iMac 27" - Screen Flickering

[hakr]

Apparently you stopped reading my post at that sentence.

Read the next one after that in which I very clearly explained why I feel that way.

I read your post. I know how you feel. How you or I feel about this issue has no particular bearing on the statistics, which we don't have. I wouldn't bet my last dollar on fanzine and fansites being early reporters of serious issues.

 

[MH01]

Why doesn't your ACD second screen flicker when you plug it ?
=> As simple as your screen isn't near the heat in the iMac.
=> Try to heat up to 75-80 °C your other Screen and see if it flickers

As for the games: I play wow and Aion for many hours ;( I know but i am hoocked.

Well, actually the GPU is sitting at 80c on the imac and the ACD is fine. Are you suggesting that heat inside the computer is casuing the LED to flicker, and that it is not the GPU that is failing?

 

[MH01]

I personnaly think everyone has that problem.
As EVERYONE has exactly the same model. It's the first which cam eout of same factory !

Why didn't it came up for some ?
Because it's only coming up when they use extremely strong the CPU and the GPU.
Which not all do.

Try playing a high resolution game for > 45 mins.
You'll see

Not so sure about that. When i got my MBP 15"first time mine would get black screens of death while my mates was fine. All you need to do is find one 27 that plays wow fine for over 2 hours and that disproves the theory.

 

[Btom]

In my opinion it's a general problem.

- Why it doesn't come up for everyone ?
=> Because not everyone uses all the capacity of the iMac, really high and long (>1h) usage of the iMac will bring this problem up.

- Why this problem is for everyone ?
=> iMac have all the same cooling materials

- How can this problem be solved ?
=> An Software update of the fan/cooling controling will make this problem go away.

- What does this update need to do ?
=> Control the fans after the usage (if intense = blow more ; if idleing = go to lowest blowing setting )

- Tested ?
=> Yes. I installed the smc tool for controling the fan speed.
I turned it up for about 55% - 65% of the minimum speed fan and i never go up over 60°C also under full usage for hours. Compared to before when i was at >80°C.

- Why this problem came up ?
=> Because there is no auto regulation of the fan speed / usage.
=> It's blocked to the minimum speed fan and never changes.

Ghosti,

I was watching this topic for a while and the picture may be more complicated than you suggest. First of all, some people get flickering while idling, or waking up the computer, and some don't get it even when playing hard. Some people were reporting flickering while increasing the brightness, some were reporting first case after many days of use, and then coming down often. There is even a chance, that it is two (or more) overlapping problems.

Different temperature (different fan speed) may cover this problem in some cases, but we need a working solution from Apple and I really hope that it wan't be speeding up the fans and increasing fan noise. So far Apple doesn't talk much, but replaces affected computers quite nicely. Obviously it is something they didn't anticipated and didn't find out during the prototype testing (usually VERY thorough).

Overall cost to Apple for all the replacements and looming recall is enormous, both in cash and the company image, and not solving it is not an option, I just wish they finally made a statement, or something.

For the time being the only thing we can do is to keep the poll alive and hope Apple will be fast with the solution. I took the plunge and ordered my i5, but I am also planning for few replacement rounds (meaning computer is going to work hard, being turned on and off, but also my old one stays around for a while and not too much software and files transferred to the new one).

Tom B.

 

[SaSaSushi]

I read your post. I know how you feel. How you or I feel about this issue has no particular bearing on the statistics, which we don't have. I wouldn't bet my last dollar on fanzine and fansites being early reporters of serious issues.

I wasn't referring to fan sites. I meant supposedly unbiased tech news sites or even major news outlets (like the NY Times, etc) with tech columns.

The ATI Radeon HD 2600 Pro in my mid-2007 had famous firmware issues when it was first released that a large percentage (but not all) users experienced which caused graphical artifacting and lockups. There were threads full of complaints about that on these and other Apple forums as well. What there ALSO was, and there is not as yet on this issue, were published reports about it all over tech and news sites and subsequently an official statement from Apple that they were aware of the issue and would address it. It took a long time but they did so with a firmware update eventually.

 

[SaSaSushi]

Not to be too personal, but what game did you play on ?
On which OS did you play ? Snow Leopard or Windows Vista/7 ?

Not personal at all! Sorry, I should have mentioned it. I've been playing the new Call of Duty with the settings maxed and in Windows 7 Ultimate (32-bit).

Another thing to be aware of, which others have posted to this thread, is that not only gamers are reporting the flickering.

I hope that whatever is causing the problems for those who are experiencing them that it is something Apple can fix with a software update and that they will do so SOON! As I just mentioned in the post above it took them way too long to issue firmware updates to fix problems on the ATI HD 2600 Pro two years ago.

 

[samt14]

I personnaly think everyone has that problem.
As EVERYONE has exactly the same model. It's the first which cam eout of same factory !

Why didn't it came up for some ?
Because it's only coming up when they use extremely strong the CPU and the GPU.
Which not all do.

Try playing a high resolution game for > 45 mins.
You'll see

I don't think this is actually true. All systems are not identical. The parts used to build the system may differ. While overall a motherboard is made by a certain manufacturer for example, the list diodes, chipsets etc may not all be from teh same manufacturer, thus some are different. That's why in the past imac some of them had freezing occuring some did not. The reason they are not identical is simply smart business. Having multiple supply chains lowers risk of disruption if one fails.

That said i have the 27inch imac, played COD4 on it for about 2 hours, no problems as of yet

 

[hakr]

I wasn't referring to fan sites. I meant supposedly unbiased tech news sites or even major news outlets (like the NY Times, etc) with tech columns.

The ATI Radeon HD 2600 Pro in my mid-2007 had famous firmware issues when it was first released that a large percentage (but not all) users experienced which caused graphical artifacting and lockups. There were threads full of complaints about that on these and other Apple forums as well. What there ALSO was, and there is not as yet on this issue, were published reports about it all over tech and news sites and subsequently an official statement from Apple that they were aware of the issue and would address it. It took a long time but they did so with a firmware update eventually.

There seems to be a plethora of problems. I wonder if all of them are related. What this tells us is that Apple is not burning in its new computers before shipment. That's not good practice.

 

[SaSaSushi]

There seems to be a plethora of problems. I wonder if all of them are related. What this tells is that Apple is not burning in its new computers before shipment. That's not good practice.

I'm not sure about that speculation because like I said, knock on wood but I'm not having any problems with my own i7 yet. My heart does go out to all those who are though.

 

[steve31]

I have had mine for a week now...with no problems yet. But I think that it is more a software problem than a hardware. Apple does need to be more transparent than they are when there is a major glitch in there products. I am hopeful that they will fix the problem.

 

[miguel mouse!]

Got my iMac on the 27th from the Apple Store. Just a quick flicker, usually during the first 10 minutes after turning it on.

I think I'm going to have to wait until after Christmas, when I get a week off from work, to get a replacement.

 

[butchcoolidge]

27" mac flicker solver

I had the same problem with my 1 week old imac. I bought a UPS and the flickering stopped. Problem solved!


http://www.officemax.com/catalog/sku.jsp?productId=prod1510024&history=5px9wt6h|prodPage~15^freeText~ups^paramValue~true^refine~1^region~1^param~return_skus^return_skus~Y

 

[VanNess]

I wasn't referring to fan sites. I meant supposedly unbiased tech news sites or even major news outlets (like the NY Times, etc) with tech columns.

The ATI Radeon HD 2600 Pro in my mid-2007 had famous firmware issues when it was first released that a large percentage (but not all) users experienced which caused graphical artifacting and lockups. There were threads full of complaints about that on these and other Apple forums as well. What there ALSO was, and there is not as yet on this issue, were published reports about it all over tech and news sites and subsequently an official statement from Apple that they were aware of the issue and would address it. It took a long time but they did so with a firmware update eventually.

Not to mention the screaming, hollering, endless tears, and rabid suicide threats concerning the previous generation early 2009 24 inch iMacs equipped with the Radeon HD 4850 (supposedly the same card at issue here) which had issues with lock-ups and screen freezes - until Apple came along and saved the day with...you guessed it, a firmware update.

It's somewhat curious that early 2009 iMac 24 owners with the supposedly same HD 4850 card appear to be immune to the graphic issues of the 27 inch iMac. C2D 27 inch iMacs with the HD 4670 also appear to have the problem, so it's all in the family. Still, I wonder why there appears to be no reports of HD 4850-based 24 inch models from early 2009 having the issue.

I have the i7 and have the infamous graphics issue(s). Horizontal flashing patches of graphics corruption followed occasionally with screen blackouts. In my case, they seem to come and go away on their own with no intervention on my part, and I haven't seen anything hitting the logs when they do occur. They paid a visit early this morning in fact, and eventually went away by themselves, kind of like a big electronic sneezing fit. The machine has been on all day and in use and nothing further happened after this morning. In any event, the machine is being exchanged on Applecare's assumption that it's a hardware issue, although Applecare's front lines seem to default to the theory that if it's not cured with a restart, pram reset, and/or smc reset, then it's a hardware issue.

All in all, this is shaping up to be a do-over of the early 2009 iMac Radeon problem. It seems like a number of frustrated folks ended up needlessly exchanging their iMacs back then under the assumption that it was a hardware problem, only to eventually see a surprise Radeon firmware update appear in their software update that specifically addressed the issue. I would be hard for even a rabid fanboy to cast that in a good light. Not matter how you cut it, exchanging and/or refunding machines is pretty significant overhead for Apple, and it's a pain the ass for the customer to move their data on and then off a machine that Apple initially represents needs to be exchanged, then moves their data back on an new machine, still has the same problem, and then the problem is resolved later with a software fix. They could have just hung on to the original machine and not gone through any of that nonsense.

I suppose I can understand Apple's reasoning for being silent during an initial investigation of the issue in case there is a third party software conflict involved. But I have seen the graphics issue with Radeon HD 4670 C2D 27 iMacs on display in Apple's flagship San Francisco store, including screen blackouts, and it's awfully hard to imagine that I was the only one to notice it. Third party software issues aside, I think customers would accept and show ample patience if Apple would just acknowledge that their are aware and are looking into the issue. At least that would save them the expense of replacing machines that very well may not need replacement and save customers from having to deal with installing their data, then erasing it, and reinstall their data all over again on a unnecessary replacement.

 

[hakr]

I think customers would accept and show ample patience if Apple would just acknowledge that their are aware and are looking into the issue. At least that would save them the expense of replacing machines that very well may not need replacement and save customers from having to deal with installing their data, then erasing it, and reinstall their data all over again on a unnecessary replacement.

Yes, well, I'm planning to hold off on a new I7 until there is some acknowledgment by Apple of the problem(s), and a methodology for a fix, be it
a firmware/software update or something more drastic.

 

[Btom]

Will The New York Times help?

Yes, well, I'm planning to hold off on a new I7 until there is some acknowledgment by Apple of the problem(s), and a methodology for a fix, be it
a firmware/software update or something more drastic.

It seems the iMac problems are going mainstream - watch The New York Times thread (or the NYT itself). Hope this finally will force Apple to comment.

In the meantime the second Screen Problem Poll on this forum was shut down for an undisclosed reason.

Tom B.

 

[SaSaSushi]

It seems the iMac problems are going mainstream - watch The New York Times thread (or the NYT itself). Hope this finally will force Apple to comment.

I could only find this blurb at the NY Times from yesterday wherein they make mention of the cracked screen and DOA problems reported on some new 27-inch iMacs. I see no mention of the flickering issue. Do you have a URL?

 

[dwarnecke11]

Okay, I experienced the infamous "screen flicker" for the first time today - twice. Very brief, like a "glitch". No blackouts yet. I'm still hanging on to it since it has been otherwise fine with no strange noises or other hardware issues. I seriously hope this is an issue that can be remedied by an OS update or firmware update. It just doesn't strike me as a hardware issue given the nature of the flicker.

This i5 is so fast and this screen is so beautiful. Even with these faults I love it. What a difference compared to my 1.42 Ghz G4 Mac mini!

 

[MH01]

Not to mention the screaming, hollering, endless tears, and rabid suicide threats concerning the previous generation early 2009 24 inch iMacs equipped with the Radeon HD 4850 (supposedly the same card at issue here) which had issues with lock-ups and screen freezes - until Apple came along and saved the day with...you guessed it, a firmware update.

It's somewhat curious that early 2009 iMac 24 owners with the supposedly same HD 4850 card appear to be immune to the graphic issues of the 27 inch iMac. C2D 27 inch iMacs with the HD 4670 also appear to have the problem, so it's all in the family. Still, I wonder why there appears to be no reports of HD 4850-based 24 inch models from early 2009 having the issue.

I have the i7 and have the infamous graphics issue(s). Horizontal flashing patches of graphics corruption followed occasionally with screen blackouts. In my case, they seem to come and go away on their own with no intervention on my part, and I haven't seen anything hitting the logs when they do occur. They paid a visit early this morning in fact, and eventually went away by themselves, kind of like a big electronic sneezing fit. The machine has been on all day and in use and nothing further happened after this morning. In any event, the machine is being exchanged on Applecare's assumption that it's a hardware issue, although Applecare's front lines seem to default to the theory that if it's not cured with a restart, pram reset, and/or smc reset, then it's a hardware issue.

All in all, this is shaping up to be a do-over of the early 2009 iMac Radeon problem. It seems like a number of frustrated folks ended up needlessly exchanging their iMacs back then under the assumption that it was a hardware problem, only to eventually see a surprise Radeon firmware update appear in their software update that specifically addressed the issue. I would be hard for even a rabid fanboy to cast that in a good light. Not matter how you cut it, exchanging and/or refunding machines is pretty significant overhead for Apple, and it's a pain the ass for the customer to move their data on and then off a machine that Apple initially represents needs to be exchanged, then moves their data back on an new machine, still has the same problem, and then the problem is resolved later with a software fix. They could have just hung on to the original machine and not gone through any of that nonsense.

I suppose I can understand Apple's reasoning for being silent during an initial investigation of the issue in case there is a third party software conflict involved. But I have seen the graphics issue with Radeon HD 4670 C2D 27 iMacs on display in Apple's flagship San Francisco store, including screen blackouts, and it's awfully hard to imagine that I was the only one to notice it. Third party software issues aside, I think customers would accept and show ample patience if Apple would just acknowledge that their are aware and are looking into the issue. At least that would save them the expense of replacing machines that very well may not need replacement and save customers from having to deal with installing their data, then erasing it, and reinstall their data all over again on a unnecessary replacement.

I could not agree with you more. Sadly all the tech support know is to do is the pram reset, and smc reset after that they acknowledge it as a hardware problem and recommend a replacement. I would prefer them to acknowledge the issue and say that a firmware update is on the way. As apple refuses to acknowledge the issue, I now am forced to get a refund and not a replacement. Kinda very disappointed that Apple customer reps state that replacement orders go to the top of the queue, my replacement had the exact same delivery times as new orders and even worse was going to be delivered the day after I went on holiday 18 dec, so now I have to cancel. The most frustrating thing will be if a firmware update comes out very soon and am forced to send this machine back and not get a new one now till Jan. Not sure I will even bother now, this is really a huge waste of time.

 

[hakr]

"Not sure I will even bother now, this is really a huge waste of time."

Precisely. I'm sure everyone here places some value on their time. Buying a $2000+ computer on-line that is supposed to be top of the line (compared to other computers with similar specifications) and then finding it has a cracked glass or a flickering problem or whatever is a time-waster for the customer and a potential black eye for Apple.

 

[Btom]

I could only find this blurb at the NY Times from yesterday wherein they make mention of the cracked screen and DOA problems reported on some new 27-inch iMacs. I see no mention of the flickering issue. Do you have a URL?

SaSaSushi,

No better URL, but what is more important, than some home (or even office) made failure analysis, is the exposure by a heavyweight (NYT), which cannot by as easily ignored, as whining on some discussion forum.

Tom B.

 

[emediately]

I bought my iMac 27 inch (Intel Core Duo), last week.. After letting the computer on overnight (for downloading purposes), (I turned the display off but the computer itself was on whole night.. Next morning after like 4 hrs, I start using it, and the horizontal screen flicker appears like the one in this video:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3jWlepBzVMs

I didn't get the blackouts like some ppl had though..

After I ignored it, it kept on coming up more often. However then 1/4th of my screen went wrong and it displayed my screen incorrectly on like 1/4th of the monitor. I shut it down, then powered it on again and everything went away.

My point is what's the point of returning it? It's not defective. All the iMacs use the same cooling fan system. So there's no point. I guess we'll just need to wait for the software update or something like that from Apple.

My opinion is this stuff happens on all iMacs when they reach a certain temperature. It has nothing to do with the hardware I guess. Apple's issuing new ones (just to make the customer more happy) until they solve the issue via a software update I think.

As Ghosti pointed out, this happens b/c there is no auto regulation of the fan speed / usage. What the Apple update should do is: Control the fans after the usage (if intense = blow more ; if idleing = go to lowest blowing setting ). I totally believe this, and ppl are returning their iMacs for no reason. I hope Apple responds ASAP and makes the fix via a software update. Nobody would want extra hassle with returning the iMac, and reinstalling everything on the new one.

 

[JimAtLaw]

SaSaSushi,

No better URL, but what is more important, than some home (or even office) made failure analysis, is the exposure by a heavyweight (NYT), which cannot by as easily ignored, as whining on some discussion forum.

Tom B.

The thread on this issue in the Apple Support Discussion Forums has grown to over 60 pages, with new users reporting it every day for machines just received, multiple reports of people returning machines only to have another one with the same problem, etc., so it's apparent that Apple is still selling them despite this defect being widespread.

This is ridiculous. Beginning to wish I'd bought a PC and thinking about selling the Apple gift card for a discount and using the $ to buy an HP.

 

[Btom]

I bought my iMac 27 inch (Intel Core Duo), last week.. After letting the computer on overnight (for downloading purposes), (I turned the display off but the computer itself was on whole night.. Next morning after like 4 hrs, I start using it, and the horizontal screen flicker appears like the one in this video:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3jWlepBzVMs

I didn't get the blackouts like some ppl had though..

After I ignored it, it kept on coming up more often. However then 1/4th of my screen went wrong and it displayed my screen incorrectly on like 1/4th of the monitor. I shut it down, then powered it on again and everything went away.

My point is what's the point of returning it? It's not defective. All the iMacs use the same cooling fan system. So there's no point. I guess we'll just need to wait for the software update or something like that from Apple.

My opinion is this stuff happens on all iMacs when they reach a certain temperature. It has nothing to do with the hardware I guess. Apple's issuing new ones (just to make the customer more happy) until they solve the issue via a software update I think.

As Ghosti pointed out, this happens b/c there is no auto regulation of the fan speed / usage. What the Apple update should do is: Control the fans after the usage (if intense = blow more ; if idleing = go to lowest blowing setting ). I totally believe this, and ppl are returning their iMacs for no reason. I hope Apple responds ASAP and makes the fix via a software update. Nobody would want extra hassle with returning the iMac, and reinstalling everything on the new one.

emediately,

Do not forget, that some people do not have this kind of problems. Yes, it is a lot of work to reinstall all the enchilada, but your computer is faulty, simply speaking.

My plan would be to keep replacing, until you get a good one and only then install all the software you need.

Some people were reporting changing computer three times, before getting a good one. The screen blinking threads were shut down, but you still can read some of the posts somewhere down on the list (page 2?, 3?). It may be much more to it than just fan speed and Apple is not talking.

Also, do you really want to have a jet engine on your desk?

Tom B.

 

[Btom]

The thread on this issue in the Apple Support Discussion Forums has grown to over 60 pages, with new users reporting it every day for machines just received, multiple reports of people returning machines only to have another one with the same problem, etc., so it's apparent that Apple is still selling them despite this defect being widespread.

This is ridiculous. Beginning to wish I'd bought a PC and thinking about selling the Apple gift card for a discount and using the $ to buy an HP.

JimAtLaw,

Thanks for the tip. would YOU have a URL for one of those?

I just got an email from local Gods, screen blinking threads were shut down because of abusive posts, so we have to watch our language very carefully.

Also, it is still a very nice machine, once Apple fix it. I just don't like to be treated like a dummy...

Tom B.

 

[deetz00]

I picked up my i7 on mon. night. Started getting the screen flickering/black screen etc. last night. I'll be giving apple a call soon with regards to an exchange, but my question is what's the best way to clean off the computer? The issues started when I started making the system work via 40gb file transfer, iphoto processing, etc. and thus have quite a bit of info on the system.

Thanks