Apple Stops Production Of 27" Imacs?

[Thakkar]

Apple has had problems with the state-of-the-art LED-backlit displays on its king size 27-inch iMacs. Now, HardMac is one of the sites reporting that, “According to one of our sources, the company completely stopped the iMac 27-inch assembling lines.”

The big Macs had, according to many customer posts on the Internet, exhibited two kinds of problems. First, the displays were seen to both flicker and flash, and to distort the onscreen desktop image.

Customers then began reporting that their 27″ displays had a yellow tinge that they could not ignore.

The models affected sell for $1,700 to $2,000 base price. Netbooks they are not. Apple is normally known for the well-above-average quality of its displays. So customers expect flawless performance. The display problems are bad enough for the company’s reputation that ceasing production until they are fixed seems the smart move.

http://venturebeat.com/2010/02/01/apple-st...-insider-blogs/

[rogerdee123]

-from macrumors.com - 3 Feb 2010

In a statement to The Wall Street Journal regarding ongoing shipment delays for the company's 27-inch iMac models, an Apple spokesman has apparently refuted earlier claims that the company had halted production of the 27-inch iMacs as it has worked to address several issues related to flickering and yellow tints in its displays.

An Apple spokesman said again this week that "the 27-inch iMac has been a huge hit with customers and we are working to increase supply to meet up with strong demand." He added that production has continued while the company fixed the problems with flickering screens and yellow-tinted displays.

Apple just yesterday issued a second firmware update for current owners of the affected machines, designed to address the ongoing flickering issues that have troubled the machines since their introduction late last year.

On a related note, shipping lead times for the 27-inch models improved today to two weeks from the three-week estimates that had recently been seen for those looking to order through the company's U.S. online store.

[rogerdee123]

- from macrumors.com 4 Feb 2010 -

As Apple struggles with flickering and yellow-tinting issues on the displays of its 27-inch iMac models, Gizmodo has been continuing to closely follow the situation and has learned that Apple has been offering refunds of 15% of the machine's purchase price to users experiencing repeated service issues with their machines. The news comes just days after Apple issued a second firmware update that appears to be taking care of the flickering issues for many users.

Yesterday, Gizmodo reported that it had received information from an Authorized Apple Service Provider in the UK that Apple is experiencing a shortage of replacement 27" LCD parts in Europe, with a backlog of over 230 machines waiting to be serviced. According to the report, Apple was apparently offering affected users the ability to return their machines for a full refund, as well as offering all affected users a refund of 15% of their purchase price.

A follow-up report today suggests that a similar program is in effect in the United States, with Apple apparently offering 15% refunds to users who have exchanged their iMacs multiple times in seeking to have the issues addressed.

15%. Cash. So on a $2000 machine, we're talking about a $300 apology straight from Apple customer support. From the handful of reader anecdotes we've received thus far, it sounds like you need to be a repeat iMac returner who's dealt with multiple 27-inch iMacs that have been busted in some way (but they may accommodate first time buyers as well, we don't know). One reader had multiple yellow screens, then received another new model with broken Bluetooth. He took the 15% and just returned it.

Despite the apparent refund program in effect and Apple's efforts at addressing the flickering issues, the company has yet to publicly acknowledge the yellowing issue generating significant numbers of complaints from customers. The company has, however, reportedly published an internal service memo for its service providers alerting them to the issue and offering instructions on how to handle it.

Shipping lead times for new 27-inch iMac orders placed through Apple's U.S. online store remain at two weeks after improving from a three-week margin earlier this week.

[bubba]

It's not just the 27" iMacs, although for some reason the 27" ones are getting all the press. Have a look at the Apple Discussions board for some insight"

http://discussions.apple.com/forum.jspa?forumID=1114

As you will see, the 21.5" ones are being shipped with defective displays as well, with many buyers are reporting the dreaded yellowish tinge, flickering and noise coming from the display. I know - I am one of them. I ordered a 21.5" from Apple Store Thailand and received one with yellowish tinge in the bottom left hand corner of the display and fading towards the centre of the display. I am currently awaiting a replacement from Apple, but it's sort of a gamble. Some are on their fourth replacement and still receiving units with defective displays.

As a 20 year Apple user, this is the biggest disappointment with quality I have ever experienced with them. If you are thinking of buying an iMac, don't do it now. Wait for Apple to come out with a revision that eliminates the display issues.

[nikster]

As a 20 year Apple user, this is the biggest disappointment with quality I have ever experienced with them. If you are thinking of buying an iMac, don't do it now. Wait for Apple to come out with a revision that eliminates the display issues.

It's been like this for a while. Design is fantastic but the quality in production tends to be hit and miss for new models. What is still great is the warranty - you can be sure that eventually they'll fix it for you. Just might be a while. Why they replace bad models with other bad models is a mystery to me - must cost them a lot of money.

[hughden]

It's not just the 27" iMacs, although for some reason the 27" ones are getting all the press. Have a look at the Apple Discussions board for some insight"

http://discussions.apple.com/forum.jspa?forumID=1114

As you will see, the 21.5" ones are being shipped with defective displays as well, with many buyers are reporting the dreaded yellowish tinge, flickering and noise coming from the display. I know - I am one of them. I ordered a 21.5" from Apple Store Thailand and received one with yellowish tinge in the bottom left hand corner of the display and fading towards the centre of the display. I am currently awaiting a replacement from Apple, but it's sort of a gamble. Some are on their fourth replacement and still receiving units with defective displays.

As a 20 year Apple user, this is the biggest disappointment with quality I have ever experienced with them. If you are thinking of buying an iMac, don't do it now. Wait for Apple to come out with a revision that eliminates the display issues.

Can I ask what process you have to go through to get a replacement for items bought from the Apple Store here? The goods come in from Singapore, and I have wondered what would happen if I had a problem with anything I bought via this route. Thanks

[bubba]

I bought mine through the Apple Store Thailand. Took two days to deliver and it was the same price as at the shops here. I called the support number given in the website and they asked me to do a couple of things such as reset the PRAM and then passed me off to a senior rep who immediately offered a refund after they verified that I purchased it from their online store. If I hadn't, they said they would refer me to Apple repair in Bangkok...thankfully I didn't have to go that route.

[rijb]

I bought mine through the Apple Store Thailand. Took two days to deliver and it was the same price as at the shops here. I called the support number given in the website and they asked me to do a couple of things such as reset the PRAM and then passed me off to a senior rep who immediately offered a refund after they verified that I purchased it from their online store. If I hadn't, they said they would refer me to Apple repair in Bangkok...thankfully I didn't have to go that route.

I've had my 21.5 for 2 weeks. So far so good. Did the problems with your machine start as soon as you got it?

[bubba]

I bought mine through the Apple Store Thailand. Took two days to deliver and it was the same price as at the shops here. I called the support number given in the website and they asked me to do a couple of things such as reset the PRAM and then passed me off to a senior rep who immediately offered a refund after they verified that I purchased it from their online store. If I hadn't, they said they would refer me to Apple repair in Bangkok...thankfully I didn't have to go that route.

I've had my 21.5 for 2 weeks. So far so good. Did the problems with your machine start as soon as you got it?

Yes, my 21.5 had the yellow tinge the first time it started up. I've had it for two weeks now (DHL didn't show up today to pick it up for Apple as promised) and it hasn't gotten any worse.

Here is a link where you can read about the yellow tinge defect and how to look for it:

http://imac.squeaked.com/yellow_tinge.php

Do you happen to know which week yours was produced? You can check that at:

http://www.appleserialnumberinfo.com/Desktop/index.php

Mine is Week 47 of 2009. I'd be interested to know what you have there.

[rijb]

I bought mine through the Apple Store Thailand. Took two days to deliver and it was the same price as at the shops here. I called the support number given in the website and they asked me to do a couple of things such as reset the PRAM and then passed me off to a senior rep who immediately offered a refund after they verified that I purchased it from their online store. If I hadn't, they said they would refer me to Apple repair in Bangkok...thankfully I didn't have to go that route.

I've had my 21.5 for 2 weeks. So far so good. Did the problems with your machine start as soon as you got it?

Yes, my 21.5 had the yellow tinge the first time it started up. I've had it for two weeks now (DHL didn't show up today to pick it up for Apple as promised) and it hasn't gotten any worse.

Here is a link where you can read about the yellow tinge defect and how to look for it:

http://imac.squeaked.com/yellow_tinge.php

Do you happen to know which week yours was produced? You can check that at:

http://www.appleserialnumberinfo.com/Desktop/index.php

Mine is Week 47 of 2009. I'd be interested to know what you have there.

Mine was the 15th mac, built on the third week of January.

Good luck to you.

[rijb]

Update: Starting to get display problems (burn markings on upper left)

Caveat emptor!

[negreanu]

Just got delivery from apple online store of two 27" Imacs. Week 9 and week 8. No issues screen wise did the yellow tint test on macrumours site.

Looks like they have solved it reference this problem.

[rijb]

I have to bring my new iMac in for an LCD replacement. Is the Apple store in Chiang Mai a reliable place for Mac repairs? My wife is worried they might swap out some of the good parts.