Do not worry – it is not damaged. All I did was disassemble my laptop without, you know, repositioning the screen. Now it has been simplified to the bottom half: an aluminum plate with a built-in keyboard and touchpad. I call it “slabtop” now. And I kind of like it. I see! Introducing my slabtop. Photo by Umar Shakir / The Verge It’s a complete computer inside a keyboard, not unlike computers like the Apple II and Commodore 64. But this M1 slabtop is different from these relics. It has a trackpad, a long-lasting battery and AirPlay. The Apple IIe. Even Woz likes a good slabtop. Photo by © Roger Ressmeyer / CORBIS / VCG via Getty Images Sounds silly, but I swear desktop use is more fun than a laptop. Released at a party where you can wirelessly connect to a TV with the keyboard in your arms – your hands clapping freely without tapping your screen during a Drawful game session with friends. What inspired me to behead my Mac was the Apple patent released last month for a Mac built into a keyboard. Rumor had it that we would see a Mac like this at last week’s Apple event, but instead, we got the externally boring but really amazing new Mac Studio. I have to say I was a little excited about the raw performance Apple promised and it started banging my wallet nervously in the palm of my hand – but instead of choosing consumerism, I chose violence. Look, I’m not crazy – I’m not wandering around looking at laptops and wondering what they would look like with their heads cut off, but I’ve probably replaced over a hundred screens during my tenure as Apple ‘s Genius. and it suits me. I also had an itch to get over the clamshell of my Mac because screenless MacBooks are popular on Twitter and have been discussed on Reddit since this patent was published. Someone even made a plate with the abandoned Touch Bar, keeping at least one screen in his lap. You lose some functions when you delete the screen. Hopefully you will never have to repair your computer because you can not see the recovery mode screen on an external monitor. Also, if you want to stream wirelessly to your TV, you must first physically connect the desktop to a monitor to switch to AirPlay controls. You will also lose the built-in webcam, so if you do any Zoom sessions, you will need an external one. You could also lose Wi-Fi access on some older MacBook Pro models from 2008–2010 because the AirPort card and antennas were built into the display hinge. Fortunately, many of these models still have built-in Ethernet connectors from the time before Apple began removing ports. (Doors are back, BTW.) Bless the heart of my cousin who trusted me directly. Image: Umar Shakir / The Verge If you have a MacBook, you know, just sit there, relaxed, happy like a clam … shell … you could make your own slabtop! Or you could be me and volunteer your cousin’s 2009’s 15-inch MacBook Pro while not out there. But if your cousin is not as forgiving as mine, perhaps the eBay route is your best bet. I recently found listings for broken Touch Bar MacBook Pro that cost about $ 400, either because they had cracked screens or because they had a problem with the flexible screen cables. But, hello, who needs flexible cables anyway when we drop dead weight? You can find many MacBooks on eBay that have broken screens but are otherwise fully functional. Before we get started, make sure you have a tool kit with all the necessary screwdrivers: a P5 pedal to open most 2012 MacBooks or later, a Phillips 00 to open most 2012 MacBooks or later. Either way, you will want a complete set of Torx sizes 3-8 for various interior parts. You may also want a three-wing Y1 driver to remove many MacBook 2010–2012 batteries (to avoid accidentally turning on your MacBook while you work) or, in the case of the MacBook Pro 2009, a P6 pedal. It is also nice to have a nylon tool and tweezers to safely remove the joints and tighten the screws, otherwise you can just grow your nails for a few days as a replacement. You will also need to have a monitor or TV to use your surface and a medium for their physical connection. If your Mac only has USB-C ports like my M1 MacBook Air, get a USB-C to HDMI cable or a USB-C hub / connector with video output. But if your Mac is a little older than the 2009 MacBook Pro, you’ll need a cable that goes from the mini DisplayPort to everything your external monitor uses, such as HDMI, full DisplayPort, and maybe even DVI. Here is my cousin’s 2009 MacBook Pro connected to the screen using a mini DisplayPort cable in HDMI. Photo by Umar Shakir / The Verge While splitting the computers using pure instinct, I found a great M1 MacBook Air screen removal guide on iFixit and another one for the 2009 15-inch MacBook Pro. you could make a Chromebox from a Chromebook if you wanted to), you’ll have to look up an online guide on how to put it together – or become like me and do it, it’s up to you! Please note: I take no responsibility for any damage or injury caused by your effort. 2009 MacBook Pro: The fan started spinning because I accidentally turned on the computer during the operation. Do not forget to disconnect the battery. Photo by Umar Shakir / The Verge For the MacBooks of the past decade, the first step is to open the bottom case. Turn the MacBook over and remove all lower screws (up to 10) either with the pedal or the Phillips driver, depending on the model. Make sure you note where each screw goes, as some are longer than others and mistakes can cause damage. You may need to snap slightly before opening it – with my M1 MacBook Air and the 2009 15-inch MacBook Pro, I just had to grab the aluminum base at the rear end near the vents and pull – you will feel a few bumps from the clamps holding them, but do not worry, it comes off easily. Most other MacBook models on the market are different in the same way – except for one major flaw in the 12-inch Retina MacBook. This model has the battery and the logic board attached to the bottom cover with delicate ribbon wires connected between the plates. Therefore, I recommend that you follow this guide carefully to avoid damaging your cable or battery. Disconnecting the battery of the M1 MacBook Air is as easy as lifting the metal tab and pulling it up. Photo by Umar Shakir / The Verge The second step is to disconnect the battery. I made the mistake of skipping this step on the MacBook Pro 2009 and accidentally turned it on during surgery – better on my cousin’s MacBook Pro rather than my MacBook Air, right? In any case, for the 2009 MacBook Pro, I removed three pedal screws (three-sided for the next few years of the model), lifted the battery halfway with the easy-to-use tab, and then unplugged the battery. The battery of the MacBook Pro 2011 is much easier to disconnect. you do not even need to remove the battery. So is the M1 MacBook Air battery: all you have to do is flip it over and pull the metal locking handle of the battery connector. (See the image above.) The third step is to unplug and remove anything that prevents access to the screen hinge screws, including the internal video sockets, antenna sockets and – in the case of my M1 MacBook Air – even the antennas themselves. Don’t worry – once the screen is removed, you can reset the antenna and maintain Wi-Fi connectivity on your desktop, unlike my cousin’s machine. Removing all of these components can be difficult, so you may want to follow an online guide for your particular model. Disconnect the antenna cables in the M1 MacBook Air. Don’t worry – they will be back when we’re done, so you can keep your Wi-Fi. Photo by Umar Shakir / The Verge I removed a metal shield to reveal this screen slot. Disconnect it and be careful when removing the antennas. Photo by Umar Shakir / The Verge The fourth step is to remove the screen shell. For my M1 MacBook Air: with the monitor cable disconnected and the antennas switched off, I pick up the laptop and open the cover at its widest point, maybe 130 degrees. Next, I place the laptop upside down with the keyboard pad completely on top of the desk and the screen cover hanging down and out of the edge of the desk like a feather. Hold it so it does not slip off the table while performing the next steps! The clamshell and antenna assembly was removed from the M1 MacBook Air. Photo by Umar Shakir / The Verge With the Air, there are six Torx screws that secure the housing to the keyboard plate – three on each side – I removed two on each side and then removed only the last two screws after making sure the lid could not fall off. The screen will not necessarily pop …
