Q: MacBook Pro Blank Screen (Built - in & External) - continued

My MBP has done the same thing. I've got an appointment with the Genius bar today but from what I've read elsewhere there seems to be a lot of "It's not the NVIDIA issue you need a new logic board".

I hope that's not the case with me as 4 of the last 5 Apple products I've purchased have died in a period of time I consider to be un-acceptable.

Happened to me about two weeks ago. Took my mac to a apple store yesterday and when they did the test for the bad GPU, it didn't process. So the Genius said that I could either send it to the depot (?) for a flat $310 or do it in store for $800. I took the "depot", which to my bad I didn't ask him what was it. He did said that it was the best option and its the same thing than doing it in store. I sure hope that it is the GPU and I don't have to spend the $310. It supposed to be ready in a week. Does anyone know what the depot is?

@Ant

My MBP has done the same thing. I've got an appointment with the Genius bar today but from what I've read elsewhere there seems to be a lot of "It's not the NVIDIA issue you need a new logic board".

Whichever way the cookie crumbles, you need a new logic board. Apple will replace the mother board if it's the NVIDIA problem - there is no other option. The only issue for you is whether you pay for it, or Apple pays for it. If it's certified to be the NVIDIA problem, Apple pays for it (for three years from your machine's purchase date).

The test for the problem is very simple - the Apple service place was able to tell me after a few moments that it was the NVIDIA chip problem. It doesn't (as far as I can tell) seem to be a grey-area kind of thing. There are many things that can go wrong with your screen and Apple covers most of them under the original warranty, but this is a specific, documented and testable issue covered under a special extended warranty.

IMO it's pretty good of Apple to do this - many companies would just insist 'It's out of warranty, it's your problem'.

I had the Black Screen of Death a few months back. It was actually the second time this occurred but this time I was out of warranty. The Apple repair store told me it was the logicboard and qouted £700 for a replacement. I decided to leave it and pick up a second-hand board on eBay which I did last week but after fitting the board the same BSOD occurred after 3 days!

I knew the machine was booting ok but I needed to switch to Windows (Bootcamp) to get some files via the network which was also still connecting, so I tried the following method which normally brings up your OS choice...

- HOLD THE MENU BUTTON ON THE APPLE REMOTE WHILST BOOTING.

I heard the chime as usual but was amazed to see the screen come to life! This is after maybe 20 failed attempts to boot (using the various key press methods).

After updating the mac firmware I haven’t had a problem since, but I still have my fingers crossed. I’m not sure if this will help people that aren’t using Bootcamp but it’s a very simple solution so give it a try.

Message was edited by: siread

Just wanted to add my story. My screen was also suddenly black. The computer is running 10.4.11, I have no third party RAM installed and I've never done anything strange with it other than use it (which apparently these days is too much for an Apple product to handle). Of course, just my luck, the NVIDIA test failed, and Im out of warranty.

What I find strange about the whole problem is that when I access my computer from a different mac, I can see my login screen clearly. But once I've logged in, the screen is completely garbled and distorted. Was it like this for you guys as well? And what does that mean?

Also, it looks like my battery is confused. I can leave it charging for hours but the light on my adaptor doesn't go green. Don't know if there's a link but figure posting everything I've noticed might help.

In the beginning, the screen would sometimes suddenly work, after putting it in target disk mode. This hasn't worked for over a week now though, so yes, I too have a very expensive paperweight. Oh no, sorry, a very expensive external FireWire disk.

Have you taken it to another place to get second opinion?

After being told by a "genius" that i needed a new logicboard cos it failed the test i took it to an authorised service centre that got it repaired under warranty even though my applecare had run out...

dont give up yet!!

@Manimalle2

The computer is running 10.4.11, I have no third party RAM installed and I've never done anything strange with it other than use it (which apparently these days is too much for an Apple product to handle).

It's unfortunate, but you have to also consider that sometimes it's just dumb luck. There are many things that could conceivably go wrong with your display, and not all of them are going to be the fault of the NVIDIA problem. That's kind of the point of a limited warranty - Apple can't guarantee that everything they make will work forever and some folks are just inevitably going to end up on the shy part of the bell curve. Really, Apple have been quite generous in this instance - they would have been totally within their legal rights to refuse to fix the NVIDIA problem under warranty if they'd so chosen.

I have a broken switch on my iPhone. It's out of warranty. It's certainly the result of shoddy work, and this problem has been reported widely. Sadly, I have no recourse but to put up with it, or pay a lot of money to get it fixed. Them's the breaks.

Maybe you're right, but if I had known that my Macbook Pro would be likely to break down after 2 years and 3 months of use, I would have rather bought a PC laptop, because Apple products are just too expensive for me to replace every 2 years.

This particular problem seems to be much easier for Apple to acknowledge because they can blame it on someone else, in this case NVIDIA.

And if I was the only one with this problem who wasn't covered under the warranty program, I would agree that it's very generous of them to fix all those macbook pros, and also say that it's just bad luck for me. But with so many people having the same problem, we're either all very unlucky or Apple has made a line of faulty Macbook Pros, or so I would think.

Sorry, I appreciate your point and it's great the some people are getting theirs repaired, perhaps I'm just a little bitter, but do you get my point?

Sorry, I appreciate your point and it's great the some people are getting theirs repaired, perhaps I'm just a little bitter, but do you get my point?

I understand absolutely, and I completely sympathize, believe me. When my machine was being tested I held my breath for the few minutes it took to run the diagnostic because I knew that if it turned out that it wasn't the NVIDIA problem I'd be forking out for a new motherboard. In my case, the problem was verified. But I was also prepared for it to be something else.

It may be that Apple can 'blame it on NVIDIA' but I suspect that they still carry the cost of the repairs. NVIDIA claimed that the faulty chips didn't affect Apple machines, so I don't even know whether Apple got any compensation from NVIDIA.

No-one wants to end up with a dud product, but sadly, sometimes it happens. All I can say is that, in my experience, Apple products are pretty **** good. I've had three laptops, and at least a half dozen desktop machines and my problems with them have been rare. What can I say? Either I've been exceptionally lucky, or generally the quality of the gear is high.

Heh. I got censored and I didn't even use a proper cuss word. Deary me.

Looks like I'm the latest victim. Instead of asking you guys for solutions, I just want to make sure I am having the exact same problem. Here is what happens.

System: Early 2008 MBP 2.4 with nVidia 8600M GT, running Snow Leopard.

1. MBP is powered off, battery charged.
2. I press the power button.
3. The white LED is now on.
4. I hear the CD drive coming to life (the familiar click-ish sound).
5. I hear the fans.
6. No chime.
7. No display.
8. CAPS lock key (therefore the entire keyboard) not responsive.
9. USB ports not working (inserted a thumb-drive and it didn't power up.)
10. Firewire port not working.
11. Ethernet port not working.
12. Reseting PRAM, NVRAM or PMU doesn't work (tried all those).
13. Booting in targeted mode didn't do anything (tested with a second Mac connected via Firewire).
14. Safe-mode boot doesn't work.
15. Couldn't boot with the install DVD (now I have the DVD trapped inside).

My Question: Is this the nVidia issue? Or simply a "normal" dead logic board?

This definitely does not sound like the NVIDIA issue. You should hear the startup chime, and you definitely can access the drive in target mode.

The fact that all your ports are not working suggests something else entirely.

Thanks for the reply A service center is currently "repairing" it.

Since I'm upset, I gotta share my 2c here.

It's not entirely about the money. It is about being able to work and having gear that I can depend upon. I never had serious hardware issues in my Windows days, only software issues! Even the worst problem could be solved within 1 day maximum.

Now that I use a Mac now it's the other way around! I never realized the hardware issues that's the ugly truth hidden beneath everything Apple. The real problem with it is that getting a hardware problem fixed takes days - and it is very, very frustrating. Ugh!

My MacBook Pro has been repaired. It arrived last week. Total repair time was 12 days.

Apple replaced the logic board for free under the NVIDIA defect program. They also replaced the battery for free because "runtime was too short". I don't have AppleCare, so that was a nice surprise.

You can read more about my saga at my blog here:
http://www.logicalvue.com/blog/2009/09/dead-macbook-pro-displays/
http://www.logicalvue.com/blog/2009/09/dead-macbook-pro-displays-an-update/
http://www.logicalvue.com/blog/2009/09/dead-macbook-pro-displays-update-2/
http://www.logicalvue.com/blog/2009/09/dead-macbook-pro-displays-final-update/

Definitely not the NVIDIA issue. My MacBook Pro was fully usable with an external USB monitor. If it's the NVIDIA issue, then only the video will be dead. The rest of the computer should work normally.

I think you'll find that most laptop repairs (Mac or PC) will take days. It's not like you can easily swap out laptop parts of today's ever-shrinking models. Pretty much anything but a drive failure is going to need a new logic board.

I wasn't happy either with the wait time, either. This MacBook Pro failure was the first major computer failure (other than hard drives) I've had in over 25 years of owning them.

If easy repair is your goal, you perhaps ought to stick with more accessible tower models. Or do what I did and get a cheap Mac mini as a backup. And when it's not needed, it makes a great media center!