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MacBook 2017 won't turn on - logic board issue?

Recently, I bought a second hand 2017 MacBook Retina 12". After around 2 weeks of use it had turned itself off when I left it running (attached to power) and went away for a little while. The battery had a good charge the last time I saw it (80% - and lasts several hours (80 cycles on the battery)) so it wasn't the battery running down. It wouldn't power on, and when I connected it to power, it got very hot, very quickly.

I took it into a repair shop and they said the logic board was dead. Another repair shop said the same thing.

I searched online, with my understanding being that the 2015 version of the MacBook 12" was the one that had the most issues and that many of those issues were fixed in later models, particularly the 2017 model.

The one of the few things I could find online was that a lot of people fried their Mac's (particularly M1s) by using powered PD USB-C hubs (which I was), but this was supposedly fixed in Big Sur and I was running Ventura. (I didn't read many forum comments post the date of that Big Sur fix that say they've fried their Mac using a PD USB-C hub. Others such as Louis Rossman says that a lot of the logic boards die on the 12" model.

I love the weight/form factor of this machine and I'm wondering if its recommended to get the logic board replaced or if this is likely to happen again. Or, is there some other possible cause, and is it preventable?

Thanks advance so much for your replies.

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Hi, I can’t speak on the heating issue when you plug it in now, but I did discover a very interesting video on getting a dead 2017 to start:

https://duckduckgo.com/?q=2017+MacBook+R...

It’s certainly worth a try as it has an unusual process.

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I couldn't try them all but the first few didn't work. Its also now getting hot around where I think the logic board is (not in the wings where the battery is, but in the top middle) and the machine is off, closed, and not connected to power.

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If you still have the back off I would definitely disconnect the battery in that case.

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I don't have the screwdriver, I'll have to go get someone to do it. Given this issue, is it a good idea to put another logic board in? I don't want to blow another ($250) board, it has already cost me enough.

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No, easy answer here, sorry 😢

This system was a game changer for Apple as it was the first ultra compact logic board they produced. Sadly, it was frat with a lot of problems as the Intel chip they used ran too hot for the system. Other than light weight text work and simple image viewing the system would overheat.

Yes, it was a marvel! Many people loved it for its compact size, but only offering a single USB-C part held it back.

Given the costs of repair and the likelihood of failing again I think it’s wiser to look at other options.

I went to an iPad Air 2 for on the go needs. I’ve now jumped to an iPad M2 system which I think works for my needs. While not as small how about a MacBook Air new or even used.

Next month Apple is expected to roll out a new set of systems maybe waiting a bit will save you some money and offer better options. As an example I’m planning on retiring my two 15” 2015 MacBook Pros as I can do more with one system in the new M4 based systems than what I am doing now with the two 15” systems I’m using today which are still better than the M2/M3 systems working on ultra large photo composite images and even my 2013 Trash Can Mac Pro!

Rumor has it Apple is looking at offering a smaller MacBook again. Cross your fingers!

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I get your point. I bought it expecting to get 2-3 years use out of it (and I have an M1 which I wasn't going to use anymore because I travel a lot and take my laptop everywhere). They must have made millions of those machines and they haven't all failed (I looked at an i7 which had 750 cycles - which, is at a similar rate to my M1 use - very heavy battery vs cabled use for 7 years).

I'm feeling like I'm very reluctantly going to go back to the M1 and wait for the next iteration of the Air next year... I want to be able to multi-task with 4 browsers and 15 tabs open on each and a few other programs running. I had the i5/16/500gb (<100 battery cycles) and the replacement logic board for the i7/16/500 is $250... but if I blow it up in 13 days...

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@minimaltec65231 - Having multiple browser windows/tabs open doesn’t tell us that much as depending what the given window or tab is doing when in background can still push the system hard. Don’t forget the given systems RAM and storage space can also cause a lot of context switching between RAM and VRAM which is a temp file on the drive.

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