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iMac Freezing Fix ETA?

snickelfritz said:
The biggest problem with the "software driver is the problem not the hardware" theory, is that identical machines are functioning perfectly with the "faulty display driver".

If it were the OSX display driver software, the problem would almost certainly affect all iMacs.
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Most definitely. I do hope for Apple's sake that the problem is fixable in a way that's acceptable to everyone otherwise they face either a massive recall or a class action neither of which is good for anyone.
 
I just found an interesting post at Apple Discussion Boards.

Fab_Paris (From Apple Discussion Forums) said:
Seen in www.mac4ever.com forum.
On guy explains how he fixed is problem of iMac Aluminium Freezing.
After complaining several times to the apple support, a techynician went to his home and simply changed the graphic card.
No more freeze nor display artefact.
One explanation was given by the technician: two kinds of graphic cards are used inside the iMac assembly.
One of them has a problem when doing the version 1.1 update: the graphic card bios is abnormaly modified leading to discussed problems.
There is no way to undo the bios modification. The only solution seems to be graphic card change.

If you speak French, the original message:
http://www.mac4ever.com/news/32269/...stifs/2/?sid=25d02803cd40b056995de33340eb25b8
See page bottom message from "Arion"

Fab.
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So I suppose it is a hardware issue after all?? :confused: This would explain the iMacs that freezes after Leopard is installed (contains 1.1 update) and those that froze upon 1.1 update. The only thing that is unexplained are those who suffer freezes in 1.0

Original Post: http://discussions.apple.com/thread.jspa?threadID=1156787&tstart=30
 
flopticalcube said:
Does make me wonder what Apple's software "fix" is going to be.
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You previously mentioned there is a software fix which could work its way around certain hardware bugs.

But in the 'Apple Technician' said...

Fab_Paris (From Apple Discussion Forums) said:
The only solution seems to be graphic card change.
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Makes me wonder if the is a fix. But of course, if this is true, then Apple would need a arrange a major callback. It would benefit us in a way because we can just keep sending back the faulty iMacs until we get one that 'just works'.

*Just as a question, are the absolute latest iMacs, shipping with Leopard plagued with freezing? If this is a hardware fault, then the latest ones shouldn't have a problem, seeing Apple already noticed this.
 
mingyishi said:
You previously mentioned there is a software fix which could work its way around certain hardware bugs.

But in the 'Apple Technician' said...



Makes me wonder if the is a fix. But of course, if this is true, then Apple would need a arrange a major callback. It would benefit us in a way because we can just keep sending back the faulty iMacs until we get one that 'just works'.

*Just as a question, are the absolute latest iMacs, shipping with Leopard plagued with freezing? If this is a hardware fault, then the latest ones shouldn't have a problem, seeing Apple already noticed this.
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According to posts on the Apple discussions boards, yes even ones purchased last Friday are still freezing.
 
As I said, given that what the technician said was true, the only thing that is unexplained are those who suffer freezes in 1.0. What are you thoughts about that?
 
Do we have a deadline on this issue? I can't work with my iMac. Customer support ignores me and don't even talk about this freezing problem. Do you know if someone is preparing some class action?
 
flopticalcube said:
The hardware fault was always there. 1.1 and Leopard seem to just make it worse/more noticeable.
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So the technician referring to 'the two kinds of graphic cards inside the iMac assembly' actually means that one kind was faulty from the start, and 1.1/Leopard which attempted to fix it corrupted it even further.
 
miggalvez said:
Do we have a deadline on this issue? I can't work with my iMac. Customer support ignores me and don't even talk about this freezing problem. Do you know if someone is preparing some class action?
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From what I see this is a hardware fault. You should try returning your iMac and keep returning it until they give you one with the good graphic card that doesn't freeze.
 
mingyishi, what makes you think that was a proper apple technician? To my knowledge, they don't/won't post on the Apple Discussion forums. Or was it a 3rd party technician?
In fact given Apples feeble reaction to this iMac fiasco, it appears no one from the company even reads it, never mind posts on it.
 
If you read some of the threads in the Apple Discussions iMac forum (look for freeze or freezing) there are some people that are pretty tired of getting the run around from Apple. It only makes people angrier when the reps say "Really, never heard of an iMac freezing. News to me..." This has been one issue that has been handled in a very un-Apple way from what I can see. If no fix is forthcoming, a class action is almost a certainty.
 
Lol nice!

http://www.electronista.com/articles/07/10/29/leopard.2nd.take/ said:
However, we've encountered significant compatibility issues that might preclude some users from enjoying Leopard right away -- if at all.

Most of these appear to have their roots in the rough drivers for AMD's ATI Radeon HD video card series, which Apple has acknowledged is causing freezing issues for the newer iMacs that use it. Upgrading to Leopard doesn't resolve this issue, which will reportedly be fixed in the near future for both the new and old operating systems. Until then, however, backing up work may be a routine for iMac owners as the freezes often happen without warning.

In fact, the OS may also have added its own share of display-related issues that are typically absent in Tiger. While intermittent, we've seen brief instances of pixel artifacts around Dock icons and one instance of white "streaks" flying across the screen, which previously only appeared in a Boot Camp install of Windows.

More disconcerting are outright shutdowns of the video system in certain conditions, particularly when Mac OS X invokes a full-screen mode. We've seen instances of Front Row, Time Machine, and the third-party game Warcraft III all randomly turning the screen completely black; when this happens, the only choice is to restart the system entirely, even though background sounds reveal the OS itself is working properly behind the scenes. These issues are borderline unacceptable, particularly on a new iMac which is supposed to represent the best Leopard (and Apple as a whole) has to offer.

Still, if Apple can resolve these problems and it turns out that the issue hasn't spread to other Macs, the OS should still be a clear step forward for most users. As much as these features limit using Leopard as intended, it would be hard to step back to Tiger's comparatively basic feature set.
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Luap said:
mingyishi, what makes you think that was a proper apple technician? To my knowledge, they don't/won't post on the Apple Discussion forums. Or was it a 3rd party technician?
In fact given Apples feeble reaction to this iMac fiasco, it appears no one from the company even reads it, never mind posts on it.
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That's why I was very skeptical about this 'technician' (see previous posts). What you are saying is correct but if this is true it explains the freezing very well and I can't see what's wrong about it. I also never said it was the technician who posted.

I don't think that Apple doesn't read its own boards. It even deleted some threads containing facts about the Freezes. Apple is known to cover things up until they get it fixed.

flopticalcube said:
If you read some of the threads in the Apple Discussions iMac forum (look for freeze or freezing) there are some people that are pretty tired of getting the run around from Apple. It only makes people angrier when the reps say "Really, never heard of an iMac freezing. News to me..." This has been one issue that has been handled in a very un-Apple way from what I can see. If no fix is forthcoming, a class action is almost a certainty.
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Definitely. There's one more day to get the fix out, and I'm very doubtful about the fix making it on time.
 
wakerider017 said:
Lol nice!
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lol at this!

http://www.electronista.com/articles/07/10/26/leopard.first.impressions/ said:
Expectedly, a new iMac is generally Apple's ideal candidate for Leopard in terms of features and performance, and we've found that to be true: all of Leopard's visual effects are present and run smoothly. The interface is about as responsive as as Tiger's despite the additions; so far, the speed is enough that we're confident most G5s and nearly every Intel Mac could make the transition. Spotlight in particular appears to have been sped up considerably with a new indexing system that finds files almost instantly, addressing one of the main complaints many had with Tiger's purportedly instant desktop search tool. We hope to test more of the fringe examples in the near future.
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Some people are careless in what they say...
 
flopticalcube said:
I, most unfortunately, agree with you. Its a dismal day for Apple fans.:(
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I do believe however, that the iMac being Apple's mainstream consumer desktops, Apple will get this problem sorted out. However I think that they might need to arrange a callback (I doubt they can fix it with a software update), or class action will take place (I think Apple knows this, and they don't want this to happen).
 
mingyishi said:
I do believe however, that the iMac being Apple's mainstream consumer desktops, Apple will get this problem sorted out. However I think that they will need to arrange a callback (I doubt they can fix it with a software update), or class action will take place (I think Apple knows this, and they don't want this to happen).
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Although everyone is entitled to their own opinion...

Other user's diagnoses of problems should be taken with a grain of salt. No one has any hard evidence to believe it is a hardware fault. You are just giving us your gut feeling...

And after the whole iPod Touch debacle, it really shows us how much we can trust online posts. Most users were all but certain that the problem was hardware related, (including myself). Thousands were coaxed into a "returning frenzy" only to find out it was a software issue.

I will wait a couple more days before contacting Apple. I really love my new iMac and I am reluctant to give it up...
 
wakerider017 said:
Although everyone is entitled to their own opinion...

Other user's diagnoses of problems should be taken with a grain of salt. No one has any hard evidence to believe it is a hardware fault. You are just giving us your gut feeling...

And after the whole iPod Touch debacle, it really shows us how much we can trust online posts. Most users were all but certain that the problem was hardware related, (including myself). Thousands were coaxed into a "returning frenzy" only to find out it was a software issue.

I will wait a couple more days before contacting Apple. I really love my new iMac and I am reluctant to give it up...
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I really do wish Apple could just hurry up and fix the problem. I was all ready to make the purchase and the freezing issues pop up. I already bought an OWC RAM to put inside the new iMac once I buy it. It would be troublesome if I don't get the iMac now (MBs are 2x512, MBP too expensive) but these freezing problems are really making me worry about the purchase.
 
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