large grey spot on bottom third of the display

Some more detail would help

When you say large grey spot, is it a solid grey and you cant see anything under it?

...or is it just slightly dimmer near the bottom?

Also, did this just happen suddenly or gradualy over time?

Hi,
Not sure if this is the same problem. I recently noticed a distinctly darker region on my screen, on the lower part, left of centre. Like a dark cloud. If I turn up the brightness, it lessens somewhat. This is on a new screen barely 3 months old (the original screen was repalced under warranty due to white spots). I'm sure the dark region was not there when the screen was first installed. Anyone else notice this?

Yes thats just the way the 12'' iBook g4 screens seem to be. I've been through 2 screens already. The first one was really bad, the entire left side was a few notches dimmer. It hurt my eyes. The replacement which im ising now is much better, but there is a small dark oval area near the mddle of the screen, only noticable on white backgrounds.

Now that I'm aware of it, it appears to come and go. I would describe it as a dark shadow in the lower left half of the screen, mostly apparent on a white background, but it appears to fade at times. Really strange. I just got this new screen in late November, and it was flawless then.

Are they spots like these or one large area? My 14" iBook has a few light spots like the ones in the article.

John

John,
I had spots like the ones in the article on my original iBook screen. They appeared about 8 or 10 months after I bought the computer. Fortunately Apple replaced the screen. But now the new screen has a large, dark shadow on the lower half, just left of center. A different problem altogether. I just hope it doesn't get worse, as the new screen only had a 90-day warranty... which has just expired.

The dark patches on your LCD are normal, particularly if they go away after a while of continuous, normal computer operation.

These patches will manifest when you have just booted your iBook, or when you have just woken the iBook from sleep. The LCD backlight will take a while to warm up, depending on how cold the ambient temperature has been. Once the LCD backlight has warmed up, the dark patches should disappear.

You should only be concerned with dark patches if they do not disappear at all given sufficient time for the LCD backlight to warm up.

Lutetia,
Just the fact that Apple replaced your screen, from what I've read, you are lucky- they seem to give people the 'you damaged it' run-a-round. I, like every other 12.1 iBook owner seem to have the same white spots issue and am worried Apple will not replace it.
It seems this issue IS a defect, it just doesn't occur until you use your computer for a while.

Hi Irene,
Yes, I was very lucky. I took it in to an Apple Authorized dealer about a week before my one-year warranty expired! The service manager right away said it was a common problem and that it was covered by the warranty. The white spots started appearing around 8 or 10 months or so after I bought the iBook.This other problem, the large darker area that comes and goes, isn't as annoying, but from the sounds of it, it's a common issue as well. But as I no longer have a warranty, I'll have to live with it.