iMac 2011 27inch i7 screen flicker dark left side

I also suffered from this issue but when I removed the screen this is what greeted me

I am also having the same problem. Currently, it's in the "occasional flickering mode", but I fear that it is a matter of time until this thing dies permanently. Unfortunately, I didn't buy Apple Care on this machine (this is a work machine). I should add that this was a US Federal Government purchase. Apple should fix this problem for free, or at a reduced cost to the consumer. It's crazy that such a well documented problem is going unnoticed by Apple.

I tried speaking with Apple and all i was told is that because I had not taken out Apple Care there was nothing they could do.

When mine started to flicker, it laster about 7 days before it went altogether.

My iMac 27 has now become a door stooper.

As much as it has hurt my pocket, I have bought the new 2012 iMac 27 which has arrrived and yes, I have bought Apple care this time

I've been having this issue with my Mid-2011 iMac - build to order for a few weeks now.

It's out of warranty, but luckily in Australia, consumer law protects us even outside of warranty.

In the next couple of days I'm going to take mine up to the Apple store (luckily it's only a 5 minute drive away).

I'm hoping by presenting evidence that it is a manufacturing fault, Apple Australia's warranty agreement and relevant parts of consumer law, I'd be able to get this fixed.

Hi

Just back from the Apple Store in Glasgow my 2011 27" iMac with dead left side screen is out of Warranty and has no Apple Care so is costing me £436 to get repaired.

Also because the same screen is used in the new iMac their is a back log on this item so my repair will take 3-4 weeks to be done.

Apple would not take ownership of what is clearly a fault in this product.

Same old story. Apple will not admit this problem because of the amount of money it would cost to replace or repair all of these iMacs. They blatantly know that there is a problem. I bet the instances mentioned on this website are just the tip of the iceberg. Apple is too large a company to back down to a single consumer. The only way that you can feel good about what has happened is to put up with it and admit that you got scammed and never buy another Apple product for as long as you live. Apple are too big and we cannot beat them. This episode has just proven that Apple products are nothing more than polished garbage and that's coming from someone who was up until about 6 months ago one of the most ardent Apple supporters you are likely to come across. 🙂

<Edited by Host>

They could sent us the new slim iMac for free to compensate...

Seriously though could you put your faith and hard earned cash into another Apple product where the screen is the main component? I'd be scared stiff of the same thing happening all over again. They will not support you unless you take out an extended warranty even though they used shoddy cheap components in the first place. Yeah they look stylish but form and function should be equal. If they don't function they are just an overpriced piece of furniture. :)

I made countles phone calls to Apple, I even wrote to Tim Cook but got no reply.

In the end I had to bite the bullet and order a new iMac 27 but its hurting the pocket in these difficult times.

Personally I would have been happy with a discount off the new iMac but nothing.

@Kettle4 unless you've been banned? It appears that Apple do not want you to post that web address on their forums. I wonder why. Perhaps admins or mods could explain that for us?

Don't worry I got the email notification containing your full post so I'll check out the site that is recording all european instances of this particular fault and see what thay can do. 😉

I am interested in the url if you can post it

The mods will instantly pull it if I post it here as they did just now when Kettle4 posted it. It's difficult to pass it on to you via this board. Freedom of Speech, ha not in Apple's corporate world. 🙂

OK well for those of you in the UK (and it;s probably been mentioned on this thread somewhere already) it is my understanding that all electrical items (and many others) are in fact guaranteed for upto 7 years. The only difference being that the first 12 months cover any failure whereas after that it is only a failure that has come about due to a a manufacturing defect that is covered and YOU have to prove this to be the case.

Often with electrical items this is very hard to prove and manufacturers know this, my feeling is that in this case it may not. You have to take your iMac to a reputable electrical repair shop and ask them to provide you with an official report of the reason for the failure. As has been shown on here if it is due to a dry joint on a suspect connector or in fact a dry joint on the backlight driver board as in my case this is very much a failure due to a manufacturing defect, they have no answer to this as consumer law takes over.

Although not experiencing this myself a family member has tested this theory with a Stereo system and Dixons. The stereo was just over 3 years old and the failure was due to a dry joint, open and shut case they gave in immediately. As the unit wasn't made anymore he received dixons vouchers instead and got to keep the stereo which the repairer fixed for a small sum of money. The only out of pocket expense is the report(and time), this is on your own back as I said earlier you need to prove to them that the item is faulty due to a defect.

For the entrepreneurial types amongst us maybe a way of making a little money, £100 for a report. Once all setup you could probably get the job done in less than an hour. Looks like they could get quite a bit of business or for the cynical people a bigger pay off ;-)

There are of course other aspects and this is only the basics however food for thought. Martin Lewis's website will give you all the details.

_rgv wrote:

I've been having this issue with my Mid-2011 iMac - build to order for a few weeks now.

It's out of warranty, but luckily in Australia, consumer law protects us even outside of warranty.

In the next couple of days I'm going to take mine up to the Apple store (luckily it's only a 5 minute drive away).

I'm hoping by presenting evidence that it is a manufacturing fault, Apple Australia's warranty agreement and relevant parts of consumer law, I'd be able to get this fixed.

Just an update to this.

I just got back from my appointment. After confirming the issue was the backlight, they wished to charge me $708.50 to fix it.

After some discussion with a supervisor and pointing my rights under the law, they agreed to replace the screen for free with a new one. They're ordering in the screen and replacing it on-site when it arrives.

Moral of the story: Learn your consumer rights. It could save you hundreds.

Might I ask what were the pertinent rights for outside of warranty repairs in Australia ?