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mrmicp

macrumors member
Original poster
Nov 5, 2009
74
0
Just received my new imac today and everything is perfect, quiet drive, no stuck pixels excellent apart from some bad backlight bleeding which can be seen on black screens. It's particularly bad at the top and the sides.... Does anybody else have this and should I risk sending it back??? I have a 52 inch lcd sony and that doesn't suffer at all from back light bleeding...
 
I just returned the i7 I received because it had many stuck/color changing pixels. I thought that was a real problem and unacceptable.

If I got a machine that was perfect besides the backlighting, I would be really hesitant to send it back. While I don't think that multiple stuck pixels is the norm, I suspect that the backlighting is going to be fairly consistent.

Unless it's really, really bad, it sounds like something inherent in the build/technology.
 
what seems a little unlikely? Gonna and try and put some photos up after....
 
I got mine just over a week ago and haven't seen any of these problems. Not to say they aren't happening, but looking how it is designed, it would almost have to be open, considering how it is constructed.
 
what do you consider screen bleed? The colors do look a little different in the edge, yes.. but it's only noticeable if I use something like pixel check (program) which displays an even color on the entire display. Take a picture of that.
 
I have had the issue with the backlight bleed on all 3 of the i5's I have had. I just decided to upgrade to the i7, so hopefully I will get lucky and get an i7 with no bleed, no stuck pixles, no broken glass, no loud hard drive, no random power downs. Now that will make me happy. :D But maybe I am asking a bit too much from my karma. :eek:

While the backlight bleed doesn't seem to be that big of a deal unless it is a black screen, it is a bit disheartening to have that on such an expensive computer. Makes it really annoying to work on black and white photos as well as watch movies in widescreen mode. Even my ACD 24'' suffered from backlight bleed until I eventually returned it.
 
Here you go you can clearly see the backlight bleed. I'm in two minds though as one part of me says if I send it back I may get one with a loud HDD or stuck pixels etc.. but the other part of me says if I've spent this much on a machine I expect it to be perfect especially with all this IPS and back light LED tech! I may wait until after crimbo and send it back.....
 

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Here you go you can clearly see the backlight bleed. I'm in two minds though as one part of me says if I send it back I may get one with a loud HDD or stuck pixels etc.. but the other part of me says if I've spent this much on a machine I expect it to be perfect especially with all this IPS and back light LED tech! I may wait until after crimbo and send it back.....

It seems there is a red dot near the centre of the screen. Is it a stuck pixel?
 
It seems there is a red dot near the centre of the screen. Is it a stuck pixel?

I assume that's the sensor of the digital camera. So, in essence yes, but not what you're thinking.


I would see about returning that. Even if you came back with 1 hot pixel, that would be better than this.
 
that bleed looks horrid.

Yeah so I had the exact same problem on my i5 along with a loose fan. Brought it in to the genius bar and they checked it out. They said that the back light bleed was "normal" for there to be those faded out areas in the corners bla bla bla..... but they agreed there was a loose fan and decided to swap it out. I really wanted to make a big deal about how the back light bleed is not normal, but wasn't worth the energy since they were replacing it anyways. Not sure why a lot of the genius's think a bleed is normal on an IPS LED?
 
In my experience all LCDs have some form of uneven backlighting

It is funny because if you watch the IMAC video the guy goes on about how LED is supposed to provide uniform brightness across the screen.

http://www.apple.com/imac/the-new-imac/#medium

The reality is something different.

I have a lot of experience with LCD TV using the backlight and none of them have even backlight. They all have some defects like spotlighting, uneven backlighting, etc. That is because they both have backlights whether LED or CCFL. You may get one that is better than another but they will all have some kind of anomaly. There is no such thing as a perfect one, despite what you read. It is just inherent in the technology and many factors can cause these (Screws too tight on the bezel, LEDs that don't work or output a different light intensity than its neighbor, etc.). CCFLs can have differing amounts of gas in them and will light at different intensities also.

The only technology that will give you a uniform screen is CRT or Plasma. There are no exceptions.

That is why the best displays will always be CRT first and plasma a close second. Don't believe the marketing hype, plasma will always be a better technology than LCD. It is just too cost prohibitive and uses too much power for computer monitors.

So, give Apple a break, they are only using the best of what is made and any other manufacturer will be no different.

LG makes these panels and is one of the largest panel makers out there. I do believe that these are quality panels, but still think that the backlight is what makes (LED or CCFL) LCD bad. Until LCDs can provide their own light for each pixel (like a phosphor) they will always have these defects.
 
Sorry, can you explain what that means?

As JimKirk said, it's hard to find a perfect LCD panel and without a polarizer sometimes makes backlight bleeding more noticeable. So, may be the geniuses were saying "Hey! It's indeed very subtle and not as pronounced as it looks! You're probably demanding too much!" :D

Anyway, the bleed of mrmicp's screen is definitely terrible. If I was him, I would ask for a replacement.
 
Hmph!

Here you go you can clearly see the backlight bleed. I'm in two minds though as one part of me says if I send it back I may get one with a loud HDD or stuck pixels etc.. but the other part of me says if I've spent this much on a machine I expect it to be perfect especially with all this IPS and back light LED tech! I may wait until after crimbo and send it back.....

Same problem here, really has annoyed me that this is common, no chance of replacement with no issues, but this is the only issue i have, trying to stay positive :)
 

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Yeah so I had the exact same problem on my i5 along with a loose fan. Brought it in to the genius bar and they checked it out. They said that the back light bleed was "normal" for there to be those faded out areas in the corners bla bla bla..... but they agreed there was a loose fan and decided to swap it out. I really wanted to make a big deal about how the back light bleed is not normal, but wasn't worth the energy since they were replacing it anyways. Not sure why a lot of the genius's think a bleed is normal on an IPS LED?

probably is normal for a POS iMac.
 
Is the backlight bleeding issue a common problem nowadays?

I have had 2 iMacs i7 with the backlight bleeding issue that I have had sent back.

I emailed Steve Jobs today to hear what he had to say, but I don't expect an answer.

I had decided that I don't gonna buy the i7 iMac that is now out because of this issue. I'm going to wait for the next refresh to see if the problem is gone.

So tired of this.. We are many people out there with this issue! Fix it!
 
My brand new iMac looks like this
http://www.mypicx.com/11222010/Black_bleed/
What do you guys think?

The glass also has a minor damage in the bottom left corner. It is difficult to tell in the picture but its very annoying to receive a not perfect imac when you paid for one.
http://www.mypicx.com/11222010/minor_damage/

The backlight bleed is unfortunately normal for all iMac's because Apple chose not to use a polarizer with the screen. As for the damage, that would drive me nuts. I would send it back personally.
 
Damage and Backlight Bleed

I just unwrapped my new/refurbished iMac i7 27" and i'm noticing blemishes that are under the top edge of the glass. Although it's a refurbished model I still spent 2000.00...the viewing area of the screen is fine, should I care?
The overhead light makes them stand out but in the dark I don't notice them. They seem to be areas where the black paint has been damaged. 6 spots of various sizes.

In addition to the slight damage, I also have the bleed issue. I have uploaded pictures. Full brightness and half.... Damage at top.

Should I take it back?
 

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You guys got me all paranoid so I checked. I do not have this problem. Refurb i3 delivered 2/8/11.

When I first powered her on though I had a handful of pixels that seemed to pop, stick, flicker, and go yellow. That scared me. Went away and haven't seen it since.
 
This is mine:

http://img837.imageshack.us/img837/6862/dsc06213fv.jpg

I have a 27-inch iMac (late 2009).

First display: stains on the screen (like dirt)
replaced
second display: stains again
replaced
third display: nasty backlight bleeding plus a nice dead pixel.

On the first and second display I had no issue of backlight bleed whatsoever therefore it's NOT normal at all. Every screen has some level of backlight bleed that's for sure but not as severe as the ones shown here.

I'm calling Apple tomorrow to make an appointment and have the display replaced once again. You should do the same in my opinion (unless the issue doesn't bother you, of course).
 
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