Hello,
Here's a quick update on my situation...
After dropping my rMBP off at an authorized Apple dealer this morning for a screen replacement (my only option due to the fact I've had it for well over 14 days now), they called me this afternoon and told me that they weren't able to fix it right now and to come by and pick it up.
Now, this sounds bad, but I'm actually starting to get a bit encouraged. Why? Well, the technician finally confirmed that Apple is aware of this problem and, basically, they just don't have a solution yet, so I should hold off replacing my screen, at least for now, until they have a better idea of what's going on.
First, they're hoping that the issue can be resolved with software, as this would be ideal. I agree, but I find it unlikely. A firmware solution would be more probable if all LG screens were experiencing this issue, but some aren't, so it's unlikely to be a code problem. I'm pretty certain that it's a hardware problem or a manufacturing defect.
Second, although it's easy to see, via a terminal command, which manufacturer's LCD panel is installed in a particular screen assembly once it's part of a working rMBP, there's no easy way to tell when they're just sitting on a shelf in a warehouse with some non-descript replacement part number stamped on them. As such, they can't easily separate the screen assemblies with Samsung LCD panels installed from those with LG LCD panels installed. So, as with the multiple laptop replacements that many of you have been experiencing, it's completely unpredictable. They could replace my screen assembly and it might be Samsung, but it could just as easily be LG, with the problem still there.
So, although this problem is annoying, and totally unacceptable, as long as I know that Apple is working on it, I'm willing to cut them some slack, at least for a few more weeks, to sort this out. If it turns out, as I think it will, to be a hardware issue, I personally would rather just replace the screen assembly rather than wait for a new laptop to arrive, one that might have other defects that my current rMBP doesn't have, and then go through the pain of porting all of my data over to the new one.
Here's what I suggest though...
For the time being, continue discussing and reporting this issue and keeping stats on defective units (i.e. number of bad/good LG/Samsung LCD panels). Keep this thread alive and growing, and keep contacting Apple tech support to complain and maintain visibility for this issue. However, I think we should hold off bringing attention to this in the wider media (i.e. ZDNet, CNN, etc). I'd like to give Apple the benefit of the doubt...at least for a while longer.
Hopefully, this will be fixed soon and we can finally have the defect-free machines that we paid for.
Cheers,
Peter