a problem for many, it seems: think line appears on screen

August 18, 2010 8:57 AM

Yes. My IMac has that thin blue line on monitor. Yes. lots of folks get this. Question, though.

My machine (IMac) is about 6 years old. I do not want to spend 600 bucks to replace screen. Can I live with the line or is that an indicatiion that the computer will soon go totally on the blink? Anyh way of "fixing" monitor without replacing major components? Seems a lot of confusion and Apple not being very good about clarifying things.

posted by Postroad to Computers & Internet (1 answer total)

I feel your pain. In my case, I thought I could deal with just one line, but I ended up with more like seven before I decided to get the screen replaced. It's entirely possible that you will end up with a ton of lines that will become more and more annoying. I do not recommend replacing the screen yourself- it's a giant pain in the ass and expensive.

First you should go to the system area and check the serial number. Some serial numbers are known to more susceptible to this problem. My computer was also well out of warranty, but I was able to get it fixed for free by emailing them my concerns. I included the serial number and mentioned that I was aware that this is a known issue. I also included a link to one of the discussions on the Apple forums (it wasn't this one, but it was something similar). When I got a call from the Apple customer center, I emphasized that I knew that this was an issue that had affected many people and that I knew that my serial number was one of the bad ones. I had no trouble getting a document allowing me to get it fixed for free. I live really far from an Apple store, but they were happy to tell me about the authorized dealers in my area. But the only way you're going to know for sure is to get in contact with Apple.
posted by Mouse Army at 10:33 AM on August 18, 2010