You never expect the worst to happen to you, when you’ve dropped your MacBook, it’s easy to immediately panic.
Since MacBooks are so safe when it comes to viruses, you don’t really think much about protection. This means when you do drop your MacBook, you’re putting it at risk of severe damage.
The good thing is, you do have options to repair any damage that might have occurred. If the worst just happened, here’s what to do next.
Turn It Off And Clean It Up
After you take a moment to get over the horrifying crack and thud as your MacBook bounces on the floor, pick it up gently and turn it off immediately. The impact may have caused it to turn off already. The next step is to clean it off.
Depending on where it fell, it may have dirt and debris on it. Wipe away as much of this as possible. If it’s a highly dirty or dusty area, such as outdoors if you’re using your MacBook outside, use compressed air to blow away any debris that may cause the internal components to not work correctly.
Check For External Damage
You’ve dropped your MacBook and while you hope there’s no damage, you have to do a thorough check before you turn it back on. Any noticeable damage could mean there’s internal damage. Turning it on while damaged might lead to your files being corrupted.
Carefully check the exterior casing of your MacBook. Look for cracks, dents, scratches and gaps in the casing. Next, open your MacBook, if it’s not already, to check the screen, casing around the screen and keyboard area. Try pressing the keys to see if they all function correctly. If the keys don’t press down right, there may be damage under the keyboard or within your MacBook.
Check For Internal Damage
You should only proceed if you feel comfortable opening the external enclosure to look at the internal components. If you don’t feel comfortable, skip this step. If you are okay with proceeding, use an anti-static wrist strap to prevent any static discharge in the open case. You don’t have to remove anything. Your only job is to check for any loose parts or cracked pieces. If you discover anything loose, take it to a professional to be checked out.
Turn It On
If you don’t see any noticeable damage, try turning it back on. Ideally, you would want to have an external hard drive on hand to quickly back up your files in case your system starts to act strangely. If everything boots correctly, back up your files immediately. You can either back them up to the cloud or an external drive. Even if it seems to work right now, it may still have internal damage that could corrupt your hard drive or motherboard after a few uses.
If you hear any strange sounds, turn it off immediately. This is a sign of internal damage and continuing to use it will only make the damage worse.
Take It To Be Professionally Repaired
The final step is to take it to an Apple certified technician to be checked out and repaired. They’re trained to check for damage you might not notice. If you have AppleCare+ for Mac, the damage may be covered for a small fee, such as $99 for a cracked screen. The technician may also be able to salvage your files so you don’t lose anything important. If it can’t be repaired, the only solution is to buy a new MacBook.
Prevent Damage
The best course of action is to prevent damage before it occurs. If you’ve dropped your MacBook in the past, you know the horror. Don’t let it happen again. If it hasn’t happened yet, don’t wait until it does. Invest in a protective MacBook case, such as the Hexpact. The unique design absorbs and evenly distributes impacts to prevent damage. A drop is still terrifying, but your MacBook has a great chance of coming through unscathed.
The Hexpact comes in different designs and iBenzer also has other protective cases to protect against inevitable drops that could cost you hundreds or more to repair, not to mention the loss of irreplaceable files.