Did you know about dust problem in 27" iMac?

[and 4096 others like this]

Hello,

I had a lot of questions in this topic - https://forums.macrumors.com/threads/imac-27-or-21.2122173/#post-26136334 and thankfully you guys helped me to choose better option. The thing is - I still don't know should I get 27" iMac. Does iMac still have a problem with dust in screen/under screen?

There are a lot of topic about this problem, even at Macrumors. Here you have example, what is it look like:

https://www.ifixit.com/Answers/View...+dust+in+the+screen+like+the+previous+models？

I made this poll to see if you guys and girls had to deal with this problem...

 

[tubeexperience]

No. How do you get dust under the screen?

 

[zooland]

Yup, as long as I have my 2009 iMac I have this problem, and after me so many. It's one of the reasons I still haven't updated this one yet.

 

[and 4096 others like this]

Was hoping more people will participating in poll, for more accurate data

 

[maflynn]

My 2015 mac has no such issue

 

[294307]

I've never heard of this issue and I've never experienced this with any of the iMacs I've had.

 

[Guy Clark]

Any iMac release up until 2012 when Apple introduced the slimline profile has the potential to collect dust most likely around the RAM access point. If their is a large collection of dust around this area it is likely there will be a build up of dust to the interior fans as well. To clean you will need to remove the Front Glass and Display to gain access to the internals of the iMac where you can clean the fans with canned air and a fine soft brush for the stubborn areas. Here is the iFixit tutorial for removing the Display on the pre 2012 27" iMac. The tutorial is the 2011 27" iMac but it is much the same for the 2009 and 2010 models
https://www.ifixit.com/Guide/iMac+Intel+27-Inch+EMC+2429+Display+Replacement/7551

 

[Ph.D.]

My understanding is that the newer iMacs have laminated screens. The LCD panel is bonded directly to the glass, with no gap between them. The lack of additional air gaps reduces the number of easily-reflective surfaces, and is part of how they obtain a richer color palate, etc. Therefore, I don't know how dust would get in between the two, unless it was bonded-in as a factory defect.

 

[ProTruckDriver]

My new iMac was just under 2 years old when I started noticing the grayish/black smudges under the glass. The first Apple Store told me that it was not covered under Apple Care and basically tried to tell me it was my fault that I must have damaged it someway. The second Apple store I took the iMac to said it was under Apple Care and fixed the iMac, no questions asked. They replace the screen. My Apple Care expires April 2019 for this iMac. I'll be watching the screen very closely to see if the smudges come back before Apple Care expires. I feel it's their defect so they should fix it even if Apple Care is expired. I can smell a Class Action Lawsuit coming.

 

[nambuccaheadsau]

I would guess there are many more post 2012 iMacs than pre. The laminated screens seem to be much less affected.

 

[and 4096 others like this]

I would guess there are many more post 2012 iMacs than pre. The laminated screens seem to be much less affected.

I checked a lot of topics and unfortunately 2015 model (retina) is very popular in "dust case". Most of them are 5K model, but 4K model is also affected...

My new iMac was just under 2 years old when I started noticing the grayish/black smudges under the glass. The first Apple Store told me that it was not covered under Apple Care and basically tried to tell me it was my fault that I must have damaged it someway. The second Apple store I took the iMac to said it was under Apple Care and fixed the iMac, no questions asked. They replace the screen. My Apple Care expires April 2019 for this iMac. I'll be watching the screen very closely to see if the smudges come back before Apple Care expires. I feel it's their defect so they should fix it even if Apple Care is expired. I can smell a Class Action Lawsuit coming.

I think there is no chance for lawsuit... As colleges said before, iMac have dust problem since 2012, it's been 6 years and no one that matters in tech world, right a single article about this issue. Only users write about it. 6 years and no a single lawsuit....

My understanding is that the newer iMacs have laminated screens. The LCD panel is bonded directly to the glass, with no gap between them. The lack of additional air gaps reduces the number of easily-reflective surfaces, and is part of how they obtain a richer color palate, etc. Therefore, I don't know how dust would get in between the two, unless it was bonded-in as a factory defect.

I think (but I may be wrong) that iMac 5K I even more susceptible (as I read what people write about dust issue) than previous model...

 

[Ph.D.]

I think (but I may be wrong) that iMac 5K I even more susceptible (as I read what people write about dust issue) than previous model...

Perhaps this "smudging" that was discussed above is actually delamination? I don't know, as I've never experienced it or seen it.

 

[ProTruckDriver]

Perhaps this "smudging" that was discussed above is actually delamination?

I don't know, but I wish Apple would get their act together and fix what ever is causing the problem. These computers are not cheap. I hope I don't see the problem again.

 

[Kapphoto]

I would guess there are many more post 2012 iMacs than pre. The laminated screens seem to be much less affected.

Mine is a 2014 and started getting the dust within a year or so(when I first saw it I thought I just needed to clean the screen). I brought it to the Genius Bar and they said that because it is all fused as one piece, it cant be cleaned, it has to be replaced -for $600. The implied that this is not an issue with Apple.

 

[vddobrev]

@Kapphoto - look at my posts by clicking on my name. In short, I had such stains after 8 months of purchase, although they were not that big. Apple authorized service center replaced the screen, only for the problem to return after about a year. I sold the iMac.

 

[pubmsu]

I can confirm this exact issue happened within few months to my late 2014 27-inch Retina iMac in the lower left corner. I thought only my unit was faulty and wasn't even sure this was dust due to a design flaw of Apple (not having air filters).

A class action suit is being organized due to this I have heard.

 

[iTurbo]

I have a late 2012 27" iMac and haven't had any issue with dust getting in. I even damaged the upper left corner during a move which slightly cracked the glass.

Personally I wish Apple would go back to the 2011 design where you could easily remove the glass for cleaning.

 

[CWallace]

I've had a 2007, 2009, 2011, 2013, 2015 and 2017 iMac and none of them have ever shown such an issue.

 

[SecuritySteve]

I've used a lot of iMacs dating all the way back to the original iMac. I've never seen this issue. I suspect it happens more in extremely dusty environments like Schools though.

 

[ProTruckDriver]

I've used a lot of iMacs dating all the way back to the original iMac. I've never seen this issue. I suspect it happens more in extremely dusty environments like Schools though.

Nope, My house has minimum dust, no pets and it still happen to me. Apple replace the screen the beginning of this year under Apple Care and all is going good so far, no dust marks.

 

[mavericks7913]

I can confirm that iMac between 2012 and 2015 have dusts issue. I don't see any cases for 2017 and iMac Pro.

 

[pubmsu]

Mine was also in a minimum-dust environment in my own room.

 

[Zandros]

My understanding is that the newer iMacs have laminated screens. The LCD panel is bonded directly to the glass, with no gap between them. The lack of additional air gaps reduces the number of easily-reflective surfaces, and is part of how they obtain a richer color palate, etc. Therefore, I don't know how dust would get in between the two, unless it was bonded-in as a factory defect.

Newer Macs do not have a laminated screen. There's still an air gap between the glass and the display.

 

[Darajavahus]

I ordered my late 2012 iMac right after the Apple event, got those ugly, disturbing (especially as the mac is used for graphic design work) dust smudges in corners pretty soon, I thought I could live with it but decided to send it a week before the end of warranty, a year later it started again, no more warranty, and it annoys me since then. I vacuum regularly and obsessively and have an air purifier and ionizer in my room.

By now I thought everyone knew that if you get iMac you will get these sooner or later. And it was a very well known issue before, I wanted to get iMac in 2011 but because of this I waited and hoped for a redesign. It was such relief when they introduced it laminated, I ordered right away... What a lamination that is and why Apple don't give a f for so many years?

 

[mavericks7913]

Btw, I dont see any cases for 2017 and especially iMac Pro. Does anyone have this issues on 2017 or iMac Pro?