MacBook Pro turned off after plugging in iPhone USB Cable

usbp456usbp456
Posted:
in Current Mac Hardware edited October 2015


Good Morning,


 


Last night I wanted to back up my iPhone to iTunes so I go and turn on my MacBook Pro, after it turned on I plugged in the USB Cable into the far right USB port and my computer just turned off and it wouldn't turn back on.


 


I have had this problem starting this year where I would want to connect my iOS devices to my MBPand it just turns off but sometimes I would pull the USB out and turn my computer back on and it would work but not yesterday, it stayed "dead".


 


I did connect my MBP to the wall charger and you know that when you connect it there is a little light that has to turn either orange or green, right?  Well mine is a really really really dim orange blinking light.


 


I called AppleCare and they walked me through some steps and nothing worked, he finally said to take it in to an Apple Store and have it checked out.


 


Just would like to know if anyone else has had the same problem and if so, what did Apple do?


 


 


Thanks

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Comments

  • Reply 1 of 42
    josephbjosephb Posts: 2member


    have you figured out how to fix this? i have the same problem

     

  • Reply 2 of 42
    usbp456usbp456 Posts: 7member


    I took it to the Apple store and they had to ship it to a repair facility.  They told me it was the logicboard?motherboard? I took it on a Thursday and had it back by Tuesday morning.  So it wasnt that long of a wait.  I also didnt lose any of my stuff.


     


    The only problem was that for some reason I had to re-login to Messages, Facetime and iCloud.  Also for some reason when I would download a song/movie/tv show from iTunes it would download it twice.  But that since has stopped.


     


     


    Hope that helps :)

  • Reply 3 of 42
    josephbjosephb Posts: 2member


    thanks for the quick reply... Damn, i was hoping i could fix this myself. how much did apple charge you for this?

     

  • Reply 4 of 42
    usbp456usbp456 Posts: 7member


    It was free, I had AppleCare.  But the receipt said that it would of been about $239 or $259 if I didn't have AppleCare.

  • Reply 5 of 42
    djrconceptsdjrconcepts Posts: 1member


    Yes, I had the same problem.  I plugged in an Iphone usb cable to charge my iphone and as soon as the usb touched the port, the macbook pro went dead.  The laptop will not turn on, the charging light does not turn on.  Completely Dead.  Hoping that I can recover the data.

  • Reply 6 of 42
    shaunnjessshaunnjess Posts: 2member
    This has happened to me several times. Exactly what you are saying... As soon as USB touches port, computer goes blank, will not respond to anything, power cord light very dimly lit. The only thing I've found that fixes it is to wait it out. Once the battery completely drains, it will once again come on and function normally. I've taken it to the apple store and they know nothing about the problem, and could not do anything. I've had to do this several times. Does anyone know of another solution besides waiting it out? This needs to be fixed. It's getting extremely frustrating.
  • Reply 7 of 42
    papap072013papap072013 Posts: 1member

    It happened to me before. I used an after market iPhone 5 usb cable. It seems that macbook pro will stop once it detects that something is drawing out too much power (could be the after market USB cable). I tried removing the battery connection and connect it back again. This fixed the problem

  • Reply 8 of 42
    shaunnjessshaunnjess Posts: 2member
    This has happened many times for me. I have narrowed it down to the USB cable. It only does it with after market cables. Went back to Apple to replace my cables. Hasn't happened since.
  • Reply 9 of 42
    robmrobm Posts: 1,068member
    Unrelated to computers - but I had an aftermarket car charger completely pork my iPhone 2.
    Use trusted brands only.
  • Reply 10 of 42
    fenderdanfenderdan Posts: 1member

    I found that if I unplug the cable from the phone and plug it into the computer first and THEN plug the phone it, it worked... Very strange...

  • Reply 11 of 42
    therealwahtherealwah Posts: 1member

    @papap072013: THANK YOU! I had the same problem. Macbook Pro died after using an aftermarket USB cable to connect my iPhone. After reading your post, I tried unplugging and replugging in the battery. Worked like charm!

  • Reply 12 of 42
    joseph jjoseph j Posts: 1member

    Hey Joe, I had the same issue and all I had to do was open up the back of macbook pro and remove the battery dock switch manually that it is at the top right corner of the battery, and put it back in and it turned on. Worked just fine. Let me know if it works if you haven't resolved this issue already.  

  • Reply 13 of 42
    paulpadpaulpad Posts: 2member
    This just happened to me. It is very frustrating and it was not a cheap $2 cord but they told me at the apple store that there is a chip in there cord so you could not charge from after market even when they claim to be certified. Apple should warn buyers and offer a second cord with all of it's $500 + products.
  • Reply 14 of 42
    dsrwdcdsrwdc Posts: 1member

    Wow - this exact thing just happened to me. It was definitely the after-market cable I bought to charge my iPhone 5 - the instant I plugged in the USB side, my MB Pro went blank and wouldn't come back to life. No charging light, even.

     

    The approach above worked 100% and was simple. Just have to remove and replace the battery - only issue is that its not so easy with the unibody MacBooks. But I found the instructions here: http://www.ifixit.com/Guide/MacBook+Pro+13-Inch+Unibody+Mid+2012+Battery+Replacement/10365

     

    Just followed thru step 3 (removed battery connector cable), replaced the connect right back the MBP started right up - didn't miss a beat.

     

    Definitely will be avoiding cheapo cables from now on…whew!

     

    dan

  • Reply 15 of 42
    newbhikkunewbhikku Posts: 1member

    This trick worked. Thanks so much for posting. I went out, bought the required screwdrivers, performed a quick surgery to remove battery and voila. Popped back on.

     

    I would think Apple would address this as it surely can't always be related to faulty cables? As a matter of fact, i am pretty sure it's NOT the cable in my case as it is a Sharper Image, iPhone5 charger that works with my wall charger, and safely with my work laptop without crashing the battery. 

     

    In any case, solved! 

  • Reply 16 of 42
    neddowsonneddowson Posts: 1member

    I'm experiencing the sme problem. Whenever I plug in my iPhone 4s, my Mac Pro book turns off. I always have to unplug the USB cable then switch on the Mac which then works normally. Can you help please?

  • Reply 17 of 42
    pedrox05pedrox05 Posts: 1member
    Dan (dsrwdc) - If you were here, I'd definitely would give you a kiss.... I need to DJ a party tomorrow and most def need my Mac. I did exactly what you said on message #15 and worked like a charm. I really appreciate it... Thanks!!!!
  • Reply 18 of 42
    thomas6449thomas6449 Posts: 1member
    My wife got a new iPad mini, and she plugged the afternarket lightning cable we had bought into the iPad and then into her MacBook Pro and immediately the MacBook Pro went dead. We tried a different power adapter, but nothing. I followed the instructions below, took the back off and gently unplugged the battery connector from the logic borad (don't use anything metal to pry it up). I pressed the power connector on the keyboard (just to make sure any residual electricity was dissipated). I then put the battery connector gently back in its slot on the logic board. Carefully re-installed the screws on the back of the MacBook Pro, and pressed the power button. Voila! the MacBook Pro started up and is working perfectly again! Thank you so much for the instructions. It saved a trip to the Apple store, the possibility of having to send the wife's computer away for repair and a large (it is always a large bill with Apple, but they are good products).

    Thanks again!!!
  • Reply 19 of 42
    glasgowguy2015glasgowguy2015 Posts: 1member

    hi i had same problem macbook pro wouldn't tun on , no charing light when charger connected etc.

     

    I resolved problem myself. and very easily might add

  • Reply 20 of 42
    chicha787chicha787 Posts: 1member

    This has happened to me twice and both times I fixed it by unplugging then replugging my battery from the bottom of the macbook pro. The first time I did this my computer turned on right away and everything went back to normal. I didn't know at this point that it was because of the USB (I have a vague suspicion that the cable I bought is a cheap knockoff) so a couple days later I plug the USB to the computer and the second I plug it into my phone my Macbook went black with the flickering led light and everything. I tried unplugging and replugging the battery again but it only worked after the third time and when I pressed down on the on button. 

     

    ... needless to say I'm not using that usb cable again but I hope it doesn't happen with all of them.. I'm carrying around my screwdriver just in case haha. 

     

    this is how you unplug the battery - DON'T remove it cuz it'll void your warranty! 

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