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Dead pixel :(

B

bentley

macrumors 6502
Original poster
Mar 20, 2005
252
1
I've had my 12" Powerbook for nearly a year and I've got Applecare on it.

My screen after a few months started to go blotchy around the centre, the affected areas were slightly lighter areas around a centimetre in diameter.
Apple were more than happy to replace the panel at the same time as my hard drive failed. :rolleyes:


Anyway, got my Powerbook back really quickly and was really impressed with the service. My only problem now is the new panel has one dead pixel, glaring at me right in the face. Really distracting on dark backgrounds.

I'd rather have had the slightly blotchy panel than this.

I take it Applecare won't cover 1 dead pixel? :confused: :(
 
Probably not. If it's not a black pixel and is instead stuck on one color then in that case it's called a stuck pixel. Some people have success gently "massaging" the pixel out, others have had success playing a video file called pixelmurder.mp4 underneath the pixel and leaving it playing overnight. (Someone here posted a link to it, but I forgot who/where.)
 
Try this...

Nah, I think you need something like ten dead pixels before Apple'll do anything about it. Well, maybe you could get away with five if you really bitched them out.

My PowerBook came with a dead pixel on the middle right-hand side of the screen. I was very disappointed. Feeling a sense of loss, I went on many mindless wanderings through the far and wide regions of the Internet, and I discovered a possible solution.

[enter Barry White]
See, you gotta express your feelings to your PowerBook. It has a mind of its own and a personality like no other. You've gotta treat it like a friend, not a tool. If your PowerBook has a dead pixel, it's just a cry for attention! You gotta massage that dead pixel, gently but firmly, and nurse it back to health. Make it feel loved, and never abuse it.
[fade Barry White]

All jokes aside, just use the tip of your index finger (not the nail) and apply a small pressure to the affected pixel and its surrounding region. Keep at it until you see some positive change (even a flicker is good), and then be patient some more. For the first few months after I got my PowerBook, the dead pixel would pop up every now and then, only for me to massage it away. Since last December, the pixel hasn't reappeared. Hopefully this will work for you too.
 
oh man....

bentley said:
how long should I be rubbing for?
Click to expand...

:rolleyes: that is pure gold... especially if taken out slightly out of context. :rolleyes:

you poor bastard. i got my G3/333PB six years ago.
it's had a serious workout in that time and still, not one dead pixel! :)


i say bitch, whinge and moan, LOUDLY in the Apple store you bought it and DEMAND an new screen, you are the CONSUMER, who SWITCHED and may well SWITCH BACK if such appleing (oops, i meant appalling) service is not rectified.

cheers
sambo.
 
If Apple replaced every screen with one dead pixel, they'd be broke by now :p Sorry to hear about that, but I've got a green dead pixel sitting on the dock on my iMac. Grrr...
 
Diatribe said:
Dunno if this actually works, since I don't have a dead pixel but leave this on over night with loop in Quicktime in the area the dead pixel is at.

http://itasor.com/pixelmurder.MP4

Courtesy of Iatsor. Let me know if this actually works, he says about 75% of the time it does.
Click to expand...

???
clicked the link and got a garbled mess, page after page of this...
Code: 
¸Ûoãm¿?¶þ6ÛøÛoãm¿?¶þ6ÛøÛoãm¿?¶þ6ÛøÛoãm¿?¶þ6ÛøÛoãm¿?¶þ6ÛøÛoãm¿?¶þ6ÛøÛoãm¿?¶þ6ÛøÛoãm¿?¶þ6ÛøÛoãm¿?¶þ6ÛøÛoãm¿?¶þ6ÛøÛoãm¿?¶þ6ÛøÛoãm¿?¶þ6ÛøÛoãm¿?¶þ6ÛøÛoãm¿?¶þ6ÛøÛoãm¿?¶þ6ÛøÛoãm¿?¶þ6ÛøÛoãm¿?¶þ6ÛøÛoãm¿?¶þ6ÛøÛoãm¿?¶þ6ÛøÛoãm¿?¶þ6ÛøÛoãm¿?¶þ6ÛøÛoãm¿?¶þ6ÛøÛoãm¿?¶þ6ÛøÛoãm¿?¶þ6ÛøÛoãm¿?¶þ6ÛøÛoãm¿?¶þ6ÛøÛoãm¿?¶þ6ÛøÛoãm¿?¶þ6ÛøÛoãm¿?¶þ6ÛøÛoãm¿?¶þ6ÛøÛoãm¿?¶þ6ÛøÛoãm¿?¶þ6ÛøÛoãm¿?¶þ6ÛøÛoãm¿?¶þ6ÛøÛoãm¿?¶þ6ÛøÛoãm¿?¶þ6ÛøÛoãm¿?¶þ6ÛøÛoãm¿?¶þ6ÛøÛoãm¿?¶þ6ÛøÛoãm¿?¶þ6ÛøÛoãm¿?¶þ6ÛøÛoãm¿?¶þ6ÛøÛoãm¿?¶þ6ÛøÛoãm¿?¶þ6ÛøÛoãm¿?¶þ6ÛøÛoãm¿?¶þ6ÛøÛoãm¿?¶þ6ÛøÛoãm¿?¶þ6ÛøÛoãm¿?¶þ6ÛøÛoãm¿?¶þ6ÛøÛoãm¿?¶þ6ÛøÛoãm¿?¶þ6ÛøÛoãm¿?¶þ6ÛøÛoãm¿?¶þ6ÛøÛoãm¿?¶þ6ÛøÛoãm¿?¶þ6ÛøÛoãm¿?¶þ6ÛøÛoãm¿?¶þ6ÛøÛoãm¿?¶þ6ÛøÛoãm¿?¶þ6ÛøÛoãm¿?¶þ6ÛøÛoãm¿?¶þ6ÛøÛoãm¿?¶þ6ÛøÛoãm¿?¶þ6ÛøÛoãm¿?¶ý!I?#?¶XÁ#


Woof, Woof - Dawg
pawprint.gif
 
My understanding from other threads is that it takes 4 together to get replaced, but I've never tested that theory. I have one on my iMac but hardly ever notice anymore.

Woof, Woof - Dawg
pawprint.gif
 
Diatribe said:
Dunno if this actually works, since I don't have a dead pixel but leave this on over night with loop in Quicktime in the area the dead pixel is at.

http://itasor.com/pixelmurder.MP4

Courtesy of Iatsor. Let me know if this actually works, he says about 75% of the time it does.
Click to expand...

Little advice. Don't stare at that video. It canmake you feel dizzy :)
Yep, massaging and pixelmurder.MP4 worked out quite good for a lot of folks.
 
MacDawg said:
???
clicked the link and got a garbled mess, page after page of this...
Code: 
¸Ûoãm¿?¶þ6ÛøÛoãm¿?¶þ6ÛøÛoãm¿?¶þ6ÛøÛoãm¿?¶þ6ÛøÛoãm¿?¶þ6ÛøÛoãm¿?¶þ6ÛøÛoãm¿?¶þ6ÛøÛoãm¿?¶þ6ÛøÛoãm¿?¶þ6ÛøÛoãm¿?¶þ6ÛøÛoãm¿?¶þ6ÛøÛoãm¿?¶þ6ÛøÛoãm¿?¶þ6ÛøÛoãm¿?¶þ6ÛøÛoãm¿?¶þ6ÛøÛoãm¿?¶þ6ÛøÛoãm¿?¶þ6ÛøÛoãm¿?¶þ6ÛøÛoãm¿?¶þ6ÛøÛoãm¿?¶þ6ÛøÛoãm¿?¶þ6ÛøÛoãm¿?¶þ6ÛøÛoãm¿?¶þ6ÛøÛoãm¿?¶þ6ÛøÛoãm¿?¶þ6ÛøÛoãm¿?¶þ6ÛøÛoãm¿?¶þ6ÛøÛoãm¿?¶þ6ÛøÛoãm¿?¶þ6ÛøÛoãm¿?¶þ6ÛøÛoãm¿?¶þ6ÛøÛoãm¿?¶þ6ÛøÛoãm¿?¶þ6ÛøÛoãm¿?¶þ6ÛøÛoãm¿?¶þ6ÛøÛoãm¿?¶þ6ÛøÛoãm¿?¶þ6ÛøÛoãm¿?¶þ6ÛøÛoãm¿?¶þ6ÛøÛoãm¿?¶þ6ÛøÛoãm¿?¶þ6ÛøÛoãm¿?¶þ6ÛøÛoãm¿?¶þ6ÛøÛoãm¿?¶þ6ÛøÛoãm¿?¶þ6ÛøÛoãm¿?¶þ6ÛøÛoãm¿?¶þ6ÛøÛoãm¿?¶þ6ÛøÛoãm¿?¶þ6ÛøÛoãm¿?¶þ6ÛøÛoãm¿?¶þ6ÛøÛoãm¿?¶þ6ÛøÛoãm¿?¶þ6ÛøÛoãm¿?¶þ6ÛøÛoãm¿?¶þ6ÛøÛoãm¿?¶þ6ÛøÛoãm¿?¶þ6ÛøÛoãm¿?¶þ6ÛøÛoãm¿?¶þ6ÛøÛoãm¿?¶þ6ÛøÛoãm¿?¶þ6ÛøÛoãm¿?¶þ6ÛøÛoãm¿?¶þ6ÛøÛoãm¿?¶þ6ÛøÛoãm¿?¶ý!I?#?¶XÁ#


Woof, Woof - Dawg
pawprint.gif
Click to expand...

You need to save that file as .MP4 and then play it back in Quicktime. I believe you can even copy that text to Text Edit and save it as .MP4
 
Mac_Freak said:
You need to save that file as .MP4 and then play it back in Quicktime. I believe you can even copy that text to Text Edit and save it as .MP4
Click to expand...

OK, now I'm blind :p

Thanks for the tip, I think <rubs eyes and stumbles into wall>

Woof, Woof - Dawg
pawprint.gif
 
bentley said:
My screen after a few months started to go blotchy around the centre, the affected areas were slightly lighter areas around a centimetre in diameter.
Apple were more than happy to replace the panel at the same time as my hard drive failed. :rolleyes:

Anyway, got my Powerbook back really quickly and was really impressed with the service. My only problem now is the new panel has one dead pixel, glaring at me right in the face.
Click to expand...

Exactly the same thing happened to me on my 12" a week or so ago! I had a 1" sized lighter spot in the middle of the screen, and I got it back and there's a stuck blue pixel on the bottom right of the screen. It's almost unnoticeable, because it's blue, and really light, and it's where the scrollbar usually is. And it's better than my giant white spot. But I'm still annoyed, mainly I imagine it'll affect the resale value. :(

<conspiracy theory>Reckon they save the dead/stuck pixel displays for repairs? </conspiracy theory> :rolleyes:
 
Lau and Bentley I'm sorry to hear about your PBs... it's weird, the same thing just happened to me!! I have a 12" PB purchased last August and I'm just noticing maybe 3 dead pixels! :( Good thing it's no longer for sale and an even better thing that my older sister isn't tech-savy and probably won't even notice! :p :eek: Do you think Apple would even do anything about it?
 
Devilot, they might if you have 3. It's definitely worth a shot. If not, I'd just tell your sister the screen's supposed to be like that. ;) :D
 
Yeah. "The pixels all have to rest on occasion, and it's their turn". <Runs away> :D
 
grabberslasher said:
According to Apple's retail guidelines, they will replace a screen even if there is only a single dead pixel.
Click to expand...
I just went in and the genius told me there was no point... He made me wait for over an hour to tell me that... and he didn't bother checking to see if I still had AppleCare or not until I pressed him to do so. :rolleyes: I've got at least 3 dead pixels but none that are super obtrusive-- but he admited that he could see them, he even got out a microfiber cloth and cleaning spray.
 
devilot76 said:
I just went in and the genius told me there was no point... He made me wait for over an hour to tell me that... and he didn't bother checking to see if I still had AppleCare or not until I pressed him to do so. :rolleyes: I've got at least 3 dead pixels but none that are super obtrusive-- but he admited that he could see them, he even got out a microfiber cloth and cleaning spray.
Click to expand...

Did you try pixelmurder?
 
devilot76 said:
:confused: Is that software? I did a google search, searched macupdate and versiontracker w/ no results...
Click to expand...

http://itasor.com/pixelmurder.MP4

Right (ctrl) click that and save Linked File. Run it overnight in the area of the dead pixel. Put it on loop in quicktime.

It's funny, people all over the internet are called it Pixel Murder, and I just like randomly named it that! I think it's for PSP's but it worked on 3/4 dead pixels I tried it on (hence the 75%). Pretty cool when I walked into the local computer store and he was suggesting someone try "Pixel Murder" at itasor.com.

HA!
 
sambo. said:
i say bitch, whinge and moan, LOUDLY in the Apple store you bought it and DEMAND an new screen, you are the CONSUMER, who SWITCHED and may well SWITCH BACK if such appleing (oops, i meant appalling) service is not rectified.
Click to expand...

That's the perfect way to not get service.

Just be nice, tell them that this is really bugging you since AppleCare fixed your screen but messed this up.
 
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