Chosen Solution
Hey Guys, So I fix computers a lot, but this one has baffled me. My friend gave me her MacBook Pro that she bought second hand, because the power button doesn’t turn the computer on. First I though the battery could be dead, or the board could have died. After further diagnostics, I found that if you unplug the battery, plug it back in, press the power button, and then, once you connect the power adapter, it boots up. So the computer ‘technically’ works completely fine as it should. My question is, what could be causing this? And are there any hardware fixes I can do to solve this? Note: I have replaced the thermal paste on the machine, updated the software and replaced the battery already and neither of these solved the issue. Thanks in advance guys!
What you are getting (or doing unknowingly) is exactly the right thing to do a spontaneous restart, Disconnecting the battery and magsafe, doing an SMC reset. Doing it this way you don’t have to find the power pads. This does sound very much like a water damaged keyboard. Replace the keyboard and your problem should be solved. Here’s how to do it: MacBook Pro 13" Unibody Mid 2010 Keyboard Replacement
did you look at the connctor of the power button, how does it feel if you push it. Maybee it had a water damage. You could try to power it on right at the connector pins with a wire, to see if the button is the issue.
