NVIDIA Graphics Firmware Defect on ALL 2008 / 2009 MacBook Pro!

[infernohellion]

satrycon, due to the delay, you must be able to cancel your order, according to Apple e-mail sent out.

 

[ninjapenguinart]

Is there a sensor on the unibody MBP for changing light to adjust the screen brightness automaticly? I don't remember reading about a feature like that. Is this associated with the above topic or a different one?

It is a feature that is utilized through the iSight that is built into your MBP. You can turn it off in System Preferences

 

[satrycon]

satrycon, due to the delay, you must be able to cancel your order, according to Apple e-mail sent out.

ive tried but the re-seller is refusing to...ill probably have to put on my black hat and call them myself.

 

[winninganthem]

Well, that's how many hardware problems manifest themselves. Normally such problems are already debugged in the lab - long before production starts.

Yet, if due to whatever bug (mostly documentation defect) some wire cannot support required current or some filters are not sufficient, then you'd have such problems. Or some errors in firmware when applying some timing parameters.

I'm software guy - can't go in details. Yet in my line of work - embedded/system developer - I have seen a number of such defects. They are also often influenced by environment, like temperature and humidity (change resistance and capacity), what can serve as an explanation why it sometimes works OK - sometimes not.

Yeah, seems like there's a lot of anomalies...

Another update: After resetting my system 3 days ago and leaving it on since, the problem seems to have disappeared again.

Keeping the computer on for 3 days seems to be the magic cure-all with these graphics glitches.

 

[satrycon]

and here we go >>>


http://discussions.apple.com/thread.jspa?threadID=1882489&tstart=0

definitely hardware..many users are now also talking about vertical green lines on their screens.

According to my discussion with Apple today, the long-standing flashing / scrolling graphics defect present in thousands of MacBook Pros includes ALL machines produced with the NVIDIA 8600GT chip, as well as the unibody MacBook Pros with the NVIDIA 9600MGT / 9400M chip.

I first reported the problem a few days after getting my MacBook Pro 17" in March of 2008. That's nearly TEN MONTHS AGO!

At first, it appeared this defect might be related to the defective NVIDIA chip problem. But I've had two motherboards swapped out, and the defect remains.

The defect typically shows up AFTER users have woken from SLEEP mode when on battery. It is triggered for some users by a combination of Quartz-enabled applications and trackpad operations, such as two finger scrolling.

There's a relatively easy way to see if this is the defect you're experiencing: Using the FREE "Quartz Debug" utility, available as part of Apple's Xcode download, select TOOLS > DISABLE QUARTZ EXTREME. The defects will go away, along with any speedy graphics performance you might have been enjoying. Once Quartz Extreme is disabled, try dragging a window with Quartz Compositing (like a Finder window) and you'll find it barely moves.

Restarting your computer will typically correct the problem -- for a while.

Hoping to find out if there was ANY MacBook Pro hardware immune to the problem, I queried AppleCare product specialists today, who consulted MacBook engineering. They indicated that ALL MacBook Pros from 2008 THROUGH 2009, including the new Unibody MacBook Pros, have this defect. They said the defect was related to the NVIDIA firmware, which was the same firmware used in the 8600GT, 9600MGT, and 9400M.

Why some users are affected and other aren't has been a long-standing mystery.

For a brief period, OS X 10.5.5 APPEARED to "correct" the bug, but for some users the bug did not go away. It has been universally reported (for example on Apple's Discussion boards) that 10.5.6 BROKE this particular "fix", causing thousands of users to suddenly see the defect again.

In the end, I'm confident Apple will "get it right" -- they usually do. But ten months is an awfully long time to go with such a significant defect.

Anyone else have any information on this issue?

 

[P90Xfit]

I had this problem with my 2.4 Unibody Macbook pro. switching graphics cards and then back again, a temp fix. Or archive and restore will work for a few days.

I called Apple and had them upgrade me to a 2.53 for the inconvenience for an extra $225.00 and they sent me an $80.00 Incase sling back pack for free. All in all I got a 2.53 unibody with 4GB RAM, 320HD 7,200 RPM. for $1,700. with The $80.00 bag oh and a Incase sleeve.

The 2.53 is great so far, but I am SO scared of going to applications, and scrolling down only to see the white flickering boxes! I installed windows 7 and ran empire total war, for a good 20-30 minutes and it ran great, so I hope it keeps it up.

It's sad though we should not have to worry about this crap when we drop this kind of cash!

 

[Sir Cecil]

The delay with the 17" was simply the late requirement to incorporate iLife 09 and the printing of updated packaging featuring iLife 09 logo etc.
Nothing more dramatic than that, so I'm told.