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

Well, add me to the list of i7 owners seeing intermittent bands of static, and also occasional complete 'blackouts' of the entire screen. Very disappointing.

yes it is pretty hot on the back. Were the ones that you touched at the store the quad cores? I touched the back of a 2-core 27 inch imac in the store and it was significantly cooler than my i7 (which makes sense really). Mine gets pretty hot but not so hot that I actually think I'd do any kind of psychical damage to myself by keeping my hand there (upper left corner I presume). I haven't had the fans come on so I'm pretty sure that I'm still within normal operating temperature.
I definitely agree that these are hot (literally lol) machines but from what I've heard the aluminum back is supposed to basically be a giant heatsink so if the heat is there its really where it should be and not indicative of a problem...the flickering is another story.
Again, no problems so far (fingers crossed) and my machine is pretty hot so I'm not sure thats the issue...whats your production week number? I'm going to put mine in every post and hopefully others will to...this might help us all figure out what the **** is happening here :/

production week # 46

My serial number starts with W8946

weird...our machines are from the same production week I guess. Either this is not a batch issue, or it is and I just got lucky and got a good machine....or (and I cringe) it is a batch issue and I'm about to see some screen problems soon :/

Now if this turns out to be a batch issue Im not sure where I'll stand, even if my machine doesn't exhibit any symptoms it could basically be a ticking time bomb.

I really wish we could get some kind of official response here, I'm sure somebody from Apple has noticed all of us trying to get a fix (pun intended) on this issue...somebody must have pinpointed the problem by now.

Just as an update, I exchanged my iMac last Thursday and since have not experienced any issues with the new machine. It also bears the 946 serial, same as the first one I had returned. The only thing I'm reluctant to do just yet is to install and transfer any of my programs and files. Which is a pain as I will be using this machine for work. It would be nice of Apple to come out and explain these issues so we could all have peace of mind. I'm hoping for the best but it seems this issue could appear anytime, possibly even months later. I'd almost be tempted to exchange this on for a build to order i7. I would assume any new orders from the factory should be receiving a better round of quality control, at least on a couple of these issues in specific.

What I find interesting is how none of the Mac or gadget websites (Apple Insider, Engadget, MacRumours, Gizmodo, Ars Technica, to name but a few) especially those who specifically conduct reviews, have reported any of these issues, or even suggested a problem with their review machines. If it were simply firmware wouldn't some of those machines have been affected? My guess is that when Apple sends out a product to be reviewed it isn't simply taken off the line, it's checked/inspected or even built separately, to ensure what they receive turns up perfect. That's why I'm still leaning towards this being a hardware fault. Of course this is just pure speculation on my part but I do find it odd.

Hey Simon,
of course, they don't report any of these issues. They get sponsored by Apple and have certain agreements on what to say. This is what almost every other computer maker does. It doesn't have to do anything with real journalism. It is sales promotion.
If anyone has heard of or thinks about setting up a website which has neutral hardware reviews, please let me know!

The serial number of my second faulty replacement starts with W8939

You can also post here:

http://www.hardmac.com/news/2009/11/24/imac-27-first-problem-reported

Been reading them for years and I find them independent and really useful!

lordrobert wrote:

of course, they don't report any of these issues. They get sponsored by Apple and have certain agreements on what to say. This is what almost every other computer maker does. It doesn't have to do anything with real journalism. It is sales promotion.
If anyone has heard of or thinks about setting up a website which has neutral hardware reviews, please let me know!

That being said, and it's important to give credit where credit is due. On Gizmodo today, they've just reported that i7 iMacs are turning up DOA, which they suggest is due to Apple's packaging not being adequate for such a large machine. That's something at least.

hey GSears

My serial number starts with W894761, and had no problem yet with this one.

Message was edited by: Gille_Belgium

Mine was W89465......

New i7 will be here later this week straight from the factory, will post SN and hope it's ok.

Mine is W8941

Am on day #7 nothing happening so far.

Still trying to determine whether to return the computer before day 14 arrives.

Apprehensive to say the least.

Just a short question for those of you that were lucky with their replacement units: if you move a white finder window from the top right hand corner down to the lower left hand corner and observe the white screen area - does it change from blueish white to yellowish white? Mine (calendar week 45 was fine except for this problem) did have that problem and since I use it for photography it was useless for me....just wonder if the newer units have better screens now or if I still need to wait further before I'll order again. Thanks!

sandrotto wrote: +"... if you move a white finder window from the top right hand corner down to the lower left hand corner and observe the white screen area - does it change from blueish white to yellowish white?"+

(This Q&A should probably go in the other thread(s) specific to this topic, but...)
My week 47 i7 (my first) has a very slight yellowing towards the bottom. It seems evenly distributed across the bottom few inches. It seemed to improve after doing the "expert" mode color calibration. It also improves if I try keeping my head/eyes exactly perpendicular to the window as I move it down the screen. For my particular screen and usage patterns, I would not return mine. Even setting the desktop to the light grey solid color background, does not expose any serious yellowing. I wish I could sit in front of one that someone claims has real bad yellowing so I could see if it was worse (to my eyes), or the same as mine.