Norm McLaughlin
Repair, Replace or Upgrade Your Computer?
Are you wondering whether to have your computer repaired, or to purchase a new one?
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Computer Repairs in Brisbane, Ipswich, Logan & Redlands
Hundreds of client reviews and testimonials available to read right here
Apple Mac Repairs & Upgrades
Norm's Computer Services offers repairs and upgrades for all sorts of Apple Mac computers in Brisbane, Ipswich, Logan and the Redlands. That means iMac repairs and MacBook repairs for MacBook Air's , MacBook Mini's and MacBook Pro's. I'm an Apple-certified support professional and I'm familiar with versions of the Mac operating system from OS X El Capitan all the way through to macOS Sonoma.
In general, Apple Mac computers tend to be more resilient than Microsoft Windows desktop PC’s and laptops. The macOS Operating System rarely becomes corrupted and Mac computers are much less susceptible to malware and viruses than Windows computers. A Mac will tend to do what it's supposed to do and the Operating System is relatively free of bugs. Having said that, from a hardware point of view, Mac's use third party hard drives and Solid State Drives (SSD's), just like Windows computers, and these can fail in just the same way. This can also be said of other elements of the hardware.
Apple Mac Repairs
My Computer Repairs page describes some of the issues that can be encountered on any computer, whether a Windows computer or a Mac. If you're having a problem with your Mac, I'd guess it may fall in one of the following categories.
Startup Problems: When you power on your Mac, are you seeing a folder symbol with a question mark, or a no entry symbol? If so, you may have a problem with your hard drive or your macOS installation. Or maybe your Mac won't power on at all?
Performance Issues: Your Mac may be running slowly or perhaps you're having problems connecting to the internet. Whatever aspect isn't performing as well as it should, I can assist you in getting to the root of the problem and finding a solution.
Malware & Virus Issues: Viruses are nowhere near as common on Mac's as they are on Windows PC's. I dealt with an iMac some time ago which was exhibiting bizarre behaviour. It was able to open certain websites in its browser but not others, whilst other devices on the same network were able to open any and all websites. After some intensive troubleshooting, it turned out that the issue was being caused by a virus. Sometimes when an issue seems to have no other possible cause, it turns out to be a virus infection.
Whatever the issue you're having with your Mac, don't hesitate to get in touch for help. Check out my blog post about Apple Mac Repairs for a few more examples of Mac issues I've addressed recently.
Apple Mac Upgrades
I carry out Apple Mac upgrades on a regular basis. This means iMac upgrades and MacBook upgrades. Two main upgrades are possible on Mac computers. The first is an upgrade of the memory (RAM) which means adding additional memory modules or replacing the existing RAM modules with larger ones. These are a straightforward upgrade on most Mac's, though for certain iMac's it involves complete disassembly of the iMac in order to access the RAM module slots on the logic board.
A more regular upgrade for me is replacement of the hard drive in an older iMac with a Solid State Drive (SSD). An upgrade like this can breathe new life into an old computer and result in a dramatic improvement in speed as SSD's are typically ten times faster than traditional SATA hard drives.
A hard drive to SSD upgrade involves first removing the glass and LCD from the front of the iMac in order to gain access to the hard drive, and then replacing the drive. In older iMac's the glass is held on magnetically whereas, in more recent models, the LCD and glass assembly is glued to the frame of the computer.
I recently wrote a guest post for a technical blog detailing the complete procedure involved in this upgrade. You're welcome to check out the post and feel free to contact me for assistance assuming this isn't something you would want to take on yourself.
Upgrades of MacBooks are also possible and tend to be less complex as access to the hard drive is possible after simply removing the screws from the base.
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