Black/Rainbow screen of death

Well, since yesterday, my 2 month old unibody mackbook has been crashing at random. I'll be doing anything from web surfing, to just doing a time-machine back up and "whosh", the screen goes black with a 1/2" wide multicolored pixelated horizontal stripe about 1" from the top remaining.

This has happened about a dozen times, with the only option being to hold down the power button to reboot.

I went into the the nearest Apple Store to a Genius Bar appointment to see if there was anything to be done. Mind you, i also ran every known diagnostic I could get my hands upon, before I went, and everything checks out a-ok.

The Genius bar guy says it's a "known issue" with the new unibody Macs with the 9400M graphics processor. A "known issue"??? How come I have never heard about this on NBR?

I am supposed to wait until Apple issues it's firmware "fix" according the the GB guy.



Has anyone heard any rumors as to when this "known issue" is being resolved?

 

Well I have a PRO and am always (practically) on the 9400M. mine never crashes, and I have never heard of them for this reason. If I were you I would go in another day and ask someone else, the Apple store employ well, but you never know if someones having a bad day and can't be bothered to look into a problem.

 

its funny how apple even make the screen of death look nice and friendly with a rainbow

 

lol!!i never had this problem. try to go to another apple store.

 

Try calling Apple. If it's doing it a lot, I'd ask for a replacement.

 

Yes, also check if your machine is not overheating.

 

It might even be a problem with overheating of the GPU, which is distorting the screen to a black. Make sure nothing is blocking the back of the computer, as that might help the air flow. In the worst case scenario, take it to an Apple store and let them diagnose the problem, and might even give you a new machine.

 

It's doing it now with increasing frequency. My temps are good, if not on the low side. I run istat to monitor.

I am taking in to another store tomorrow for a 6 Pm GB appointment, and I expect to be a bit more demanding. What sucks is that I can't get a good time machine backup before it happens, and it has corrupted my older TM backup. I had to dump the file altogether.

 

Yikes..... :S

 

Let us know what happens.

 

Since I last posted there have been some developments.

I made another appointment with the Genius Bar, but at a different location. After explaining the situation and showing some screenshot pictures I have taken of the crashes, the person who helped me was quite sure that the other GB rep had made a mis-diagnosis. In his opinion, the fault was a defective logic board.

The GB representative concluded that nothing short of replacement of the computer would be in order. That is not to say it is what I wanted. In fact I would have been more relieved if there was another alternative.

I indicated that I had upgraded my RAM, and I really wanted to keep the contents of my HDD (for which there is no Time Machine backup). After he consulted with the store manager he indicated that he could only trade ou the computer if it were the same configuration as sold. I asked if I could return the next day after changing back the RAM to the original config, and if I could keep my old HDD by swapping it when the computers were to be traded. They graciously agreed.

The next day I brought my computer back, with the original 2 MB of RAM. They quickly swapped the HDD of mine into a new unit and completed the replacement of my computer.

Well, it did the trick. So far I have run the new unit for approx. 8 hours, and it works great. No crashes. I am relieved that it was indeed a hardware problem, as I knew I was taking a chance that with my old HDD the problem might have a slim chance of being something else.

I am grateful that these guys at the Apple Store were much more attentive to the situation, and not dismissive as those with my prior GB experience at a different store.

I am also thankful for those here who offered their help.

 

Congrats! Glad everything worked out at the Genius Bar the second time around! Another case where Apple Customer Service has come through!

 

Wow the apple store can replace the laptop for you even if you didn't purchase at their store, instead of letting apple care decide?

 

eventually it did... after failing miserably the first try...?

 

the Apple Store is owned and run by Apple, its an Apple sold machine... and an Apple Warranty machine. Apple Care is Apple as well, not some 3rd party warranty backer... so its all the same company. There is no "Apple Care" to consult... for a machine replacement, the tech would have to get approval, but that doesn't take any time.