MacBook Pro Retina display burn-in?

I first noticed this after my MBP [Retina] had gone to sleep, but: when returning to the login screen (since I have it set to require a password whenever the computer is idle long enough) I noticed what appeared to a very faint ghosting primarily noticeable on darker backgrounds.


After messing around with it a bit, there seems to be a fairly consistent in-display ghosting that occurs without much time at all; I was able to leave my screen on (a little above half-brightness) for about 10-15 minutes and the ghosted "burn" would be of the screen I left it on (which I deliberately reconfigured so that everything would be a new position).


Has anyone else experienced this? Is this a normal thing that I just have to get used to? It's not really noticeable at all in standard use.

MacBook Pro (Retina, Mid 2012), Mac OS X (10.7.4)

Posted on Jun 16, 2012 10:26 PM

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9,629 replies

Oct 26, 2012 5:38 PM in response to I.V.A.

It took about 1 1/2 weeks, considering the diagnosis time, wait for the replacement and the installation of the new display. I asked for the samsung display. Initially, he told me that he could not choose between lg os samsung, but at the end he told me that he asked for a samsung so im not sure if they considered that.


Anyway, give it a try, you wont lose anything if you ask for a samsung display .


By the way, my display was replaced just one time.

Oct 26, 2012 9:35 PM in response to rrahimi

Is very telling of what? Its funny that some seem to have to demonize people who offer up an idea or a viewpoint that differs. I think that is a bit more "telling". Just to be clear, because it seems to be escaping your grasp, <warning - read carefully so you don't misunderstand> I didn't conclude anything other than people here don't really know how widespread the problem really is and that the numbers offered by disgruntled consumers are only speculation. Not sure why that idea is so hard to grasp.


Again, and note: I beleive you may very well be right about the numbers, its just I'm not seeing any statistics other than what people speculate about here. Yes, there seem to be several people a week who are adding to this thread, but that still is not thousands and thousands as some have said. It doesn't really matter in the final analysis, enough people are having problems and I agree that IR is NOT normal behavior, and the official tech note is B.S. as people have rightly said, and that Apple should fix it. It also seems that the great majority of people here who taken there units back have had their screens or computers replaced despite the "official position", several have had them replaced several times. That's why i want to wait until the fix is fait accompli before I decide to turn mine back in, if I even need to. Its actually looking pretty good.

Oct 26, 2012 11:18 PM in response to Boby51

It doesn't surpise me that the command doesn't work on the new 13 inch. They don't have a dedcited graphics card so the registry isn't going to be the same, and I doubt they would work like the Mac Airs. The command is really just basicly a grep based on a really janky REGEX anyway I think.....


I am still blown anyway that this hasn't been addressed and they are moving forward with the line. Have had my Samsung screen now for a while, not a single issue with it and no IR and better color then all 4 LG screens I delt with. I don't get how LG can get away with making a screen so far below the quality one would think Apple would enforce....

Oct 27, 2012 12:02 AM in response to mittense

Sorry,a bit offtopic,


Can you guys check your rMBA's and do you have any slight bending like I have? I mean the left corner lifts up a bit. I don't know if it is the screen that is bend or the computer itself. It was like this out of the box but decided to live with it. If I am extreme nitpicking and whining, please don't have mercy with me and tell me that as well. I can take it 😀


My screen start to show more IR as well. a few minutes with my CAD program and static toolbar and I can see my whole drawing on a darker webpage. However it dissapear for 90% in a minute and a residue stays behind for longer. Since Bangkok doesn't have a genius bar, I don't know where to bring it for screen replacement. Also I am still in my 14 days, But sad to say I really need the computer since I am assigned to a big project just this week 😟 I can't return it sadly enough.


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Oct 27, 2012 8:27 AM in response to mittense

On one hand the internet is a blessing.. all those times doing stuff (particularly on windows) where you need a hand with all the technical stuff and some champion has it all sorted.. great stuff.


On the other hand.. for the first time in my life the internet has shown me how bad people can complain.


I mean some people are down right offended at the screen showing ghosting. Or how the Screen sits a mm off. Or how their phone shows a dot. Or how their screen bends a mm.


Its just getting ridiuclous. Android, Apple you name it - so much ******** about non trivial things.


I dont care if you dont agree.. but seriously.. just dont buy it if you dont like, or if you like it, return the item and get another one.. but hey what do I know.. lets take this 350 page thread another 350 and crack 700.


I fully understand where people are coming from but is this long *** thread the right approach? Just make a petition online or something and leave the ******** for that. Short and simple. Or just return it.


Reason I say this.. I remember when my GF got her MacBook Air.. we used it, always loved the laptop and never had a problem. it was only when coming on here.. I realised I have to "check the screen" for what brand it is. Then it was what SSD it was. It just never ends. Stop killing peoples lives about this garbage..


PS It had samsungs for both.. but honestly who cares..


But yeah with all this information, its hard for people not to care, and I appreciate people wanting the absolute best.. but I cant say any laptop I have ever bought.. Sony Vaio Z, Acer, Dell XPS or EEePC has ever faced a 10th of the scrutiny the Apple gets.. and what, because it costs more in some cases by 30%? (it still costs less than the sony)..

Oct 27, 2012 8:37 AM in response to WisdomTooth

For me, the point is that some displays are close to perfect (Samsung) and some show extensive ghosting (LG). For over 3000 dollars, you should expect THE BEST. Every single time.


Personally I don't care if there are some seconds of ghosting. But many of these issues are far more than a few seconds. I mean, come on. Ghosting appears after a minute or two, and sticks to the screen for several minutes? That isn't a 3000 dollar screen.

Oct 27, 2012 8:39 AM in response to WisdomTooth

I live in Russia. We don't have official Apple service, only authorised service providers. To get repair I have to wait for 40 days of expertize, than another month while the repair part comes and the result could be the same if they put LPxxxxx display. This makes me sad. There's no option to bring it back and get refund as well as replace it with a new one.


Also service is very bad. I received my previous MBP disassembled from the service when they fixed speaked. I don't know why, but it was in box and screws were packed separately. What they said was "oops, we don't know how that happened". Also I'm not sure how good they do the work.


I want good product out of the box. And I'm ready to pay for that 2500 euros and more. But display ghosts that appear in a minute (!!!) and lasts for at least a couple of minutes are unacceptable.


So probably I'll try to repair my rMBP during some trip to country with Apple Store.

Oct 27, 2012 8:44 AM in response to WisdomTooth

Here's the barometer most people should use for this issue... If you came to this forum BECAUSE you saw ghosting on your Macbook and it bothered you, then yes, it's probably bad enough to warrant fixing. Same with the yellow tinge on the old 2009 iMac 27s.


However, if you stumbled across this thread for a different reason, ran some extended test and THEN discovered the ghosting issue and are now convinced you have to go on a 23 exchange journey to find a perfect Samsung screen... you probably have bigger problems than ghosting on your computer.

Oct 27, 2012 10:05 AM in response to I.V.A.

Done the test. slight IR but dissapears in less then 30 seconds. So not so bad I supose 😉

I.V.A. wrote:


I've made simple webpage that allows you to test if there is any problem with your screen.

Just go to the page http://iva-soft.com/gray/ and wait while the timer goes to zero. After that background become gray and you can check if there is any IR effect.


Also you can pause/resume the test at any time and check how fast ghosts appear and disappear on your screen.

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MacBook Pro Retina display burn-in?

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