[kat81]

Long story short: I took my iMac G5 to the local Apple Store. The fan never turned off, and was making noise, and the computer itself was heating up to the point of being able to burn fingers if touched. I figured one (or more) of the fans were bad, and/or the temp sensors weren't working right. Honestly, replacing the fans is simple so I didn't expect any issues. Well...I got screwed.
They decided to turn on my iMac, run it at mac CPU and run some diagnostics...and walked away. By the time they came back, 10-20min later, my iMac was smoking. Apparently, the store filled with a nasty burning smell, and they finally found it was coming from my Mac. Thanks to them running the comp under such stress, and not watching it while doing so, they ended up frying my logicboard and power source.
- a week later, they put in a new logicboard and power thing. Then they remembered "oh wait, we forgot to check the fan" and finally got around to finding the bad fan and replacing it.

Anyway...after over a week of being without my iMac, they finally call to tell me it's done. As they do before returning, they take the iMac and boot it up with me there to make sure it works. Right away, I noticed something wrong. They didn't.

I took it home, and booted it up. I used to LOVE my iMac for the bright, crisp and clear display it had. Now, it's dull, dim and dingy. I called them to tell them, and they said "We didn't notice a problem, but sometimes it takes a few hours of running for a new video card (which they said they replaced) to warm up and return to normal."

2 days later, and my display is still dim and dull, and I am sad.

I do NOT..*NOT* want to let them NEAR my computer again. I swear, that store dragged kids off the street and threw Apple t-shirts at them and didn't train them at all, because the people there were morons.
So my question: How can *I* test and prove my display really is dim and dull? What could be wrong?
I recently learned there's a new Apple Store not too far from here, not the same one I took it to, and I am considering giving them a chance. But before I do, I want a way to prove/show that this is NOT how my display was, and there is indeed something wrong.

Any suggestions?

(sorry for the ramble, but this whole experience pissed me off and it took all my willpower to not literally kick the idiots at the Genius Bar for doing what they did to my computer)

[C.A.T.S. CEO]

Apple has some problems....

[WOPR]

See my thread about my iMac, I'm having a crap time with them too

[molarszbt18]

You could call apple care and see if you are in an area someone can come to u and fix it or bring it to another store. Either way def voice your issue with apple. Complaining on here will do you no good

[centerchannel68]

email steve jobs. Seriously.

[Eriamjh]

Take it back. They will have to repair it. Ask politely for a replacement.

[Blasphemy]

yeah, I'd ask for a replacement. If not, call apple's 1-800 number and say you want to send it in given your experience at the store

[Veltliner]

They should replace the whole computer, not just the drive.

Due to the frying of your iMac you definitely run a higher risk of other things breaking down, too , even if they replace the screen.

[proton]

You have made sure the brightness and contrast for the display are set correctly, right?

- proton

[PBG4 User]

Maybe all that overheating/smoking damaged the LCD backlight? That would be my first guess. I had a heck of a time with my local Apple Store when my iMac G5 had issues. After two attempts at repair they still hadn't fixed my problem and refused(!) to bring it in for service again.

I had to call AppleCare and have them send someone to my house. They replaced the power supply (which was the original diagnosis the first time I brought it to the Apple Store but they replaced the logic board instead) and my iMac has been running fine ever since. This was in Summer '05.

[Veltliner]

It is so important not only where you bring your mac for repair, but actually who you are talking to.

I recently posted about my SuperDrive not being able to read my DVDs, and I got to a repair person who did some testing (shift key down) and said it was a software problem and I should set up my system from scratch.

Am I glad I got a second opinion from the repair man I knew - but who had not been in that day.

He immediately saw it was a bad drive.

I would never let an apple store kid open my mac.

And now, that I found my apple man of trust, nobody else will ever touch one of my machines as long he is around.

[Macpilot]

First of all I feel for your situation.

It sucks to be without your computer or to have repeated repairs. Trust me. I had an iMac G5 that had ONE REPAIR. But that repair wound up taking a week, and the Genius explained to me that they had gone through so many bad service parts without success, and since I was reasonable and polite with them they finally decided to give me a new iMac! Pretty sweet deal I say. I got an Intel iMac that was a far superior machine in every way.

For all of you that make generalisations about the caliber of Mac Genius or any other Apple employee you are wrong. They come from all walks of life just like most jobs.

They don't want you to have to come back for repeated repairs. They do their best with what they have at their disposal.

Ever heard of bad service parts? Yeah, it happens. It goes like this:

You have an iMac G5 which had more than usual failure rate of bad power supplies and logic boards. Turns out Apple bought these components from one of these Asian suppliers that was in cuthroat competition with other suppliers, and "cheated" a bit on the capacitor formula to make cheaper boards.

The tech replaces your board and the power supply with the parts he has at his disposal. Sometimes the part that is initially quoted when you check in the computer is not the part that it needs.

Do a search for blown or bad capacitors and you will find that Apple is not the only company to suffer from a large amount of bad boards.

Unforntunately for everyone, there are still a bunch of boards out there that can't be identified until they are used in a machine for a some time.

Apple eventually did the right thing and gave you a FREE extension to the warranty. How many companies do that? None others that I can think of. Did Dell do that for their customers?

If you think Apple employees negligently damaged your machine, document the issue and don't go off.

Be fair but firm with Apple, and they most certainly will go the distance.

If you don't like the tech you are talking with at the Store then ask to speak with another one or go somewhere else. Complain and comment about your experiences with Apple management. Things don't improve when you rant on a forum.

For the gentleman that has the dim display: Definitely reset the open firmware. The Apple support site tells you how to to do this.

Now, if that does not cure the problem, make sure you have the brightness turned all the way up (I know, you probably already did this). Depending on how old this iMac is, it should be obvious to any tech the reasonable amount of brightness that display should yield given it's age. Obviously it won't be the max brightness of a current machine on a sales floor.

Good luck with your problem. Keep us posted!

[cblake]

My iMac display screen is black with faint windows in the background. The computer chimes and boots up fine. I can even type in my username and passord and I can see the "Antivirus" bold lettering within the black screen. I stopped using this computer a few months ago because of this problem.

I've been doing some research online. I am wondering how prevalent this problem is...including other models. I know that that recently Apple settled a class action lawsuit related to the display problems in the Apple Studio Display. Apparently, the inverter is the culprit there.

I note here that the iBook is showing problems with the display screen, too. There is a "Repair Extension Program" in effect (or was until July 2007) for certain iBooks.

How much does Apple know about this problem? How prevalent is it? Are all affected Apple customers being treated fairly? Are all affected Apple customers being supported when complaints are made? Does Apple have evidence of a widespread problem with the video display in several models of its computer base? How many formal customer complaints has it had to date?

How many inverter replacements have the authorized Apple repair centers done in the last few years? What has Apple been charging for these repairs?

My computer is just now 4 years old. I have not used it for many months now. I HAD the "Apple Care" and it was in effect until the last week in August of 2006. This problem cropped up just outside the "Apple Care Warranty" period.

I ask...is this fair? The computer was purchased new and stayed in one location for all this time. It was never used every day or for long periods of time. It was very well cared for and used by only one person.

My hope is that others will come foward and share their Apple computer video display problems. It is important to send Apple a CERTIFIED LETTER to formally notify it about the problem. Consumers should take nothing for granted and document everything. They should also use the internet to link with others who are similarly-affected. That way, the corporation cannot claim ignorance about the problems that surface.

Thank you for letting me know if you have had a similar problem to the one I describe.

Charlene Blake
[email protected]
[email protected]

[molarszbt18]

Originally Posted by cblake 

My iMac display screen is black with faint windows in the background. The computer chimes and boots up fine. I can even type in my username and passord and I can see the "Antivirus" bold lettering within the black screen. I stopped using this computer a few months ago because of this problem.

I've been doing some research online. I am wondering how prevalent this problem is...including other models. I know that that recently Apple settled a class action lawsuit related to the display problems in the Apple Studio Display. Apparently, the inverter is the culprit there.
............

In regards to this post, apple will never say how many models have this issue. You might as well take a sharp object and shove it your eye . In anycase is it fair that there is new toys put on the shelves for little kids with toxic pain in them? Not at all. Anything electronical can have an issue at any point. TYPICALLY any electrical issue is apparent in the 1st year and lessens after time, but then reapears at 5 yrs or so depending on usage. Your computer is 4yrs old, for it to last this long is really good, most last 3-4 years if not caused by some outside force, not saying you caused your screen to go. I believe for apple to have a repair extension program they have to prove to the maker the chip or whatever is failing and so forth. Look at sony with the battery recall nonless. Does your issue suck sure, would it be something that happens in another computer such as a Dell or Compaq you bet ya. Electronics is just a pain in the ass, it sucks move on.