Horizontal Lines on iMAC with M1 chip

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Level 1

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Horizontal Lines on iMAC with M1 chip

Hi Horizontal lines have suddenly appeared on my IMAC with M1 chip. This seems to be know issue as I have searched for solution on apple community as well as online. It seems that it is a known issue with IMAC with M1 chips. There seems to be a hardware issue with these Imacs. We have been using Imacs in my school for more than 12 years. Last batch of IMacs didn't have any issues. Apparently this new ones are not as good as they used to make.

Here is photograph of the horizontal lines

I understand that Apple has standard warranty policy and our policy is no longer valid. However I would like to request Apple if you could consider a one-time exception due to the documented issue. We are loyal Apple customer and would be happy to discuss options like a discounted repair or store credit towards a newer model. help me out here. This is a school device and would like continue working with Apple devices as they are very reliable. We have always had good support from Apple support center whenever we had any hardware problems with our devices.

Please can you advice us on this.

[Edited by Moderator]

Posted on May 5, 2025 11:30 PM

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Answer 1

Top-ranking reply

Old Toad

Level 10

215,196 points

May 6, 2025 9:49 AM in response to EHBroadrick

You're experiencing what many users with M1 iMacs are experiencing.

The following topics illustrate the Silicon M1 iMac Display problem:

Screen Failure on 24-inch-iMac, M1, 2021 - Apple Community

Persistent horizontal lines appear on iMac Screen - Apple Community

Horizontal Lines on Screen of iMac, 24", 2021

Horizontal black lines covering bottom 3rd of 2021 M1 iMac screen

Grey horizontal patches on my M1 iMac 2021 model

Horizontal lines at the bottom of iMac(M1,2021) screen

Horizontal Lines on 2001 M1 iMac Display

M1 iMac Display vertex heating to scorching 55°C — Seeking Advice on Escalation

It appears to be a manufacturing defect in those iMacs but so far Apple hasn't issued a repair program for it. Users have reported that Apple's repair estimate is around $600.

It's not know if or when Apple will issue a repair program for those models. However, to be sure you're on their books with a faulty M1 iMac you can take it in to the nearest Apple Genius Bar for a free diagnosis and estimate of repair. Then you'll get in their database as an owner of a faulty M1 iMac.

Some users have considered getting an external 3rd party monitor and running with it and the original screen's brightness turned off.

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Answer 2

May 5, 2025 11:41 PM in response to EHBroadrick

You are not communicating to Apple employees here.

We are users, volunteering to help other users such as yourself.

Also, let’s not simply assume that it is a hardware failure until we look into this. ⇣

First, let’s see if this issue happens in Safe Mode:

Shut down your Mac.
Press and hold the power button on your Mac. As you continue to hold the power button, your Mac turns on and loads startup options. When you see Options, release the power button.
Select your startup disk. It's named Macintosh HD, unless you changed its name.
Press and hold the Shift key, then click the “Continue in Safe Mode” button below your startup disk.
Log in to your Mac. You might be asked to log in again.

If the strange behaviors do not occur, then it may possibly be a software issue.

If the issue doesn't continue in safe mode:

Leave safe mode by restarting your Mac normally, then try to reproduce the issue.

If the issue doesn't return, it might have been resolved by the other things that safe mode did at startup, such as checking your disk and clearing caches.

If the problem persists, then let’s try this: