Thinking about turning my macbook pro into an iTab...

[Hanii Puppy]

First of all, I have a pre-unibody 2.2GHz macbook pro.

My macbook pro's getting on, and I have a couple of faults I need to fix in it, specifically I need to replace the hard drive (internal one is dead, I boot off of a Lacie firewire drive I carry around with me), internal superdrive (again, mostly dead), and the cracked bezel on the front, which - if I don't do anything about - is probably going to break the new LCD panel I just recently replaced eventually <.<;;

I'm thinking that, when doing this, I could give my mac some new life (and avoid the annoying task of putting back together a macbook pro display) by buying a tablet to combine with the LCD panel and turn my laptop into an iTab.

The way I want to arrange it is by taking the inside top case (the bit with the keyboard and trackpad off) and placing the LCD panel in it's place, with the bottom of the screen at the same part it is now and the top of the screen at the same end as the slot for the superdrive, so that the magsafe port is at the bottom right if you're holding the finished thing. So fairly simple lay-out. I just have some queries:

• Would the power key be removable? So that I could take it off the keyboard bit and place it, say, on the top of the screen? If not, is there any way of replacing it?
• Failing that, what slim portable keyboard could you suggest? I would love to get a standard apple keyboard, but I would need a power key of some sort.
• There wouldn't be a way of turning the internal macbook pro keyboard into an external slim USB keyboard I could carry around with me so I don't have to pay for a new keyboard, would there?
• In your opinion, would it be a better idea to re-use the (cracked) bezel or make my own, probably out of vinyl and/or duck tape? The annoying thing about re-using the bezel would be that I would be a big sticky-out bit at the bottom, but if I made my own, it wouldn't look as good and it wouldn't say "MacBook Pro" along the bottom
• How would I go about re-locating the internal mic so it's still perfectly audible without getting in the way?
• Any extra goodies you can suggest adding in while I'm at it?

For now, it's just a thought, but I'll at least try to arrange it once I get my £440 that SAAS are owe me.

Thankyou ^_^

[Rob]

Wow, I really don't know how to help you, but that is one big project you're taking on there...

Have you looked at the innards to work out how the power key works? I'm sure you can move it... but I don't see how there would be room if you are putting the LCD, which is the same size as the laptop base, where you are putting it. Maybe on the bottom somewhere?

If I were you, I'd just start with replacing the drives, the HD and the Superdrive before messing with the screen, at least then it's useable without an extra hard drive.

[Hanii Puppy]

It's not really that big of a job ... although then again, I don't really consider anything a big job unless it involves soldering circuitry or something like that I've taken apart my laptop quite a few times, including once when I was replacing the LCD panel. (I rested my laptop on my keyboard and it slipped off and cracked the panel while I was away answering the door)

You may have a point there about the power key <.<;; maybe I'd be able to make my own.

I kinda want to do everything that I want to with my laptop at once, rather than ending up having to take it apart again and again.