The MacBook's recent issue could be a new security feature or it might be experiencing crashes.
The MacBook's recent issue could be a new security feature or it might be experiencing crashes.
So I got a MacBook in 2018—a 15-inch, 256GB, 16GB model. It cost me a lot of money back then, around 2900-3000 USD. I bought it mainly to code in Xcode. It ran smoothly for almost two and a half years until recently. A few days ago, while watching Netflix, the screen froze completely—no movement, no cursor, no heat, no background apps running. After plugging in the battery about ten minutes prior, nothing happened. I tried shutting it down with the power button, but it never booted again. There were no physical damages or spills. I took it to a service center, which said the motherboard was damaged and estimated the repair cost at around 80,000 rupees (about 1073 USD).
What’s strange is that just two or three days ago, my friend with a similar model (2019, 15-inch, same specs) experienced the same issue. We both had the MacBooks together and reported similar problems. Is this coincidence?
It seems uncertain about your current situation. Are you using your computer regularly? Do you reside in a warm environment? I’m guessing you don’t have an AppleCare plan. Have they confirmed any damage to the device, such as a missing cover? It’s wise to always back up your data.
In modern macbooks almost everything is just soldered to the motherboard so "the motherboard is damaged" is a pretty common answer... not much you can do there other than buy from a company that lets you troubleshoot your own hardware and replace parts without throwing out 90% of the machine.
Hey! We’re living in a hot climate, but because of the lockdown, I haven’t taken my MacBook out for about five months. Both of us and my friend stayed in air-conditioned rooms. When this happened, the AC was working well and the rooms were cool enough.
They didn’t say exactly what was wrong with my motherboard—just that it was damaged. We both got a compute update recently.
At the time of the crash, no external devices were connected except for the charger. In my experience, the laptop battery drained, I plugged in the charger, it started working again, everything seemed normal, and after some time it just happened.
Could anyone help me figure out what might have caused this? Thanks!
That’s your responsibility. macOS includes the Ebst backup solution in every desktop OS. Use it. It’s not ideal for humid environments, as moisture can harm electronics. Still, this doesn’t justify the issue since it’s not severe enough to randomly crash a computer. In my view, it might be a coincidence. The 2018 models had known issues with keyboard and display flexgate. A failing keyboard wouldn’t directly cause this, but flexgate could stop the backlight, making the screen appear black. To check, shine a bright light on the display or use an external one. Since they claim the board is damaged, it seems like a coincidence—2018 models don’t have any known fatal motherboard problems. This could happen to any machine, which is disappointing. If you still have warranty coverage, I’d use it and get the Mac fixed.
Ugh, that's a real hassle. The only options seem to be getting another machine or fixing it if you need an OSX setup. Unless you absolutely must have OSX, it’s not worth the effort—Macs aren’t built for top performance right now. If you can afford both a desktop and a laptop, especially since this one is important for your work, that would be ideal. Honestly, cooling issues plus a hot climate make this setup pretty risky. Yeah, based on the limited data I saw, it’s a recipe for another failure. It feels like a buffet of poor choices packed into one device.