Apple iMac 27" Screen Flicker/Distortion Issue

[SuperRetroTech]

Lol

[mkdsuser]

I've had this on many of the systems i've had, all the techs said the same thing.

iMac (Late 06) (Flickering like in this video) - GPU Heat issue.

Asus Eee PC (901 Mode, Flickering and distortion) - Not enough cool air getting to GPU Chip.

IBM T40 System (Freezing or bootup error code 6) - GPU Overheated and shutdown.

I solved most of the systems issues by either installing fan control software, or by keeping the system properly ventilated. Like for the iMac i installed SMCFan Control.

[mrtliheim]

Try to plug your mac into a free power course,

Sorry for my bad english.

With easier words, Try different plugs in the wall :-)

[jimgeo1000]

1:15

[wizardingsim]

aha its not just pc's then, my laptops been doing that, so far HP have replaced the hard drive and the screen and the problem keeps occuring

[alexg12212]

try the program that controls your graphics like:

Intel Accelerator

and put the monitor refresh rate to : a higher number.

[foxsux6000]

google DL984

[foxsux6000]

there is a firmware update for this.

[donnywinn]

doesnt mac have a life warranty!!

[Armaangandevia1]

@donnywinn YES

[bood3e]

"MACS ARE AWESOME I LOVE THEM THEY HAVE NO ISSUES AT ALL"

[dancerstarmonkey]

My screen just did that but not as bad. It froze iTunes and Safari though... :( I'm worried now

[jack390]

@zmandigital lol they didnt...i have one of those, mine didnt have this screen problem but it had kernel panic twice in a row within 3 mins and then finally the hard disk just died, now all my data is gone and they have to replace the hard disk, and i happened to be 10 days after my phone support so i was forced to get the apple care...

[LizardGorgeous]

How old is your Mac?

[kiwiboy2012]

Plz Hellp and Watch my videos of the Imac I7 Review and Unboxing. Its much detailed and shorter which is less time consuming.:)

Plz Hellp and Watch my videos of the Imac I7 Review and Unboxing. Its much detailed and shorter which is less time consuming.:)

Plz Hellp and Watch my videos of the Imac I7 Review and Unboxing. Its much detailed and shorter which is less time consuming.:)

[rednes800]

damn thank goodness mine doesnt do that !

[TheAsianAppleGod]

I hope this isn't a conspiracy from the little Chinese boys and girls making this?! Just kidding. I can say that because I'm part Chinese. So there

[biggascaddy]

In fairness to Apple , If I don't watch videos, like Youtube or Quicktime, the 27" imac doesn't overheat and start to flicker. Same as the first 27" Imac I bought and returned with this issue. So if you don't watch videos you should be fine.

Apple support was always kind and friendly, they just can't fix the problem and act surprised that I had TWO with this problem (purchased November ) Again, if you don't watch Youtube or Quicktime clips you will be fine, your Imac 27 won't overheat.

[griekenlandisdebeste]

dude that is not the problem it was the firmware if you update it the problem is solved so you need to do software-update and then it wil work perfectly

[biggascaddy]

Its been a cold winter. Thankfully the imac 27" comes with a built in space heater at no extra charge. That sucker gets HOT. Unfortunately, if I don't have a big fan blowing on the back of it, the video gets buggy real fast and eventually freezes. If I don't use any video or watch youtube then it is no longer useful as a space heater to keep my office nice and warm.

[7o7munoz7o7]

i have the 27inch as well and i got mine the first week it came out and never had any problems with it. i love it!!! but i was concerned because sooooo many people have had the same issue. but apple has put out firmware updates, so keep updating. if not take it back to apple they will replace it for you

[ninjafireball]

@7o7munoz7o7 Hi, I just want to ask you if your 27 inch has got already issues yet with the screen (I just saw you got it for 9 months now on the comments as you commented 9 months ago. ;) I just recently bought me one too!

[7o7munoz7o7]

@ninjafireball- nope no issues at all with mine...everything has worked perfectly...maybe i just got lucky and got a good one...or people have bad luck and got a bad one...lol but again no problems what so ever with mine =D congratz on yours, its so sick, and i love everyones expression that see it and say... "thats your computer?!?!?"

[ninjafireball]

@7o7munoz7o7 Hehehe, I know what you are talking about. Some people don't understand its a very very good computer above a normal pc. ^^ I just only dislike the magic mouse because of gaming compability, but at least I am very happy how this imac works! Its like I have 4 computers now! (with spaces & expose) :D

[7o7munoz7o7]

hey have you ran the firmware updates?? hopefully you did and this problem is fixed now.

[tonythetiger432]

holy shit, look at that dock! clearly this guy doesn't like quicksilver or even the finder.

[rkukentertainment]

I've got the 21.5" model and no probs so far, is it just the 27" models that are having the issues, if it is I can't see many reasons why

[jasmineb012]

Try downloading the patch. 27-inch iMac Display Firmware Update 1.0 02/01/2010 Updates the display firmware on 27-inch iMac systems to address issues that may cause intermittent display flickering.

[8mahatma8]

My 27" i7 ...has very few flickers. Fortunately. The above video is really bad. I love my i7 and at least I have a year warranty. It could be fixed by the firmware? Hopefully.

Lorrin Lee

lorrinleecom

Hawaii

[sna1970]

I like Apple and I hate it same time

I dont know why they insist on doig things wrong

for example , a 27 inch imac is big enough to add another HD bay, and a regular DVD rom bay.

we dont want the :"thinnest" all in one we want the most functional all in one.

[musiluna]

It´s amazing how a vompany like Apple that charges a premium price for their products does not garantee that you have a premium product!!!I was thinking of getting teh new 27" for my audio/video editing but now.................long live Microsoft and pcs

[thesenachosaregood]

I've had mine for two days, and the flickering started this evening. Only had it running for about 30-45 minutes, and it wasn't even hot. I'm taking it back tomorrow. Sucks that Apple hasn't been more transparent or released an official statment to address such a large volume of complaints.

[MultiFrodo1]

I had the same problem and Apple replaced my 27" free. I would not put up with this problem.

[griekenlandisdebeste]

its not a big problem if you have it after some hours you worked on your Imac just restart it then because your screen whill work again I had this issue 1 time and my screen went after it black en the dock was up not down but i had my imac 12 hours on so dont keep it to long on if you need to keep it long on restart it

[badbadpresident]

that is not a solution dude. If your apple is cooking your videocard then its a system problem and you should get a properly working system or your money back.

[griekenlandisdebeste]

dude thats stupid if you are messing your imac up your problem you will not get money back then

[daviddavid1980]

i have the same 27'' imac bought a few days ago but i dont have this problem

[quest8899]

hopefully apple will replace it for free

[AnthonygoesApple]

they do that for free.

when i frost got mine it has the same problems then i took it back the apple store and i got a new one for Free so no problems at all with my new one.

[gokhanca]

you should always wait 2nd generations of apple products

[lancsno1]

does the 21.5 inch model have this problem

[eskimo810]

i dont think so. Even if i didn't know the 21.5 hardware is very different. Dif. graphics cards and different panels.

[lancsno1]

no the lower end 27 has the exact same graphics card as the top end 21.5

[icoopers]

Mine is doing the same thing as well, we do have untill the 9th to make replacements k? I already did but it wasn't because if this, is was HD issue. I'm concerned :(

[Rosbif86]

Wonderful. So I get one of these first time round and the disk drive was not working. Fine, I sent it back. Now, within 48 hours of getting the replacement it's now doing this. C'mon Apple, i thought you were all about quality?! Looks like i'll need to get a third one now...

[ceenyacam]

and possibly and fourth, fifth....etcetc

[ezrawwedp]

Mines doing the same thing right now. Great.

[zunipus]

This is clearly a hardware problem. Off to Apple your iMac must go. I hope this isn't a trend. I trust nothing from China these days.

[Robrob007]

my sony fz was doing the same just before the vram of the nvidia chip fried, the problem was caused by overheating. hp dv6000 using the same nvidia made a patch to allow the fan to be on more time, this just delayed the symptoms. hope your machinge gets exchanged.

[plocequ1]

If you don't mind me saying, That looks worse than watching Courageous Cat and Minute Mouse on my parents Zenith TV with Rabbit ears I had in the 1970s when i was just a youngin'

[Zuke4422]

This just happened on mine while watching this video! it was only for a split second and only happened once luckily. I hope they fix this soon

[jaketechwizard]

did apple fix it????

[TechTube84]

@jaketechwizard I hope they will soon, because that's gotta suck for some people.

[jaketechwizard]

yah, this in the only one I know about

[iosonopaperinik]

Are all happy for problem with Apple?? Fuck you, Bill Gates and all pc, Apple is the best Suck!

[freddym]

I bought a new imac27 which ran perfectly UNTIL I installed the firmware update to fix the problem. Then I got the screen flicker!! Rang Apple and the fix was to shutdown the machine, disconnect power, reconnect. Turn it on holding down the CMD OPTION R P keys until it starts up the second time (second 'bong') then release keys and my machine was fine again. It helps to have the aid of an assistant when holding down the keys and starting it - you run out of hands.

[turki098]

:(

dfghjkl;

[mzo85]

FAILS

[jon6544]

there is a software patch that fixes the problem. it worked for me!!

[russboy920]

Apple SUCKS !

[spectrelives]

Wow. FAILS to be iMac.

[JP105INYO]

I think it's heat related. I just got my 27'' i7 the other day and on the first day, hours into operation transfering data and stuff it started. The next morning after being off all night it was fine and yet again this morning was fine but after watching a 2 hour long netflix movie it started again. The top left of this thing gets way to hot in my opinion. My father in laws 2008 iMac doesn't get anywhere near as hot.

[keizeral]

@JP105INYO : the heat is normal above...get the firmware patch and it will resolve itself..its the ATI videocard..do a software update or go to the Aplle website.

[JP105INYO]

@keizeral I downloaded the update on the 1st day of it's availability. The flickering still occurs, occurs less but it still happens. I don't know what to do. I hope it's a software issue. I don't wanna return it. I have like 9 days left out of the 14,

[miked826]

The iMacs ATI video card is literally cooking inside a poorly ventilated case and screen flicker is the result. ATI video cards notoriously run hot even in a well ventilated case. To say ATI's need extra ventilation is an understatement.

[MalwareRemovalVideo]

MACs they just works....

:P

[Alejo77H]

I was Wondering about the imacs 27 problems and I have an extrage dream, so 21 inches imac don't have problems right now, the problems its about the 27 inches imac, and I was thinking, that people that order Dual Core procesor come with ATI Radeon HD 4670, An I think that this GPU, can't with the 27 imac resolution, the people that have de quad core have ATI Radeon HD 4850, so if you r gonna buy an imac i recomend you buy it with the ATI Radeon HD 4850 gpu... =) Sorry bad english =/

[adryanv]

Have it exchanged thats defintely a hardware problem.

[dAlen7]

dude, my unibody macbookpro does something quite similar...

[tizmanasu]

apple suck overpriced chinese made crap

[yNeville]

@tizmanasu that's what most poor cunts say

[tfal23]

99.999% of all electronic consumer goods are made in China you dumbass.

[leporidus]

After cursory research via Google, most sources point to less than 90%, in some cases as few as 40%.

[GamingPhysicist]

@tfal23 An overstatement of epic proportions, don't use figures if you don't have sources. Most of the worlds good is manufactured in China.

[Danel1303]

HA! where do you think pcs are made? dumbass

[studdles2007]

I'm glad that my 27-inch i7 Mac doesn't do this. Especially not handy for people who need them for work such as me (graphic designer). Hopefully Apple don't take long in addressing this issue

[andresini123]

Speaking from experience and not bias here... But my thought is that the GPU is having heat/cooling issues, as I used to get the same issue on my PC after playing some graphics intensive games(artifaction, flickering, monitor sometimes went into sleep mode). But I added some better cooling and problems solved.

[FilmsQC]

@andresini123 well you cant upgrade a mac except for the ram. lol

[MuahMan]

Macs Just Work!

Did you believe that? They all overheat. Not to mention they are banned from the enterprise for being toys.

[arknu]

Aren't Macs supposed to "just work"? I am writing this from a nice quad core Windows 7 machine that actually works - all the time. And no, I haven't had a virus since 1998.

I still don't get why people will pay extra for Apple machines that have no proper cooling (this looks very much like a heat issue). This has been an issue for Apple since Apple II and they still haven't changed...

[iskyspotter]

OMG - this is my second 27" iMac, having EXACTLY the same problems that you are having. It amazes me that when you call for support, the problem is a surprise to them, macworld, macrumors, cnet, etc. all have articles with users reporting this problem! Thank you for posting visual proof!

[brianartka]

Not a problem. Point the techs here. I actually left the video on my problem machine and told the genius to have the techs look at them. I guess I got lucky with my replacement because (knock on wood) I have not had issues with it since the exchange.

[atbglenn]

Damn that sucks. I'm glad I have last generation 24" iMac. No problems at all. I make it a habit never to buy 1st revision macs. They always seen to have some sort of issue.

[saulgoldfarb]

wow, that really sucks, I think what people should have done is purchase the 21.5 inch like I did, which has no problems, and forget about getting the biggest most powerful computer. Just settle for something a little less than "the best"

[bclaus0]

@saulgoldfarb

27 is waaaay to big, no? You have to sit like a meter away and that's not very convenient. What are the actual advantages of such a huge display? except for the fact you can watch films bigger.

[tmlds]

i can hear you doing the dishes.

[fred9099]

My Hackintosh doesn't flicker.

I can't fathom why anyone would buy this fag imac all in ones.

Overpriced POS ...

[AngelChildxxx]

I have an iMac21,5ATI and is perfect.

Oh I have a MB too and YOU don't have Magsafe, battery till 8hours, unibody precision structure, keyboard with bottons separated, and so on...Oh and on hackintosh you don't have the stability whose OS X is famous four. In other words: you have a poor computer.

[fred9099]

My hackintosh is perfectly stable and runs weeks without a single restart needed. I don't know what you think your hardware is made of, but its the same damn hardware any Pc is made of. Moreover, my hackintosh uses very nice hardware such as: Quad CPU, GeForce 9800GTX+, 8GB of Ram, three hard disks with dual booting of OS X and Win7.

Everything works as it should and it is fast!

Don't know where you are taking your info from, but it sure ain't from reality.

[AngelChildxxx]

sorry but I need unibody structure, magsafe, keyboard with separated buttons (each one has its spot), battery 8hours, minimalist battery indicator, lightness and portability. All thinghs that a simple "pc" doesn't have.

[SamualShark]

Glad to hear it. I recommend you don't buy one. Get a bug laden PC. Keep us Mac users in the minority. This way no one bothers us and we can get our work done.

[fred9099]

From the looks of this video and many others, it's the people who are buying imacs that are having the trouble :)

[MuahMan]

Work? On a Mac? You mean play right. Everyone knows that macs are banished from the workplace. Play with your iPhoto and watch the screen flicker and turn off. You're a dumbass.

[pc2macconvert]

Update Dec. 9

We have received several reports from Apple resellers that all shipments of 27" iMacs have been delayed by 2 weeks as Apple is in the process of replacing the graphics card. The shipment time on the Apple Store has also been changed to say "Ships 2 weeks". Some people also are reporting that they are being advised their projected ship dates are being pushed back.

It is uncertain whether this hardware issue affects all 27" iMacs and a recall will be necessary.

[handelsme]

I've had this issue on my Imac 27 too. Sad thing was the replacement they sent me was just as bad.

[Nadav34]

My 2008 Mac Pro with the 24 inch cinema display and radeon 4870 is doing this also, though very rarely it does it, at least for now, but its a problem that might get worse if not resolved. To remedy it, I have to pull the mini-display port plug from the 4870 and plug it back in. Then all is fine, like new. Strange, though this didn't happen until I installed the new firmware for the 24 inch cinema display.

[virtualcrush]

You should seriously send the unit back and get a replacement.

[brisbanedude]

Does anyone else have their screen 'fading' possibly from heat? I've got a 24" iMac and over 1/8 of the screen has discoloured to grey.

[eMEDIAtely]

- Why this problem came up ?

=> Because there is no auto regulation of the fan speed / usage.

=> It's blocked to the minimum speed fan and never changes.

[eMEDIAtely]

- What does this update need to do ?

=> Control the fans after the usage (if intense = blow more ; if idleing = go to lowest blowing setting )

- Tested ?

=> Yes. I installed the smc tool for controling the fan speed.

I turned it up for about 55% - 65% of the minimum speed fan and i never go up over 60°C also under full usage for hours. Compared to before when i was at >80°C.

[eMEDIAtely]

In my opinion it's a general problem.

- Why it doesn't come up for everyone ?

=> Because not everyone uses all the capacity of the iMac, really high and long (>1h) usage of the iMac will bring this problem up.

- Why this problem is for everyone ?

=> iMac have all the same cooling materials

- How can this problem be solved ?

=> An Software update of the fan/cooling controling will make this problem go away.

[rewindyourpants]

no, it won't

[FeldwebelWolfenstool]

I agree with haerual, I've got a 4850 gpu in my PC. It's got a big noisy fan on it. I suspect overheating. What the ventilation like on those puppys?

[Yamcha67]

That does not look like its driver related, looks to be hardware issue.. why are people with imacs noobs? :P

[PaulGrantDesigns]

That's the kind of video glitches I've seen on Hacintoshes using an incorrect driver. I bet it's software related. Did you try updating the OS? I realize it's a new machine, but you never know what updates might be out.

[brianartka]

Follow Up:

After returning the iMac with the video issue, my replacement iMac of the same make and model has been glitch and flicker free. Once again, I would suggest people with these problems to exchange machines.

This was a 3.06 27" iMac.

[tabovilla]

its Dell's fault..

[haerual]

I had similar problems with my overheating radeon 9800, screen flickering just exactly like shown above. the card boiled at about 87degs upwards for a short perioid of time after purhcase before this started happening. I heard the new macs run the radeon4850 at similar numbers, so i wouldnt be surprised if that was the case in this too

[adamsharif94]

mine has the same problem, i am going to call APPLE!!!!!

[eblgraphics]

I have the same problem with my brand new Imac 27 inch... This problem just prove to me how good Apple support is with there products. All I did was i call apple and some dude help me out and i was on my way to a certify apple technician. The I Mac is in the store and if they don't fix it a new one will be provided tomorrow.

[Time2End]

Good? It would be an outrage if Apple didn't replace it; it's the least Apple can do for all the effort to get it replace.

[FeldwebelWolfenstool]

Let's hope the new one stays trouble-free.

[JamieLeSouef]

had mine less than 24 hours and this started happening..

[venichen1]

I really want an iMac. does the 21.5 inch models have issues?

[Spiroslp]

No!!!!!!

[TBAM3]

i just set up my 27' i7 imac and i am having the same problem

[Derikgolf78]

hey, question, Can't hear from your voice, reason am DEAF, when start you buy new ur computer. how long use until attack become flicking

[gezrez76]

save your money buy a PC

[TheJazzoTube]

save your time... buy a Mac

[MuahMan]

How does sending my flickering iMac back to Apple for repairs save me time? Especially when the new one does the same thing? This thing is junk.

[venichen1]

stop trolling by stop trolling on these kinds of videos

[brianartka]

it is model MB952LL/A

After I exchanged it from the local Apple Store, I have not have any issues with the new one.

[stephanect]

Which processor is it?

[blakecottington]

What model is this? I bought a 27" iMac the week they were released (about 3 weeks ago) from my local Apple store. Twice now I have noticed very strange video issues. Both times involved a bizarre garbage pattern all over the screen. The second time it happened (today) it started with the computer being unresponsive except moving the mouse, and ended with a completely black screen (no backlight) where I had to force a reboot. I am backing up my data now. Hopefully I can get an exchange.

[tengma8905]

I just bought this exact iMac two days ago from the apple store and noticed the occasional flash today. This was my first Mac, I was freaking out, do the 22" model have the same problem?

[ginito]

1:04 was that your hungry stomach ? ahah

[pappylarry]

My new 27 had The the same problem they replaced it no questions asked, my second started to do it also but I turned off and and it seems to be ok. But something is gone wrong on and applecare have no answers.

[plocequ1]

Damn, That looks nasty. I would be pretty upset. I was going to buy one too. I will stick to my Dell.

[brianartka]

I called Applecare yesterday afternoon and the conclusion the tech came up with was a bad video card. I had a scheduled appointment with a local Apple store and am now typing this message on a new 27" iMac. So far nothing bad has happened and it seems solid. I'll report back here if anything occurs, but the morale of this issue, as many have stated is:

replace it.

[michaelmckeever9]

Replace it.

[pschafer01]

You should go get a replacement. This was happening to me to, went on Saturday and got a new machine. So far so good (fingers crossed.) Would very much like to see Apple address this issue.

Thanks for capturing the video.

[brianartka]

not a problem.

I bought mine from Bestbuy 6 days ago. I'm not sure if I should wait for another to be in stock and replace it via them or call Apple and see what they can do.

On that note, either way I replace it, I made a backup of my apps and data on time machine. If I return this iMac and get a replacement, will the time machine restore onto my new machine without any issues? (migration assistant worked for the one I currently have).

[pschafer01]

got mine from bestbuy too, haha. actually it would have been probably easier to return/exchange from apple store since they lack stock and geek squad must "test it" before a return. but i brought a copy of my youtube video to show since it is so hard to reproduce... they let me exchange for a new one.

i restored from my time machine backup too (wondering now if that may "restore" the problem if it is a software issue), but overall the restore was flawless and everything worked just as before.

[brianartka]

thanks for the heads up on this. I might call Apple and see how that goes, then deal with an exchange via Best Buy. I wish Apple would officially atleast say something about the issue, so we dont have to waste time doing this...

[fmehanna]

i had the same behavior. i returned for a full refund at the apple store. i will wait it out, too many issues w the imac 27", slow wifi, screen issues, flash, ...

[auwkeung]

you should get it replaced now