Macbook trackpad. Unibody, late 2008.

Weird. Everything was grand last night. Listening to music, shut all applications off and closed the top of the macbook to put it in sleep mode. This morning, try and check my emails and my trackpad seems to be broken. It can do pretty much everything it's supposed to, however, the one finger tap to click isnt working. One finger on the track pad seems to just highlight everything. Im not a fan of physical clicks, I just like tapping.
I restarted the machine, took the battery out, cleaned it, played around in system prefs... now Im using my mouse. Any ideas?

the same exact thing happened to me! just out of the blue...I did all the same things as you and it worked randomly once earlier today and now it won't click when i tap and it just highlights everything...someone help!!

Similar Messages

MacBook Pro Unibody (late 2008) crash when using GeForce 9600M GT

Every time I do heavy 3D rendering or play 3D games (such World of Warcraft) with the NVIDIA GeForce 9600M GT, after few minutes my MacBook Pro (unibody, late 2008) freezes, black screen and audio looping, no actions possibile, only hard shutdown... No problems with the 9400M.
What should I do? Get a replacement?

I've had mine for a little less than two months and I noticed the overheating shortly after I got it. I think it's mostly because the fans don't spin up soon enough because the SMC controller on mine does not work properly and even if you reset it, it reverts back to only spinning the fans after a cpu/gpu temps over 90 degrees Celsius (almost boiling point!).
Mine is currently in for service but I'm being told that they haven't been able to duplicate the issue so I don't understand what method of testing they are using. I hope they don't keep my computer in repair for a long time. I know that if I fire up the Black & White 2 Demo, Call of Duty 4, or Spore and play for about 10-20 minutes the computer crashes if the fans don't spin up... Apple released a firmware update for the SMC controller but it doesn't apply to my model which is a MacBookPro 5,1 , maybe Apple doesn't realize yet how widespread the fan problem even on the late 2008 model is but it needs to be resolved and a third party utility to control the fans should not be necessary on the finest laptops available on the market. I'm confident that they will come up with something...
http://discussions.apple.com/thread.jspa?messageID=9115055&#9115055

Macbook Aluminum Unibody (Late 2008) Display Flicker

My Macbook's display has been great for the past 2 and a half years, but recently the whole assembly had to be replaced by apple due to a cable issue, and this new display is displaying what seems to be a common issue.
At the lowest brightness setting, which I frequently use to save power and reduce eye strain, the display (read:backlight) flickers. I have noticed that this plagues all of the iMacs (first iteration with a completely metal enclosure, 2010?), at least the ones I have used, in my school's computer lab. And this is NOT a smooth change in brightness due to changes in ambient light.
This is a known issue: http://forums.macrumors.com/showthread.php?t=596727
http://forums.macrumors.com/showthread.php?t=593188
So what can I do? Any fixes? Since I just got this part replaced, I can go back and get it replaced at Apple for free, but I'd like to see if any other ways have been discovered first.

I've had mine for a little less than two months and I noticed the overheating shortly after I got it. I think it's mostly because the fans don't spin up soon enough because the SMC controller on mine does not work properly and even if you reset it, it reverts back to only spinning the fans after a cpu/gpu temps over 90 degrees Celsius (almost boiling point!).
Mine is currently in for service but I'm being told that they haven't been able to duplicate the issue so I don't understand what method of testing they are using. I hope they don't keep my computer in repair for a long time. I know that if I fire up the Black & White 2 Demo, Call of Duty 4, or Spore and play for about 10-20 minutes the computer crashes if the fans don't spin up... Apple released a firmware update for the SMC controller but it doesn't apply to my model which is a MacBookPro 5,1 , maybe Apple doesn't realize yet how widespread the fan problem even on the late 2008 model is but it needs to be resolved and a third party utility to control the fans should not be necessary on the finest laptops available on the market. I'm confident that they will come up with something...
http://discussions.apple.com/thread.jspa?messageID=9115055&#9115055

Safe sleep or hibernation won't work on my Macbook 13" Unibody (late 2008)

I have a 13" unibody Macbook which I bought in October 2008. The systems sleeps well once the lid is closed but if it runs out of battery it will not hibernate. I checked the output of pmset and everything is properly set for mode 3, which is the "safe sleep". I even tried setting it to hibernate only and it still goes to sleep.
I found several people with similar problems, but nobody seems to have solved the problem. I can't believe that such a simple thing as setting your system to hibernate can be so complicated to achieve with OS X.
My pmset output is below. The sleepfile is dated back to June 20 when I removed the file and it got automatically recreated during reboot, but no updates to the file since then. I don't have PGP installed (I did but I removed) and I have the system (including firmware) all updated to the latest versions.
mymac:~ user$ pmset -g
Active Profiles:
Battery Power -1
AC Power -1*
Currently in use:
sleep 0
sms 1
acwake 0
displaysleep 10
autorestart 0
hibernatefile /var/vm/sleepimage
hibernatemode 3
womp 0
halfdim 1
disksleep 10
lidwake 1
ttyskeepawake 1
mymac:~ user$ pmset -g cap
Capabilities for AC Power:
displaysleep
disksleep
sleep
womp
acwake
autorestart
lidwake
halfdim
sms
mymac:~ user$ ls -ls /var/vm/sleepimage
8388608 -rw------T 1 root wheel 4294967296 Jun 20 00:06 /var/vm/sleepimage
mymac:~ user$
Thanks,
Alberto.

I have found a solution to my Mac shutting down completely without using hibernation or safe sleep. It turns out about a year ago I ran SmartSleep. A piece of software to allow you to put the mac to sleep the old way. Turns out it corrupts the Powermanagment.plist file when uninstalled. It needs to be deleted to reset to system defaults. More info here:
http://markandkelley.com/mark/?p=75#comments
Whether this will stop my mac shutting down straight away anyway I have yet to find out, but at least the contents of the comp are saved first now.

MacBook Unibody (late 2008): audio + video to HDTV

Have a MacBook Unibody (late 2008), and after reading forums, purchased a miniDP -> HDMI cable as well as a miniToslink to Toslink cable (3.5mm jack to Digital Audio Output). Video works fine, but unfortunately, even with the red LEDs shining bright, no sound comes through to my 2009 Samsung HDTV.
In preference -> sound -> output, digital out / digital optical-out port is selected, but it does also say "the selected device has no output controls." iTunes music does not play with the Toslink cable in but will resume after the cable is removed.
Is it a setting on my MacBook or Samsung TV that I need to adjust? Is it a specific HDMI port I need to use with the Digital Audio Output (Optical) line to audio in sound (no number appears)?
Really appreicate any insight you might have!

I was going to do the same thing then after reading my TV manual I realized that the Digital Audio on the TV was an OUT not an INPUT. In other words it is used to connect your TV to sound system for a better experience. Not a digital input from a connect device.
Check your manual and see what the function of that plug on your TV is for. If it is for both INPUT and OUTPUT then there must be an audio setting.
Cheers,
Andrew

Bootcamp 3.1 Macbook Pro 15 Unibody Late 2008 fans working now?

I just upgraded bootcamp to 3.1 on my macbook pro 15 unibody late 2008. I ran Windows Experience Index under win7 Pro 64bit and the fans were humming loud and clear during the test which is a good sign. It runs about the same as when using 9600 in Leopard (very warm). Two finger right click is still a little sketchy, but at least I won't be using my macbook as a frying pan any time soon.

Resetting SMC could solve the problem.
Intel-based Macs: Resetting the System Management Controller (SMC)
And you need to install more RAM, I think.

MacBook (unibody late 2008) - RAM question

Hi All,
I am fairly new to this community but from I have seen so far there is a lot of knowledge contained in these threats.
I have a MacBook (unibody late 2008) with the following specifications:
Hardware Overview:
Model Name:          MacBook
Model Identifier:          MacBook5,1
Processor Name:          Intel Core 2 Duo
Processor Speed:          2 GHz
Number of Processors:          1
Total Number of Cores:          2
L2 Cache:          3 MB
Memory:          2 GB
Bus Speed:          1.07 GHz
Boot ROM Version:          MB51.007D.B03
SMC Version (system):          1.32f8
Serial Number (system):          W8******1AQ
Hardware UUID: ******
Sudden Motion Sensor:
State:          Enabled
After installing Lion a few weeks ago everything has significantly slowed down I feel that a revamp boosting RAM and memory would help. I currently have 2GB RAM (2 x 1GB) and 160GB hard drive. Hard drive details below:
NVidia MCP79 AHCI:
Vendor:          NVidia
Product:          MCP79 AHCI
Link Speed:          3 Gigabit
Negotiated Link Speed:          1.5 Gigabit
Description:          AHCI Version 1.20 Supported
FUJITSU MHZ2160BH FFS G1:
Capacity:          160.04 GB (160,041,885,696 bytes)
Model:          FUJITSU MHZ2160BH FFS G1
Revision:          0081008C
Serial Number:                  K64******N6T
Native Command Queuing:          Yes
Queue Depth:          32
Removable Media:          No
Detachable Drive:          No
BSD Name:          disk0
Medium Type:          Rotational
Partition Map Type:          GPT (GUID Partition Table)
S.M.A.R.T. status:          Verified
Volumes:
disk0s1:
Capacity:          209.7 MB (209,715,200 bytes)
BSD Name:          disk0s1
Content:          EFI
Macintosh HD:
Capacity:          159.18 GB (159,182,127,104 bytes)
Available:          16.87 GB (16,865,333,248 bytes)
Writable:          Yes
File System:          Journaled HFS+
BSD Name:          disk0s2
Mount Point:          /
Content:          Apple_HFS
Recovery HD:
Capacity:          650 MB (650,002,432 bytes)
BSD Name:          disk0s3
Content:          Apple_Boot
I have done some research on line and I have the following questions:
RAM
1) What is the maximum RAM my mac can take without causing problems. Apple mentions that the maximum RAM is 4GB (2 x 2GB) but I have seen mentioned in threats that up to 8GB have been installed.
2) The RAM quoted in the specs from apple is DDR3 PC3-8500/DDR3-1066. Could I use a faster chip such as DDR3 PC3-10600/DDR3-1333 or is this upgrade not advisable.
Hard Drive
1) Is there a limit to the maximum capacity re hard drive. The maximum apple used to offer this model was 320GB. I would ideally would like to go up to 500GB to 1TB.
2) The specs of my existing drive are: 160GB 5400-rpm Serial ATA hard disk drive. Could I get a faster disk, say 7200 rpm to increase performance and will this have any significant impact on battery life and heat?
Further more any recommendations in terms of any of the above welcome.
A lot of information but I wanted to offer all the info needed for meaningful advice.
Thanks in advance.
<Edited By Host>

Hi Christos77,
I also have a late 2008 13 inch unibody MacBook - mine has the 2.4GHz Intel Core 2 Duo processor and a 250GB Toshiba hard drive. At the beginning of January I upgraded my RAM from the original 2GB to 8GB from OWC and it made an enormous difference to the functionality of my machine. In fact, it turned it from being almost unusable to working in a reasonable way.
The recent death of my Time Capsule has prompted me to re-think my setup and, basically, what I need is a drive with greater capacity than my original Toshiba 250GB that the MacBook shipped with. I'm currently working with only 11.65GB of Available disk space so I need to do something pretty quickly.
I've been researching over the past couple of days and decided that my need for storage is greater than my need for speed so I've decided to replace my existing HDD with a new HDD instead of going down the OWC 'Data Doubler' route.
I, too, thought that the 750GB WD Scorpio Black 7200 rpm drive would be the best (and most cost-effective) solution but I've read reports from some users that it was either noisy and/or hot. However, none of these comments came from users with a late 2008 MacBook.
I would be very grateful if you could confirm that, after almost twelve months, you're still happy with your WD Scorpio Black drive in your late 2008 MacBook?
One last question ... when you now check the Serial ATA details in the System Report, does it still show your new WD hard drive having a 'Negotiated Link Speed' of 1.5 GB or is it now SATA 2 (i.e. 3GB)?
Many thanks for your help.
Cheers
Tricia
BTW I've been running OS X 10.7.x on my system since it came out - no problems at all with it - am thinking of upgrading to 10.8 because I've read that it takes a little less space and is more efficient in memory management - but will have to check a few more things first before I decide to do that!
Message was edited by: Patricia Henwood to add OS details

Problem description: (MacBook Pro 15" late 2008, OSX Yosemite 10.10.2 installed, no pending updates) computer is running very slow - takes 2-3 minutes to open apps such as Pages, even when no other apps are open. Randomly freezes and becomes unrespo

Problem description:
(MacBook Pro 15” late 2008, OSX Yosemite 10.10.2 installed, no pending updates) computer is running very slow - takes 2-3 minutes to open apps such as Pages, even when no other apps are open. Randomly freezes and becomes unresponsive, requiring forced power down. Randomly logs off. Removed Kodak AIO software via Clean My Mac2, but BonjourAgent still there and requesting access. Cleaned weekly with Clean My Mac2 and running Sophos AntiVirus. 2GB memory installed. Currently 169.99 GB available of 249.2 GB capacity.
Help?
EtreCheck version: 2.1.8 (121)
Report generated March 21, 2015 at 11:35:35 AM EDT
Download EtreCheck from http://etresoft.com/etrecheck
Click the [Click for support] links for help with non-Apple products.
Click the [Click for details] links for more information about that line.
Hardware Information: ℹ️
    MacBook Pro (15-inch, Late 2008) (Technical Specifications)
    MacBook Pro - model: MacBookPro5,1
    1 2.4 GHz Intel Core 2 Duo CPU: 2-core
    2 GB RAM Upgradeable
        BANK 0/DIMM0
            1 GB DDR3 1067 MHz ok
        BANK 0/DIMM1
            1 GB DDR3 1067 MHz ok
    Bluetooth: Old - Handoff/Airdrop2 not supported
    Wireless: en1: 802.11 a/b/g/n
    Battery Health: Normal - Cycle count 59
Video Information: ℹ️
    NVIDIA GeForce 9400M - VRAM: 256 MB
        Color LCD 1440 x 900
    NVIDIA GeForce 9600M GT - VRAM: 256 MB
System Software: ℹ️
    OS X 10.10.2 (14C1514) - Time since boot: 0:13:37
Disk Information: ℹ️
    Hitachi HTS543225L9SA02 disk0 : (250.06 GB)
        EFI (disk0s1) <not mounted> : 210 MB
        Macintosh HD (disk0s2) / : 249.20 GB (168.91 GB free)
        Recovery HD (disk0s3) <not mounted> [Recovery]: 650 MB
    HL-DT-ST DVDRW GS21N
USB Information: ℹ️
    Apple Inc. Built-in iSight
    Apple Inc. BRCM2046 Hub
        Apple Inc. Bluetooth USB Host Controller
    Apple, Inc. Apple Internal Keyboard / Trackpad
    Apple Computer, Inc. IR Receiver
Gatekeeper: ℹ️
    Mac App Store and identified developers
Kernel Extensions: ℹ️
        /Library/Extensions
    [not loaded]    com.leapfrog.driver.LfConnectDriver (1.11.1 - SDK 10.10) [Click for support]
    [loaded]    com.sophos.kext.sav (9.2.50 - SDK 10.8) [Click for support]
    [loaded]    com.sophos.nke.swi (9.2.50 - SDK 10.8) [Click for support]
        /System/Library/Extensions
    [not loaded]    com.leapfrog.codeless.kext (2) [Click for support]
Launch Agents: ℹ️
    [not loaded]    com.adobe.AAM.Updater-1.0.plist [Click for support]
    [running]    com.kodak.BonjourAgent.plist [Click for support]
    [loaded]    com.oracle.java.Java-Updater.plist [Click for support]
    [running]    com.sophos.uiserver.plist [Click for support]
Launch Daemons: ℹ️
    [loaded]    com.adobe.fpsaud.plist [Click for support]
    [loaded]    com.adobe.SwitchBoard.plist [Click for support]
    [loaded]    com.leapfrog.connect.authdaemon.plist [Click for support]
    [loaded]    com.macpaw.CleanMyMac2.Agent.plist [Click for support]
    [loaded]    com.oracle.java.Helper-Tool.plist [Click for support]
    [loaded]    com.oracle.java.JavaUpdateHelper.plist [Click for support]
    [running]    com.sophos.common.servicemanager.plist [Click for support]
User Launch Agents: ℹ️
    [not loaded]    com.adobe.AAM.Updater-1.0.plist [Click for support]
    [loaded]    com.macpaw.CleanMyMac2Helper.diskSpaceWatcher.plist [Click for support]
    [loaded]    com.macpaw.CleanMyMac2Helper.scheduledScan.plist [Click for support]
    [loaded]    com.macpaw.CleanMyMac2Helper.trashWatcher.plist [Click for support]
User Login Items: ℹ️
    Dropbox    Application (/Applications/Dropbox.app)
Internet Plug-ins: ℹ️
    AdobeExManDetect: Version: AdobeExManDetect 1.1.0.0 - SDK 10.7 [Click for support]
    FlashPlayer-10.6: Version: 16.0.0.305 - SDK 10.6 [Click for support]
    Default Browser: Version: 600 - SDK 10.10
    Flash Player: Version: 16.0.0.305 - SDK 10.6 Outdated! Update
    AdobeAAMDetect: Version: AdobeAAMDetect 2.0.0.0 - SDK 10.7 [Click for support]
    AmazonMP3DownloaderPlugin1017265: Version: AmazonMP3DownloaderPlugin 1.0.17 [Click for support]
    JavaAppletPlugin: Version: Java 8 Update 31 Check version
    AmazonMP3DownloaderPlugin: Version: AmazonMP3DownloaderPlugin 1.0.17 [Click for support]
    QuickTime Plugin: Version: 7.7.3
    iPhotoPhotocast: Version: 7.0 - SDK 10.8
User internet Plug-ins: ℹ️
    CitrixOnlineWebDeploymentPlugin: Version: 1.0.94 [Click for support]
    Google Earth Web Plug-in: Version: 6.0 [Click for support]
Safari Extensions: ℹ️
    AdBlock
    Disconnect
    Add To Amazon Wish List
3rd Party Preference Panes: ℹ️
    Flash Player [Click for support]
    Java [Click for support]
    Tuxera NTFS [Click for support]
Time Machine: ℹ️
    Skip System Files: NO
    Mobile backups: OFF
    Auto backup: YES
    Volumes being backed up:
        Macintosh HD: Disk size: 249.20 GB Disk used: 80.29 GB
    Destinations:
        Backup [Local]
        Total size: 63.67 GB
        Total number of backups: 1
        Oldest backup: 2015-02-23 16:16:08 +0000
        Last backup: 2015-02-23 16:16:08 +0000
        Size of backup disk: Too small
            Backup size 63.67 GB < (Disk used 80.29 GB X 3)
Top Processes by CPU: ℹ️
         5%    WindowServer
         1%    loginwindow
         0%    AppleSpell
         0%    SophosUIServer
         0%    SophosAntiVirus
Top Processes by Memory: ℹ️
    118 MB    InterCheck
    101 MB    SophosScanD
    60 MB    Dropbox
    54 MB    mds_stores
    41 MB    SophosAntiVirus
Virtual Memory Information: ℹ️
    49 MB    Free RAM
    682 MB    Active RAM
    652 MB    Inactive RAM
    315 MB    Wired RAM
    1.49 GB    Page-ins
    2 MB    Page-outs
Diagnostics Information: ℹ️
    Mar 21, 2015, 11:18:52 AM    Self test - passed
    Mar 21, 2015, 10:53:03 AM    /Library/Logs/DiagnosticReports/SophosUIServer_2015-03-21-105303_[redacted].cra sh
    Mar 19, 2015, 07:59:03 PM    /Library/Logs/DiagnosticReports/CalNCService_2015-03-19-195903_[redacted].crash

Linc Davis wrote:
Slow performance after installing Yosemite on an older Mac is often caused by inadequate memory. Although you can install the upgrade on a Mac with 2 GB of memory, experience has shown that at least 4 GB is needed for full performance.
Select About This Mac from the Apple menu. If you have less than 4 GB of memory, and your model has upgradable memory, install as much as it can take, or at least that much. Any reputable RAM vendor will have a web form in which you can select the Mac model and be directed to compatible parts.
Memory in the MacBook Air is not upgradable. If that's what you have, you should restore the previous system from a backup, or replace the machine. Ask if you need guidance.
The Etrecheck report clearly shows that SylvieRose has a Macbook Pro, not a Macbook Air and that there are only 2 GB RAM installed. The Etrecheck report can be very informative if one takes the time to examine it.
Ciao.

Macbook 13 inch late 2008 screen not illuminated on one side

Hi Apple Community,
I need help! My late 2008 13 inch aluminium Macbook screen has 'died' on one side resulting in one side being noticeably dark. The left side has no problems, only the right side.
I am a student living in New Zealand where there is no Apple store in the country I can go to. Local service shop says just to look at it and confirm that one side is dark (which any 2 year old cad identify that it is) will cost a ridiculous $100. Estimated cost will be around $1000 to replace screen.
Has anyone had the same problem and how have you solved it? What is the cost of repair or is there something I can do it help it?
Macbook specs:
MacBook, 13inch, Aluminium, Late 2008
Processor: 2.4 Ghz Intel Core 2 Duo
Memory: 4 GB
Software: OS X 10.9.4 (Mavericks)
I do not have AppleCare
Thanks!

Try these folks at www.usedmac.com. You may have some luck getting technical help from them by email. It is more difficult by phone. You can look through the parts list for what they have in stock for your computer model to get an idea of the prices. You probably won't need any heavy or large parts so some priority mail service won't break the bank. Your problem may simply be a cable but even a back light led or controller circuit board should not be too expensive. It will require some careful work on your part for replacement.
good luck.

User Contributed Tips in The MacBook Pro Display (Late 2008) forum

*The following User Contributed Tips are located in the MacBook Pro (Late 2008) > The MacBook Pro Display (Late 2008) forum:*
None at this time.
*The following related tips are located in other areas of Apple Discussions:*
a brody - Using a second Mac as a display for a first
http://discussions.apple.com/thread.jspa?threadID=1587927
Publish date: July 7, 2008
See also User Tips Library

I bought this computer with no disks, upgraded to Lion
Replacement System Discs can be obtained from Apple's Customer Support - US (800) 767-2775 for a nominal fee. You'll need to have the model and serial number of your Mac available.
If you're not in the US, you may need to go through the regional Apple Store that serves your location to find the contact number - http://store.apple.com/Catalog/US/Images/intlstoreroutingpage.html
for some reason AHT wasn't installed
AHT is included in system disc #1.

10.9.2 update on MacBook 5,1 (late 2008) failed

After installing the 10.9.2 update (from 10.9.1), my Macbook 5,1 (late 2008) no longer boots. It displays some reverse video text (white on black) from a low level program (boot loader?) and stops. After a moment the graphics go funny. In 30 years, I've never seen a mac display a text boot message before! The system boots from the recovery partition and also from other disks with different system versions so the hardware is funadmentally ok. I booted into the recovery partition and repaired the disk permissions with disk utility, but it didn't help. And I can access the disk from the command shell. Any other suggestions besides a reinstall?

As it looks like OS X 10.9.2 damaged OS X Mavericks, I recommend you to start up in OS X Recovery and reinstall OS X. You will not lose anything.
If after reinstalling OS X the problems are still there, boot in OS X Recovery, format the Mavericks partition with Disk Utility and reinstall OS X.

Why SLFM is not enabled for Macbook 13" Aluminum late 2008 model?

Hi All,
Does anyone know why SLFM is not enabled for Macbook 13" Aluminum late 2008 model?
I just found this out after I installed bootcamp and Windows 7 on my Macbook 13" with P8600 2.4Ghz CPU 2GB RAM and 250G HDD after more than a year of using it.
After I installed the CPU monitoring widget on Windows 7 and CPUZ, I noticed that the lowest Freq that my Macbook operates even with <5% CPU load is only 1.5Ghz and VID @1.0V.
I installed Coolbook on OSX to confirm what I saw on Windows. I was surprised that SLFM is not visible in Coolbook which is the same result I got from Windows 7 CPU monitoring widget and CPUZ.
I checked with our local Mac support and they got the same results for all of Macbook 13" Aluminums late 2008 model. SLFM is not visible on Coolbook which means, it is not enabled.
I tried to install Coolbook on my wife's Macbook Pro 13" 2010, which has the same spec, P8600 2.4Ghz CPU and 250G HDD. The only difference is the memory which is 4GB RAM. There, SLFM is enabled and works just fine, running at 798Mhz @0.875V.
Can anyone please help confirm if this is really the case for Macbook 13" late 2008 model?
Because I checked the Intel P8600 Datasheet and SLFM should always be enabled. Otherwise, it will affect battery life as well as long term reliability of the CPU.
I would appreciate if the Macbook and Macbook Pro owners in this forum can help confirm using Coolbook the status of SLFM in your own Macbooks. You may use any other tool in checking the SLFM and share it with us if you believe it is more reliable and better than Coolbook. Thanks.
Message was edited by: jespada

BTW, Here is what I got from Coolbook for comparison. As you can see the late 2008 Macbook has no SLFM info.
Legend:
SLFM - Super Low Freq Mode
LFM - Low Freq Mode
HFM GV - High Freq Mode (Geyserville/Speedstep)
HFM - High Freq Mode
Macbook 13" Aluminum late 2008 P8600 2.4Ghz 2GB RAM 250GB HDD
Freq VID
SLFM -- --
LFM 1596Mhz 1.0000V
HFM GV2 1862Mhz 1.0500V
HFM GV1 2128Mhz 1.1000V
HFM 2394Mhz 1.1375V
Macbook Pro 13" Aluminum 2010 P8600 2.4Ghz 4GB RAM 250GB HDD
Freq VID
SLFM 798Mhz 0.8750V
LFM 1596Mhz 1.0000V
HFM GV2 1862Mhz 1.0500V
HFM GV1 2128Mhz 1.1000V
HFM 2394Mhz 1.1375V
Message was edited by: jespada
Message was edited by: jespada

Macbook Pro 15" late 2008 random improper shutdowns on battery

Hi, my macbook pro 15" late 2008 model shuts down by itself when on battery. The problem started one day out of nowhere about 2 months ago. There seems to be no recurring pattern in the shutdowns as I can sometimes use the computer for one or two hours, sometimes only 5 minutes before it shuts down. The computer works perfectly when the charger is plugged in, and also when the battery is pulled out and only the charger is plugged in.
Here is what I've done so far:
Reset of the SMC
Reset of PRAM
Repair of hard disk and disk permissions with Disk Utility
Reinstallation of Snow Leopard 10.6.3 from disc and then install of all software updates
Reinstallation of all updates with the downloadable Combo Update
None of this fixed the problem.
I am a student in Glasgow, but normally live in Luxemburg. When I went back to Lux for the holidays I sent the mac for repair at Lineheart Luxemburg. The first time it was returned to me after a week. They hadn't detected the problem because they had only ran the tests with the charger pluggged in. I was quite annoyed as you might understand. All they told me was to buy an 85W charger for the mac as I only had a 60W one. This is my uncles old computer and I don't know why he had the wrong charger. I got the computer a year ago and it had worked flawlessly until now. The 85W charger didn't fix my problem.
I sent the mac back to Lineheart and they ran a second test for free. They found the problem and all they did was to repair the hard drive with Disk Utility and reinstall Snow Leopard 10.6.3. WHICH I HAD ALREADY DONE MYSELF. This time I was really annoyed. The problem basically occured again straight after I went to get the computer.
Now I am back in Glasgow and I have an appointment at the Genius Bar tomorrow. I hope they can be of a bit more help although the people at Lineheart are "Apple Mac Certified Technicians" too. I've already spent 140€ for nothing.
All I really want is to test the computer with another battery since the problem seems to really come from there. However none of the technicians did this and I don't have any friends with a similar model of Macbook.
The cycle count is at 263 and the status is "normal" for the battery.
There is a weird problem though, when I plugg in the charger the icon on the top right will first say "not charging" if I unplug the cable at this moment the computer dies. If I leave it in for about a minute it will start calculating the time until full charge. This takes MUCH LONGER than it used to and when it's done I get something silly like 20 hours or 6:30 hours until full charge. After 5-10 minutes it starts calculating again. After a long time I get something more sensible like 1:30 or 2 hours until full charge. Notice that during this entire time, the percentage of the charge will not have change by a single percent. It can sometimes take up to an hour until the battery actually starts charging.
I've read on different forums that this can be related to the logic board and then my Macbook will just have to become a stationary computer since I can't pay 1200€ to get the logic board replaced. I really hope I just need battery replacement.
Also, after I turn on the mac again after an improper shutdown my antivirus (avast!) will give me a message "An internal error has occured. You can find more information in the system logs. After filtering for shutdown this is what I found. (sorry for the screenshot, I couldn't find how to copy the log)
Sorry for this very long description but I wanted you to have all the information. I'm really getting desperate so any help is appreciated even if it's only on how to locate the problem I would be so gratefull. Thank you all.
Daniel Lecoq

Yes, I boot up from the OS 10.6.3 installation disc and use Disc Utility to repair Disk and Permissions. I must tell you though, I've done the disc repair and permission repair quite a few times and it has never helped. Right now I've forgotten the OS disc in Luxemburg so I can only get it when I'm back in 3 weeks.
I ran Disc Utility today though and repaired permissions. The only one that wasn't fixed was an SUID-file.
I also checked the disc and it has some problems but I can't fix them until I get my OS disc or if I ask them to do it at the Genius Bar.
Yes, I have a Time Machine backup on an external usb HDD, last time I backed up was yesterday.

MacBook Pro, 15" Late 2008, 10.6.7 Model 2,2 2.16 ghz Core 2 Duo

MacBook Pro, 15" Late 2008, 10.6.7 Model 2,2 2.16 ghz Core 2 Duo
This condition just sprang up. Machine not dropped, no new parts added, OS stable, no single or significant change to anything on the box. No new external hardware.
Did a restart and the following thing happens:
When power is initially put to the box, the screen lights up, and it displays a full screen, small checkerboard pattern. You can see the Apple icon underneath the checkerboard. The boot circle spins, and then the screen displays grey, and never makes it to blue.
So I tried to boot up in safe mode. The same thing happens at the start of the boot sequence, however, after entering the safe mode, the startup proceeds normally, boots to the harddrive, and when the box changes from grey screen to blue screen, the checkerboard on the screen goes away and I have a perfectly good display, with everything working normally (but in the safe mode).
I have tried the following:
Boot from Apple CD . . . Still get the checkerboard pattern through grey screen, then as the OS loads, the pattern gets worse, (goes from a full screen pattern, to something like a "two page pattern" and it never gets to blue screen, you can never see the OS desktop.
Won't boot from USB drive.
Won't boot from external Dvd drive (Reads the disk, but won't boot, just like the internal drive).
Already changed RAM, RAM slots, etc. Nothing plugged into any port. Everything disconnected.
Changed internal harddrives, same thing happens. Zapped the PRAM, Firmware is good, etc.
Since this event happens no matter the harddrive, and the box won't startup from the Apple CD, I'm guessing it's a piece of hardware that has gone bad.
The only thing I can think to do, is to unplug all the different ancillary items, (ethernet, USB, airport, CD, etc), one at a time, off of the motherboard, and keep trying to start up normally in an effort to isolate the hardware that is bad. In other words, if I unplug the airport card from the motherboard, and the machine starts normally, then I think I would have isolated the problem. IF it does not start normally, unplug the next sub system, and try it again.
YEs, I did run Techtool Pro, and etc., and all systems passed.
Any thoughts ?
Thanks So much,
erebus
Doesn't the safe mode disable all the hardware sub-systems? IS this why my machine starts in Safe, but won't boot normally ???

Yes, I boot up from the OS 10.6.3 installation disc and use Disc Utility to repair Disk and Permissions. I must tell you though, I've done the disc repair and permission repair quite a few times and it has never helped. Right now I've forgotten the OS disc in Luxemburg so I can only get it when I'm back in 3 weeks.
I ran Disc Utility today though and repaired permissions. The only one that wasn't fixed was an SUID-file.
I also checked the disc and it has some problems but I can't fix them until I get my OS disc or if I ask them to do it at the Genius Bar.
Yes, I have a Time Machine backup on an external usb HDD, last time I backed up was yesterday.

What is the maximum hard drive size can I install into my MacBook Pro 15 "late 2008 ?

Hello community, I play with the thought in my MacBook Pro 15 "late 2008 equipped with an SSD hard drive. What is the maximum hard drive size can I install? Thank you in advance
Dirk

mende1, greetings:
mende1 wrote:
I don't recommend you to install a hard drive bigger than 2 TB if you are going to install Windows in Boot Camp or you may have problems
The largest 2.5" SATA HDDs of 9.5 mm thickness that I am aware of are 1 TB in capacity. There is a 12.5 mm thick HDD that will fit some MBPs. But I have not seen any of larger capacity.
Are there now 2 TB HDDs available for MBPs? If so, I am interested.
Ciao.
Both OWC and Crucial have SSDs of about 1 TB capacity.
Message was edited by: OGELTHORPE

How to I find a compatible, more powerful hard drive for my macbook 13 inch late 2008?

How to I find a compatible, more powerful hard drive for my macbook 13 inch late 2008?

There are many sources for compatible 2.5" laptop SATA interface hard drives and SSD's.
I've used Other World Computing (www.macsales.com) for a number of upgrades, and highly recommend them if you're in the US. OWC also posts helpful videos on YouTube showing step by step removal and installation instructions and the tools required for most Mac models. If your old drive is still functioning, but you're simply running out of space, you might also consider purchasing an upgrade kit that includes an external 2.5" drive enclosure with USB interface. Then you first install the new drive in the external enclosure and 'clone' the contents of old drive to it, then swap the old drive for the new one, and use the old drive in the external enclosure as a backup drive, to test new software and OS upgrades, or to store video, photos, and audio.

Macbook trackpad. Unibody, late 2008.

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