As Apple quickly picks up more and more dedicated Apple users, the Apple Store and their retail service offerings are frequently overloaded. MacMedics is often able to complete Apple Limited Warranty and AppleCare repairs in as little as 24 hours. See our posting on this topic here.

In the meantime we continue to collect excellent reviews from the anonymous Apple Service surveys as well as from Google and Yelp.

Here’s our most recent review from our client, Evan:

“I Had the toplid of my MacBook Pro replaced under warranty. Was effortless, they diagnosed it properly and gave me the time of day. The whole staff was very friendly and accommodating and the store was near empty, which is a welcome change from the busy and annoying Apple Stores and their notorious “Genius” Bar service in the back. Highly recommended!‎”

Lots of places that offer nationwide Macintosh, iPhone, or iPod service will try to you lure you to their website by saturating their webpage with geographic keywords that make it appear that they are “in” your area.

If you’re looking for “local” Macintosh, iPhone, or iPod service or repair that’s really local to the Baltimore, Maryland or Washington DC areas, then you’ve found the right place.

MacMedics has been repairing Macintosh computers in Maryland since 1989.

When you’re looking for local Mac, iPhone, iPod, or even iPad service from a reputable service provider, come see us at MacMedics.

Thinking about going to the Apple Store for service? Our service is faster, usually less expensive, and carries our full MacMedics 1-year service warranty. See our Blog post about that here. The majority of our our Apple warranty repairs are complete and ready to return to you within 24 hours. Need a rental while your unit is in the shop? We can do that too!

Be sure to see our Blog post on why shipping your broken Mac or iPhone off to parts unknown is something that you should really think twice about.

Apple recently identified a problem with certain Time Capsules sold between approximately February 2008 and June 2008. Some of these Time Capsules have experienced an inability to power on or unexpected shut downs. Owners of Time Capsules with serial numbers in the XX807XXXXXX – XX814XXXXXX range that have experienced one or both of these issues should contact MacMedics for repair or replacement options. Users that have already paid for a repair or replacement for a malfunctioning Time Capsule meeting the previously listed criteria should contact Apple Customer Service directly to seek a refund.

Additional information regarding this issue is available here.

If you have a sick Time Capsule that you need to get the data off of before you send it back to Apple we can help. See this MacMedics Blog post for more info regarding that process.

As Apple Authorized Service Providers, we perform quite a number of Macintosh warranty repairs on behalf of Apple’s customers. We also do so for many of our own customers whom have purchased their Apple gear from MacMedics.

Over the last six months or so, our Apple service business has basically doubled. The Apple Stores in the area are so overwhelmed; many Apple owners are finding out that there is an alternative to making an appointment or waiting around in the mall for a face-to-face with a Genius at the Genius Bar. See our recently updated Blog post on why it makes sense to come visit MacMedics in either Lanham (1 mile from I-495 at RT 50) or Millersville (5 minutes from BWI Airport or 10 minutes form the Annapolis Mall)

When we perform an Apple Warranty or AppleCare repair for someone, Apple sends them a survey to ask how well we performed the service on Apple’s behalf.

Apple then forwards these remarks and the accompanying scores to us with the idea that they will help improve our service.

In the latest round feedback from Apple, these anonymous comments praise MacMedics in such a level of detail it almost looks like we wrote them ourselves.

These are direct from Apple, and we’d like to thank our loyal customers for supporting us. THANKS!

-Very customer focused.

-Matt at Mac Medics knew right away how to resolve my problem.

We’ve done work for DJ PHAZE a few times before, but most recently we saved his MacBook from a really bad water spill. He sent us this nice note to thank us.

“Hey this is the One and Only, DJ PHAZE from Baltimore. Let me tell you a quick thing or two about the folks at MacMedics… As a Serato DJ my MacBooks are the heart of my operation. Without them… um how about we not even finish that sentence?

Thank you to Matt, Tinika, and Dana for taking care of my MacBook woes. “

It’s not hard to see that the crew here at MacMedics love what they do. Here’s another review that just popped up. The reviewer is correct, we really don’t sleep until we have the problem solved.

“These folks are great! MacMedics’ experts don’t sleep until they solve your Macintosh problems (not that there are a ton of Mac problems)! I’ve purchased computers and peripherals from MacMedics and have benefitted from their encyclopedic knowledge of hardware and software–including PC/DOS software that runs on a virtual PC they set up on my Mac Pro. So, if you wannabe a Mac user, or are already are, frankly, you can’t go wrong by relying on the experts, their cheerful advice, and dogged determination to excel at MacMedics!

Scott”

While MacMedics has made a name for ourselves in the Macintosh consulting and service community by providing thoughtful and well planned solutions, our expertise is not limited to just Macs, or even computers.

When one of our customers asked us if his video security system would work with his Macintosh computer systems, we dived right in. We asked for a system to be shipped to us, we set it up and reported back on our findings.

The verdict: This system was not right for him, or his needs.

When this same customer started having problems with his over one mile of underground video, telephone, and data cables, a quote was requested for a fiber optic solution.

We were asked to look at the quote, and when it looked too high, we started calling our connections in the Baltimore tech community. We coordinated a new proposal from a diffrent cabliing vendor at no cost to the customer. When the dust had cleared and the project had been properly specified, and re-quoted, our consulting and examination of the project ended up saving this customer about $40,000!

We don’t tolerate wasteful spending, and when we see a problem, Macintosh or otherwise, we’ll point it out to you, and document it in our written report.

If your last consulting project got left unfinished, or if your consultant was more used to removing spyware from Windows machines, then MacMedics is the company you need to call. Better sooner than later.

If you want to talk to someone who can help right now, give us a call on one of our Macintosh Service hotlines or e-mail us.

Keep Your Stapler Away From Your MacBook’s MagSafe Power Connector

Don’t forget that the magnet inside the MagSafe connector on your MacBook or MacBook Pro is very strong.

It WILL pull metal objects into it, and as you can see in this picture a staple is the perfect size. This is a “used” staple, but an “unused” stable also fits into the MagSafe port perfectly.

This unit was working, but even after some other seeming unrelated damage it stopped working. We’re wondering if this staple had anything to do with it.

There have also been reports of certain type of “sand” being picked up and stuck inside the MagSafe connector. It’s a good idea to keep and eye on it, and be sure to promptly remove anything you find.

Don’t Beat Up Your MacBook Pro Unibody – Your Hard Drive Is Directly Under Your Right Hand!

A client brought us his MacBook Pro Unibody 15” yesterday. He got mad at his Mac and smashed his fist down onto the palm rest.

Sadly, this was a not a good thing for the health of the MacBook.

Here’s the carnage report:

1. Dented Palm rest (We did our best to bang the dent out)

2. Dead hard drive (It’s no longer spinning)

3. Lost hard drive data (Since the drive is not spinning, we can’t recover the data)

4. Voided Apple/AppleCare warranty. (Because the damage was due to abuse the repair could not be handled under warranty, and the client had to pay for a new hard drive)

If you spill coffee into your MacBook or MacBook Pro, the trick is to get it to MacMedics fast. Don’t try to fix it yourself, and just because it seems to be working OK, does NOT mean you’re out of the woods. Best thing to do is try to mop up excess liquid, remove the battery, then get it to us a quickly as possible.

Here are some Do-It-Yourself procedures to avoid:

1. Don’t try to turn the unit on NO MATTER WHAT. If there is liquid in the unit, and it’s making a connection between anything, then that could very well be the end of your laptop.

2. Don’t try to take the unit apart yourself. It’s not that hard to take off most MacBook’s top case, but to ensure the liquid is gone, the logic board needs to be removed in almost every case.

3. Don’t try to clean your logic board or any other part of your computer with “distilled” water. In fact, we don’t recommend you even try to clean it at all.

4. If moisture gets in, it’s usually not going to go away on it’s own. If your computer seems to be working after a spill, then that means you most likely got lucky and we might be able to fix/save your MacBook or MacBook Pro. But, in order to do so, turn the unit off and remove the battery. The liquid problem almost never goes away on it’s own.

5. If you have something like coffee, orange juice, soda, and many other type of acidic liquids, two things, 1. the acid will cause more corrosion than just water, and 2. Anything that has sugars in it won’t totally evaporate, it will just turn in a syrup which can cause it’s own set of problems. If you are growing a corrosion “science fair” project inside your laptop, you’ll end up with something that looks like mold that we call “creeping crud“. This stuff is nasty, because as long as it’s inside your unit, it can sort of “grow” and “creep” to reach other parts of your computer and cause more damage along the way. Anything it touches and then grows on will get get fried if power is applied (even well after the liquid is long gone). It’s also very brittle and it can crack off and then “float” around inside of your unit causing more issues as it “pinballs” its way around the inside of your computer.

6. Do us a big favor, don’t put your Apple laptop into an oven to dry it out. This can cause a whole new set of problems. We just wrapped up writing an estimate on a Unibody MacBook Pro that the owner tried to take it apart, then tried to clean the keyboard with water, and then baked the whole thing in the oven. Total repair $1700. New computer $1200.

One other thing to think about: Your hard drive. If your data is NOT backed up, your liquid soaked laptop could be putting your data at risk. This is the first thing we look a when working on a liquid spill case. We remove the hard drive and check to ensure that your data is safe. Most DIY repairs don’t take this into account, and most won’t take the controller off the hard drive to ensure there’s no liquid under it. When making a back up plan, you should take into account laptop damage as a possible way for your data to get in harm’s way. Please ensure you have a back up (tested and working) at all times.

Here’s a testimonial for one that we fixed a while back. This client was smart and he got the unit to us quickly, so we could get the coffee out while it was still wet.

“Well I’ve received my MacBook delivered back to me via your courier; and, I have to tell you that it was like getting a member of the family home from the hospital. Five days after buying my MacBook, I spilled coffee across the open laptop: I was certain that I had just spent $1,200 for coffee I wouldn’t get to enjoy. I never dreamed you could have saved my files– much less the entire computer. I am in awe of the dedication and skill it must have taken to disassemble my laptop, clean it piece by piece, and then return it to me as good as new. Thank you for the attention, the care, and the professionalism you demonstrated in far exceeding my expectations in quality of service and affordability. I highly recommend MacMedics, and would encourage any Mac user who drinks coffee to put your number on speed dial.”

Shane Townsend
Baltimore, Maryland