My MacBook screen went black and now the screen won't turn on

Hi This is a 2014 macbook pro right? That flickering screen is a video problem. You have less that a month of apple care unless you bought the extended plan. You need to call in and make an appointment with apple and take it in. 2014 macbook pros have soldered in memory so you cannot remove and reinstall it. You could try a smc reset but I don't think that will fix it. http://support.apple.com/en-us/HT201295

can you hear the hard disk running? shine a torch (flashlight) onto the screen. can you see an image?

I had the exact same problem with my macbook and I thought it was either the inverter cable or the logic board battery.

I tried resetting the SMC, tried what Macky2392 suggests, unfortunately nothing worked for me.

So, I took it to the apple store, where they kept it for 2 weeks, then they sent me an email saying it was the inverter cable. The replacement would cost 185 EURO. I told them to go ahead with it and it took them another week to get back to me and they told me then that there was probably something wrong with the display. And that would cost 351 EURO to be fixed.

I just told them to not do anything and return it back to me. I really don't think it's worth paying so much money for the repair... 😟

So, my advice is try everything else before taking it to Apple.

If anyone has any other idea to help, it would be great.

Thanks!

Hi,

I have followed a lot of different advice over this issue.

I have a late 2007 Black Macbook with a GMA X3100 graphics chip.

I have reset the PRAM and I have reset the SMC. I have done a Disk Utility Verification and repair all to no avail.

I did a final trial reboot and yet again it starts then goes black, I then waited 1 miniyte so it was fully booted although with a black screen, I pressed F1 to remove any brightness and then F2 to raise the brightness again, the screen came back on. I am not sure if this is a longterm fix, I will be going to the local Mac authorised shop on Monday (we have a dedicated mac sales shop in Oulu, not quite sure how franchises work)

I will report back if it stays on or if they can do a better fix.

Hi there

I found a solution...

I have an early 2008 Macbook white, originally with 2GB RAM. I upgraded to 4GB, so that I could easily use Lion, about 6 months ago. In early March, my Macbook exhibited all of the symptoms discussed here.

I tried everything.

Then I removed and re-loaded the new RAM and hey presto, I'm back in business. I switched the cards around and made sure that they were properly seated and everything works.

Of course, this may simply be a coincidence...

SUPERB MACKY! but... What's the logic of this? The reason, the cause of this problem... Hardware, firmware, soft...? How much time will this solution last? Does anyone know it?

Anyway thanks for the solution, macky!

Macbook 13" 2009 2GB RAM on Snow Leopard

I've had this issue now for months. Sometimes I can get the screen back to full brightness by using the F1 and F2 trick, sometimes I can only get the screen to one bar of brightness before losing it again.

I have tried every one of the methods that have worked for some people but to no conclusive avail, including rolling back the OS to 10.5, before the problem occured and a full reformat. Through deduction and trial and error, the issue can only be a problem with the connection between hardware. I use an HDMI TV through the mini DVI port now as my main monitor. Eventually, I will purchase a new laptop as I miss using it on my lap!

In the UK, the cost of a screen repair is nearly £400 and Apple only sell inverter componets as one full package with an entire screen. My suspicious mind tells me that their screens are not designed to last more than a few years and whilst they work brilliantly in that time period, once the black screen desends, its time to make an informed choice. For £400, one could buy a decent laptop of another brand?

Yes, my macbook too... fails again!. The trick of F1-F2 only works ocasionally.

Jeje... It seems it's possible buy a good HP by £400 (more or less), or others brandings with android (I use recently an Asus with the new OS of Google... a very good impression)

But... Mac is a religion, jeje.. I will try change the inverter (15-20 $ in eBay) and with the guide of ifixit.com i hope to get the "rebirth".

good luck

I was quoted €400 for an inverter cable repair, but my Macbook is still working, just with a very dark screen (brightness on the first notch) however as I mainly plug it in to an EXT monitor it still works fine for now.

I will not pay €400 for a fix on a 6 year old laptop when I can buy an almost new 11" Air for €800.

I have now changed both the inverter AND the inverter cable and my problem still persists.

I am now weighing up the possibility of changing the LCD screen and also the logic board.

This is such a chore.

Built-in obselescence?

Long time lurker, first time poster, I have a Macbook Pro from 2009 and this morning my mac started then then the screen went blank. I tried restarting as well as what several other posters said to do. Nothing worked. So I inserted the Mac OSX Install DVD that came with the machine and started from scratch again. Not recommended if you haven't backed up in a while as you will loose everything. Also, it is taking me forever to upgrade back to the most recent OS (Mav). But several hours for free seemed better than a few weeks for a chunk of change.

Hi, after being told by the repair man that I needed a new screen (when I know it is only the convertor cable) I eventually just went out and bought a new MacBook Air.

I have decided to give the old MacBook to a girl I know, she wants a media server , something similar to the set up I have with a Mac Mini under my TV. I will use the MacBook to do this for her, running it in clamshell mode connected to her TV and using it for Netflix and Plex, this should not overly tax the MacBook and as long as it is well ventilated it should last her a good few years until she is able to buy herself a Mini.

Just today a friend of mine had the same problem with his MacBook Pro (Mid 2007) and Mavericks 10.9.2. According to his words the only thing he changed over last couple of days was to update to the latest "Adobe Flash Player" version. So we booted his MacBook in target mode and used the Mavericks installation as start volume for a Mac Pro (Early 2008). Then we deinstalled "Adobe Flash Player" with the official uninstaller, restarted his MacBook and voila the black screen disappeared. Just as a side note, all previous attempts to reset the PRAM and SMC were of no avail. Good luck!

Hi, just want to share my problems here as well.

I own a late 2007 A1181 macbook, black. I changed the display on it a year ago by myself. Worked fine until a week ago. I was hooked up to the TV (55") on DVI>HDMI cable and had the 13" screen wokring as well.

Smoke started pooring out of the left lower corner of the display OR the left uppercorner of the "base part". I got scared and pulled the plug and shutdown the machine. After a few minutes I tried to to turn on the computer again and the normal "apple" sound went off but the display was black (but the DVI>HDMI cable worked fine and the display apperead on my TV). I looked at the screen, in fact it was working, there was just no backlight.

My question to this forum; is this a typical inverter issue ? It did not warn in advance at all, some say it flickers before it dies.

Has anyone seen smoke in these cases ?