2017 iMac 27 inch 5K display discoloration

[jbjo]

My 2017 27-inch 5K iMac (iMac18,3) display is beginning to show discoloration in both lower corners. See attached pictures. Does anyone else have this problem? Any ideas for how to slow the growth or what causes it?

Specs: 4.2 GHz Intel Core i7, Radeon Pro 580 8 GB
Model Number: A1419
Order Number: MNED2LL/A, MNEA2LL/A or MNE92LL/A
Production Week: 1st week of 2018

 

[AlexGraphicD]

I have this issue on both of my iMacs that I own and sadly, no Apple Care to pay for the repair. They changed the screens on both machines multiple times when I had the 60 day warranty but the issue kept coming up and now I own two iMacs that have this discoloration and I can't really sell them for much. For my next iMac, I will pay extra $$ to have AppleCare forever in case this issue comes up on my next computer. Thanks Apple for forcing me to spend extra money to change screens because of a design and factory fault.

 

[CWallace]

Yellowing in the corners of the display has been a "feature" of the iMac since forever. There have been reports of it with the 24" panel, the 27" panel and the 27" 5K panel. It has been present to some degree on pretty much all of my iMacs (I have owned six since 2007), but only when I really look for it with a background that highlights it (a uniform light grey, for example). In normal use I never see it so I have never bothered to have the panels replaced because I risked getting one where I could see it in normal use.

 

[AlexGraphicD]

Yellowing in the corners of the display has been a "feature" of the iMac since forever. There have been reports of it with the 24" panel, the 27" panel and the 27" 5K panel. It has been present to some degree on pretty much all of my iMacs (I have owned six since 2007), but only when I really look for it with a background that highlights it (a uniform light grey, for example). In normal use I never see it so I have never bothered to have the panels replaced because I risked getting one where I could see it in normal use.

But what if the small yellowing gets worse and expands more on the screen? Does it usually remain small and doesn't expand?

 

[CWallace]

But what if the small yellowing gets worse and expands more on the screen? Does it usually remain small and doesn't expand?

That I cannot answer as I don't notice it in day-to-day operation so I have never personally tracked it. There are plenty of threads on this subject over the years so people might have posted follow-on reports over time.

 

[762999]

Yellowing in the corners of the display has been a "feature" of the iMac since forever. There have been reports of it with the 24" panel, the 27" panel and the 27" 5K panel. It has been present to some degree on pretty much all of my iMacs (I have owned six since 2007), but only when I really look for it with a background that highlights it (a uniform light grey, for example). In normal use I never see it so I have never bothered to have the panels replaced because I risked getting one where I could see it in normal use.

+1 my iMac 2008 was perfect when I bought it. After some months I got yellowing, image retention and dark spots. I solt it and apparently one month later the new owner said it died.

 

[chscag]

This in my third iMac in the last 10 years and all were and are as good as new even after extensive use. My last two iMacs are now being used by family members and still in pristine condition.

The yellowing effect you're seeing looks more like dust or dirt that has been sucked up into and between the screen and protective glass. Doesn't seem possible since the iMacs from 2012 on have the screen glued to the protective glass. However, there are reports on the web that it happens anyway.

The intake vents on the iMac are below the display aluminum frame. Cooler air gets drawn in there and warm air is exhausted out the vent near the top of the back of the display. That's how dust and dirt gets drawn in.

 

[AlexGraphicD]

That I cannot answer as I don't notice it in day-to-day operation so I have never personally tracked it. There are plenty of threads on this subject over the years so people might have posted follow-on reports over time.

This in my third iMac in the last 10 years and all were and are as good as new even after extensive use. My last two iMacs are now being used by family members and still in pristine condition.

The yellowing effect you're seeing looks more like dust or dirt that has been sucked up into and between the screen and protective glass. Doesn't seem possible since the iMacs from 2012 on have the screen glued to the protective glass. However, there are reports on the web that it happens anyway.

The intake vents on the iMac are below the display aluminum frame. Cooler air gets drawn in there and warm air is exhausted out the vent near the top of the back of the display. That's how dust and dirt gets drawn in.

And with all this in mind, don’t you think Apple would take notice of this design flaw and try to rethink the whole process of how the iMac is designed and built? It’s beyond absurd to having to shell out 2K or more for a computer that has a major design flaw and having to suck it up if you don’t pay extra for Apple care.

 

[CWallace]

And with all this in mind, don’t you think Apple would take notice of this design flaw and try to rethink the whole process of how the iMac is designed and built? It’s beyond absurd to having to shell out 2K or more for a computer that has a major design flaw and having to suck it up if you don’t pay extra for Apple care.

Apple doesn't make the panels - LG does. And it's been an issue with the LG 5K Ultafine displays and earlier QHD monitors that used LG displays. Not sure Samsung ever made 27" QHD displays (either period or for Apple), but I do not than when Apple dual-sourced MacBook Pro displays before the Retina days, people said Samsung displays were better than LG.

Apple at least does perform more testing and calibration of the 5K panels they get from LG than LG does. Put a few 5K iMacs next to each other and the display quality and consistency is pretty good. Do the same with a few Ultrafine 5K monitors and they're all over the place.

 

[nikey22]

@jbjo
are you in a smoking household? These kinds of discolorations can also accelerate in a smoke-filled environment.

 

[Roxy.music]

Yellowing in the corners of the display has been a "feature" of the iMac since forever. There have been reports of it with the 24" panel, the 27" panel and the 27" 5K panel. It has been present to some degree on pretty much all of my iMacs (I have owned six since 2007), but only when I really look for it with a background that highlights it (a uniform light grey, for example). In normal use I never see it so I have never bothered to have the panels replaced because I risked getting one where I could see it in normal use.

All that is a bit off-putting.
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@jbjo
are you in a smoking household? These kinds of discolorations can also accelerate in a smoke-filled environment.

I hope that is the reason Nikey , for the Yellowing in the corners of the display.i
don,t smoke
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@jbjo
are you in a smoking household? These kinds of discolorations can also accelerate in a smoke-filled environment.

I hope that is the reason Nikey , for the Yellowing in the corners of the display.i
don,t smoke

 

[CWallace]

All that is a bit off-putting.

Seems to be common with a lot of IPS panels. I have a $700 27" ASUS ROG IPS gaming panel that show it, too (again, if I look really hard for it).

 

[Ben J.]

I have actually successfully fixed a 2010 27" imac that had this discoloration in one corner problem. I found the solution and detailed instructions online.

I did a quick search now, and I think it might have been here-abouts:

iMac Intel 27" Repair Help: Learn How to Fix It Yourself.

Repair guides and support for 27" Intel iMacs by Apple, introduced October 2009.

www.ifixit.com

...but I'm not shure, though. I'll have to fire up my old mac pro or imac and see if I saved the link, and I'm unable to do that right now.

It was a question of taking the imac apart and fixing a tiny wire to reconnect it to the screen. I remember being able to actually just press hard on the corner of the display and it temprarily worked until I let go.

I'll get back to you if I can relocate the exact instructions.

 

[6749974]

I have actually successfully fixed a 2010 27" imac that had this discoloration in one corner problem. I found the solution and detailed instructions online.

I did a quick search now, and I think it might have been here-abouts:

iMac Intel 27" Repair Help: Learn How to Fix It Yourself.

Repair guides and support for 27" Intel iMacs by Apple, introduced October 2009.

www.ifixit.com

...but I'm not shure, though. I'll have to fire up my old mac pro or imac and see if I saved the link, and I'm unable to do that right now.

It was a question of taking the imac apart and fixing a tiny wire to reconnect it to the screen. I remember being able to actually just press hard on the corner of the display and it temprarily worked until I let go.

I'll get back to you if I can relocate the exact instructions.

That would be great.

To add to everyone’s stories:

I bought a 2010 27-inch iMac Built-to-Order with my preferred specs. Arrived and had obvious yellow in the corners, maybe 20% of the screen cumulatively. I’m a graphic designer so not only am I visually sensitive to color inconsistency, but color inconsistency will affect my work and make referencing colors inaccurate.

So I called Apple Customer Support, who were great! And had my iMac replaced in the mail. Took a week or two. Opened the box, same issue. Called again, had it returned, replaced, a week later, same issue. Every panel had the same yellow discoloration.

At that point I needed to get work done and couldn’t Afford to wait around weeks at a time. I just sucked it up.

Eventually I got less bothered by it, but it never went away, and it was obvious when the screen was mostly white, like viewing web pages full screen.

It permanently turned me off to the idea of iMacs. I would prefer a Mac Pro for regular consumers so that we could buy our own screen.

I don’t understand why Apple doesn’t just release an iMac, component wise, but without the screen. I need a dedicated GPU, and the only option starts at $5,000 for a Mac Pro. It’s overkill for graphic design. A $2,000 machine is overkill for graphic design. Why can’t Apple just make a Mac Mini version with dGPU ffs?

 

[Ben J.]

I have actually successfully fixed a 2010 27" imac that had this discoloration in one corner problem. I found the solution and detailed instructions online.

I did a quick search now, and I think it might have been here-abouts:

iMac Intel 27" Repair Help: Learn How to Fix It Yourself.

Repair guides and support for 27" Intel iMacs by Apple, introduced October 2009.

www.ifixit.com

...but I'm not shure, though. I'll have to fire up my old mac pro or imac and see if I saved the link, and I'm unable to do that right now.

It was a question of taking the imac apart and fixing a tiny wire to reconnect it to the screen. I remember being able to actually just press hard on the corner of the display and it temprarily worked until I let go.

I'll get back to you if I can relocate the exact instructions.

I'm sorry, I'm unable to find the instructions i followed.
But again, I opened the imac, found the tiny little wire in the same corner as the discoloration, and found that I could wiggle the connection to make the screen display correctly. This is with the screen still connected and the mac running. Then I inserted a little bit of plastic to make the connector sit more firmly.

 

[Nemanja604]

Anyone have a sugesstion to prevent this from happening?