heat causing backlight seizures

[reece]

hey everyone,
this is the first time ive posted on this site although ive been visiting now for quite awhile. so i just got my first mac, a 2.2G Macbook Pro, which i'm really happy with.
But... I'm having a problem. I thought it was similar to a problem which other people were having (flickering screen) but now i think its totally different. My backlight will sometimes turn off and on like a strobe light (really quickly), and really noticable!
At first it seemed intermittent, it went off for a bit randomly but always fixed itself but now i've found the cause...
As soon as my CPU temp goes over about 75 degrees celsius, it starts. and then fixes itself once the temp drops below about 70. Ripping one CD on itunes will bring my temp up this high and cause the seizures, but curiously my fans don't kick in at all.
Having said that, i have seen my fans speed up to at least 6000rpm with my temp lower than 70, so i'm not sure why they arn't doing so now.
Im in Australia so its a hastle to try and return the computer, especially during uni which runs for the next 4months. I'm assuming however that this is abnormal, but wondering whether it would be a hardware or software fault?

Thanks for reading this
Reece

 

[iBookG4user]

You could try using smcfancontrol and using that to cool your MacBook Pro by manually setting your fan controls.

 

[reece]

oh yeah, sorry i didnt mention that. Just before posting i gave that a shot, and yes i can keep the temperature down, but only if i set the minimum fan speed manually. this is a little inconvenient, and i dont want to keep one eye on the menubar just to make sure i keep it below 75 degrees. At some stage i want to run some games and i'm pretty sure they are going to really heat up the laptop.
Has anyone else had this issue? It is NOT something that you wouldn't notice

 

[weckart]

There is also Fancontrol which allows you to set the speed and temperature at which the fans kick in, so that you do not have to keep an eye on the temperature.

 

[miniConvert]

You have to return it, inconvenience or otherwise. I guess there's no harm in delaying the return if you absolutely can't right now by tinkering with your fans, but you know it needs to be returned and, IMHO, the sooner the better.

If you can, and it is brand new, I'd advise returning it for a full refund and starting over. I wouldn't mess about with repairs to a brand new machine.