Colored vertical lines on PB 17" display

There is a lot of documentation on various websites and discussion boards about 17" Powerbooks with displays that break down after about 15 months of use.

I am unfortunate enough to own a 17" powerbook assembled in April 2005 in China - serial number beginning with W8. I believe this is the same time-period and factory location where hundreds (if not thousands) of identical machines were assembled that are now having the same colored-lines-in-the-display defect as my machine.

All these machines assembled at the same time, at the same place, using the same batch of LCD screens, are experiencing the same defect after the same amount of use.
Something stinks, and it smells like a manufacturing problem to me.

Does anyone know if Apple has man'd up and acknowledged the problem yet?





17" Powerbook G4 1.67 Mac OS X (10.4.9)

Posted on May 21, 2007 5:36 PM

Reply
414 replies

Dec 6, 2007 5:05 AM in response to jimmybcool

I just got a line down the center of my display today. I read in this topic that it could be caused by heat. I was using my laptop on my lap (hey what a concept!) and I had no line when i closed it. It was fairly hot though. I walked it to my room, opened it up. Lo and behold a 1 pixel vertical line is right through it. Effin great. Now i'm up losing sleep trying to find a remedy so i can work tomorrow. I submitted my computer to the "database" of messed up VL computers and I'm not about to spend more money on this laptop as it is expensive enough.........

http://corporatebikes.com/pbg4.jpg

Dec 6, 2007 5:07 AM in response to jimmybcool

Hi james, Hi all...

You are not the only one who think Apple doesn't take care of their costumers. There's nothing to do, as I can guess after lot of time spent in many genius bar at tokyo ( either if Tokyo is maybe the best place to be treated as costumer, as I felt, specially because I work with costumers) nobody knows the problem. Every time is the "first time I know about it" so genius people are not so genius , from my point of view, or they don't sat the truth.
I know many people NEED apple (designers, musicians, etc.) but for normal users and very experienced users linux seems to be a very good alternative, the only think is... yes of course, is free OS but you have to learn a lot and invest a lot of time until you have a working computer.

Of course who need a good computer NOW a mac is the easier way, but the consequences could be as everybody who has at least one of this "vertical lines of death" knows... I hope apple do something ... I hope they start doing something before they discover that IS A PROBLEM OF ALL COMPUTERS! not only the w85 shangai, march, and so on. bad luck for everybody of us.

We are very dissapointed in Apple.

pablo

Dec 14, 2007 8:39 PM in response to sportsman800

Apple *** are you doing about this? When are you going to do something about this? I paid a bit over
AU $6K for my 17" and thankfully my one line hasn't come back, it's about time you did something to rectify this fault. Your customer service and credibility is up sh%$ creek on this as it's painfully aware with 14 pages regarding this so far.

Pull your finger out Apple and respond in the manner that is appropriately expected of a company such as Apple. At least put up something on the website saying that this issue is being looked into.

(I expect this post to be deleted as I'm saying something against Apple)

Dec 23, 2007 5:42 AM in response to mike Savage

Hi everyone out there!
My girlfriend and I joined the VL club a few month ago...
Both powerbooks have a serial number beginning with W85 purchased in april 05.
We don't have an Apple care extension.
My girlfriend had her display replaced and I had to reclaim because it had not be done proprely even for the expensive cost!
I'm using now a second screen as I'm getting on my 20th vertical line which does hardly allow me to work.
As it is Christmas soon I'm expecting some white bearded red Apple to make a gift for all unfortunated VL club member!
Does anyone know if there is some move from above?
Happy Xmas!

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Colored vertical lines on PB 17" display

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