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

@walker
Here's the answer ...
http://discussions.apple.com/message.jspa?messageID=10619761#10619761

The replacement for my W8945 is on the way.
ordered: 20 Oct. received: 17 Nov. returned: 4 Dec.
second receive: hopefully 11-17 Dec.

scopro wrote:
Summary can viewed here: Flickering Display Breakdown

Thanks scopro! Well... as we can see the problem is still present. Also newest batches are affected as well.

<Edited by Host>

No good on the horizon!

holy SH**

ç__ç

It will never end... I know... ç__ç

It will end. Give Apple a chance to assess the situation, craft the solution and test it. All of this takes a bit of time. There's enough traffic on the web, customer service lines and through the retail stores to give them ample data to work with.

For me specifically, I am on my 3rd iMac (i5, no customization). It seems to be running just fine, but if it doesn't, I have the option of returning it within 14 days or toughing it out. I've toughed things out before with bleeding edge Apple equipment and in the end, things always worked out.

I try to remind myself that this is a superbly conceived and executed platform. It may have some glitches, but Apple will work through them. Too much to lose if they simply ignore the problem.

Hang in there everyone. We're in this together (with Apple).

I just played X-Plane 9.40RC16 for a few minutes on max settings (nearly maxing out the 512MB of video memory), and it started flickering. I immediately closed X-Plane and the flickering continued. The display also occasionally blacked out. I closed all other programs and rebooted and everything is fine so far -- not a single flicker or screen blackout. From my perspective this appears to be a video driver or video card problem.

RMH,

No problem on the offer. Over the years I have received amazing help and kindness from fellow Mac user's that I will never be able to repay. It seems only fair that I do likewise as I am able. My knowledge is quite limited, but I do my best as do others in these forums many with much for experience than I will ever have.

I hear you about the graphics cards and I do not think that issue has been resolved at all. If we live to be 200 years old, there will no doubt still be some aspect of this that will infuriate computer user's, if they will even exist at that time. Human's could all be robotic critter's by then and have no need for 'externa'l computers. All of that will probably be 'built in'. Who knows? IC's are already being embedded in animals.

As to your unfortunate experience having forum poster's bashing you, this is not a surprise to me at all. A lot of folks behave this way because the can hide behind their curtain in unanimity and behave like trolls. My experience with regard to Apple has been on NASDAQ forums where some folks love to bash Apple. Pointless even writing about this. One post I will never forget happened just when the iPhone was introduced. One poster said that this would be the end of Apple because the smart phone business was way over Apple's head. I believe Apple slam dunked the 'smart phone' business with the iPhone. That bozo probably owns a iPhone (or two) by now. Just let it blow by. I know it is irritating, but no sense in letting it bother you. My spin on it anyway.

Never heard that 'crack' story, but it makes great sense. And I'd bet the bank that Apple is more than aware of that 'addictive concept', for lack of a better term.

As far as you wife's needs are, you may want to consider a refurbished Mac. I just purchased a 24 inch iMac from them last week. It is supposed to arrive here on the 8th. I may have already mentioned this to you earlier. Here is the link if you are interested:

http://tinyurl.com/yfn5m6k

If you scroll down just a bit you will see a 24-inch iMac for $1099. Can't beat that with a stick. As far as not needing the power to do this or that, you can never be certain what a person may want to do in the future. So, I believe it is better to have 'room' to grow especially at such a reduced price.

If she would rather have a new computer, then she may like the Air. I have been using a 17-inch PowerBook for years and the lack of monitor 'real estate' was driving me nuts which is why I ordered the i7. I need a larger monitor for Ps, LR and other apps that are easier to use with a larger monitor. She may find that a 17-inch monitor is sufficient for her need, but then again you mentioned spreadsheets ... so, I don't know which she would prefer. Everybody has different needs. Probably best to take her down to the Apple store and let her browse around and have them let her run Numbers to see how she feels about monitor size. Good luck with that.

Yeah, I love Chicago as well. Lot's to do here. Great weather, but I love the fall colors and the snow. Most folks are not too fond of the snow.

I think we're high-jacking this thread and perhaps we should go off line with our chat. Feel free to PM me and we can continue from there if you wish.

Have a good evening,
Phillip

p.hugo wrote:

scopro wrote:
Summary can viewed here: Flickering Display Breakdown

Thanks scopro! Well... as we can see the problem is still present. Also newest batches are affected as well.

<Edited by Host>

No good on the horizon!

Uhm... try to search "Poll: Does Your 27 inch have a screen problem?" on google.
You'll find the reason of <Edited by Host> on my previous post.

For Gods sake PLEASE replace or refund the money if you have a faulty iMac- Apple will do either...
We all know by now that there is a fault with some iMacs.
This forum thread became well out of touch with reality...
We have approximately 150 genuine posts out of 900 (not counting troll and doubled/tripled posts).
To be honest, this means absolutely nothing at all.
My i7 iMac (2 weeks old) IS without any flaws whatsoever...
NO dead pixels
NO cracked screen
NO flickering
No nothing

atlatnesiti,

I don't disagree. For those who feel more comfortable with a more predictable user experience, I would suggest getting a refund and purchasing a device that is further along in its development lifecycle. Perhaps the 21" iMacs and the MacBooks fit this category a bit better.

As for the 27" iMac's, they're pushing the functionality envelope and problems can happen in this realm. Been through it s few times and it's the price that I have paid as an early adopter. The same holds true for any product category - cars, appliances, TVs, etc...

It comes down to a personal decision. Do you want to play it safe(er) or do you want to be on the bleeding edge? Each has its own set of implications.

Hi everybody,

I have been reading you since I got my new iMac i5 one week ago and here is my case:

I have an iMac 27" i5 with a HD4850 graphic card. My serial number start with W8946.

Day 1, I performed the following:
- Start it up (of course)
- erase the disk
- install Mac OS from the DVD
- install Windows 7 with BootCamp
After a few hours (1 to 3 hours, I don't remember), I got the flickering and the black screen. I got to sleep (I am not sure if I turn my iMac off or just allow it to sleep)

Day 2
I performed some software installation and after a few hours, I got the flickering and black screen.
I wanted to see if this happened also if I boot up with windows but first did a restart on Mac OS. I did not see the flickering during the next 6 days (computer is in sleep mode during the night, I never shut down my iMac).

Day 9
I shut down my iMac and move it to add memory. Everything was fine during the next 2 hours. Then, I run Parallels Desktop to set up a virtual machine and a few minutes after running Parallells the flickering and black screen come back.
This problem occurs only on the 27" screen. I have a 20" Apple Display connected to my iMac and nothing occurs on this external display, neither on extended mode nor on mirror mode.
The black screen shows up every 10 to 15 min for the next 4 hours.
Then, I restart on Windows mode but no flickering or black screen in 1 hour so I go back to Mac OS and nothing after 7 hours. I go to sleep but let my iMac awake.

Day 10
I am thinking about something related to intensive usage of CPU or GPU (higher temperatures).
I try to overload the CPU by encoding video. CPU temperature rise to 65°C than the fan cool it down and maintain a 55 to 60°C temperature. No flickering or black screen.
I try to overload the GPU by running 13 video in Quicktime, 12 Divx and 1 Flash video in H264 (The movie "Home" in HD). I can't monitor the GPU activity but I think it was fully busy. GPU temperature do not exceed 72°C after 1 hour. So I run only 2 video but in the larger window on both monitor. Right now, GPU temperature is 80°C since 5 minutes (and 79°C since 45 minutes) and still nothing.

So, I think it is not related to the CPU or GPU hardware itself but to the 27" LCD display.
For my iMac, does the problem shoes up if I move it ? shut down/start it up? run a virtualization software? Reach a certain CPU or GPU temperature?
Is it hardware or firmware? I don't know.
I will keep trying to reproduce the flickering/black screen, especially by running Parallels again and I will let you know.

Nice Sunday guys!

Hi, an update.

I took my Imac 27 i5 back to the store today.... just about to walk in the store, when a bloke said : "that going back already?"
i said yup, it has a problem.
He replied "screen flicker?, i think i`ll wait for the revised version, i`ve heard about it on the net"

Anyway, took it in the store, and got approached by 2 members of staff, asking if they could help. I told them i phoned earlier in the week, and that i was returning the imac, and one of them asked what the problem was. I explained about the screen problems i was having. He answered that he had never heard about it, and this was indeed the first time he had heard of the problem.I told him he HAD heard of the problem, he was well in the know, and must have had instructions to deny any kind of prblems with the new 27in macs to customers, as the screen flicker is well documented on the web, and indeed apples own forum. Again he denied it and knew nothing. I again told him that of course he knew about it and reminded him that he DID know of the issue, and not to talk bollocks to me. I got ushered in the back room, then upstairs asking if i wanted a replacement, but i took the refund as people with replacements where also having the same problem, and that i will wait for an updated machine in the meantime,... i also told him about being approached by a member of the public outside, whom asked why i was returning my shiny new imac, and he even knew of the problems and he wasn`t an owner of the new imac 27....again the sales guy denied any such knowledge.
My final words where ,
"well, maybe you should seek out that guy that approached me outside, he has no connection with me or Apple themselves, does n `t even own a mac, and still knows more about the current situation than anyone else here, maybe he should be the manager here, and get rid of all the dead wood in the store who profess to be apple employees and experts, happy Christmas to you"

Come on Apple , sort it out will ya.

A poster in the "macrumors"forum reports:

+"Just a follow up update on the iMac order. Apple has identified a production issue with the graphics cards in the machines with quad core processors. This has resulted in machines with flickering screens or video problems. Many users that have received machines already are having these issues. Apple has re-worked the video card to resolve the issue, but this has created a delay on the orders.+

+"Any machines that are currently available at stores will be the older models and will likely suffer from the flickering video issue. This would be resolved as a warranty repair on the machine.+

+"We will keep you updated with any information regarding shipment of your order."+

I don't know whether this is for real, or just more b.s. Anyone seen or heard anything similar?

hkrause wrote:
A poster in the "macrumors"forum reports:

+"Just a follow up update on the iMac order. Apple has identified a production issue with the graphics cards in the machines with quad core processors. This has resulted in machines with flickering screens or video problems. Many users that have received machines already are having these issues. Apple has re-worked the video card to resolve the issue, but this has created a delay on the orders.+

+"Any machines that are currently available at stores will be the older models and will likely suffer from the flickering video issue. This would be resolved as a warranty repair on the machine.+

+"We will keep you updated with any information regarding shipment of your order."+

I don't know whether this is for real, or just more b.s. Anyone seen or heard anything similar?

Consider the source. The person who posted this "news" is none other than our favorite "bluebermuda" -- troll and general spreader of FUD. Check earlier in this thread to see what I'm talking about.

I've been a PC user for years. I was aimed to move to Mac world, after being hooked on the great iPod-touch device. A month ago I was about to buy iMac 27, until I came across this thread. Issues on this new iMac 27 are now more that apparent, so I will put off the idea of buying this machine, maybe for good.

Apple should acknowledge issues on new iMac and give public explanation. The cat is out of the bag, so people will know. Denial of any problem of these new machines will not prevent costumers from knowing that they can get a machine which is not the flawless one they would expect from Apple.

Unless Apple gives clear answer on what's going on to new iMac I will not switch from PC to Mac.

Well, I've got the bucks for a new I7 sitting in one of my accounts, but I'm not going to "pull the trigger" until I find out - for real - that Apple has addressed the problems. I don't see the logic in ordering a $2000+ computer +(at Apple's premium prices, to boot)+, and then having to send it back because it is faulty, and then getting another one with the same problems.