Welcome to the MacNN Forums.

funkboy · Feb 6, 2004, 09:39 PM

It just happened today... My iMac is a year and a half old, so the warranty is out, so it's going to cost me.

Has this happened to anyone else? Is it very difficult and/or expensive to get it fixed?

Anyone know how I should go about fixing it? It's not serviceable by me, is it? I cannot even see how one would open up the LCD.

Any information anyone has would be very useful to me. I'll probably be getting it serviced from my college, since they'll probably be the cheapest, at least compared to regular businesses in town.

Thanks

Kenneth · Feb 7, 2004, 08:04 AM

That quick? My sister's iBook (300Mhz Rev. A) did suffer from a pink screen effect after 3yrs.

Does that mean all Macs with LCDs need AppleCare?

I would first grab the specific model of iMac Apple service manual and see.

funkboy · Feb 7, 2004, 12:11 PM

Originally posted by Kenneth:
I would first grab the specific model of iMac Apple service manual and see.

Where do I get a copy of that service manual? And what is it, anyway? Does it say pricing for this and such?

My iBook has been around for 2.5 years now, and it hasn't had any backlight problem... but I've used it much less since I got my iMac. Its backlight was actually starting to fail and be weird when I got my iMac... I think resting it, along with possibly just there being a little bad connection in there somewhere, was the cause of it on my iBook.

Good news, though... my iMac's screen is working right now, but I don't know how long it will last.

beetleboy · Feb 10, 2004, 09:51 PM

Originally posted by funkboy:
Where do I get a copy of that service manual? And what is it, anyway? Does it say pricing for this and such?

My iBook has been around for 2.5 years now, and it hasn't had any backlight problem... but I've used it much less since I got my iMac. Its backlight was actually starting to fail and be weird when I got my iMac... I think resting it, along with possibly just there being a little bad connection in there somewhere, was the cause of it on my iBook.

Good news, though... my iMac's screen is working right now, but I don't know how long it will last.

I've got a new 17" iMac coming on Thursday. Should I be concerned? I hope not. Is this something many people have had problems with? I hope not!

Beetleboy

Dex13 · Feb 10, 2004, 11:36 PM

Originally posted by beetleboy:
I've got a new 17" iMac coming on Thursday. Should I be concerned? I hope not. Is this something many people have had problems with? I hope not!

Beetleboy

My friend has the same model and with 2 months of the purchase the screen went dark, they sent it in to apple and I think they are getting it this week.

funkboy · Feb 10, 2004, 11:43 PM

Thankfully my problem has stayed at bay.

But I got a price quote...$299 for the screen replacement. Apparently the screen cannot be taken apart to just replace the lamp (which I imagine is relatively inexpensive, at least compared to an entire LCD). There would have also been a $20 - $40 labor charge for me - this was on campus, by the way, too, so that may have been an educational special price or something. I kind of doubt it, though, since a new battery for my iBook cost the same as a commercially-purchased one.

Maybe consider buying appleCare after it expires... I think I will from now on...

que_ball · Feb 11, 2004, 04:14 AM

Originally posted by funkboy:
Thankfully my problem has stayed at bay.

But I got a price quote...$299 for the screen replacement. SNIP

If you purchased this Mac with a credit card then you should double check your cardholder agreement to see if the card includes purchase protection. If it does then your credit card company may have insurance for an extra 1 year of warranty past the original manufacturer's warranty.

chriscozi · Feb 11, 2004, 07:31 AM

Apple Certified Technician, here,
It's been a bit since i checked, but i seem to remmeber that the backlight IS replaceable in all iMacs. Apple learned their lesson on the early PB's because it cost them an arm and a leg to have to replace the whiole sceeen. So if I was you I would shop around for a repair location near you. And from my experience, yes you could open the display if you were technically inclined. However, you will need the correct replacement lamp and that would probably have to come from Apple.

My 2 cents.

Anyone know how I should go about fixing it? It's not serviceable by me, is it? I cannot even see how one would open up the LCD.

jcarr · Feb 11, 2004, 07:54 AM

Originally posted by funkboy:
Maybe consider buying appleCare after it expires... I think I will from now on...

Just to clarrify, AppleCare must be purchased before your waranty expires. At $169 (only $119 academic), it's WELL worth the price.

There are other things one can do to prolong the life of an LCD as well. While screen savers are nice, it's hard sometimes to convice people that they are not always the best chioce.

From this knowledge base article:

Screen Savers

Although a screen saver can be used, it keeps the display backlight in use thereby decreasing its overall life. A screen saver may also prevent a PowerBook or iBook from going to sleep, decreasing battery life.

Putting the computer to sleep or shutting it down when it won't be used for extended periods is preferred to a screen saver. The Energy Saver control panel has a setting for display sleep that is applicable to both PowerBook and stand-alone flat panel displays such as the Apple Studio Display and Apple Cinema Display

Kristoff · Feb 11, 2004, 09:56 AM

Sorry to hear that.

Just an FYI, I have a Pismo that I use 10+ hours a day, every day for the last 4 years.

It's had a single pink pixel since day one.

There have been no other problems with this display.

mbryda · Feb 11, 2004, 10:35 AM

As a PC tech by day, I'll put in my $0.02...

Sorry to hear about it. If it's the lamp, it should be a relatively simple fix. But, getting the lamp can be hard as most LCD manufacturers do not sell just the lamps. Most lamps come from screen pulls and are used. And, on some LCD displays you practically have to disassemble the whole thing to get it out. (Polarizers, plastic sandwitch, etc.) It's not particularly difficult (I've had a few open and back together without incident), but you have to be handy and good working with delicate electronics.

The hard part is getting the bulb and getting it in. It may require soldering too, depending on how it is attatched.

I'd try to shop around, but many just replace the screen at around $300-400, depending on if it's a new or pulled screen.

When I got my iMac in March '02, I got AppleCare, mainly because of the LCD. I've seen 3 year old laptops that are quite dim already, as the backlights do go dim over time. Not to mention I've seen a fair share of backlight failures (as well as other hardware) and felt it was worth the $199 if just 1 thing went wrong in 3 years, which there is a pretty good chance something may happen by then (esp. LCD and DVD burner). AppleCare is a good investment in anything with a LCD screen.

beetleboy · Feb 11, 2004, 01:02 PM

I'm glad I read this thread.

When I got my old iMac DV 400 4 years ago, I remember hearing about the screens failing because of being put to sleep. Something having to the do the logic board and display card being all one unit. I remember well reading about GLOD (green light of death). People who complained about this would turn on their iMacs and the power light would be on but the screen refused to fire up. From then on I never put my iMac to sleep. I either used a screen saver or shut it down.

Now, things are going to be a bit different because of the LCD screen I'll have. So far, I haven't heard anything about the LCD Macs having trouble like the old CRT ones did.

Beetleboy

urbatronik · Feb 13, 2004, 11:14 PM

hello

i have some fears about this because i have a 15'' imac since a year, so im waiting next july to see the death of my display :'( :'(

i have a queston about that: i always have my display to sleep when the computer is inactive for 1 minute, SO, if my display is always turning on and turning off, there are more probabilities to damage it??????

please!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

funkboy · Feb 13, 2004, 11:57 PM

Originally posted by urbatronik:
hello

i have some fears about this because i have a 15'' imac since a year, so im waiting next july to see the death of my display :'( :'(

This "display death" is by no means guaranteed. I've been using my iBook for 2 and a half years and its screen works just fine - plus, my iMac's screen seems to be working fine now again, too.

i have a queston about that: i always have my display to sleep when the computer is inactive for 1 minute, SO, if my display is always turning on and turning off, there are more probabilities to damage it??????

This is saving the monitor, not damaging it. Putting the display to sleep should rest the backlight and have it not burn out so quickly.

Don't worry too much about it - get AppleCare if your first year warranty hasn't expired yet.

I wouldn't worry about it - I didn't rest my monitor as often as you do, though now I have my settings to put the screen to sleep after 1 minute of inactivity. I'm also turning off the computer when I go to sleep every night.

urbatronik · Feb 14, 2004, 01:35 AM

ok, thanx,i almost never turn off my computer but always my display is sleepng

thanx!

MoontaMacman · Feb 19, 2004, 07:16 AM

My globe went on my LCD backlight on 17" stand alone screen shortly after I bought it some 2- 3 years ago - I bought it soon after it was released in Australia - at that time it HAD to go back to an Apple service centre - and in Australia that meant Sydney (about 1,500 miles from here- it was away six weeks as they debated whether to replace or repair - eventually they repaired and it has worked ( fingers crossed) OK since return -- I believe like any other electronic item there is no exact life time - an average or expected life time is not a guarantee - some will by definition run longer some less time

Call it "luck"

I guess what I am saying is because one person's light goes does not mean they will all go at the same time frame

As for fitting it yourself-- I doubt you could get the part and if you did I doubt it would be an easy task - Iwas told special tools and trainig were required - the Adelaide service people could not tackle the task. It may be different with the iMac - I would like to think so as I now have a 20" iMac.

There was also talk of special gases ?? or similar within the screen?? - -long time ago

Ron

The Placid Casual · Mar 15, 2004, 04:39 AM

One of the backlights has just gone out on my 2 year old 17" Studio Display.

No warranty, so I am doing a fix myself.

Anyone any idea where to buy the correct backlights?

Cheers,

Marc

funkboy · Mar 15, 2004, 12:51 PM

Originally posted by The Placid Casual:
One of the backlights has just gone out on my 2 year old 17" Studio Display.

No warranty, so I am doing a fix myself.

Anyone any idea where to buy the correct backlights?

Cheers,

Marc

I don't even really think you can. The Mac guy said there was no way to fix the iMac screen... heck, I can't even see any screws holding it together, the back of the monitor must be glued together or something. Is there any web page that talks about opening up an iMac's screen?

As for a Studio Display, I bet those have screws... but I doubt it'll be easy at all. Is there any sort of service manual that details those things?

tooki · Mar 15, 2004, 02:26 PM

http://www.jkllamps.com/fluorescent.html

Replace the tubes yourself. JKL supposedly keeps a database of panels so that you can call them and find out what tube it needs. You may need to first disassemble the iMac's screen portion to find out what flat panel is in it.

Note, however, that if there's no light at all, it might be the inverter that went out, so you may need to replace that instead.

tooki

funkboy · Mar 15, 2004, 02:30 PM

Thanks tooki!

Do you know of any site that explains how to disassemble my iMac's screen at all? I don't plan on doing it right now, but if bad went to worse, I could see no harm in trying to fix it myself.

Link · Mar 16, 2004, 12:10 AM

On the LCD imacs there are a few small screws going around the perimeter of the screen.. or at least on the 15"ers

Those should pop it off. AFAIK LCD repair shouldn't be *TOO* hard, and at the worst you can look the actual panel's part number up on ebay and get a replacement screen fora bit less than apple charges

The Placid Casual · Mar 17, 2004, 05:43 AM

Originally posted by tooki:
http://www.jkllamps.com/fluorescent.html

Replace the tubes yourself. JKL supposedly keeps a database of panels so that you can call them and find out what tube it needs. You may need to first disassemble the iMac's screen portion to find out what flat panel is in it.

Note, however, that if there's no light at all, it might be the inverter that went out, so you may need to replace that instead.

tooki

Thanks for the link Tooki

Weirdly, my problem only seems to occur when waking from sleep... seems to be fine from a cold boot. Weird.

Eriamjh · Mar 19, 2004, 01:08 PM

If you have a second monitor, you can at least use your iMac until you get it fixed.

mindwaves · Apr 5, 2004, 03:02 AM

My 17" flat panel went out. The lights dimmed for about an hour, and now it doesn't even work. IS it the inverter or the backlight? I already took it apart, and there is a circuit board that powers the backlights. I have a pair (quanity 2) of backlights on the top of the moniter and a pair on the bottom. I was thinking if any of the backlights were bad, then I would still have some light, but this is not the case, which leds me to believe I have an inverter problem. What do you guys think?