Following a petition with thousands of signatures related to GPU complaints, Apple has been named a defendant in a new class-action lawsuit filed against the Cupertino-based company in the United States District Court for Northern California over system failures and graphical issues affecting 2011 MacBook Pros.
The class-action lawsuit was filed by Kentucky-based law firm Whitfield Bryson & Mason on behalf of plaintiffs Zachary Book, Donald Cowart, and John Manners, a trio of individuals that accuse Apple of failing to rectify the graphical issues that have affected both 15-inch and 17-inch MacBook Pro models released in 2011.
The lawsuit covers California and Florida residents that purchased an affected MacBook Pro model between approximately February 2011 and May 2012. According to court documents, the issue stems from a defective AMD GPU that did not function correctly because of lead-free soldering that caused short circuiting among other problems.
MacBook Pro models that were affected by this problem would often have visual banding or malfunctions on the screen, especially when users were performing highly intensive tasks like watching high-resolution videos or using multimedia programs like the Adobe Creative Suite, Final Cut Pro and similar software.
Apple did offer a free video card replacement on some mid-2011 iMacs exhibiting similar symptoms, though the cards in the MacBook Pro are different, and recalls as a whole are rare. The most recent was in August, when Apple offered free battery replacements for some iPhone 5 models that were deemed to have defective batteries.
The lawsuit alleges that Apple has failed to reimburse customers that were forced to pay for out-of-warranty repairs that could cost between $350 to $600 to fix the GPU issues. The legal filing also accuses Apple of largely ignoring customers that have complained, even those that attempted to reach out directly to CEO Tim Cook.
Apple has yet to comment on this lawsuit and, given that it generally remains tight lipped on matters such as these, it might not ever provide any official word regarding the case. Nevertheless, we’ve reached out to Apple for comment and we will update this post if we hear anything back.
Whitfield Bryson & Mason is examining this issue further and there is a possibility that legal action could extend beyond the jurisdictions of California and Florida.
Any of our readers with a 2011 MacBook Pro affected by this GPU issue?
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I am a victim (early 2011 model). I did have the issue in the past, but my Mac was sent out for repairs to fix the issue (was going to be $300+, due to misunderstanding it ended up being free) and the issue is somewhat resolved (it flickers line the lines in the picture above for a half a second while switching between graphics cards). I investigated so hard trying to fix the issue and other people were having the same issue…. I was saddened to find they wouldn’t replace it for free.
I have an early 2011 MacBook Pro 15″ and have never had a problem with it (I’m using it now).
But I have the model with the 6750M and so maybe that GPU is the troubled one? Or am I living on borrowed time?
Actually, I just had the issue come up. I bump the seat in front of me on an airplane as I was putting the laptop away after an hour of continuous use. The next time I started the computer up and ran a 3-D accelerated program, the blue-lined screen of death took over my display. And the laptop became completely unresponsive.
Sorry to be the one bringing the bad news Standardpull. My march2011 15” MBP with precisely a 6750M GPU died on me a month ago. The failure was even harder that what I read about other GPUs. It simply did not boot anymore. Apple Store Guy answer: deadMac, not even able to run the simplest hardware test.
I really, reaaaaally hope you might be an exception and that yours will live happily forever but please backup everything just in case, now, right now, please, go and fetch your backup drive, pretty please go…
Though one unexpected answer to the problem came in the form of the trusty penguin. For reasons I am not sure I can explain, my dead, burnt, dissabled, unbootable MacBook Pro runs now smoothly on Linux…
Thanks, Rigobert, for the reply and the good advice. I’ve had this MBP since new and it has been dropped hard a couple times (thanks, Kids!), and so I doubt Apple will will want to touch it with a ten foot pole given its embarrassing physical distortion. In other words, if mine does fail and if there is a recall, I expect nothing.
But it is good to know that I may be living on borrowed time. There has been a stunning lack of information about exactly which chipsets are problematic (or more problematic) – as there are two different GPUs Apple used in the early 2011 15/17 models depending on the CPU installed.
@Rigobert Pérez. I think I had the same problem you describe here 6 months ago. My mac won’t go passed the apple logo, I could start it but not boot onto Mac OS X. There is a not-too-good fix for running OS X in our situation. The problem is with the discrete GPU, so you can boot into Single User Mode and delete the drivers for the AMD GPU, this way the computer will only use the integrated Intel GPU. I have been running my 2011 MBP like this for the last months and, while it is not a reliable machine, I can use it for many things, taking care to ALWAYS store my data on an external drive, in case my mac won’t boot next time.
If you want more info on how to boot to Single User Mode and delete the drivers just drop me a line.
I bought my first Mac in 1991, have been a diehard Mac fan ever since. To this I say Good! It’s a big problem for many users and should have been acknowledged by Apple long ago.
Purchased this model on a trip to the US. Now this “high-end” computer sits on a shelf at home completely useless. They should recall ALL or at least take the defective models as trade-in credit to everybody not only to FL residents.
The Mid-2010 MacBook Pros had problems too. They won’t pay for the fix.
I have had this issue with my 2011 MCP. I had the gpu replaced twice when it was under AppleCare warranty. Now it’s no longer under warranty and the same problem recently started to happen again. Hopefully something might happen with this, although I don’t live in Florida or California.
Hey Stephen – I had the same problem: repaired two times under warranty and 2 months after Apple Care ended, it started again. I called Apple that I have the same problem the THIRD time and got a brand new Retina with specifications better than my old one. So before giving up, call Apple Care and talk two hours to them till they replace your 2011. I told them, my husband won’t pay for another Mac if his Windows computers are cheaper and hold longer. That did the trick.
I’d found that mine does some odd stuff when it wakes up from being asleep occasionally (red stripy screen), but it sorts itself out within seconds so I never saw it as a real problem…
I’m glad it’s going to be sorted now. All companies should be held accountable. I like apple but if companies get too big for their boots the customer loses out.
I want to sue them over IOS8 as it drops WIFI constantly and still has a hand ful of bugs too.
Ohh yes indeed, I just hope to get this fixed by a replacement program or something similar…
My Macbook died Thursday. So far, I’ve paid $50 to have it diagnosed. Their findings “Video processor has failed, requiring new MLB (main logic board). $559 for the part, $129 for install labor.
who did you pay 50 dollars to? Apple doesnt charge for diagnostics
I had this issue on my late 2011 MBP17, and had to have the logic board replaced (at my cost because the system was a few months out of warranty). I’m in Canada, so hopefully some sort of settlement is also offered to those outside the USA.
This was my first Mac, and… with their dropping the 17″ model and then these problems with the video, I’m fairly certain my next laptop will not be from Apple. I’m currently considering a Dell Precision M6800….
Wow…. Not even 24 hours later and this very same laptop is suddenly experiencing the same issues. Again. I’ve just booked an appointment at the closest Apple Store (1.5hrs away) – the same one that fixed it last time. We’ll see what happens…. I’m quite sure I won’t shell out another $500+ to replace the logic board on a 3yo laptop. I may have to make that call to Dell after all…. :-/
I’m part of this group and ended up forking over $330+ for the GPU replacement. Really goes to show that Apple doesn’t care… unless you pay up!
Affected as well! Just when the reports about these issues were picking up in the last two weeks my early 2011 15″ MBP started having these GPU failures In the last week it has happened three times now that my early 2011 MBP freezes up, flashes to a striped screen then goes black and reboots. Any unsaved work gone of course.
Apple needs to stand behind their promise of quality and service these expensive notebooks! Would international customers like me benefit from the lawsuit as well?
Anyways, please remember to sign the petition!
Which version of GPU do you have? Mine is running fine but I’d like to know if I should worry.
My early 2011 macbook pro had the gpu issues as well. It made it all the way up until about 3 months ago when it failed. Had to do the repair through apple that was over $300. Honestly I was pleased with the service because they replaced my rubbed off keyboard and the aluminum chassis that was chipped up with a brand new one. It was like a brand new computer when I got it back. Cheaper than buying a new one i guess. But i was still disappointed that the motherboard replacement wasn’t covered even though there had been lots of reports of similar issues with that model.
I am a lucky owner of one. When every I wake the machine up the screen is messed up
That is my model but what are the symptoms?
Nevermind.
From the first day that I used my new 2011 15″ MacBook Pro, I noticed that the unit would VERY quickly spike to CPU temps of 198F (92C) when doing much of anything that initially invoked the discrete AMD GPU (plugging in an external monitor, firing up a game, etc). This was rather odd that minor load on the CPU and rather moderate load on the GPU would cause temps to hit close to the boiling point. It was also rather frightening that while the CPU was nearing critical temps, the fans were rather lagging in spinning up to their maximum speed. There was at least a good 5 or 6 second lag from when the unit went from 140F to 198F to when the fans jumped from 1900 RPM to over 6k. I had a couple of spikes hit 208F (98C) before the fans could cool the unit.
I reset the PRAM and SMC several times, wiped and reinstalled OS X and checked for dust or any foreign objects blocking the vent or fan assemblies. After a couple of weeks of this, I had enough and replaced my thermal paste with something better than the grey goop Apple slathered on like it was meant for a rack of ribs. My temps dropped maybe 20F to the mid-170F (79C) range, which was a tad bit more acceptable, but still high.
Today, on Yosemite, my 2011 MacBook Pro sits at about 150F (66C) with the discrete card engaged. I’m quite happy with it now, but those battling with high temps for the last several years likely have permanent damage to components on the logic board, resulting in these replacements.
I don’t recommend your average user do this, but I feel changing the thermal paste has helped “save” my Mac from logic board doom. Something is very wrong with the temps on these units and Apple needs to clarify whether this is a general hardware failure or a failure caused by buggy fan control firmware.
I have this issue with my macbook pro 2011 15″. Bought a new macbook pro retina because i thought it will be better to invest in a new one than to repair a 3 year old macbook for €400 or more.
I hope this will be for everyone. I still have it and want to sale him.
Was not meant to respond on your comment
I had my main board replaced by Apple about two years ago for free (out of warranty), though this was due to a failing SD card reader. (Early 2011 15″ MBP)
This year, my fans started spinning more often, up till the point that they were spinning at full speed almost continuously. Since I got fed up with the noise, I too decided to clean up the inside and apply some premium thermal paste. The temperatures when idle now range around 64-68C, but can still spike up to around 90C when doing some really CPU/GPU intensive stuff.
With Yosemite installed, I now notice that sometimes the screensaver looks crashed/lines/blocky when the machine comes back from sleep.
I hope this machine will tide me over untill the next upgrade of the MBP early 2015 which I’m planning on buying.
“With Yosemite installed, I now notice that sometimes the screensaver looks crashed/lines/blocky when the machine comes back from sleep”.
I am experiencing the same issue.
I had this issue earlier this year and eventually it just completely died (blank blue screen on bootup). They replaced it for free since my AppleCare extension still had 2 months on it.
Yep, My 2011 MacBook Pro had this problem. This repair did cost me 787$ for a new logic board. Form Québec, Canada.
Mine has had issues the whole time I’ve had it, which I had thought were just software issues. It hasn’t died yet (knock on wood) but I’m definitely seeing symptoms. On the Yosemite beta I had some severe issues while playing a game, then all these little green dots showed up everywhere. I’ve also had the crazy banding and offset screen stuff too. I sure hope something happens because I certainly can’t afford to fix it or replace it right now.
A valid lawsuit for a change. Apple needs to take care of these people. It’s rather foul that they have not. Yes it will cost some money, but that’s what you do when you’re a GREAT company. Apple, BE a GREAT company.
Good, I hope they win, and I hope Apple is forced to repair ALL of these affected units for customers. This was a KNOWN issue, and Apple should NOT be the kind of company that blatantly ignores its customers and, effectively, lies about component issues it would absolutely have been apprised of by its vendors. Even IF AMD didn’t want to take responsibility, Apple should have acted on the customer feedback ACTIVELY, rather than trying to hide (deleting Apple Support Forum threads) and ignore it, and forced AMD to reimburse them for the repairs if that’s what it took with the threat of publicly stating they’d get no future business from Apple (stock price TANK).
Apple likes to promote itself as a superior company, but the all-too-prevalent cases like this significantly deteriorate the foundations of that reputation. They can’t have their cake and eat it too…either they’re a better company and take care of their customers who buy their premium (-priced) products when defects occur, or they are just like the rest of the PC world just with a higher price tag and dumber consumers. There really is no middle ground.
So a group of lawyers will get a big paycheck, afflicted Mac users will get a check for $18/each. Good show!
Probably. How old were these devices when they started experiencing problems?
Mine was within the first year, but I foolishly wrote it off as software problems.
I have one (early 2011 15″) affected. Sporadic symptoms of the logic board failure began in early Feb. and increased in intensity until early this September when the screen wouldn’t turn back on from a reboot and would just go grey. Began intensive research on the issue and downloaded gfxCardStatus to see when the computer would switch between the integrated and discrete cards. A manual switch between the two using gfx would cause a failure every time.
Apple replaced the logic board at that time (Sept. 9 appx) and by October 18th it had failed again. This time it only showed symptoms once and the screen went black, with all subsequent reboot attempts failing. After hours on the phone, I had an agreement to replace the logic board again. I received the computer on October 19th, and by Tuesday, October 21, was receiving the same graphical distortions that precede failure. Trying for a permanent fix this time…
The only permanent fix is to replace the whole MBP. You have good chances!
I had the same problem: repaired two times under warranty and 2 months after Apple Care ended (which was, btw. 7 months after the last replacement), it started again. I called Apple that I have the same problem the THIRD time and got a brand new Retina with specifications better than my old one. So before giving up, call Apple Care and talk two hours to them till they replace your 2011.You have the same problem the third time now, and the parts have 90 days warranty. So you have really good chances to have it replaced against a Retina. Don’t give up!
My MacBook Pro 15″ is continuously, in a random sequence, switching off and restarting after Kernel panic.
The Apple technical support told me that this model could be included in a free repair program, but they did not confirm at the moment…. Now after the lawsuit they should start a free repair program.
I had the GPU issue. Had is fixed once at a Mac certified repair shop, but it only lasted about 25 days. Second time took it to Apple store and so far so good. They did give me 90 day warranty, i’m about half way through it.
First repair cost me about $285, second $325. Hope it holds up, as I originally paid $2200 for the computer.
I have one of these sitting in a cabinet at work and the video messed up just after a year. Found out that the Apple Warranty didn’t get place on it with a mistake on Apple’s part but won’t do nothing about it. Would be awesome to get fixed but this lawsuit is in the US, not Canada :( If something comes from this I can’t see it impacting Canada though that would be cool.
I also suffer from this issue recently. Usually I connect my early 2011 15 inch MBP to my 24 inch apple cinema display and when I tried to wake those up, weird spot show up on both screens. The worst part is more and more often the laptop completely goes unresponsive and I have to force power off and reboot. I went to the apple store last week and they told me the flat rate of replace the logic board is $310.00 + tax. Very disappointing.
I had this issue, and apple care on the machine. It went in for service 3 times and came back with a bad GPU after they replaced the whole motherboard. The third time around, they gave me a brand new MacBook with retina display for my troubles.
i have. i just bought a new macbook pro because mine died. i had the pro 2011 edition
Late 2011 17″ MBP here that just had the logic board die on me a few months ago while watching a movie on it. Took it in and had to pay $300+ to get it fixed. I was shocked that it just gave out on me. I am REALLY interested to see what happens here with this class action suit. Absolutely justified IMHO. I have a 2010 macbook Air that is still chugging along without any issues to-date (knock on wood).
I have a 15″ Late 2011 and I had to take it in about a year ago to have it repaired for this issue. It cost me $350.
I am a victim too :(
early 2011, 1gb video card… the video card presented the same as the post image, and died after a month. this was 1 year after I bought. they wanted $ 700 to replace all the main logic board. I ended up going to second hand service for $ 100, they resoldered the video card, but died again after 4 months. now I am using it only with integrated card. I feel very foolish now that I know this is a general problem.
very sad for apple. they are loosing my respect…
It seems as if Apple should replace the 2011 models who have these problems for free. It reminds me of a recall that we see automobile dealers do a lot. If the company is the one at fault, either the product gets fixed for free, or it gets replaced for free. Considering Apple computers have such an upstanding reputation and cost quite a bit, I think this would be a fair deal.
Mine was replaced in April with a MacBook Pro (Retina, 15-inch, Late 2013) 16GB Ram 512GB Flash Storage model. Apple ROCKS!!!
I also have a macbook pro from 2011, that presented itself with graphic failures after 2 years of use and transformed itself on a paper weight. Costed me about 700U$ for the repair and it made me very angry not just because of the money, but also the fact that I had to stop my work for about a month until it got back from the repair shop. That sucked… Oh, I am from Brazil, by the way.
Yes, I have a 2011 MacBook Pro that when I updated to Mavericks started having screen issues like the one show above constantly. When I took it into the apple store they told me it was probably a processor issue and would cost up to $1200 for repairs. So I’ve had to get another iMac, although I still have the unworking Mackbook Pro.
I’m glad it started. Mine is early 2011 MBP 15″ with the same failed logic board and got shelved after only 26 months of use. I was being charged for CAD $600+, but I refused the repair/replacement. It’s been on its box since Oct last year. I asked if they will give back my original Logic Board and they said if I want it back, they will charge me more. Definitely, they will be using it again to install on other MBPs. That’s unfair business practice.
One more thing, almost all of them “geniuses” will say they never heard of any problem on these MBPs.
Hope this lawsuit wins and a recall/repair/replacement program will be given to all owners worldwide.
This happened to me and now my 15″ MBP is sitting as a paper weight. Hope this goes somewhere.
Mine is a paper weight too. And on top of it my Imac purchased last year now is giving lots of graphical issues since the yosemite upgrade. I am pretty done with Apple.
I have an early-2011 MBP but haven’t had any of the GPU issues I’ve been hearing about.
My logic board needed to be replaced two years after purchase and covered under AppleCare and then again only three days before my AppleCare coverage expired. Now only six months after that the problems have returned butting is not economically feasible for me to replace the board again only this time on my own. Not good for.a 3 ½ year old Mac. My original Mac from 1985 since performs flawlessly by contrast and I have several others that are between 5 and 15 years old that still work. This model MBP is clearly an anomaly.
I bought two and they are both dead from the same issue. At the very least I am glad Apple will have to respond publicly since they maintain that we do not exist. At this point I would be happy to get $5 because that is more than I have now. If the lawyers get millions then so be it. I will be happy for them. I am just thankful to them for bringing this out in the open. We have been insulted by Apple’s response and rudeness for too long. I have spent hours talking to them. Owners of the 2011 MacBook Pro compare notes and it’s as if Apple has an actual written script that they are told to give the customers.
Good to learn that Apple’s customer base is exerting itself to ensure that the giant keeps it focus on quality which of late is becoming a real problem, both in HW and SW, especially with recent OS updates as well. My MacBook Pro 2011 model faced the GPU issue right at the end of its extended warranty period – Aug first week 2014. Since then, thanks to some tips from samaritans on Mac forums – I have been using it as a remote bootable ‘disk’. Initially, I tried to bypass the GPU accelerator but the system became very flaky and could crash easily. So now I resurrect my Macbook pro everyday on my iMac via remote boot using a thunderbolt cable. Its a pain, I can’t use time capsule backup in this mode so have to keep manually backing up my data. Really hope there is some resolution on this by Apple – why should I be forced to buy a new MacBook pro or spend ~ half its price in replacing a faulty video/GPU subsystem?
@Rigobert Pérez : That’s interesting – you say you could run Linux on the broken MacBook pro – without having to replace video card / GPU subsystem? Which flavor/ version? Can you pls. share the details?
Have been a victim ever since I recieved my 2011 MacBook Pro. I have had to drive 4 hours to the nearest Apple Store for the exact same problem of the GPU failing twice and as always it has happened again. Problem this time is that there is no AppleCare on the product. I truly hope that something happens with this because I cannot spend that much to get a reoccurring problem fixed.
Same MACBOOK PROblem! HEre in MExico. Hope to get a replacement program at no cost to the users.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KImYhr3zcds
i have macbook pro a1278 mid 12(Production year: 2013 Production week: 13 (April) ) with only integrated hd4000 and there are same graphical artefacts, very annoying
I have had my GPU replaced 4 times with this issue. Once under AppleCare, the other three during each of the 90 day warranty periods of the replaced parts. This last repair they also replaced the battery and blamed my 16G of RAM for having “issues.” They put back 4G of Apple RAM… ran slow as hell… replaced the 16G of RAM myself… so far no issues. We shall see. No charge for all repairs. I know THEY know something isn’t right with all this.
I didn’t even know that this was a “wide-spread” issue. Last year my Early 2011 15″ MBP did exactly what the article talks about. I took it in to apple and I paid $350 for them to ship it off and put a new motherboard in it. Got it back (minus 8gb of ram but that’s a whole other story), and all seemed to work fine. Then the computer did the same thing again and I was out of the (I believe 1 month) warranty period of their work fixing the issue (it was around 3 months since they’ed fixed it) so they said I might have to pay it again. Turns out they didn’t charge me, sent it off and “fixed” it again. Now it’s about 8 months later and so far so good.
I guess I’m smack dab in the middle of this as a hard statistic for the “yes there was a problem with this laptop” category. I hope this goes somewhere.
I like my MBP 15′ early 2011 but it failed after 2 years. apple a/s center asked $300.00++ for repair and takes about 2-3 weeks. however I was quite adventurous to try and fix it, so I read stories from other owners with the same issue and found out that the problem were the GPU + soldering and excessive thermal paste between the metal contact.
Since it was out of warranty and without applecare, I removed the logic board from the chassis, separated the fans, heat sync, ram sticks, wrapped the logic board in tin foil 3 times make a squared hole exposing only the GPU part, pre heat a conventional kitchen oven between 210~230d’celcius for 10 minutes, and put the wrapped logic board with the squared hole facing up inside the oven for another 11 minutes. After that, let the temperature cool off naturally inside the oven. really, i never thought my 1st time using an oven was baking a motherboard. still, it was like baking a cake though.
after a year now, my baked mbp still works like magic and the temperature is between 35~45celcius for normal browsing + HD youtube. 50~67celcius for image editing using pixelmator or photoshop, HD rendering between 70~80celcius. but I’m using smcfancontrol to manually adjust the fan speed to get the desired temperature for certain tasks.
I’m glad someone is pushing apple about this issue already. hopefully all mbp 2011 owners will have some kind of remedies.
(sorry for my broken grammar…)
I am a victim too and i got my Graphic card replaced for INR 8,000
난 사우스 코리아에 살고 있는 맥유저인데, 6개월전 위 화면과 똑같은 증상으로 서비스 센터에 갔지만
기간이 지났다는 이유만으로 800불에 달하는 수리비가 견적되었다. 현재 수리를 포기하고 아이맥을 쓰고
있지만, 맥북이 빨리 수리가 되었으면 하는 바램이다.
Victim here too! Had this issue soon out of the gate when I got mine. Apple “fixed” it and my Mac book performance was never the same. Happened two more times, same issue, and the performance got worse and worse.
I have been addicted to Macintosh computers and have owned one every year since my SE30 was purchased in 1988. I’ve never had any issues with Apple hardware until late last year.
I have a mid-2010 MBP, 2.66 GHz, with the NVIDIA GeForce GT 330M graphics card. It died on me, so I took it to the local Apple Store, where it was declared that the logic board was the issue. It was replaced, free of cost–a $500+ repair under normal circumstances. Apparently, this was recognized as a common issue with this model and Apple had no issue with replacing it for free. That information was offered up front without having to ask.
My laptop has worked flawlessly since, even while working on heavy processing in my graphics and video programs, and has been running Yosemite since it was in beta with no issues.
I’m a victim of my Power Book Pro 2011 too, It has been repaired twice in Apple Store (I paid Apple Care for a 3 years assistance), then when the Apple Care ended, once again: bugs, crashs and finally a $3200 computer I can’t boot anymore…. This is unacceptable !!!
I had same problem with my MBP 2011. I needed to pay for fix it.
Yeah, I just got my laptop back from Apple after sending it in for repair at MY cost. I turned over $310 and in return I got mixed results. AppleCare claims to have allegedly replaced the logic board, but I am skeptical. For sure they replaced the display, the WIFI card and the flex cable – which I am pleased as punch about. So while my system has stopped locking up, requiring several hard resets to initiate a reboot every time, the bad news is that I am still getting terrible artifacting every time it switches from on-board to discrete graphics. This issue has been dragging on for more than two months now and I am beginning to loose patience.
I really wish Apple would do the right thing and admit that there is a problem. They are generating a lot of ill-will by not acting on this matter.
My current laptop is macbook pro early 2011. I only paid once for flat rate, but during my 90 days warranty I visited genius bar at least 5 times. The problem kept coming back and they never offer different solution like giving me a 2012 model or even better. I am so happy Apple is sued and I hope we win this case. I paid fortune for this laptop, and I expected to last more than 5 years.
Update: Let me corrected from my previous comment the number my 15inch 2011 macbook pro was repair six times under 90 warranty. On November 5th I visited genius bar for the same problem. I complaint to one of genius male employee by telling him the laptop was repair 5 times but he corrected me it’s actually six times so he offer me brand new macbook pro (mid-2014). I was so relieved and happy to settle for brand new macbook pro retina. My brand new macbook pro retina gpu is intel iris pro and yes I am with integrated gpu. I hope apple solve the problem by giving brand macbook pro retina to the people suffering from gpu failures on 15\17inch 2011 models.
I am a victim of this issue. I have constant banding that completely covers my screen once I open up more than a few demanding apps. Then I’d have to close all of them, wait for it to cool and then switch to the intel HD graphics.
My late 2011 15″ Mac Book Pro has been rendered unusable by banding and split screen artifacts …so much so that audio editing (my profession) has stopped altogether. Apples refusal to acknowledge the problem has eroded my previous confidence in them as an ethical company.
yes, i just spend 310 dollar to fix this problem…..
My GPU just died too. Barely used it.. wow
I have a late 2011 with the 6750M and haven’t had any issue as of yet but since I’ve been seeing more of this matter show up on the web it has me worried if mine will suffer from this at some point
I’m a victim of this problem, too. I just used it for two years and it just died. I didn’t want to pay $660 to replace logic board so I just put it away since then.
I also have early macbook (white one) 2008 model and it runs so well now. I paid twice of money for mbp which was not worth it!
I am sad victim of this problem. I use a MBP late 2011 model and was ruining perfectly well on Mavericks but as soon I updated Yosomite my mbp started showing graphic problems. The flickering screen, random stopping of the machine. After much trouble I have resorted to loading mavericks once again. The bigger problem is some of my I photo pictures have now been converted and won’t run in Mavericks for some reason. I would request Apple that they give good technical knowledge to the service staff here in India, they din’t know the particulars of this problem and I had to research and get back to them for my machine to be back in working condition.
I would be so thankful if something could be done for the user facing this problem in India.
Hey, I’ve had the same awful experience. Just wondering if anyone has heard anything new- any recalls? Or anyone reimbursed for the charges? My 2011 Macbook Pro crashed two weeks ago with the same grey screen. I had to get my logic board replaced – cost me $650 dollars! And I lost a week’s worth of paid work. Since getting the computer back, it’s been slow and glitchy. It struggles having even a couple tabs open at a time. I am extremely worried about doing my work with this computer for fear it’ll crash again and I’ll lose another week’s worth of work. I want to buy a new computer altogether, but I can’t justify spending $650 for repairs and then also another $2000 or more for a new computer.
I am extremely disappointed in Apple. I may not have bought Apple Care solely because I know I take really good care of my Apple products, but I didn’t expect a computer to crash two years later having done nothing to it to cause the crash. I really thought Apple would step in to help or at least cover the costs of the logic board considering it was an internal glitch having no damage done by myself.
Any suggestions? Thanks!
Hey, I’ve had the same awful experience. Just wondering if anyone has heard anything new- any recalls? Or anyone reimbursed for the charges? My 2011 Macbook Pro crashed two weeks ago with the same grey screen. I had to get my logic board replaced – cost me $650 dollars! And I lost a week’s worth of work. And since getting my computer back, it’s been slow and glitchy. It struggles having even a couple tabs open at a time. I am extremely worried about doing my work with this computer for fear it’ll crash again and I’ll lose another week’s worth of work. I want to buy a new one, but I can’t justify spending $650 for repairs and then also another $2000 or more for a new computer.
I am extremely disappointed in Apple. I may not have bought Apple Care solely because I know I take really good care of my Apple products, but I didn’t expect a computer to crash two years later having done nothing to it to cause the crash. I thought Apple would at the very least cover the costs of the new logic board considering it was an internal glitch having done no damage myself.
Any suggestions as to what I should do?
mines begun to do this again, mainly on the login screen.
Yes. I have been experiencing problems with late 2011 Macbook Pro – AMD Radeon HD 6750M 512 MB since way back. When using Photoshop it goes OK for a time but then the fan chimes in and everything slows to a crawl. Sometimes it gets so slow I wonder if its going backwards!! Restart can fix the problem sometimes – but what a pain to be doing that every 15 mins or so – especially if it’s not a sure fix!! I moved to Mac because I had heard they were the brand of choice for graphics work …
Same problem here. Macbook Pro Early 2011 / AMD Radeon HD 6490M / Intel HD Graphics 3000. Blue, black and grey screen, split screen, horizontal and vertical lines, freezes, laptop getting extremely hot very quick, so hot I can’t touch it etc. Reboot-time has gone up and sometime it hangs in the process. Apple act responsible and fix it for free, or you have lost me forever.
Late 2011 15″ macbook pro 2.2 i7 with Intel HD Graphics 3000 512 MB here. First experienced this problem shortly after Yosemite upgrade running an external monitor. Restored from time machine back to Mavericks, problem persists. External monitor unusable. Forced to hard reboot ~20 times per day. Most of the time screen stays gray, usually reset PRAM and login screen comes back but not consistently.
been happening to me also :( just got repaired a months ago for the third time and its all starting over at random,wtf?!
Yes, I’ve got one of those. Ever since I tried to use an external display I started experiencing those issues and I’m not willing to pay for what should have been provided from the start. This is my first piece of equipment from Apple and it will be the very last. In the meantime, besides the excessive heating, the unbearable slowness and now the graphic issues I have a brand new display… for nothing. Oh wait, I’ll go right back to PC, and I wish I had never chosen otherwise.
So, 3 months ago my hard disk died, I had it replaced for 150 euro. The MBP was checked completly since it wouldn’t boot, even through resetting. Since the MBP was good as nw, I decided to upgrade th RAM too for anothe 76 euro. Then it worked perfectly for the next 3 months. Untill last thursday. I had it standing beside me with the lid closed and opened it to get it out of stand-by, nothing. So I rebooted… The apple logo was pixelated, but well, if it worked… Except it didn’t. It didn’t get past the gray boot-screen and by resetting I only got a completely blue screen, I knew th graphics card would be an expensive fix and it was the most logical explanation of this problem so I decided to buy a new laptop. I’m almost at th point of starting my scription at university and didn’t want an unreliable laptop at that point. I now have a HP pavilion 15-p032nd for 624 euro. And guess what? Way better specs than my MBP had and works pretty much the samn though I do need some time to get used to windows 8.1.
Yes! But the only graphic glitches I’ve noticed on my 15 inch early 2011 pro is on the login screen. No other graphics problems…. yet. :/
MIne had this same exact issue and I shelled out $325 for them to send it out to be repaired last month. When I explained to them what was happening they said they had never heard of this problem before. Well, looks like they have!!
I’m so glad to hear that others are documenting the same problem with the MacBook Pro 2011. I was beginning to lose it because my MacBook Pro has gone in for repair twice already (and I’m taking it in tomorrow for the third time)! I can’t believe Apple didn’t even mention to me that this was a known problem with their 2014 model. And here I am pulling out my hair all this time and having meltdowns over my computer problems. Well, seeing how this site exists and knowing there are others out there with the exact problem, I shall have a showdown tomorrow with the Genius staff and get them to fix my computer for free!!!!. Wish me luck!
oops, I meant 2011 model
I have that problem too, and not only once, but twice! When my Macbook first died of premature death, roughly a month before the end of my extended AppleCare. Luckily, Apple Repaired it, but it died again, of exactly the same problem, about 3 weeks ago.
What caused me to wonder at first was the fact that all my other Macbooks before that one have lasted more than 5 years, and in fact, that’s why I used to be happy to pay a premium to buy Apple gear. Although, I feel it might not be worth it anymore.
And then, just last week, one of my friend also lost a similar macbook from exactly the same problem. And since, like me, he’s now out of waranty, we both had to buy new computers.
How can we get in this class action ? Can we do so, even if we live in Canada?
http://mbp2011.org/
I Have this EXACT Problem! The pictures I see on this post its what my 2011 15” Macbook Pro is doing.
Thought it was toast so I bought a New MBP! If I could get this 2011 fixed I could sell it and apply it to my VISA Bill!
I live in Washington State, can I get in on this……Please
I’ve the same exact problem. I hope Apple responds and fixes this issue. If not, this would be my last Apple product ever.
Same here. My 2011 MacBook Pro died earlier this year. Screen is colored snow. I’ve gone back to using an old Dell laptop who’s screen is also fading away. I want this fixed or to be reimbursed. I might swear off of Mac and iPhone.
P.S. I’m in Wisconsin.
How do I find information on joining lawsuit? I just replaced my logic board and within a few months, I am starting to have screen abnormalities that led to having the part replaced. I live in NYS.
Hi,
Is it possible to find an information about a result of this lawsuit?
i have this Macbook pro,
“MacBook Pro (17-inch, Early 2011)
Graphich :Intel HD Graphics 3000 384 MB”
i had Mavericks working very well, i upgraded it to Yosemite a few mins ago, and i saw the same crash, i restarted and started searching for the reason, and i’m here now.
I really need your advises about what should i do now?
will it happen again?
can i live with that? like it happens times to times but wont destroy my macbook?
what if i install mavericks again?
i’m scared i don’t want to lose my macbook and i don’t have access to any AppleStore cause i live in IRAN-tehran now.
Please kindly guid me if anyone know about this.
thank you
Arman Safaei
email : thefinag @ gmail .com
Unbelievable, I had no idea, it cost me $534 to fix my macbook and downtime of one week. Now after repairing it in August I have similar issue since I switched to Yosemite. I was sure my Mac graphic card failed gain.
I have that same problem and it started when my Macbook automatically updated from 10.9.2 to 10.9.5. Omg my Macbook was working flawlessly before that update. Now I have to turn off automatic graphic switching as a temporary fix but just recently even with that my screen will turn black and freeze and restart. Sometimes it completely shutsdown. And it overheats so much that it is unbearable. I can’t wait until we get all the needed signatures. I hope we win this case because this is not fair that we receive a product that doesn’t function as advertised or “fails” as soon as the 3 year applecare runs out.
A temporary fix for this problem is going to the top left corner and clicking on the Apple sign, click on System Preferences. Then click on Energy Saver. Then uncheck the option for Automatic Graphic Switching. Basically the major issue has been when switching from the on board graphics card to the Nvida Graphics card. Doing this will use your Nvidia card full time but it will over heat your Macbook and that is the down side at least when you are on photoshop or something graphic intensive. Even watching Youtube makes it get hot. Anyways, I hope this helps and I hope you can get some work done with this temporary fix.
If i do this ..it will only be worse i assume my nvidia card on my late 2011 17inch MBP is bad……what shall i do?
Hey guys-this is long so let me sum: TALK TO THE MANAGER AND MENTION THIS SUIT. I did and they fixed my graphic card for FREE.
I had the issue pictured above happen yesterday- i had just loaded and started using final draft- doing some light editing. i got a skype call and BAM bars everywhere… it was a mess. it worked haltingly after i restarted it, then wouldn’t start up at all. I took it in today and they said 500$ to fix on site, 350$ and several days wait to ship it out. i had a think. went on my cell and searched about the graphics card (that’s what they told me was the problem after about 2 seconds) and i found this lawsuit. i went back in and spoke to the manager. i was complaing also that i had to replace the top case, the hard drive, AND the battery in the 3 years i had the thing and now this? i was like seriously, forget this. go get me the print out on all my repairs. i know about this class action lawsuit, i know that mac is at fault, so if you want to feel happy about selling me a piece of garbage i have to make a major repair on every 8 months, then thank you very much. the manager went into the back for a long time and came back without my paperwork, and without the number he said i should call about the lawsuit… and tried to make some sort of deal. dude seemed very unhappy when i mentioned this case- APPLE MUST KNOW THEY ARE TO BLAME because i played hardball with the guy and they are FIXING MY LAPTOP FOR FREE. ahaha. that’s right. i got those evil trolls who never want to help to pay my 320$ (as it turned out) bill. don’t worry if you’ve already payed… i’m sure the company is paying you back one way or another. i am SO unhappy with my mac and iphone… maybe it was bad luck but i’m running away from apple. PS if anyone knows a better smallish machine for editing that isn’t 2000 bucks let me know!
what store did you go to?
I have the same problem. I got my 15″ MBP in Sep 2011.
Same thing, i have a great Macbook Pro 2011 17″, for 2 years work really awesome, from i migrate to yosemite 1 week later, i have a Pink vertical lines, i have restart, disconnect battery, and everything is ok, i have downgrade to Mavericks, and same thing happened, disconnect battery i have restart, and works again fine, i have time for make my backups, but some days pass… and same thing happened, but now… the MBP is die… just pink lines… and not start the Apple icon… just gray….
I have follow all steps in next page for send my information to apple….http://www.mbp2011.com
I recommend, every people do the same…. maybe in next year… one replacemente program start.
One thing i m sure… this is a problem on 2011 MBP models… but is a born problem about GPU… if you fix that… the problem will occur again… in next week, month or year.
If some people not have the problem jet, i m sure… they are lucky for now… but take care about this situation… because they GPU in some moment, when they give hard work on display graphics… the problem start, without any software fix…. is about hardware!
Yep, SAME ISSUE. Probably would of happened earlier then it did but I reformatted my hard drive and reset PRAM and it bought me a bit of a time. Looks like a logic board is just a temporary fix. Go support the lawsuit, sign the petition, report your problems to apple. http://mbp2011.org/
Yep. Feb 2011 17-inch. First screen problems–video card. Then the hard disk died. About $450 to repair both.
I have the same problem. When the login screen is supposed to kick in, it goes to a white screen. It’s the 2011 AMD model.
Yeah! Same problem here. I live in Brussels and I paid over 600 euro for fixing the problem in October 2014. It just came back again. It will be my last Apple product if they don’t solve it.
Dealing with this now. Graphical glitches then eventually the computer won’t boot. Just had a crash after playing a youtube video. In the 2 months, it has happened twice. Just spent this weekend dealing with this headache.
A rotten apple.
After updating 2011 late 17″ with Intel HD Graphics 3000 macbook pro to os 10.10 seams to act up and kernel errors flying left and right. A quick shift all the way back to lion saved it for a while. But it looks like the error is a hardware issue by whats written. Not software. So my next computer would not be a mac in the near future since they seam to ignore, there costumers. I guess this computer together with a lot others will be repaired by apple. Sold on 2 hand and we will move on from this lemon of a fruit company.
Yes. First in October 2014 — I didn’t have AppleCare, so the Apple Store replaced the logic board for a price. The new board failed in November and was replaced for free, since it was still under their three-month warranty. I’m still waiting to see how long the third board holds out.
Yes, I had periods that the screen would freeze, appear like zebra stripe bands and or weird color striping (sometimes it almost looked like a US flag)! It seemed to occur if I had several programs open when I attempted to ‘switch users’.
I made several calls to Apple support and they were tight and counter-accustory, particularly as I made the way up the chain of support “command”. They started by complaining I had programs from as old as eight or nine years (transferred by apple store/data transfer when I migrated stuff from the ol’ Powerbook G4…
They also started inisting I send my entire OS to an external drive, and kept harping on me for the fact it didn’t happen all the time.
They were particularly snooty when I started making noise about how they should replace the computer. Absolute human firewalls against that issue!
I finally worked around it by changing the “automatic” switching from high intensity graphics to just the continual high intensity. Even though it said it might use more “power”, I have rarely had freeze ups since, so I guess I was lucky.
Thing is, mine is the 17″, and I’ve had failed logic boards from a2008 Macbook..for whatever reason. I can’t tell if these machines are any better these days, but it really annoys me there’s no mirroring available on an early 2011, except by 3rd party like AirParrot.
My MBP has been fine up to the last update, however, like all the others with same issue you can’t ignore the pink lines over a 17″ white screen. I have 10.10.1 installed and a AMD video card; it’s the late 2011 model MBP. Not a happy camper at the moment on how to proceed? I restart and perhaps get a short lived relief, but regardless it always returns. Not ready to drop another $2,700.
I had de issue for the first time more than a year ago. I had to replace my mainboard for $353 at an apple store. Almost a year later the problem returned. The computer just freezes in a gray screen during boot. I will not buy anything Apple until they fix this. It is serious manufacturing problem that put Apple brand at stake. They sell a very expensive laptop because they are supposed to be good quality and long standing. Why should I pay $1999,00 for a $500 hardware only for running OS X?
what if you dont live in either california or miami?
I live in Virginia and am having this problem. Is there a class action suit in my state that I can join?
And I live in Rio de Janeiro and had the problem.
Carlos A. Quintella.
>
Mine died 2 months ago. I have an early 2011 MacBook Pro (2.2 GHz Intel Core i7, 8 GB 1333 MHz. Apple should deliver better products. A 3 year old computer of €2000 shouldn’t crap out randomly and in need of a €500 repair. And when it does Apple should just replace whatever parts necessary free of charge, but seems replacement of New Logic board will unfortunatly not be enough on this model?? Take action now Apple!!!!
From Italy in hope for a solution from Apple.
I am having issues with my logic board again. I had it replaced 6 months ago at the apple store for $299…… Now what??
I have a 15″ 2011 Macbook Pro and this just happened to it 2 days ago. I have an appointment on Monday at 1:30 with the local Apple store. I hope they are able to help.
Just expericened this too on my early 2011 Macbook Pro —> made an appointment @genius bar… trying to talk them into some extended warranty obligation.
Long time Apple User (last macbook pro, logic board also needed to be replaced, luckily not at my costs — 2 models before this one, I had my cover + logic board to be replaced on a white macbook)
SO GUESS this will be my last Mac, most definitely !
I just can’t believe this mine has died over this issue…. so riddiculous !
I had a MBP 2011 with an ATI video card with this problem :( the OS Yosemite just doesnt start, and i got a blue screen when i traying to restore the OS :( Apple support told me is the GPU ATI and i have to change the whole mother board :'(
I just got mine fixed. Apple charged me $310. I’ve had 3 of my friends tell me their laptops have had the same problem since my gcu went out. That’s 3 more in a week in a half.
Mac Pro “15” I’m having a similar problem after doing a os x yosemite update. I’m thinking maybe if I uninstall os x yosemite it might fix the problem I’m going to try when I get home from work today. Australia
I was affected. My computer has had the Gray Screen Freeze 4 times, and each time they have a new reason why it’s happening. First I paid to replace the Logic Board, then (because all of the following occurred within 90 days of the previous issue, the costs we absorbed by Apple’s “90 days of complimentary support” policy) they said it was a video card error, then a wiring glitch causing the keyboard to be unresponsive, now it’s a gray screen again, and again they said they had to send it to the production factory, who again would disassemble it and re-check everything to find the issue.
I have a late 2011 MacBook Pro (bought in California) that was fine until an Apple “Genius” offered me an upgrade to Yosemite on February 18, 2015. (I was at the Genius Bar to clean up some stuff that was causing a slower performance than usual.) After the Yosemite install I started getting these crazy bars across my display, once a day or so at first, then twice, then a complete freeze to white, unable to start up my computer. Luckily I still have AppleCare (just barely), so my MacBook Pro is in the “hospital” without cost to me for a new video card (or so says Genius #2). Not sure what I’ll do if it happens again after my AppleCare runs out. In the meantime, I’ve lost time and hundreds of dollars of income since my business has come to a crashing halt. (By the way, when I expressed my dismay at having no computer for up to a week, I was told I could pay $500 to join “Joint Ventures” for the year so I could get a “free” loaner. Thanks, Apple, but no thanks!) How do I sign up for the class-action lawsuit?
Will report back if problems persist after I get my computer back. Oh, and any feedback on whether I should roll back to Lion OS from Yosemit when I go to get my computer?
Hey everyone, here’s the latest updates on these specific models. Apple is now issuing refunds!! I called and got mine, so if you fit the description, definitely follow up and see if they’ll do the same!! very happy with how Apple took care of it, took some time, but it all worked out in the end.
http://www.apple.com/support/macbookpro-videoissues/
Thank you, Dani! I actually have AppleCare coverage for another month and a half, so didn’t pay anything . . . this time. Hope it doesn’t happen again, but if it does before the cutoff date, I can rest easy. Glad they’re finally acknowledging the problem. (Would have been nice if someone at the Apple Store had acknowledged it and seen fit to loan me a computer until the repair was done. Instead they wanted me to pay $500 (for the year) for a loaner. Makes a dent in one’s business to lose computer access for a few days!)
Hey everyone, here’s the latest update – Apple is now issuing refunds!! I called and got mine, so if you fit the description, definitely follow up and see if they’ll do the same!! very happy with how Apple took care of it, took some time, but it all worked out in the end.
http://www.apple.com/support/macbookpro-videoissues/
THANK YOU! I could kiss you! I have had months of misery, refusing to pay bc I’ve read so much about having to repair multiple times. I went ROUNDS with the Apple guy on the phone who claimed total ignorance just last month and acted like I was an idiot!!! I just called and I am dropping it off today!!
mine has crashed three times the first year!! I’ll never buy another one.
I just got my 15′ early-2011 Mac Book Pro fixed for free by the Apple Store in Cerritos California. I just got it back about an hour ago. They were very helpful. I took it in for run of diagnostic tests 4 days ago, and found out that it was experiencing a video chip issue which qualified the machine for “extended warranty coverage”. I thought it was just a fancy way of taking care of the issue without naming the problem a “recall.” However, I was wrong, Apple not only replaced the logic board, but they also replaced the whole keyboard assembly, the right speaker, the Magsafe charging board, and the Clutch barrel joint, which holds the screen and body together. I guess when Apple decides to extend coverage (even for a specific issue) it qualifies the machine for the same coverage that fully warrantied computers receive. Big thanks to the Cerritos Apple Store for its fine/fast work. Without this coverage, I would not have been able to fix this machine at this time. And maybe I would not have. (3/15/15)
8 months without using my Apple files, all production, a thousand of photos in iPhoto untouchable…
Worked for me – thank you all https://www.apple.com/support/macbookpro-videoissues/
Thank you Victor DeejayRid Gutierrez for the temporary fix of unchecking switching the graphic card in System Preferences / Energy Saver – had also reset the PRAM and my own fix of starting up holding the option key – even without peripherals attached or a findable Recovery disk (even holding command R).
We are one of the law firms that is involved in the class action lawsuit against Apple. Many people experience problems like those posted here and we have a depository of additional information that may help consumers who have a defective unit. We also have a website for further investigation. Please contact us at JLD@kbklawyers.com for more instructions.
Yes . This is the 3rd time , last repair less then a year ago. Not just graphic card . Logic board and. Power button. They did the repair for free after my upsetting stressful time. That was in Malaysia after getting a quote from mac. Asking for 3500 rm 600 $ now in less then 7 months it’s happen again on the graphics cup over heating. I’m on job seekers in the uk, just spent out advertising for wedding photography www . bridgerphotographer@gmail.com just offered a job back in Borneo if I can master final cut pro. Now I’m stuck need urgent repair. Here in the uk. HELP,!
Yes, I was refunded for my repair earlier this month… the issue persisted and they fixed the computer for free this time around. The consultants that I dealt with on behalf of Apple were pretty rude and spoke to me as if I were an idiot (which I could be in some folks opinions, but I spotted the GPU issue before the “brainiacs” ever admitted to it).
I hope that it runs the way it is expected considering my power PC original mac mini blows it out the water as far as reliability goes. Peace.
I have this problem, but it is usually when I open the screen up from being closed. It either is completely black with only the mouse showing for about 15-20 seconds or half of it is a green/blue color. It goes away once I unlock my computer. Is this something I should be concerned about? Is this happening from my GPU or something different? (I got my MacBook in April 2011)
why buy a mac anywhere!!??
I began having these problems a month or so before my applecare expired which must have been Nov of 2014. Here it is May 2015 and my screen has the horizontal lines and gives me the white screen and nothing after. Apple Please REPLACE all users of the 2011 laptop that seem to have this problem. I have a 2008 MBP which has been a work horse.The 2011 has been the WORST!! A LEMON!!!!!
Yes i just took my 2011 macbook pro in 3 months ago because yosemite fried my logic board and now its also fried my hard drive… 5 appointments, a whole week wasted on this crap and they want to overcharge me for parts that are just going to fry again after a couple months. they keep telling me they’re not liable… the hell you’re not.
I have just had the same issue. Had the vertical blue and white stripes while using Adobe CS and a couple other graphics programs. Now the computer gets stuck in a reboot loop if I try to turn it on. 2011 15″ MBP with Yosemite. Massachusetts here.
I’m experiencing an issue like this. Some pink lines keeps on coming on screen where there is white color. & It always happens when I open ‘Photos’ app. As soon as I close it, they’re gone. So some Graphic card issue? I’m using Macbook Pro 15″ Early 2011, updated to El Capitan today only. But problem started coming in yosemite also. Also occurs always whenever I use Windows using Bootcamp. Please help!
Take your MBP to an Apple store, have them test it… I did and they sent it off to repair and I got it back in just 4 days! Cost to repair over $350.00. Cost to me $000.00!! do it now your running out of time! (just did mine in late sept 2015)
Tom seems to think Apple’s offer to repair this 2011 & 2012 MBP problem will expire. If so, when? This problem could occur anytime during the lifetime of your MBP.
I have that too. I purchased mine at year’s end 2011. ran fine for a while. 2 yrs in, it starts to freeze up in Photos (before upgrade) and automatically reboots no matter what i did. i bought the warranty, took it in to a local shop they replaced the motherboard, that problem (apple care did walk me thru fix but it didn’t work) fixed. in the last months (since using Yosemite, I get the same weird flashing screen with visual banding or malfunctions on the screen as it says here. I just restart and its good. Also, along with this icloud asks me to give my gmail password TWO times when I start up after ‘sleep’ and my code never works. I hit cancel twice and am fine. too much work!!! I too will have to buy a new one at some point when errors start to pile up.
We are in Bangkok, Thailand & need to replace the graphic card in our 2011 macbook pro, purchased in summer of 2011. The cost of replacement & labor here is roughly $150.00 U.S. dollars.
If anyone checks this post, READ THIS http://www.apple.com/support/macbookpro-videoissues/
You have until Feb 27, 2016 to take advantage of this FREE repair provided by apple for affected macbook pros. Good luck everyone!
In addition to changing settings on the GPU chooser (Preferences >> Energy Saver) I found I was able to get my MacBook Pro to a more stable configuration by also disabling the “put hard disks to sleep when possible” check box (Preferences >> Energy Saver >> Battery and Preferences >> Energy Saver >> Power Adapter). If you are having trouble getting a restart to reset the preferences try 1) clearing the NVRAM/PRAM (restart > Hold CMD+P+R) or 2) start in safe mode (restart > Hold shift key) or 3) Start using the Restore Image (restart > Hold option key then select restore image or 4) Restart using Single User Mode (restart > CMD S) or Restart using CMD R. If you end up reinstalling your OS be sure to recheck your Energy Saver preferences to disable the hard disk sleep modes. Not a fix but it may get you to a happier place.
Same problem and I live in Georgia. I have called customer service and emailed Apple but have not gotten any recall or help. Using another computer to write this since mine is down. I am a student and it is highly inconvenient because the video card is associated with Word and other essential applications.
it’s october 2016 and this issue just happened to me. Is there something I can do about it?
I have a Macbook Pro from Mid 2010 and the GPU is doing the exact same thing, but since it is not in the date range that was part of the Law Suite or the Recall, They refused to do anything to help me with my Mac that crashes and restarts when the GPU gets too hot.
Can anyone suggest any help ?