Just received 15" SR MBP + 7200 rpm 160GB. Report + Questions!

[chem]

I ordered the 2.4 GHz model with the 7200rpm drive on July 5 (ADC student account, USA). It arrived today, within the middle of the original quoted shipment / delivery window. The machine is a week 29.

1. DRIVE: The drive is a Seagate Momentus 7200.2 according to the model #, as expected. Yay. 130GB free as delivered -- iWork '06, language packs, iLife '06 pre-installed.

Question: If I reformat and reinstall OS X, is iLife '06 on the OS X discs? There was an iWork disc in the box but no iLife.

2. HEAT: The system is idling at 45-53C. Running two "yes > /dev/null" processes quickly ramps up the temperature. Once the CPU passes 80C, the fans start to increase speed. They eventually get up to ~4000 rpm, and maintain CPU temp at around 80-82C. I suspect the thermal paste job is a poor one and may reapply.

Question: What do other 15" SR MBPs idle at? Anyone idling below 45C? My room temp is 24C (75F).

3. DISPLAY / YELLOW TINT: I used the test screens here (grey background / white boxes https://forums.macrumors.com/posts/3817205/ ) to check for quality of display. The display was a 9C67, LG screen. I can notice a slight yellowing if I really look for it. More notably, the bottom inch or so of the display is somewhat darker / duller than the rest of the screen. It's noticeable if you look for it. It's not really noticeable in normal use. It looked the same before/after the SR MBP software update 1.0, and I have not done any color calibration of the profile yet. No visible dead pixels after eye-inspection by two people.

Question: If you've returned a MBP because of the yellow tint / dark display issue, how picky are you being? I think mine is probably okay, but it's not 100% perfect.


Anyone have questions for me?

 

[dom7]

iLife '06 is included on the Mac OS X disc.

Mine idles @ 46-55.

 

[devman]

no laptop display is perfect. Viewing angles change things dramatically. If you go looking for things this seriously you inevitably convince yourself you've found things. Frankly unless it's very obvious stuff (e.g. dead or stuck pixels, or a yellow tint that is noticeable no matter what viewing position) then I wouldn't worry.

 

[PDE]

no laptop display is perfect. Viewing angles change things dramatically. If you go looking for things this seriously you inevitably convince yourself you've found things. Frankly unless it's very obvious stuff (e.g. dead or stuck pixels, or a yellow tint that is noticeable no matter what viewing position) then I wouldn't worry.

I have to agree. These displays all seem to show quite warm whites and some of them have the yellowing issue. If yours feels good in everyday usage, i.e. you don't get bothered by it all the time, I would definitely hold onto it since an replacement might be much much worse. It seems the LG displays are generally better than the samsung ones too, so it would be risky to ask for a replacement.

If everything else is working perfectly, I'd keep it and enjoy.

 

[powermac_daddy]

I ordered the 2.4 GHz model with the 7200rpm drive on July 5 (ADC student account, USA). It arrived today, within the middle of the original quoted shipment / delivery window. The machine is a week 29.

Question: If you've returned a MBP because of the yellow tint / dark display issue, how picky are you being? I think mine is probably okay, but it's not 100% perfect.

Anyone have questions for me?

Did you pay $3000 for that yellowish screen? If not, then return/exchange. No questions about it.

 

[PDE]

Did you pay $3000 for that yellowish screen? If not, then return/exchange. No questions about it.

I think the question should be: do you want a macbook pro now? If yes, chances are you'll have a display with warmish whites, or a defective one with the yellow lower 1/3. I wouldn't accept the latter, but the former seems acceptable. The one I just got is an LG and it doesn't have yellow, but whites are a little warm compared to what I'm used to. Maybe it's the same with yours?

 

[powermac_daddy]

I think the question should be: do you want a macbook pro now? If yes, chances are you'll have a display with warmish whites, or a defective one with the yellow lower 1/3. I wouldn't accept the latter, but the former seems acceptable. The one I just got is an LG and it doesn't have yellow, but whites are a little warm compared to what I'm used to. Maybe it's the same with yours?

Well... that too. Let me put it this way, it's like having a really sexy/pretty/attractive girlfriend/wife, but she has really bad OB, I mean bad. You do love/like her or not? I mean she is your gf/wife.

 

[Block]

You most likely have one of the best displays you will probably be able to get, so I wouldn't exchange it unless you are feeling really lucky. Something that is just a tad darker on the bottom is a lot better than something that is overly yellow.

Alternatively, you can send it into applecare and they claim that they will fix it in its entirety.

 

[PDE]

Well... that too. Let me put it this way, it's like having a really sexy/pretty/attractive girlfriend/wife, but she has really bad OB, I mean bad. You do love/like her or not? I mean she is your gf/wife.

I had a gf just like that - and she was so sexy and hot that I learned to live with it But, of course, had we stayed together for much longer I would have probably brought it up. I doubt I would have sent her back to her mother! Seriously though, if it bothers you regularly I would suggest sending it back. If it occasionally pops up under very specific situations, I would keep it.

 

[powermac_daddy]

I had a gf just like that - and she was so sexy and hot that I learned to live with it But, of course, had we stayed together for much longer I would have probably brought it up. I doubt I would have sent her back to her mother! Seriously though, if it bothers you regularly I would suggest sending it back. If it occasionally pops up under very specific situations, I would keep it.

I hear you. Yeah, when you have a gf/wife like that, with a banging body etc... I would learn to live with it, however, if you could replace your babe (MBP) just a phone call away, dude I'll take my chance. I can wait for another 14 days. That just me.

 

[chem]

Well, I think I am okay with the screen. It's not perfect, but it is quite good. Probably better than most other laptop or even MBP screens.

How about the heat? Anyone else with a 15" SR MBP care to comment about my idle temps?

 

[powermac_daddy]

Well, I think I am okay with the screen. It's not perfect, but it is quite good. Probably better than most other laptop or even MBP screens.

How about the heat? Anyone else with a 15" SR MBP care to comment about my idle temps?

Get this kinda -------> Cooler <-------
I have one, I tested on the first MBP (Getting the replacement on Monday coz the screen). Idle temperature is around 40 C. Without the fan, it went up to the 60s. C.

 

[PDE]

Your idling temperature sounds fine, even low in my experience. what counts is not what temperatures you measure, but how the case feels when you work with it. Don't worry, temperatures do rise when you work the CPU, but the fans take care of it.

 

[Surfing@Blacks]

People need to relax with the temperatures, I feel people seem to be checking their temperatures consistently which is ruining their mac experience.

 

[PDE]

People need to relax with the temperatures, I feel people seem to be checking their temperatures consistently which is ruining their mac experience.

I agree. Unless it FEELS too hot, I would just forget about it. There's nothing you can do anyway...

 

[chem]

I've just spent 15 minutes searching for info on how to "cleanly" install the OS X 10.4.10 combo update. I know hot to download and just install it, but I remember people making specific comments about procedures to do this right, and can't find that info anywhere. It involved clearing cache and things like that. Any help?

I just install 10.4.10 via software update, but want this info for when I reinstall OS X (which is gonna happen). Thanks!

 

[chem]

After some more usage, I think there's a very slight light leak at the bottom. It's more leak, and not yellow. Only near the edge. Common?

Also still interested in the update info above; the only stuff I've found now is people talking about repairing permissions and fsck. Seems rather mundane. I bet the automatic software update is just fine.

 

[1Life]

What do you think about the text resolution? Do you come across webpages where the text comes up fuzzy or blurry?

BTW: Powermac_daddy, what in the heck is OB?

 

[Alloye]

Well, I think I am okay with the screen. It's not perfect, but it is quite good. Probably better than most other laptop or even MBP screens.

How about the heat? Anyone else with a 15" SR MBP care to comment about my idle temps?

Keep it and calibrate it. If you don't own a good calibrator, there are a number of ColorSync profiles floating around that will eliminate the warm whites. My latest one is here.

As for your temperatures, they look normal to me. One thing that really helps is to get your MBP up on a stand if you're going to use it for long periods of time in one place. Otherwise, the bottom heats up and thermal transfer through the aluminum case will eventually make the entire computer feel quite warm.