Just short of 4 weeks of dropping off my iBook at the Apple Store, it is back in my hands. It was just 7 days short of its AppleCare expiration when it went belly up, so at first I was feeling pretty damn lucky.
And it got more than just the logic board replaced. Like Steve Austin, it has been rebuilt, though maybe not stronger, faster, etc (nor is it worth $6 million dollars). Also replaced was the bottom case (the little lock switch cracked off when I was taking the battery out to force a reboot– the original Genius said it was not covered), PLUS the optical drive (it had been repaired a year ago yet still failed to eject 80% of the time) PLUS a new keyboard.
The original parts must be left to my hard drive (its data, whew), and maybe the airport card.
So I feel fortunate I can:
* get a new playlist on my iPod Shuffle (it was getting stale)
* know how much money I have in my bank account (my last Quicken backup was more than a month prior, gotta do better)
* stop borrowing my work Powerbook
Gulp, I gotta get more religious on my backups!
I’m still grumpy about the sloppy status reports from AppleCare- like being unable to use the online status or automated phone status despite using the correct repair ID and zip code. I have an amusing MP3 recording of the automated Apple fembot telling me, “Sorry, but your zip code does not match our records. A Zip code is a 5 digit number such as ONE TWO THREE FOUR FIVE…” forcing me to go through phone tree blah several times just to get an update.
But who cares now, the white little plastic baby is at home.
New Bottom Parts
available on my flickr
My 2002 vintage iBook finally got home from a month’s vacation to Apple’s repair resort in Tennesse. In addition to a logic board replacement, they replaced the bottom case (the white new battery replaced a few months ago is still shinier) and a new optical drive (if you peek close you can see it is still in cellophane)