The 2018 MacBook Pro appears to avoid the stage light issues that are plaguing some fraction of the 2016-2017 models. What iFixit highlights in its latest blog post is that the display flex cable is actually longer in the 2018 iteration than earlier MacBook Pros.
iFixit measured it as a 2mm size difference. That number is small in absolute terms but when tolerances are this tight across the machine, a couple millimetres can make a big difference.
In MacBook Pros, the display flex cable warps around the hinge of the laptop. The stage light issue arises when the flex cable becomes damaged as part of normal usage of using the laptop, closing and opening the lid after a couple years.
The only way to repair a stage-light afflicted computer is to replace the entire logic board, which costs upwards of $600 to service.
What makes this somewhat sensational is that Apple is yet to publicly acknowledge the stage light flaw. Perhaps Apple thinks that this only impacts an insignificant number of MacBook Pro users and does not meet the threshold for a formal repair program. Nevertheless, it seems significant enough to have warranted a design change in the latest iteration to address the problem.
iFixit isn’t sure if the 2mm increase in length will prevent the stage light issue from happening, or if it simply extends the amount of time it takes for the cable to experience wear.
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