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I have an early 2015 MacBook with this issue. Does anyone know if it's covered? I talked to Apple and they want $530 to send it in. Obviously, it's not worth nearly that amount.
 
Firstly I wasn't making assumptions. Many people on this forum have stated that solvents have been the issue. Secondly don't speak to me that way as if you're scolding me. 🙄
You stated "Much of this issue comes from people using solvents to clean the screen" so this means you have inferred the issue is mainly related to "self-fixing" via using solvents and other chemicals. In effect accusing a majority with this issue of abuse of their own Apple hardware. You've indirectly inferred most of these issues as caused by the owners instead of the issue being from the manufacturer.
 
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I just made a baking soda paste and scoured off the horrible looking anti-reflective coating. Now the glass looks pristine. It takes a while but it works. Don't press too hard or use too much water. Be prepared for a thorough cleanup afterward.

I have a small stain in my screen but if it was big or covering a lot of areas like many people do, I would definitely do the baking soda method. They should put that information in the article.
 
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It's a great laptop. I just wish the bootup time didn't slow with every iteration of Macos. Big Sur is 10 seconds slower than older versions.
Oof, didn't know that. I've been holding up upgrading from catalina since I heard it was causing issues with the 2015 MacBook pro's. I paid $650 for this thing two summers ago, and if I can get it to last till 2022 I'll be stoked.
 
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I don't doubt there are some folks that caused the issue by using other things to clean the screen. But there are plenty of folks like myself that have followed Apple's own advice on using only water and a cloth and still experienced the issue on multiple devices. (Based on reading through quite a few posts on various forums over the years.) This isn't my fault or anyone else's that followed Apple's instructions on cleaning the screen. It's a manufacturing defect plain and simple.
Me too 100%. I never deviate from Apple's recommended solution and if it does not fix the issue I then get Apple to deal with it on hardware basis. So far no cost to me. People who take this into their own hands to "fix" the issue are doing themselves a disservice. It may not be convenient to take your system in and get the issue verified then confirmation the fix is at Apple's cost, however its better than nothing or home "fixes".
 
I used mouthwash and a microfibre cloth to remove the damaged coating on my macbook pro.

A shame that Apple wouldn't replace it or acknowledge the issue due to the age.
 
The article keeps saying 12-inch but I assume this covers 13" MacBook Pro's in the 2016/2017 range?
 
This happened to my 2012 MacBook Pro with Retina when Retina was first pushed into the Macs. About two years down the road. Never saw an option to get it fixed for free either.
side note: Same thing happened to the displays on my Sony a77. I don’t understand what’s faulty with this tech but it needs to change. The coating never lasts. Ever.
 
A reminder that Apple is still refusing to admit that yellow burn spots on 2017/2018 MBPs with Touchbar are the result of their design flaw.

It's universal and has happened in exactly the same way for thousands of people. You can find hundreds of posts on the internet about the exact same issue by searching "2017 mbp yellow burn spots".

We even know it happens only because of the temperature of the top of the body damaging the screen when you put the laptop in a backpack (a normal use case by any standard). Apple is still refusing to repair the laptops for free.

There's also a whole website about it which should be the first google search result...
 
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I don't touch the Mac screen or close the lip unless I have to. I use a hand feather duster to gently wipe the screen free of any lint or dust particles every few days. This process has helped to keep my Mac screens looking new for years.

I would be upset if I ran into the problem some here have.
 
I just made a baking soda paste and scoured off the horrible looking anti-reflective coating. Now the glass looks pristine. It takes a while but it works. Don't press too hard or use too much water. Be prepared for a thorough cleanup afterward.
This. I've now fixed quite a few of our school laptops that had this issue. How long it takes and what you have to use depends on how bad the anti-reflective coating is. If the coating is really bad, you can just just a few Clorox wipes and that will take it off. If it's still in reasonable good shape overall but bad enough in spots that you still want to remove it then I've had good luck with the baking soda paste method. It's kind of a PITA to get all the way to the edges of the screen, but in the end you can get a fantastic looking screen again in 30 minutes or less if you are careful. DO be very careful. I don't know exactly how much pressure it would take to break the screen, but you don't want to find out!
 
This is what my brand new MBA M1 Looks like! Having Apple replace it now.


IMG_7218 copy.jpg
 
They need to expand this to the later models too. Both of the 2018 MBAs that we have developed the issue and it seems to be fairly commonplace. I don't doubt that the 2020 M1 I just bought will eventually have it too.
I had it on my work issued 2013 rMBP and 2017 Macbook too. The former had the screen replaced in 2015 and had it happen again. I don't understand why Apple has had this issue for so long and can't figure out a way to keep it from happening.
*Edit to add as I noted in a reply below since first experiencing this issue with the 2013 rMBP I've only used a microfiber cleaning cloth with a little water (per Apple's own instructions) and have never used a keyboard cover. Despite that I've still had the issue on that same machine with the replacement screen and three others. So if you want to claim it's a result of people using a solvent to clean the screen I can assure you it still happens even with just water and a cloth.
Don’t touch your screen and don’t use any solution to clean your screen.

It’s a very weak coating on a screen that is not meant to be touched.

My 2017 and 2018 rMBP 15 are both fine.
 
I used once clorox wipes to clean the metal on my Mac, as advised from Apple, and tried to clean the display, I got instant Coating issues, the more I rub the more peeling on the Coating came off.
 
This is one of the biggest arguments for touchscreen macs, whatever coating they use on iOS devices doesn’t suffer from this issue. I’m guessing after this long they can’t fix the Mac coating or they’d have done it already.
 
One of my macbooks also got this problem. Almost exactly similar to the article photo. Not too much on the display area, but a lot of ugly mess in the black bezel area.

As it was out of warranty (and the free out-of-warranty repair-program was ended), I simply removed the coating from the whole screen altogether last year (I think all I used was a micro fiber cloth and some perseverance...). There are lots of youtube/tutorials for doing this. Ever since it looks pristine, so I recommend doing that. Only downside would be if you'd use it a lot in direct sunlight, which I don't. It can get a little bright sunlight in my office, but I mostly use external matte HiDPI monitors anyway.
 
It seems silly that there is a four year limit on what is obviously a poor design and not normal wear and tear. That seems to imply that four years is the maximum time you are allowed to keep a notebook. You should know that at the time of purchase. My 2015 MBP had the screen replaced, even though I was using the microfiber cloth and a slight water spray. I continue that on my current machines but clean the screens rarely in order to reduce wear and tear. I have never heard any announcement that there has been a fix to the manufacturing design. I did wonder why this does not happen to iPads with retina screens. You certainly are rubbing and wiping those touch screens daily.
 
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To anyone with severe staingate and rejected by Apple, the solution is to completely remove the entire antireflective coating with mouth wash, such as Listerine and other brands.

Use soft microfiber cloth and start from the edges. Don't push too hard, be patient and IT DOES WORK! I can personally verify it.
 
To anyone with severe staingate and rejected by Apple, the solution is to completely remove the entire antireflective coating with mouth wash, such as Listerine and other brands.

Use soft microfiber cloth and start from the edges. Don't push too hard, be patient and IT DOES WORK! I can personally verify it.
It's a solution, not a particularly great one though as the screens are really quite reflective. I have a 2015 MBP with removed coating and I'm waiting on one of the matte anti-glare screen protectors you can find on Amazon to see whether I can turn it into a matte screen instead.
 
Oof, didn't know that. I've been holding up upgrading from catalina since I heard it was causing issues with the 2015 MacBook pro's. I paid $650 for this thing two summers ago, and if I can get it to last till 2022 I'll be stoked.
I paid the same. Was used on ebay with freshly replaced top half by Apple to fix screen. I wish I hadn't upgraded to Catalina.
 
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I have been watching how I store the laptops, making sure that there is not any pressure against the laptops. Cleaning has never been the issue as I use a microfiber cloth and water to clean the screens.
Nice. I keep a very thin microfiber towel on the keyboard-covers all keys-when I close and store the laptop. Been 2 years on a new screen and I have no marks so far.
 
I have a 15 inch 2015 Macbook Pro that is starting to have the same problems. I contacted Apple yesterday and they said they had no repair program for this issue. In my opinion, having a laptop screen issue like this is a MAJOR flaw, and they need to address it and own it. I did try the baking soda yesterday on a little bit and did not see much of a difference. Someone also on youtube did a live demo with listerine and it got rid of it. Have not gotten that gutsy yet. Any info you all have, I would really appreciate it.
 
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