MB backlight bleeding, should I exchange?

[benmadrid]

Fellow MB owners, what should I do? I bought a Macbook a week ago and have noticed there is a bit of backlight bleeding at the bottom of the display (bottom of the display is lighter than the top). This means for example that when I watch a widescreen dvd the black band at the bottom is kind of grey whereas the one at the top is jet black - that is when I have the screen angled perfectly for viewing the movie image in the middle. This can also be seen if you set a dark desktop colour - it's lighter at the bottom of the screen.

Another good way to see this is to install pixel check and choose the all black screen option. All the other colours it displays are fine, but all black clearly shows the backlight bleeding from the bottom problem.

Now I only noticed this after a few days when I put in a DVD and saw the band at the bottom was so different to the one at the top so it isn't the end of the world, in normal working conditions (email, internet etc) it is not a problem - in any case I usually use an external monitor in clamshell mode. I took it to the mac shop here and they said it was fine, they wouldn't change it, and in fact the one in the shop was very similar when we tested a dvd. But applecare on the phone said I was withing my rights to change it, and at the price it cost I think these things should be perfect. But if I change it and get one the same then that is a lot of hassle reinstalling everything etc for nothing - especially when my MB seems perfect in every other respect. So, could you guys tell me if you have seen/can see the same issue on your MBs? What would you do in my situation? Thanks in advance for any help.

 

[iW00t]

It is normal.

and at the price it cost I think these things should be perfect.

I have a Macbook Pro and a lot of other things that disagree with you there.

 

[benmadrid]

hmmm.... anyone else got an opinion? I have to make up my mind in the next 24 hours ...

 

[flalaw]

i dunno if they'd change it out for you, but i can tell you that i don't have any bleeding on mine. sorry to hear about the problems. good luck.

 

[Jiddick ExRex]

This is usually the case with lappy screens, seeing as there's only one light bulb in the bottom, so it's perfectly normal. And as far as the comment about perfection and spending a lot of money on it: it's one of the cheapest good-specced laptops out there, so...

 

[jmolaver]

My macbook does not have this issue, but my boss' iMac did.

He was given a LOT of grief by the "genius" bar folks, and was told everything from, "there isn't anything wrong," to "that's a normal bleed from the light source," and even "if we replace the LCD it'll basically be a refurbished machine, and I wouldn't want it back." Of note is that he also purchased it from Macmall (we have a corporate account and get a discount), and they gave him grief about warranty work because of that (I know it makes no sense).

He complained and wrote letters as high as he could with Apple and got nowhere. When he finally thought to speak to our rep at Macmall he offered to replaced the whole machine right off the bat.

So in short, no, I don't think it's normal, and I'd get the machine replaced if you think you can.

 

[flalaw]

This is usually the case with lappy screens, seeing as there's only one light bulb in the bottom, so it's perfectly normal. And as far as the comment about perfection and spending a lot of money on it: it's one of the cheapest good-quality laptops out there, so...

what is an example of an expensive good quality notebook? just curious.

 

[flalaw]

i have a phillips 42 in. lcd tv an i've got bleed through there. now THAT is a pain in the ass. luckily i got it from sams club and they have a 6 month return policy.

 

[Jiddick ExRex]

what is an example of an expensive good quality notebook? just curious.

Whoops, by quality I meant "specced up to date"

 

[flopticalcube]

I have noticed bleeding in many laptops. It isn't necessarily just price as I have seen it in cheap and expensive laptops. My old Compaq was far worse at screen bleeding the the MacBook and considering how bright MacBook screens are, I think a little bleeding (especially in the black colours) is not a big deal IMHO.

Consider this: if you do swap it, you may get a laptop with no bleeding but with more serious problems.

 

[extraextra]

I think mine is similar.

 

[iW00t]

what is an example of an expensive good quality notebook? just curious.

Some of the Sony Vaios have LED backlit monitors and costs the same as a MBP with integrated graphics.

Apple does not make high quality stuff, Sony truly does. Or maybe you are just paying for "It's a Sony".

 

[L3X]

Sony products are typically more expensive than other brands, however, everyone i've talked to that owns a sony this or a sony that has liked it.

...not to make apple look bad by any means.

 

[flopticalcube]

Some of the Sony Vaios have LED backlit monitors and costs the same as a MBP with integrated graphics.

Apple does not make high quality stuff, Sony truly does. Or maybe you are just paying for "It's a Sony".

LOL! Is this your personal experience. Its not mine. Sony stuff has been comparable to Apple in some areas. In others it is woefully lacking. Take a look at software for instance and compare SonicStage to iTunes. No contest. In hardware you will find just as many dissatisfied Sony customers as you will Apple.

 

[WildPalms]

The last cable station I worked for threw out a bunch of Sony professional monitors (tv monitoring). The engineers found them of poor quality compared to other brands. So much so, that even when relegated to signal analysis units the engineers decided they were still inadequate all Sony monitors were discarded, some 140 odd.

 

[dukebound85]

LOL! Is this your personal experience. Its not mine. Sony stuff has been comparable to Apple in some areas. In others it is woefully lacking. Take a look at software for instance and compare SonicStage to iTunes. No contest. In hardware you will find just as many dissatisfied Sony customers as you will Apple.

i wasnt aware sony was a software company so yea. also you can download itunes anyways so im not seeing the issue.

i like the vaio line alot

 

[clicq]

Does your screen look like my screen at http://picasaweb.google.com/artitj/Macbook/photo#4998182946425995282 ? (Yes, that's supposed to be all one color.) I've seen this problem with just about every Macbook (not pro) I've seen in a store. Also, on my Macbook at least, I can angle the screen so that the brightness at the bottom is pretty much gone, but then the top is too dark. I think this means it's more of a viewing angle problem (the screen is only rated for a 55 degree vertical viewing angle), than backlight bleeding.

 

[iW00t]

i wasnt aware sony was a software company so yea. also you can download itunes anyways so im not seeing the issue.

i like the vaio line alot

Actually I only like the LED screens they use a lot. Seen those in a mall and gosh they are truly amazing.

Don't like Sony as a company that much though.

 

[iW00t]

Anyway benmadrid did you contact someone in Apple?

The crux of the issue really is do they allow you to exchange? If so go for it. Just keep exchanging until you are happy. There was even this guy a while back who went through 4 MBs just because her "trackpad button felt a bit squishy".

 

[benmadrid]

OK, I took it into the store and all the others in there were the same, meaning any replacement was very likely to be similar. As this is only a problem I will notice when I am watching widescreen dvd's (with the black band at the bottom), which I never really do, and as there was a good chance that any replacemelnt had some other niggle wrong instead, I decided to keep it and be happy. Life is too short to get too obsessive about something I only noticed after a week anyway. What is certain is that Apple, a company fighting to keep a 5-10% market share, should make sure their monitors are perfect IMHO - but that's another story. In every other respect I am delighted with the Macbook, and the monitor (it's only the occasional black at the bottom of the screen after all).

As for Sony/Apple. I think Sony make the nicest laptops in the PC arena. But here in Madrid a Sony Vaio with the same specs and size as my MB costs 1000 Euros more!!! Crazy! As for Sony monitors, I'm using one now with my MB in clamshell and it is a truly beautiful monitor - 17", matt. And in terms of software, I used to love their Vegas video editing package. Time to get used to iVideo now!

Thanks for all the help - my conclusion: quite a few Macbooks have backlight bleeding, they really shouldn't, but as long as everything else is working so well, I can live with it!

 

[Zwhaler]

hmmm.... anyone else got an opinion? I have to make up my mind in the next 24 hours ...

Keep it. My iMac does the same thing. Don't let it bother you... imagine what problems a replacement computer might have! Then youll have good backlighting... and a dead pixel! Just an example, but be happy with the machine you have.

 

[benmadrid]

Does your screen look like my screen at http://picasaweb.google.com/artitj/Macbook/photo#4998182946425995282 ? (Yes, that's supposed to be all one color.)

Very similar yes!

 

[giah]

Very similar yes!

but that would mean half of the screen is gray? my macbook has a slightly grayer area on the bottom as well, but i thought that was normal for flatscreens.

 

[iW00t]

The Macbooks I come across looked just like that too. It is not really due to backlight bleeding but due to the colour shifts from the viewing angles. Try shifting your head a bit and watch it change to something else.

 

[giah]

but no matter how I shift my head, the bottem always appears a bit lighter/grayer than the top....man...I'm starting to worry, not that it bother me much, but I just don;t like hte idea that something could be wrong....

maybe I'm worrying to much