Software update or firmware update?
Did the firmware update fix the flickering AND the yellow tinge problem, that would be great ! But when you think about it, any kind of display corruption CAN be related to the firmware or graphics card..
Got a tip for us?
Let us know
Become a MacRumors Supporter for $50/year with no ads, ability to filter front page stories, and private forums.
27", 21.5" iMac Owners, test your screen for yellow tint issue here
- Thread starter tapplox
- Start date
- Sort by reaction score
Software update or firmware update?
Did the firmware update fix the flickering AND the yellow tinge problem, that would be great ! But when you think about it, any kind of display corruption CAN be related to the firmware or graphics card..
Firmware.
I think it's quite unlikely that the yellow is a GPU firmware issue. (as I just said in the other thread...) I have NEVER EVER heard of a color temperature gradient in a display being caused by a software problem or a firmware problem. Furthermore, were this the case, it'd also show up on external displays when hooked up to the iMac. ...which it does not. ...and it would NOT show up on the iMac when hooked up AS a display to another computer. ...which it does. (/selfquote)
I installed the update, now my display flutters a little bit when the brightness is low. It never flickered in the first place.
Connecting to an external display would only display the issue if it were GPU related, no? If it is firmware related then the issue would appear only on the iMac's screen or am I wrong ?
Either way though, according to you and also according to this article http://www.computerworld.com/s/article/9142576/Apple_firmware_update_aims_to_fix_iMac_flickering, the issues were not resolved for everyone. Bummer.
To the person who posted they received a week 40 and it was perfect, mine was too at first (well to me anyway). My husband thought it had a pink tinge to the screen (at the top). It was only after a few hours of use that I noticed the yellow tinge (which was not as bad as some of the others posted). The final straw for me was the 18 dead pixels on the iSight.
My sister had a week 48, which had the yellow tinge and seven dead pixels on the iSight. The store where she bought hers from was reluctant to accept it as a return (told her to contact Apple), so I told her to return it under the 14 day change of mind policy (I was on the phone to her as she did this as she was thinking she was going to be stuck with it). The store I returned mine to accepted it back no problems (both stores are the same, just in different states in Australia).
EDIT: I forgot to add that when I plugged an external monitor in (Samsung 225BW), there was no yellow tinge, which made me believe it was hardware related?
My sister had a week 48, which had the yellow tinge and seven dead pixels on the iSight. The store where she bought hers from was reluctant to accept it as a return (told her to contact Apple), so I told her to return it under the 14 day change of mind policy (I was on the phone to her as she did this as she was thinking she was going to be stuck with it). The store I returned mine to accepted it back no problems (both stores are the same, just in different states in Australia).
EDIT: I forgot to add that when I plugged an external monitor in (Samsung 225BW), there was no yellow tinge, which made me believe it was hardware related?
That is very interesting. I have updated the first post to remind people to get their updates. Though it is advisable that everyone confirm that the yellowing is present before applying the update, so they can check for differences. If I remember correctly the earlier iMac models also have a different build of Snow Leopard than the ones they are shipping now. Maybe they figured out something that was in week 40/41 iMacs.
This is off topic but does anyone know if the flickering occurs only exclusively to the 27" iMacs (and not the 21.5"?). The color temperature occurs in both display models.
I'm sorry, I wasn't aware of the most recent update which I just installed. (I edited my original post). Ive got my shipping stickers and RMA # so Ill give the update a day or 2, hopefully it WILL fix the flickering problem. So far, so good.
Can't help but feel sorry for all those who canceled orders and will now be without an iMac for Christmas, just because of what they read here.
Those who told others "Cancel your order" or "wait for Rev. B" or "get your money back" will probably be happily using their iMacs over Christmas after receiving their gift of a firmware update, while the recipients of their advice look forlornly at the feeble gift of a small bottle of after-shave from Auntie Rose and Uncle Sid.
Those who told others "Cancel your order" or "wait for Rev. B" or "get your money back" will probably be happily using their iMacs over Christmas after receiving their gift of a firmware update, while the recipients of their advice look forlornly at the feeble gift of a small bottle of after-shave from Auntie Rose and Uncle Sid.
There are already reports of folks whose computers have continued to flicker despite the firmware update. Given the fact that no one knew if/when a fix was coming, and considering that Apple themselves were replacing flickering computers, I think recommending a replacement or waiting for Rev. B was sage advice.
I've said it before and I'll say it again...just because you're not having problems with your iMac doesn't mean that the rest of us are imagining things. Get some perspective and stop being such a rabid fanboy.
Well guys I have had the new firmware downloaded for about 5hrs now with the computer on since then. Just about 30 min ago I started seeing the yellow tinge come back. So as I thought, it was just a placebo effect in the first place after I initially downloaded the firmware. The yellowness is still there. Sorry guys if I gave any of you a false hope. I really thought for a moment the yellow tinge was gone. Well, here's to hoping that the i7 I'm expecting this week turns out to be in perfect condition.
At least we know that it has something to do with resetting parts of the firmware. It has temporally fixed the issue (for you at least) for an hour. Obviously, a firmware fix would have been the best possible solution to the problem. There might still be hope.
How do you know it was a placebo effect in the first place (not seeing the tinge) and not a placebo effect in the second place (seeing the tinge)?
I had two new 27" iMacs previously but they had to be returned because I could not use it for work (because of this color problem). Trust me, I really really really wanted to keep them.
Because:
1) I can have another monitor going right next to it and not have the issue
2) It isn't the whole screen but rather sections of the screen that are affected and are obvious to anyone who has the issue
3) And how do you know that you had a noisy hard drive? Maybe it is just the loose bolts in your head banging around and your computer was fine?
I've just returned by week 47 27" iMac due to problems with the screen. I'm not one of these screen-pedants that crawl out and nitpick every screen they ever see, but there was a clear problem with the iMac screen.
There was undoubted yellowness to the bottom half of the screen but it was only really clear under test conditions. The thing that I couldn't put up with was amount of light leakage from each corner but most clearly from the bottom right, where the yellow tinge was also most strong. Any black screen showed up this really bright yellow light and it was extremely distracting.
As I say, I'm not super fussy and I tried to convince myself that I could live with it but it kept distracting and annoying me and that's not what I'm looking for in a £1300 computer. Especially as it sat next to my £200 monitor which managed to actually display a black screen, rather than a grey screen with bright corners. You can see the extent of this in the attached photo (of what is meant to be a black screen with a small white box in the middle).
I upgraded from a 24" iMac, the main reason for which was the supposedly better screen. So it's disappointing that so many of these are having problems. The shop tried to talk me into a swap rather than a refund but they wheeled out another week 47 and the chances are it would have exactly the same problem.
I wanted the iMac for the Xmas holidays but am going to wait until the new batch in a couple of weeks.
There was undoubted yellowness to the bottom half of the screen but it was only really clear under test conditions. The thing that I couldn't put up with was amount of light leakage from each corner but most clearly from the bottom right, where the yellow tinge was also most strong. Any black screen showed up this really bright yellow light and it was extremely distracting.
As I say, I'm not super fussy and I tried to convince myself that I could live with it but it kept distracting and annoying me and that's not what I'm looking for in a £1300 computer. Especially as it sat next to my £200 monitor which managed to actually display a black screen, rather than a grey screen with bright corners. You can see the extent of this in the attached photo (of what is meant to be a black screen with a small white box in the middle).
I upgraded from a 24" iMac, the main reason for which was the supposedly better screen. So it's disappointing that so many of these are having problems. The shop tried to talk me into a swap rather than a refund but they wheeled out another week 47 and the chances are it would have exactly the same problem.
I wanted the iMac for the Xmas holidays but am going to wait until the new batch in a couple of weeks.
It looks like the backlight bleed I have on my current Samsung screen, that's more than just a yellow tinge indeed ! I would not accept a screen like this.
Heh, my glasses make the yellow tinge worse then it really is. Maybe it is due to them being transition glasses and the chemical in the glass makes white and blues appear more yellowish then they really are. If I take them off the white portions of MR is whiter and the blue, bluer.
It is still there, but it is far more minor then I thought it was.
It is still there, but it is far more minor then I thought it was.
Why then would certain sections of the screen be more affected than others? If it was the glass, the whole "glass/screen" would be affected to the same degree instead of randomly appearing in blotches.
When I have my glasses on, yes it does affect the whole screen. It makes the area where the yellow tinge though more pronounced then when I have my glasses off. Again I have no explanation as to why, but when I take my glasses off, I can't notice the yellow tinge as much as I can with them on.
Just wanted to add to this discussion my experience with my 21.5 inch and what I was told by Apple Care rep today.
Have had my 21.5" (week 44) 3.06 iMac for just over a week now. Out of the box I was overwhelmed by my new upgrade (old Mac iBook G4 13".) Once I got a few full days of fast applications and movies behind me I was able to start seriously evaluating my iMac. I first noticed a soft high pitch whistle coming from the screen--it changed when I adjusted the brightness. If not listening to music or watching a movie it is very annoying. It was searching the web to see if others are having noise problems (they are) when I became aware of the yellow screen issue. Though I know what I see, I asked my wife if she thought the color was uniform throughout. Without much thought she said the lower half looked yellowish.
I bought my Mac from Mac Connection so I called them this morning. After consulting with a supervisor the rep told me that both the noise and the yellowish lower half were "how they are" and to call Apple Care to confirm this and to check out other Macs in stores. If this is "how they are" than I am crushed!! I have waited over almost two years for new hardware and software to come out at nearly the same to time to buy this machine.
Anyway i called Apple Care and the rep told me that BOTH the brightness adjustment noise and the yellowing (faded pixels as they call it) are being tracked under an "emerging issues" category and that "1 out of 3500 iMacs are affected". I was also told that I should in fact be able to have a Mac free of both of these issues. With my call tracking numbers in hand I called back to Mac Connection. The rep accepted Apple Care's word and a replacement is on the way.
I am really sad about all this and if the replacement has the same issues I will just cancel my order. The noise and the color are real and not there by a power of suggestion as one time waster keeps trying to saying. Like others, I feel I pay a premium for Apple and expect a fabulous machine. I also think Apple feels they sale only fabulous machines and expects a discerning customer. I cannot spend any kind of money for a Mac and not have my expectations meet.
Have had my 21.5" (week 44) 3.06 iMac for just over a week now. Out of the box I was overwhelmed by my new upgrade (old Mac iBook G4 13".) Once I got a few full days of fast applications and movies behind me I was able to start seriously evaluating my iMac. I first noticed a soft high pitch whistle coming from the screen--it changed when I adjusted the brightness. If not listening to music or watching a movie it is very annoying. It was searching the web to see if others are having noise problems (they are) when I became aware of the yellow screen issue. Though I know what I see, I asked my wife if she thought the color was uniform throughout. Without much thought she said the lower half looked yellowish.
I bought my Mac from Mac Connection so I called them this morning. After consulting with a supervisor the rep told me that both the noise and the yellowish lower half were "how they are" and to call Apple Care to confirm this and to check out other Macs in stores. If this is "how they are" than I am crushed!! I have waited over almost two years for new hardware and software to come out at nearly the same to time to buy this machine.
Anyway i called Apple Care and the rep told me that BOTH the brightness adjustment noise and the yellowing (faded pixels as they call it) are being tracked under an "emerging issues" category and that "1 out of 3500 iMacs are affected". I was also told that I should in fact be able to have a Mac free of both of these issues. With my call tracking numbers in hand I called back to Mac Connection. The rep accepted Apple Care's word and a replacement is on the way.
I am really sad about all this and if the replacement has the same issues I will just cancel my order. The noise and the color are real and not there by a power of suggestion as one time waster keeps trying to saying. Like others, I feel I pay a premium for Apple and expect a fabulous machine. I also think Apple feels they sale only fabulous machines and expects a discerning customer. I cannot spend any kind of money for a Mac and not have my expectations meet.
Actually, I think quagmire's is an interesting observation because I think reflected light and the effects of the massive glass could well have something to do with what some people are seeing. Does Apple use art gallery grade glass that avoids even the most subtle color imbalance? I doubt it. For all we know, some of the glass used might have a small but perceptible patchy cast that is causing all the problems. Maybe there's an inconsistency in something like the factory polishing process or suchlike.
Has anyone looked to see if the problems persist when the glass is removed?