27-inch iMac gets a firmware update to assuage your display issues
By Ross Miller 
posted December 21st 2009 5:39PM
posted December 21st 2009 5:39PM
[Thanks to everyone who sent this in]
posted December 21st 2009 5:39PM
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@Jack
You know I've had just about enough of your fanboi ridden posts. It's no wonder that you get ranked down constantly. Are you being obtuse on purpose?
Regardless of if it is the video card's that are having the issue, you know the one you claim to barely exist, the patch was still deployed. Don't expect any sympathy from me, when it comes to needling Apple after running such smug and arrogant campaigns.
Think of it like this, if I went around staying, "I am the best, better than the rest!", and then made a mistake, most people would have little to know sympathy for me either for being such a twit.
"Except for the fact that it's only a tiny percentage of the 27" iMacs that are actually presenting this problem."
You sure about this, is it fact like you claim, or are opinions held facts in RDF-land.
Read through the people having genuine problems on Apple's forum, and tell me that the sample size is still small:
http://discussions.info.apple.com/category.jspa?categoryID=189&start=240#threads
Damn, you can only enter 3 URLs on Engadget. So read through that official Apple Support Forum and tell me noones having general problems with the 27" iMac. You know apologizing for an issue that you say affects almost noone actually has...:
"Apple apologizes for iMac delays, keeps mum on DOA / display issues"
http://www.engadget.com/2009/12/14/apple-apologizes-for-imac-delays-keeps-mum-on-doa-display-iss/
The problem either exists or it doesnt, and all the astroturfing in the world doesnt change that. While I agree that it is perfectly normal to have unforeseen manufacturing defects, I have no mercy for company and reps (like Apple, or Ballmer's stupid iPhone comment) who are smug in their marketing.
It's people like you that make others think Mac users are dicks. My sister is a Apple fan, and just purchased the 27" iMac, it came with the screen tearing issue, but let me guess, she doesn't exist, the problem doesn't exist, LALALALALA, amirite?
Steve Jobs release a patch with one hand while holding up four fingers on the other and asks Jack,
"How many fingers am I holding up"
Jack: "Five"
@Andurilan
You can have enough of whatever you want, but if you can't prove me wrong then I'm not being obtuse, am I? See, the problem here is that you think Apple is "smug" and "arrogant". But here's a news flash for you: Apple is a large corporation, and as such can't actually be smug or arrogant.
So guess where the problem is? That's right. You're the problem. Now, for you and those of you who doubt it's a small percentage of iMacs having this problem, have you checked? How many reported instances are there, vs. the total number of 27" iMacs sold?
You think it's going to be 100%? Really? You know, people don't generally call Apple and complain if they're not having problems. I mean please feel free to prove me wrong on this. Please. Do it.
You all seem so sure that I'm wrong, yet none of you can prove it, or even come up with a reasonable argument against it. You're just raging against the machine, and only because it's Apple. But you're not biased or anything, right? Surely not.
Sure there are a lot of posts on Apple's forum about this. How many? And once again, out of how many iMacs total? That's the piece of this puzzle you are not taking into account. In your fantasy world, your sister's one instance + the number of complaints on the forums = 100% of all iMacs.
Seriously? Do I need to point out how stupid that is? You can insult me all you want but until you can prove me wrong you really have no leg to stand on. Oh, and if you used some common sense, that would help too.
For the record, I've had enough of idiot Apple-hating posts made by morons, which is why I choose to respond to posts like these, and to people like you. Show that you're capable of rational thought without being biased against Apple and you will be treated differently. Funny how that works, huh?
@Jack:
Buying Apple is Un-American. Think of how many companies exist in the PC world. By buying everything, software and hardware, from one company, think of how many companies you are hurting. Think of how many jobs you are putting at risk. Buying Apple is more Un-American than buying foreign cars.
"But you're not biased or anything, right? Surely not"
That's why I'm not biased. I support many different companies through my purchases. Not one evil one hiding behind a shiny piece of fruit.
@Jack
Commenters believe that since you pay a lot more for Apple computers, that 100% of them are going to be perfect. 99.8% isn't good enough. Since most Windows PCs are very cheap, they believe that even a 40% failure rate is tolerable. In other words, they solidly believe that people should get what they pay for.
@Atkins There is a slight flaw in your logic, this is counting the number of threads/posts of people that have posted complaints. That's like pulling reliability information for cars from the number of people that complained on the manufacturers website and a few car forums. Number of complaints on a website != number of actual defects. It doesn't take into account the number of people that have search for a solution. They then found these complaints and/or Apple's response on a upcoming fix and said nothing. But go ahead and spin it which ever way you want, that's why they invented statistics.
@Atkins: You mean like how OSX development got put on hold for the iPhone because they had to pull the resources (people) who were working on it to work on the iPhone. This in effect proves that Apple employees few people comparitively speaking to many different companies combined. Therefore, buying all Apple truely does support far fewer people than buying PCs which, once again, support hardware and software from many different vendors.
@Jordan
@Jordan
That is quite possibly the dumbest argument I have EVER SEEN.
"Un-American"? Do you even read what you're writing? How anybody could be stupid enough to believe that buying Apple products as opposed to Microsoft or anybody else's is actually negatively affecting the economy is simply mind boggling. It would require actual mental disfunction or maybe schizophrenia to believe something like that. Or maybe just good old fashioned stupidity.
There is so much wrong with your reasoning I'm not even sure I can cover it all in one post. Do you ever look at the stock market or even have the slightest idea of how our economy works? Try asking somebody with a brain if Apple is hurting our economy, you half wit.
Oh and your foreign car example is great, watch this: Chevy Camaros are built in Canada. Are they American? Subarus are built in Indiana by US auto workers, are they foreign? Which one gives US auto workers employment and which one doesn't? Idiot.
And since you're so convinced I would like you to explain EXACTLY how buy Apple computers is putting jobs at risk, especially when compared with any other computer hardware company. You bring up a lot of vague "they took our JEORBS" complaints but I'll bet you can't back any of them up with facts.
And finally, do you actually believe you're not biased? Are you really that completely stupid? Both here and on TUAW, all you do is troll Apple threads, and every single comment you make is about how much Apple or Apple products suck. How does that make you NOT biased? Care to explain that? Or do you need a dictionary so you can look up what "biased" means?
After this post I now think you are dumber than I thought you were originally. And that is REALLY saying something. Good job.
@Average White Boy
Except what you're paying for is not a guarantee that all Macs will be completely 100% problem free. Nobody can make that guarantee simply because of the law of averages. What you're paying for is a better computer.
@Jack:
Do you actually believe YOU'RE not biased?
Let me explain, AGAIN, for your tiny tiny brain.
Apple, it's hardware and it's software all belong to one company. Yes, some parts are made, by mostly, Intel. Now you buy Apple products - AND ALL YOU GET IS APPLE. There are not near as many vendors supporting the Apple platform. Buy an iPhone, you're locked into iTunes. Buy an iPod - you're locked into iTunes.
Now buy a PC. Yes it comes with an OS from Miocrosoft, BUT THAT'S IT. You could actually build a PC with parts all from different manufacturers. You could use Linux, do whatever you want. This model supports many companies, many many people, and much more competition and innovation.
Buy Apple - you support one company pulling resources from one division to the next in order to not hire new people. Don't buy Apple - you support many many companies and many many people.
@Jordan. if you are trying to imply that ALL the 27 inch computers have had problems, you are the wrong one. I work every day around over two dozen, a handful of store bought duos and quads and some custom i7s and none of them have had any graphics issues of any kind.
so I can tell you first hand that some have been just fine.
@Jordan
Seriously Jordan you are so anti-Apple that you make arguments that make no sense. Many, many, many manufacturers (U.S. and foreign) go into making the parts for any Apple product. It is MY CHOICE to buy a fully integrated product (HW and OS) not any one else's and that is FUNDAMENTALLY AMERICAN! If you don't like it don't buy it. I wonder about people who hate Apple products so vehemently - I myself love Apple, HP (I have an HP Mini and an HP laptop) and yes I'll say it - I like Windows 7. I use whatever I like to use and that which makes my life easier and Apple does just that plus they have killer design - which is another thing I really like. I'll buy products that cost more and do the same thing because they have better design and I feel the maker has put some thought into their product.
Apple DOES NOT make components - it designs computers! Same thing as for PC Manufacturers.
Take for example the components for an iMac 27 inch:
CPU : Intel
Memory : one of the 9 or 10 manufacturers that make memory
HD : Western Digital or Hitachi
Motherboard : Some Asian contract manufacturer (who make most if not ALL motherboards for ALL PC manufacturers) - these motherboards are manufactured from parts (microchips, capacitors etc... that come from a bunch of other manufacturers).
I could go on....
Saying that buying an Apple product is un-American is like saying that buying a car from GM or Ford is unamerican because the whole car comes from only one manufacturer! Or buying a toothbrush from Johnson and Johnson is un-american because they make both the handle and the bristles.
Wow! Oh, wow! Mine's now a multitouch screen! I figured Apple would do something like this! Release a firmware upgrade that would convert any of their iMacs or MacBooks with a glass screen into touch at some time in the future. This is awesome! No wonder they shrunk the new keyboard! Having fun finger painting in PhotoShop - and pinch to zoom is so sweet! Bye bye mousy. H-e-l-l-o touchy!
Now this is how computers were meant to be operated! Who needs Windows 7?
It's like a giant iPhone. Lovely! So intuitive. So dreamlike. So untrue...
.
.
.
.
.
Kidding. iDon't have an iMac, just a humble trackpad driven MacBook Pro 15" late 2009 edition. But dreaming of 2010 iMac/Tablet/MacBook that really will do this. And it will happen, done properly, with the no compromise Apple execution. ;)
Wait... Macs are perfect...
@bisbebri That's right, that's why I quit buying anything windows a long time ago. No point in buying crap when I can get something that works very well.
@HighestRanked clearly.... I still prefer windows 7 with my home built machine, cheaper and faster than anything Apple can produce at their high costs...
@bisbebri No matter. When one has to become a technician to fix all the problems that come with using windows it negates any price or speed advantage. In contrast, the inherent benefits that come with a highly integrated software/hardware computer make owning a Mac's value far more than its money cost.
@HighestRanked
Of course, HighesRanked isnt going to talk about the inherent drawbacks of having a single sourced ecosystem top-down management system that Apple has. How long did people have to wait for Apple to release this patch again...?
@Andurilan
Less time than it takes Microsoft to release patches for Windows, if that's what you're going for.
@Jack: Woaah, care to take that back, buddy? Microsoft pushes out patches EXTREMELY fast. Most times they have a patch out before users even know the problem exists. Doesn't seem to appear Apple works the same way?
How long did Snow Leopard go on deleting users files before they finally fixed that?
@Jack
Yeah MS is not slow about releasing patches. Most of the software problems I hear about concerning PCs are ones that have already been fixed like the hole Conficker used which was patched months before the problem was well-known. Don't confuse the time it takes MS to release a patch with the time it takes users to install.
@Jordan
Take it back? Are you serious? Oh wait, it's you. Of course you are. No seriously, this is an argument that you are not going to win, no matter how much you hate Apple. Remember the hole they found in Safari during the ConSecWest contest? You recall how long it took Apple to patch that?
Two days. Has Microsoft ever released a patch for anything, no matter how serious, in two days? From learning about it to finished and released? No, of course not. That's because Apple is faster than Microsoft at patching things.
Anything else I can help you with?
@Jack
So are we talking about Can-West or we're talking about 27" inch iMacs
Let's just ignore your straw-man argument for a moment.
Apple patches a security hole in a browser that a hacker at Can-West exploited to drop the Mac first, within 2 days, vs. Apple patches a documented issue with their new product they continue to sell within weeks, after apologizing for it? And we're supposed to be impressed. Is this really what you meant?
All vitriol aside, I can't think of any time where Microsoft patched something within 2 days; but then again, I don't blindly toe the company line of a company either.
Sometimes I wonder if you realize how full of it you really are.
@Andurilan
Apparently you don't know what a straw-man argument is. I used a very SPECIFIC example of an event that actually happened, which is the opposite of a straw-man argument. Go ahead, look it up if you need to, I'll wait.
All done? Good. Now stop taking the argument out of context and pay attention. The argument was that Apple doesn't patch issues quickly. I proved that wrong. Yes? You can either agree or disagree here (and if you disagree, you're wrong), but you can't argue with my example because that is an established fact.
Apple does patch issues quickly, and much quicker than Microsoft does. Now as to the issues with these video cards - and let's not mince words here, it IS an issue with the video cards - don't you think this firmware patch would have required constant communication with ATi in order to solve? This patch wasn't able to be created on Apple's timetable alone. Was that not obvious?
If you think Apple was sitting around doing nothing rather than prepping this fix, you're an ignorant tool. Since they have to work with a 3rd party to fix it, wouldn't that sort of by default indicate that it's going to take longer than normal? And that the length of time on its own is not an indicator of how fast Apple works to fix issues?
And that's right, you can't think of an instance where Microsoft patched something in two days, because they never have. Not even after IE went down at the same CanSecWest. You don't have to toe their line to know that, you just have to be vaguely aware of the events surrounding that contest, which you are obviously not.
And if I'm full of it, you're going to have to a better job of proving it that this, buddy. You do know what proof is don't you? Facts? You know, the things I'M using to prove YOU wrong? Yeah.
Wha????
No Nvidia or anyone else to blame? Hope they dont burn the bridge to ATI as well.
/allyourbaseourbelongtous "Muaawahauhahahha"
I wasn't having the flickering or image corruption, but is anyone experiencing issues with the Rectangular Marquee tool in Photoshop? It seems to be a pixel off when you create a marquee around something. I have the same setup on my mac pro and mac book and those seem to line up fine. I would have to assume this is a screen or video card issue. Was hoping this update would fix it.
AND...
For those of you who are loyal to other brands, stop perpetuating this shitty human condition of cutting someone or something down that has success. I really don't understand what you're achieving by riddling these posts with hatred or information that has no relation to the post and/or offers no help/suggestions/feedback. Do you really think this propaganda is going to get someone to decide on a technology you're partial too? And if someone does, are you getting a check in the mail? Use this energy to fight a better cause.
@QandnotU
I hate to sound childish, but.. Apple started it.
Cutting down products that are successful is a core advertising scheme of Apple, and instilled in their fans. Mac's vs PC's anyone? I'm just saying. This is the same reason I wont buy Pepsi, or Burger King products. Stooping to this level of competition just doesn't vibe with me.
@Andurilan
In that case I hope you don't own a Droid or ANY other product that uses aggressive marketing. If you do, then you are possibly the biggest hypocrite on earth.
Does this fix that so common yellow tinge issue?
@(Unverified)
LOL @ the fanbois asking if I ever used a Mac.
As far as I know, the yellow tinge is not fixed by this update, it is a physical defect, not a software glitch.
This is what I read so you may want to verify around the web and with your local Genius Bar, if there's one around you.
@Atkins
All the OSX 10.x from Tiger up, as she updates regularly over a two year period. This include iMacs which she likes because of the form factors and Macbook Pro's. This is over a 6 year period, so i also have experience with using them when they were PPC only. I also used a OS9 box when I was in college, and that was just hell. OSX is fine. I also have made a Tiger hackintosh that i rarely use.
See, what you don't seem to understand is I do use Macs, and the OS is great (although i still do prefer Windows or Linux out of habit) and the build quality used to be outstanding, before the jump to Intel.
What irks me is the revisionist, company-line toeing, competition-slandering, that Apple and its most rabid of fans have been spewing as of late.
There are several problems with the iMac 27" that neither you or others I'm debating against has yet to repsond to, regarless of the numerous 50 page+ support forum posts that are on Apples own support forum. Not a third party blog, their own site, which has Apple's faithful, not Apple-haters like me, crying for help before the patch was release.
( http://discussions.info.apple.com/category.jspa?categoryID=189&start=90#threads )
Screen-tearing, yellow tint, flickering, random sleep issues have been a issue with the new iMac. The last iMac had little to no problems at it's release.
Remember when Vista was released? Remember how it panned by consumers and critics? Remember why it was hated so much? I'll refresh your memory; it was because of several driver issues they had despite having direct contact with OEMs. It was because of Vista being paired minimum spec'd hardware by OEMs MS directly deals with. But it didnt matter that most of the issues were fixed, even now, Vista will be dumped on as ME 2 and rightly so. MS is responsible for the QA of their product.
Why is Apple any different in this case?
@Andurilan
Ack. When i refer to "she", I mean my younger sister
Really? AMD/ATI had a bug in their released components? No wonder Intel's $1.2B stimuls only wiped out 1/3 of their debt.
I had similar problems with my 4850 gpu on my hackintosh, it worked, but occasionally i'd get really screwy jpg corruption occasionally, but the 10.6.2 update fixed it all.
Still shipping in 2 weeks. cracked glass still an issue or just selling well?
@appleboy
Demand is continuing to outstrip supply. From what I can tell the 27" IPS panel is new, and they didn't have a big enough stockpile of them before it went on sale.