MacBook Pro White Pixels

[Emasher]

So, my dad upgraded his MacBook pro, and passed on his old one to me. I'm having this weird problem though that he says he never had with it. I'm occasionally getting these white pixels, they're not just normal dead pixels though, as they go away and come back. Its not even happening on the monitor on the MacBook Pro, but my external monitor, which I've used for years with no problems. I'm running the latest version of Snow Leopard on the MacBook Pro. Has anyone had a similar problem, or ideas as to how to fix this? Google has failed me.

 

Update:

 

I hooked it up to my TV and I'm still getting the same problem.

I also ran tech tool (Mac Diagnostics Software) and the video tests showed no problems with the video card (although, I suspect that may not be true).

Edited May 13, 2010 by Emasher

[Nolan]

Check your cords, make sure the connections are good and try it with different cords and see if it still happens. If not...well then you'll know.

 

Otherwise I don't really have any ideas since it's only happening on the external I doubt it's the Video Card, unless it's that Video out port that is having issues.

 

What are you using? VGA DVI HDMI? Can you switch to a different one than what you are using?

[Emasher]

It's not the cable. I used a dvi to hdmi adapter to hook it up to the television, whereas, with the monitor I used a normal dvi cable. My monitor does accept VGA though, so I may dig out my adapter and try that.

 

Thanks for the ideas.

 

Edit, the problem has vanished over night. It appears to have something to do with the machine getting too hot.

Edited May 13, 2010 by Emasher

[Kirkatronics]

Found this on the Apple Site.

Summary

This document defines the term "pixel anomaly", explains why such anomalies occur, and describes what to do if you feel your LCD panel has more than an acceptable number of pixel anomalies.

 

Products Affected

Apple Studio Display 17" LCD, Apple Studio Display 17" ADC, Apple Studio Display 15" ADC, iMac (20-inch, Mid 2007), iMac (24-inch Mid 2007), iMac (Mid 2006 17-inch), iMac (Early 2006 20-inch), iMac (Early 2006 17-inch), iMac (24-inch, Late 2006), iMac G5 (20-Inch), iMac G5 (20-Inch iSight), iMac G5 (17-Inch), iMac G5 (17-Inch iSight), iMac (Flat Panel), iMac (17-inch 1GHz), iMac (17 inch, Flat Panel), Apple Cinema Displays, iPod nano, iPod mini, iPod, iPhone, Portable Computers, iMac (20-inch Late 2006), iMac (17-inch, Late 2006 CD), iMac (17-inch, Late 2006), iMac G5 ALS (17-Inch), iMac G5 ALS (20-Inch), iPod touch, Apple Studio Display LCD (15"), iPad

 

Many Apple products use active-matrix LCD panels, including the iMac (Flat Panel), MacBook Pro, MacBook, iBook, PowerBook, Apple Cinema displays, and iPod models with a color display. In addition to being slim and light, active-matrix LCD technology provides customers with many visual performance advantages when compared to traditional cathode-ray tube- (CRT) based displays, such as increased brightness, sharpness, and contrast ratio.

 

Active-matrix LCD technology uses rows and columns of addressable locations (pixels) that render text and images on screen. Each pixel location has three separate subpixels (red, green and blue) that allow the image to be rendered in full color. Each subpixel has a corresponding transistor responsible for turning the subpixel on or off.

 

There are typically millions of these subpixels on an LCD display. For example, the LCD panel used in the Apple Cinema HD display is made up of 2.3 million pixels and 6.9 million red, green, and blue subpixels. Occasionally, a transistor does not work perfectly, which may result in the affected subpixel being turned on (bright) or turned off (dark). With the millions of subpixels on a display, it is quite possible to have a low number of faulty transistors on an LCD. Therefore, a certain number of subpixel anomalies is considered acceptable. Rejecting all but perfect LCD panels would significantly increase the retail price for products using LCD displays. These factors apply to all manufacturers using LCD technology--not just Apple products.

 

If you suspect your display contains a high number of pixel anomalies, take your Apple product to an Apple Authorized Service Provider for closer examination. There may be a charge for the evaluation.

[Emasher]

Found this on the Apple Site.

 

That's about actual dead pixels.