Q: display anomalies

@schoonerTMM - i have definitely noticed a rise in symtoms during hot days... i live in SF so fortunately we don't have too many but anytime the temp was over 80°F i found the machine overheating and freezing up frequently and having numerous graphic anomalies pop up. switching the machine off in between sessions - as opposed to just putting it to sleep - seemed to help as it would let the machine cool down. also using a Thermopak heat absorbing pad helped a little (4-5°) and when i was really desperate i'd stick the pad in the freezer for a while (not too long!).
Fan control of one kind or another is a given.
the Quartz extreme trick never worked for me but other folks have had good luck with it so it's worth a try.
also - obviously - keep the machine out of the sun!
other tips can be found on the earlier thread i posted several months ago.

good luck,
b

oh - and @Cnek - i urge you to also try as many of the tips as can be found on this thread - many of us have salvaged some degree of functionality from out MBP's - it's possible you can too.
and as far as Apple France is concerned - my advice is to call back and try another rep. - all it takes is one sympathetic one and you might just get some kind of assistance.
my advice with that is to describe your problem in detail without giving too much personal info - don't get a reference number or anything like that - that way, if you don't get any help you can just hang up and try again.
a little sneaky but we have to do what we must, after all we didn't create this problem and we acted in good faith by buying these machines - at top dollar i might add - it's just a shame Apple can't act in good faith and make this right.
good luck.
b

Schooner Interesting observation. In Vancouver as well and I want to say I agree that problems have lessened to a degree since change in weather. I think I'm going to get a cooling pad. Bumping up smcFan up to 3100 rpm usually keeps temp below 50 degrees which works good.

hello, all unfortunate friends
I'm expencing a strange thing :
to resume, I run my MBp rev 1 with smc fan, without battery since months, because it crash when i'm above 60/65 and using graphics. when I had battery on (so, 2 CPU running) it's impossible to run Second Life for exemple, even with smc fans at 5500 rpm, because it crash to black screen . I'm so used to the crashs that I can predict them ...
but here is the strange thing : I downloaded Boinc, to run Seti program. this program make your cpu run to the max . i'm currently at 76 ° , fans at 4890, battery inside, so 2 core working. no crash .. I have run Second Life for 2 hours, battery on, Boinc suspended but active : no crash, temperature above 72/74 !!!
even with Boinc on, I had no crash ...
????? so, I don't know why, but I wanted to share it . I will not try to experiment a lot on it, as havy temperature seem to kill the GPU, but, FOR the FIRST time in months, I can run my MBP at heavy temperature, using graphics, without a crash or a glitche
So , may be it's also software related ! ? ! ?
Boinc, even suspended, have files open, but I am not so good, so if someone can check it ?
if some people can reproduce it ?

(A little tip to save temperature: downgrade to flash 9, to watch video : it work the same, but is really less heavy for the computer)

I add something : i'm watching a magavideo vidéo since one hours, while running seti calculation on Boinc (it's set up to 80 % of cpu). so, my cpu is always loaded. my battery is on . 77/78 °, and NO glitches !!! ???
no reboot, happiness...
my fans are at 4900 with smcfan, with a set up of 4500

I will try with iStats,to watch GPU temperature, but this is so unusual because I should have got a black screen since the beginning.
and not one glitche, horizontal line, or any of symptoms ...

(if it is really a way to a solution, I just state here that this, and everything related to this, is copyrighted for all peoples who have post in that thread ... I mean, that discussion user's own the copyright)

Good day everyone,
here is an update on my one month out of warranty 17 MBP w/ ATI x1600 graphics problem...

We contacted apple hotline number (asia/pacific), apple customer relation person asked what was the problem, we said that AASP diagnosed it with a logic board problem and asking for Php 30k or $600 US equivalent for repair, ACR person ask more details (serial number, purchased date, etc...) and also asked what we want & how she can help us, we said that we want a replacement or a reasonable price for repair, she said that she will try her best and call them everyday for an update cause it is recorded. After 2 days updating, ACR person said she will call us after 24 hrs. After 24 hrs. she called us and granted a free logic board replacement, she also emailed the applecare case no. (special case cause it is out of warranty), a big big thanks to her. At the moment my MBP is still in AASP for repair, we only paid the labor.

Btw she also said that they already investigating the problem.

God Bless

Good news and congratulations to you chit88...hope it all works out. And I hope everyone else who have had this issue presses Apple ASAP as we may reach critical mass that way.

Otherwise my only other option is a repair from the following provider:

http://cgi.ebay.ca/Original-MacBook-Pro-Whole-Unit-Logic-Board-RepairW0QQitemZ260482582393QQcmdZViewItemQQptZLH_DefaultDomain_0?hash=item3ca5f8c779&_ trksid=p3286.c0.m14#ht_2341wt1167



They have had experience with this issue and in my emails to them have replied with this information (quoting):

"we've fixed these before and unfortunately it's not a video card but its a BGA chip on the logic board (the BGA Video chip is on the board, they are integrated together as one so it is the same). We're currently running at about a 70% success rate on this repair so it's worth a shot as you only pay the return shipping if we don't fix it and in the event we can't repair your board you will be quoted on a board swap based on inventory and availability of the board you need."


It's $300 for this repair and $500 for logic board....but hopefully Apple will relent. Please keep up the pressure.

just wanted to add to this. i just dropped my mbp core duo with the radeon x1600 off to have the logic board replaced for the second time. i purchased the machine in august of 2006. i began having problems with the computer shutting off when the battery ran down to around 84%. the battery was replaced under warranty.

a few months later, the battery would not charge and i began to get the aforementioned anomalies (pixel lines, pink and yellow triangle and square gradients) in both my main screen and the external monitor i use as well. this would eventually end with the system completely locking up, the only recourse being restarting with a hard reset. one month out of warranty, the logic board was replaced under the tier 1 service program for $349.

over a year later, the machine would again shutoff when running on battery power only. shortly after, the battery again stopped accepting a charge. about 8 months after this, the screen artifacts began returning. i noticed their frequency would increase when i was doing processor heavy applications—photoshop on large files, flash video, opening spaces with a lot of windows etc. the machine would often hang when under stress. the frequency of the system hangs had increased in the past few months, with the last bout giving me approximately 20 minutes of uptime between hangs.

my machine was usually on a stand and always kept pretty clean. i moved it from my home to my office daily and was always driving another monitor with it.

i am very displeased, however, to see such a widespread problem unacknowledged by apple. i've now spent over $700 on repairs and replacements for what is quite obviously a design and engineering flaw on their part, not counting the cost of the downtime on my machine with which i make my livelihood.

I have a 15" MacBook Pro purchased in May 2006 that has this same problem. Lines appearing on the display, distorted graphics leading to an eventual system hang. Seems to me that this problem is pretty widespread and it's about time Apple acknowledge it and put it right.

Well I have some very good news for a change. After seeing the most recent posting from another disgruntled customer I decided I might as well test my luck and be persistent. Even though I recently called Apple with the issue and got a no go, I nevertheless forged ahead. Setting up a callback appointment which is available in U.S. and Canada, I explained my problem again via their support page and included all the links (this site and others as well as the law firm involved in litigation) The agent went through all my repair history and was sympathetic. He put me through to a customer relations person rather than a product specialist. This person went through my case history and repair history and while he admitted he wasn't a product specialist felt that I had an excessive number of problems with my Macbook pro. So imagine my shock and awe when he said he was going to REPLACE my unit with a BRAND NEW MACBOOK PRO 15 ". I am astounded and unbelievably grateful. (maybe my mentioning that Apple's profits have been reportedly sailing through the roof gave them an extra impetus for generosity I will be getting my brand new unibody Macbook pro next week. All I can say guys is be persistent! This was my 3rd or 4th call to them regarding this issue and I didn't expect this at all, but it certainly paid off. Good luck, peace and gratitude! Thanks to this discussion my problem is solved.

WOW! Congratulations to you cybermorph, you can finally get a good night sleep

Now, as your MBP isn't any difference from all our others, let's hopw Apple turns your stores courtesy into any sort of acknowledgement and gives free (or at least discounted MBP) to us in the near future.

A move like this would be highly appreciated ... in the end, that's what we ask for for months here now.

be persistent. I kept getting no 3 or 4 times before finally they did something about it. Good luck.

I've been persistent more than 3or4 dozen times. Did you have AppleCare and any prior repairs or did you just explain the problem a few times and get a replacement? Sounds way too good to be true...

Check out my previous posts. I had no AppleCare (big mistake) but had a replacement Logic board out of warranty (14months) due to a known issue (clicking sound under power button) Then 2 fan replacements on the replacement logic board. Apple paid for those. I also had a keyboard I had to pay to replace.....I guess finally a "customer relations person" (rather than a product specialist) finally decided that I had far too many repairs and problems for a 3 and a half year old computer..... maybe I just lucked out. But I was despondent only a week ago too....(after being told NO NO NO NO by every product specialist) Maybe try asking the first rep to transfer you to a "customer relations rep" instead. And be sure to send multiple links of every possible resource (like this site, etc) I was as frustrated as you and can't believe my luck. But maybe now that Apple has had such a successful year (40% improvement in profit forecasts) maybe they're open to being a little more generous. I can't thank this board enough, as I think it really truly pushed it over the edge for me.....and I can't believe my brand spanking new 2.54 Ghz macbook pro is on its way from China as we speak; it's ways better than the machine I have and will cost me nothing. Keep at it!