MacBook Air Display Issue - Half Darker, Half Lighter

I just turned on my Air the same day to this problem! Exactly as others have described, exactly split down the middle, left side is darker than the right. It is sometimes so vauge that I don't notice it, but I'm going to may an appointment with the Genius Bar ASAP.

I have this same problem. Ever since the original display got crushed in my book bag, I have tried two displays, both with the right half of the display dimmer and flickering. It also seems a little grainy as well.

Same issue here with Macbook Air 13" i5 Dual-core 1.3GHz/8GB/128GB SSD/Intel HD G purchased in autumn 2013. Sometime one half gets darker, at other times the other half. And sometimes the whole screen goes dark. Resetting PRAM and SMC seemed to help for a short time, then the problem returned.

Not happy with the prospect of having to purchase an expensive new screen. Probably won't be buying Apple laptops in the future if this isn't resolved in a less costly manner.

My 13" Late 2010 Macbook Air just started doing this about a week ago. Guess I will have to make a trip to the Genius Bar. Thanks for the post. Helps to know I am not the only one with this problem. Spent a fair amount of time trying to fix this on my own.

Hi here from Madrid - Spain. In 23 February, more than three months ago, I have bought my new MacBook Air 11" - 128 Gb - 4 Gb Ram - 1,6 Ghz , I have bought it in Refurbished area. Five days after begins suddenly to have issue screen : fine vertical line just crossing exactly from the middle of isight crossing symetric and just down. Right side slightly darker and flickering than left side. I have reinstall system , PRAM reinstalled , and freeze two times when I have tried to run hardware test. Istat Pro app tests that fans are exhausted. Run test hard disk appears numbers and numbers of permis wrong...

Apple send back to me the money, with out too much questions. They recognised in our phone conversation , that there is problems with screen on MBA, not only this specific problem just in the middle line and darker area, as others screen problems with lines, flickering etc.

No I am thinking again in buy another MacBook Air 11' , so I need it, but I am not sure if this issue is not still resolved. My surprise becomes when I see your thread with EXACTLY same issue I had three months ago.

I have see often of issues appears on equipments with special acomodation as 1,6 Ghz ´4 Gb Ram and 128 Gb HD... What happens? I have bought as refurbished on Apple Store web. I have not confidence on new one so far as I have see on others threads about screen problems on MBA, that usually replacements has same issue once and once again...I think is hardware logic board or similar. I am suspicious that perhaps Apple could be selling in refurbished store area all the bad hardware from replacements... Too much similar problems for same laptop, any case too expensive to have issues since months with out real solution

Hi, same problem for me as well.

French MacBookAir 11' with 128 Gb 1,6 Ghz and 4 Gb Ram.

Everything was ok from October 2010.

I can see a line in the middle of the screen, and a difference of colour on the right and left part.

The MacBookAir Diagnostic was written by a StoreGenius yesterday :

" Mac OS Version 10.6.8

Issue Verified : YES

Known Liquid Damage : No

Issue : ( I translate in english ) Half of the screen flickers with a different brightness, across a line in the middle

Issue is coming from the display

Proposed Solution : Changement de l'écran ( screen remplacement )

"

I'm impressed about the fix price :

661-5737 Display Module 414€

S1490LL/A Hardware Repair Labor 29€

Will inform U.

Regards,

Seb, Marseille, France

I have this same issue with a 27" 2010 iMac core i7 (less than 6 months old). Going into the mac store in two days time for service. I will be amazed if they perform a screen replacement, rather than entire machine replacement but who knows. Every once in awhile the dark side of my screen flickers to the correct brightness and then back to the erroneous state. My money is on the electrical connection to the backlighting components in the display.

Here is an update to my problem that was discovered on 5/12. Finally made it to the Apple Store this week. Details:

Dropped off the computer at the Apple Store on Tuesday.

Received at their repair facility in Houston on Thursday.

Repaired on Thursday.

Shipped Fed Ex overnight to arrive to my house this morning.

Invoice says they replaced the "clamshell". Glad it was under warranty. All seems to be working fine.

That is good service. My first experience with Apple Repair since this is my first Mac.

Wow, I thought I am the only one but looks like this is a known issue with Apple machines/screens. Unfortunately I was given a quote of $300 when I took my MBA to genius bar. It seemed that my 1 year warranty expired by 1 week before a guy at genius bar looked at my machine. What a shame!

First apple charges extensive amounts saying they sell quality products. And then Apple wants to charge me extra $300 because I went over my warranty period by 1 week while they knew that their product had issues with this specific model/screen (so many posts out there).

This was my first experience of moving from Windows laptops/machines and while I enjoyed the Apple OS and all things that come with it but I am very disappointed about the quality of their products as well as their customer service. Have been using Toshiba, IBM and HP laptops and never had any such issue with them.

Apple knows they made a blunder with the screen and they should have owned their own mistakes rather than charging customers extra $300 for replacement screens. Very poor company practices.

Sorry Apple, you disappoint me!

Aamir

Add another MBA split gray screen issue. Five Days?!?!?!?!?!?!? I have to leave it at the genius bar that long? Are you serious?

Guess I better cancel the webinars I'm signed up for....Mine is a mid-2012 model

(I posted this on another thread as well)

I am now on my 4th iPad air. It seems to be a widespread production problem. I got my replacements from 3 different locations just to be sure it wasn't a single bad batch (In the inland empire, California) Most of the screen is pinkish white with a strip of yellow going across the middle/bottom area when holding it in portrait mode. I am unable to get a refund at this point so I plan on selling it and getting an ipad mini retina. Apple corporate executive relations offices did everything they could to help me out and they earned a customer for life because of their kindness, the apple store did as well, as did target. This is out of their hands until the screen suppliers fix the problem. If you can live with it and not be frustrated every time you pick up the device then keep it. Otherwise get a refund till they fix the problem. If you keep returning them you will most likely end up with the same problem but in a different area of the screen. The genius said that they consider it within spec. Which is a round about way of saying we see the issue but our hands are tied until apple acknowledges the issue, I could see it in his expression that he saw it on the newest replacement.

I have refresh rate issues with my iPhone 5c, got a few replacements for that as we'll. Out of 4 devices one was free of the issue but had extra light leakage in the top left corner. I wish I could have that device back because it's a better trade off than the refresh problems the current replacement has. My daughters new 5c is flawless, my moms 5s has the same issue my 5c has.

Basically what we all may be experiencing are the perils of being an early adopter. I agree that it should not be the case, but that doesn't change the fact that it seems to be. I love apple and am unwilling to go back over to the dark side (android), but I really hope they resolve this so that I don't have to be afraid of buying a new version of their products. What do you guys think? That's just my personal point of view. I may be wrong.