I have a 2011 model MacbookPro (MacBookPro8,2) which came with a 128GB SSD. I would like to upgrade the SSD to a larger size without voiding my AppleCare.
-
Is it possible to upgrade the SSD at all? I have heard rumours that they are soldered in after 2010, and are not replaceable.
-
My city and country (Tallinn, Estonia) has no official Apple stores that I know of, but does have Apple-authorised resellers. Are they the appropriate place to get this done? I've replaced a hard disk on an older model MBP myself, but my current laptop is still within the warranty period.
This seems like a fairly common question on SO, but all questions I found are for older models or for iMacs, not MBPs. Perhaps this should be migrated to a community wiki where the question can be updated for all models of Mac?
Best Answer
To your questions:
Is it possible to upgrade the SSD at all? I have heard rumours that they are soldered in after 2010, and are not replaceable.
Yes, it should be possible, others have done it. This video (How to Upgrade/Replace the Hard Drive in the 2011 15" MacBook Pro) shows the procedure (just for information, I understand you don't want to void your AppleCare warranty): http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5opqLFOvh3M.
My city and country (Tallinn, Estonia) has no official Apple stores that I know of, but does have Apple-authorised resellers. Are they the appropriate place to get this done?
Yes, I'd definitely go to an Apple authorized reseller. I could find Premium resellers in Tallinn (see https://locate.apple.com/ee/et/sales/?pt=all&lat=59.43696079999999&lon=24.75357459999998):
You can select another country/language from https://locate.apple.com/country (though I used the trick explained here http://forums.ilounge.com/lounge/224663-where-can-i-buy-apple-products-sweden-finland.html).