Q: 2011 MacBook Pro and Discrete Graphics Card

WE NEED A RECALL !!!!!!!!!!!

The solution to this problem is reballing the GPU. I live in a small town in Sweden and there are more than 3 PC/Laptop repair shops that specialize in this procedure. So if you live in a larger city it shouldn't be a problem to find a place that can fix your Macbook. All you really need to find is a place that performs BGA rework. Cost averages around 100-150 EUR I think (depending on if they fit you a new chip or try to reuse the old one). People have made a living out of these issues since, I'm guessing, governments imposing the mandatory use of lead-free solder.

The reason a logic board switch is NOT the solution, apart from the price and short warranty, is that the "new" (refurbished for sure) logic board has been used before, and still has the wrong soldering for the GPU (lead-free).
Make sure when you're talking to the repair shop that they will solder it with lead solder that can stand the heat and doesn't crack (lead-free solder is brittle).

Having the same thing happen with my late 2011 macbookpro. I ran it alot with a thunderbolt display and actaully when it first started happening I thought that it was caused by the in and out of the thunderbolt cable.

Tried finding out if there was another way to connect and disconnect other than yanking the cable out.

Apparently, was not the issue and it's began getting worse, being in the middle of a wedding photography edit session - wound up buying a macmini to get me by. I've only had this macbookpro for like 3 1/2 years would like to get it running again.

Glad you all are talking about it here.

Since the "official" logic board exchange for my MBP should cost 655 Euros here in Germany (with questionable durability), I tried the repair instead.

I sent the MBP to a repair shop in Hamburg who offered a "logicboard repair" for 249 Euros. I've got it back a few days ago and I'm very happy, the MBP works again like a charm. They did not provide details about what exactly they did (I guess it's a reball), but I honestly don't care as long as it is working. :-)  The repair was also very fast, it took only a few days including shipping overhead.

Finally tested the external monitor. It flickered for a moment and that was it. Tried wiggling the cables to no avail. Black screen on external and internal monitors.

Will be going to the states next month and if there is no recall by then for these faulty logic boards, I will reball the board. Anybody know of a company that does reballs on the East Coast?

Or if anyone knows of a company that sells repaired 661-5965 logic boards I would be interested as well.

Thanks all.

Sorry, but my macbook does not touch any store that is not official . If apple does not deign to finally take responsibility for the failure. First not coming back to buy a apple product. ( A computer that costs 2000 euros and do not take care of your error . A mistake is one of thousands of computers. ) It's like I buy a ferrari and 3 years dropped his doors because of a component manufactured in another company. First, you bought a Ferrari , not a Fiat or Opel. It is supposed to be a high end car , care to withstand time. ( In what seems reasonable .. batteries and others are understandably deteriorate over time. ) . But if you buy a macbook 2000 euros least expect will last a little more than a acer or lenovo 400 euros. For Ferrari 'm sure it would be a shame for the brand. I do what I think is happening with apple , do not ever would have imagined. And I 'm taking my laptop to a store that is not official unless apple us back. In that case , and take any other measures. And I do not keep spotting the brand as they are doing , they are letting down their more direct consumers .

I have exactly the same problem. Finally tested the external monitor and it flickered for one moment and nothing. I'm thinking of taking the logicboard out and have it reballed when I visit the states next month.

Manu Cutillas wrote:

 

But if you buy a macbook 2000 euros least expect will last a little more than a acer or lenovo 400 euros.

That lenovo uses the same technology, basic design (intel), components, production process, it might even be made in the same factory, as your macbook pro.

From a hardware/electroincs/components view there isn't really a difference.

Imo, the price difference is not justified.

Manu Cutillas wrote:

 

Sorry, but my macbook does not touch any store that is not official .

I agree and normally I wouldn't have done it either. But my MBP did not even boot anymore. What could I do? Basically, I considered 3 options:

1. Buy a new MacBook. Obviously, that is what Apple wants us to do ...

2. Have the logic board replaced. It is very expensive and if the replaced board fails again after a few months, I wasted a lot of money.

3. Let it get repaired and hope that it resolves the root cause of the problem. I also get 12 months warranty. It was also the least expensive option.

All things considered, I chose option 3. It is also the most environment friendly way - repair instead of replacing the board or the whole computer.

Maybe it's that it is not another choice than the third. Maybe it's naive to think that even a brand that has earned its market share of people like us who we believed that the apple products had a higher reliability than other companies. Maybe this is the beginning of the end of trust in apple products. I have an iphone 3gs that still works like the first day . Although I have a iphone 5s , I have the 3gs as the best phone that I bought in my life. But it seems that things are changing and what was once giving excellent customer service , is now squeezing the money in an excellent way . And if this is so , the consumer is not stupid and as robust as Apple brand is not impregnable . In the end it is the consumer that moves the world . As much money a company spent on advertising, there is no advertising to the word of mouth from one consumer to another . And his experience with the brand . Especially when it is a company with products with as little competent prices. Apple does not sell the laptop and as I said before. Sell ​​products you should have a greater care both components as in the treatment of its consumers. It seems that apple does not know that is what has led her to enjoy the position it now enjoys , such as brand value. It is bread for today , hunger for tomorrow .

Despite all this I think the best option is that apple takes over the repair with an exception in your apple care.

The real problem for those who don't have AppleCare is Apples solutions at the moment, I would be very happy if instead of a depot repair they took my MBP away and lead soldered a fresh GPU on which by many of my clients and my experience of being an engineer is the only true permanent fix for these models. Their current solutions is for the user to have a depot repair or the huge cost of a new logic board. Unacceptable Apple, why should the user first have to pay for it and secondly why not offer the proper fix?

When my late 2011 AMD 6770 chip which is outside of Apple warranty does fail I won't hesitate to ship mine off to get a fresh GPU lead soldered on from a third party repairer, with far better quality and more importantly far less quantity of paste on the between the GPU and the heatsink assembly to make these 2011's, by far the hottest running CPU and GPU MBP models of all in this chassis run much, much cooler.

I personally would be satisfied with Apple simply reimbursing my costs for a new GPU with what I consider is the only long term fix instead of the possibility of long and repeated periods of being away while I have one depot repair after another with badly tested and most likely similarly flawed lead free solder replacement logic boards.

I had the same problem, now my computer won't even start up. It would be great if Apple offered a free fix to all affected or a discount on a new computer to maintain customer loyalty. For a $2700 computer to stop working after 3 years is unacceptable.

Her i am again!

As i understand reballing is the only longterm solotion so far,please tell me if i am right.

My machine was 1800€ that money would give me a600€ laptop every 3 yaers make`s

it 9 yaers a new machine.

So, would you recommend Apple to a friend  NO.

MBP Feb2011 AMD6490

Month #6 since having GPU replaced by 3rd party guys here in GER

System feels running better than new after unboxing.

Absolutely no issues.. external display on thundebolt also works perfectly again.

daily workload using new dedicated GPU:

movie/photo edit

audio production/mastering

(2h+ gaming)

trusted in these guys which imho was a good choice

http://stores.ebay.de/Laptop-Reparatur-Zentrum-Thuringen

EUR 149,- toltal

12month waranty on replaced parts

24month waranty on soldering

I have posted the message below to Apple on their feedback page:

http://www.apple.com/feedback/macbook.html

It may seem a bit childish but I then hit the back button on the browser and resent it twenty times with the hope that it catches their attention. I'll continue to do this as time permits.

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My Early 2011 Macbook Pro 8,3 has become unreliable.

Widespread anecdotal evidence indicates a fault with the installation of the discrete AMD GPU in early-2011 MacBook Pros.  Symptoms include video glitches (flashes, split screens, interlacing), blank screen, blue screen, grey screen, crashes, freezes and shutdowns.  This has been widely reported online in journals and on Apple Support Communities discussions:

https://discussions.apple.com/thread/4766577?start=4560&tstart=0

https://discussions.apple.com/thread/4637833?start=345&tstart=0

Replacement of the logic board is not sufficient as all boards from this series may exhibit the same issues after a time.

This is not the sort of performance we expect from a premium Apple product.  A lifespan of less than three years is unacceptable.

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