Apple Called: It Wants Its 3G MacBook Pro Back

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MacBook-Pro-with-built-in-3G-1

Remember that cool MacBook Pro with built-in 3G that one lucky surfer picked up on Craigslist? It got a lot of attention a couple weeks ago when it was listed on eBay, with bids in excess of $70,000. Unfortunately for its owner, Apple had the listing removed, and now it wants the machine back.

The machine is a 2007 MacBook Pro, but it’s unlike anything we’ve ever seen before, thanks to that built-in antenna and SIM card slot. Carl Frega originally purchased it on Craigslist from someone who claimed to be an ex-Apple employee, but at the time the machine wasn’t working. Frega repaired it himself and then attempted to sell it on.

Before it ended up on eBay, Frega listed the machine on Cragslist again and successfully sold it. The machine’s new owner took it to an Apple retail store to be looked at by the Genius Bar, citing “random issues,” but didn’t quite get the response they were expecting.

Apple’s Genius refused to repair the machine because of the plethora of third-party components that appears inside it. Here’s what Apple wrote on the invoice:

Opened machine to observe that nearly every internal part was 3rd party; main logic board, optical drive, display, hard drive, top case, and others. Machine number (W8707003Y53) is also not recognized as a valid number.

Proposed Resolution: Denied services; machine has been modified by unauthorized providers beyond repair.

Because Apple refused to repair it, the machine’s new owner believed that Frega had sold them a fake and decided to take him to a small claims court. Frega ended up refunding the buyer $740 and taking back the MacBook Pro.

However, it seems he may not have it for much longer. Thanks to the publicity surrounding the device in recent weeks, Frega got a phone call from the Cupertino camp to say that Apple wants the machine back.

[via MacRumors]

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