04-05-2012, 02:54 PM

My Macbook Pro has a cracked and shattered display glass.

Specification: Macbook Pro 15.4" - unibody - late 2008 - MB470LL/A

Disclaimer:
I always take good care of all my hardware. I bought this Macbook used, and already out of warranty. When bought, it had couple of dents and scrathes here and there, broken & locked hinges, cracked display glass, so at first that kind of repeled me away from buying it. But when seller stated his price, I'd be a fool not to buy it. So, now I'm slowly restoring it to its original looks and glory. Besides: after a long time of not holding a driver in me hands it feels good to mess around under the hood, when at the end of the day I know I repaired something.

About the cracked display: The crack happened when it was owned by its original owner. Now I'm thinking of buying a new glass display on eBay. I found followig sellers have most affordable prices:
[1] Apple 15.4" Unibody LCD Screen Glass Panel MacBook Pro A1286 15-inch Cover | eBay
[2] New 15" Inch MacBook Pro A1286 MC118 MC985 LCD Screen Cover Glass Lens | eBay
[3] All others: unibody glass | eBay

I'm trying to keep the costs as low as possible, but not at the expense of buying cheap & lowest quality products.

So, which of the above eBay glass sellers would You recommend? On the other hand, if You could recommend any other online store (that ships to EU), and sells original / OEM display glass, I'd be very much thankful for an advice. If any of You swaped the glass by themselves, where did You buy it? eBay?

I also thought of buying a whole used display assembly in as good condition as possible, but after a month of no luck kind of given up on that idea. Hence changed my tactics - buying separate parts.

Thanks for and & all advice.

Greetings.

04-22-2012, 12:04 PM

Isn't there anyone who replaced a broken display glass on their unibody MBP?

I'm just looking for an advice, if any of the aformentioned eBay (or any other) sellers offers quality & affordable glass replacements for a unibody MacBook Pro?

04-22-2012, 12:23 PM

Well I've bought from Hong Kong sellers in the past with no problems, and they both have good rep scores

04-22-2012, 07:33 PM

I would personally go with whichever has the best price, with a reasonable feeback rating. Scan through the feedback looking for anything specific to their customer service.

As per the glass itself, since it is not a touch panel I would not worry too much about varying quality. I would assume if a seller is offering non OEM replacement glass, if it had poor fit and finish they would have poor feedback. As long as it is optical grade glass and when installed doesn't leave gaps, etc. you are good to go.

If an issue does arise from poor fit and finish, refer to my previous suggestion. If they handle returns well, the potential savings are worth the risk.

Good luck!

04-23-2012, 09:12 AM

You will need a heat gun and suction cups to get the old glass off.Installing MacBook Pro 15" Unibody Late 2008 and Early 2009 Front Display Glass - iFixit

04-24-2012, 11:20 AM

Thanks for advice, guys ... I appreciate it.

By comparing the photos of separate display glasses sold by these different eBay power-sellers, I came to conclusion they must be made by same manufacturer. Even photos are almost identical, however photoshoped or altered.

Only thing worrying me is: Due to low quality of photos it's quite difficult to spot whether the glass' top center edge has one or three holes (light sensor, iSight webcam & iSight green status LED)? ... The photos of all eBay displayglass listings show only one hole - for the iSight webcam ... And that kind of worries me, as I sure woulnd't like to (upon installing the glass) find they are a poor/non-functional remake.

Most of these display glass listings from HK are privat, hence I can't scan thorugh them and contact some previous customers which bought exactly the same 15.4" display glass. So I've already contacted some of these eBay sellers directly. That way I'll hopefully be able to make a wiser choice supported by good answers. And although English is not my native tongue and I certainly don't consider myself as any kind of an English linguistic expert, I'm having difficulties understanding some of the answers I've already received from given eBay sellers. And on that note I say I respect all and everyone no matter of origin, country or education. But it is difficult to understand answers, when asking direct specific questions, and being answered only 'yes, my friend' or 'no, my friend' or even sth. completely different in regards to my Question. And I can't evene imagine how it would be like to return display-glass under the Return & Warranty policy ...

Rabbitjetta, thanks for the heads-up on the iFixit DIY procedure of swaping the Front Display glass. Already know them. Purchased their 54-bit iFixit tools. By the way - iFixit makes quality tools. Highly recommend it! .. The heat gun isn't necessary, hair blower is sufficient. And suction cups, alhough cheap, also aren't necessary. The original iFixit CHINO spudger, and 3 no longer usable credit cards is all I needed to separate the glass from the aluminium lid / bezel.