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New 15" powerbook

oldschool

oldschool

macrumors 65816
Original poster
Sep 30, 2003
1,029
0
A few things.

I'm new to the board, so hello to everybody.

Also, i just got my new 15" pb last week. While its a great machine, i do have a few questions. When I close the screen, should i be able to push it down about a quarter of an inch, or should it be totally secure?

Another thing. It seems that i have one dead pixel. Is this normal?

Lastly, it seems that the powerbook doesn't sit perfectly flat. Is this a known problem? My desks fault?
 
oldschool, welcome. :)

i've noticed a few of the same problems with my new PB as well. the screen on my TiBook used to close very securely, with no movement of the screen when it is latched up.

on the new PB i have noticed that when the screen is latched closed you can still push it down about 2mm. i don't know about 1/4" but that sounds like alot. if you're really picky about it, and can do without your precious for a while, then you might as well see if Apple will fix it.

i've got a bright pixel on my screen. a green one.... hold on i just checked now, and i either can't see it, or it fixed itself. :D people have sometimes 'massaged' the screen with a soft, non-scratch cloth and the dead or bright pixels have gone away.

generally, i don't think Apple, or any computer seller will do anything if there is only one dead pixel.

one thing is sure though - your PB should sit flat on the desk. check it on a desk you know is level... if it wobbles like a chair that has one leg shorter then another... then take it in and get it fixed. i can't imagine how annoying it would be to have a lop-sided PowerBook. :p

hope that's helped you a bit. :)
 
Thanks for the reply.

I just wanted to confirm that the dead pixel is normal.

Also when the screen is closed, it moves up and down when i'm carrying it, and makes a "clapping" noise. I don't know if this is normal or not, but I assume it should be held steady.
 
Unfortunately, a dead pixel is not out of the ordinary - just annoying. Hope you like your new machine!
 
While i don't care about any of these thing...dead pixel...etc...

i just want to know if everybody elses 15"ers have the enormous play in the screen.

It doesn't bother me but i just want to know.

And i love the powerbook. Chances are even if its not normal its not going back.
 
Yeah i noticed the slight play to the screen as well... im thinking that apple did this due to the fact that the TiBook screens were getting the imprint of the kb over a long period of time. At least I hope thats the reason b/c it looks nasty when that happens. I too have a dead pixel but its no biggy i still love this comp.
 
The lid thing is normal, but it should only be 1/10", though. Apple did this to help with the problem with earlier PowerBooks causing an imprint on the screen from the keyboard when closed. As far as the dead pixel, try gently massaging it, I did that once with my G3 when I had a bright green pixel on the left corner of the screen and it went away after that. Not sure about the uneven thing, though, I'd check the bottom to see if all the feet are on it and check the desk to see if maybe the desk isn't even.
 
Thanks guys, its nice to know that the play in the screen is normal. The quarter of an inch i said was estimated wrong. My imperial skills are no good (i live in canada-land of base ten)

Anyways, thanks for all the replys, and sorry for rehashing a subject that has probably been flogged to death already. I didn't know it was an issue when i first posted.

I would like to say however, that FEDEX is amazing. The tracking info they give you, and the delivery time, customer service...its all excellent. (they delivered my computer.)
 
OK i just turned my screen all one color, and it turns out there are three dead pixels.


Should I phone apple? How many is too many?
 
Dead pix

I forget the link to the apple site but if you go to the other forum "new powerbooks finally" toward the end i start talking..(More like asking) about dead pixels too and some other members provided some links to apples site about how many is too many and what their policy on that kinda stuff is. Most of the replies there help too
 
Is it really eight pixels? That seems like an awful lot. If I remember correctly from when I worked at the store, it was four or five. It may, however, just depend on the store manager or even on the MacGenius/support rep who hears the case.
 
whoa, 3 dead pixels is a few. :p (few = 3, get it?)

are the pixels 'dead' or 'bright'. i could imagine trying to use a screen with 3 bright pixels, that would be so annoying.

you could always just take it into the store and see if they can do something about it... but those screens aren't cheap.


and about the 'play' with the screen... i don't think that is normal. sure, there should be a gap, so the keys don't touch the screen, as shown on all the 15" PB pics where it is closed. But i don't think there should be any movement when the screen is latched closed. is that what everyone's talking about? my screen moves about 2mm up and down when it is closed.
 
Originally posted by cb911
whoa, 3 dead pixels is a few. :p (few = 3, get it?)

are the pixels 'dead' or 'bright'. i could imagine trying to use a screen with 3 bright pixels, that would be so annoying.

you could always just take it into the store and see if they can do something about it... but those screens aren't cheap.


and about the 'play' with the screen... i don't think that is normal. sure, there should be a gap, so the keys don't touch the screen, as shown on all the 15" PB pics where it is closed. But i don't think there should be any movement when the screen is latched closed. is that what everyone's talking about? my screen moves about 2mm up and down when it is closed.
Click to expand...

It shouldn't move when it is latched besides a small mm or two if any. Once it is latched, it is pretty secure and doesn't wobble like some have said. Maybe the hinge is loose? As far as the pixels, it depends on where they are. If they are dead center, Apple will more likely replace it than if they were in the corner somewhere.
 
My screen latches properly, and doesn't seem to be 'uneven.' However I do have a dead pixel, or at least an intermittently-dead pixel. Sometimes it glows green, sometimes it works normally. I'm used to it already, though.
 
man its a real bummer that ive heard a lot of people having dead pixels.... including myself. I've heard that you can massage them out with a soft cloth, im not quite sure how to do this.... lil' help. The dead pixel that i have i rarely notice since ive put a background that kinda hides it.
 
Originally posted by Toeknee
man its a real bummer that ive heard a lot of people having dead pixels.... including myself. I've heard that you can massage them out with a soft cloth, im not quite sure how to do this.... lil' help. The dead pixel that i have i rarely notice since ive put a background that kinda hides it.
Click to expand...

With my G3 PowerBook, I just rubbed them for about 10 seconds and they just went away. Also, they sometimes just got "stuck" so a simple reboot or putting it to sleep also helped sometimes, too.
 
Nice to know you guys aren't going to make a big deal out of it. I basically just wanted to know if everybody else was going to bitch about it to apple. Then I would have got on the bandwagon, b/c i wouldn't have wanted to be left out of a new LCD.

BTW, anybody here successfuly gotten a new LCD? What did it take?
 
Defective PB

I recently received my new 15" 1.25ghz power book and right out of the box I noticed two problems with it. One, the hard drive keeps making a weird clicking noise. I am familiar with the noise hard drives normally make and this is different. Even if I'm not using the machine, about once a minute the hard drive goes "click". Second, the track pad button is extremely hard to press. I know this doesn't sound like a big deal but trust me, its HARD. It just makes it kind of hard to use.

I called up apple and they said if my HD is clicking it probably means its going to "fail" soon and that I should send it back to them. But the thing is, I don't want to send it back and have it repaired. I want a computer that works right the first time. If I wanted a repaired machine I would have purchased a refurbished one. I can understand Apple wanting to repair instead of replace machines if they break after a month or two of use, but if it's broken right out of the box, doesn't it seem like they should replace it? I had a 5300 laptop ages ago that came with a broken hard drive, and even though apple replaced it, the machine was never quite right. It just always acted funny.

So my question is, does anyone know of anything you can do to get apple to replace a broken machine rather than fix it? Does anyone know what our rights are as consumers?

I love apple and have had multiple macs in my life, but I hate having to deal with this sort of thing.

Thanks.
 
Re: Defective PB

Originally posted by somecows
I recently received my new 15" 1.25ghz power book and right out of the box I noticed two problems with it. One, the hard drive keeps making a weird clicking noise. I am familiar with the noise hard drives normally make and this is different. Even if I'm not using the machine, about once a minute the hard drive goes "click". Second, the track pad button is extremely hard to press. I know this doesn't sound like a big deal but trust me, its HARD. It just makes it kind of hard to use.

I called up apple and they said if my HD is clicking it probably means its going to "fail" soon and that I should send it back to them. But the thing is, I don't want to send it back and have it repaired. I want a computer that works right the first time. If I wanted a repaired machine I would have purchased a refurbished one. I can understand Apple wanting to repair instead of replace machines if they break after a month or two of use, but if it's broken right out of the box, doesn't it seem like they should replace it? I had a 5300 laptop ages ago that came with a broken hard drive, and even though apple replaced it, the machine was never quite right. It just always acted funny.

So my question is, does anyone know of anything you can do to get apple to replace a broken machine rather than fix it? Does anyone know what our rights are as consumers?

I love apple and have had multiple macs in my life, but I hate having to deal with this sort of thing.

Thanks.
Click to expand...

Damn. Mine makes that clicking noise too. And a very high pitched nails on chalkboard sound when its moving.
 
Re: Re: Defective PB

Originally posted by oldschool
Damn. Mine makes that clicking noise too. And a very high pitched nails on chalkboard sound when its moving.
Click to expand...

Really? I don't know what to say. I can't say for sure that there is something wrong with a machine that makes that noise, but I can tell you that it sounds very different from the sounds my other macs have made.

If anyone has any advice please respond.
 
My hard drive every once in a while makes the chalkboard noise but thats only when its doing something HD intensive. It just freaks me out. I just hope that it doesnt die on me.
 
Ok good. Just wanted to know it was common. All my other macs have had annoying hard disks, and i've never had one fail once. Just this one is different from all of them.
 
Id call apple and ask them to replace the machine. my iBook was a lemon and they never replaced it and now it is shot and the warranty is over. Be stern with the person on the phone and tell them you want a new computer. I think they have a policy somewhere that if your computer arrives defected you can request a new one.
 
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