Lines in MacBook Pro LCD

[josh995]

I just got a heck of a deal on a brand new, 2011 model MacBook Pro 15".

I got it for $168. No, that's not a typo. I got a brand new 2011 model for $168.

Long story short, customer bought it, saw this problem, and returned it. It got put in the back to get sent back to Apple, but the store forgot all about it and it sat in the back until today. They sold it for $168 to me

Anyway, what could the issue be? You can see in the picture it's white and in another picture it's all different colors, but it's always about an inch or so wide.

Do you think if I bought a new LCD, it would fix the issue?

Someone suggested it could be video card related however when we plugged it into an external monitor, the lines weren't on the external monitor...

 

[Quu]

Could be a loose cable to the logic board or the LCD panel itself could be damaged. I'd suggest opening it up (follow ifixit's guides) and check the LCD cable.

That is the easiest thing to rule out and it won't cost you anything.

Here is a link to the LCD replacement guide for your specific model: http://www.ifixit.com/Guide/Replacing+MacBook+Pro+15-Inch+Unibody+Early+2011+Display/5934/1

You can use that to find the LCD Cable on the motherboard to disconnect and reconnect it.

 

[josh995]

Oops I'm sorry. It probably would have been helpful if I said that I did open it up and disconnected the cable and reconnected it and made sure it was tight!

 

[Quu]

In that case perhaps you should buy Apple Care for it and ask Apple to repair it? It is their defect after-all.

 

[monokitty]

In that case perhaps you should buy Apple Care for it and ask Apple to repair it? It is their defect after-all.

If it was opened and returned, the warranty period started when it first opened and has since expired. This isn't a new machine at this point.

OP: The display assembly is defective.

 

[josh995]

If it was opened and returned, the warranty period started when it first opened and has since expired. This isn't a new machine at this point.

OP: The display assembly is defective.

Correct, I called Apple just to see if there was anything the could do but there was not.

Alright so if I buy a new LCD and replace it, that will solve the issue, I assume? I know it's easier to replace the whole top piece, however it's like 1/8 the cost to just replace the LCD myself

 

[Stetrain]

Correct, I called Apple just to see if there was anything the could do but there was not.

Alright so if I buy a new LCD and replace it, that will solve the issue, I assume? I know it's easier to replace the whole top piece, however it's like 1/8 the cost to just replace the LCD myself

If you're comfortable with replacing just the LCD panel then sure. It could also be the ribbon cable itself, I'm not sure if the new LCD panel will include a new cable.

Worst case if you mess something up with the LCD swapout you can just fall back to replacing the whole display enclosure. As far as I know even iFixit doesn't provide a guide for changing just the LCD since it's fairly complex and requires a heat gun.

 

[nickandre21]

It depends sometimes it can be logic board, sometimes it can be the display. If you have a spare lcd to verify then great, but if you do not then i suggest you take it to apple for a diagnosis.

 

[josh995]

Soooo... Awesome. I went to an Apple store and told the Genius that I had just bought it yesterday, which is true, even though it's a late 2011 model that I bought knowing it was defective.

He does a special kind of diagnostic test and everything came back ok so he knew it was a bad LCD or bad connection.

Then he goes in the back and comes back out and says that his manager said they will put a whole new screen assembly on. For free.

This is precisely why I love Apple. Good products and amazing customer service. It has been out of warranty for several months, but they're still going to do a $550.00 repair, for free. They didn't even look at my receipt to see if I had bought it yesterday. For all they know I've had it all the time.

Just awesome. Thought I'd share my result!