Q: MacBook Pro Retina display burn-in?

Nice. It's day 3 of "1-3 days," and I called earlier and asked for a status update on the "diagnosis" that needed to be performed to assess the issue. The rep took down my information including the Repair # and told me that I should get a call back soon.

There was no call and it's getting late. What could possibly be taking so long and why does a hardware diagnosis need to be performed. It's a new unit w/o any other reported issues. Preliminary diagnostics that were performed over the Genius bar counter passed with flying colors. Either you get some technician who can scan this 120-page thread for the many possible ways to replicate the issue, or even youtube "Retina Macbook Burn In" and just try a few methods. It happens more often than not, and especially during normal usage of preinstalled applications.

Apple is letting me down here. If the resolution I receive is "no fault found," some s*** is about to go down.

orangeisalemon wrote:

 

I just ordered one on-line. If my display is not Samsung, I will simply return it. I don't have the patience of some to try and see if the screwed up LG display is really screwed up or really really screwed up. Mine is supposed to arrive Sept 5th. It is just a total shame that this is happening and that Apple's quality control has deteriorated. Looks like Samsung is winning the quality battle after all !! Thanks everyone for bringing this to light. You guys are awesome.

I wish I had that option. I already had my computer for a month before I noticed/researched the IR issue. They gave me a new computer, but I got onther LG. They (understandably) weren't going to keep on opening new boxes until I found a Samsung (considering the LG screen on the new computer didn't show IR).

Either way, the screen on this computer is stunning. I had a LG screen computer side-by-side with a Samsung screen computer, and while I did notice a slight difference between the two displays, it was by no means a night-and-day difference that some people are making it out to be. I barely noticed a difference at all.

Possibly a firmware fix. Doubt changing refresh rate would help. Best they can do is to introduce a "fix-frame" every once in a while, so if display refreshes 180 times a second, introducing 3 white screens every second would not be visible to human eye, but would remove the "static-ness" of the image. Of course this is just an example and I doubt if Apple comes up with a workaround it is going to look like this.

Nevertheless, software fixes for hardware defects almost always come with a penalty. More power consumption, degradation of image quality, performance hits, etc. etc.

All that doesn't change the fact that the question was about the cause and the cause is not software.

rrahimi

Possibly a firmware fix. Doubt changing refresh rate would help. Best they can do is to introduce a "fix-frame" every once in a while, so if display refreshes 180 times a second, introducing 3 white screens every second would not be visible to human eye, but would remove the "static-ness" of the image. Of course this is just an example and I doubt if Apple comes up with a workaround it is going to look like this.

 

Nevertheless, software fixes for hardware defects almost always come with a penalty. More power consumption, degradation of image quality, performance hits, etc. etc.

 

All that doesn't change the fact that the question was about the cause and the cause is not software.

Imagine if Apple uses sublymonal sprite advertising.  ("fix-frame" every once in a while) to fix the IR issue.

rrahimi wrote:

 

Possibly a firmware fix. Doubt changing refresh rate would help. Best they can do is to introduce a "fix-frame" every once in a while, so if display refreshes 180 times a second, introducing 3 white screens every second would not be visible to human eye, but would remove the "static-ness" of the image. Of course this is just an example and I doubt if Apple comes up with a workaround it is going to look like this.

 

The refresh rate is 60 frames per second, and I think that flashing white would be perceptible, if for no other reason than it would no longer be possible to have the same black levels (since outputting white on what was supposed to be a black pixel 1/20 of the time would raise the perceived color of the pixel by 5%, or possibly more, I think that humans are more sensitive to subtle differences in brightness at the darker end).

Simply put, I don't think this is a solution that would be acceptable, and what's more, I doubt it would fix the problem, since just a few frames per second of white would not appreciably change the average voltage being applied to subpixels and would likely result in the same charge build-up.

They are a business as most of you know.. .and I'm sure some of you figured this out already.  Until it's "worth it" they are not going to address the issue.  It costs them less money to replace for those who figured it out, then to fix it.  If you are really worried then either lottery or wait till the next generation of hardware.  They only made this size screen in the hundreds of thousands I read.  On the other hand....

The thing we should be watching right now is the 13 inch Retina.  They are making this screen in the million + range.  If the 13 inch has the same issues than we can rest assure that the issue is being ignored.  If the 13 inch does not have the issue than we know that changes are being made by LG, etc.

Just my two cents

Hey everyone, i finally got home and got to my macbook pro retina, though with a generator haha (in louisiana)

Anyway, i have a lg display, however, the screen looks great from what i can tell, i will leave the screen on a checkerboard, longer tomorrow and let yall know how it is

ordered it on the 18th of august directly from apple in the USA, custom made

How yellow are we talking?

My experience has been that the retina panels display a very pink hue on all colours.

If you look at the Apple logo on the back of the display, you will see the pink colour which is the native colour of the LED backlights used.

If I compare this to my calibrated cinema display, Dell 30" displays, HP IPS displays and even my Thunderbolt and iMac displays, these other calibrated displays appear yellow in comparison - however this 'yellowing' is actually far more correct.  I am using a Spyder 3 Elite for calibration.

I would prefer a yellow screen to the pink display I have now.  Also of note, this LG panel seems to have a lot more red content in the blues, presumably due to the backlight.

The LG panels used in the cinema displays tend to go pink/red after a few years of use.  A hardware calibrator is effective for compensating for this.  This pink looks 'normal' when compared to a pink LG panel in a Retina MacBook Pro.

I'd really like to get my hands on a Samsung-equipped system to do a brief comparison.

I have a LG display got it back in the middle of july.  Just notice the Image retention recently while working on something.  WTH APPLE!!!!

We should all E-Mail the Big Cheese and blow up his inbox because this is getting out of hand.  **** if Steve had a MBP Retina with the same issue he will most likely blown a casket!

Since there are so many people who have this issue, including myself, what's the official response from Apple?

Do they recognize this issue and fixing it?  Do they consider this as "normal" LCD behaviour?

Apple still keeps quit concerning this issue. There is no yet any official word from Apple.

First Update - rMBP 1 (LG)

 

A couple of pages back, I reported that my LG screen was fine, but it has now shown to be faulty with flickering and a very minor case of retention. Very dissapointed but went ahead to call 1800MYAPPLE. The rep tried to help me fix my problem with various methods such as resetting the PRAM and such. In any case, none worked, and the rep suggested for me to make an appointment with my nearest Apple Store, which I did. Unortunately, the Apple Store didn't provide an option to send me a replacement while I held on to the defective one. They gave me a choice of 2 options.

1. Hand over the rMBP and have them purchase me a new one to have it shipped to my door.
2. Spend another ~3k and wait to receive the new one before returning my defective one.

Neither of which I wanted to do. I cannot hand over the laptop and wait another week or two as a new one is built and shipped to me; I have work to do. I also don't have the kind of money to just purchase another expensive rMBP like that. So I called 1800MYAPPLE again, and after 2 transfers and being put on hold for a while (totaled up to be 41 mins) the Senior Advisor set up a replacement for me that will be built in priority, and shipped expidited once I ship my defective unit back. They said that once they confirm that it's on its way back to Apple, they will go ahead and send me a new replacement. I was told that this was as close as I can get to limiting the number of days I am without a machine. What other choice was there than to accept?

 

This morning, I checked my email, but was not able to find the label they were supposed to send me in order to ship my rMBP back to Apple, so I gave them another call, except this time, I called 1800APLCARE. During my call, I immediately provided the case # from my previous call and was immediately transfered to another Senior Advisor once the rep saw that a previous Senior helped me the day before. I told the Advisor what the problem was, and also requested for an "advanced replacement" (where I get to keep the defective unit until the replacement arrives). He put me on hold for a few minutes before transfering me to the online sales department, where someone was finally able to get an "advanced replacement" set up for me. He told me that the conditions of my rMBP were considered as "dead on arrival" and a replacement will be shipped out as soon as possible. He also mentioned that I wouldn't need to send my defective unit back until I received the new one and gave me his personal phone number in case I had any more concerns regarding my case. So now I play the waiting game, and hope my new model has no issues or defects.

 

If Apple refuses to do such a replacement for you, AND you are still under the 14-day return policy, then call 1800APLCARE and NOT 1800MYAPPLE. Apple Care will most likely get you a replacement in a manner that is most convenient for you or as close as possible. If you are past the 14-days, I suggest you request for one anyway, but you will most likely have to send your unit back before they send you a new one. I will update further once I receive my replacement.

 

Second Update - rMBP 2 (Samsung)

 

Alright, earlier this morning/afternoon I posted that my Samsung has no IR problems, and I want to tell you guys it is still doing well with no IR/ghosting whatsoever. I did however notice a "mura" or a small cluster of defective pixels. They were hard to see but once I restarted the computer it became visible almost immediately. There's nothing really wrong about them, it is just brighter on that single spot (about 2 millimeters in thickness).

 

I went ahead and called the sales rep who was able to get me a replacement the first time, but he didn't answer the phone. I left a detailed voicemail about my problem and about ~30 minutes later he called back sincerely apologizing for yet another defect on the rMBP. He then kindly set up another case for me and transfered my to a customer service rep and told me to give him a call back with my new case number if anything goes wrong.

 

I had to deal with the service rep's nonsense for a good 20 minutes before she transfered me to her Senior Advisor since she had no clue how to deal with a replacement for my replacement. The SA talked to me about my problem for a few minutes and was really understanding about the issue. I was given 2 options:

1. I could either set up another replacement (~1-2 weeks to receive)
2. Get the screen replaced overnight

Obviously I went to the replacement since I'm not comfortable with repairs on a brand new rMBP.

 

I also asked him about the screens being manufactured for the rMBPs and told him all about what's been going on in this thread, and how Samsung screens were performing much better than the LG ones. He was a little surprised that Apple used LG screens for the new models and he always thought that they were Samsung. He then assured me that Apple WILL get me a perfect rMBP with no defects no matter how many tries it takes them and also put in notes in my case to ensure that the new replacement will undergo stricter quality checks by people who run the diagnostics etc. The SA was also able to tell me that all the newly manufactured MBPs from this point on should all have Samsung displays (but don't hold that against me if it's untrue!).

 

Very impressed with the quality of service provided to me this time as I almost had to do nothing on my part and it was obvious the SA knew exactly what he was doing and how to handle the problem (unlike MANY others). I'm pretty bummed still, that my Samsung-display rMBP needs to be replaced and that school is starting soon.

 

*edit*

There's also a much smaller thread going on about the "mura" bright spots too! Here's the link in case you have any and were wondering about them.https://discussions.apple.com/thread/4042189?tstart=0

 

Third Update - rMBP 3 (Samsung)

Okay guys it's been a week or so since I received my 2nd replacement (my 3rd unit) from Apple. All the replacements arrived in a brand new sealed box with everything inside, just as if I purchased it again. I am very happy to tell you guys that after a week of testing this unit, I can confirm for a fact that IR does not occur, nor are there any other screen-related issues. Apple did promise me a perfect rMBP and they finally delivered it. I'm not exactly happy that it took this much effort, but I am happy I got a non-defective laptop. Passing a little hope to you guys who are still awaiting for your replacements! But before I go, I would like to tell you guys that both times I asked for a replacement, they said that they needed me to send my defective rMBP back first. Both times I held onto the laptop until the new one came. Seems they ship the replacements out regardless if they get the original back first or not. Just make sure to actually send it back to them soon or else you'll be charged twice!

Lucky you got one on the third try! I set up my fourth replacement last Tuesday, and was expecting to hear from the ER with my shipping number today. Except she rang me only to say it wont even ship from China till the 8th of September!! (dragging this whole thing on since the beginning of July. Why is it so difficult to get what you paid for from Apple? This **** is ridiculous!) Anyway so its looking like it's going to end up being a month from ordering the fourth replacement to receiving it. It had better be a flawless Samsung this time!

How did people here get in contact with apple executive customer relations? I can't find a number or email online.

Hi EvilZardoz,

I'm no visual designer or artist, but we're talking closer to the D50 on my Cinema Display than to the 9,300K...

It's not exactly pure whites that annoy me, it's everything else, skewed towards yellow, such as the greys. Everything tends towards sepia. Of course it could be because of room lights and office lights, but I much prefer my Cinema Display's native calibration to my rMBP's !