Is building MacBook myself cheaper, than buying from apple?

Another good option is a used one with cosmetic challenges, but is perfectly functional otherwise. If you can find one with cosmetics you can live with and the price matches the actual damage (everyone has a different tolerance here), you can generally get these at a descent discount. I got a 2011 13” MBP through this method and it was better then I expected it to be relative to what I paid.

Just so you have a good baseline, here’s mine. Tweak it as you need:

• No chassis dents that affect post service reassembly.
  • Minor dents are okay with a deeper then scratch only discount. Just tell me how to work on it so I know how to get the cover to go on flat if you know.
  • Cosmetic dents are just a matter of matching the price to the severity.
• I don’t like machines with dents everywhere. These tend to be abused and need more attention then even a machine like my 2011 that you can tell I got a cosmetics discount on. Heavy dents =abuse.
• The LCD assembly must be intact. These cost too much to look past.
  • LCD pressure marks are fine, but much like the optical drive, I need a price break.
• ALL ports must work
  • Personal exemption: Optical drive with a discount OR a new USB external to replace it. I own some, so I can go both ways. I usually just ask for a ~$50 price break to reflect the cost of the drive unless they insist on giving me a USB external to get the asking price.

Don’t expect a massive discount on an 8GB Air (which you want since the RAM is soldered), but if all you have on it is a few barely visible dents and some scratches, I’d say take the discount if the machine is within your tolerance range. They’re harder to sell, so you can do pretty good with a cosmetic issues machine with acceptable damage.

This is what I personally consider acceptable. I don’t deal with massive dents and unibody/bottom cover damage because that was abused: