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You are here: MacNN Forums > Hardware - Troubleshooting and Discussion > Mac Notebooks > Proof of the Paint (Re: Blackbook)

Proof of the Paint (Re: Blackbook)
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mathew_m
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May 27, 2006, 12:05 PM
 
http://www.flickr.com/photos/lolroflmaoafk/154150982/

I found this posted over in the Apple Support forums. The user says that it's 'flaking' but it looks more to me like he was wearing a watch and it rubbed away the paint. Either way he just bought the thing.

I just wanted to post this as in another thread I was ridiculed for saying that the Blackbook was essentially a painted Whitebook.
     
icruise
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May 27, 2006, 12:55 PM
 
Yes, that's just where a watchband would hit the wrist rest. Hmm. It wouldn't surprise me if the case had a sort of rubberized coating on it, but it seems very strange indeed that it would be white underneath.
     
Hi I'm Ben
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May 27, 2006, 01:11 PM
 
If you scrape black plastic hard enough it scrapes white.
     
icruise
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May 27, 2006, 01:18 PM
 
Well, my Lombard or Pismo certainly never had problems like that.
     
Hi I'm Ben
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May 27, 2006, 01:19 PM
 
Originally Posted by Icruise
Well, my Lombard or Pismo certainly never had problems like that.
Go find a piece of black plastic and scrap a knife along it.
     
mathew_m  (op)
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May 27, 2006, 01:26 PM
 
Originally Posted by Hi I'm Ben
If you scrape black plastic hard enough it scrapes white.
You're in phase one of denial still.
     
tooki
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May 27, 2006, 01:27 PM
 
Originally Posted by mathew_m
I just wanted to post this as in another thread I was ridiculed for saying that the Blackbook was essentially a painted Whitebook.
No, you were ridiculed for saying that solid black plastic can't be made. It can.

Nobody disputed that the black MacBook is painted. I already told you this in the other thread.

tooki
     
icruise
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May 27, 2006, 01:28 PM
 
Originally Posted by Hi I'm Ben
Go find a piece of black plastic and scrap a knife along it.
Is that what you think he did?
     
mathew_m  (op)
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May 27, 2006, 01:33 PM
 
Originally Posted by tooki
No, you were ridiculed for saying that solid black plastic can't be made. It can.
Never said that. I said it was more difficult. If you take "Ben's" excuse then black pastic when damaged shows white. That was basically my point that there is no 'pure' black plastic.
     
spittingangels
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May 27, 2006, 04:06 PM
 
I have a Dell laptop that shows wear from watches and my wrist as well. I think that the issue really may not be the paint, but the sealer/finish that Apple used to seal the paint. It may not be up to par on this revision.

If you have a laptop long enough the paint will wear. But having it happen right away is not right though.

I would hope that Apple might find a way to do an all-in-one colored plastic/finish type of thing like the old PowerBook 1400/3400 days - as those were all solid colored plastic, not paint.
     
j0nkatz
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May 27, 2006, 04:12 PM
 
That pic is NOT a MacBook.
Look at the difference in the button on the trackpad. Where is the indention in front of the button to open the MacBook?

Thank you, drive through.
     
Tomchu
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May 27, 2006, 04:30 PM
 
Originally Posted by j0nkatz
That pic is NOT a MacBook.
Look at the difference in the button on the trackpad. Where is the indention in front of the button to open the MacBook?

Thank you, drive through.
The picture doesn't show as far back along the touchpad button to see that indentation. This is a photo from the same user: http://www.flickr.com/photos/lolroflmaoafk/154264216/

Compare the two and you can see where the indentation begins. That is definitely a MacBook.
     
j0nkatz
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May 27, 2006, 04:49 PM
 
Originally Posted by Tomchu
The picture doesn't show as far back along the touchpad button to see that indentation. This is a photo from the same user: http://www.flickr.com/photos/lolroflmaoafk/154264216/

Compare the two and you can see where the indentation begins. That is definitely a MacBook.
Look at those two pics again. Look at the space between the trackpad button and the bottom edge of the units. Very different machines.
     
hyteckit
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May 27, 2006, 05:00 PM
 
Looks like a MacBook to me.
Bush Tax Cuts == Job Killer
June 2001: 132,047,000 employed
June 2003: 129,839,000 employed
2.21 million jobs were LOST after 2 years of Bush Tax Cuts.
     
icruise
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May 27, 2006, 05:03 PM
 
I used photoshop to make a composite of the two photos to see if they were from the same computer. Sure looks like it to me, although you can't see the scratches in the second photo.

http://www.flickr.com/photos/51642269@N00/154354971/
     
hyteckit
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May 27, 2006, 05:09 PM
 
good job lcruise.
Bush Tax Cuts == Job Killer
June 2001: 132,047,000 employed
June 2003: 129,839,000 employed
2.21 million jobs were LOST after 2 years of Bush Tax Cuts.
     
icruise
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May 27, 2006, 05:30 PM
 
By the way, on the subject of colored plastics, while I know that some kinds of plastic can change color when under stress, I can say from experience that the plastic used in the Pismo will not change color under ordinary circumstances.

I've done a lot of work on my Pismo and at one point I accidentally put the wrong length screw in one of the screw holes under the wrist rest. Since the screw was too long, the plastic bulged out and made it look like the pIsmo had a pimple. I didn't like how that looked, so I took an exacto knife and cut off the part of the plastic that was sticking out. The plastic never changed color, either when the screw made it bulge out or when I shaved off part of it. My Pismo also has chip in its cover, and you can see that the plastic is blue all the way through.

Of course I can't say how this applies to the MacBook, but it seems pretty unlikely that it would change color just from someone's watchband hitting it. If the picture is legit, then there is a coating on the MacBook. Either that, or the part surrounding the wrist rest is made of a different material than the rest of it.
     
AC Rempt
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May 27, 2006, 07:47 PM
 
His user name on Flickr is lolroflmaoafk

I think doubting him is a reasonable response.
     
icruise
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May 27, 2006, 07:56 PM
 
It may very well be a hoax (why is the "paint" chipping to reveal white underneath?) but it's not a painted iBook.
( Last edited by icruise; May 27, 2006 at 08:35 PM. )
     
Tomchu
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May 27, 2006, 08:33 PM
 
Originally Posted by j0nkatz
Look at those two pics again. Look at the space between the trackpad button and the bottom edge of the units. Very different machines.
You're in denial.
     
chabig
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May 27, 2006, 10:30 PM
 
Maybe he painted white onto the black MacBook to make it look like the finish was flaking. Who is to say that the white is underneath the black?
     
SkaGoat
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May 27, 2006, 10:54 PM
 
Why would anyone fake this?
     
Simon
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May 28, 2006, 07:37 AM
 
Originally Posted by SkaGoat
Why would anyone fake this?
For starters, because there are people that get a kick out of seeing a board like this one with dozens of posts from 15 year olds freaking out because they just put the last three years of their allowance into a BlackBook and are now afraid they won't be able to impress girls once it shows a first sign of use.

And no, I'm not saying it is a fake. But it could be. It could also be real. I'm just glad it's not mine.
•
     
craigb6
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May 28, 2006, 02:14 PM
 
Originally Posted by SkaGoat
Why would anyone fake this?
I was just reading this post, as it wouldnt seem out of the question that someone who wanted the blackbook, but didn't want to pay the extra over the white one just for the colour picked up a paintbrush and some black paint? I guess you'd need a steady hand (and a good excuse if it went horribly wrong).
     
mathew_m  (op)
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May 28, 2006, 02:33 PM
 
Originally Posted by craigb6
I was just reading this post, as it wouldnt seem out of the question that someone who wanted the blackbook, but didn't want to pay the extra over the white one just for the colour picked up a paintbrush and some black paint? I guess you'd need a steady hand (and a good excuse if it went horribly wrong).
No way. You would have to take the unit completely apart and tape up all circuitry. Even if you had access to the right paint, a device for applying it (paint brush won't do) and the skills to perform it; you would still be much better off paying the extra money to Apple to have it done right.
     
eswinson
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Jun 3, 2006, 11:35 PM
 
Originally Posted by mathew_m
No way. You would have to take the unit completely apart and tape up all circuitry. Even if you had access to the right paint, a device for applying it (paint brush won't do) and the skills to perform it; you would still be much better off paying the extra money to Apple to have it done right.
The extra money also buys you a larger HD.

Depending on what type of plastic was used even if it is dyed the polymer strands will realign under stress. have you even bent a black plastic knife or fork back and forth and noticed the white crease that forms? You wouldn't assume that each piece is white plastic painted black would you?

Now having not seen a macbook in person I'm not going to comment on if it is painted or not. However I will share another observation. I have a motorola slvr phone. The front half of the phone is black plastic (the back is painted metal) I have two injuries to the front. The first is were I dropped the phone and a small crater was left in the plastic. It is totally black. in fact you have to twist it in the light to even see it. I had a second place where one of my keys or possibly some loose change in my pocket left a 3/4" long scratch was is sliver-ish / white in colour. the colouring is at the lowest point of the scratch and runs the length of it.

On fist take it looks like the paint was scraped off the phone revealing a white or silver under colour. After thinking about it I had a suspicion that the lighter colour was actually transfer from the object that scraped it. I took a small piece of fine steel wool and carefully softened up the scratch and in the process flaked out the lighter transfer colour. I suspect it was the chrome plating from a key but I'm not 100% sure.

I imagine the same could hald true for a watch band. Things like chrome (plate), gold and silver are very soft metals and will tranfer very easily with the slighted bit of pressure and motion.
     
ryanhugh
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Jun 3, 2006, 11:53 PM
 
it is not painted, I actually have taken one apart and scratched it deep on the inside with a screwdriver....it's black all the way through. I am 100% positive.
     
hldan
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Jun 4, 2006, 12:34 AM
 
Originally Posted by ryanhugh
it is not painted, I actually have taken one apart and scratched it deep on the inside with a screwdriver....it's black all the way through. I am 100% positive.

I agree it's not painted, I did check with one of the Apple geniuses. Maybe the flaking is the top coating from the matte finish. Although I am beginning to think these pics are fake of the flaking MacBook. Finally Apple makes a notebook that fits the needs of more people than ever so what's left but to create fake drama to start people complaining. I have been checking these things out at 4 different Apple retail stores and the only abuse I have noticed is the screen hinge squeaking or some wear on the trackpads. The Apple store's demos get the most abuse and the finish on the black MacBooks all looked great.
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mrufrufin
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Jun 4, 2006, 12:40 AM
 
looking at the pic, what puzzles me is where the scrapes are. If this was caused by the owner's hand due to intense usage, shouldn't they be on the sharp edge of the Macbook or on the surface of the palm resting area instead? They look more like in the ditch between the two. Unless...he himself scratched the macbook that he just paid over $1400 for.
     
ghporter
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Jun 4, 2006, 09:48 AM
 
Originally Posted by Icruise
...I can say from experience that the plastic used in the Pismo will not change color under ordinary circumstances.

...The plastic never changed color, either when the screw made it bulge out or when I shaved off part of it. My Pismo also has chip in its cover, and you can see that the plastic is blue all the way through.

Of course I can't say how this applies to the MacBook, but it seems pretty unlikely that it would change color just from someone's watchband hitting it.
It's the difference between different kinds of plastic. Polystyrene, for example, whitens at stress points no matter what color it is-this it a very common plastic because it's so inexpensive. It's also softer and more brittle, so it doesn't work well in situations where some degree of rough handling is expected. Most acrylics, on the other hand (think Lexan) do not change color. Acrylics are tougher and harder than polymers like polystyrene, too, so they can take quite a bit of abuse and not show it as much.

I'm of the opinion that the posted pictures are not legitimate; the case doesn't seem to have the right shape.

Glenn -----OTR/L, MOT, Tx
     
snoopy199
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Jun 4, 2006, 10:30 AM
 
Originally Posted by ghporter
I'm of the opinion that the posted pictures are not legitimate; the case doesn't seem to have the right shape.
Regardless of the validity of those pictures you need to take the totals sales into context. So far there's been only a few postings of possible issues with the finish here at macnn. I have not seen any threads over at apple's discussion forumsa and nothing at macworld.

If there were issues wouldn't we see more complaints? Of course it may take a little time to wear off. I think of the issues with paint and the Ti powerbook. The effects weren't immidiate but over the course of weeks and months. Nonetheless I think the finish wearing off is a little over blown but time will be the ultimate judge.
     
   
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