Screen turns black when gaming?

Hello;

Model Name: MacBook Pro
Model Identifier: MacBookPro5,1
Processor Name: Intel Core 2 Duo
Processor Speed: 2.53 GHz
Number Of Processors: 1
Total Number Of Cores: 2
L2 Cache: 6 MB
Memory: 4 GB
Bus Speed: 1.07 GHz
Boot ROM Version: MBP51.0074.B01
SMC Version: 1.33f8
my serial number is W8848xxxxxx, and no BSOD.

i test flatout 2 (osx), crisi warhead and COD 5.

i cross my finger

_*Come Clean*_

Ok Apple - this thread today has its 3 month anniversary and we would appreciate any information on the issue(s) described here.

Are you working on it?
What is the exact problem? (Graphics, other Hardware or Software?)
Can it be fixed by an (Software)Update or an Recall?
When can we expect a fix?

Please don't let your customers and users in the dark. This is the first time i own an apple product and i am evaluating it for the company. Your course of action will decide the future. I don't have a problem that the macbooks got a problem - since you can't be blamed for nvidia's bugs, however the vital point is how YOU (Apple Inc.) deals with it.
Please don't let this be the last product I ever bought from you.

Regards,
ToM

I think Tom nailed it. When you pay $2,000-$2,500 for a laptop, this is not what you expect. Apple needs to take ownership on this and find out if this is a bad batch of Nvidia chips or what. Let's at least get it narrowed down to a manufacturing week or something. Imagine the cumulative hours that all of us have wasted driving to/from an Apple retail store or authorized retailer. How many machines have we gone through? Apple brands their support as "world-class". We as brand-loyal consumers are now holding you up to this standard. Please respond and give us some relief.

Regards,
Xavier

I have also this problem. 😟 Bought my MacBook Pro Unibody on November the 14th.
Apple Hotline in Germany says they have no problem, the only thing I can try is to go to the service provider to fix the problem. But the service provider told me Apple do not know this problem here in germany, so he can not fix anything...

I phoned with Apple, telling them about this thread on a native apple homepage, telling them that there are users with the same problem, but they seems to be uninterested in that case. 😟

Do not know what to do. Hopefully the service provider will change the logic board, hopefully.

I am new in the Mac community, but now I am really frustrated and every PC User I know is blaming me.

Spend 2 weeks of testing and searching the problem until I found this thread. 😟

I have the latest updates onboard! Problem appears very seldom using MacOSX, but very opften playing a game using Windows XP.

Fallout 3 is a nightmare, every hour or less the game ***** my MacBook Pro.

I paid 2300 Euros for this machine and now Apple is not interested in helping me....


<Edited by Moderator>

Here is some more information on all three of the MPB's that I have gone through. I have done some stress testing on my latest one. I would not say I have done enough to give it the all clear but it looks good so far. Note that my two busted MPB's came from the same factory during the same manufacturing week. Can anyone else post similar data so that we can compare and try to figure out if maybe week 46 produced the duds? If you are not sure of how to find this information check out this site:

http://www.chipmunk.nl/cgi-fast/applemodel.cgi



NEW MPB
---------------------------------------------------------
Serial number: W88486XXXXX
Name: MacBook Pro (Late 2008)
Model: Mxxxx MacBook Pro 2.53GHz
Screen size: 15 inch
Memory - number of slots: 2
Factory: W8 (Shanghai China)
URL: Technical specifications by apple-history.com code tonumber: 6MP - CK144KFSL4Y

Model introduced: 2008
Production year: 2008
Production week: 48 (December)
Production number: 7673 (within this week)

BUSTED MBP #2
-------------------------------------------------------
Serial number: W88461XXXXX
Name: MacBook Pro (Late 2008)
Model: Mxxxx MacBook Pro 2.53GHz
Screen size: 15 inch
Memory - number of slots: 2
Factory: W8 (Shanghai China)
URL: Technical specifications by apple-history.com code tonumber: 1MZ - CK043H49K5C

Model introduced: 2008
Production year: 2008
Production week: 46 (November)
Production number: 1903 (within this week)
Uitbreidingen: Uitbreidingsmogelijkheden van *** apparaat

BUSTED MBP #1
-------------------------------------------------------
Serial number: W88463XXXXX
Name: MacBook Pro (Late 2008)
Model: Mxxxx MacBook Pro 2.53GHz
Screen size: 15 inch
Memory - number of slots: 2
Factory: W8 (Shanghai China)
URL: Technical specifications by apple-history.com code tonumber: 3DA -

Model introduced: 2008
Production year: 2008
Production week: 46 (November)
Production number: 3920 (within this week)

I figured that I'd throw myself into the mix here. I had been having BSoDs on my Week 01 Pro only in Steam on CrossOver. It would crash in every game, Team Fortress 2, HL2, Portal, etc. I had never had any problems with native CoD4. I was dealing with the problem with smcfancontrol, which minimized but did not eliminate the crashes. I took in my computer, not to fix this problem, but to fix a broken ethernet port. My receipt says they're going to replace the logic board, which, now reading this thread, makes me nervous. Hopefully, it all turns out for the best.

To answer the previous post, I'm also fairly sure that the graphics update today was targeted at the Dual-link display adapters and HD video playback.

I wish it were but it does not appear to address the 9600 GT, only the 9600M. Here is the full article from Macworld:
------------------------------------------------------------

Apple update fixes issues with some Nvidia cards
by Jonathan Seff, Macworld.com

Apple on Monday afternoon released Nvidia Graphics Update 2009, which according to the release notes is designed to improve cursor movement (reducing jumpy or erratic movement) when using Apple's $99 Mini DisplayPort to Dual-Link DVI Adapter with the latest MacBook Air, MacBook, or MacBook Pro.

The update is available via OS X's Software Update feature or from Apple's Web site, and requires OS X 10.5.6

Have the same problem and agree that Apple needs to do something immedately. This thing is just too expensive for lousy service. I'm overriding the problem with FanControl now, http://www.versiontracker.com/dyn/moreinfo/macosx/31130.

Using FanControl is not the solution for a 2300 Euro laptop!

If your 9600M GT Chip will die in 2 years, Apple will not help you.
We have to take care that we will get the needed support now!

HP is selling a similar laptop with 9600M GT GPU and 4GB of ram and
a Core Duo. The laptop is cheaper, but ugly and only for Vista made.
BUT a game like FALLOUT 3 is running fine on this laptop with the same
settings like on the MacBook Pro without the "Black Screen of Death"!

My logic board will be changed tomorrow, but the service guy told me that I maybe get again a faulty logic board, until Apple will check their stock of spare parts.

Thumbs up that MY case will be solved in the next 2 days...

Can some more of you folks post your build week? I know this might be a premature assumption but it looks like week 46 has the duds. I have stressed the daylights out of my week 48 machine and have not had any issues yet (knock on wood)

It seems this thread has got so long now that Safari can't show the page without 'unresponsive script' errors. No issues with any other 'inferior' browsers though 😉

Whilst it remains my firm belief that the issue lies with the faulty SMC/fans not spinning up fast enough and extreme chip temperatures rather than an Nvidia based cause - a problem that can be proven and replicated on many machines - the situation is serious enough for me to consider downgrading to a Macbook for the time being. I'm loathed to admit it, but Apple's silence on the issue for a number of months has me worried, apprehensive about the lack of attention this issue has received, and now I am actively looking for alternatives.

http://support.apple.com/kb/HT1411

It seems that the graphics card heats up too much in windows. After installing new drivers and underclocking it, I've had no crashes while so far while playing dead space..

Why does this have to be done on the windows side if you're playing it on Leopard? Just curious?