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t0rqx

macrumors 68000
Original poster
Nov 27, 2021
1,746
4,277
I started a thread about it when I went through almost a dozen that all had some kind of screen damage.

I have seen your thread earlier. All of our units had dents/scratches in the screen. Some even had extra QC issues, but the most problematic component is the screen. Which comes like this out of the factory even their screen replacements. Something is wrong at their factory for two years.

What colour was your unit?
 
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Contact_Feanor

macrumors 6502
Jun 7, 2017
294
1,015
Belgium
I would suggest to inspect the new display too. We have replaced the screen for one unit three times due to this. All three came with some sort of dents/scratches. One worse than the other.

Update us. What colour unit do you have?
Picked it up today, the new display seemed spotless.
 

t0rqx

macrumors 68000
Original poster
Nov 27, 2021
1,746
4,277
Haha, exactly :p The Apple Store guy was looking at me rather funny though
Better getting looked funny than returning home with dents which they say you "allegedly" caused. Good for you you have a perfect screen!
 

avkills

macrumors 65816
Jun 14, 2002
1,226
1,074
Flashlight treatment?
Yeah I did that with mine and it looks fine. I have yet to fold it up and travel so perhaps the keyboard is damaging the screens during transport.

Does anyone have links to the microfiber cloth they bought to protect the screen?
 

What's a computer?

macrumors newbie
Nov 15, 2018
15
31
My 16" M3 MacBook Pro arrived with a few specks of dust inside the screen, that is, under the surface of the screen. This is very common for computer screens, especially larger ones. The spots that @t0rqx saw look similar. In my case, the dust specks are too small for me to see in normal use. By contrast, the external monitor I'm using right now has one dust fleck that's big enough to be annoying, but it's easy enough to ignore most of the time unless I'm doing finicky graphics work.
I tried the flashlight test on my new MacBook Pro, and found a couple of tiny scratches and scuff marks that I hadn't seen before. Every screen is going to look horrible in the flashlight test, especially after it has been in use for a while.
I also checked my MacBook Pro screen for uniformity. There's slight vignetting in the corners, and a slight ripple, presumably due to the mini-LED backlight system. None of the defects are noticeable in normal use, which is what counts for me.
 
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jha

macrumors 6502
May 4, 2021
271
191
I have seen your thread earlier. All of our units had dents/scratches in the screen. Some even had extra QC issues, but the most problematic component is the screen. Which comes like this out of the factory even their screen replacements. Something is wrong at their factory for two years.

What colour was your unit?
Space grey M2 Pro. Want space black M3 but don't want to roll the dice again now that I got a good one....
 

Knightimer

macrumors regular
Jun 27, 2012
100
36
San Francisco Bay Area
I checked mine. No issues at all. Perfect! Wow. Some people have the worst luck. I hope you find a good screen. However, more refurbished units to be sold on Apple's site and provide some savings for some people.
 
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Contact_Feanor

macrumors 6502
Jun 7, 2017
294
1,015
Belgium
less than two months after getting the display of my M2 Max replaced, the new one has dimples again. I've cleaned it once with the Apple microfiber cloth and other than that just don't touch the display. This is annoying and I have no idea where the damage stems from.
 
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SolarSailer120

macrumors member
Jul 6, 2022
47
55
For some reason with the Macbook screens I just try not to look for imperfections or wipe it down unless absolutely needed. Especially on the bigger models they are smudge magnets and it bothers me if I start cleaning
 

Makisupa Policeman

macrumors 6502
Sep 28, 2021
488
354
My new 14” M3 MBP is already getting the keyboard marks on the screen after just a few weeks of use. It hasn’t left my desk let alone been carried in a bag or backpack, and don’t ever put pressure on the lid. This happened completely on its own.

The marks come off with light pressure from a microfiber cloth so it’s not permanent (so far). But my previous 14” did not have this problem after even several months, nor does our M1 MBA which is over a year old.

I think the issue is that there is just a slight manufacturing variation in the keyboard height and lid tolerance that causes some models to get this issue and others not to. Despite the best efforts of the user to prevent it I don’t think it’s possible.

I’m just going to do my best to keep it clean without overdoing it so I don’t damage the AR coating, and hope it doesn’t cause a permanent mark. Luckily I do have AC+.
 

pshufd

macrumors G4
Oct 24, 2013
10,146
14,573
New Hampshire
My new 14” M3 MBP is already getting the keyboard marks on the screen after just a few weeks of use. It hasn’t left my desk let alone been carried in a bag or backpack, and don’t ever put pressure on the lid. This happened completely on its own.

The marks come off with light pressure from a microfiber cloth so it’s not permanent (so far). But my previous 14” did not have this problem after even several months, nor does our M1 MBA which is over a year old.

I think the issue is that there is just a slight manufacturing variation in the keyboard height and lid tolerance that causes some models to get this issue and others not to. Despite the best efforts of the user to prevent it I don’t think it’s possible.

I’m just going to do my best to keep it clean without overdoing it so I don’t damage the AR coating, and hope it doesn’t cause a permanent mark. Luckily I do have AC+.

I open and close my MacBook Pro probably 25 times per day and there are no marks - not even dust marks. I do clean the screen and keyboard regularly though. This is an M1 Pro MacBook Pro 16. I also carry it around in a backpack from time to time.
 
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Makisupa Policeman

macrumors 6502
Sep 28, 2021
488
354
I open and close my MacBook Pro probably 25 times per day and there are no marks - not even dust marks. I do clean the screen and keyboard regularly though. This is an M1 Pro MacBook Pro 16. I also carry it around in a backpack from time to time.
Good to hear. Cleaning could have something to do with it as well. I have not done a good cleaning of the keys yet and my hands are fairly moist at times. But it was also a non-issue on my two previous MacBooks, so I think there is something else about this one, like the keys are just a little too tall for the razor thin tolerances of these things.
 

Makisupa Policeman

macrumors 6502
Sep 28, 2021
488
354
So I’ve now noticed a couple of the pitting marks OP is referring to after a few months of use. I’ve been lightly cleaning the keyboard and screen of dust with an air bulb and cloth after most uses, and as I stated above don’t carry the computer in a bag or put pressure on the lid.

Well this probably just proves it isn’t worth obsessing and/or being overly cautious with these machines—although I did not have a problem out of the box, I think this issue is almost unavoidable for many units; the screens on the Mx MBPs are just very very delicate!

However, I cannot detect these marks under normal lighting with the screen on or off—I use Vivid which unlocks the full 1000 nits brightness, and on a white background the marks aren’t detectable at all as far as I can tell.

So, as frustrating as it can be to have this happen to a $2000+ “premium” machine, please don’t lose sleep over these micro imperfections. Unless maybe the screen blemishes start to become more noticeable in every day use. (Clearly advice I need to heed as well.)
 
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