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Some of Apple's new MacBook Airs exhibiting issues with logic board, display

Early adopters of Apple's new MacBook Air are reporting a variety of issues, including faulty logic boards, display issues and kernel panics, after two weeks of usage.

Several discussion threads on the Apple Support website detail user trouble with both the 11-inch and 13-inch late 2010 MacBook Air models. In one thread, users report flickering and freezing issues, as well as vertical lines and odd colors. Another thread details trouble with the ultra-thin MacBook's new Instant-On feature.

Apple released a MacBook Air software update on the day of its release. The update resolved an issue where the system becomes unresponsive while playing a movie trailer in iMovie, as well as a problem where the system becomes unresponsive after waking from sleep when an external display is connected. However, several of the users reporting display issues on the Apple Support forums are still having trouble after installing the update.

One user posted a video to YouTube depicting the flickering screen issue.

Editors at Cult of Mac report having experienced both the video problem and a more serious kernel panic. According to the report, an 11-inch and a 13-inch MacBook Air model have both displayed a kernel panic when attempting to wake from sleep.

Serenity Caldwell of Macworld has also reported issues with the MacBook Air display, noting that the Air's display has turned a variety of colors: gray, tan, gray-black, and blue. Caldwell consulted an Apple Genius, who suspected "the Air's logic board might possibly be at fault."

Apple unveiled the latest MacBook Air models at its "Back to the Mac" event on Oct. 20. Sporting solid state flash storage and instant-on capabilities, the MacBook Air is "the future of the notebook," according to Apple Chief Executive Steve Jobs.

For an in-depth look at the new MacBook Air, see AppleInsider's review:

Review: Apple's new 11.6-inch and 13.3-inch MacBook Air (Late 2010)



58 Comments

frugality 18 Years · 408 comments

To those of you who are the guinea pigs...... thank you!

damn_its_hot 16 Years · 1213 comments

As with most new products something is always found that is a problem but lately it seems the screen/video card has had more than its share of problems.

I suspect Apple will get this fixed ASAP - if they don't they are likely to miss out on a lot of holiday sales - bummer.

BTW: I am interested in what quantity "some of the New Mac Book Airs" represent - very subjective term.

steve-j 15 Years · 320 comments

Quote:
Originally Posted by AppleInsider

Early adopters of Apple's new MacBook Air are reporting a variety of issues, including faulty logic boards, display issues and kernel panics, after two weeks of usage.

These execution problems are starting to pile up.

quillz 18 Years · 209 comments

And this is why, no matter how tempting the new Air models may look, you wait until the second revision to buy.

And it's not just Apple... All computer manufacturers rarely get it right on the first try. It's better to wait for the second revision, which almost always adds features and cuts the price, anyway.

sippincider 21 Years · 410 comments

Know your production dates, and never buy the first run of anything.

Computers, cars, whatever.