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Yellow iMac ruins Christmas

First, my fiance and I have had great experiences with apple products in the past (2 iPhones, more than 5 iPods, 2 Macbooks, and a Powerbook).

Recently, however, I purchased an iMac 21.5 (week 50) as a Christmas gift for my fiance and notice upon setting it up that the screen is very discolored on the bottom (turns yellow, top to bottom).

I went to the Apple store and they told me that it is a known issue and they gave me a new one (week 46) but refused to let me try it. I brought it home and it had the exact same issue (possibly worse).

I called Apple Support and they instructed me that I had to go back to the Apple store and that they should let me try the iMac before I bring it home.

I went to the Apple store and they exchanged my iMac again. I loaded it up in the store and the same yellow tint issue existed. The Genius saw the yellow problem and acknowledged it but was told by a manager that they could no swap it out again (and try to find an unaffected model) and did not know how to repair it. The genius told me my only option was to return it. I ended up just returning the iMac for a refund by mail.


I have spoken with 2 different senior claims people from phone support. The first, Hector said that it's a known problem with the hardware and that repairs are possible. The second, Alana, was a bit rude and claimed it was a software issue and there was no fix.

It's just frustrating because the iMac was a Christmas gift to my fiance and we still don't have a working computer. It seems like there is a disconnect between phone and store support.

What should I do?

Thanks for your help,

Dan & Rachel

21.5", Mac OS X (10.6.2)

Posted on Dec 28, 2009 6:07 AM

Reply
26 replies

Dec 28, 2009 7:46 AM in response to dannydandanny

There is nothing that you can do at this point, you do not have a Mac and they are sending you a refund for your money. You do not have any more bargaining power at this point.

If you shop around at various venues that sell the iMac besides an Apple Store and find a good one, buy it on the spot. As long as you buy sight unseen, then the risk is the same, you may get a yellow one. And if the Apple Store near you is unwilling to look in the boxes before selling the Mac you are out of options with them.

It is unfortunate that Apple's display vender is letting them down so badly with these poorly manufactured displays. Really poor quality products is giving Apple an unfortunate reputation lately. And with so many lemons their pristine reputation for excellent customer support is taking a hit as well as poorly trained agents act rudely and offer inaccurate information. I am sure that it is frustrating to them to not be able to do better.

I think that you can be sure that Steve Jobs is very concerned about all of this and is demanding that his company do better. It is too bad that the whole world is depending on China for so much in electronics manufacturing and yet they are not currently capable of living up to the expectation. That is why the old adage still applies; "Do not put all of your eggs in one basket."

Dah•veed
User uploaded file

Dec 28, 2009 8:27 AM in response to dannydandanny

Here is what I suggest...

The new iMacs are apparently flooded with problems, I suggest waiting until the refresh comes.

Or if you need a new Mac, purchase a refurbished 24" iMac which were not plagued with problems. The refurbs are still covered under the one year warranty and you can still purchase the 3 year Apple Care. Most people have only good things to say about the refurbished Macs.

But I personally would stay clear of the 21" and 27" models right now.

Apple has two different 24" models currently in the refurbished area of the store. They are bigger and cheaper since they are refurbs. It's worth looking into anyways.

http://store.apple.com/us/browse/home/specialdeals/mac/imac

Dec 28, 2009 11:19 AM in response to dannydandanny

Hi Dan & Rachel

{quote:}What should I do?{quote}

Have you considered a [2.53GHz Intel Core 2 Duo Mac Mini|http://store.apple.com/us/configure/MC408LL/A?mco=MTM3NTAyODU] and an [LG Monitor|http://www.lge.com/uk/it-products/monitors/index.jsp]?

I nearly pulled the trigger on a new iMac 3 or 4 times in 09 to replace my Early Core Duo, but held back mainly because I prefer a matte finish display.

In the interim I picked up a 21.5" LG Monitor *(wow" it's beautiful)* while I decide on either the new Mac Mini or a refurb'ed Mac Pro.

Dennis

Dec 29, 2009 6:02 AM in response to dannydandanny

I sent an email to Steve Jobs about my yellow tint 21.5 iMac issues (three exchanges, all affected, resulting in a refund). I got a call from Dena at Executive Care within 24 hours.

She said they are aware of the problem and do not know how widespread it is. According to Dena, the issue is not resolved and that ordering a new iMac will not result in a fixed display.

She said the engineers are working on it now and they are not sure if it's hardware (most likely) or software related. Further Apple stores cannot do repairs because they haven't determined what the issue is.

Her advice:

"Wait to buy one until the issue is resolved."

Dec 29, 2009 6:52 AM in response to dannydandanny

If that's the response from Apple (for you to not purchase one) then maybe they need to stop the selling of them! Just like the 13" MBP with the EFI-1.7 issue that is still not resolved, I'm still waiting on that so I can buy...

Oh come on Apple, have you hired to many Microsoft Employees...

Again the 24" model seems to be in good shape and Apple has them in the Refurb store. I love mine and despite what people say the screen is absolutely beautiful, I personally have not seen another monitor on the market that looks this nice.

Dec 29, 2009 7:52 AM in response to iyacyas

FYI, the 24" iMacs had another display issue. I had a white Intel 24" iMac. It was 2 years old. The display was cooler/bluer on the left. Apple replaced the display twice. The logic board was also replaced. None of this fixed the issue. Apple finally replaced my 2 year old iMac with a March 2009 iMac (it had just come out). Well, same problem with this one. It also had the logic board and display replaced a couple of times with no change.
The issue, in my opinion, is the construction of the iMac, not the display. Put all that stuff behind a large display and it could cause an issue.

Dec 29, 2009 7:55 AM in response to dannydandanny

Hi, I've finally decided to switch to a iMac and am worried that it will have the yellowing problem also. It is expected to arrive on the 31st and the serial number (from the invoice) is QP952, which seems different than others. My question is that if my Mac has this yellowing issue and I wait until they fix the problem, will they still fix it? I purchased the AppleCare warranty also, but am not 100% if this is covered or replaceable. Thanks!

Dec 29, 2009 7:55 AM in response to iyacyas

iyacyas wrote:
If that's the response from Apple (for you to not purchase one) then maybe they need to stop the selling of them! Just like the 13" MBP with the EFI-1.7 issue that is still not resolved, I'm still waiting on that so I can buy...

Oh come on Apple, have you hired to many Microsoft Employees...

Again the 24" model seems to be in good shape and Apple has them in the Refurb store. I love mine and despite what people say the screen is absolutely beautiful, I personally have not seen another monitor on the market that looks this nice.

Change your desktop to medium gray and then see if your display is perfect. Haven't seen a 24" that was perfect.

Yellow iMac ruins Christmas

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