There is really no substitute for accurate and authorized Apple repair service. Our talented and Apple Certified Macintosh techs solved another problem for two different Apple customers who both took the time to leave a 5-Star Review for both our Millersville and Lanham offices this week.

When you’re having issues with your Mac, please come visit our fully staffed and stocked offices in either Millersville or Lanham, Maryland. We’ll fix your Mac under Apple’s Limited Warranty or Apple’s extended warranty, AppleCare. Or, we can efficiently service your out of warranty, vintage, or obsolete Macintosh. When your Mac repair is complete, we’ll ensure you know everything you need to know in order to preserve and protect your valuable data and operate your computer successfully for as long as possible.

We love to help! So instead of making an appointment, trying to find parking, dealing with crowds, or having to worry about your data being erased, or having to deal with your computer being shipped away for repair, come see the Apple Certified Technicians at MacMedics.

Thanks to our customer, Mark, who had his Mac serviced in our Lanham office this week. Here’s his review from Yelp:

My Macintosh desktop computer had a complicated problem; part of the electronics had failed, while most individual components were fine. Since MacMedics is a certified Apple Service Provider and Reseller MacMedics correctly diagnosed the problem, which endless Apple phone support had been unable to do. The replacement part and labor were free, since my computer was still covered by the AppleCare Protection Plan. My computer now works better than when it was new. I also got some excellent technical advice on maintaining the computer, including information on back-up plans. I highly recommend MacMedics.

Mark
1/6/12

Also, thanks to our customer, Richard, who had his Mac serviced in our Millersville office this week. Here’s his review from Yelp.

Small repair. Done in a 15 minute walk up. Best service I have had in a long time. Highly recommend!

Richard
1/7/12

If you’re looking to avoid the Mall today, we have some great last minute gift ideas at some really great prices at the MacMedics Millersville location.

Save $100 New & Custom Built and MAXED out MacBook Air 13”, 1.8GHz i7, 4GB, 256GB Flash, Intel HD Graphics 3000 $1599!

Save $100 New Last revision 13″ MacBook Pro $1499 model: 2.7 GHz i7, 500 GB HDA, 4GB RAM in stock at MacMedics at “mail order” price: $1399

1/17/12 Just Re-Stocked: Save $300 MacBook Air closeout: Previous model: MacBook Air 13.3″ 1.86g 2GB 128GB $999 only a few left at MacMedics Millersville

Also in stock:

iPod touch in both black & white
iPod nano Silver
Apple TV
iPad 2 16 GB WiFi (Black)
iPad 2 16 GB WiFi (White)
Used iPad 1 32 GB WiFi + 3G
Used iPad 1 64 GB WiFi + 3G

Buy any iPod or Mac and get 25% off any case (hard shell, sleeve, or carrying bag)

We also have a wide selection of used MacBooks, MacBook Pros, and MacBook Airs. There is also a small number of iMacs and Mac minis available as well. All MacMedics refurbished Macs carry a full 1-year warranty.

MacMedics also carries new and used iPads. We have sold out for the holidays, but we are expecting some more in soon. If you’re looking to get an iPad or you’re already getting one for the holidays, we do accept trade ins and we also pay cash for them outright (in any condition).

1/12/12 Update Now 25% off LoJack for Laptops, the Mac OR Windows version makes a great gift. If you have a MacBook Pro road warrior or a college student, this is a MUST have item. Order here: http://t.co/aeEWeorb

We’re going to start posting serial numbers of Apple Macintosh computers that have been stolen from clients of MacMedics. The most recent additions will be at the bottom. If you know the wherabouts of one of these units, please get in touch with us at MacMedics so we can let the owner know.

Stolen 11/16/17-11/17/11 from Washington DC Metro area office at the same time, so these units might surface together at the same place for password removal, or hard drive replacement:

MacBook Pro 17″ C02D71BQDC7C and a 15″ MacBook Pro W870710MW0K

Stolen 11″ MacBook Air from Millersville, MD SE# C02DKHYWDDQX

Stolen 12/7/11 From Washington DC Metro area:

MacBook Pro 17” Matte display C02DJ3G6DHYC. Also had a USB mouse dongle attached.

Stolen 12/15/11 From Millersville, MD area

MacBook Pro (13-inch, Late 2011) Serial # C02GJB58DV13
MBP 13.3/2.4/2X2GB/500-5400/SD/GLSY, Apple Limited Warranty

Stolen 1/3/12

W88510P15L9 Macbook Air

Stolen 1/21/12 from the Philadelphia area:

W801912NAGX 15″ MacBook Pro (Mid-2010)

If you have info on any of these units we will forward your information to the owner of the machine and also forward onto law enforcement if needed. Help a fellow Mac user out and do the right thing if you encounter one of these units.

Contact us at mdservice (A T) macmedics (d o t) com or call us toll-free and 1-866-MAC-MEDICS

THANKS!

MacMedics will accept your working, non-working, or damaged Apple hardware as a trade in credit towards a new Apple Macintosh computer, Apple iPad, and Apple iPod. You can also apply a trade in credit towards service on your existing Mac that might be in need of repairs or data recovery.

If you have broken or outdated gear just lying around, MacMedics will even purchase some broken, liquid damaged, or outdated Apple Computers, iPads, or iPods for cash. Older equipment, or units with extreme damage can be dropped off at either Millersville or Lanham for free e-waste recycling.

Both our Millersville and Lanham offices can accept stuff for trade. Call us at 1-866-MAC-MEDICS to discuss what you have and how it can be valued.

Justin, a new MacMedics client who came to us from the Apple Store wrote the following about us on Google on 8/5/11.

The employees at Mac Medics were so helpful and polite. When me and my girlfriend went to the Apple Store they belittled her, talked down to her, and made her feel even worse about the problems she was already having with her MacBook. Mac Medics took the time to explain what the problems might be, how they may be resolved, and the different levels of pricing that may result from the work. I would recommend for any Mac owner to use the services that Mac Medics provides. I know that in the future if I have any problems or when I need to replace my old MacBook, I will be returning to Mac Medics.

Update 1/25/12 Lojack For Laptops is not available from the Apple App Store. See our link below for 25% off.

Update 1/8/12: If you don’t already own LoJack for Laptops for your Mac (or PC for that matter), we highly recommend it. Also, a pro tip from your friends here at MacMedics: Just because this product it called Lojack for Laptops, there’s no reason you cannot install it on any Mac computer. Obviously the iSight camera capture features are not going to work on a Mac Pro or Mac mini, but they can still be tracked, erased, and potentially recovered! Since this MacMedics Blog post seems to get quite a bit of traffic, we’re posting our link for special Lojack pricing that is currently 25% off any version, here:

http://www.macmedics.com/lojack

The LoJack team have been working hard to ensure that LoJack for Laptops will be fully compatible with Apple’s new version of OS X, Lion (10.7)

If you plan to upgrade to OS X Lion before July 25th, you will need to take a few simple steps to maintain your LoJack for Laptops protection until our update is fully distributed.

Step 1: Download and Install OS X Lion (10.7) from the Mac App Store

Step 2: Go to www.lojackforlaptops.com/login and login to access your account (Note: If you have more than one Mac in your account, first click on the Mac you are upgrading.)

Step 3: Click Remove

Step 4: Click Install

Step 5: Download the installer

Step 6: When prompted, enter your registration code.

Step 7: Follow the remaining steps to complete the reinstallation of LoJack for Laptops.

Your LoJack recovery info won’t be of much help to you when you need to report your MacBook or MacBook Pro stolen if you don’t have that info with you. Lojack suggests you print your license info and put it in a safe place. It is not likely that you will be able to find it quickly, or have that info with you while traveling or at work.

Macs get ripped off all the time, so be sure to save this info as a PDF and upload it to your iPhone or iPod touch to iBooks via iTunes, so you’ll have it when you need it the most! See our new Blog post for more info.

Sign up for LoJack for Laptops for Mac here: http://www.macmedics.com/lojack

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Here is a MacBook Pro that was thrown down a hallway. Thankfully MacMedics was able to save the data. Other than the data, the machine is a total loss. The SuperDrive is bent, the case is heavily damaged, the glass is broken and the LCD is also cracked.

While we were able to save the data, this is an extra expense for our client. A better solution would be to have your data fully backed up. If you need help setting up the “Golden Triangle” of backups, talk to your local MacMedics office. We have backup solutions starting at $89 for 320 GBs.

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Your Macintosh Service Advantage: MacMedics Is Exclusively Apple!

As the Apple Macintosh family of computers and other Apple devices like the iPod, iPad, and iPhone become increasingly more popular, more and more computer repair places are offering “Mac Repairs” as a “Side Business”.

It’s tempting for PC centric computer shops to try and grab a new revenue stream by cashing in on the increased number of Macs in the marketplace. Do you really want a PC guy/gal at a PC shop or at a big box store, who is not trained, certified, or authorized in Apple service guessing their way though your Apple repair? We didn’t think so.

We’ve seen some amazing cases of Apple service gone horribly wrong at both big box stores and at independent shops. In fact, we’ve had situations where a computer repair place has tried to fix a Mac, botched or misdiagnosed the repair, only to bring it into MacMedics for us to bail them out of a tough Mac repair situation.

When you’re looking for an Apple Authorized Service Provider for your broken Macintosh or Mac data recovery case, you really should seek out an experienced and professional Macintosh service organization with ALL of the Apple Credentials and Authorizations, such as MacMedics.

MacMedics is a very well established (since 1989) Apple Authorized Service Provider, Apple Authorized Value Added Reseller, as well as Certified Members of The Apple Consultants Network. We have an impressive 22-year history of exclusive dedication to the Macintosh computer platform. We were offering a third party alternative to stuffy Apple Dealer service way before the Apple Store, and way before anyone else in the State of Maryland. In fact, MacMedics was offering on-site Macintosh service in the late Eighties during a time where such a service was considered “in-shop” and “on the bench” everywhere else.

Our Apple service part inventory is quite likely the largest collection of Apple service parts in the Mid-Atlantic region. Since MacMedics bought out macUpgrades of Bethesda, Maryland we acquired all of their Apple Authorized service parts. That’s like having a DOUBLE 20-year accumulation of Apple factory service parts and other supplies! Not only do we have hundreds and hundreds of genuine Apple service parts in stock, we also have tons of vintage and obsolete Apple service parts so we can repair any Macintosh computer ever made. We also have our own Macintosh computer museum so if there is a special service situation where we need to access data from 20 years ago, or make something work in order accomplish a special task, we can do that too!

So when it comes to the most basic Mac repairs, or services like hard drive replacements/upgrade and memory upgrades (ours come with a lifetime warranty by the way), or the most advanced services like Macintosh data recovery or liquid spill rescue, you can count on MacMedics to be there to provide an accurate diagnosis and the correct and appropriate repair for your Macintosh computer.

Macintosh Service is our claim to fame, but we’re also quite well known for Apple Authorized sales as well. MacMedics is an Apple Authorized Value Added Reseller, and as such we have the Authorizations from Apple to not only sell the full Macintosh Computer line, but also to resell the iPad, iPod, and Apple TV.

If you have a unit that is beyond repair, or just one that you put to the side a few years ago, we’ll accept it as a trade in on a new hardware purchase or as credit towards a repair or data recovery. Even if the hardware you have is very old, or extremely damaged, we’ll still accept it for e-waste recycling. So, drop off your broken PC, Mac, iPod, iPhone, iPod, cell phone, or other small electronics like hard drives, small printers, or other reasonably sized electronics, cable, power supplies and adapters for free recycling.

With our two fully staffed Apple Authorized Sales and Service locations serving the Baltimore, Annapolis, Washington DC area as well as the entire Washington DC and Baltimore region, we’re a great place to drop a sick Mac off for repair. Our office in Millersville is 1/10 of a mile off I-97 and our office in Lanham is 1 mile outside of I-495/I-95 and 1/2 mile off of RT 50. No appointments are ever necessary!

If you live in Annapolis and commute to Baltimore or Washington DC or vice versa, then you drive right past one of our offices on every trip you make on I-97 or RT-50. Stop in to see us with your sick or broken Mac, or swing by to pick up a cable, power adapter, iPod, iPad, or anything else Apple related!

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It’s not just fire you need to worry about. Anything can happen, and it will (See this link and the picture of the two week old MacBook Pro below. How do you think that data is doing right now?). You could drop your iPhone, iPod, or laptop or any of those devices could get doused with water, lost, or even stolen. Hurricane season is coming. You’ve got water, wind, surges, power outages, and perhaps even looting if it really gets bad.

Here’s a typical email from a client. This one came today:

“Dear MacMedics:

My daughter has a MacBook which we bought in June 2008. It has served her very well. Her roommate spilled a Coke on a chair but never told her. The computer was there. It was not until my daughter tried to turn it on that she found out. She is devastated because she never backed it up as I repeatedly told her to do. She wonders if there is any hope to just recover her pictures. She doesn’t care about the music or the documents. She lives in CA and I can have her ship it to you or whatever.

Thanks for answering. I suspect this is hopeless.”

So no matter how careful you are, bad stuff happens to good people. In this client’s case, she should have been backing up as soon as she started generating data she cared about AND because her MacBook is more than two years old, she should have been thinking about a hard drive replacement anyways. Another situation is waiting too long to back up.

Ok, you never had a back up, you read a Blog post or an article (like this one) that disturbs you, and you start backing up. You try to back up your data, and in the first full copy it fails and you suspect you did something wrong, so you head to the Apple Store. There’s a problem: Your hard drive is already too worn out to make a full back up and when you try to back it up sitting in the Apple Store at the Genius Bar you end up even further away from your data, because as the Genius is helping you back up, your hard drive is still inside your laptop where it’s failing. The more it fails, the hotter it gets, and the hotter it gets the more it fails, and it CAN literally DIE right then and there.

When you buy a new computer, you really need to also budget about 20% of your computer’s purchase price for the other stuff you need to protect your digital life. A backup hard drive, a stack of blank CD’s. a copy of LoJack for Laptops, and maybe even a subscription to Mozy or CrashPlan Pro. The trick here, is to start backing up when you start generating data, and you keep backing up for as long as you generate new data. By the way it’s not a real back up if it’s not automatic, redundant, and also has an off-site element!

Do it now people! I see good people lose precious data on an almost daily basis. One client lost years of pictures of her deceased son. That one really sucked. Back up, rinse, and repeat and take one of those backups off-site!

MSNBC Video: Disaster-proof your digital possessions. Backup and then take it offsite so says Consumer Reports (and MacMedics)! http://is.gd/u1wEcR

Also see: 9 Things We Wished We Did Before Our House Burned Down. http://www.younghouselove.com/2011/01/on-a-serious-note/

Here’s the list in case you don’t make it to the article, but please take a minute to read it:

1. Subscribe to an online data backup service (my external back up drive sat right next to my laptop in my office).

2. Keep passports in a safe deposit box. (MacMedics Pro Tip: Make copies as well and store digital copy in your new online backup service too!)

3. Take pictures of each room initially and update them as improvements are made (storing them somewhere offsite – like Flickr).

4. Take pictures and keep hyperlinks of all expensive purchases, including jewelry.

5. Hire an architect (my dad in our case) or use floorplanner.com to document each floor layout along with precise wall/ceiling measurements, each outlet, light switch, crown molding, other trim, type of flooring, any unique items to structure of property. (MacMedics Pro Tip: When you rebuild the insurance company will try to pay the lowest amount by building things as basic as possible. By having a detailed floor plan with engineering plans along with pictures of each wall, you can force them to build it the way it was!)

6. Put phones in a consistent place each night (MacMedics Pro Tip: iPhone is right there 24/7!)

7. Get fire ladders for any second floor bedrooms.

8. Scan each photo and receipt, again keeping them offsite, or on an online data backup service.

9. Do not be frugal with homeowner’s insurance. Spend the extra $50 per year for the most coverage. (MacMedics Pro Tip: Highly recommended! Buy a replacement policy rider for anything you have that is valuable. If your $3000 camera or computer system burns up, it’s going to be hard to get full amount. Insurance might pay for $500 to $1000. Also see SafeWare.com for computer insurance. If you don’t own your home, get renter’s insurance. It’s super cheap! Also, I happen to know that clothes are not fully covered in most polices. If you had to replace every single piece of clothing your family owns, that could cost $10,000 right there. Insurance will not cover that)

–
Dana Stibolt
MacMedics
Baltimore – Washington DC – Philadelphia
Apple Authorized Value Added Reseller
Apple Authorized Service Provider
Macintosh Consulting, Service, and Sales
1-866-MAC-MEDICS – 410-987-8588
http://www.macmedics.com

Sign up for LoJack for Laptops for Mac here: http://www.macmedics.com/lojack

This MacBook Pro Unibody came into our Washington DC office. The story is that the unit was destroyed by an angry child. This unit was purchased new on March 25, 2011. Our techs checked this unit out and it’s totaled, so it will need to be replaced. Let’s hope the client can claim this on his credit card Buyer Protection or insurance!