Apple plans to do this Reformat the serial numbers for Macs and MacBook this year. Currently, Macs use the same 12-digit alphanumeric serial codes as other Apple products, but Apple will soon switch them to random strings between 8 and 12 characters in length.
This seems like an unimportant change, but the new serial codes make it harder to look up important information about newer Macs and MacBooks. All Apple devices manufactured between 2010 and early 2021 have serial numbers that indicate where and when an Apple device was built, its specific model number, and its hardware configuration.
This information is helpful in helping users know when a product will be available recalled due to manufacturing defects or if a class action lawsuit Only includes devices from a specific region;; or if you have to Replace lost or damaged parts;. It will also help you determine whether a Refurbished product is legitimate.
Apple will certainly have a way of decoding these random strings at the end, but they’re not helpful for general users who want to find out some of this information for themselves – at least on new Macs.
Fortunately, other Apple products keep the 12-digit serial format and continue to print all Macs and MacBooks made between 2010 and early 2021. As long as your Apple device has a 12-digit serial number, you can use that to learn more about its origin.
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How to decode an Apple serial number
There are Tools that scan and decode Apple’s 12-digit serial numbers are for you, but you can read much of this information for yourself once you know what each digit means.
First of all, you need to find out the serial number of your device. It is often printed on the outside of a deviceand is also available in the Settings app at General> Info> Serial number. The number looks something like this: “DMPC8[#][#][#]N70M. ”
Once you find it, it’s time to decipher it. Starting from left to right, each section of this number tells you something about your device. For example, the first two digits are the assembly plant ID, which shows where your Apple device was made:
- 1C, 4H, WQ, F7: China
- 7J, YM: China – Hon Hai / Foxconn
- C0: China – Tech Com
- C3: Shenzhen, China – Foxconn
- C7: Shanghai, China – Pentagon
- CK: Cordk, Ireland
- CY, PT: Korea
- DL, DM: China – Foxconn
- DN: Chengdu, China – Foxconn
- IT G: Singapore
- EE, QV, UV: Taiwan
- Q: Fremont, California, USA
- F1, F2, FK: Zhengzhou, China – Foxconn
- FC: Fountain Colorado, USA
- G8, QP, XA, XB: United States
- MB: Malaysia
- RN: Mexico
- VM: Pardubice, Czech Republic – Foxconn
- W8: Shanghai, China
- RM: Renovated
The third digit indicates the assembly line on which the device was manufactured. You would have to know the assembly line labels of a factory to be able to do anything with this number. (It is mainly used for quality assurance.)
The fourth and fifth digits are the production date. The fourth character stands for the year and the fifth for the week. Decoding this isn’t too difficult if you memorize what each character means and are willing to do a little math, but cross-referencing the date code the table on this page is much easier.
The remaining seven characters represent the product model:
- The digits 6 through 8 are random codes that ensure that every device manufactured in the same factory in the same week of the same year has a unique serial number.
- Model number and generation of digits 9 through 11. All Apple product model numbers are available on this list.
- The last digit indicates the configuration of the device, e.g. B. Color / Storage Option etc. These differ between devices. For example, an “M” at the end of an iPhone serial number indicates the color, while “1” on an iPad indicates the hardware configuration.
