Macbook Air 11 Early 2014 I O Board Replacement Repair Guide

Difficulty

Moderate

Steps

Time Required

                          1 hour

Sections

Lower Case
2 steps
Battery Connector
1 step
I/O Board Cable
2 steps
Fan
5 steps
Battery
2 steps
I/O Board
8 steps

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BackMacBook Air 11" Early 2014
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Introduction

What you need

Step 1

              Lower Case

Shut down and close your computer. Lay it on a soft surface top-side down.
Remove the following ten screws:
Two 8 mm 5-point Pentalobe screws
Eight 2.5 mm 5-point Pentalobe screws
The special screwdriver needed to remove the 5-point Pentalobe screws can be found here.

Shut down and close your computer. Lay it on a soft surface top-side down.

Remove the following ten screws:

Two 8 mm 5-point Pentalobe screws

Eight 2.5 mm 5-point Pentalobe screws

The special screwdriver needed to remove the 5-point Pentalobe screws can be found here.

1024

Step 2

Wedge your fingers between the display and the lower case and pull upward to pop the lower case off the Air.

Wedge your fingers between the display and the lower case and pull upward to pop the lower case off the Air.

Step 3

              Battery Connector

In this step you will disconnect the battery to help avoid shorting out any components during service.
Use the flat end of a spudger to pry both short sides of the battery connector upward to disconnect it from its socket on the logic board.
Bend the battery cable slightly away from the logic board so the connector will not accidentally bend back and make contact with its socket.

In this step you will disconnect the battery to help avoid shorting out any components during service.

Use the flat end of a spudger to pry both short sides of the battery connector upward to disconnect it from its socket on the logic board.

Bend the battery cable slightly away from the logic board so the connector will not accidentally bend back and make contact with its socket.

Step 4

              I/O Board Cable

Use the flat end of a spudger to pry the left and right I/O board cable connectors up off their respective sockets on the I/O board.

Use the flat end of a spudger to pry the left and right I/O board cable connectors up off their respective sockets on the I/O board.

Step 5

Lift and remove the I/O board cable.

Lift and remove the I/O board cable.

Step 6

Fan

Use the tip of a spudger to carefully push on each side of the iSight camera cable connector to loosen it out of its socket on the logic board.
We recommend you gently “walk” the connector out of its socket.

Use the tip of a spudger to carefully push on each side of the iSight camera cable connector to loosen it out of its socket on the logic board.

We recommend you gently “walk” the connector out of its socket.

Step 7

Peel the iSight camera cable up off the adhesive securing it to the fan.

Peel the iSight camera cable up off the adhesive securing it to the fan.

Step 8

Use the tip of a spudger to carefully flip up the retaining flap on the fan cable ZIF socket.
Be sure you are prying up on the hinged retaining flap, not the socket itself.

Use the tip of a spudger to carefully flip up the retaining flap on the fan cable ZIF socket.

Be sure you are prying up on the hinged retaining flap, not the socket itself.

Step 9

Remove the following three screws securing the fan to the upper case:
Two 5.5 mm T5 Torx screws
One 4.6 mm T5 Torx screw
In some models this is a 3.6 mm T5 Torx screw.

Remove the following three screws securing the fan to the upper case:

Two 5.5 mm T5 Torx screws

One 4.6 mm T5 Torx screw

In some models this is a 3.6 mm T5 Torx screw.

Step 10

Lift, but do not remove the fan out of its recess in the upper case.
Carefully pull the fan ribbon cable out of its socket as you remove the fan from the Air.

Lift, but do not remove the fan out of its recess in the upper case.

Carefully pull the fan ribbon cable out of its socket as you remove the fan from the Air.

Step 11

              Battery

Remove the following five screws securing the battery to the upper case:
Two 5.2 mm T5 Torx screws
One 6 mm T5 Torx screw
Two 2.6 mm T5 Torx screws

Remove the following five screws securing the battery to the upper case:

Two 5.2 mm T5 Torx screws

One 6 mm T5 Torx screw

Two 2.6 mm T5 Torx screws

Step 12

When handling the battery, avoid squeezing or touching the six exposed lithium polymer cells.
Lift the battery from its edge nearest the logic board and remove it from the upper case.

When handling the battery, avoid squeezing or touching the six exposed lithium polymer cells.

Lift the battery from its edge nearest the logic board and remove it from the upper case.

Step 13

              I/O Board

Disconnect the I/O board power cable from the logic board by pulling the cable out of its socket on the logic board.
Pull the cable parallel to the face of the logic board toward the front edge of the Air.

Disconnect the I/O board power cable from the logic board by pulling the cable out of its socket on the logic board.

Pull the cable parallel to the face of the logic board toward the front edge of the Air.

Step 14

If necessary, use tweezers to remove any tape covering the microphone cable ZIF connector.

If necessary, use tweezers to remove any tape covering the microphone cable ZIF connector.

Step 15

Use the tip of a spudger to carefully flip up the retaining flap on the microphone cable ZIF socket.
Be sure you are prying up on the retaining flap, not the socket itself.
Pull the microphone ribbon cable straight out of its socket.

Use the tip of a spudger to carefully flip up the retaining flap on the microphone cable ZIF socket.

Be sure you are prying up on the retaining flap, not the socket itself.

Pull the microphone ribbon cable straight out of its socket.

Step 16

Use the tip of a spudger to pry under the speaker cable near the connector to lift the connector straight up out of its socket.

Use the tip of a spudger to pry under the speaker cable near the connector to lift the connector straight up out of its socket.

Step 17

De-route the cable from its notch in the I/O board.

De-route the cable from its notch in the I/O board.

Step 18

Remove the small rubber gasket from the corner of the upper case nearest the I/O board.

Remove the small rubber gasket from the corner of the upper case nearest the I/O board.

Step 19

Remove the single 3.6 mm T5 Torx screw securing the I/O board to the upper case.
In some models this is a 3.1 mm T5 Torx screw.

Remove the single 3.6 mm T5 Torx screw securing the I/O board to the upper case.

In some models this is a 3.1 mm T5 Torx screw.

Step 20

Carefully lift the I/O board by its power cable and pull it away from the edge of the case.

Carefully lift the I/O board by its power cable and pull it away from the edge of the case.

To reassemble your device, follow these instructions in reverse order.

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                    Sam Goldheart

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Marik - Oct 27, 2020

Does the IO board on this model contain the hall effect sensor(lid sensor)? Where is it located and what does it look like?

Introduction#

What you need#

Team#

Introduction

What you need

Team