 of 9
    MarvinMarvin Posts: 15,310moderator
    By the looks of this guide, it seems quite tricky:



    http://www.extremetech.com/article2/...2119581,00.asp



    but worth it if you get the performance improvement they get IMO. I wish Apple would make it as easy to upgrade as the Macbook.
  • Reply 6 of 9
    royboyroyboy Posts: 458member
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by Marvin View Post


    By the looks of this guide, it seems quite tricky:



    http://www.extremetech.com/article2/...2119581,00.asp



    but worth it if you get the performance improvement they get IMO. I wish Apple would make it as easy to upgrade as the Macbook.



    When I have work I want done on my computer and I don't feel comfortable or competent enough to do it, then I take it to CompUSA, which is an authorized Apple dealer for sales and repairs, and CompUSA's service costs and hardware costs are much less than the Apple Store.
  • Reply 7 of 9
    stubeckstubeck Posts: 140member
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by Marvin View Post


    By the looks of this guide, it seems quite tricky:



    http://www.extremetech.com/article2/...2119581,00.asp



    but worth it if you get the performance improvement they get IMO. I wish Apple would make it as easy to upgrade as the Macbook.



    I won't be putting a 7200 RPM drive in (most likely...if I can get a 160 for cheap I might, but doing all that work for only an extra 40 gigs is silly) but I've done a ton of work on laptops before, so its not that bad.



    I did just call CompUSA, its only 30 bucks to put the drive in if you don't want the OS installed, which I can do on my own. Might do that.
  • Reply 8 of 9
    royboyroyboy Posts: 458member
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by StuBeck View Post


    I won't be putting a 7200 RPM drive in (most likely...if I can get a 160 for cheap I might, but doing all that work for only an extra 40 gigs is silly) but I've done a ton of work on laptops before, so its not that bad.



    I did just call CompUSA, its only 30 bucks to put the drive in if you don't want the OS installed, which I can do on my own. Might do that.





    And as I understand it, since CompUSA is an authorized reseller and repairer of Apple products, then there would be nothing that would stand a chance of voiding your warranty.
  • Reply 9 of 9
    kfdankfdan Posts: 81member
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by StuBeck View Post


    Thanks for the info. I called up the local apple store and found out that "upgrading the hard drive is not an option, the only solution is to get an external drive."



    I'm going to try and find someone else to do it, but I'm guessing I'll have to do it by myself.



    Apple won't do it directly however I was told yesterday by Apple Care staff at their Shibuya store that an Apple authorized shop can and will do the switch.

    That's what I plan to do. It's tricky to take the heat sink off and get it right by yourself.

    all the best if you do!
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