Q: MacBook Pro Retina display burn-in?

I'm really feeling bad for all of you stuck with LG screens (after having suffered through two and being lucky with the second screen replacement). If you need any assurance/photos of the Samsung screen working without problems, just hit me up.

On the test that they run, they use a very dark gray/almost black background (web safe=#1F1F1F). You CANNOT see the IR issue on a dark gray or black ground. The color is too saturated and the image is not apparent. If you view the issue on a lighter gray background (say web safe = #666666) it is EXTREMELY visiable.

The purpose behind the test dictates its design. Tests designed to help customers would be focused on discovering flaws, tests designed to help the vendor would be focused on hiding the flaws.

A parallel example would be if you have overheating issues and you take it to Apple Store. Instead of playing a game or running a 3D rendering program, the genius would play around with the calculator app and conclude that you have no overheating problems.

trickards wrote:

 

I've had a change of heart having slept on the issue. My 2.6/16/256 Samsung which arrived yesterday was dented and I was going to get it repaired.  I have now decided to get it replaced - I don't think anyone should have to put up with a dented laptop on arrival.

 

Very disappointing.  I now have to play the game again for another perfect display etc.

I had the same issue - 2nd order had perfect samsung screen, but a mark next to the trackpad (and a very small chip above one of the thunderbird ports). Very small cosmetic problems really, but I still decided to reorder. I knew that I would always look at the mark next to the trackpad with a grudge, knowing that I didn't put it there.

As it turns out luck was on my side and my 3rd was also a samsung, though the charger to this one literally blew up! Luckily I was able to swap it with the 2nd charger as that order hadn't gone back yet.

Good luck with your next order, you'll be so much happier if you get a samsung and no dents!

trickards wrote:

 

I've had a change of heart having slept on the issue. My 2.6/16/256 Samsung which arrived yesterday was dented and I was going to get it repaired.  I have now decided to get it replaced - I don't think anyone should have to put up with a dented laptop on arrival.

 

Very disappointing.  I now have to play the game again for another perfect display etc.

How bad is dent? Pics please

I wouldn't say they were bad dents, but dents nonetheless.  There is in fact three of them spread over the bottom plate of the unibody assembly.

I don't have a picture to hand - quite shallow.  Perhaps if there was only one I would have left it.

Good to see some other success stories coming in.

I'm baaaaaaaaaaack...

...and I have some good news!

I dropped off my rMBP at a local authorized Apple dealer (NOT the Apple Store) and the repairman emailed me this morning to tell me that they replaced my LG screen with a Samsung screen! He sounded as excited as I was. After performing some additional tests on it, he asked me to come pick it up. Before I signed off on the repair I ran the little app that determines the display manufacturer and, sure enough, it was Samsung! I also checked for mura, dead pixels and light bleed and I couldn't see anything wrong with the display. I'm going to scrutinize it pretty closely over the weekend though.

You know what? I think that the repairman knew, or at least strongly suspected, that it was going to be a Samsung display, but I don't think he’s allowed to explicitly say that to customers. I'm sure that's what Apple told him. In his reply to my request for a screen replacement, he referenced HT5455, that joke-of-a-support-article, and then, after informing me that Apple considers image retention to be “normal operation”, he told me the following:

“I have discussed this issue further with them and they have granted a 1 time exception to replace the display for this issue. I have no control over which model screen Apple will send for this repair, but I am hopeful that the replacement will be a Samsung model display.”

When he wrote “hopeful” it was almost as if he was hinting that it “was” going to be a Samsung display.

Another thing he mentioned was that for a day or two the replacement screens were simply “out of stock”. He couldn’t order any at all. But here’s the interesting part, he said that there used to be TWO part numbers for the replacement displays when he looked in the system, and now there’s only ONE. So, considering that I now KNOW I’ve got a Samsung display, It would appear that this is the ONLY display they’re stocking for repairs now (at least in Canada).

So, my suggestion to all of you is to perhaps NOT play the buy-return 14-day lottery, because Apple likely still has a lot of stock left to burn through, so there’s still a good chance that you’ll just get another LG display in your machine. However, if my case is typical (and I caution that I do not know that for sure), then it seems you may have a better chance of getting a Samsung display if you bring it in for repair.

This is a dicey issue though. I’d hate for one of you to let your 14-day NQA return window lapse and then not get a Samsung display when you took it in for repair. Worse still, what if they decide to double-down and stand behind their ridiculous stance that image retention is normal!?

Anyway, I just thought I'd tell you what I know.

dang good news if this is true.

By the way, I'm not sure how to contact people on this support thread, but I'm sure it wouldn't be hard for you to contact me. So, if "Dr. Sly" and/or "Dave Z" could drop me a line, that would be great. I'd like to discuss something with you both.

armin n wrote:

 

dang good news if this is true.

Yeah, IF it is true. Maybe I just got lucky. The repairman in my shop replaced another guy's rMBP display yesterday with the exact same part number too, although aparently that customer's machine wasn't brought in due to the image retention issue.

Good luck guys!

could be that the another part no is out of stock :-)

armin n wrote:

 

could be that the another part no is out of stock :-)

Yeah, hopefully permanently out of stock.

I have to say, this is one of the stupidest processes I have ever seen for a consumer products company.  And I have been buying products from apple for nearly 35 years!

But, having received now my second LG rMBP BTO 2.6/16/500GB computer, I find the brightness to be light, even at full but more importantly at 75-80% it is just too dim in a normally lit room which is where normal viewing should be.  Would most likely consume way too much power (indeed, I get about 3.5-4 hours tops with just the Igpu running and 75% brightness, unacceptable)

But, the bigger issue is, being in yet another 14 day window, I have no idea and no CONFIDENCE that IF IR starts to present itself, the company will step up and make it RIGHT!  At this point, what is the best course of action for the user?

return it, and get another.  Hopefully, that one will be better and more importantly will be a Samsung LCD, which for all intents and purposes is the only one that seems to NOT exhibit any issues and has a similar level of normal brightness.

Am I missing something?  Is this not the best protocol to pursue?

What a total waste of resources for both parties.  Time, money, shipping, accounting, etc. Total waste

<blockquote>By the way, I'm not sure how to contact people on this support thread, but I'm sure it wouldn't be hard for you to contact me. So, if "Dr. Sly" and/or "Dave Z" could drop me a line, that would be great. I'd like to discuss something with you both.</blockquote>

Tanks for sharing the good news. My IR is getting worse and I'm planning to take it in next weekend,

Check the home page listed in my profile, from there you'll be able to contact me.

Wow... That message didn't turn out well (sent from my iPad), but you get the idea.

OK, I've been taking a closer look at my rMBP with it's new Samsung screen.

First, it does seem a bit brighter than the LG, but not by much.

Second, it seems like text is a bit crisper.

Third, the viewing angle is not as good as the LG, but that must be a PLS versus IPS thing. Either way, I could care less about that as long as I don't have any IR.

I'm just running a 60 minute test for IR. I'll let you know if I see any, but I doubt I will.

No dead pixels, not mura, and no light bleed that I can see...so far.