Q: MacBook Pro Retina display burn-in?

On my way home from work yesterday I dropped in to the Apple Store at Cribbs Causeway in Bristol UK. They have 3 rMBPs on display, none show any IR. I didn't have a chance to check what the display suppliers were on each unit before one of the sales guys was on me like a hawk. I got chatting to him about how 'non-retina ready' applications such as CS6 look and he launched Illustrator CS6 on one of them for me to check things out (on a side note it's not as bad as I had thought it might be from other user reports).

At this point I brought up the subject of IR and the whole LG, Samsung debacle. He catagorically stated that they have have had no returns or customers complaining of this issue at all in his store and that this issue was news to him; but what he did mention was that a few customers have returned their rMBPs for issues with the WiFi card and that it doesn't seem to play nicely with people using their UK purchased rMBPs in Spain (?!)... go figure...

As I say I have no idea what displays were on the 3 units on the desks at the store but they all looked pretty amazing. I've been holding off purchasing one of these units since the first page of this thread started but I have to say that all of the units I've seen on display in various stores have not had IR; this is beginning to give me slightly more confidence that it might be the time to order one.

I'd like to remind everyone again that the IR on these LGs has gotten worse in use in most cases.

We haven't seen how bad it can eventually get, as the worst cases are only just two months old.

It is also a security issue once your login screen becomes "transparent" etc.

Most if not all screen replacements are LG, atleast for machines that had LG originally.

Just got off the phone form Apple Europe, they tried after 2 wks of "investigation" to explain me it's normal and I should setup my screensaver to reduce the effects of the burn-ins...

After I told them that they basically think i'm an idiot they offered to send me to a service cernter for repair...

I'm VERY disappointed with how they're handling this - in US u guys get replacements, no question aksed, here in EU we basically need to beg to get it serviced - which is not as good as getting a new unit (who knows what they'll end up breaking during service...)

Hi all,

Thanks for posting all of the information about this issue.

My 4 week rMBP also had this issue.  I took it to the UK store where I bought it from, and had it replaced. They didn't even ask me to show them to issue, because I had already called AppleCare about it and they had logged it on the system as a hardware issue.

So I walked out with a brand new one, all boxed.  I asked if I could check for screen burn before leaving the store. 

It's another LG, but the screen is perfect at the moment. 

Let's see if it develops the problem over the coming weeks.

[edit] - Just a note that people might find useful.  Mine was 4 weeks old, so it was past the 2 week return period.

I did have to explain that a repair wasn't feasible for me as I relied on the laptop for work. 

Quick update on my third exchanged LG display. After 5 days the IR is now clearer to see. It first appeard on Day 3. I talked again with Apple Executive Relations EMEIA and now I was told to send pictures in, so that their engineers could investigate my case further (???) and this is what I did. They'll get other pics from me today, since it got worse...

Just emailed that to Tim Cook moments ago... probably never going to see an answer but never know...

Dear Tim,

I've been a Mac fanboy for a long time now converting my whole entourage to the Mac.

I've been waiting for a long time for the new Macbook Pros and when the Retina came out I bought one (with most options). Macs have been known to be reliable and most of my devices had life span over 5 years.

Now I got one of those LG screen that suffer from burn-ins effect just like old CRTs did 20 years ago when you left them on with a static image for a long time.

This issue seems a serious issue as reported in that forum thread https://discussions.apple.com/message/19478315 and seems to be only affecting some LG screens.

In the US, users have been reporting that they got their devices exchanged often in in-advance terms with ease hence supporting the legacy of "great service" offered by Apple.

Here in Europe I had to withstand multiple calls and meetings with "geniuses" that basically tried to tell me that this is normal behaviour.

This is not normal behaviour for a 3.5K€ machine.

Finally they told me to get the device to a service center to have it fixed, which means no device for some days / weeks. And as en entrepreneur, this is my daily work tool - so this makes it basically the worst experience EVER.

I'm really confused about the way things have been handled on that case and feel that the difference of service between US and EU is really bothersome.

Hence I'd really love to hear your view on that case and maybe a global position on this issue would be a good idea.

Best,

Hey all,

Just recieved my rMPB (2.3 / 16 / 256)

Was scared by this forum for the infamous LG screen..

When i first used it I thought it was an LG because the brightness wasn't that bright, the auto brightness was on by default though.

So I immediatly went to this thread and looked for the program (Thanks to Shayster98).

I downloaded it, searched for the option where I can open third party software....

I scanned the text and saw LG, but I didn't read good and it was only the information screen lol...

So I started the test and heard a voice say LSN and some code afterwards.

LSN was enough for me! I'm so happy!

It's a build week 35 ordered on Aug 21. So keep your hopes up, they still have Samsung.

The keyboard seems fine, and it's in perfect shape, no squeeking sound like some reported so I'm very happy.

I hope it all works out for you who have trouble with the LG screen

Tim Cook will be read?

It's good for you,I'm waiting for my 3rd rMBP （2.6G/16G/256）

Im so sad and angry,

mengqingfei wrote:

 

Tim Cook will be read?

Obviously not. He's to much busy counting the revenues to the stocks. And in minor part, he's counting the n-th 5cents truck delivered by Samsung.

Hai,

Today my second Mabook Pro arrived ( 2,6 / 16 Gb / 256 ). Week 32. Order By Applestore (online) here in Germany.

Its a LG Panel. Burn in!

iR0NiX wrote:

 

Hai,

 

Today my second Mabook Pro arrived ( 2,6 / 16 Gb / 256 ). Week 32. Order By Applestore (online) here in Germany.

Its a LG Panel. Burn in!

32nd week is quite "old'. Lately all the new orders are 35-36th week, but maybe it's different because of the German keyboard. So how bad is your Burn in, after how many minutes do you see it?

sorry my fault - week 35

Serial number: C02J90HKDKQ4

Group1: MacBook

Group2: Pro

Generation:

Machine Model: MacBookPro10,1

Model introduced: 2012

Production year: 2012

Production week: 35 (September)

CPU speed: 2.3GHz

Family name: Become a pro user to see this information. (sorry)

Screen size: 15 inch

Screen resolution: 2880x1800 pixels

Colour: Aluminium

Capacity: BTO

Burn in comes after seconds - here are some pictures:

Pictures made with iPad.

Color LCD

LP154WT1-SJA1

DCN23320WQFDMJ0AN

When you first purchase a TV (or Mac Book with Retina), there is a "break-in" period.

This period is around 250 hours.

You should NOT leave static images on the screen for 30 minutes or more during this period of time.

"Burn-in" is PERMANANT

"Image-Retention" is TEMPORARY

I have an LG and I have had ZERO issues, through normal usage.

Use a screensaver and set it up to start in 2 minutes and avoid static screens.

Hope this helps.

NetworkShadow wrote:

 

I've also got the LG display with the image retention problem, though not extremely bad. Production week: 33 (August)

 

Unfortunately I don't have a local Apple store to deal with... It's my main work machine so it will suck if I need to go without for a few days while it's repaired. It's also a custom build-to-order from Apple.com.

 

I spoke with a tech at the local authorized reseller, he hadn't seen this issue yet but had a customer with the flicker issue. Apple shipped them a new screen and they repaired the machine in-house, this took 3 days. He suggested I talk to Apple support directly first... So I'll be doing that soon.

So I called AppleCare today... As expected the phone support wasn't exactly helpful. Apple's official stance is that "some amount of burn-in is normal with the Retina display".

He also said to try resetting the PRAM (reboot and hold Cmd+P+R) I almost laughed at that suggestion... He also went into a long description of how to avoid burn-in by using screen savers etc and using an all white image to remove burn-in. I had to cut him off saying I knew all this already.

When I told him that I can see burn-in after under 5 minutes on a high-contrast image and that I'm a graphic designer, he suggested I take it in for diagnostics. SO I'll be dealing with a local authorized support tech again soon.

Hopefully Apple will acknowledge this as a widespread issue soon... I doubt they will though until they can get the manufacturing defect worked-out with LG.

This reminds me of the first Intel MacBooks having too much thermal paste causing overheating... Apple took it on a case-by-case until the manufacturing quality control was worked-out because most replacements also had the issue.

The cost of being an early adopter...