Possible GPU failure?

[Fo Racer30]

A little background: Mid 2009 refurbished (Apple certified) MBP, been in for service multiple times. two failed HD's, two GSOD instances (one the day after picking it up from the first) a non-use related battery failure (service receipt included replaced wiring, confirming my suspicions that it had caused the failure) a trackpad failure, a spacebar/command key failure, and finally a system crash with 10.7 that bootlooped the system.

I've had my fair share of problems with this notebook, which is somewhat disturbing. The computer is transported, but few and far between (the most activity being to and from school for a 3-month period every Thursday), the rest of the time it sits on a desk. My Apple care ends in roughly two days (estimated date is Sept. 1, no actual date specified), so i'm kind of pressed for time, with my already busy schedule.. . My "local" Apple store isn't exactly close by, it's an hour out-of-the-way (as in the only times I travel that direction are when I head to the Apple store) venture.

Yesterday evening, I started noticing some video display failures. every so often (with increasing frequency) audio & video (such as YouTube, Hulu, crackle, and TVLand.com have to offer) will de-sync for noticeable amounts of time (10-15 seconds), often times the video will "freeze" and wait for the audio to catch up, however there have been the odd one here and there that will not re-sync unless the source is reloaded. this happens with both Chrome (beta 22.0.1229.26) and Firefox 12.0 (yes... very outdated, it crashes every time I try to update, so I figure so long as 12.0 works, i'll not bother with it)
would this be a possible sign of GPU failure? something else I might need to take it in for? and if so, would that be covered under my Apple Care? (assuming that it isn't user-caused damage, which is unlikely, at best).

 

[inlinevolvo]

Take it in and express your concerns, nicely. Ask for a new system, nicely.

 

[Naimfan]

Take it in and see if they can simply replace it - sounds like you've been through the ringer with it.

Be polite, talk to the manager, and highlight all the problems you've had with it.

Good luck!

 

[T5BRICK]

every so often (with increasing frequency) audio & video (such as YouTube, Hulu, crackle, and TVLand.com have to offer) will de-sync for noticeable amounts of time (10-15 seconds), often times the video will "freeze" and wait for the audio to catch up, however there have been the odd one here and there that will not re-sync unless the source is reloaded. this happens with both Chrome (beta 22.0.1229.26) and Firefox 12.0 (yes... very outdated, it crashes every time I try to update, so I figure so long as 12.0 works, i'll not bother with it)

These problems all involve websites that use Adobe Flash. Make sure you have that up to date first.

Anyway, you have had a lot of problems with the computer. It may be worth taking in to the Apple Store and having it checked over before the warranty expires. Maybe they'll replace it if you just point out the problems you've had and ask nicely(although, I've never had a computer replaced at the store and instead have had much better luck calling AppleCare directly.)

 

[Fo Racer30]

Sorry for being a bit vague, I wrote this late last night.
I ran through everything and everything is up-to-date.
it also occurs with hardware-side videos (Quicktime), and as I said, often times, it will correct itself (at least for a time) on page refresh/media restart.

Basically what i'm trying to do (until I can get it into the apple store) is best-diagnose what it is that's failing so I can specifically target what needs to be done. I've got it pegged to hardware (or major software failure - beyond user-end repair), as I tried a fresh 10.7 install this morning and with core applications/settings I still had the same problem,

I did talk to the manager on it's last service (bootloop) about a possible replacement, she didn't outright say no, however when I got the computer back from service, it wasn't new (obviously ) Thaks for the tip of contacting AC directly, I didn't know they handled that kind of stuff!

I called the Apple Store and explained my situation, they said so long as I made the appointment before AC expires, they would still cover it under warranty, so i'm not as pressed for time as I had thought, I can make it to the weekend.

 

[T5BRICK]

Thaks for the tip of contacting AC directly, I didn't know they handled that kind of stuff!

I called the Apple Store and explained my situation, they said so long as I made the appointment before AC expires, they would still cover it under warranty, so i'm not as pressed for time as I had thought, I can make it to the weekend.

I had some issues with a used 2006 MacBook Pro I picked up a few years ago. It still had warranty, so I took it into the Apple store several times and after the 3rd or 4th repair I asked about a replacement and was told no. The same day, I called AppleCare and explained the issues I'd been having and they arranged for a replacement laptop to be sent(it was even the current model, free upgrade!). They even sent an empty box and a pre-paid shipping label to return the old one.