MacBook Pro (2010) Freeze

Hey jonaco,

it's no wonder Apple is turning a blind eye on this problem: The only real solution is REPLACING the logic board, therefore causing a lot of expenses ...

Guys, really - you're running really expensive hardware and we've been writing about this situation in many places all over the net. The info is out there - so find it and use it. Throttling your gfx card with gfxcardstatus is only a lame workaround, since it'll take away power from many of your programs and you can't run an external display. The only way here is to DEMAND a new logic board - ASAP!

Here what I wrote on another thread:

"

MBP - apparently only the Mid 2010 ones (due to the GeForce nVidia 330 gfx card) - crashes from every other day to multiple times a day: Sudden "black out", hard reset will turn up a Kernel Panic "NVRM[0/1:0:0]: Read Error".

Most likely cause: Defect 330GT graphics card & software driver issue that brings the problem out.

Software Fix: Downgrade to 10.6.3, or use your MBP in Intel gfx only mode (using gfxCardStatus). Apparently, this isn't a real fix, just a workaround.

Real fix: Get your logic board exchanged! This has proven to be the only REAL solution to the problem. Everyone facing the above mentioned problem got it solved by a logic board exchange.

Thoughts: The problem could be caused by huge chunks of thermal paste cloistered all over the graphics cards, kind of hindering the heat sinks from doing their work properly. GFX card overheat is a known issue with the nVidia 330 cards. Some people actually took their fresh logic boards, removing the paste applied by Apple, then applying their own paste properly. Quite obviously, this isn't something you could wholeheartedly recommend, since it'll most likely void your warranty.

Now, the thing that keeps me worried: Will my new logic board work fine from now on, or will I have to face the same Kernel Panics again in a couple of weeks or months? Let's wait and see what others report who've had their boards exchanged ...

"

You'll find the thread here: https://discussions.apple.com/thread/3114550?start=150&tstart=0

Stop waiting hopefully for a software fix - it won't happen! It's proven to be a hardware dysfuctionality ... go and get Apple to change your logic board.

Mr Grinch,

was it the airport card? I am having the same issues. Let me know. Thanks.

Sorry to hear that wasn't the fix for you, I've still had no problems since unchecking the automatic graphics switching thing. But to be honest with you the past few weeks I also have not really done anything to really put this thing to work. From what I understand the fix that was done on mine is a "known issue" and that was the fix, which so far I agree it was. Seems like most of the people here are having the same issue no matter if that option is checked or not and having to have the logic board replaced. I bought this laptop from a private sale with it in MINT condition and still has the warenty till the end of December; which it can be extended as well which i plan on doing.

To be honest my issue may be the same as everyone else but I just have not done anything to make it go nuts since most of my work latley has been within FireFox/Safari, iTunes, and iPhoto. I have not ran anything that really demands video power...

Althought i DID just buy Parallels Desktop 7 running BootCamp Virtual Windows 7 (Had Boot camp installed and decided to have PD create the virtual from that) and everything seems to run pretty solid. I am new to Mac and I love all their hardware (TimeCapsule, Airport Express/Extreme, iPAD2, iPhone3g,3gS,4 (plan on getting the 5) Apple Tv1stGen and 2Nd Gen and I even picked up the older Airport Extreme (UFO) to play with and YES I own all these peices of hardware even though the time capsule has the airport extreme built into it I got a brand new airport extreme for $65 unopened couldn't pass. Anyways just saying their hardware and abilities has amazed me and I almost turned back to my HP Laptop if the problem I was having with this didn't get resolved. It seems %90 of everyone that is having this problem seems to own this exact model! the Mid2010 i7 2.66GHz 4gigRam (I upgraded to 8gig), 500gb HD and 512mb NVIDIA VIDEO with the onboard Intel Graphic.

Anyone know of a way i can really run a good solid test to see if mine will crash like everyone else's? I already tried the Photo Booth going to the 2nd screen of available effects and worked fine.

Good luck everyone - I'm crossing my fingures for myself as well as everyone else. This is a nice laptop and I would have 1000x more respect and sign my confidence in them in blood if they swapped out everyones macbook pro i7 with the problem with a replacement since it's obviously a defect or something. It would cost a lot but think about all the 4life customers they just created and the bragging from them to others vs the complaining being done now (With good cause) - We spend the extra money because it's worth it and we deman quality and when this happens with empty fixes it kinda lets ya down.

NP - I bougth this laptop with Lion on it as a private sale since it's in MINT condition and still covered for another month with the option to extend which i fully plan to do. I understand the thought it has the option i should be able to use it - but I also understand Lion is new and there are some bugs out there this being one of them that will need to be addressed. From what I understand this laptop originally came with Snow Leopard and would think it runs like a champ on snow leopard, so my option is Revert to snow leopard until the issue is fixed in Lion, or just run it on the better video card eating more power (when i'm plugged in most of the time anyways) and wait until they come out with a fix. Since there is such a large group of people with this model laptop and all having problems I figure there HAS to be a fix on it's way, so I just ride without the switching for now.

😁 I'm working on buying an iMAC next! Good Luck!!

I did have that issue until I installed the EFI update: Macbook Pro EFI Firmware Update 2.2 (http://support.apple.com/kb/DL1450). I have not had a problem since. I think this was an issue with the thunderbolt interface used on those machine for the external display. The issue existed under Snow Leopard but was very rare. Lion exarcebated the problem, it looks like it is fixed.

Hi Pierre,

You have a Mid 2010 15 i7 MBP?

If you do, please keep us posted about it working long-term in next few weeks.

thanks!

No I have a MBP 17 2011 (thunderbolt) and unfortunately it frooze yesterday after 6 days. Much better but not good enough.

Here are some updates for this old issue!

Last month I decided to open my "old" late 2008 MBP and I removed the fist bank of memory and put it back in place. Since no freeze at all!!! (May be a weaked contacts on the socket)

No more freeze when it is awaken too!

It's running Lion now and I re-discovered the fun working with this incredible machine!

Hope that it will stay like this.

mlm 🙂

Just to add some information into the mix. I have been having a horrible time with my mid-2010 i7 macbook pro.

I have the hi-res lcd. Since I bought it, I have had the logic board AND the display replaced twice. Now, it's doing it again. I am not okay with having to have all major components replaced for the 3rd time in under a year.

It started off as some occasional graphic artifacting. The temps on the cpu and graphics card are all within normal levels. But, over the course of a few weeks, the graphic artificats appeared with increasing frequency and the stability of the laptop started to suffer. Eventually the machine would freeze and require a hard-reboot. Finally the laptop would refuse to boot without having a completely distorted display.

Each of the previous two times, the mac repair center would replace the logic board and then the problem would still persist. When they replaced the LCD, the problem would go away.

At this point I am 100% convinced that this is NOT a random problem, but is a design-flaw in this particular model of MBP.

I am currently working with an AppleCare rep to see about getting my machine completely replaced for a newer model. I would encourage everyone to go for the logic board replacement as soon as they start seeing problems. In my experience, the problem just continues to escalate until the machine becomes unusable.

If enough of us report the same issue to Apple, eventually this will be in their knowledge base.

Good luck everyone.

It seems to me that the problem started after upgrading from 1.8 EFI up to 1.9

Same specs and problems as the original poster. It turned out to be a sensor problem on mine (heat sensor I think). I think that the sensor ribbon can become unseated, you may want to check yours (sorry for the lack of details this is second hand information). A replaced logic board solved the problem. I can now happily use my MBP on battery power.

just wanted to +1 this thread, since i have the exact same problem...

I'd like to post an update to my issue...so I had the same issue as most, but my warranty was up and I couldn't just easily ask for a replacement. So here's what happened....

I made an appt with a genius...he had told me that he thought it was a software problem. I didn't think it was because I had already read this thread, but I wasn't going to argue with a genius. They were going to back-up my data and re-install snow leopard. I came in a week later after they said everything was re-installed properly. I asked if I could check to see if it works. So I turned it on in front of them and 20 seconds late, it froze again. They were pretty embarrassed so they said it was a hardware issue...I agreed to pay $300 for a new logic board. It was going to be a 2 week wait.

I come in two weeks later after they said everything was fixed...so, once again, doubtful that it'd work, I turned it on. It didn't work. They had replaced the airport card rather than the logic board on accident. I wasn't too happy, but I let them take it for another 2 weeks to get the logic board replaced. This time, however, I made sure that they tried booting it up to make sure it worked.

They called saying that the logic board wasn't the only issue and that they'd replace everything that had a problem. After the two weeks they called again saying that they ended up replacing everything but it still would freeze up. So...they offered me a whole new computer, the 2011 model that exceeded the specs I had got on mine. However, it would be another 3 week wait. So after 2 months, I finally have a working computer....and since they never fixed the other, I didn't have to pay a penny.

So, I'm just trying to say that it might not be just the logicboard...

Hi All,

It looks as though Apple has (formally) recognised the issue and is looking into it...!

http://support.apple.com/kb/TS4086

Good news at last!

Andrew.

tokmakoff wrote:

It looks as though Apple has (formally) recognised the issue and is looking into it...!

http://support.apple.com/kb/TS4086

That's good news - but the problem description (loss of video, grey/black screen) is different from the problems reported originally in this thread (where the computer just showed frozen video while still operating).