‘Am I an idiot?': Innocent $400 laptop mistake

News.com.au

2 days ago

A TikToker has issued a warning to fellow laptop users about a seemingly harmless act that ended up costing her hundreds of dollars — and it's something many of us have probably done.
Heidi frustratingly shared how her MacBook screen shattered after she placed a greeting card between the screen and keyboard before closing it.
'I just opened up my laptop to the biggest jumpscare of the century. I'm so confused,' she said in the 59-second video.
'When I put it on my bed, it was cracked.
'I had this card placed inside my laptop with the screen closed. Apparently the pressure from this piece of paper internally cracked my screen.
'I would have never thought that could happen. Am I an idiot? Is that common knowledge?'
Unfortunately for Heidi, the problem is not as simple as turning it off and on again.
The clip quickly went viral, racking up more than 893,000 views, but many were sceptical that something as flimsy as a card could do that much damage.
'I've used my computer as a folder a million times, there's no way,' one person commented.
'I literally fell asleep once freshman year in college on my dorm bed while on my laptop and woke up when it slid off onto the ground,' another said. 'Opened. It didn't crack or break, one side had the most minor dent possible. Laptops shouldn't break that easy.'
'I've been in IT for over 25 years and have never heard of such a thing,' another person said.
But others argued that nothing should be placed between the screen and keyboard of a MacBook.
'Yeah that's a common MacBook thing. They measured the MacBooks to close perfectly without anything in between,' another TikTok user said.
'The tension of some millimetres difference could break this thing.'
'Same thing happened to me,' another said. 'I had a cloth lens cleaner … shattered my screen.'
Some blamed Heidi for trusting Apple products in the first place.
'It's Apple, so of course it will break if a fly lands on it,' someone said.
'A HP would never.'
'Are Apple products made of paper mache?'
'That's Mac quality for you.'
Apple refers to rare incidents like these as a result of 'tight tolerances'.
The company warns: 'Leaving any material on your display, keyboard or palm rest might interfere with the display when closed.'
And this isn't the first time Apple has warned against this.
In a 2020 support documen t, the tech giant advised users not to use camera covers on their MacBooks, after receiving multiple complaints of cracked displays.
MacBooks come with a one-year limited warranty and 90 days of complimentary technical support.
However, damage due to 'accidents, disassembly, unauthorised modifications, or external causes' is not covered – which includes cracked screens caused by foreign objects.
In other words, incidents like Heidi's would likely fall under 'accidental damage,' which means users are footing the bill unless they've purchased AppleCare+.
However one customer seems to have caught a lucky break.
'We have the same Mac and I had this problem last year,' they said.
'Called Apple and explained everything, they got it fixed for free and it's out of warranty.'
Heidi wasn't as fortunate. In a follow-up post two days later, she told her followers:
'May you all learn from my $400 mistake.'