Q: Strange vertical stripes - Continued

This is not at all related to the backlight problem and is most certainly not causing a backlight problem. The NVidia problem has extremely different symptoms. The assumption that the repairs aren't working because it's a graphic chip problem are unfounded, and have been a repeated and irritating distraction from the actual backlight problem.

The reason the LCD replacements aren't working is quite simply due to the fact that the backlights are not being replaced (the LCD and backlight are separate components, but this problem is listed as an "LCD" problem with Apple, not a "backlight" problem.)

As such, the repairs in which the LCD or logic board are replaced do not work is because the actual defective component (the backlight itself) isn't being changed.

(Note to anyone with this problem: If you try to get this repaired, try to make sure the symptom is listed as "uneven backlight" and not "LCD pixel on/off/stuck" which is what seems to be the most common categorization, and why repairs typically will fail.)

For starters, you should not have it on your lap, especially under hard core CPU/GPU use.
These machines (the Pro's) are not designed to be used on a lap and will get hot. They should be used on a hard, flat surface so air can flow underneath and help keep them cool. Under heavy use on a lap they will get hot an could overheat.

As for when your machine was manufactured, the 3rd digit is the year so "8" = 2008 and the 4th/5th digits are the week it was manufactured. So "10" would be week 10 in 2008.

Thanks

Message was edited by: Jerrymyah

MaaxD:

The title of this thread is Strange Vertical Strips, and what is causing the vertical stripes and other artifacts? The graphic chipset, it sends signals to the display, what you see on the display comes from the graphic chips on the logic board.

You really need to get familiar with this situation, try starting here

http://forums.macrumors.com/showthread.php?t=578050&page=3

You on your OWN computer may be having a backlite problems, but not most people in this thread.

The display on its own can't possibly cause the vertical and other striping, blocking, and other artifacts.

Will

hel2,

I would suggest that you look at this thread again. Maxdd is correct: I was one of the first posters on this thread in March (before it was locked by Apple and moved to this new thread), and the stripes are caused by the BACKLIGHT failing to operate, not the pixels being rendered improperly on the screen.

If you have an issue with the pixels or weird jagged graphics on your screen, please find the appropriate thread for your problem (such as here: http://discussions.apple.com/thread.jspa?threadID=1419469&tstart=0 or here: http://discussions.apple.com/thread.jspa?threadID=1332368&tstart=15).

The backlight device is controlled by the system and not the GPU; therefore, replacing the GPU will have no effect on the issue. Note that in all of the cases reported under this thread, the pixels on the screen are what they are supposed to be. The issue is simply that half of the backlights on the bottom of the display intermittently fail to activate, which means that it's just harder to see some pixels than others.

I also have a post near the top of this thread that describes the status of the problem (including a photo and suggested workarounds). Note also that the Apple tracking number for this problem is TS1258 (http://support.apple.com/kb/TS1258).

-essd

it's now two months since my screen was replaced and the problem has not returned.
Here's hoping

There is a separate problem relating to the graphic chipset, and there are threads for that particular problem. That is not what this thread is about. This thread is about strange backlight stripes, not strange pixel or graphic stripes, and not graphic corruption. In any case, the MacRumors thread you reference is a completely different problem than what people here are experiencing (other than those poor souls experiencing both problems)

A little background:

The thread was originally started by AtomicWedgie on March 2nd of 2008:

Argh, I wish I'd taken a picture of the problem--it hasn't happened since Friday, but every so >often, when I wake the MBP (Penryn) from sleep, I see alternating bands of light and dark vertical >"stripes" along the screen. It looks as if half the LED backlights did not activate.

A couple posts later, essd then provided a screenshot of the problem, clearly showing a backlight issue, with a confirmation that this is the problem AtomicWedgie was experiencing:

http://img175.imageshack.us/my.php?image=mg2729smallnx2.jpg

60,000+ views and 687 replies later, Apple created a new thread (this one) to continue the discussion because the previous thread was causing browser timeouts just trying to view it. For some reason, the view count on the original thread reset shortly after reaching 60,000. The conspiracy theorists believe Apple was trying to "hide" it, but more likely the counter hit 65536 and overflowed a 16-bit integer somewhere in a database and reset to 0. At that point, I wrote a short FAQ summarizing and describing this problem, including links to pictures of the problem so that people would have context from the original thread:

http://discussions.apple.com/thread.jspa?messageID=7760325&#7760325

The Apple TS article regarding this problem clearly shows a backlight problem:

http://support.apple.com/kb/TS1258

I have read every post in both the original "Strange Vertical Stripes" thread and this one "Strange Vertical Stripes - continued" as I have been affected by this since February of 2008. I am well aware of the nature of the problem in these threads. I can see that you are a new user, and are not familiar with the amount of effort this community has gone to. For your convenience, I have included the links from the FAQ here so that you can better understand the defect we are discussing in these threads:

References:
http://arstechnica.com/journals/apple.ars/2008/04/28/some-macbook-pros-show-vert ical-striping-display-issues
http://digg.com/apple/Appleignoring_display_problems_on_latest_MacBook_Pro2008
http://discussions.apple.com/thread.jspa?threadID=1423301
http://forums.mactalk.com.au/29/47358-faint-vertical-bands-mbp-screen.html
http://forums.mactalk.com.au/29/50726-have-i-got-mbp-lemon.html#jmp0
http://gadgetsinternet.com/2008/04/01/macbook-pro-led-screens-show-stripey-failu res/#jmp0
http://img175.imageshack.us/my.php?image=mg2729smallnx2.jpg
http://sites.google.com/site/verticalstripesissue/
http://www.crunchgear.com/2008/03/31/problems-with-led-screens-on-penryn-macbook -pro/
http://www.macfixit.com/article.php?story=20080508102646188
http://www.macrumors.com/2008/06/17/15-macbook-pro-vertical-striping-issue/
http://www.mobilemag.com/content/100/334/C14951/
http://www.ricroberts.com/articles/2008/06/09/macbook-pro-strange-vertical-strip es

MaaxD:

I stand corrected, that is a LED/LCD problem, separate from the graphic chipset. What amazes me is that Apple still has not solved this serious problem. Now thats two reasons to get rid of my MBP before it starts showing either of these problems before the resell value goes down the drain (if it hasn't already).

Will

Adding my two cents...

My Macbook Pro, purchased in March 2008, only started showing the LED backlight problem last week. It has happened three times so far, always under the same condition. With the laptop connect to AC power, when the display goes to half-dim mode (before sleeping), it dims into the dreaded spotlight/stripe mode with half of the LED backlights off completely. Waking up from half-dim leaves the display in spotlight mode. Sleeping the display (C-S-eject) and waking fixes as for everyone else. I could not get the backlighting to fail with the Photo Booth trick, even after 30 or more snapshots.

For my machine (MBP-penryn), the screen is NEVER* unstriped (and has been like this since I got it in May).

None of the purported fixes do anything. I've got a repair order from Apple, but it's hard to find a week when I can afford to give up the machine for repairs, especially since people don't report much success from the repairs. I've also been traveling a lot until recently so repair has been infeasible.

Not sure what to do at this point, and I'm pretty disappointed (although the earlier Darfur argument certainly makes me feel like an ***, complaining about this). Yes, the computer still works, but the perpetual stripes make it hard to do anything, especially outdoors where the loss of brightness reduces visibility.

Has anybody here actually heard of, or experienced, successful repairs for this problem?

*I've called Apple and they had me update to 10.5.3 back in the day, and that somehow worked for about 3 days

Message was edited by: Kurremkarmerruk

It seems to me that in your case, it might actually be worth going for the apple fix, not necessarily because you will get a completely fixed computer but because you ought to at least be able to get a much better one. Since upgrading to 10.5.5, I have only seen the stripes once, and that was when I "forced" them with PhotoBooth. Of course this means that whatever the underlying problem is with my computer, it is still there, but again, it seems to me that your situation could be improved.

On another note: have the new MBPs started shipping yet? I keep wondering if they will have the stripes problem, too, and if they don't, if there is a snowball's chance in h* that any of us could get one as a replacement.

Thanks for the suggestion. I'm at 10.5.5 now with no change in performance, and I'm not sure why the previous update fixed anything, even for a brief period, but there you go.

It would definitely be nice to get a new model replacement! Maybe not so likely, but Apple could consider allowing people who have unfixable problems (like this) to trade in towards a new, working machine.

Do you know if Apple can do an in-store repair? I've got a repair order, but I'd prefer if the repair could be done over a day in-store, rather than submitting it for an unspecified period to a warehouse, where they might wipe the hard-drive (I can't back it up easily).

My MBP lid/display replacement (for stripes) and my current video card replacement have and are taking place at my local Ann Arbor store. They have been prompt so far. Backing up is still recommended.
And, I did good (with humor) ask for a 512MB video card upgrade.
And... so far, the stripes haven't reappeared since the new lid.

Good Luck

So I just wanted to let those interested in the latest on this particular repair so they can either commiserate or give some advice.

After a week I finally got the call to pick up my Mac Book. Of course first thing I do is boot it up and do the photobooth trick and lo and behold the vertical stripes appear! Now sadly, this was exactly what I was expecting.

I showed it to the genius and we talked about it and he informed me that they replaced both the LCD and the backlight... (to be honest I am doubtful they did the backlight, but I have to believe the man I guess).

So it is now having the logic board and clamshell replaced in hopes of resolving this issue. I of course tried my best to convince them everyone would be better off if they just exchanged my Macbook Pro for a newly released model, but for some reason they didn't bite (much to my sadness).

I should get it back in a couple of days and will see what happens. If these repairs do not fix the issue I will really press the manager to replace the machine as this cycle of bringing it in, wasting time and having no resolution cannot continue.

There you have it... a story like many of you!

I also have this problem with my early 2008 MBP.

What I find interesting is that I have not heard of a single person reporting this issue while running Windows on their MBP. Am I correct?

Could this be solved by a software update? I doubt it, but I thought I would see what the community thought.
Cheers
Scotty (NZ)

In my case, that IS correct!
I don't use my Windows bootcamp partition very often, but it is a fact that our backlight issue as never ocurred while I was running Windows...
In my ignorant opinion, there are two views of the backlight problem:
- either related to Mac OSX's control of the backlight behaviour (imprecise control)
- or related to a backlight malfunctioning itself (defected parts)

This issue was identified a while ago and Apple doens't seam to know the exact cause...
Without an exact cause, what should we expect from any repair center?!?

Message was edited by: pedroL