Quality control issues with new PowerBooks...particularly the 15"?

I think you are noticing every little thing. That being said, I'll think of you tomorrow when my 15" display has one less dead pixel than will cause Apple to replace it, and white spots galore.

i'm totally getting worried about my soon to arrive powerbook. i don't think it's just you. every mac forum i go to there are threads about the latch or dead pixels or that white thumbprint smudge or warped lids or the squeak. it's freaking me out! i've thought about the ole "only users with problems post on boards while many happy users don't" theory, and while this probably is true to a degree, there are MANY users posting with problems. the thing that worries me is that they only started shipping. so there are alot of people out there who are excited and psyched to be getting a 15"er (like me), but i just wonder how it'll be in a month when alot of people have them and the problems start growing.

i've actually thought about cancelling my order and see how it pans out in the coming weeks because dealing with the whole returning/repairing scenario is a huge pain for me, but i'm just gonna stick it out and hope i get a good one.

funny, a couple months ago i thought getting the powerbook was gonna be such a fun experience, but everyday i check out forums and it kinda stresses me out...don't even get me started on airborne express....anyways i do hope the problems are isolated and from now on the powerbooks are solid!

Shut up Shut up Shut up, if I don't hear about it, it isn't true! I'm worried but am confident that Apple will provide me with a good PBook. If not I can always find the nearest bell tower near SJ's house (bit extreme?\)

I was actually concerned as well, but there are bound to be a certain number of units that get through quality control and end up in the users hands with one problem or another.

For instance, I've only read a few places where there is a latch related problem. So a few out of tens of thousands shipped is not bad. Same goes for the white spot.

I'm not worried about the heat, through personal experience and most other reports, it seems to be much less than the Ti's...

I've also read many positive reports as well. Like anything, there are going to be some issues, and like all of you, I hope mine doesn't have anything major wrong with it.

I'm not going to cancel my order or lose major sleep over it, I'll keep a positive attitude and will only deal with issues if I have too.

From what I have read, those that are happy with the new book are VERY happy!

I'm looking forward to getting my new powerbook .

Me too but it is a bit worrying nonetheless.

What if something nasty were to actually happen, would Apple just replace the book no questions asked ?

Anyone know the procedure ?

Well, I am starting to get worried to. Say Steve has a big ego and wants not only to increase A) Apple market share but also B) demonstrate that when he says 2003 is year of the notebook he means 50% will be notebook sales. BTW, during his Paris keynote it seemed to me that he wasnt happy with people using his earlier statement to label the G5 Powerbook as a sure thing, while all Steve-o just wanted was to increase the relative Powerbook share in Apple hardware sales (dont we feel stupid! ).

But how would they go about A) then? Increasing market share when youre in an high-end user market, would probably be lowering your sales prices, right? But in which segment?

Fact is, that Apples low-end hardware (iBook for notebooks, and eMac and iMac for desktops) is already more expensive than comparable (if not better) offerings in the PC market! So probably a no-go for price-competition with Powerbooks and Power Macs. I guess well see a (substantial) price cut with the next low-end model updates.

What I am worried about now, is that once Apple enters into price competition to increase their market share, it starts to change their profit margins. Obviously, there is the risk that Apple will cut back on quality (production costs) in order to maintain their profit margin, instead of waiting for a higher market share. This way it are the current Apple buyers that are financing this little endeavor instead of the company. And given brand loyalty with Apple users, Apple will probably get away with it.

However: lowering iMac and eMac prices makes it harder getting the 50% notebook sales ratio! So, problem for goal B! Not lowering iMac and eMac pricing? Lower iBook prices even more? Lowering also Powerbook prices to compensate? A combination of the above?

In any case, it seems lowering Powerbook prices has to be beneficial to the cause. And thats exactly what we have seen when the new Powerbooks were introduced (plus even a price correction in Europe). But once again, lowering prices brings quality (costs) into the equation. And I must say, it is striking how much people already have to complain about the new 15PB, while not that many are being used \. It all points to reducing production costs: cutting back on screen quality, not putting in the expensive L3 cache, putting in a cheaper battery, charging outrageous amounts for BTO upgrades, maintaining the 4200 HD, where can we save most and what will be less noticed? But in order to sweeten this sour pie, lets put in the ATI9600! Who wants to bet thats the graphics card the new eMac, iMac and iBook will get (top models that is)?

But theres a solution to all of this: Steve just has to give up goal B, that will make everyone but one happy. Good trade-off, not?!

I did not write this.

Hey all!

I'll try and help you folks out, OK?

I picked up my 15" Superdrive PowerBook last Saturday, so it's got to be from an early batch, right?

So far, NO PROBLEMS WHATSOEVER!

This thing is awesome and solidly built. I can't hear the hard drive unless I put my ear to the keyboard. It feels much more solid than the TiBooks (had a Rev. A 500Ti). Every pixel works, and I have no "spots", "lines" or anything short of a big smile on my face.

I've tried regular networking (100Mb, not 1000Mb), and wireless networking both at home and at school. No problems whatsoever. I'm getting wireless signal in a concrete school building! That didn't happen with my Ti.

Don't have any bluetooth devices so I haven't tried that. Haven't tried video out either since I don't have any reason to at the moment.

I've spent only a few minutes with NeverWinter Nights and the graphics are delectable. I have setting @ 1280x854 and scrolling is smooooth. The semi-transparent smoke effects from the lanterns are realistic looking. I don't know framerates or anything like that, but it's pretty cool. It's also about the only thing that causes the fan to come on as well.

Speaking of the fan, it's quite silent. You'll be able to tell when it comes on, but it's a quiet whirring, as opposed to the blasting sounds that the Ti's have. The fan makes less noise than the optical drive when it's spinning.

In short, this computer is really cool!

pscates,

That's exactly what I did. I drove 1.5 hours so I could pick it up from the Chestnut Hill Apple Store. After completing the sale, I opened it up right at the genius bar.

The battery comes charged more than halfway, so I booted it up to the Welcome screen, looked around for any dead pixels (none) or anything else weird. Not seeing anything, I shut it down and left. I drove home really carefully (don't ask how I drove up there, let's just say I'm surprised the drive didn't cost me the price of a ticket or two).

I'm not sure what the Apple Stores' policy is regarding opening up a box to check that everything's working fine.

Most other Apple dealers here locally won't let you do that without some sort of re-stocking fee. Kind of a gamble and hassle with the dead pixels issue especially if it's through a mail order store.

Note that he did it after the sale. They can't tell you not to open the box when it's yours.

Amorph is absolutely correct. I didn't open the box until after I had completed the purchase. I specifically mentioned that in my earlier post to eliminate confusion.

Basically, I didn't want to drive all the way home (1.5+ hours) to find out I had a DOA unit or some other kind of problem. The store still had two other units at the time so if I had a DOA, I had two more tries to get a working unit. The store will swap a DOA without a restocking fee, and I'd rather take care of that at the store then to get home and have to deal with Apple over the phone since that would've delayed my gratification for at least a week.

Likewise. I still prefer the looks of my Ti, but I have to admit, this machine is mechanically superior. It's quieter and cooler than my Ti, the fan has not yet come on (I got it three days ago), the optical drive is quieter and there are no cosmetic flaws that I can see.

My only complaint is that I had to borrow a gorilla from the zoo to get the screws out of the RAM access panel. Man, those things were torqued down like nobody's business!

I tell you what, if I could do that, I sure would have (Institutional PO purchase here). I'm a bit nervous, mostly because out of 5 portables from Apple, I've had not a single bad pixel or quality problem knocks wood. I just checked my Pismo's screen last night, and it looks brand-new in quality, pixels, etc.

Now I gotta go --- I just heard what kind of ethernet cable the VT cluster is using, and I want to start a new thread about it.

pscates,

Should that read "I called the Atlanta store and they said they were expecting a shipment tomorrow."?

You know you want it. What are you waiting for?

I posted a bit about this in another thread. Mine didn't turn on, which is perhaps atypical and warranted a bit more respect from the AppleCare folks. Of note, the latch didn't hold the lid closed reliably and the lid looked a bit warped (more of a gap on one side than the other when closed.) Since I never got it to turn on, I can't comment on the screen issues. I don't know how Apple would treat those complaints. I just really hope my replacement doesn't have any issues.

An excellent idea given my experience (I was a latch problem guy). Nothing like being able to go in and exchange it right then and there. The happy ending is that me new machine is, so far, perfect. Secure latch, nary a single dead pixel (yet), and making me very happy.

This will be my first post from my new 15"

My screen looks perfect, not white spots, or a single dead pixel as far as I can tell. I am having a latch problem though. I think the problem is that the spring that pulls the latch back in is too strong. So I did this a couple times...and plan on doing it every once and a while for the next couple days is grabbing the latch and stretching it farther then it would normall stretch. I hopefully can let it ease up and make it work so I don't have to send this back. I called AppleCare and they said I can use it for a while before I send it back to see if the problem goes away. So that is my plan and I hope it works out!

So far not a thing I dislike about this computer...well I have to get used to the keyboard but it's an amazing keyboard (very quiet) and although I havn't done any hardcore processing it is only SLIGHTLY warmer then room temperature, and this beast is silent. It takes silence to tell it's on. Ethernet, DVI, S-Video, USB all seem to be working fine, I tested them just by fooling around as soon as I got it.

Here is my battery life information...

I havn't recharged it yet and it is at 26%. I guess they start at 75% and I have been using it for 2 Hours and 20 Min. Besides playing with the keyboard and brightness for a few min, I've been running on bar 3 of brightness and keyboard brightness off. I installed Photoshop and Ghost Recon so far. I have a wireless mouse hooked up...not bluetooth so I have a base receiver for the mouse (not sure how much energy that takes up. I turned off bluetooth and airport maybe 10 min after I got it. So batter life looks good...especially if you get better battery life with Panther. I hope this posts helps anyone and if you want to ask me questions or offer advice then please feel free...I need it

Besides the latch which I hope will go away I couldn't be happier!

well it's good to hear all these 15" success stories, gives me hope! *crosses fingers*

Cool! Congrats. I can't wait for that first AI post/iTunes rip/DVD movie on my first Mac.



Which PB did you go for? Combo or SD? 4200RPM or 5400?

15" 1.25GHz completely stock except I downgraded the SuperDrive.

I can't wait to take it into school, but I'll need to get a case for it first. Perhaps next weekend when I have more money.

Sadly, my 15-inch PowerBook has gone back to Apple. My battery life was horrendous and it turned into an oven after it was on for an hour and a half. It could flip it over and fry and egg on it. Since I purchased it through the Apple Store for Education, Apple said I could either get a replacement battery or return it. I was going to get the replacement battery, but then after a co-worker complained hers came with a broken latch, I decided to return it. I should wait until Apple gets the kinks worked out of the assembly line. The co-worker is going to return hers and downgrade to a 12-inch SD model. I might go that route too, and get the 20-inch display for when I'm here at the house. Sort of the pscates idea. I'm still not sure yet.

I liked the 15-inch. Maybe the 1Ghz model doesn't have as many problems? I don't know. Now that I'm back to square one, I go back and forth. Given the problems I have had over the last two years with the 15-inch models, I'm really conflicted. Although I must say this Ti867 I bought in March to tide me over has worked great. Fans are noisy at times, but that doesn't really bother me, and it doesn't run hot. For some reason, the Ti's screen feels more square than the aluminum 15-inch (perception).

Welcome to my world. I get all the software installed and configured the way I want it...then have to send it back is a major buzzkill. Your observations seem right on about issues with the 15-inch. Which, having had previous problems with the 15-inch, I've somewhat eliminated getting a 15-inch all together. It's either the 12- or the 17-inch; I just have to decide whether I want to have the portability and the screen at home; or the 17-inch widescreen everywhere I go. I have the weekend to think it over. I need to do something. I'm not a fan of the Ti either. _ DH _

just curious, is the 17 the same as the 15 except for the size? if so, are the 17 having these problems too?

I don't consider the 12" to be a downgrade. Especially rev B.

While I wish I had some more time with this machine before I posted anything, here goes my first impressions.

Display: zero problems. VERY bright (haven't had it above 50% all day). No stuck pixels of any color. No white spots (I can't entirely tell what the issue is, but I've been assured that if I'm not seeing anything on a pure white screen, there is no issue).

Latch: 100% fine.

Hardware: seems fine. Installed the second 512 stick no problem (except finding a (*$&!! phillips screwdriver small enough!).

Battery: I charged the battery (started above 80%) when I first opened her up, and got a total of 2:45 off that charge. No intense work on that, though. Right now I'm bringing it back up to 100%, and I'll run it to sleep and report back.

Heat: It's hot, but remember, I'm coming off a Pismo. As others have mentioned, the heat is localized on the back underside 1/3, and back top 1/5 or so (keyboard is not hot).

Keyboard: I really like this keyboard. The action is very nice. The lack of flex with respect to the Tis and earlier PBs is apparent, and welcome. Trackpad is taking some getting used to, but the Pismo has a veritable speedbump for a button compared to this machine.

Airport: working off a 1st Gen base station; reception is at least as good as it was with my Pismo. More fluctuation in signal, however.

I'm going to try and restore my Pismo files now. Hopefully that won't take the age of the universe!

Well everyone, I'd just like to say that my new 15" PB is everything I had hoped for and more. Furthermore, I have not found a single flaw in it, and believe me I've looked. I've put every color background I can find on it and can't find a single bad pixel or white out area. I have watched a movie on it and it looked incredibly sharp. The heat isn't near the issue all the dramatic people seem to make it out to be. Yes, it's warm. Will it burn you? Hell no. The migration from my 600 MHz iBook was a snap as well with the help of .Mac and iSync. I had also read in another thread about holding my iBook's T key down while turning it on with it connected to my new PB with a firewire. It was a breeze getting my stuff from one to the other. I hope you all look forward to getting PB's and if mine is an indication of what everyone else's will be like, I think you'll all be VERY pleased with them.

I've always heard it's a good idea to 'calibrate' a new battery by charging it to full first, then immediately draining it down until the unit shuts off.

Supposed to increase battery life short, and long, term.

So I heard.

Well its interesting and reassuring to read these first impressions guys... here's mine and a request for a little advice

Got mine about a week ago - 1.25 SupaDrive model - what can I say its an amazing machine - the best Mac I have ever used! however I think I have been unlucky and got one with some white spots on the screen, plus battery life is a drag! (yes I have done the PMU reset and all the other recommended procedures but i still can't get much more then 2 hours out of it)

Good points:
1. Screen Brightness
2. Keyboard - the illumination is very cool and the overall quality is top notch
3. performance - its really fast! Digital performer screams on it even with heavy software synths etc...
4. Quiet yes this baby is very quiet - it can get a little warm but that's no biggie since the bits that warm up are not the palm rests or the keyboard and thankfully the fan only kicks in when the machine is being seriously stressed and then stops quickly.
5. Look and feel of the thing is phenomenal its so beautiful and well built - its the Mercedes Benz of laptops!
6. I have not had any issues with the latch or pixels or any other issue apart from the white spots.

Bad points:

1. White spots - grrr very annoying - three of those one which is quite notable - looks like a finger smudge on the screen approx. 10mm wide - shows really well when over a light colored background.
2. Battery life - this is not good and i need decent battery performance - don't know what to do...


I wonder what do you people suggest I do about my problematic screen - is it worth calling apple up about this and demanding a replacement? has anyone received a replacement for such a problem - I'm getting attached to my new friend now and i need to decide soon, before it gets too hard to say goodbye ...

Hmmm.....let me put it to you this way.

As you say, this machine is the "Mercedes Benz" of laptops right? OK. So you go and fork out good money for your Mercedes and you notice that there is a large tear in the leather of the back seat or a decent scratch in the paintwork or a rattle in the engine etc (you get my drift) do you go on and hope it goes away or ignore it, remembering you've paid good $$$ for this. Something that irks you every day that you drive the car. Weeks and months of saving, doing without things so you can have this Mercedes, not to mention the 6 month delay in getting the colour you wanted!!!


Send it back and get a unit that is worth the $$ you paid for!! After all, this ain't PC dollars we are paying here. If Apple want to charge us premium dollars, they can give me a premium product.....nothing second rate cos my money ain't.

People, as I said earlier: things might be changing.
When Apple drops its PB prices, something has to give. If something goes up, something is bound to come down ... Apple's new market expansion policy has arrived !

"Always be kind."
-Henry James

HEAT?! Bring on the heat...it's freezing here in Milwaukee, and I could use a lap warmer . Anyway, I too am getting rather concerned. I am on the phone with Apple now waiting to cancel my order (some guy at MacNN got a free wireless keyboard after threatening to cancel his order) and go to my Apple store and get a stock 15" 1.25Ghz...I don't want both RAM slots occupied, but if it means getting a perfect powerbook, so be it. That and I need to return the printer and iPod I got with the edu rebate and repurchase it.

rashumon,

Call up Apple or go to where you purchased your laptop. Apple has been replacing PowerBooks with white spots on the screen. I haven't had the problem personally (knock on wood) but in other threads people have said they've been getting replacement laptops.

Don't settle for less than perfect, as has been mentioned before.

Also, someone said they don't remember any releases as problem-plagued as the new PowerBooks. I say, harken back to 2001, when the original PowerBook G4s were released. Remember the DVD problems EVERYONE had? I would imagine almost all of the first batch had the DVD problem due to misaligned of the optical drive at the factory.

That being said, I'm psyched that I received a PB in mint condition.