Cracking Open the redesigned Apple MacBook of 2009
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Teardown
Teardown
Apple has made a bunch of changes to their base workhorse, including:?
- A polycarbonate unibody upper case
- An LED backlit display with the same 1280×800 resolution as previous models
- A glass multi-touch trackpad
- An integrated lithium-polymer battery
- Non-slip coating covering the bottom panel.
iFixit is a one-stop-shop for the parts, tools, and repair manuals needed to fix iPods, iPhones, Macs, and more. They make it easy for anyone to repair their Apple hardware. Follow along as iFixit engineers disassemble the MacBook.
Images by iFixit, used by permission
Unibody
Unibody
The case revision also allowed Apple to update the aesthetics on the new Macbook. Its contoured edges fit right in with the rest of the unibody lineup.
Images by iFixit, used by permission
Further comparison
Further comparison
FireWire is gone! If you need FireWire, now only a MacBook Pro will do. Also gone is an IR port for a remote. As far as we know, that makes the MacBook the only currently shipping Apple laptop that doesn’t support a remote. There’s also no external battery indicator, a feature borrowed from the MacBook Air. Apple has also replaced Mini-DVI with Mini DisplayPort, and replaced the two audio jacks with a single audio in/out port.
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Fine print
Fine print
After more than three years, the MacBook finally gets a new model number! A1342.
Unfortunately, Apple only allows those with 20/20 vision to find out their model and serial number. That text is incredibly tiny and difficult to read.
This new MacBook weighs in at 4.7 lbs. That’s .3 lbs less than the old plastic MacBook, but .2 lbs more than the 13″ Unibody MacBook Pro.
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Opening it up
Opening it up
Removing the lower case…
- There are no more rubber feet to tear off!
- Eight Phillips #00 screws hold the lower case in place, two less than the 13″ Pro.
- The lower case is surprisingly heavy, weighing in at 266 grams. The lower case is actually a sheet of aluminum with rubberized coating injection-molded onto one side.
- In contrast, the lower case on the 13″ Pro weighs only 142 grams, so the rubber coating nearly doubles the part’s weight.
Images by iFixit, used by permission
Separation
Separation
Images by iFixit, used by permission
Images by iFixit, used by permission
Tri-wing
Tri-wing
One of the three tri-wing screws is beneath a warning label in the top left corner of the battery.
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Spudger
Spudger
For most repairs, removing the battery is not necessary, you just need to disconnect it from the logic board. You can use a spudger or your fingernails to lift battery connector straight up out of its socket on the logic board.
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Capacity
Capacity
The previous plastic MacBooks featured a 55 watt-hour battery and claimed a 5-hour run time. Apple has added 5 watt-hours of battery capacity and two hours of run time. Either this machine is substantially more efficient than its predecessor (thanks to the LED backlight), or Apple’s new battery life claims are overly optimistic.
Images by iFixit, used by permission
Battery comparison
Battery comparison
Despite its higher capacity, this new battery is actually lighter than the previous MacBook’s battery. This battery boasts a power to weight ratio that’s 23.5% better than its predecessor.
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User replaceable
User replaceable
After removing two Phillips screws and the hard drive bracket they hold down, lift the hard drive out of the MacBook by its pull tab and disconnect the SATA connector.
If you’re installing a new hard drive, you’ll need a T6 Torx screwdriver to transfer the mounting screws to your new hard drive.
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Vent plate
Vent plate
The cast aluminum vent plate is painted with a satin white rubberized paint and probably adds a good amount of rigidity to the device.
The lack of structural supports like these in previous plastic MacBooks accounts for their flexibility.
Images by iFixit, used by permission
Wireless
Wireless
The digging continues as we remove the speaker/AirPort/Bluetooth card assembly.
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More wireless
More wireless
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Almost
Almost
After popping off a few connectors, removing a few screws (including one inserted into the side of the optical drive), the optical drive is almost free.
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Unlike the earlier plastic MacBooks, AirPort and Bluetooth share the same board.
The Bluetooth model number is BCM943224PCIEBT.
All three antenna cables appear to route into the display assembly. This may be an improvement for Bluetooth range, since on previous MacBooks the Bluetooth antenna was located above the optical drive and not inside the display assembly.
Images by iFixit, used by permission
It's ready
It's ready
After removing the final few screws, lift the optical drive out of its comfy plastic unibody home.
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Lifting it out
Lifting it out
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No surprises
No surprises
No surprises here. The optical drive is an 8x SATA SuperDrive. It’s a Panasonic model UJ898, made in China September of 2009.
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Fan
Fan
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Fan is out
Fan is out
After a few twists of a screwdriver and the flick of a spudger, the fan lifts right out.
The fan design appears relatively unchanged from previous plastic MacBooks, except that it mounts to the upper case on this model.
Images by iFixit, used by permission
On to the logic boards
On to the logic boards
Six T7 screws and several fragile connectors stand between us and logic board freedom.
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Almost got it
Almost got it
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Logic board removed
Logic board removed
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Design
Design
Like the MacBook Pro Unibody, Apple nicely designed this machine so the logic board and heat sink come out as a single part. This way, you’ll only need to get your hands dirty with thermal paste if you’re replacing the logic board.
Images by iFixit, used by permission
GPU
GPU
The MacBook sports a NVidia 9400M GPU and an Intel Core 2 Duo 2.26 GHz CPU.
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MagSafe port
MagSafe port
Like other MacBooks, the MagSafe port gets its own board.
Even though the new MacBook ships with a new-style MagSafe adapter, older Magsafe adapters should work just fine.
Notice the silver grate of a speaker on the right side of this photo. This machine sports two small tweeters beneath the keyboard, one below the caps lock key, and the other below the return key.
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A variety of screws
A variety of screws
The display assembly is secured by two large T8 screws, one on each side.
Apple’s certainly giving us quite the screw variety on this machine. We’ve found tri-wing, Phillips #00, T6, T7, and T8 Torx screws.
We sell a screwdriver kit that will enable you to remove all these screws. The tri-wing screws will come out using a 1.5mm flathead bit. We’ll be adding true tri-wing bits to our screwdriver kits in the near future.
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Success! The new MacBook is quite a nice machine to disassemble.
We’ll be creating detailed repair guides for this machine in the future, enabling you to repair your MacBook if and when something goes wrong.
We plan on taking apart Apple’s new iMac as soon as we can get our hands on it. Apple’s made some major improvements on their new iMac, so it should be interesting to see what’s inside. Follow @ifixit on twitter and we’ll keep you updated.
Images by iFixit, used by permission
