Q: New iMac 27inch screen flickering/tearing/shutoff

I can't believe after so long.. that we still don't know what the problem is. Software or Hardware? Frustrating.

Gille_Belgium wrote:

I can't believe after so long.. that we still don't know what the problem is. Software or Hardware? Frustrating.

You're right Gille, but we have to assume it's hardware.

Simon

I hope not.. or my imac is just a timebomb that can explode any moment.

Add me to the list of Flickering Screens. I am reluctant to send the iMac back only to have it replaced with another that is likely to be afflicted with the same problem, especially as my current machine is only flickering very occasionally - not nearly as bad as some of the YouTube videos.
I spoke to AppleCare in the UK this morning and the techie confirmed to that Apple are working on the problem and it will be fixed with OS X 10.6.3 (whenever that might be!). Mind you I thought 10.6.2 was meant to sort it – we shall see.
He also said that should the problem not be resolved in 10.6.3 (doesn't fill you with confidence somehow) I will be able to get it fixed on site, or at least an engineer will come to me and if he can't do it on site will take it away and bring it back fixed (I've got 3 Year AppleCare). Watch this space.

Thanks for the info Paul.

It's funny to see that they speak of a software solution (10.6.3) and then of a hardware fix.

I guess.. they told you what you wanted to hear (fixing your imac somehow).

Just to throw in my experience again, I tried sleeping, shutting down, not sleeping the iMac and it didn't seem to make a difference. i.e. I couldn't set a scenario where it always flickered, and I could create a scenario where it never flickered. It just happened when it happened.

On the power topic, I put my iMac back onto the original board where I had gotten more flickering but couldn't get itself to repeat it, so the theory that the problem is related to a particular power board didn't work for me either.

I have just gotten an email that my replacement iMac has been shipped, so fingers crossed this one is OK. The bit over a week without it has been tough since it is such a nice machine. I for one am happy to keep sending it back until I get a good one, since when I do I will be extremely happy with the machine. I will post the new batch number and update on success or otherwise when it arrives.

Gille_Belgium wrote:

I hope not.. or my imac is just a timebomb that can explode any moment.

If you assume it isn't hardware, then as Apple has chosen to replace so many machines when they could've just as easily asked us to be patient, and many of us would've been, then you may very well be sitting on a time bomb. Is it really down to the consumer to take this risk? Should you not have received a fully working, non-flickering iMac from the outset?

Simon

You are correct. If it's software, they wouldn't make such a cost of replacing all the machines. But on the other hand.. Losing customers for apple is like a death stroke. I don't know anymore.. i just wait i guess. My imac is running fine now. But it's only 4 days old. I'm a graphic designer so i gonna see it soon if it's faulty again.

thanks for all the replies & good luck.

Message was edited by: Gille_Belgium

I bought mine at Humac, Copenhagen and today they told me to hand it in at their workshop tomorrow. They couldnt guarantee me they will replace it with a new one, because they were not aware of this being a common problem with the new iMacs. Thus, they encouraged me to make videos and detailed error descriptions for them to work with.
If they replace it, I'm afraid the replacement as in your case will still flicker. Maybe even worse than the iMac I already have...so getting the money back must be the last resort if the replacement seem to be faulty as well.

This was my first weekend with my i7 iMac and used it pretty heavily playing WoW, web browsing, etc. It seems that I can for hours without the flickering/bars and then it will crop up and happen every minute or so. When I put my hand on the back of the unit, it is so hot that I can't keep my hand on it. I almost think that the extreme hotness is causing the video malfunction. In any event, I am almost to the point of taking the unit back to my local Apple Store and getting a refund.

What do you mean by "almost to the point of taking it back"? If I had the screen flickering problem only once with my iMac (which in fact had the yellow tinted screen problem and went back) I would take it back to Apple immediately. These thing cost a lot of money and I haven't experienced such a bad product quality with any other major PC vendor (Sony, Dell, etc.). (Had to return 5 iPhoned due to various reasons, 2 iPod Touch, 1 iPod Nano and now my first Mac ever - a i7 27" iMac).

You raise a good point sandrotto. I guess my only hesitation is that maybe the heat is normal and that the video problem might be a firmware/driver issue. I already have a PC I built myself for gaming and I fear that if I return this Mac it might be my last Mac.

I got my new iMac just 11 days ago and I experience exactly the same issues (flickering, blackouts, horizontal white noise stripes across the screen, etc.). Very frustrating! I will return my iMac to the dealer tomorrow hoping for a replacement that works.

It's never easy for engineers to design an all-in-one system like iMac. It has all the subsystems packed in a single housing. Heat is an obvious issue, especially for faster desktop-class CPUs. Another more important concern to me is the potential interference between subsystems caused by leak of undesired radio signals or EM field. It requires a lot of efforts to make sure nothing happening between ALL of them packed together, not only on few prototypes sitting in the lab for some tests but for mass-produced units that need to stay healthy for many months or years in consumers' hands. No one can tell for sure that a system is fine by comparing specs like temperature readings from sensors, etc. There are many untold stories beyond the specs, which at most is only a summary of selected information.

My suggestion here is to give Apple engineers and their subsystem providers more time to evaluate this problem and work out a fix. Return the faulty unit and get a refund for now. People have wasted a lot of energy trying to understand or even attempt to solve a technical problem that should not be addressed by customers like you and me at all.

Also please remember that there are other choices of many great Apple products. Your experience with Mac should not be limited to the iMac. I am a happy Mac user for more than 25 years. The pizza-box all-in-one iMac is the only Apple product that I've stayed away since its debut years ago.

I returned mine to the Apple Store Bluewater today, the bloke there said he'd never heard of the problem - but then, when he powered up the Mac I asked him to log out of Mobile Me for me and he had no idea how to do it and gave me the mouse.

I then spoke to Apple Care UK, guy there at least admitted to the fault but said an update to 10.6.2 would fix it.