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    Anybody replace SuperDrive with a HDD

    Discussion in 'Apple and Mac OS X' started by blakek89, Jul 16, 2010.

  1. blakek89

    blakek89 Notebook Enthusiast

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    I was thinking about replacing my SuperDrive with an 9.5 mm 500 or 750 GB HDD. Just wondering because it is possible now with SATA connectors. Would this void my warranty?

    Anything else I'm missing
     
    blakek89, Jul 16, 2010
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  2. dbam987

    dbam987 wicked-poster

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    Messing with the Super Drive would void the warranty. The only two things I'm aware of that do not affect the warranty are changing the hard-drive and memory sticks. If you do want to swap out the Super Drive with a hard-drive, check out the MCE Optibay. I plan on doing that next year when my warranty runs out.
     
    dbam987, Jul 16, 2010
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  3. E30kid

    E30kid Notebook Deity

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    Because the back of the laptop is user removable, I don't think that they can tell if the superdrive was removed at any point in time or not. Despite that, if there is a warranty sticker on the gap between the superdrive and the chassis, you are out of luck.

    I also believe that Apple will honor the warranty based upon which parts fail. If you have a logic board failure, they're still going to honor the warranty if the person has aftermarket ram or HDD, for example. I don't know if this applies here.
     
    E30kid, Jul 16, 2010
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  4. DefconZero

    DefconZero Notebook Consultant

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    I don't see why not. Like tmac said, if there's no sticker that'll break when you take out the superdrive, then go for it. And when you do have to send it in for repairs, just put the superdrive back in and they won't be the wiser :).
     
    DefconZero, Jul 16, 2010
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  5. Meever

    Meever Notebook Evangelist

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    Just make sure you keep the drives and screws and put it back in when you are going to the apple store.
     
    Meever, Jul 17, 2010
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  6. aznguyen316

    aznguyen316 Rock Chalk Jayhawk

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    I replaced mine. Put in SSD + stock HDD. Love it. And no, no stickers or anything is tampered with for them to notice. I kept a little baggy for my screws and have the superdrive in an external case + usb cable.
     
    aznguyen316, Jul 17, 2010
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  7. blakek89

    blakek89 Notebook Enthusiast

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    That seems like a good idea just keeping the stock HDD I think i'm gonna do that. did you notice a decrease in battery life or anything else?
     
    blakek89, Jul 17, 2010
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  8. newfiejudd

    newfiejudd Notebook Deity

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    Yeah I have replaced mine also. Never use my DVD drive anyways. Very simple install. No stickers, no issues just make sure you careful with the screw heads, and don't strip them take your time and make sure you get a properly fitting screw driver.
     
    newfiejudd, Jul 18, 2010
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  9. aznguyen316

    aznguyen316 Rock Chalk Jayhawk

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    I can't speak for the battery life since I got the MBP two days ago and first thing I did was take out the superdrive lol. So I haven't gotten accurate battery test readings or don't know what to expect either haha
     
    aznguyen316, Jul 18, 2010
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  10. blakek89

    blakek89 Notebook Enthusiast

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    Where did you get the brackets for the HDD to fit in the Super Drive spot?
     
    blakek89, Jul 18, 2010
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  11. aznguyen316

    aznguyen316 Rock Chalk Jayhawk

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    ^ayagroup although I had to take off some of it to fit properly. Also google optibay (most expensive option though) or ebay has plenty if you search up optibay or macbook caddy etc etc.
     
    aznguyen316, Jul 19, 2010
    #11