A few MBP questions

[TheStu]

I am leaning toward getting a Speck case for my MacBook Pro once I order it (waiting for Snow Leopard, and my bank account 🙂) simply to help prevent scratching. Also, since my skin oil is slightly more acidic than normal (my dad for example will cause pitting on non-stainless steel watches) I will be getting a Marware palmrest cover as well. I carry my laptop in a bag most of the time, and it is a pretty good solid one that has held up well the last 3 years and many before that, so I think I will be safe there.

 

[suklee]

Originally posted by: TheStu
I am leaning toward getting a Speck case for my MacBook Pro once I order it (waiting for Snow Leopard, and my bank account 🙂) simply to help prevent scratching. Also, since my skin oil is slightly more acidic than normal (my dad for example will cause pitting on non-stainless steel watches) I will be getting a Marware palmrest cover as well. I carry my laptop in a bag most of the time, and it is a pretty good solid one that has held up well the last 3 years and many before that, so I think I will be safe there.

Hold on, does the palmrest area in the unibodys suffer from 'wear and tear' also? I thought only the keyboard would get 'shinier' due to the finger oils (I have a keyboard cover 🙂)

I've already noticed a few small scratches on my clear case so am glad I have protection. Of course that's partly because I know I don't need to be as careful with my MBP knowing it will take a tad more abuse... but still, if I didn't have this case I'd drive myself crazy checking the exterior at least once a day!

 

[TheStu]

Originally posted by: Kai920

Originally posted by: TheStu
I am leaning toward getting a Speck case for my MacBook Pro once I order it (waiting for Snow Leopard, and my bank account 🙂) simply to help prevent scratching. Also, since my skin oil is slightly more acidic than normal (my dad for example will cause pitting on non-stainless steel watches) I will be getting a Marware palmrest cover as well. I carry my laptop in a bag most of the time, and it is a pretty good solid one that has held up well the last 3 years and many before that, so I think I will be safe there.

Hold on, does the palmrest area in the unibodys suffer from 'wear and tear' also? I thought only the keyboard would get 'shinier' due to the finger oils (I have a keyboard cover 🙂)

I've already noticed a few small scratches on my clear case so am glad I have protection. Of course that's partly because I know I don't need to be as careful with my MBP knowing it will take a tad more abuse... but still, if I didn't have this case I'd drive myself crazy checking the exterior at least once a day!

My friend's old PowerBook G4 has pitting and whatnot in the palmrest area. You won't wear it down and make it shiny or anything, but skin oil could 'corrode' the anodized aluminum. I think that for most, it won't be a problem, Tyranicus' first gen MBP had very little evidence of that after 3 years of use, so either Apple changed how they made the anodized aluminum or Tyranicus' skin oil is less acidic than my other friend's and my sister's (certainly less than my sister, she also eats through watches)

 

[wantedSpidy]

get the display port -> DVi from ebay, don't donate your money to apple for the smaller accessories.

 

[suklee]

Originally posted by: TheStu

Originally posted by: Kai920

Originally posted by: TheStu
I am leaning toward getting a Speck case for my MacBook Pro once I order it (waiting for Snow Leopard, and my bank account 🙂) simply to help prevent scratching. Also, since my skin oil is slightly more acidic than normal (my dad for example will cause pitting on non-stainless steel watches) I will be getting a Marware palmrest cover as well. I carry my laptop in a bag most of the time, and it is a pretty good solid one that has held up well the last 3 years and many before that, so I think I will be safe there.

Hold on, does the palmrest area in the unibodys suffer from 'wear and tear' also? I thought only the keyboard would get 'shinier' due to the finger oils (I have a keyboard cover 🙂)

I've already noticed a few small scratches on my clear case so am glad I have protection. Of course that's partly because I know I don't need to be as careful with my MBP knowing it will take a tad more abuse... but still, if I didn't have this case I'd drive myself crazy checking the exterior at least once a day!

My friend's old PowerBook G4 has pitting and whatnot in the palmrest area. You won't wear it down and make it shiny or anything, but skin oil could 'corrode' the anodized aluminum. I think that for most, it won't be a problem, Tyranicus' first gen MBP had very little evidence of that after 3 years of use, so either Apple changed how they made the anodized aluminum or Tyranicus' skin oil is less acidic than my other friend's and my sister's (certainly less than my sister, she also eats through watches)

I'm starting to notice 'something' in the palmrest areas. Not exactly sure what it is but if I look hard enough I see splotches of ... something. Could be grease, or dirt, whatever. Would a damp cloth be good for wiping the aluminum?

 

[TheStu]

Originally posted by: Kai920

Originally posted by: TheStu

Originally posted by: Kai920

Originally posted by: TheStu
I am leaning toward getting a Speck case for my MacBook Pro once I order it (waiting for Snow Leopard, and my bank account 🙂) simply to help prevent scratching. Also, since my skin oil is slightly more acidic than normal (my dad for example will cause pitting on non-stainless steel watches) I will be getting a Marware palmrest cover as well. I carry my laptop in a bag most of the time, and it is a pretty good solid one that has held up well the last 3 years and many before that, so I think I will be safe there.

Hold on, does the palmrest area in the unibodys suffer from 'wear and tear' also? I thought only the keyboard would get 'shinier' due to the finger oils (I have a keyboard cover 🙂)

I've already noticed a few small scratches on my clear case so am glad I have protection. Of course that's partly because I know I don't need to be as careful with my MBP knowing it will take a tad more abuse... but still, if I didn't have this case I'd drive myself crazy checking the exterior at least once a day!

My friend's old PowerBook G4 has pitting and whatnot in the palmrest area. You won't wear it down and make it shiny or anything, but skin oil could 'corrode' the anodized aluminum. I think that for most, it won't be a problem, Tyranicus' first gen MBP had very little evidence of that after 3 years of use, so either Apple changed how they made the anodized aluminum or Tyranicus' skin oil is less acidic than my other friend's and my sister's (certainly less than my sister, she also eats through watches)

I'm starting to notice 'something' in the palmrest areas. Not exactly sure what it is but if I look hard enough I see splotches of ... something. Could be grease, or dirt, whatever. Would a damp cloth be good for wiping the aluminum?

Damp cloth should be fine. It is anodized aluminum, so a quick rub down of some water shouldn't hurt it.

 

[tatteredpotato]

How worth it would you guys consider this "Apple Care" warrenty?

 

[jonesthewine]

Buy it, peace of mind is great if you can afford it. Over three years of use something is going to break - i.e. a key on the keyboard, the HD etc...Plus it covers the AC adapter and a few other peripherals. It also adds to the resale value if/when you sell it to get the next upgraded MBP.

 

[suklee]

I'd say it's well worth it for the 2 extra years of coverage... works out to be about US$0.26/day for 2 years 🙂

 

[suklee]

Originally posted by: TheStu
Damp cloth should be fine. It is anodized aluminum, so a quick rub down of some water shouldn't hurt it.

I just gave it a quick wipe with a damp piece of tissue... dunno if I am paranoid but it still seems like I can see some smudges in the wrist area. I'll check tomorrow morning again when it's brighter.

 

[TheStu]

Originally posted by: jonesthewine
Buy it, peace of mind is great if you can afford it. Over three years of use something is going to break - i.e. a key on the keyboard, the HD etc...Plus it covers the AC adapter and a few other peripherals. It also adds to the resale value if/when you sell it to get the next upgraded MBP.

The MagSafe is actually covered under its own warranty. All Magsafes, ever made from the beginning to present are covered under what essentially amounts to a lifetime warranty. If ay any point your magsafe develops a problem, you can take it into an Apple Authorized Service Center and they will replace it for free once they determine that the problem wasn't caused by accidental damage.

http://support.apple.com/kb/TS1713?viewlocale=en_US

 

[jonesthewine]

Thanks Stu, I'm new to the MacCollective and wasn't aware of MagSafe replacement policy.

 

[TheStu]

Originally posted by: jonesthewine
Thanks Stu, I'm new to the MacCollective and wasn't aware of MagSafe replacement policy.

This one is at least on their website.

The plastic macbooks have their own 'secret' policy that only is published to the stores, not online. If you experience the cracking palmrest issue on a plastic macbook, any Apple Authorized Service location will replace the palmrest (which includes the keyboard and trackpad) for free, even if the system is out of warranty. It is a non-publicly acknowledged known flaw in the design, that they unfortunately still haven't fixed (if they just replaced the plastic bumpers on the lid with rubber I am sure the incident count would drop significantly)