Q: 2011 MacBook Pro and Discrete Graphics Card

Krislo,

As I said there is no way this will make up for a design flaw with the logic boads and I agree with you completely.  Just hopeing like many their might be a way to put off the seemily certain failure that is already taken hold of so many and more everyday.  I worked in the PC industry building and selling them for nearly 10 years and worked hard at steering people away from Apple.  But all the time with great respect for the product telling people you paid for it but no one used better componants in their systems than Apple.  Most Apple users upgraded every 5 years or more with still working systems while PC people upgraded every 2 years on average.  After the Intel changeover and the compatibility became so wonderful I began to steer people to Apple after converting myself and taking a lot of pride in a great system.  But now with the most expensive MBP I have ever owned along with an incredible number of others I am wondering why?  Along with my telling others of the great hardware used in Apple I also told them how this company took great pride in it't products and valued it's customers and took care of them.  That has been their history but now it seems that things are changing.  As much as I hate the thought, if $2,800 will only buy me a couple of years on a Mac I will have to, like many others think again as I can buy 3 good quality PC's for that amount of money and probalbly get 8-10 years out of them.  Feeling very sad and abandoned at this moment by Apple and wondering how I will explain to so many how what I once told them was the best of the best is no longer the case.

@missionarymac I have a similar story. I am holding out hope that Apple will do the right thing. I am disappointed that no Apple rep has stepped forward in this thread or any other. I wish we knew that they were at least collecting data on the issue. A lot of devoted apple fans and customers are facing this problem.

Just coming back from the Apple Store.

C$661.75 including tax for a new 2.4 GHz i7 logic board.

There was no way to negotiate the price even though the Macbook was purchased in Dec. 2012.

Next on the task list: Letter to Tim.

My MacBook Pro just died. It is very frustrating that such an expensive laptop crashes a few months out of warranty!

Will go to the genius bar to ask what can be done.... I hope there will be a recall for this issue!

My MacBook Pro appear to have same problem (AMD Radeon HD 6750M)

Sincerely hope there will be a recall to address this issue.

On the other hand, is there a way to disable AMD, and use the built-in Intel graphic card instead?

I also have an early 2011 MacBook Pro - it just failed after exhibiting similar symptoms to those described here: first I had screen tearing/distortion on my external monitor.  Then I disconnected it to isolate the problem to either the monitor (which was new) or the laptop.  The laptop will power on, but it usually ends up in a blue screen with stripes or it's stuck on a grey screen during normal boot (probably because I configured the system to always use discrete graphics in the power management settings under system preferences).  My drives are encrypted and my firmware is also password protected; in the system's current state it's pretty well useless.

I'm struggling now to decide whether to repair or replace until Apple decides whether or not to admit a possible issue with this GPU/chipset given the volume of complaints about this series of Macbook Pro laptops/GPUs.

Just buy another computer, preferably not Apple given their lack of customer service on this issue. My PC computer crashed hundreds of times from overheating due to excessive gaming in the past, and it still functions adequately 8 years later.

I got the MLB replaced for $310+tax and it broke even worse within 5 minutes of coming home. At least before I could still use the integrated graphics, now post-repair it won't even get to the login screen. The genius I spoke to this time around would also not entertain the idea this was happening to thousands of people. She chose to naively believe "you can find anything online," and "sometimes these things happen" as valid excuses for a computer to break down in a little over 2 years from simple word processing and web browsing.

This is clearly some form of a manufacturing/design defect and replacing the MLB/graphics chipset with a refurbished part is not the easy solution. I can't even get a refund and have been without a computer for more than a week.

I just had another conversation. I don't want to get into this too deeply but here are my take aways. Hopefully they will help someone in some way.

• I was directed to the current repair extension page where this issue is currently not included. I believe this was to send the message that no amount of belly-aching will get my unit fixed in recall at the current time.
• I was assured that data is collected on repairs, call-ins, and other forms of feedback exluding emails to the CEO. These emails are read but are not "counted." However, at this time there isn't enough data collected that warrants a repair extension program for this issue.
• I was given no particulars about whether this issue was being noted as a rising concern only that at the current time it was not recognized as a flaw. My particular issue is being treated as a run-of-the-mill hardware failure bound to happen to any computer over time. I was reminded a couple of times that my unit was 3 years old and that I was 2 years outside of my warranty.
• I was informed that there is a time when the care responsibility of a computer is transferred from the manufacturer to the user. That time is at the end of the warranty.
• I was still offered the option of $310 flat-rate depot repair with possibility of reimbursement if a repair extension were to manifest itself regarding my specific issue.
• My feedback was appreciated and noted.

I must admit at the end of all this I had this nagging feeling of guilt. Not sure why but the interaction made me feel like it was my fault. I'm sure that is the underlying intention. I honestly do understand the concept of being outside of warranty but I truly feel like this is a flaw that goes beyond the usual wear and tear. If I didn't know that so many of you are experiencing the same issue I would just blame myself and give up.

"I got the MLB replaced for $310+tax and it broke even worse within 5 minutes of coming home"

Since the repaired unit has a warranty, you should have the problem addressed by Apple.

Add me to the list.

I would be up for sending mine off for depot repair if there weren't so many stories of recurrence. I wish there was some assurance of the problem truly being solved. $310 + multiple send-offs = lots of resources and time lost. That's a high price to pay for our issue to be recognized and calculated by Apple. I use the term "price" to also refer to the time lost. They quote 5-7 days. Some people are saying they have sent it off three times. That's about a week shy of a month. This being said, I can see why iniquus isn't rushing to send it off again. He may have better luck with a local repair shop. Maybe get the GPU reballed with lead solder. I've heard good things about that type of repair.

cmorgannorris wrote:

 

I would be up for sending mine off for depot repair if there weren't so many stories of recurrence. I wish there was some assurance of the problem truly being solved. $310 + multiple send-offs = lots of resources and time lost. That's a high price to pay for our issue to be recognized and calculated by Apple. I use the term "price" to also refer to the time lost. They quote 5-7 days. Some people are saying they have sent it off three times. That's about a week shy of a month. This being said, I can see why iniquus isn't rushing to send it off again. He may have better luck with a local repair shop. Maybe get the GPU reballed with lead solder. I've heard good things about that type of repair.

That recurrence is exactly why I sought third party repair on my own.

cmorgannorris wrote:

 

I must admit at the end of all this I had this nagging feeling of guilt. Not sure why but the interaction made me feel like it was my fault. I'm sure that is the underlying intention. I honestly do understand the concept of being outside of warranty but I truly feel like this is a flaw that goes beyond the usual wear and tear. If I didn't know that so many of you are experiencing the same issue I would just blame myself and give up.

This is Corporate Customer Service 101 - it's not in any company's interests to take responsibility for a problem.  It just opens them up for liability.  Many companies have scripted, rehearsed phrases for their reps, to make sure that their company's messages are consistent, on-message, and don't place them in any awkward positions.  But it's definitely frustrating for customers to hear.

I've got a 2,3 GHz i7, 8 Go RAM with Intel HD Graphics 3000 512 Mo and AMD Radeon HD...

I made a fresh new install of maverick and it's working now...

Perhaps it will go "bizarre" when it will switch to AMD... Don't know...

Hi,

I bought my Macbook Pro late 2011(2,2. 4Gb ,AMD 6750, 512MB) from Italy one year and eight month ago. If I correctly understood about  the italy warranty , It is possible to repair my mac(change MB) with warranty (2 years). Is it correct?

Sorry for my english.

Thanks