Chosen Solution
Final Edit: Although the tips i got here were exactly what i needed, i didnt manage to repare the MBP this way. It was nearly impossible to remove the ring that was stuck to the antenna and there were few repair shops with the equipment i needed to repair this. Additionally, this laptop was not mine, but from my boss. She will give this laptop (which had other damage that i repaired) to her daughter, who will enjoy it a lot, but will have to use a USB WIFI dongle. Thank you for all your tips! Original post: During the teardown of this macbook pro i snapped of one of the 2 wifi antenna connectors on the logicboard. (Red is still working, blue snapped off, i color coded the mini cable with its corresponding place on the logic board) (see attached photo)
‘front’ view of the cable. There is still a piece ‘inside’ the mini cable that should normally be on the motherboard
how the motherboard is looking right now
side view, but unfortunately its very hard to capture that there is something still attached to the mini cable I can get replacement HMF4 antenna cables, but since i snapped of the part with which it connects to the mobo, i dont feel this will accomplish anything. Since the connector is still visible, i feel like this should be an easy fix, but is it possible to repair this? Should remove the pin from the antenna cable and resolder it back on? or is this device with this mobo now doomed and should i get a dongle for wifi? Please let me know your thoughts. I am especially curious as to what data lines you think are going into the board (is it just the piece in the middle that is connected to the mobo, or are there connections aside from the pin in the middle that will also need to stay connected to the mobo?) Weirdly enough, i can still connect to my wifi (when i leave both unplugged) but i cant load web pages. If anything is unclear, please let me know! Simon
@simon___1 those solder pads still look good. All you would need is to replace the coax connector by soldering a new one to the logic board. Remember, that this is a bit tricky for anybody new to this, but anyone that has done board repairs can solder those for you. The replacement connector would be a 20449-0001E-03 IPEX RF MHF CONNECTOR available at places like this and many others. Update (11/26/2020) You do need a replacement since your connector has failed. Sure you could try and solder the outside ring to it. You will never know how long it lasts and there will always be doubt about it. Since you already have it all apart etc, spend the few $ and fix it properly. That of course are only my 2 cents. The center pin you are referring to actually connects to pin 1. So with a new connector you will not have to worry about it
The missing piece is not really missing! It’s still stuck to the cable end.
When you lifted the cable off you snagged it pulling it off with the cable. If you look carefully you’ll see a metal band with two little tabs this is the ring part that was soldered to the logic board like the one that’s still present.
Carefully pull it off the cable connector if you have the ability to do micro soldering. You only have one chance to reattach the ring. If you don’t have the skills leave it alone! Get your system to someone who has the skills.
