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carr7 · Nov 20, 2003, 12:21 AM

Sorry to bring up this frequent topic again..... BUT....

I have a Nov02 1ghz TiBook that I have completely enjoyed except for one shiney bright green lit pixel that has been there since day one.

Aside from being disappointed at the beginning, I mostly forgot about the pixel until recently I found the program Pixel Check. So I ran through the test screens verifying that 'yes I still have that bright green one' until I got to the black test screen and noticed about 20 dimly lit red blue and green 'bad' pixels. They are about 30% as bright as my original lit green one, but are definitely there. They are not at all visible on any of the other red, green, blue and white test screens.

I am wondering if these are normal or will these dimly lit 'bad' pixels eventually be fully lit 'bad' pixels.

dialo · Nov 20, 2003, 01:06 AM

Wow. I was going to post on the exact same thing. I have the same powerbook and have always had a black desktop.

Just on sunday I noticed that I have like 20 or so (too many to count) halfway stuck pixels. It's like all of a sudden the screen is going bad.

To top it off, I'm pretty weary of sending the screen back right now, considering all of the problems apple has been having with the 15" displays.

Hey, if anybody else out there has one of these 15" tibooks, especially one of the early ones, check it out and see.

I have not had this with previous powerbooks.

hldan · Nov 20, 2003, 01:15 AM

Originally posted by carr7:
Sorry to bring up this frequent topic again..... BUT....

I have a Nov02 1ghz TiBook that I have completely enjoyed except for one shiney bright green lit pixel that has been there since day one.

Aside from being disappointed at the beginning, I mostly forgot about the pixel until recently I found the program Pixel Check. So I ran through the test screens verifying that 'yes I still have that bright green one' until I got to the black test screen and noticed about 20 dimly lit red blue and green 'bad' pixels. They are about 30% as bright as my original lit green one, but are definitely there. They are not at all visible on any of the other red, green, blue and white test screens.

I am wondering if these are normal or will these dimly lit 'bad' pixels eventually be fully lit 'bad' pixels.

I noticed that your TiBook was purchased in NOV 02. Depends on which day this month of last year because you may still be under your one year warranty. Apple covers bad pixeled screens if there are 5 or more dead or stuck pixels. They will replace the screen.
If you are past the day this month of last year that you purchased it then you are out of luck for a screen replacement unless you purchased Apple Care. Hope this helps a bit.

carr7 · Nov 20, 2003, 05:29 PM

Originally posted by hldan:
I noticed that your TiBook was purchased in NOV 02. Depends on which day this month of last year because you may still be under your one year warranty. Apple covers bad pixeled screens if there are 5 or more dead or stuck pixels. They will replace the screen.
If you are past the day this month of last year that you purchased it then you are out of luck for a screen replacement unless you purchased Apple Care. Hope this helps a bit.

I purchased it mid Dec'02, and just bought Applecare for it since I plan on keeping it at least another year.

What I am curious about is how Apple defines 'bad' pixels. I almost have to be in a completely dark room with the screen brightness at 100% to see the lit pixels. The new ones don't really bother me, but I am worried that they will eventually become fully lit and really obvious.

spaced · Nov 20, 2003, 11:30 PM

Maybe some fuzzy math will help...

20 pixels that are 30% stuck = 6.66666667 100% stuck pixels, above Apple's bad pixel threshold.

In other words, get your screen replaced, especially if you have Applecare. You need to milk that $350!

hldan · Nov 21, 2003, 01:05 AM

Originally posted by carr7:
I purchased it mid Dec'02, and just bought Applecare for it since I plan on keeping it at least another year.

What I am curious about is how Apple defines 'bad' pixels. I almost have to be in a completely dark room with the screen brightness at 100% to see the lit pixels. The new ones don't really bother me, but I am worried that they will eventually become fully lit and really obvious.

If you live near an Apple Retail Store then take the computer there and make sure to have the Pixel Check program handy. Let them take a look at it if you are not sure what is considered a bad pixel. Your screen should look a smooth as a CRT with no pixel anomalies.
Sounds like a screen replacement is necessary based on your post. Go for it. Apple care is expensive. Use it since you paid for it.
Also Apple is not a anal company to AppleCare buying customers. Usually they bend over backwards to take care of anyone that paid for it.
Take care.

dialo · Nov 21, 2003, 02:34 AM

Screw the apple store. We are talking about ~20 or more stuck pixels. This is way above the threshold no matter how you look at it.

However, I'm not taking mine in until it's unbearable. I don't really have that much faith in refurb 15" screens right now, you know what I mean?

Of course, with my burner no longer reading blank disks as writable, I have a couple reasons to bring it in sooner rather than later.

spaced · Nov 21, 2003, 08:27 AM

Originally posted by dialo:
However, I'm not taking mine in until it's unbearable. I don't really have that much faith in refurb 15" screens right now, you know what I mean?

Replacement screens for TiBooks come assembled as the entire top lid and hinges. You will probably be getting a part that has been sitting in a warehouse for a while, not an LCD panel they are putting into the new 15" Aluminum PowerBooks.

Originally posted by hldan:
Also Apple is not a anal company to AppleCare buying customers. Usually they bend over backwards to take care of anyone that paid for it.

This is so very true. And people laugh at me when I by AppleCare for every single machine I own. It's more than 3 years of support... I believe it gets you the unspoken privilege of premium support, and by that I mean extra consideration.

I sent my Rev A 17" PowerBook in a couple weeks after I got it for various problems including noisy fan and even a trivial cosmetic defect (came that way out of the box) and I had it back in my hands 2 days later, with every single problem fixed and the guys on the phone could not have been nicer. It has been perfect ever since. That kind of service is worth the extra money to me. You could argue that you shouldn't have to pay for that, but hey... they can't offer it to everyone.

dialo · Nov 21, 2003, 11:25 AM

Originally posted by spaced:
Replacement screens for TiBooks come assembled as the entire top lid and hinges. You will probably be getting a part that has been sitting in a warehouse for a while, not an LCD panel they are putting into the new 15" Aluminum PowerBooks.

The 15" display problems have gone on for a while now. The most significant before the white spots were the screwed up connectors on some tibooks, causing lines all over the screens. Interestingly, this tended to happen right at the one year mark. Now, some of us hitting the one year mark on our powerbooks are starting to notice many stuck pixels. We'll have to wait and see how widespread this problem really is, but, like I said, I don't have too much faith in apple's 15" LCD panels.

And, separate from the white spots issue normally discussed here, didn't a bunch of people get white spots around the apple? I know one person who has that now happening on his 12", but I was pretty sure I heard about it a while ago with titanium powerbooks.

The last thing I want is a refurbed screen that's been through any of these issues.