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phixiuz

macrumors regular
Original poster
Aug 25, 2009
103
0
Well, I just had my Macbook Pro 13" for about 4 days now and I really take care of my things. So far I've only cleaned the screen two or three times with a microfibre cloth (with some water) and now I notice a thin vertical line/scratch on it on the left and in the right corner there's like 2x 1mm circles. And no, this wasn't a refurb or anything.

Could the microfibre cloth with dirt and hard rubbing cause this? Seems so weird since I've seen these videos last week where they used a kitchen knife and a razor blade on a Samsung MP3 player with a glass screen and no scratches as result. Is the quality of the glass worse than on the Macbook than an ordinary MP3 player?

You don't notice it when the machine is on but this really sucks :mad:, hate it when my things get scratched and definately when they are like brand new when it happens...

Nobody else with scratches on the glass screen? To know for sure, you could hold your screen in direct sunlight, that's how I spotted mine. Don't try this when you really hate scratches and it could ruin your day seeing one...
 
I've used microfiber cloths on my MBP and its not scratched up.

What may have happened is that once you cleaned it, you noticed the scratch. Another possibility, perhaps a little more remote is that you had some debris in the cloth when you cleaned the display.

Glass if pretty scratch resistant so it really cannot be the cloth.

bummer on the scratch :(
 
Its still not clear to me wether its truly glass or in fact hardened plastic.:confused:

my screen needs a good clean.
 
Its still not clear to me wether its truly glass or in fact hardened plastic.:confused:


Glass - apple own states that its made of glass, not sure why you don't want to believe them.

mbp_display.png
 
Glass - apple own states that its made of glass, not sure why you don't want to believe them.

mbp_display.png


LOL thanks for the detailed info.

I wasn't saying I didnt believe Apple, Its just that ive read on here...mainly the countless matt vs glossy threads...where some users have brought up the argument of it not being actual glass.
 
My MacBook Pro is the older 2007 model, but my iPod touch of course, is glass. It has several scratches. I will admit that in the last 4 months or so, I have not treated it with the most respect, but I also don't throw my stuff around.
 
LOL thanks for the detailed info.

I wasn't saying I didnt believe Apple, Its just that ive read on here...mainly the countless matt vs glossy threads...where some users have brought up the argument of it not being actual glass.

I don't think it is actual glass, at least, it isn't on the iMacs where they used this same 'aluminium and glass' argument. The arrow to the bit about arsenic to prevent irregularities could be, and is, referring to other glass in the actual display, and in the CFL tube. Clearly as it is a comparative statement and most other laptops don't have an extra piece of plastic/glass in front of the screen they are not referring to that. The caption to the image doesn't actually say where the glass is, and I think it is deliberately misleading.
 
I don't think it is actual glass, at least, it isn't on the iMacs where they used this same 'aluminium and glass' argument. The arrow to the bit about arsenic to prevent irregularities could be, and is, referring to other glass in the actual display, and in the CFL tube. Clearly as it is a comparative statement and most other laptops don't have an extra piece of plastic/glass in front of the screen they are not referring to that. The caption to the image doesn't actually say where the glass is, and I think it is deliberately misleading.

I have had genius' at my local store confirm it is actual glass. they have also showed me a few SHATTERED displays they had for repair. the outer covering shatters just as glass, looks like glass when you look at it through the side.

it is deffinitly glass. as for the scratch, i suggest that it was probably their from the factory and just did no notice it until today. it usually takes me a few days with a new mac before i discover all the imperfections.

furthermore, i have had a uMB since release and have cleaned it daily with no scratches.

a word of advice. when the computer is brand new. the screen has some sort of sticky film on it. if you were to try to run a dry rag over it right away you would feel it. i always take some iKlear and a microfibre and clean this weird film off so the glass is smooth. that way there is as little friction as possible between the cloth and glass.

last, i would not use water. water has all kinds of minerals in it including salt. i am not saying it will deffinitely do something, i just would not use it. get iKlear.
 
Thanks for the replies guys, well it's absolutely not that bad and it really depends on the situation (I just hate imperfections even if they are small :)), this morning when I had a lot of sunlight coming into my room you'd spot it easily, but now I just got back from college and opened him up again and I couldn't find the scratch no more for the first two minutes staring at it :D. And the one in the right corner you can only see at a specific angle, not if you look straight at the screen.

Guess I'm warned now, now I"m gonna think twice before cleaning the screen. I just thought that it was pretty scratch-resistant since it's a glass screen, so I thought it wouldn't be a problem if my microfibre cloth was a bit dirty perhaps.

And yes, I've also thought about the water I use, sometimes it can have a lot of sand in it, maybe that's what happened or it was already there from before I got it, since I didn't inspect it at every possible angle to look for imperfections :).
 
It's important to always use clean microfiber cloths. Once they hit the ground, they need to be washed again before they should be used. A knife blade or scissors with nothing on them will probably not scratch the glass, but sand, which has elements that are harder than glass, will definitely scratch glass. One grain of sand on your microfiber cloth will scratch glass, plastic, anodized aluminum etc.
 
Its like cleaning a car's paint... if you use dirty microfiber clothes it will scratch if you drag crap across it.
 
It's definitely glass.

It sounds plastic when you tap it with your nails, and it isn't as cold as glass

Whatever it is however, I like it as the screen doesn't do that funky crazy psychedelic thing when you rub it. No worries about burning your pixels!

Mine doesn't scratch easily, and i've rubbed it quite hard with the cloth that came with the machine as I had some sticky goup on the screen

pac
 
It sounds plastic when you tap it with your nails, and it isn't as cold as glass

Whatever it is however, I like it as the screen doesn't do that funky crazy psychedelic thing when you rub it. No worries about burning your pixels!

Mine doesn't scratch easily, and i've rubbed it quite hard with the cloth that came with the machine as I had some sticky goup on the screen

pac

Well, it's not cold because the screen emits heat because of the LED backlights and everything...
 
It's important to always use clean microfiber cloths. Once they hit the ground, they need to be washed again before they should be used. A knife blade or scissors with nothing on them will probably not scratch the glass, but sand, which has elements that are harder than glass, will definitely scratch glass. One grain of sand on your microfiber cloth will scratch glass, plastic, anodized aluminum etc.

Yup, I guess the bad boy was a grain of sand. Guess I'm only using some sprays now, thanks again for the great answers guys ;).

I'm warned now and I hope you guys are too :).
 
I purchased a Monster Kit with Microfiber cloth from Best Buy a year ago. I clean several ACD's, a Dell Ultrasharp, a plasma, MBA, MacBook Pro and my iPhones with the cloth and spray. It's not close to halfway empty and no screens have the slightest damages.
 
I purchased a Monster Kit with Microfiber cloth from Best Buy a year ago. I clean several ACD's, a Dell Ultrasharp, a plasma, MBA, MacBook Pro and my iPhones with the cloth and spray. It's not close to halfway empty and no screens have the slightest damages.

Best that I have seen yet, I use this on all my high end electronics, unfortunately some dip **** used my microfiber to clean something with dirt so now I just use a soft terry towl or a very soft paper towel...
 
+3 on the Monster Kit...I think BB had it on sale for 19.99 this past weekend. Definitely worth the money and as mentioned, it lasts forever.

Phix...

You may also find that it is NOT a scratch. I have a MBP, MB and PB and each of them are very sensitive to ANY film left over after cleaning or wiping but ONLY when, as you mentioned, exposed to direct sunlight. Kinda weird...looks perfect under tungsten or fluorescent lighting...or during casual computing in the dark, but for some reason...direct sunlight can make your screen (while dark) look as if it was run over by a car tire;)...I know what you're talking about.

Grab the Monster Kit, give it a good wipedown (spray on the cloth, not screen) and you'll be pleasantly surprised. I'd be surprised if it was scratched...these screens are pretty resilient. You should be fine.

Enjoy you're new computer and avoid direct sunlight;)

J
 
On the subject of screen cleaning, I tend to use the inside of my Incase sleeve if I'm out and don't have the microfibre cloth with me. I have to say that is works an absolute charm and, in my opinion, does a better job than the cloth.
 
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