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2011 iMac graphics issues

sparkie1984

sparkie1984

macrumors 68030
Original poster
Dec 20, 2009
2,909
2,227
a small village near London
Hi all I'm having issues with my 2011 iMac see below:

Does anyone think this may be related to the gpu recall? From talking online with apple they said to book a genius appointment to get it repaired but I'm not sure whether it'll be costing me (if it's worth it) failing that it may be the excuse I need to upgrade to a retina iMac
 

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sparkie1984 said:
Hi all I'm having issues with my 2011 iMac see below:

Does anyone think this may be related to the gpu recall?
Click to expand...

Looks entirely like the GPU problem the recall covers, so you should get it repaired free of charge.

Don't expect them to preserve the data, even though that shouldn't be affected.
 
AppleMark said:
It is a known issue on the 2011 iMac.

Luckily for you, Apple currently have a recall on the video cards you probably have.

https://support.apple.com/en-us/HT203787

We had one of our 2011 iMac's repaired for free displaying the same issues just recently using this recall.
Click to expand...

excellent, is the iMac gone for long? (I'm not sure what the extent of the repair is) presumably they swap out the gpu?

yeah I have the AMD Radeon HD 6970M 2048 MB
 
sparkie1984 said:
Fingers crossed they do! Will hope for a happy genius tomorrow
Click to expand...

On my MBP (exactly the same issue) they replaced the logic board (and even the battery even though that had absolutely nothing to do with it... Strange). No data lost because nothing else was replaced. On the iMac, they can replace the GPU without replacing the logic board. I find it unlikely you'll lose data, but hey, they might follow a standard procedure involving an OS reinstall.
When I got my MBP replaced, I walked in, said "Radeongate, here's a printed version of your repair program document, replace the logic board please". And they were just like... "You know your ****, mate. Will do." And I got it back in 5 days.

Note: I live in Denmark, and didn't go trough an Apple Store, but an Apple Premium reseller and Service Provider.
 
sparkie1984 said:
excellent, is the iMac gone for long? (I'm not sure what the extent of the repair is) presumably they swap out the gpu?

yeah I have the AMD Radeon HD 6970M 2048 MB
Click to expand...

They did a week turn around on our machine. Buy they also had to replace the LCD display (for free also), as there was burn-in at the top corners which I assume was caused by the faulty graphics card, as the machine was out of warranty.

So could be quicker, if it is just a card swap.

As it seems that you are in London also[?], I always request to use AMSYS. I have used them a few times before with AppleCare repairs on our machines and are great. I do not always trust the Apple store engineers as I feel that they take things too personally and do not always look as objectively at an issue that an independent approved repairer would.

Just my experience of course…

Our display, was doing what yours is doing intermittently and would resolve on a restart [or 2], but always go wrong a day or 2 later.

So when I ran the AHT (Apple Hardware Test), it did not pick up any issues on the first 2 runs. So it is important that you have a photo of it going bad, as they charge £60 for a diagnostic if the machine returns with a pass.

I hope this is helpful for you and you get it resolved.
 
AppleMark said:
They did a week turn around on our machine. Buy they also had to replace the LCD display (for free also), as there was burn-in at the top corners which I assume was caused by the faulty graphics card, as the machine was out of warranty.

So could be quicker, if it is just a card swap.

As it seems that you are in London also[?], I always request to use AMSYS. I have used them a few times before with AppleCare repairs on our machines and are great. I do not always trust the Apple store engineers as I feel that they take things too personally and do not always look as objectively at an issue that an independent approved repairer would.

Just my experience of course…

Our display, was doing what yours is doing intermittently and would resolve on a restart [or 2], but always go wrong a day or 2 later.

So when I ran the AHT (Apple Hardware Test), it did not pick up any issues on the first 2 runs. So it is important that you have a photo of it going bad, as they charge £60 for a diagnostic if the machine returns with a pass.

I hope this is helpful for you and you get it resolved.
Click to expand...



very helpful thanks, I am not actually in london but I just put that because no one knows the little place I live.

I have several pictures of a distorted screen and the red lines.

Was a bonus getting a new screen out of it for you I guess?

I will update the thread once I have been, do I need to take keyboard etc?
 
sparkie1984 said:
very helpful thanks, I am not actually in london but I just put that because no one knows the little place I live.

I have several pictures of a distorted screen and the red lines.

Was a bonus getting a new screen out of it for you I guess?

I will update the thread once I have been, do I need to take keyboard etc?
Click to expand...

No need to take (or give) anything, other than the iMac.

I had them collect and return, but I can be persuasive when I know my rights.

My argument, it that it is a recall and so a known manufacturing fault covered under the 6 year EU warranty. I threatened to return the machine to the store I bought it from (John Lewis) and get them to sort it out. This was closer and easier for me to get to than an Apple Store.

Basically, I refused to incur any cost's for travel and time due an issue caused by an admitted manufacturing fault and they have to agree when you push hard enough.

They do ask for your login details, so I always do a clean install and write over the HD, as it is a business machine with client info.

So it goes without saying that you should back-up all data at least.

I would personally call Apple to get the go ahead, before you take it in though, to get a case number to avoid all the dumb questions you will get asked in the Apple store...
 
thats fine, I have clean installed everything on the SSD and am just transferring my bits from the 1tb HDD onto an external and will wipe that too, I have a lot of photos (family etc) and I am not saying they would but don't particularly like the idea of them all being on there whilst strangers work on it.

I just wish it had USB3 because its damn slow on USB 2!!

ok I will only take it in the box then, mainly because its raining and easier to carry.
 
Went through this with my 2011 iMac. Was taken back 5 times to Apple over a period of 21 months. The replaced power supply, logic board, graphics card, screen and more. Apple never did find the problem or did they ever get it fixed. Surprised me that they would put that much work into it. It was finally replaced with a late 2012 iMac that has never had an issue.

Hopefully you get a good genius and they replace the machine for you. Just take iMac in the box. You do not need the keyboard or anything else. They have keyboards and mouse for just this kind of situation.
 
Well just heard back from apple.

Apparently it's my display at fault and it's not covered by the gpu recall.

£500!!!!

No thanks I'll save it and put it towards a new one, just a shame as I wanted to sell the old one for some cash towards it
 
OP: quote the SoGA when dealing with Apple. My mid-2011 iMac 21.5" displayed a pink line (at the bottom of the screen in my case).

I took it into my authorised reseller here in Derby (KRCS) and that's what they told me, that the LCD had failed.

They quoted me a similar figure (from Apple) and when I said that it wasn't fit for purpose and should last much longer (especially as it cost me £999 brand new) and Apple agreed to replace it free of charge under the SoGA.
 
sparkie1984 said:
Yes apparently it is the display. I haven't seen it yet as I can't collect until Friday. My problem is intermittent.

I'm wondering if they are trying to get out of the repair
Click to expand...

Quite possibly, but then again with the figure you've been quoted I'd imagine they'd want that kind of money!

I seriously think it's worth your time quoting the SoGA.

I managed to resell my iMac earlier on in the year despite having the panel replaced.
 
Hi again.

so basically my iMac has sat unused on the floor since April as I never got round to going back due to work.

Fired it up yesterday and within minutes I had issues.

I have now plugged in a thunderbolt monitor and it replicates the issues on the external monitor, surely this can't be the display at fault?

I am going to book a genius appointment for a second opinion if they'll let me?

I have photo proof and a video of both monitors flickering like crazy.
 
I hate to play devils advocate here - but from the ones I've seen that doesn't look like a symptom of the GPU failure in the recall.

With the thunderbolt display, are the lines in the same place, same colour, and do they change as the on-screen content changes?
 
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