MacBook Air :: Spinning Noise / Is It Due To A Defective Laptop?
Aug 14, 2009
I got my Macbook Air about 3 weeks ago and love it. However after the first 2 weeks, one day I turned it on and it was making a loud grating, spinning noise. The noise could be equated to if you try to play a CD but it hasn't been secured in the CD player fully so its banging around. But of course I have no disc drive...
So I stopped using it, tried turning it off and on again a couple of times over the next few days to no avail. I'm about to go back and demand a new one, but yesterday I turn it on and it's suddenly stopped making the noise.
My question is, is this problem likely to return, and is it due to a defective laptop? Should I see about exchanging it while it's still brand new or just wait and see if it happens again?
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Mar 29, 2010
MacBook Pro 15" Unibody Mid 2009. I got my new MBP 15" one month ago, I noticed a noise coming from underneath the touch-pad. The noise sounds like a loose small piece of metal cracking there. When I hear this noise:
- when the laptop is on my legs/bed/couch and I move it a little bit.
- when I tab on the aluminum around the touchpad.
I hear the noise more frequently day after day. I noticed that when I shake the laptop (shuted down) with the lid opened I hear the noise way more than with the lid closed. My laptop is new, its case never opened. I thought of the following:
- Something wrong with the thing that adjust the touchpad click (if it exists)
- There is a free screw moving there (maybe while assembling the laptop they accidentally dropped the screw).
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Apr 28, 2010
So I was writing a paper with the computer on my lap, then moved it with the lid still open to my desk, but as I was lifting it up I heard a very audible clicking noise. I attempted to repeat the experiment and found that my MBP will make a distinct single click when lifted suddenly upwards with the screen open. The noise comes from the right side, I assume from the super drive. Does the super drive have a sudden motion sensor like the HD, or is this something else? The noise never happens when the laptop is stationary, only like I said, when open and lifted straight up suddenly. I guess it happens with the lid closed, but after a few times, it stops doing it.
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Nov 30, 2014
Hearing a grinding noise intermittently on the left side of my laptop.
Info:
iMac, Mac OS X (10.7.5)
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Apr 10, 2009
I have a friend with an ibook and it was working fine until one day all the sudden it started making a spinning noise and he restarted it then on startup it beeped.
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Feb 7, 2012
I was installing latest update of OSX and lost internet connection now laptop will not start just see Apple logo and spinning wheel.
Info:
MacBookPro, Mac OS X (10.7.3)
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Apr 23, 2009
Short version:If you have an Early 2009 white Macbook (with the nVidia 9400M integrated video), you may have a defective LCD. I'm collecting serial numbers to establish a pattern of which notebooks have the defective LCD and which are usable. Please post the first 5 characters of your serial number, which model LCD you have, and if you notice lines/pinstriping (see below for how to find out all three of these easily)
Code:
Build Week : LCD Model : Lines present
03 : 9C5F : No
03 : 9C5F : No
04 : 9C5F : No
04 : 9C5F : No
08 : 9C5B : Yes
08 : 9C5B : Yes
11 : 9C5B : Yes
12 : 9C5B : Yes
13 : 9C5B : Yes
13 : 9C5B : Yes
15 : 9C5B : Yes
The fun stuff:
I recently picked up an Early 2009 white Macbook after owning a Late 2006 Macbook for the past two years. The performance has been great, but the LCD is another story.
I noticed faint horizontal lines on the LCD when viewed at a normal 90 degree angle, typically where solid light colors are displayed.
The effect is similar to pinstripes, and appears regardless of color profiling, calibration, OS, application, displaying 2D or 3D graphics modes, full screen video, or if booted from the hard drive or install DVD. Menus are a good example - faint lines where there are none on the Late '06 version, or on two 2007 Macbooks I'd initially checked side by side. If watching videos or playing games, any solid light colored region would exhibit the same issue - sky/clouds are a good example. From past experience, this looked like banding due to poor dithering in the LCD itself.
Example image: These menus should be translucent and uniform. The defective LCDs render the menu with pinstripes and bands.Thinking this was a single bad LCD, I proceeded to check 22 other 2009 white Macbooks on display at Apple stores and other retailers. Approximately half of the notebooks exhibited the exact issue, while others had the same clean display as I'd had on my original system.
Several past threads mention issues with Samsung LCDs - sure enough, this notebook and all that display the pinstriping have a display model of 9C5B (associated with Samsung). The notebooks that had clean displays without the pinstriping have a display model of 9C5F (associated with LG).
After pointing out the pinstriping to the lead genius at a local Apple store, he immediately noticed the issue as well and agreed that it was not normal (he described it as something that would drive him crazy. My sentiments exactly). Out of the 5 white Macbooks on display at the store, 3 had the issue and 2 were usable. After further digging, he discovered that Apple engineering is aware of the issue and states that no hardware should be replaced. As the system was new, he offered to exchange the notebook, with the caveat that if the replacement had the same LCD, they wouldn't be able to exchange the notebook again. The other option given was to pay for upgrading to the Unibody Macbook which doesn't appear to have the same issue (at least, not to the same degree).
Having originally purchased the notebook at Microcenter, I returned to the same store and pointed out the issue to the Microcenter sales rep. Kudos to Microcenter, their support is fantastic - he offered to check several more systems prior to my leaving the store. We proceeded to open and check 3 other Macbooks hoping to find one that was usable - all had the same LCD, and same issue (all from build weeks 12 and 13).
The goal:
Collect as many date codes from serial numbers as possible and determine which weeks shipped with defective LCDs. Personally I would like to increase my chances of exchanging this notebook for one with a usable LCD, and if you're looking to purchase, you may want to avoid particular build weeks. The build week from the serial number is the only identifier that can be checked without opening the box and starting up the system to check the LCD directly.
How to check your serial number/build week and LCD model:Serial#: Launch System Profiler. In "Hardware Overview", pull the first 5 characters of the serial number. For example: W8913 (W8 = Shanghai, 9 = 2009, 13 = Week 13)
LCD model: System Preferences -> Displays -> Color -> Open Profile -> #13 'mmod' -> Model. For example: 00009C5B
How to detect the lines:
The default Leopard wallpaper is great for detecting this issue - set this wallpaper (System Preferences -> Desktop -> Nature -> Aurora). Pull down the Finder menu. If you don't notice anything, tilt the screen back and the lines will be more prominent (but is perfectly visible at standard viewing angles).
Macro shot - if functioning properly, the LCD should display this entire menu without lines. The top half of this image is fine, the lower half has lines running through it. The graphic below this menu has a region of light solid color underneath "Show Original" and "Add to Sidebar": post your system information here so we can get a good idea of which weeks are affected. If your LCD is displaying the same issues, please contact Applecare and open a support case, or work with your local Apple store to see if you can locate a notebook with a usable LCD.
Ultimately, this is unacceptable given the typical quality standards for Apple products if the issue is widespread. Hopefully with enough information we can get some changes made to the replacement policy to recognize this as the defect that it is, rather than something that is "functioning normally".
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Feb 14, 2009
I was thinking of buying a Rev A MB Air. Don't really need the hard drive space as I have external storage. But after going through the posts it seems almost all the Rev As have video and over heating problems. The MB Air I am getting is with Apple Care until 2011.
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Oct 17, 2009
So I read online that my PowerBook G4 that I've had since about 2004 may have the defective memory slot that caused Apple to introduce the "PowerBook G4 (15-inch 1.67/1.5GHz) Memory Slot Repair Extension Program" in 2008. However, my serial number isn't within the program's parameters, and as I understand it, the program ended in 2008. It says it applies to serial numbers W8503xxxxxx through W8518xxxxxx; mine begins with W84.
Basically, I have a couple of questions before I a) shell out money for diagnostics and possible repairs or b) buy a new laptop: Is this a memory slot problem? My 15" PowerBook G4 (Model A1045; 1 GHz; 256 MB; 60G; Combo; BT) had been getting the beach ball for awhile, and was very slow operating and online. My sound card had been on the fritz. The internal speakers would sometimes not work, but the headphone jack would still work. So yesterday, the mouse froze while in Firefox, and after waiting awhile, I forced it to shut down. When it booted up again, I got a blank screen and three short beeps, followed by the LED light blinking periodically. All these symptoms seem to point to what Apple said was the memory slot problem [URL]
If this is a memory slot problem, what might the repairs involve and are there price estimates available? Is it better to just get another laptop? (I'm thankful I've had it for this long without any major problems, it's had a good life). If I do get another laptop, am I able to retrieve my information from my old laptop and transfer it to the new one? Is this an expensive procedure? Or is this laptop entirely kaput and my files forever trapped on there? What the recommendations out there (if I buy a new one instead doing repairs to the G4) for a laptop that will be used as my only computer (i.e., what's a good workhorse Mac)?
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Oct 3, 2010
Booted up my one month old MacBook Pro this morning to find what looked like a mark on the screen.On closer inspection it looks to be a defective pixel, which is red in colour. It really stands out against pretty much any colour accept red.I have Apple Care, would they replace the screen?If not is there, is there anyway to fix this?
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Mar 9, 2010
I pretty much use my Macbook in desktop mode (closed lid) since I bought it. Few days ago, I needed to do a SMC reset and the lid didn't go back on properly, it had a slight squishy feel O.O - but after a while I noticed the battery was rocking on the table. Seems like the battery has swollen up.
It might be a defective battery but I think it might be heat issues. With the lid open, it runs a lot cooler, almost a 10 degrees difference. Does any one have a similar problem?Oh, tried to get it replaced by Apple but because its more than a year they want me to buy a new battery
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Jun 2, 2012
Why has Apple not recalled the batteries in the white macbooks(early 2009) when it is very evident that these batteries have a manufacturing fault? Mine has swollen after 112 recharges but should have lasted 300 recharges before only having 80% capacity after which it will still work, just not as many hours. Because of the excessive cost of Apple batteries and Apple's releuctance to recall defective products my next laptop will be a windows8 machine.
Info:
MacBook, Mac OS X (10.7.4)
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Apr 13, 2012
Recently bought a mac air and while trying to charge it, the battery sign says not charging but the computer is running on ac. I tried another adapter and it works. Does that mean my adapter is defective?
Info:
MacBook Air, Mac OS X (10.7.3)
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Jun 18, 2012
I just got my macbook pro retina 2.6 with 16 gigs of ram. It was working great for the first 40 minutes then on the left side of the screen two inches went black, then the screen went fuzzy then cleared up. I reinstalled the OS just to be on the safe side and sure enough it happened again. Called support and they told me DOA, however they can't do anything because apple support systems are down! Check out the photos of my screen. It will clear up if I don't use it for a few minutes which makes me think it is the graphics card. Hope this isn't a displaygate for apple all this money and I get a DOA - whatever happened to QA?
Info:
MacBook Pro (Retina, Mid 2012)
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Jul 2, 2012
After waiting 3-4 weeks I was so excited to finally receive my retina macbook pro today. To my dissapointment as soon as I turned it on this glaring white light/cloudy mark behind the screen stabbed me in the heart. So dissapointing to wait so long just to get a defective unit.Â
I called AppleCare and they said I could either ship it back for a refund, or I could take it into the apple store for a refund. Apple store is only 30 minutes away so instead of putting any trust in fedex I decided to just go return it in person.Â
So now I'm waiting up to five days for the money to be refunded so I can order again and wait ANOTHER 3-4 weeks to receive a unit because I upgraded the base model to 16GB of ram, and it may have the same exact problem when it arrives... who even know... Â
I saw on macrumors a few others have had this issue so I'm not alone, but I do hate that I was unlucky this time around.  [URL]
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Feb 1, 2012
I have an 11/2007 MBP... 4 yrs, 2 months and 3 weeks old tomorrow. Yesterday I got the "black screen of death". I won't bore you with what I tried, but today a local expert assessed the situation: reset SMC and PRAM, noted that it booted into target disc mode and would screen share, in other words, he proved it was one of the known MBP's of this genre (15", 2.4/2.2GHz) to have a defective NVIDIA 8600 graphics processor. I called the recommended local Apple Authorized repair facility only to be told that, while these WERE being repaired at no charge, out of warranty, it had been discoved that, OMG they were repairing a WHOLE BUNCH of them and a time limit had been imposed and there were no longer being repaired after they reached four years from purchase date.WHY WAS NO ONE EVER NOTIFIED OF THIS DEFECT? And why am I just SOL because my computer chose to work an extra two months and eighteen days?
I plowed through the "you don't have phone service" with battering ram efficiency this evening, past the Apple care agent, his supervisor, and to "Customer Care" with whom I will be speaking again tomorrow. I have told them I "EXPECT" a "customer satisfaction code" which will provide me with a free repair. I have armed myself with the absolutely outrageous information that Apple, after booting NVidia out three years ago (one guesses after the rotten graphics bit) is welcoming them BACK this spring - Oh, so ANOTHER generation of MBPro users can get screwed?I sure could use some help here when I need another argument! Does anyone know the magic language to induce Apple to behave in an Apple-like manner concerning this matter?
Info:
iMac/MacBook Pro, Mac OS X (10.5.1), also Windows xp on a Dell Inspiron 5150
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Dec 20, 2010
I just got my 2.0ghz Alu Macbook a few days ago and everything works perfectly well, the thing is that after day one the magsafe started to emit a low pitched electrical whistling noise. It tends to be there a few minutes after booting into the OS and then it turns down to almost unhearable, but I experienced it returning after a few hours of use and then disappearing again. If I move close to the escape key I can hear a crackling noise emitting from the magsafe.I'm not trying to be overly nitpicky or anything but I read somewhere that if it's doing that it would be a faulty Mag-Safe board or something.
Does any one you guys know anything about this? I have the 14 days to return it as I bought it online from the Apple Store so if it's a faulty part that might die/break/ cause problems later I might have to.
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Oct 1, 2009
Sometimes I lift and carefully move my 17-inch MBP a short distance to another flat surface without putting it to sleep mode, it starts making really loud mechanical noise when I put it down, so loud that people in the same room can hear the noise and I can feel vibrations too! What causes this? Where does this noise come from? Is my MBP defective?
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Dec 26, 2010
My first generation unibody Macbook hasn't had any problems to this date but now it's constantly making that mechanical loading-like noise which is usually heard when the Macbook is switched on (the noise before the start up sound) or when the lid is opened to wake up the computer. Is there a fix to this?
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Jun 6, 2009
On my 13" MacBook Pro, the hinge makes a cracking noise on the right side of the computer (near the power button) when the screen is positioned all the way back.The entire hinge also makes a loud popping noise when I adjust the screen position. The screen seems very tight, and it takes a little bit of effort to move the screen, and when the screen is moved it makes the loud popping noise.
This is probably going to make some of you guys cringe, but sometimes putting pressure down on the top of the case close to where the black hinge meets to unibody enclosure seems to stop the popping noises. Putting downwards pressure on the hinge, or flipping the computer over and putting pressure on it that way, also seems to alter how much popping noise there is.
If I mess around a bit with applying pressure on different parts of the computer around the hinge, I can usually eliminate the noise. But, the cracking noise when I put the screen all the way back is still there.Any ideas what to do? It's not interfering with the operation of the computer, it's just incredibly annoying and this is only a four month old machine which shouldn't be creaking and cracking already.
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Jul 14, 2008
Has anyone else had problems with an old G3 Pismo making an annoying squealing noise when plugged into a charger? There's a lot of noises mentioned in mac/apple forums but none of them relate to this one. Here's what it is not:
It's not coming from the screen or the fan or the speakers (it's under the keyboard). It's not low or slightly annoying (it is a loud squeal). It happens only when the power adaptor is plugged into the laptop.(it used to cease after I unplugged the power adaptor and plugged it back in three times; now that solution doesn't stop the noise anymore). It charges ok, and runs ok, scream or no-scream. It's quiet right now, but if I move the adaptor to another plug it will start again.
I was going to live with this, but today after an hour of operating quietly it just started again, and I hate to leave the house with this going.(it will scream whether the laptop is on or off. I have a really old battery and cannot replace it (I am currently staying in Mexico for the summer). Battery life is 45 min. I haven't tried pulling the battery out. That would be too easy.
This all started when I bought a replacement power adaptor (generic),after the original one melted down, but I could stop the screaming by unplugging/plugging it in again once or twice. Then I bought an expensive iGo adaptor, and it does the same thing.
I Did the PRAM and PMU reset.I can hear it over music or the tv. It grew lower in pitch today after squealing for a half hour. I'd normally not let it go on that long, but i was
in the other room.Is my PISMO dying?
(400 mhz pismo G3 500 sdram, osx-10.39, no os-9 or Classic, new 80g HD)
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Oct 25, 2008
I just got my macbook pro yesterday and ran it all yesterday not hearing anything. Today when I woke it from sleep I could clearly hear the fan or hard drive going. I was in a quiet room and it's quite annoying.
istat says its at 2000 rpm so thats when I started thinking it may be the hard disk. It does pulse every now and then but thats even while it's just sitting idle.
I guess I could live with it but its just annoying. Anyone else having this?
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Jan 10, 2011
also, their all .avi video's. and i'm really confused! also, quicktime isn't letting me play .avi videos for some reason! and vlc won't download for me. and i'll put them on a USB but they wont download on my computer!
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Apr 19, 2012
I installed 8 x 4Gb RAM in my Mac Pro (2.2.4GHz Quad-core Intel xeon). When I check, slot 8 shows up as empty and that I only have 28 Gb of RAm and not 32. Can I leave things alone and run it on 28Gb of RAM or should I remove the defective module in slot 8 as well as the RAM in Slot 4 to balance it? Alternatively I have 2 x 1 Gb RAm modules I could put in slot 4 and 8.Â
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Jul 6, 2008
As u can see I have a 17" mbp and had it for a few months but after the nvidia announcement, Im seriously thinking about selling the mbp and using the which will cover for a 2.8ghz 8 core mp.
One of my fears is that the gpu will die over the years on the mbp and when apple care runs out or even if the mbp is covered by ac knowing that one day I would need to get it serviced..
I know I had the mp before and know what to expect and while the 17" mbp is a desktop replacement it is portable. Damn nvidia!
Sorry this is more of a venting thread than anything else.
Also curious anyone else on the same boat as I am with selling their mbp fora mac pro?
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May 17, 2008
6 of 8 processors at 100% for 24 hrs/day for nearly a week), my MacPro's "Power Supply 2" temperature suddenly rose to ~207 ?F (~95 ?C).I got a large external fan going through the desktop to bring the temperature down. I also tried to install smcFanControl to see if I could bump up the internal fan speed. Well, I could bump up THREE of the fans (I/O, CPU/Memory, and Exhaust), but it says that the PS fan is steady at just under 600 rpm, despite me cranking it up in the software to anything else (including the max, 2800, and anything less).
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Jul 28, 2010
I tried to archive and install 10.4 Retail copy on my 17" iMac G5 which has 10.3.9. The installer checked the disc and said it had scratches or fingerprints so to restart. I did, cleaned the disc and tried again. I got the same message but chose to ignore it and proceed and the disc got 36% of the way and said it is damaged and to restart. But it's gone far enough that I have not got 10.3 any more and the ONLY way I can restart the computer is with this defective disc! Or a network but my other Mac, connected with ethernet that worked well, now doesn't see the iMAc any more. I also have an external CD drive , doesn't read DVDs.
Right now I am stuck in the Startup Disk with a choice of endlessly restarting or shutting down. I shut down and it restarted from the disc OK.I checked the system profiler and under applications it shows only Disk utility,Installer,Network Ut, Open Firmware Password, Reset Password,Startup Disk, System Profiler. Under USB, it didn't recognize my external CD drive. Under Disk Utility I tried to repair permissions but it says it has no valid packages.
The person I bought the computer from sent me the Tiger copy discs and included 2 copies of Disc 1. I checked the second but it needs minor repair that couldn't be done with Disk Utility on my other Mac. But if I can somehow eject the disc that is in the 17" iMac (don't know how) will I ever be able to restart?
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Jun 25, 2012
how do i return a defective song?
Info:PowerBook, Mac OS X (10.5.8)
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Nov 20, 2009
I just bought one yesterday, and noticed that everytime i pick it up the inside "clicks".. like a metallic click sound.. Is this normal? or should i return it
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Jun 11, 2010
I got a printer with my macbook and it turned out to be a dud...the screen froze and doesn't return even after a long unplug. So I called HP and they credited me 110 dollars to use at their online store. Now the question is will I have to tell apple about the new printer or not? I don't want to lose my 100 dollar rebate but I also kinda want to get a different model that apple doesn't cover under their rebate. I have already applied for the rebate for the broken one.
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