My MacBook doesn‘t turn on after SMC reset. I've found on Apple pages that this can happen if you reset the SMC without your MacBook connected to its AC power adapter. I've also tried PRAM and SMC reset and nothing.

Black screen, no charging sound and battery picture when connecting to power supply.

I wonder what is this little yellow button on logic board for? Do any of you have a problem like me?

Does anybody know location of power on pads?

⟐ Commented November 17, 2025 at 16:41 MST

I'm curious if its a the 2016 -> 2017 logic boards are a direct swap as this could be an awesome upgrade to keep me going on a perfectly good 2016 chassis?

⟐ Commented July 27, 2025 at 16:41 MST

I recently installed a new display assembly on the macbook and had some issues. I finally got the display working when i realized that the audio cable was in backwards pins side up instead of down (dumb mistake). When i put everything back together I was worried that the sound may not work. sure enough its not working. not internal speakers are seen by the computer. the error is no output devices found. I reset the PRAM. and even reinstalled OSX. I have checked all my internal connections to the logic board. i ran a hardware diagnostic and its not seeing any issues. I am worried that the audio board and the cable might be fried... any ideas would be awesome.

PS. plugged in headphones and no go.

⟐ Answered December 12, 2018 at 18:19 MST

Normal software upgrade bricked MacBook to the point where EFI bios firmware and/or SMC firmware must be re-flashed by hardware means. I wander which repair methods really worked for you (I list few possibilities, including pressure on Apple to fix it properly). I provide a lot of background below, however I still do not know the answer, even though I propose several. I’d be grateful for answers of those who really managed to fix similar problem. Here is my story (excuse a bit newspaper-like style, I originally wanted to just publish it but ifixit looks like much better place for it):

Being conservative, I did not upgrade to Catalina yet. But my children did and deep trouble started. One MacBook ended totally bricked. No magic buttons for various resets helped. No reinstall possible. Machine randomly shut down in less then a minute, sometimes frenetically blinking the display. Even Linux did not finish boot (did you know that a normal Debian usb stick can also boot on Mac?). Problem was deep, and that deep part is called EFI firmware. Once broken, no software can fix it.

Quick search revealed the problem is widespread. Hundreds of frustrated users on various forums. Some articles about it. Just search for "catalina" and "bricked". Standard Apple answer seemed to be replacement of the logic board. Users gritted their teeth and either paid a hefty price or tried a non-Apple service - and got it fixed for much less.

I considered my own rusted hardware skills and faithfully brought MacBook to Apple. And I got the now standard answer: Failed logic board. After a few emails, I got staff's sympathy but not a better price.

I directly contacted the highest Apple management. I was a bit creative in choosing the right channel for this nontrivial task - I'll keep details for myself but I did it without using any previous personal links I might have had. And I got a very warmhearted answer. Apple assured me that their engineers are now seriously looking into the problem. And my MacBook was repaired for free. I asked about fellow sufferers who are in a similar situation and the answer was promising, yet still not concrete: Engineers are working on it and future solution may involve e.g. software updates or extending warranty in some cases.

For those trapped with a bricked MacBook just now - what are the practical steps to take? I have only my personal guess with no guarantees of any type, albeit this guess is based on very extensive searches all over the net. Try authorized Apple service. Describe what happened and ask about updating EFI firmware via hardware tool or free replacement of the logic board even after the warranty period. Official Apple policy may allow one of these by the time you ask.

If this fails and you don't want to pay for the logic board nor do you want to negotiate further, you have many unofficial options. I tried none of them so decisions and risks are all yours (including risk that problem is not in EFI but in SMC firmware which could also brick a Mac, or there might really be a hardware fault). Here is my list:

• macstube.de in Munchen does the repair for EUR 189. They un-solder the EFI firmware chip, re-program and solder back. They did it many times.
• appleguru.cz in Prague say they could fix it for CZK 6.990 or just CZK 3.990 if you say magic word "VaclavBrick".
• www.cmizapper.com sells a small thing called Matt Card for EUR 65 incl. delivery, you just stick it into the logic board. Unscrewing pentalobe screws is up to you but no soldering, no cables. They mention Catalina problems can be fixed with this. They also sell Medusa tool which you may prefer if you want to fix more Macs. Looks very professional to me.
• www.macunlocks.com has thing similar to Matt Card for GBP 50 plus delivery. (They also plan to make fix possible via their EFI Bios Master tool in the future.)
• People messing with things have seen similar EFI problems before - caused not by Catalina but by improper use of software called "clover". This is your keyword to find their adventurous ways to fix it using tools like Raspberry Pi, e.g. here: https://www.ghostlyhaks.com/forum/macboo...

I am grateful to Apple that I personally did not have to try any of these and wish them success in analyzing what was wrong in Catalina and improving service - maybe adding something like Medusa tool among permitted methods of repair (much more environment friendly, isn't it?) and maybe deciding to replace logic boards for free in the meantime. Because Apple always was a cult of things done well for their users and it is hard to imagine this mess would not be fixed.

Update: I have another MacBook in my family which shuts down randomly every few hours after being touched by Catalina. This is how it started with the first one, later escalating to total brick. So I might need the fix myself soon.

⟐ Commented July 16, 2020 at 18:12 MST

⟐ Commented April 06, 2023 at 19:45 MST

⟐ Answer accepted March 12, 2022 at 12:26 MST

yesterday I repaired my MacBook screen. I forgot to hit the small yellow button on the motherboard before disconnecting the trackpad cable. At this moment the MacBook won’t turn on or give any sign of live. When I disconnect the battery and connect the MacBook to the charger and hit control + option + shift and power button (SMC reset) the white led on the motherboard turns off after 5 sec. When I put the charger back in the MacBook the white light starts to shine again. The charger that works good makes a little noise when the Macbook is plugged in.

Specifications:

A1534

macbook 12 gold

2016

Does anybody have a solution to fix this MacBook or does anybody have the same problem ?

Thank you

greetings Elroy

⟐ Edited April 05, 2020 at 14:00 MST

I am experiencing a weird glitch on my 12” macbook screen. The display color is blown out and showing almost translucent icons and/or previous tabs (it’s difficult for me to explain please refer to the picture below)

The issue doesn’t affect the color on any videos being played although the ‘translucent’ icons still appear. I took a screenshot of the screen and the colors looked find on another device.

Whats happening to my macbook screen?

Please refer to this photo thank you so much

⟐ Commented April 25, 2019 at 0:04 MST

I've bought it from Gumtree and now I've got problem.

The problem what I've got is display shows "glitches" (colourful mostly horizontal lines) - strange thing is - only on white background - when connected to TV - it is fine.

Case/lid got no any signs of damage.

I was wondering it just display flex would fix that - www.ebay.co.uk/itm/401409712743

Apple says "just" £500 for fix which is a bit - oh jesus christ :(

Thank You

Bart

...additional informations.

When I purchased it - it had.... El Capitan on it.

Glitches horizontal lines are/can be everywhere on display (not just in one specific place) when booted.

Not a single glitch when white Apple boot logo on black background + white progress bar + text about how much time to complete installation.

It has SMC 2.35f105 - but BootROM bit old (I think - MB91.0159.B00) - I'm doing now Combo Update 10.13.3 - hoping it will update it.

In this photo glitches "fallow" the window when it is moved around

⟐ Commented November 16, 2022 at 8:36 MST

Mine is wearing out and sitting at 85-89% with about 280 cycles. I feel like the degradation is going pretty fast... (and yes, I will bring it to Genius Bar later if I can't do the fix myself).

⟐ Answer accepted October 20, 2018 at 16:44 MST

Anyway, still not working. I tried to d/c battery and plug in, and check the white LED on the logic board, and that is not going off. Any suggestions?

⟐ Answered March 08, 2018 at 13:59 MST

There was no cracking or anything, I did not take my computer to any assistance yet, but I talked to several on the phone and they all want to change my display, at an absurdly expensive price. Is there another option?

⟐ Commented December 07, 2017 at 19:57 MST

I've used past iFixit guides to do this on older Apple devices. For example, in these Macbook Pro teardowns you can see where to disconnect the iSight camera and microphone.

Does anyone know if this is possible on 12" Retina Macbooks?

⟐ Answer edited April 01, 2017 at 9:09 MST

It makes me think that the issue I was dealing with about it running extremely slow was related to this. I think the Mac’s thermal sensors think the Mac is very hot and needs to cool, therefore lowering the performance. So, is there an easy way to fix this? Or would it require a Logic Board replacement?

Alright here’s what I found:

Ran Diagnostics.

FaceTime Still needs help.

Photos hasn’t synced in hours.

And I got this app…

And now I’m getting this error

I did try to replace the Trackpad flex cable, but as you can see, the one on the right it the replacement, the cable was defective when I got it.

⟐ Commented May 01, 2024 at 17:24 MST

Here are the pictures from coconut battery:

⟐ Commented April 27, 2024 at 20:00 MST

The seller does offer returns but I’d rather just try and fix it if possible, would it be worth it try and bend the metal back out of the way of the port? maybe some very shallow drilling at the tip of the port?

⟐ Commented April 19, 2022 at 19:35 MST

Does anyone know or has tried to use a 2015 topcase on a 2016 model?

From my understanding the ribbon cables (flex cables) are interchangeable, so would it be safe to say or assume that the whole topcase is compatible?

Thanks in advance!

⟐ Answer edited August 19, 2020 at 0:14 MST

I forgot to press the battery disconnect button prior to swapping the trackpad cable in a 2016 A1534. I noticed a little spark/sizzle/smoke come from the logic board sizzle as I was closing up the Macbook. Needless to say the keyboard and trackpad are no longer working. I took a close look at the logic board under a microscope and I found nothing but a nice big solder ball sitting between the pads of L4803 .

I’m not too familiar with board level repair but I’ve been reading a bit about it in light of this disaster and I figure since I have access to all of the tools required to attempt repairing it that I could give it a shot. I don’t see any traces leading to L4803, does anyone know where I would solder a jumper wire?

thanks

pics after removing solder blobs

⟐ Commented December 14, 2018 at 14:00 MST

I had a bunch of coffee on my keyboard few days ago, I was quick to react but too late It seems, cleaned it, dry it at cold temperature with a fan.

It does not start anymore, I am going to let it dry at ambiant temperature for now, and try to find a way to recover it from this bad stuff.

Any ideas

⟐ Answer edited August 16, 2018 at 19:28 MST

Is there a specific ribbon or area I should be looking at to try repairing to fix this issue? Thanks!

Just wanted to add my resolution for anyone finding this in the future:

I bought all the cable replacements and they didn't help. I bought a trackpad unit and it resolved everything. Caveat: the NEW cables (aftermarket) didn't work with the new trackpad unit. I paired the old OEM cables with the new trackpad and voila. Everything is back to normal :)

⟐ Edited by author December 06, 2017 at 16:35 MST