Q: Colored vertical lines on PB 17" display

Hi,
I live in Belgium and my screen has been deteriorating for over a year now. It now shows over 200 dead pixel-lines.

My serial: W85***RJ3

The repair estimate was 2 x €1000 for screen and motherboard. Warranty: none

So I decided to wait for the new 17" to arrive.... still waiting and now it is becoming embarrassing; not for me but for Apple, as I keep using it during conferences & presentations and have to explain the problem again, and again, and again...

On our iBook G4 we recently lost our complete mailbox and on the 17" I had lost my complete iTunes library after an upgrade... but a friend retrieved it, luckily.

Apple, please act responsibly; 17"owners are your top-notch clients, please treat us with respect.

I would have replaced my Nokia communicator by an iPhone a long time ago if this problem had been solved.

<Edited by Moderator>

Hello there! I just bought this model of Mac off of eBay, and got a great deal on it. Unfortunately, the seller described in the description that it does have the vertical line problem. I hadn't known about this before, and quickly read up on it by google searching. You are the first, if not only person who has a happy story! Thanks!

<Edited by Moderator>

Add me old powerbook to the list W85. 17 lines and counting. It was handed down to my little brother and I thought he had done something until I checked here. These discussions saved a little boys life. I hope apple does the right thing. My family has owned Macs since 1984.

Hi, I'm new to these forums, (not sure where/what need to include)

Anyway, I just got the same problem and was panicking after Apple in Australia told me (wrongly) my Mac was out of warranty and also to expect a very, very expensive repair as they NEVER heard of this problem, even thought they have access to Apple's database world wide. - huh ?!

Here in Brisbane, there's not Apple Store to just walk in with my Mac. (After many difficulties with Apple Australia on the phone, I even considered flying to Sydney to go to the Apple store there, imagine the costs).

After endless hours fighting with Apple Care Australia to cover my repair, I found here: http://support.apple.com/kb/TS2377 that even my Mac was
supposedly out of warranty (not) Apple does cover this repair for FREE, even if your Mac is out of warranty but is within 2 years of purchase. - Apple Care Australia denies that and tries to make excuses, saying my issue is different (which is not) so, I found myself calling Apple Care USA, where I was assured of this FREE repair for my issue, even if my warranty was up!

As it happens Apple Australia was reading a serial no. of my 17" PowerBook instead of my 17" MacBook Pro, how annoying!! So, for my relief, my Mac was indeed under warranty and (after many tests over the phone, it was ruled out the video card issue etc.) Apple replaced the LCD screen within 2 days!

I asked, just to be sure, what the problem was and I was told this:
"...it's not the nVidia chips sets or mother board, or graphics card, otherwise your screen would be all black and/or you would not have video going on."
"...it's simply a faulty LCD screen ONLY. - Many screens (a particular batch) have shown with the same or similar problem"

I hope, this helps many like me, who woke up one morning panicking and could not find help easily even from Apple.

Cheers,
Ric

P.S.
It was a straight forward screen swap, no need for any date/proof of purchase or anything. No need to backup any data from my hard drive either.
And I didn't have to take my Mac into any store, as there isn't one here anyway. The report was done over the phone and they ruled out many possibilities.
(Thank goodness for that, as I'm still recovering from a broken foot made in August '08 and cannot move around easily.)

Add me to the list. My PBG4 17" was purchased in April 2005 and has a W85 serial number. A few days ago, a red vertical line appeared, 1 pixel-width, completely from the top edge of the screen to the bottom edge, directly above the F10 key. As someone else had noted, the line does fade/disappear in the areas against a white background. I bought the 1-year Apple Care, then extended it for 2 more years, but that expired a year ago. Looking for answers. Will try the solution suggested by another Mac user on page 23 of this thread, regarding "the power cable between the inverter and the Motherboard...Well there was no voltage out of the inverter and when I actually ohmed out the cable between the inverter and the motherboard I found a wire that had been broken. It was still in one piece but the wire had broken inside its insulation. It is the grey outside wire, one of four in the cable."

Message was edited by: writeknight

UGH.... I did a recount today... 73 lines. Has my PowerBook made a new record??

Does anyone know by chance if the fault lies with the LCD itself, or the LCD data connector? I'll gladly try to replace them myself at this point. Can get the parts cheap off eBay - given one finds the compatible parts.

hahaha that's nothing!!
I got over 200 lines.....I stopped counting a long time ago.

I'm in Ecuador right now, and haven't been able to contact Apple to see if they'll do anything for me. I sure hope they will though, I don't have money to pay for a new screen, much less a new comp....

Anybody got any word on any other possible solutions? There's still a lot of ppl who haven't gotten this problem resolved.

Mine is doing the same thing. Started with one line a couple of weeks ago and now there are two more. Will call customer service tomorrow if they're open.

well, I have to chime in here, too.

Started today and I am really worried about what I found online so far. Also here, bought in 2005, serial number starts with W85.

When other models overheated, Apple did not have a problem with calling those faulty laptops back. I wonder what triggered it and how much time it took from recognizing the problem until tehy actually made the public recall.

Will start looking at the possibilities since I am not willing willing to spend hundreds of Euros on this.

While this may not be for the faint-of-heart, this is what we did:
1. Bought a new display on eBay for $100.
2. Took entire laptop apart and replaced it ourselves.
3. Problem solved.

…of course, step #2 takes several hours if you’re experienced, probably a day if not :-P

I did something similar, I bought a brand new LCD and pulled my display apart (NOT for the faint of heart, the clips that hold it together are infuriating) put the new LCD in and it works perfectly, this is after repeatedly being told by Apple and Apple stores that it was the logic board.

I am grateful to find this discussion. Unfortunately, I'm experiencing the same problem with my PowerBook G4 17", purchased in 2005 and the serial number starts with W85.

I didn't experience a problem until about two weeks ago when a light blue vertical line suddenly appeared. Since then, two more lines have appeared, one is pink and the other white. I will be making a claim.

Thanks to everyone who has supplied such good information. I hate the problem, but feel better armed to do battle...in a calm way, of course.

same issue here with my 17" powerbook ( w85 serial )

i was living happily(!) with more than 200 lines on my screen since last night, now there's a big white

block appeared and covering half of the screen. not even able the to see the desktop now.

what makes me confused is if that dodgy screen is related with the lcd or the logic board?

i don't want to spend money for lcd replacement if it's still going to remain afterwards.

Just got a call today from a client who has what I suspect is a W85, since I got it for her in June 2005...
Guess we'll have to politely ask Apple to fix it...

Anyone else try the removing the plastic part that holds down the LCD backlight power cable? It was suggested way back in this thread as a possible cure...

Same problem, PowerBook G4 17", serial number W85XXXXXRJ3

A single vertical white line has appeared on the right hand side of the screen, running from the top to bottom of the screen.

I'm not happy - it was the top of the range PowerBook when I purchased it and for that kind of money I expect a machine that will last.

All my other Macs, bought over the years, starting with a Power Mac 7500, have been quality machines.