My 17" MacBook Pro battery finally gave out - it still works, but I get a little triangle alert saying "service battery"

Now this is the longest lasting laptop battery I've ever had. I am a destroyer of batteries, and for the last 10 years, I always managed to break batteries in my laptops before the 1 year warranty had expired. This one did nearly 2 years, and 500 charge cycles and now it's at 77% of its original capacity. It still lasts about 3 - 4 hours.

But the service thingy is on, and it's pretty far off the 6+ hours real life I used to get so I took it to the Mac shop in Chiang Mai, they ran a little tool, asked me if I had AppleCare, and ordered a new one free of charge from Singapore.

So - get AppleCare. It's worth it. Apple charges $179 for this so the AppleCare already paid off (got it at a discount).

Show me any other laptop maker that would replace a 2 year old battery.... not gonna happen....

Yes, a friend of mine had the same service and it surprised me as the fine print on my Apple care says batteries are not included unless faulty. Good for Apple.

So - get AppleCare. It's worth it.

Agree, I have it for my iMac and Macbook Pro.

Some batteries are covered under a replacement plan.

My MacBook battery was replaced regardless of insurance running out because it was very slightly swollen at one end.

Some batteries are covered under a replacement plan.

My MacBook battery was replaced regardless of insurance running out because it was very slightly swollen at one end.

Well OK but that's actually something all laptop makers do - this swollen battery issue appeared a few years back. For one thing, the companies making the batteries ended up paying for the actual battery. And on the other hand, no computer maker can afford YouTube videos showing their laptops explode or catch on fire, or news about laptops causing actual burns on people.

I saw some pretty spectacular burn-outs on YouTube...

Some batteries are covered under a replacement plan.

My MacBook battery was replaced regardless of insurance running out because it was very slightly swollen at one end.

Funny, my trip to phuket alpha apple authorized repair shop in phuket town they told me that the battery is swollen a little bit and that applecare does not cover the battery. They wanted 4000 baht for a new one. I told them I would call apple and confirm that the battery is not covered under the apple care, as I thought it was.

Anyone have any specific suggestions?

Some batteries are covered under a replacement plan.

My MacBook battery was replaced regardless of insurance running out because it was very slightly swollen at one end.

Funny, my trip to phuket alpha apple authorized repair shop in phuket town they told me that the battery is swollen a little bit and that applecare does not cover the battery. They wanted 4000 baht for a new one. I told them I would call apple and confirm that the battery is not covered under the apple care, as I thought it was.

Anyone have any specific suggestions?

If you're still under Apple care it's definitely covered. Even if not, it's probably still covered because swollen batteries pose a fire hazard (don't worry it's rare).

I suggest you ask the same question in the correct Apple discussions board at http://discussions.apple.com, and you contact Apple service per phone.

On the phone you can get a repair ticket which you can then show to the authorized dealer. Then they pretty much have to do a warranty exchange for you. Phone numbers are here, and keep in mind Apple warranty / service is always world-wide, doesn't matter where you bought it:

http://www.apple.com/support/contact/phone_contacts.html

Well, i have quit a few laptops and a few more than 2 years, still going strong on batteries, and you can change them yourself,,, and its not apple and the batteries are cheap as well

Well, i have quit a few laptops and a few more than 2 years, still going strong on batteries, and you can change them yourself,,, and its not apple and the batteries are cheap as well

If you're still under Apple care it's definitely covered. Even if not, it's probably still covered because swollen batteries pose a fire hazard (don't worry it's rare).

I suggest you ask the same question in the correct Apple discussions board at http://discussions.apple.com, and you contact Apple service per phone.

On the phone you can get a repair ticket which you can then show to the authorized dealer. Then they pretty much have to do a warranty exchange for you. Phone numbers are here, and keep in mind Apple warranty / service is always world-wide, doesn't matter where you bought it:

http://www.apple.com...e_contacts.html

After contacting apple thailand customer service #, I marched back into the store and simply told them that I called apple in thailand and they confirmed that the warranty is available for the battery and to insist that the service shop simply call apple themselves with the serial # of the laptop to confirm warranty. She checked, and then came back with a new service contract to sign and said 3-7 business days for battery to arrive. Before, with the DVD drive, it took 2 or 3 days for it to arrive. Dont know why they didn't do that the first time.

i;m not even going to bother with the charger, as apple said that it may or may not be covered, if the bend is due to wear and tear. It still works, that's what counts. If only i had remembered to bring my spare. Didn't think I'd be away for so long. I guess that's what happens when you visit the land of smiles.