MacBook Pro 2016-newer: Display Cable Failure

The design flaw behind MacBook Pro’s “stage light” effect

The Touch Bar generation of MacBook Pro always had its quirks, but the thin-at-all-cost design may finally be proving more trouble than it was ever worth. The latest issue to crop up—dubbed “flexgate” by one of our users, Alex—reveals that the compact design for the display’s flex cables is prone to fatigue and failure, leading to a host of display problems that can’t be easily (or cheaply) fixed.

[...]

...for most of us, there’s a limit to how many unnecessary repairs we’ll put up with on an expensive “Pro” laptop. Problems like the keyboard (which has, thankfully, been at least slightly addressed by Apple), poor thermal performance, and questionable battery performance and lifespan point to a bigger picture: This MacBook Pro design is a bit too far on the form side of the line between form and function that Apple is known for walking so well.

[...]

The issue is fairly simple: the current generation of MacBook Pro laptops (2016–present) uses flexible ribbon cables to connect the display to a display controller board beneath the Touch Bar. These cables wrap over the board, where they’re secured by a pair of spring-loaded covers—and they’re subjected to the stress of bending with every opening and closure of the laptop. Within a seemingly short time, those cables are starting to fatigue and tear. The backlight cable is generally the first to go, producing the infamous “stage light” symptoms, and eventually giving out entirely when the laptop is opened more than about 40°.

[...]

Apple opted for thin, fragile flex cables as opposed to the beefier wire cables used in previous designs that could be routed through the hinge instead of wrapped around it, helping mitigate the stress of repeated openings and closings. But the bigger problem is that, in an apparent effort to make the display as thin as possible, Apple designed the cables as part of the display, so they cannot be replaced. This means that when (not if) those cables start to fail, the entire display unit needs to be replaced, as opposed to one or two little cables—effectively turning a $6 problem into a $600 disaster.

(iFixit)

via ehMac.ca http://bit.ly/2RSmdns

Got a 2016-2019 MacBook Pro? You should (but won't like to) read this

The design flaw behind MacBook Pro’s “stage light” effect

The Touch Bar generation of MacBook Pro always had its quirks, but the thin-at-all-cost design may finally be proving more trouble than it was ever worth. The latest issue to crop up—dubbed “flexgate” by one of our users, Alex—reveals that the compact design for the display’s flex cables is prone to fatigue and failure, leading to a host of display problems that can’t be easily (or cheaply) fixed.

[...]

...for most of us, there’s a limit to how many unnecessary repairs we’ll put up with on an expensive “Pro” laptop. Problems like the keyboard (which has, thankfully, been at least slightly addressed by Apple), poor thermal performance, and questionable battery performance and lifespan point to a bigger picture: This MacBook Pro design is a bit too far on the form side of the line between form and function that Apple is known for walking so well.

[...]

The issue is fairly simple: the current generation of MacBook Pro laptops (2016–present) uses flexible ribbon cables to connect the display to a display controller board beneath the Touch Bar. These cables wrap over the board, where they’re secured by a pair of spring-loaded covers—and they’re subjected to the stress of bending with every opening and closure of the laptop. Within a seemingly short time, those cables are starting to fatigue and tear. The backlight cable is generally the first to go, producing the infamous “stage light” symptoms, and eventually giving out entirely when the laptop is opened more than about 40°.

[...]

Apple opted for thin, fragile flex cables as opposed to the beefier wire cables used in previous designs that could be routed through the hinge instead of wrapped around it, helping mitigate the stress of repeated openings and closings. But the bigger problem is that, in an apparent effort to make the display as thin as possible, Apple designed the cables as part of the display, so they cannot be replaced. This means that when (not if) those cables start to fail, the entire display unit needs to be replaced, as opposed to one or two little cables—effectively turning a $6 problem into a $600 disaster.

(iFixit)

via ehMac.ca http://bit.ly/2TesqH4

A new threat targeting Macs:

Malvertisers target Mac users with steganographic code stashed in images

Researchers have uncovered a recent malicious advertisement campaign that’s notable for its size, scope, and resourcefulness: a two-day blitz triggered as many as 5 million times per day that used highly camouflaged JavaScript stashed in images to install a trojan on visitors' Macs.

The ads were served by a group security firm Confiant has dubbed VeryMal, a name that comes from veryield-malyst.com, one of the ad-serving domains the group uses. A run that was active from January 11 to January 13 on about 25 of the top 100 publisher sites triggered the image as many as 5 million times a day. In an attempt to bypass increasingly effective measures available to detect malicious ads, the images used steganography—the ancient practice of hiding code, messages, or other data inside images or text—to deliver its malicious payload to Mac-using visitors.

[....]

Security provider Malwarebytes assisted Confiant in the report by providing detailed analysis of the malware.

[....]

....malvertisers continue to improve their techniques for slipping malicious content past advertisers who spend time and money to detect bad ads. Fortunately—for the moment, at least—most malicious ads seem to work by tricking visitors into clicking on OK buttons that will install malware. People who want to protect themselves should remain suspicious of any warning that displays while a Web advertisement is loaded. They should also ensure browsers and OSes are current and download updates only from official sources.

(ArsTechnica)

via ehMac.ca http://bit.ly/2S4NWk1

Voice Memos and iCloud

In using iMazing, I can find Voice Memos on my iPhone in the sidebar but not on my iPad. Support told me I must have Voice Memos turned on in iCloud on my iPad. I went into Settings-iCloud-Apps Using iCloud (on my iPad) and do not see Voice Memos at all for turning on and off. When selecting Manage Storage, I see Voice Memos taking up 53MB of storage, so, it must be turned on, but I have no option of turning off as I can’t see it.

Any ideas?

via ehMac.ca http://bit.ly/2U0KuEn

can't see apps for ios in APP Store

I'm looking for a teleprompter app that the developer says is available at the app store but when I put the name in, it doesn't come up. The name is:

PromptSmart Lite Teleprompter

The paid one isn't showing up either: PromptSmart Pro - Teleprompter

Is it because it's US site:

https://itunes.apple.com/us/app/prom...?platform=ipad

Any ideas?

thanks!

via ehMac.ca http://bit.ly/2DfHizf

Are iPhones Overpriced?

I was having a discussion with some folks and even had a little chat on twitter about it, and I wondered mostly because of the recent conversations and statements coming from Cook how the Chinese and emerging markets were the cause of this revision of earnings/forecast.

I had to lol because emerging markets aren't the ones to depend on to purchase luxury items. All manufacturers outside of  are making a low tier phone available in these markets - which is why Android has such a strangle hold there - and I just don't see how  can change that outcome w/o lowering prices.

Now, they've apparently cut prices in China already (around 20%), and IDK about you guys, but all i've been seeing of late are ads for iPhone trade ins w/ lower priced X models etc... and they are planning a new one for 2019. Whoa. There's some chatter about whether they should bring back the SE, like an SE2. 🤷🏾*♂️

That last iPhone maxed out was just under $2000. I just don't see how this is sustainable. I know die hards who were on that yearly upgrade cycle have cut that. Personally, I just moved to a 7 Plus 1 month ago. I just didn't feel like going all out - when I didn't need to.

Feature rich as they are, I wonder if ppl are starting to hit the ceiling on costs. And this interview wasn't mega convincing either.



thoughts?

H!

via ehMac.ca http://bit.ly/2CsMTRo

For Sale Mac mini Late 2014 base model

Apple Mac mini 1.4 GHz Desktop Computer (Late 2014)

1.4GHz Intel Core i5 Dual-Core
4GB of 1600 MHz LPDDR3 RAM
500GB 5400 rpm Hard Drive
Intel HD Graphics 5000
802.11ac/a/b/g/n Wi-Fi, Bluetooth 4.0
Thunderbolt 2, USB 3.0, HDMI Ports
SDXC Card Slot
Gigabit Ethernet Port
Audio In, Headphone Jacks
macOS High Sierra

I will restore to factory default.

Over a year old and in perfect condition, no problems at all. Box power cord included.

$400

Shipping at buyers expense emt only.

via ehMac.ca http://bit.ly/2QOtKOK

Problem transferring OS 10.11 files/folders from old MBp to 2017 MBa

Now that I know the new 2017 MacBook Air will run El Capitan, I thought transferring everything from the old Mac to the new Mac would be easy and straight forward.

First problem I ran into was that there doesn't seem to be any way to link the two using hardware.
The old Mac has FW800 and USB 2.0 ports, the 2017 has only USB 3.0 ports.
There are no adapters/cables from FW400/800 to USB 3.0 as far as I know - at least not anything reasonably priced, and although USB 3.0 is backwards compatible with USB 2.0, the transfer doing it that way would run at USB 2.0 speeds and take forever,
The other option is via WiFi - I tried that years ago but the transfer was so slow that I gave up at that time.
However, lucky for me there was another way!
One of my backup drives had both FW800 and USB 3.0 ports, so I backed up the current old Mac using FW800 and then decided to use the USB 3.0 port on that backup to clone the backup to the new 2017 Mac.
Well, that did not work.
I could boot up with the 2017 Mac on the external connected via USB 3.0 but when I launched SuperDuper I got a message that I needed to mount the HD (on the 2017 Mac) but swhen I tried to do that via Disk Utility, the mount icon was dimmed out.
I could do everything else on the SSD drive on the 2017 Mac, but not mount it and I therefore could not just clone to the 2017 drive.
Normally with SD I would just select the drive I want to clone to, SD would erase any info on that drive and then copy to that drive.
I don't know why that was not possible - should have worked the way it always did.
Anyone have any ideas?

So now the plan is as follows:
1. Use Migration Assistant to move all the files/folders from the ElCapitan backup on my external via USB 3.0 to the 2017 MBa running 10.13. That is in progress now.
2. Use SD to make a backup of the 2017 MBa with all the folder/files to a USB 3.0 portable
3. Erase the drive on the 2017 MBa, (or maybe just run SD again and see if SD will see the 2017 drive)
4. Use SD to clone the ElCapitan backup from the external to the 2017 internal drive.

What I want to end up with is essentially just a hardware change from the old Mac to the new one - running exactly the same software and having all the applications available that I had on the old Mac.

via ehMac.ca http://bit.ly/2VU2FNK

Macsafe to Macsafe 2 adapter - anybody use one?

Now that I have a 2017 MacBook air in the family, I have one Mac that uses a magsafe 2 power connector.
For convenience sake, we kept two magsafe power adapters in different areas of the house so when the laptops are moved, one doesn't have to cart the power supplies back and forth as well.
I was in the process of buying a second power adapter with a magsate 2 connector when I came across the Magsafe to magsafe 2 "converter".
Not sure why it's called a "converter", all it seems to do is adapt the physical size of the Magsafe end to the mafsafe 2 size to fit a thinner magsafe 2 connector on somenewer Macs.
Or is there actually any electronics inside that adapter.

But what I was wondering about mostly are a lot of the negative reviews on the apple.ca website. How does a mechanical adapter get very hot and then fail after a few months?
Anyone have any first hand experience with that adapter or knows more of what it actually consist of other than wires and connectors?

via ehMac.ca http://bit.ly/2M8hcRD

Apple is United airlines largest client

this is pretty interesting

Attached Images

29252-46999-190111-United-l.jpg (61.0 KB)

via ehMac.ca http://bit.ly/2RqGsZa

For Sale MINT MacBook Pro 15” 2015 2.5 i7 16GB / 512 SSD Cycle Count: 53

This 2015 15” MacBook Pro was rarely used, and is in absolutely pristine condition! It also has an incredibly low battery cycle count of just 53, so you won’t have to replace the battery for a very long time. The Retina screen is simply stunning. A real must-see! $1,950.

Model identifier: 11,5
Processor speed: 2.5GHz
Processor: Core i7
16GB RAM
512GB SSD
2GB VRAM

Attached Images

	macbook_pro_2015-1.jpg (547.2 KB)
	macbook_pro_2015-2.jpg (450.5 KB)
	macbook_pro_2015-3.jpg (526.1 KB)
	IMG_1304.jpg (84.2 KB)
	IMG_1309.jpg (103.2 KB)

via ehMac.ca http://bit.ly/2RsuMFy

Ipod touch question re audio record levels

Hi, I have a 4th gen IPod Touch that I want to use to record to from a lapel mic. It is recording well but I'd like to be able to adjust record levels and wondered if there is an app out there that'll do this. The built-in voice recorder is good except I can't see any levels adjustment ability.

Anyone remember this piece of tech? The ipod touch.... :-) it's great that it'll record for me. That will help a lot.

thanks.

via ehMac.ca http://bit.ly/2RiOiUQ

Chuckle Of The Day

Everyone enjoys a laugh to break up a day so why not post the latest funny you heard so the rest of us can share it?

Like this one for example.

A journalist asked Tim Cook why iPhones are so expensive.

"Well", said Tim, "That's because the iPhone replaces a whole bunch of devices. A phone, a camera, a watch, a music player, a video player, a PDA, a voice recorder, a GPS navigator, a flashlight, a calculator, a portable gaming console, and many other things. Surely, a high price is worth paying to replace so many devices!"

"Then why are Androids so much cheaper?", asked the journalist.

"Because," said Tim Cook, "An Android replaces just one device. The iPhone."

:lmao:

via ehMac.ca http://bit.ly/2H1vqF6

RIP "MEAN" Gene Okerlund

so many RIPs today but no one noticed
'Mean' Gene Okerlund, iconic interviewer of professional wrestling, dies at 76

The Legendary voice of WWE has past away

via ehMac.ca http://bit.ly/2Syazup

'Captain' Daryl Dragon RIP

The 'Captain' Daryl Dragon of Captain & Tennille Dies at 76

https://www.nbclosangeles.com/news/l...503813061.html

via ehMac.ca http://bit.ly/2R3Wnwd

Bob Einstein AKA Super Dave Osbourne RIP

‘Super Dave Osborne’ actor Bob Einstein dead at 76

https://globalnews.ca/news/4808520/s...ur-enthusiasm/

Edit: Please post any comments in other thread posted one minute before this one. Tks.

via ehMac.ca http://bit.ly/2F2dVTl

RIP - Bob "Super Dave Osbourne" Einstein

Always loved him as Super Dave and on Seinfeld later...

via ehMac.ca http://bit.ly/2F30zoV

SSD Pricing / WD Blues

HNY.

Haven't posted out here in some time, but I've not had to buy a HD in yrs - and I'm only looking now to accommodate this _old laptop w/ a new HD_. I just saw a 1GB SSD for $145 CAD. LOL. I couldn't stop laughing, and just wondered when the prices hit the floor like that.

I have a a Crucial MX500 which I'm looking to replace only for space reasons. Anyone have experience w/ the WD Blue SSDs? I'm not looking for any kind of mind blowing performance, it's really there just to store music and going into an older MacBook (08?)

thx!

H!

via ehMac.ca http://bit.ly/2LL5j3S

RIP Ray Sawyer of Dr. Hook

Dr. Hook singer Ray Sawyer dies at 81

Quote:

Dr. Hook & The Medicine Show star Ray Sawyer has died at 81. The singer, famous for his cowboy hat and eye-patch, passed away in Florida on Monday morning after suffering a brief illness. The news broke on the band’s Facebook page. “Ray Sawyer, an original member of Dr. Hook from 1969-1981, passed away this morning,” the statement read. “We send our condolences to his family at this difficult time.”

Ah, mannn... :-(

via ehMac.ca http://bit.ly/2LQ33IR