Saving a MacBook Air with exploded accu

Opening and repairing the machine

Sep. 14, 2017 - Willem L. Middelkoop

Last night I had a nasty surprise: my original MacBook Air was swollen due to an exploded battery. I immediately had to take action, for reasons of safety and to preserve this piece of modern computer history. Don’t try this at home, but if you do... read along for some practical tips.

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This laptop is not supposed to have a bobble...

The original MacBook Air: Groundbreaking due to its thinness and lack of ports

This battery is dead.

Opening the MacBook Air is possible by removing the bottom lid.

I disconnected the battery from the logic board using a plastic tool (that does not conduct electricity).

Swollen and cracked. I carefully looked for any leaks.

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