So after getting home from school the other day, I got my laptop out of my bag and put it on the couch to get some good leveling done in WoW. I walked away to answer my phone, and when I came back, I opened up the lid and *snap*. This happened:

This is how my right hinge looks.

This is how my left hinge looks.

THIS IS HOW ITS SUPPOSED TO LOOK!

Somehow, the joint seems to have gotten jammed, and when I went to open the lid, *snap*, it broke clean off, bringing some of the bottom of the LCD panel with it. It still works luckily, but now I cant close it as the hinge seems jammed. It wont move at all.

Anyways, my fellow neowinians, I was wondering if you think this would be covered under Applecare. I talked with a CompUSA technicain the other day, and he said apple would probably deny my claim, as it doesnt cover physical damage to the machine. However this is not due to my incompetance, therefore I dont think I should have to pay for it. The technician said this was a very weak part on the powerbooks and this is a common problem with the older titaniums.

Anyways, do you guys think this would be covered? And if not how much would you say the repair will be? Thanks in advance.

Do not even BOTHER with Compusa. They said that apple would not replace my powersupply or case but magicly somehow they did? I called apple and they said they probably never even called because they wouldn't just deny it like that.

Call apple and see what can be done! I think Applecare will cover it

i am a technician and just left compUSA to work as a tech for an apple retail store. i know for a fact that apple will deny the claim. i have tried at the request of customers before, unfortunatly they will offer to fix it but they will charge over a thousand dollars for that LCD. the hinges come with the lcd but apple see broken hinges as "cosmetic damage" and will not cover it. sorry

With any other laptop I've taken apart, the LCD was seperate from the chassis, once you remove 6-10 screws. Is this not the case with PowerBooks? Seems like it might be an awfully poor way of doing things by binding the hinge to the screen itself and not allowing replacement of hinges (the part of a notebook that sees the most wear and tear) without shelling out dough for a new screen when the old one works just fine. Odd of Apple to do, no?

/off topic (kinda): phew.. i thought this was gonna be another transparent screen thread. /

sorry bout your laptop.. at least you can still use it!

This is a widely known issue with the TiBooks. You're lucky, some people's LCD's have actually snapped.

Do you have AppleCare? If so... call and let them know. I'm sure (not positive, but assuming) that they will repair this since you're not the only one to have the hinges break on you.

And don't ever trust CompUSA.

Ouch at least it isn't a P-P-P-Powerbook...

Hope you get it fixed

Ouch. Sucks to be you...

damn that sucks, any chance of crazy gluing that sucker back into place? i know it sounds 'ghetto' but what other choice do u have?

Ouch dude. I'm buying a powerbook in early April and i've heard a lot about the hinges.. I'll have to watch out

The hinge problems were only this bad on the Titanium PBs, right?

best of luck getting your PowerBook repaired.

My new 12" Al PowerBook developed squeaky, tight hinges within a few months of owning it. I had them replaced on AppleCare by a local dealer.

Pwned!!!

UPDATE: I called up Apple the other day and explained to them what happened. I got transferred about 3 times, but overall the process was really easy, I was on the phone for maybe 15 minutes max, and the woman was really friendly. She told me that accidential damage was not covered, but titaniums do have problems with the hinges. They said they would repair it for free and that I should bring it to an Apple store or authorized repair center when I got a chance. Badass! Thanks guys, and thank god for Applecare.

how much extra did applecare cost you?

Hey thats great that it worked out for you man




that is a great site

Glad it worked out for you man!
iconboy: AppleCare costs $349 for Powerbooks and it extends the warranty for two extra years.

But if i dont get apple care, does that mean Ill still have excellent service for at least one year?

you could get it replaced on house insurance if worst comes to worst surely? if its a flat out replacement ( probably likely with lcd replacement ( they cost alot may as well get new system )) you'll have a brand new ALbook

Yes

do you have to buy applecare at the sametime as your mac or can you buy it afterwards?

No you can do it within the year of the initial warranty

You can get it later http://www.apple.com/support/products/

Sorry to hear that.

My iBook is in terrible condition at the moment (However, a much worse issue, making it unusable)

But you must buy Applecare within the factory 1 year warranty, after that you are screwed.

No worries. I have found a place that replaces hinges for powerbooks. Really great job and cheap repair price (around $80 repair for one hinge). It will cost much less than AppleCare and a new screen. They did a great job on mine.
Visit: http://www.powerbookrepairshop.com for the shop site.
Or email josh@powerbookrepairshop.com to talk directly with them.

Best of luck,
jennifer