MacBook Pro issues creeping up.

[GoldfishRT]

I hate making threads like this. Paging @SDColorado lol

So I received my 15" MacBook Pro the other day and overall I really love it but some things just popped up seemingly out of nowhere that I think are super odd.

So first off, one of the first things I check on my new laptops is display uniformity. This was pretty well flawless at the start but after a few days of carrying it around I ended up getting spotlight style backlight bleed at the top of the display. This is only visible on a black background obviously, but it struck me as strange since it didn't have any when I first checked it out. They are visible on even low brightness when watching movies for instance.

Second issue - the laptop charges slowly and will discharge under load. Is this normal? Even with moderate use it seems to flip back and forth between not charging and charging. When it says it's charging, it seems to think it will take 3 to 4 hours from 15 to 20% to full.

This is a bit of a bummer considering my base model 13" didn't have these issues - even being exposed to sub 0 temps in my car for the better part of a few days. That thing was flawless despite being more prone to error than others from what I've read.

Are these things Apple will replace the machine for or should I try and go through Costco? I'd really rather not be without a machine and I know some level of flaws need to be accepted but these seemed like odd ones to have pop up after a few days of no abnormal behavior.

 

[PROFESS0R]

Ye, the battery discharging under load is normal. It soumds to me like everything you are describing is normal. Take a deep breath and relax.

 

[SDColorado]

Why are you paging me? Just because I am luckless and on #5 and still have some issues?

I have to say I have never had mine discharge, even under load. I had a Surface Book 2 that would do that, but that's a known feature of the SB2. Can't say I have ever seen or experienced that with my MBP.

I also haven't noticed anything unusual with the speed in which mine recharges. Seems an acceptable rate of recharge to me. That said, it definitely does *not* do the 0-80 in 60 minutes like the Lenovo X1 Extreme either.

Display uniformity yes. Absolutely it is pinker on the left, bluer/greener on the right. Not really noticeable without a white background, but it is there. No spotlight type backlight bleed though. That *would* bother me.

Did you buy the machine from Costco? How far outside of the 90-day return window are you if so? Costco, like Apple has the ability to extend that return window to some degree.

 

[GoldfishRT]

Why are you paging me? Just because I am luckless and on #5 and still have some issues?

I just figured amongst your large amount of experience maybe you'd have had some of this crop up haha.

I'm well within the return period for Costco yes. Unfortunately they don't carry them in store - wonder if they'll be wiling to ship me one while I hold on to this one to get some stuff done.

The spotlight bleed is definitely the most irritating thing, especially since it just seems to have popped up out of nowhere.

Ye, the battery discharging under load is normal. It soumds to me like everything you are describing is normal. Take a deep breath and relax.

I AM PERFECTLY RELAXED THANKS!

But in all seriousness. Even under medium load? We're talking like exporting some stuff to excel with music and 4k video playing. Not running premiere for 24 hours.

 

[SDColorado]

I just figured amongst your large amount of experience maybe you'd have had some of this crop up haha.

I'm well within the return period for Costco yes. Unfortunately they don't carry them in store - wonder if they'll be wiling to ship me one while I hold on to this one to get some stuff done.

The spotlight bleed is definitely the most irritating thing, especially since it just seems to have popped up out of nowhere.



I AM PERFECTLY RELAXED THANKS!

But in all seriousness. Even under medium load? We're talking like exporting some stuff to excel with music and 4k video playing. Not running premiere for 24 hours.

I don't do gaming on my MBP, so I can't speak for that. But I do a lot with excel, music, 4K video playing and haven't had it discharge. Just to experiment I ran Corona Benchmark 1.3 back 4X in succession and that did not result in it discharging.

Unfortunately, I would guess Costco would not ship another while you hold on to that one unless you were willing to purchase the other one. Apple the same. You can talk to them and arrange a cross-shipment, despite their claims that they can't on first call, but you would still need to buy the replacement and then get a refund.

 

[Painter2002]

I have to say I have never had mine discharge, even under load. I had a Surface Book 2 that would do that, but that's a known feature of the SB2. Can't say I have ever seen or experienced that with my MBP.

I also haven't noticed anything unusual with the speed in which mine recharges. Seems an acceptable rate of recharge to me. That said, it definitely does *not* do the 0-80 in 60 minutes like the Lenovo X1 Extreme either.

I’ve never had a MacBook Pro ever discharge battery well under load and plugged in either, unless maybe I’m just not torturing it enough, lol. But it is certainly not unheard of to lose a few percent if you are really taxing the machine.

But funny you say that about Lenovo battery drain... both of my company assigned L series models have had highly fluctuating levels where I can be running queries in databases or lots of spreadsheets and it’ll drop the battery like 10% in 30-40 minutes even though it’s plugged in (with a 65 watt USB-C charger mind you). Thought I was the only one who’d experienced this but guess not.
[doublepost=1549596078][/doublepost]

I just figured amongst your large amount of experience maybe you'd have had some of this crop up haha.

I'm well within the return period for Costco yes. Unfortunately they don't carry them in store - wonder if they'll be wiling to ship me one while I hold on to this one to get some stuff done.

The spotlight bleed is definitely the most irritating thing, especially since it just seems to have popped up out of nowhere.



I AM PERFECTLY RELAXED THANKS!

But in all seriousness. Even under medium load? We're talking like exporting some stuff to excel with music and 4k video playing. Not running premiere for 24 hours.

So you don’t specify how long you’ve had the machine, but sounds like for a few days. Have you let it sit overnight plugged in and turned on so it can finish all it’s indexing and other stuff it does on initial setup? If not you may give that a shot, as it could be still indexing and that can be taxing in addition to whatever else you’re running at the same time, this causing the power drain.

Also, have you tried a NVRAM and SMC reset? Those might fix any issues you experiencing that could be caused by a glitch in either system.

If none of the above fix the issue, and/or the spotlighting is really serious, I’d take it back and try to call in for a swap, or refund and try a different seller like B&E for a good deal. It’s new enough that you shouldn’t have too many issues with it.

 

[SDColorado]

I’ve never had a MacBook Pro ever discharge battery well under load and plugged in either, unless maybe I’m just not torturing it enough, lol. But it is certainly not unheard of to lose a few percent if you are really taxing the machine.

But funny you say that about Lenovo battery drain... both of my company assigned L series models have had highly fluctuating levels where I can be running queries in databases or lots of spreadsheets and it’ll drop the battery like 10% in 30-40 minutes even though it’s plugged in (with a 65 watt USB-C charger mind you). Thought I was the only one who’d experienced this but guess not.
[doublepost=1549596078][/doublepost]
So you don’t specify how long you’ve had the machine, but sounds like for a few days. Have you let it sit overnight plugged in and turned on so it can finish all it’s indexing and other stuff it does on initial setup? If not you may give that a shot, as it could be still indexing and that can be taxing in addition to whatever else you’re running at the same time, this causing the power drain.

Also, have you tried a NVRAM and SMC reset? Those might fix any issues you experiencing that could be caused by a glitch in either system.

If none of the above fix the issue, and/or the spotlighting is really serious, I’d take it back and try to call in for a swap, or refund and try a different seller like B&E for a good deal. It’s new enough that you shouldn’t have too many issues with it.

Actually, I was referring to Microsoft Surface Book 2 battery drain. They are known for discharging when setting to the highest performance and pushing it hard. But apparently, some Lenovo's have that issue as well?

The only Lenovo I have had any experience with was the X1 Extreme I demoed for 30 days. It never discharged even with running Prime 95 or Furmark.

The Lenovo reference I was making was to their 0-80% in 60 minutes claim. I did a test on that when I had the X1 Extreme and actually achieved 83% (if I recall) in 60 minutes from dead 0. Not to shabby.

I agree on the MacBook Pro. I recall reading about some folks having that issue with you are pushing 4 or more cores to 100% for a sustained period, but certainly, it shouldn't happen when using Excel, watching 4K video and the like.

 

[Painter2002]

Actually, I was referring to Microsoft Surface Book 2 battery drain. They are known for discharging when setting to the highest performance and pushing it hard. But apparently, some Lenovo's have that issue as well?

The only Lenovo I have had any experience with was the X1 Extreme I demoed for 30 days. It never discharged even with running Prime 95 or Furmark.

The Lenovo reference I was making was to their 0-80% in 60 minutes claim. I did a test on that when I had the X1 Extreme and actually achieved 83% (if I recall) in 60 minutes from dead 0. Not to shabby.

I agree on the MacBook Pro. I recall reading about some folks having that issue with you are pushing 4 or more cores to 100% for a sustained period, but certainly, it shouldn't happen when using Excel, watching 4K video and the like.

Sorry, I misread your comment then on the Lenovo part. My work Lenovo’s are actually the only computers I’ve ever had that really had battery drain while plugged in. And I sure wish my Lenovo charged from 0-80 in 60 minutes, lol. For me it takes about a full 3 hours to charge up mine, but then again our company machines aren’t the top line models either.

Having said that, something sounds off with OPs computer, especially given that it is new and doesn’t have any real intensive running. Might be fixable with an SMC/NVRAM reset, otherwise I’d check on getting a swap unit for it, especially with it being a new purchase.

 

[Eason85]

As a laptop reviewer, I classify discharging under anything except maximal blended loads as a major issue (and then I would consider it a significant one still). Laptops like the surface book 2 and razer blade stealth are docked points for such issues.

 

[Queen6]

Actually, I was referring to Microsoft Surface Book 2 battery drain. They are known for discharging when setting to the highest performance and pushing it hard. But apparently, some Lenovo's have that issue as well?

The only Lenovo I have had any experience with was the X1 Extreme I demoed for 30 days. It never discharged even with running Prime 95 or Furmark.

The Lenovo reference I was making was to their 0-80% in 60 minutes claim. I did a test on that when I had the X1 Extreme and actually achieved 83% (if I recall) in 60 minutes from dead 0. Not to shabby.

I agree on the MacBook Pro. I recall reading about some folks having that issue with you are pushing 4 or more cores to 100% for a sustained period, but certainly, it shouldn't happen when using Excel, watching 4K video and the like.

Older 15" MBP's would utilise both mains & battery under heavy loads. My 2008 & 2011 15" both did, never seen a 13" discharge. I'm speaking of 100% load on all cores with external displays, certainly not basic usage. Don't recall the 2012-2015 MBP's having the same issue.

Ye, the battery discharging under load is normal. It soumds to me like everything you are describing is normal. Take a deep breath and relax.

MBP's do not discharge the battery under moderate loads. They may exercise the battery when plugged in for extended periods, equally that's just a few percent not what the OP is describing. "Take a deep breath" read what people are actually writing as opposed to auto defending Apple.

I hate making threads like this. Paging @SDColorado lol

So I received my 15" MacBook Pro the other day and overall I really love it but some things just popped up seemingly out of nowhere that I think are super odd.

So first off, one of the first things I check on my new laptops is display uniformity. This was pretty well flawless at the start but after a few days of carrying it around I ended up getting spotlight style backlight bleed at the top of the display. This is only visible on a black background obviously, but it struck me as strange since it didn't have any when I first checked it out. They are visible on even low brightness when watching movies for instance.

Second issue - the laptop charges slowly and will discharge under load. Is this normal? Even with moderate use it seems to flip back and forth between not charging and charging. When it says it's charging, it seems to think it will take 3 to 4 hours from 15 to 20% to full.

This is a bit of a bummer considering my base model 13" didn't have these issues - even being exposed to sub 0 temps in my car for the better part of a few days. That thing was flawless despite being more prone to error than others from what I've read.

Are these things Apple will replace the machine for or should I try and go through Costco? I'd really rather not be without a machine and I know some level of flaws need to be accepted but these seemed like odd ones to have pop up after a few days of no abnormal behavior.

Your paying premium for a reason, return it back to Costco and have them sort it out one way or the other, preferably replace it at already has 2 issues which doesn't bode well

MBP is on the radar for weak display ribbons which may result in spotlighting and or display failure. Random charging & discharge may be related to the hardware in the charging circuitry, although I would try a SMC & PRAM first as it may be no more complex than that. Try SMC first as that's more likely to be the problem.

Q-6

 

[Falhófnir]

Older 15" MBP's would utilise both mains & battery under heavy loads. My 2008 & 2011 15" both did, never seen a 13" discharge. I'm speaking of 100% load on all cores with external displays, certainly not basic usage. Don't recall the 2012-2015 MBP's having the same issue.

MBP's do not discharge the battery under moderate loads. They may exercise the battery when plugged in for extended periods, equally that's just a few percent not what the OP is describing. "Take a deep breath" read what people are actually writing as opposed to auto defending Apple.

Your paying premium for a reason, return it back to Costco and have them sort it out one way or the other, preferably replace it at already has 2 issues which doesn't bode well

MBP is on the radar for weak display ribbons which may result in spotlighting and or display failure. Random charging & discharge may be related to the hardware in the charging circuitry, although I would try a SMC & PRAM first as it may be no more complex than that. Try SMC first as that's more likely to be the problem.

Q-6

I know the 2014 models with Nvidia 750M could discharge their battery while plugged in if really pushed (think the 2015 went AMD in part to fix this) - as far as I was aware this hasn’t been an issue since 2016 when they lowered the maximum system draw a little and upped the power supply from 85W to 87.

OP - is it a vega model? Some have been saying those chips actually outstrip the 560X In TDP when really pushed hard, and the cooling is allowed to push higher to compensate, this might be just enough to tip the system back into power deficit? Having said that, you’d probably need to really be hammering the GPU to get to that point (trying to 4K game or something?) so I’m not really sure. Not a complaint I have heard as regards the touchbar pros thus far...

 

[GoldfishRT]

Nope - not a Vega model. The 560x was a stretch even on sale lol.

After resetting it a whole bunch, doing the SMC/PRAM stuff and plugging it and unplugging it a few times it seems to be okay at the moment.

Doesn't inspire confidence however.

 

[Painter2002]

Nope - not a Vega model. The 560x was a stretch even on sale lol.

After resetting it a whole bunch, doing the SMC/PRAM stuff and plugging it and unplugging it a few times it seems to be okay at the moment.

Doesn't inspire confidence however.

That’s good, I wouldn’t stress too much. Keep in mind that all co liters can get stuck on code that goes the machine to hang up. Doesn’t necessarily mean your computer is bad or has serious issues.

 

[DVX7]

Check your charger. Make sure you didn't somehow end up with a 13" 61w adapter instead of the normal 15" 87w. They look similar, just labeling & dimensions different.

I've not noticed my 2018 15.4 2.2 560x discharging under load with the stock 87w. Even when I'm doing something that causes the fans to kick in.

The only time I know I have seen this is when traveling light and using an Anker powerport charger with a USB-A to C cable; so like 12w. It will charge while off, sleeping, or even dimmed-screen-and-idle, but any usage and it's "Not Charging" with a slower-than-battery-alone discharge rate. No surprise since it's just a meager 12w, of course.

 

[SDColorado]

Nope - not a Vega model. The 560x was a stretch even on sale lol.

After resetting it a whole bunch, doing the SMC/PRAM stuff and plugging it and unplugging it a few times it seems to be okay at the moment.

Doesn't inspire confidence however.

I know that feeling. I was telling the Executive Relations person I spoke with on Monday that I was able to “fix” my unresponsive “e” key by mashing it repeatedly, but that I wasn’t confident in it in any way being a permanent “fix.”

I have a Vega 20 model, I have yet to see it discharge when plugged in. I haven’t tried to max all cores using yes > /dev/null &, but neither Corona or Geek Bench GPU benchmark has caused any battery discharge. Certainly what you described shouldn’t.

Hope it was just a “glitch” and you solved it.

 

[GoldfishRT]

I hope so too. The spotlight style bleed isn't great but it's somehow still better than most other machines I've encountered. That's one thing I might just have to suck up as a part of life until we can finally get OLED.

Really a very nice machine otherwise. As it should be given the cost.

 

[SDColorado]

I hope so too. The spotlight style bleed isn't great but it's somehow still better than most other machines I've encountered. That's one thing I might just have to suck up as a part of life until we can finally get OLED.

Really a very nice machine otherwise. As it should be given the cost.

Yeah, I have that pink to blue transition. But it isn’t bad enough in most applications that I was going to return it for that. The unresponsive key on the other hand... hoping that’s a “one off”. Time will tell

 

[jerryk]

I hope so too. The spotlight style bleed isn't great but it's somehow still better than most other machines I've encountered. That's one thing I might just have to suck up as a part of life until we can finally get OLED.

Really a very nice machine otherwise. As it should be given the cost.

Make sure they fix the issue with burn in before you put down money on an OLED. There are reasons they were withdrawn from the market 2 years ago.

 

[GoldfishRT]

Make sure they fix the issue with burn in before you put down money on an OLED. There are reasons they were withdrawn from the market 2 years ago.

I've got an OLED TV, OLED radar detector, and an OLED Samsung S8 from a few years ago - they are fine. It's still certainly something to worry about however - I notice by default the behavior of many devices these days is to turn off and dim the display within a minute or so of no-activity. Luckily I'm pretty active with my use of my computers and already hide my menu and dock. To be frank, I think I'd take the mild ghosts of a menu bar in 3 years over the normal issues IPS displays have these days.

Back to the subject. The flashlight style bleed really isn't that bad and I think it's something I can get used to. I think the issue is compounded by the MacBooks tendency to be overly bright - especially in dark environments. Otherwise the Pro has been behaving how it should still and charging times for one reason or another seem to have improved somewhat - or at least the behavior of them. I wonder if it's an issue with my surge protector (it's getting up there in years). I've been using the computer at the couch and not at my desk where I don't have one.

I am however, getting a bit of buyers remorse. Fundamentally the experience isn't actually a huge difference in my experience over the 13"... and of course this is an extra ten Benjamins. Really it's just confirming what I knew all along. It'd be really nice if Apple resumed making a larger non-'Pro' laptop. Because effectively I feel like that's the main reason I want to hold on to it at this point.

 

[maflynn]

My base 2.2 555x never discharged under load. That does seem odd

 

[MacNut]

My machine has been rock solid but I decided to buy Apple Care for the first time today just to be on the safe side.

 

[jerryk]

I've got an OLED TV, OLED radar detector, and an OLED Samsung S8 from a few years ago - they are fine. It's still certainly something to worry about however - I notice by default the behavior of many devices these days is to turn off and dim the display within a minute or so of no-activity. Luckily I'm pretty active with my use of my computers and already hide my menu and dock. To be frank, I think I'd take the mild ghosts of a menu bar in 3 years over the normal issues IPS displays have these days.

That's your choice to accept the burn in and you taking action to minimize the effect. But as it stands now, even alternating test patterns run for a few weeks can become permanently in OLED displays.

And I can guarantee if MacBooks started ghosting the menu bar and trash icon there would cries of outrage and all sort of #screen-ghost posts of angst. Followed by lawsuits over Apple putting those defective OLED display in their notebooks. And after one year, people marching into their stores demanding that Apple fix their now out of warranty MacBook for free because of OLED-gate.

 

[GoldfishRT]

Had it happen a few times again. Apple went ahead and replaced the charger. We're A-okay now.

While I was there, I compared the other 15" displays and mine was not notably different to the ones they had on the tables so I figure I'll just chalk it up to these displays all have that minor amount of bleed at the top across 4 places. Even the 13s had it. It's not truly noticeable at normal brightness levels. Can just notice it on the black letterboxing in videos in dark rooms.