Yellow Discoloration

Just called Apple Technical Support and told them my MacBook is starting to show these problems and to advice on the route to take. He said no cosmetic issues are covered, but "Apple might make an exception" I made him go into this thread and see the pictures and asked him if Apple was aware of this problem, which he just said, "No, I don't see anything from Apple"...but he said he could send me a box...Touche!

Ok, I went thru 3 Macbook Pro's and then settled for the MacBook...Is this one also a dud?

We really need to fight it, we are making Apple richer!

just because it isn't necessarily recognized by apple doesn't mean you can't send it in.... you can send in your computer anytime for anything, that doesn't mean it is covered by the hardware warranty or the app, apple will just charge you for the repair....
and it is true that apple will probably just call it a cosmetic issue and ignore it.... but that's why you need to call about it, so apple knows....
is this on the white ones, the black ones, or both?? i'm just curious..

Just on the white ones, it seems (I believe the black ones use a different material - although I haven't seen one first hand - and even if it were a problem on the black ones, I doubt you would notice it so much as against the white surface). A cynic might say that this is why you have to pay more for a black one. 🙂

PS. In case serial numbers might help spot a trend, mine begins 4H62.

I don't mean to insult anyone my my post, and I am sorry that people take offense to it. With that being said...

The Ti Book and the last G4 were somewhat metal cases. So the grime didn't linger long, and could be washed off. I do know that when my ex-wife used either the Pismo or Ti Book, she would leave marks all over the computer. (She had a condition that made her hands sweat a lot, more than normal.) I myself remember the Pismo getting dirty on the palm rest areas. But, I wiped it off, and went on. I did almost weekly cleanings on her computer, because it would get disgusting.

Since these laptops get so hot, your hands much sweat. (I tend to use an external Keyboard) I assume that the case material is such that it will lock in the grime, and no amount of cleaning will free it.

I would tent to think that there is a way to clean the computers. Just throwing this out, but what cleaners have people tried? Bleach is out of the question, too harsh of a chemical. I mentioned the Clorox Wipes. Someone else mentioned those iKlean wipes, or whatever they are. I guess the consensus is that there is no solution for cleaning the laptops at this time. I'm sure someone will come up with a solution.

Is this really something that Apple could have forecasted? Can Apple be held liable for how dirty the computer gets while using it? Does Apple have a quality tester who's sole job is to sweat all over the computer? If they did, that's just gross...

Again, I am sorry if it offended anyone when I said to clean your hands. But it's been a known fact that the keyboard is the dirtiest think on any desk. It was the most simple solution one could offer.

Pismo G3 / Ti G4 1k / 2 xServe G5 / 2 xServe G4/RAID Mac OS X (10.4.6)

Just came back from the Apple Store in Soho...

All the white macbooks are showing discoloration on the trackpad button and palmrests, though I'm not sure if it's the same as people are describing here. The ones at the Apple Store were just darkish looking, more gray than yellow.

Looked pretty disgusting really.

I've had a MacBook since release day and have no discoloration. I have 4 co-workers that have none as well.

Beta-carotene is secreted through sebacous glands and sweat. Also, a certain percentage of the popluation has non-clear sweat...10%, I believe.

I'll definitely be keeping an eye on it. My wife spends several hours a day on it.

MacBook Mac OS X (10.4.6)

Users experience this problem just needs to use a Mr Clean's Magic Eraser - It will clean it off very easily.

There is no need to make such a fuss I hate it when people just complain about the problem instead of looking for a solution.

Users experience this problem just needs to use a Mr
Clean's Magic Eraser - It will clean it off very
easily.

There is no need to make such a fuss I hate it when
people just complain about the problem instead of
looking for a solution.

It seems many users have tried various cleaners and been unable to remove the stains. Also, have you considered the availability of Mr. Clean in other parts of the world - there are people on this forum who are not in the U.S....

In any case, I think most people 'complaining' here are here to find solutions and share them if they do find them. It's not making fuss about nothing!

I believe that if you had read all of the posts, you would have found that lots of people have already tried various cleaning solutions, including the magic eraser you suggest. This used to work on the iBooks, apparently, but the MacBook's inner surface is made of a different material and the ugly yellow stains seem unremovable. If I could clean it easily, there would be no problem. But I don't see that bemoaning the fact that a three week-old, £1,000 piece of hardware is already becoming discoloured is "making a fuss" nor an unreasonable complaint. And I believe that people are posting here because they are looking for a solution - that is, after all, what these forums are for.

Matt F. - I don't think there's anything offensive about suggesting that we sweat - don't we all? 🙂 Nonetheless, if I had yellow sweat, wouldn't that have been just as big a problem on my white iBook, which two years on is still a lovely white? And in fact, I indeed do think that this is the sort of thing Apple should have tested for prior to release - if you are going to sell a glossy white machine and pride yourself on the stylishness of your products, I would think that this sort of testing is important. ("Hi, I'm a Mac." "And I'm a PC. Have you got jaundice or are those just liver spots?")

It doesn't seem to be dirt from my "dirty hands" -- the computer doesn't even get hot down there. No sweat from my hands when I'm using the computer. I'd assume you'd want to own one before making assumptions on how hot it gets.

My serial number starts with 4H62, as well.

Just came back from the Apple Store in Soho...

All the white macbooks are showing discoloration on
the trackpad button and palmrests, though I'm not
sure if it's the same as people are describing here.
The ones at the Apple Store were just darkish
looking, more gray than yellow.

Looked pretty disgusting really.

After taking a look at the pics on the blogs mentioned above and looking at it with natural light, I must say that my stains are more grayish than yellow, although there is a slight yellowish hue to it, but very faint. Its definitely more darkish.

This is one reason why I bought a black MacBook because I knew the white glossy plastic case wouldnt hold up and that is why I wash my ahnds before every use. Besides, that one picture looks as if either a crappy photoshop job or someone very irresponsible slapped a chunk of lasagna onto it and rubbed it all over... plain and simple...

Ive had my MacBook for nearly 3 weeks now and have ha no problems with mooing noises or the yellow colour problem.

Just thought id let you no.