MacBook Display Issue

Hi all,

I've searched the MR Forums and have not come across this issue in any thread, so please bear with me if this has been covered before.

Here are her system specs:

Model : MacBook 13.3"
Processor : 2.4GHz Intel C2D "Penryn" on SR
Memory : 2GB 667GHz DDR SDRAM
Storage : 160GB HDD
Misc. : SuperDrive
OS : OS X 10.5.4
Screen : 9C5E (Chimei, I think)


The serial number of her machine begins with: W8824-------

Basically, this is a replacement machine, of a replacement machine, of her original machine. Her 1st MB ('Merom' on SR) was replaced for an overheating issue (scorch marks on the keyboard, it was ugly). She first noticed this issue with the replacement MB, and that one was duly replaced by Apple for another MB. And now this current MB is exhibiting the same issues.

I'm not quite sure how to describe the problem, but here are the pictures from her current machine. I can only describe it as a 'graphics glitch'. If you'd direct your attention to the file 'Picture 1.jpeg', you'll see what I'm trying to describe; at the bottom of the Safari page. The next file 'Picture 1 CU.jpeg' is a close up shot of the bottom of her screen. See the strange 'stripes' leading from the bottom of the screen into the Safari window?

What we wanted to know is if anyone out there is experiencing this issue with their MBs, or what's causing it.

We would appreciate it if anyone can chime in. My GF's at her wits end as she's in her final semester, and the frequent trips to a repair centre as well as the RMAs are causing numerous disruptions to her hectic student schedule.


Nicholas


EDIT: Forgot to mention, we've reformatted the HDD, installed Leopard fresh, reset SMC and zapped the PRAM to no avail...

 

techound1:

Yes. You read it correctly. This is her 2nd consecutive MB with the same screen issue.

Yes. It is not immediate, but the screen glitch appears over time.

No, I don't think it's a handling issue. I've taught her to 'baby' her machine. She picks it up by the sides, with both hands. It is transported (if ever) in a padded sleeve and it's carried vertically in a leather tote with a separate laptop compartment.

No. There is no software migration from any of her old machines. It's a fresh install of Leopard, then re-installation of all the software from scratch. All the software installed on the "Penryn" machines are identical to those on the "Merom" machine. Her info and work are manually transferred into the new machine.


ihabime:

Yes. The lines are always there. Even when watching a movie/ TV show on VLC.

No. They do always occur at the same spot. They tend to shift about the bottom of the screen. Sometimes there are more lines, and sometimes less, but never less than 3 (as far as I can tell).

My immediate suspicion was a hardware issue. I am thinking that it could be the integrated graphics chip, since the 2 "Penryn" MBs have had different displays (9C5F previously, and 9C5E now). I've reseated the memory modules, but no joy. As for heating, I've installed smcFanControl 2.1.2 on both machines and told her to keep an eye on the temperature, and adjusting the presets to make sure it doesn't rise above 55°C. We've run AHT (from the restore DVDs) and its reported no errors.

We'd really like to know what's causing this curious issue on not one, but 2 "Penryn" MBs. Especially since both the replacements had this very same issue. If it's a bad batch, then her getting 2 consecutive MBs with the same issue would have been possible. This issue is driving us both up the wall, especially her since it's "crunch" time for her, this being her final semester. She's got assignments to finish and cannot really accept the downtimes.

Thanks for your replies and helpful suggestions. Keep them coming! I'd really like to know if anyone else has this issue with their 2008 "Penryn" MBs. Also, if anyone knows the cause, I'd be really grateful if they'd shed some light.


Nicholas

 

patrickmacrumor:

Thanks for the reply. She is in contact with Apple regarding this issue.

However, we would really like to know the underlying cause of this issue. If this is just a case of her bad luck, then these last 2 MBs going bad just happen to be a coincidence, and the next replacement machine should be alright. Or whether this is an indication of a bad production batch. If it's a production batch issue, I'd advise her to wait it out after lodging a complaint with Apple or even ask for a different model of machine.


MacLadyBug:

Yes. I've tried that. In fact, out of habit, I've always created alternative admin accounts on all the machines I've set up (and I've set up quite a few over the past few years) in case of problems and corrupted permissions. When the glitch appeared on my GF's account (main), it appeared on her alternate admin account as well. That's why I'm stumped...


Also, I've noticed that the glitch appears when taking a screen shot using shift + ⌘ + 3.


Thanks for all your responses! Keep them coming! We'd really like to get to the bottom of this.


Nicholas