2011 11" MacBook Air - BACKLIGHT PROBLEMS?

I just bought my MacBook Air last week, I noticed that at the bottom of the screen, the backlight is a bit darker, also a bit darker on the bottom corners. It's not too bad, and not really even visible on <100% brightness and non-white screens, but you can make it out if you pay attention to it deliberately.

I went into the Apple store and all their display models seemed to have the same effect.

So it this normal or what? I mean I don't know that replacing it would change anything. Take a close look at your 2011 air - any backlight issues?

 

Dont notice anything on mine

 

What screen type do you have?

 

What do you mean? It is the 11 inch, I just bought the default config. It is very hard to notice, like, it is probably something only an OCD person would see. It is really only something visible if you look on the white screen and look closely.

 

they are asking what screen because the 11 inch model ships with 2 different screen manufacturers. One is by LG and the other is um i forget. samsung or toshiba or something.

 

So, how do I get to choose what screen I want and if I one manuf. is better than the other, how can I make sure I get the other one when I go in for a swap?

 

from what ive read the only way to tell is to log on to the machine. the ssd in the machine can be from 2 different manufacturers as well. i think you can see what ssd you have under system profiler. to check what screen you have you have to type in terminal something. i forget what it is. there is no external way by reading the box or anything though.

 

haha so what do I just have to keep swapping the laptop until I get one that doesn't have this issue? what if all that they currently have in stock are like that? is apple aware of this issue? like is this something that will be recalled

 

you get what you get. they come from different places. so they are likely all the same if you get it from the same store. I think you have the lg screen. people have complained about getting that screen before

 

Is it a "defect" or just the way that screen is designed? Also, is this something that will keep on getting worse or it will just be like this?

 

I don't think it is a defect. I have it as well. It is somewhat like a gradient. I got used to it now and it doesn't bother me. I went to an apple store and they said they can replace it but there are no guarantees the replacement will not have the same issue.

 

It is not a defect, and it is unlikely that Apple will replace the machine. If you talk to the "geniuses" about this problem and ask for an exchange, they'll compare the screen of your MBA to other machines in the store. Given that your unit is consistent with the ones in the store, they probably won't agree to exchange it for you.

 

It's likely edge lit to save on power...? It's probably the diffuser sheet having uneven contact, or something.