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iMac 27" Quad Core i7 Problem Recap

Rebooting with Disk drive

I learned today that you cannot reboot a quad core iMac on the disk drive to run programs such as Drive Genius because of a change made for the quads after June 2009.

From Prosoft Enginnering:
The current boot technology made by Apple is capable of booting machines released up to June of
2009, and is not dependent on the operating system on the machine. We have been waiting on
Apple's release of the latest disk development kit to boot the newest machines released after June.

We will have a new update for Drive Genius 2 to boot the latest machines once this new disk
development kit is available by Apple. We have added you to our mailing list to notify you once the
updated Drive Genius 2 DVD is available.

As an alternative, you may use Target Firewire Mode to help you connect your new machine to
another Mac and use the application from there to provide maintenance on your new machine. Please
follow these steps to use Target FireWire Mode:

1) Turn off the machine with the hard drive you wish to troubleshoot (iMac).
2) Connect both machines using a firewire cable.
3) Boot the secondary Mac as you do normally.
4) Boot the machine with the hard drive you wish to troubleshoot (iMac), while holding the "T" key.
Hold the "T" key until you see a FireWire icon floating across the screen.

At this point, this will have your hard drive connected to your second computer. You may
troubleshoot your hard drive using Drive Genius 2.
 
HDD is interfering with the sound.

In a noisy shop or environment it might not be a problem, but when you work in a quite environment it is very very irritating that the spinning of the HDD is amplified by the system. It sounds like an old fashioned cheap car stereo that is picking up interference from the motor and sending it over the speakers. I will certainly return it to the shop to have a look at it. The only thing I can imagine is that they did a haste job around Christmas in the Chinese factory and forgot to isolate the HDD cable properly.
I had an immediate problem with the system too, after creating a user account I could not log into it anymore, immediately after restart. I solved it by starting up from a 17" MBP cloned drive, reformatting the 2 TB HDD and migrating my data, after which the 2TB drive seem to work fine. So no problems other than a irritating amplified spinning sound if the drives spins up.
 
Screen Flicker and Blackouts

Broken display port.

Yellow tinge bottom, bototm left, bottom right, center, bottom center.

When birghtness dimming - high pitch noises

Loud Segagate HD sounds (constant, never ending)

Failing HD on arrival

HD fans never turning off (always at 4000 once it went up) - possibly broken heat sensor

Broken heat sensors (Fans never turning on, always at 1000 rpm even at 70+ Celcius)

iSight dead/ stuck pixels

Broken Airport (disconnects every 30 minutes), requires log out / restart

Broken USB port; cannot read USB HDs.

Broken Superdrive (DVD drive).

Broken Firewire port.

Magic Mouse and Keyboard having difficulty pairing up with iMac. Loses connection often.



The most prominent ones are the flickering and yellow screens.
 
Now on my *third* quad-core i7

I must say that I'm beyond frustrated, but I am keeping my hopes high that my most recent machine (now my *third*) won't have any problems.

With the first one I noticed a dead pixel after 4 days or so. I swapped it out at the Apple store. Then, the newly swapped out machine started having video issues about a week later.

When it would wake from a cold state (be it sleep, or fresh boot), regions on the screen where darker pixels were (they didn't have to be absolute black) had dancing pixels in them. It looked almost like if you turn on channel 3 or whatever on an old analog TV, and you get static... except it was dancing green pixels in the dark areas of images. Eventually, after the machine warmed up (seemingly), the issue would go away. Oh, and also, I think it was a video issue because I couldn't screen shot any of these anomalies (it appeared to be a post-OSX failure).

Anyway, the next day it was more green dancing pixels - a greater quantity - that went away after a while of use. Then, the next day it was dancing green AND blue ones (where darker images were) in an even greater quantity. Then, later, it was dancing green, blue, and also YELLOW ones (where reds were), and exactly the left half of the screen had this layer of white overlaying everything. After the machine warmed up, it would go all away.

Now, after much tech support and applecare contact to have my warranty switched over (which I am going to have to do again), I just swapped the second machine out for this third one that I am currently typing on and reinstalling all my work apps on... again... for a 3rd freakin' time.

Keep your fingers that this one doesn't skitz out on me too. :|

I've wasted SO MUCH TIME already dealing with this stupid computer it's not even funny. This is saying nothing about those select "special" Apple store employees who have made this experience all the more un-fun. I hate going to the Apple store. What is with the attitudes in those places anyway? :|

Anyway.. that's what I have experienced so far. It has not fun, and honestly I'm quite turned off right now.


(Note: in all fairness, there have been a lot of truly great and helpful apple folks I have dealt with so far too... admittedly, some even in the apple store.)
 
Here are the problems I have noticed with mine:

1. iCoffee engine only produces a light brew. Does not seem that selecting "dark roast" option makes any difference. Tried overclocking, but started to notice Starbucks-like-burned-coffee-beans smell, so I backtracked.

2. Does not put the kids to bed on its own. Yikes, it actually does not even soothe them. Discussions with Apple folks did not yield any useful suggestions.

3. Despite repeated attempts at fixing the problem, my iMac still does not appear to be paying down my mortgage. I have just checked again my online statement, and nothing.
 
you forgot the biggest complaints...

turpentine22 said:
Here are the problems I have noticed with mine:

1. iCoffee engine only produces a light brew. Does not seem that selecting "dark roast" option makes any difference. Tried overclocking, but started to notice Starbucks-like-burned-coffee-beans smell, so I backtracked.

2. Does not put the kids to bed on its own. Yikes, it actually does not even soothe them. Discussions with Apple folks did not yield any useful suggestions.

3. Despite repeated attempts at fixing the problem, my iMac still does not appear to be paying down my mortgage. I have just checked again my online statement, and nothing.
Click to expand...

4. My iSlice is not slicing bread properly. The bread is cut unevenly by one pixel every time, and the toast has a yellowish tinge when viewed under an electron microscope. You fanboys can't see this because you are blinded by your own fanboy blinders. Proof that Apple once again FAILS to produce the greatest thing since sliced bread....
 
mlblacy said:
4. My iSlice is not slicing bread properly. The bread is cut unevenly by one pixel every time, and the toast has a yellowish tinge when viewed under an electron microscope. You fanboys can't see this because you are blinded by your own fanboy blinders. Proof that Apple once again FAILS to produce the greatest thing since sliced bread....
Click to expand...


Worst. Joke. Ever.

I am truly embarrassed for you. :(
 
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