The Brilliant Reason People Are Tearing Screens Off Apple MacBooks A hack that saves you money and a trip to the landfill.

By Dan Bova Edited by Amanda Breen

Tim Robberts | Getty Images

A cracked or otherwise messed up display has sent many a laptop to the e-waste Dumpster in the sky.

But a growing trend detailed by news outlet Digital Trends reveals that people are actually seeking out machines with busted displays on eBay and other sites. The reason? For lack of a more technical description, the guts and brains of a MacBook live in the bottom portion of the machine. So by simply popping off the display half and connecting to an external monitor, you can have a working MacBook for a fraction of the price. Digital Trends notes that an M1 MacBook Air with a broken display can be bought on eBay for $400. Compare that to a certified one from Apple that costs $850, and you see why tech-savvy folks with an extra monitor and some cords are giving this a go.

This is not perfect, however. As with any Apple device, once you open it up and start playing Dr. Frankenstein, you void any kind of warranty. And, unlike a fully-functioning laptop, this isn't exactly portable. Your local coffee shop might be less inclined to let you sit there working on your screenplay all day if you have a giant monitor and wires running all over the place. But if your plans revolve mostly around working from a home office, the monetary and environmental savings of rescuing old machines puts this hack in the brilliant category.

Related: Avoid This Major Leadership Blunder That Got Steve Jobs Ousted From Apple

Dan Bova

Entrepreneur Staff

VP of Special Projects

Dan Bova is the VP of Special Projects at Entrepreneur.com. He previously worked at Jimmy Kimmel Live, Maxim, and Spy magazine. His latest books for kids include This Day in History, Car and Driver's Trivia ZoneRoad & Track Crew's Big & Fast Cars, The Big Little Book of Awesome Stuff, and Wendell the Werewolf

Read his humor column This Should Be Fun if you want to feel better about yourself.

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