Q: 2011 MacBook Pro and Discrete Graphics Card

"There are no solutions: this is a hardware problem which Apple refuses to acknowledge"

Right, but there are temporary solutions scattered throughout this forum to many of the issues people are having.  I'm just looking to access a specific document for now. Not a permanent solution.

gfxCardStatus will let you switch to integrated graphics, as long as you're not running any applications that use the discrete chip when you try to do so. It's a temporary solution to a problem that seems to get progressively worse over time, but it will get you working again. I originally installed it to keep the discrete chip from draining my battery in under an hour, and now it's keeping my computer alive.

Cody K. is the developer.

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Made me laugh - albeit bitterly.

so this happened to me finally this week. It is very disappointing and disheartening to see that this problem has been happening for a long time and that apple is not doing anything to fix this, not even helping with the reparation costs.

My very expensive laptop is now pretty much useless, I called and went to many official Apple repair centers and the answer was the same: i would neet to pay around 15000 pesos (more than a thousand dollars) in order to get it fixed. Which is ridiculous considering that is the cost for a new laptop.

As many here have already said, we paid a premium price for this computer, most of us here have bought many other apple products and are (or were) loyal customers. Apparently that means nothing to apple.

has anyone from Mexico gotten it repaired at a lower cost? I need my computer to be able to work, but there is no way I will pay more than a thousand dollars for a temporary solution

It's always sad when I get the notifications in my Inbox and I see yet more and more people who are having problems. As messed up as it sounds, we need more numbers for Apple to finally do something about this, and we can all benefit from it. So:

1. Call Apple Support or make an appointment with an Apple Genius and have them send a report to the higher level engineering team-This is the best thing you can do for now, we need more reports

2. Send in Feedback using the Feedback form, I think Apple is obligated to read the feedback they get

I might have just "fixed" my early 2011 macbook pro.  I've been trying to fix it for about a week.  By fix I mean everything looks normal, system boots, etc. I've been running it for hours with intensive applications and it seems fine in both Windows and OSX  I believe it's only running Intel HD 3000.  That's what gfxcardstatus and "about this mac" says.  But everything looks normal and the system acts like it should (not sluggish, plays movies, etc).  If anyone needs to contact me for more details please feel free to send me a message on here or e-mail me at *******

At first it wouldn't boot. I got that fixed by moving all of the amd and ati files in system/library/extensions.  Then it would boot to a screen with green horizontal lines across the screen, the system was very sluggish, and it wouldn't play movies.  It said I was still using the 6750m.  I'm not sure if it actually was or not.  After that I tried to reinstall my amd and ati files to system/library/extensions, but that wasn't happening.  So I tried to use a backup from an external hard drive.  When I tried that I would get a solid blue screen with black vertical lines.  But when that screen came up my computer would get really hot and shut itself off eventually.  When it rebooted after that the system would look normal for 10 or 20 minutes.  After I did this twice the macbook would stop shutting itself down when the blue screen came up.  So i wrapped the macbook in thermal underwear and it got really hot.  Then it shut itself down again.  This time I booted it up and used my external hard drive to a backup of about three weeks ago.  Since then, os x doesn't even mention the 6750M.  Windows says I'm using the 6750M, but I'm not sure it's correct.

Maybe NOW would be a good time to sell this.  Any takers??? :\

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Grahf85 wrote:

 

I might have just "fixed" my early 2011 macbook pro.  I've been trying to fix it for about a week.  By fix I mean everything looks normal, system boots, etc. I've been running it for hours with intensive applications and it seems fine in both Windows and OSX  I believe it's only running Intel HD 3000.  That's what gfxcardstatus and "about this mac" says.  But everything looks normal and the system acts like it should (not sluggish, plays movies, etc).  If anyone needs to contact me for more details please feel free to send me a message on here or e-mail me at *******

 

At first it wouldn't boot. I got that fixed by moving all of the amd and ati files in system/library/extensions.  Then it would boot to a screen with green horizontal lines across the screen, the system was very sluggish, and it wouldn't play movies.  It said I was still using the 6750m.  I'm not sure if it actually was or not.  After that I tried to reinstall my amd and ati files to system/library/extensions, but that wasn't happening.  So I tried to use a backup from an external hard drive.  When I tried that I would get a solid blue screen with black vertical lines.  But when that screen came up my computer would get really hot and shut itself off eventually.  When it rebooted after that the system would look normal for 10 or 20 minutes.  After I did this twice the macbook would stop shutting itself down when the blue screen came up.  So i wrapped the macbook in thermal underwear and it got really hot.  Then it shut itself down again.  This time I booted it up and used my external hard drive to a backup of about three weeks ago.  Since then, os x doesn't even mention the 6750M.  Windows says I'm using the 6750M, but I'm not sure it's correct.

 

Maybe NOW would be a good time to sell this.  Any takers??? :\

 

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Yes, you have fixed it but it will be temporary. This is based on experiences from other users here that I've read about. Sooner or later the integrated graphics will crap out as well, it's only a matter of time. So yes, now would be a good time to sell it but you should disclose the issues when you put it up for sale. It wouldn't be right otherwise.

Alright I tried calling to the number in Mexico but I got an automated response in english (not even spanish). After saying my serial number I got an automated response that said I needed to pay 29 USD to get phone support. Am I calling the wrong number?

Has anyone considered a complaint?

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YYeah my "fix" only lasted about 4 hours.

Never mind.

We all feel your pain. We've all been there before.

But United we are strong! Keep calling Apple, keep sending in those reports! Don't give up!

*****Plp here are having real problems and you are diverting the conversation.

Anyways i already replaced my mac but i asked 2 reseller here and they tell me yosemite may be the culprit as lots of macbook pro 2011 has failed recently under yosemite. So that may help to anyone who has not updated yet. My 2011 is just sitting there now. If apple fixes it for free i will sell it.

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To mondesigns

I hate to disagree with you but as I've mentioned in the past this has very little to do with this problem but I'll mention this again This is a Hardware Problem! I've never used Yosemite when mine crap..ed out! I was using Maverick, after 2 full days of intense "what do I do now feeling" managed to get at least a TM backup since I was working on a terrible very long financial  quote (with the client breathing on my back and swearing waiting for this). At the same time I also managed to install the original Lion in recovery mode. Quess what it worked for 1 week and died. $600  later and 2 months I am ok BUT I do notice with gfxCard Status and Fan Control the temperature gets pretty worrisome if I use intense video playback the temperature goes up to 90+ Centigrade compared to normal 48 to 52 centigrade in normal use.

What I'm really worried about is I have 1 month left on my logic board guarantee and judging by others dear people's problems I am not going to spend one more dollar on this. I will leave comments about my alternatives until Tim Cook does or does not decide what to do about this.

@ frankATI I agree with you. It is a hardware problem. But yosemite seems to stress the graphic more than previous OS does. It might not be a solution but just passing the info i got from 2 resellers. And yes logic board replacement is not a solution as i bought new macbook pro 2014 after second logic board fail in 2011 macbook pro. I had to replace as i m a freelance designer so  i could not keep my clients waiting. But even 2014 macbook pro reaches 92 C when rendering video in after effects. Hope it helps.