My display is slowly fading to white. Why?

the LCD is NOT FAULTY, it's the LVDS cable that needs replacement.

I had an end user have the exact same video problem that you are having. She found that if she flexed the top-left of the display housing, the problem would go away. Eventually it got worse and she had to hold that flex position to be able to use the laptop. I thought it had to be a bad connection. Possible the flex cable or just reseating the cable into the connector at the bottom of the display. I opened up the display assembly and with it powered up determined that it was not the flex cable but somewhere on the circuit board that is attached to the display panel. Pretty small components on there. Replacing the LCD panel solved the problem.

I had a similar problem, and contacted someone who had repaired the same problem - they suggested that the LCD itself was the culprit, and, indeed, in my case, replacing the LCD was the solution. It WAS NOT the LVDS cable, though it can cause similar problems in some cases, as I understand it. Used to be the LVDS cables were hard to find (but not so bad anymore) so I was glad the LCD fixed it.

Hi all, I have had the same problem on my mid 2009 macbook pro 13 for years, it comes and goes so I have never bothered to try replacing the screen until recently it got worse. After doing a lot of digging around I found that heat was the common factor. Funny as I had also noticed my fan was staying in slow speed ranges more and more often.

So I have now downloaded the Macs Fan Control app and set my fan manually at 4000rpm, from the moment I did this I have not had the problem occur again and my Macbook runs way cooler to the touch. It seems when they are older something inside is getting hot and the computer is not recognising this to turn the fan speed up.

I hope this can help you too and seeing as its free its worth trying before purchasing any hardware (I've read blogs where people had fitted new screens and its occurred again weeks later). I am very glad I did.

One other habit I've adopted is not placing the computer directly on my lap, I now use a book to isolate me as a heat source.

http://www.crystalidea.com/macs-fan-cont...

Why can't Apple just admit the fault and advise this?

I have the same problem. I've found that pushing on various parts of the display housing fix it temporarily (like flexing the top left corner). It's gotten worse and worse and now is nearly unusable.

I'll probably order a new LCD but I'm in Northern Mozambique in Africa where both shipping and on-site repairs are very challenging.

Sad that it may be a widespread defect :(

I'm repairing a friend's macbook (A1342) and it has the exact same problem - the display goes glitchy and slowly fads to white, works if you pinch the upper-left corner, used to be occasional but now it's constant. Since where you pinch is no where near the LVDS cable I figure it can't be that, as other people have said it's not. I'm going to try replacing just the LCD (if they decide to spring for it), I'll report back to this thread when I do.

The LCD is defective. Im working on one now..and if you can position the screen or press areas to make it work, it has something to do with the internals of the LCD. If you can deal with it for now...hold off until the problem becomes unbearable. Then, you really have no choice!

It helped for me to just loose two screws.

the two screws on the bottom left at step 6.

MacBook Unibody Model A1342 LCD Replacement

its not completely fixed, but works for me much better.

Based on the answers given here, I have gone ahead and ordered a complete display assembly replacement because the screen has been becoming steadily more unbearable: needing to hold or adjust the screen most of the time just to do anything on the MacBook. And just when I think the thing will stay working and I stop touching everything in the hope of it continuing to work, there come's the exasperating fade-out to white!

Now here's the weird thing... The base had been getting airbubbles in it over some time, and then the rubber really began parting ways from the aluminium. This made the laptop somewhat unstable even when on a solid flat surface. So I have just replaced the base (http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?V...).... and somewhat amazingly, the screen has miraculously recovered!! How is that possible? I thought the base was almost cosmetic!

By the way, much as I love iFixit, there screen replacements are very expensive. I made an offer to this seller that was really favourable http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/130921985376 :-)

I had the same problem on my a1342. Formatting (Mavericks) and installing Mountain Lion, my macbook doesn't have any problem! I don't know how, but it works good now!

Hi I am using LVDS type LCD display.when i am fixing the LCD i have found that red color and green colors are getting displayed in reverse on the screen.

What can i suspect,is because of connection problems in LVDS cable,whether connections got interchanged or it might be problem with the back light dimming control?

Hi, my name is Julio de Alba, I had the problem with the top left corner, I push there and work but I try everything and nothing works....

Until I quit the screw on the right top corner and thats all, just push the display a little and works!

I bought an used display assembly and even after I replaced the "defective" one I have the same issue. I suspect there is a problem in the connector on the motherboard. The metalic gold part is missing, I can still connect the cable but it is not really locked into place. Is it possible the connection there is the reason for the fading?

Does anyone know what this is?

I narrowed this down quite a bit further:

It has to do with a small piece of flat-flex cable, connecting the LCD-controller-board (which is right underneath the screen) to the LCD-panel itself. There are two so called “heat-bar-attachments” from that board to the LCD. In my case, the problem is within the outer left part of the left flat-flex cable. If I touch this part of the cable with anything, I can make the issue appear and disappear, depending on where I press on it.
I tried to get the flat-flex properly adhered again with some heat, but that did not change anything.

My guess now is, that there is a microscopic crack within on of the traces on the flat-flex, however, I could not see anything under a microscope.

Anyone else got any ideas? I will keep you updated, if I can find a solution.

But it’s certainly that cable (or in some cases maybe the other one on the right) causing this issue. It is a loose connection somewhere, that is depending on heat on mechanical forces, that’s why the issue can be temporarily fixed by not letting the device get to hot or by “bending” the loose connection back together. However, this will never be a real fix.

You could go for a new LCD (since that comes with a new controller-board), but I am hoping to find a more elegant solution.