iMac screen problem: thick-white line

[imacuser09]

Hello everyone,

I've been searching this forum for a little while now and, though the problem seems to be a common one, I can't find the exact answers I'm looking for. So that's why a new thread.

I have an iMac from early 2007, it's a 2Ghz Intel Core Duo, Mac OS X 10.4.8, and a few days ago something BAD happened to my screen (17" btw). A thick, 1+ inch white bar suddenly divided the display. It runs from top to bottom, all the way. Sometimes it's nowhere to be seen when I turn on my iMac, but as time goes by, thin color lines begin to appear until they "fuse" together to form the white bar. Immediately I knew that this was a hardware problem, and that I was screwed. First because I don't have applecare, and second, I hear that fixing Mac computers is not at all easy.

So, here are my questions: if I bought an external monitor, would I have to have both screens "on" at the same time, or could I power off (somehow) the faulty screen? I would like to save power. And, what kind of external monitor would you recommend buying for an iMac?

Thanks alot for your help, guys.

P.S.: I tried to screen capture with cmd+shift+3, but, oddly enough, the white bar does not appear in the resulting image.

 

[MTI]

The problem is with the LCD panel.

The vertical stripe(s) will continue to grow over time.

An external LCD in "Mirror" mode will NOT display the stripes and will allow you to continue to use the machine. Your best bet on a panel is a widescreen unit that will handle the same resolution/aspect ratio. It is also necessary to have the computer boot into a single user's account, since you won't be able to see the login screen on the external monitor once the iMac's LCD goes completely "snow blind."

There is no warranty extension in effect for the issue and there are at least two lawsuits that have been brought in US Federal court regarding it.

 

[imacuser09]

Thank you, MTI, for responding. I didn't know that the line would keep growing. If that's really the case, then Apple sure messed it up big time!

Anywho, do you (or anyone else) by any chance know if the Dell 2209WA, which is being recommended in another thread for a Mini, will also work for an Intel iMac? Or is there any other brand that is usually compatible with the Macs?

Thanks again!