Mac Screen Repair

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2017 MacBook Air Common LCD Failure

There is a common issue with the 2017 LCD assembly that causes the display to show just vertical lines with a horizontal break between one darker area and a lighter area. A picture of this issue is below.

I have seen 100’s of these across all models of the A1466 13″ MacBook Air, but I see the most in the 2017 model. I am not sure why the 2017 seems to break more commonly in this area, but I can say what causes the issue!

What the screen looks like on an A1466 MacBook Air with this particular LCD crack.

What causes the issue:

The issue shown above is caused by a hairline crack along the left side of the screen. The crack is in an area on the LCD that is not visible due to the metal frame (the bezel) that surrounds the LCD panel.

This crack may form from some sort of hit or physical jarring, but I have heard from many clients that it just seems to appear out of nowhere. I believe it may be caused by the flexing of the screen when opening, closing, or holding the computer by the edges of the screen.

When opening or closing the air by a corner of the display, you are causing a twisting flex in the display housing including the LCD panel. I think this is what causes that cracking to occur on the left side of the display.

Why just the left side? Again, I am not certain, but I believe it is due to the fact that there is more adhesive holding that side of the LCD panel to the display housing. I believe this extra adhesive locks the LCD in place to a point where it doesn’t allow the flexing of the panel, thus causing it to crack.

Another reason for the crack to be on the left side might have to do with the placement of the sleep magnet, frame being weaker on the left side, or a combination of issues. It also may be because most people are right handed and close the lid with their right hand causing the flexing on the left.

Pictures of the damaged LCD panel

Below are pictures of the LCD panel. In the photos we are looking at the back of the panel, so the right becomes left and the left becomes right. So you can see in the first picture what the edge along the LCD should look like. In the second picture you see what happens on the left side of the screen where the cracking causes the display issue.

Looking at the back of the A1466 LCD panel where no issue is present.
Looking at the Back of the LCD panel where you can clearly see the crack along the edge towards the middle of the screen.

Repair failure at 0% currently

I have repaired hundreds of A1466 Macbook Airs with this issue. I have yet to see one come back with the same issue as shown above. I believe the lack of the same issue happening again is due to the replacement adhesive allowing more flex to the LCD on that left hand side.

Below you can see a picture of the same computer shown above with a new LCD panel installed.

By just replacing the cracked LCD panel, you can save hundreds of dollars.

The repaired MacBook Air A1466 with new LCD panel installed.

Starting the repair process

If you would like to get your MacBook Air LCD repaired, I can help! Just send a note with a picture of the damage using the form below, and I will let you know what service you need.

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Using an External Monitor

If Your Display Looks Like This, use an External Monitor and call us!

So you open your awesome MacBook one day to find your screen looking like the image below, we imagine that you are not too excited about it. If you ARE excited about the change and would rather re-purpose your technology for artwork, just buy a mounting bracket and hang your MacBook on the wall! Who else in your circle of friends has such a beautiful piece of art? It even boasts a back-light for vibrant viewing at night. Right? Okay, maybe not. Although this image is rich with beautiful hues of green and yellow, you would probably rather see your normal desktop with its familiar icons. The good new is that until you have it fixed, you can use an external monitor to resume your digital life.

MacBook Display with Damaged LCD Panel. You can add an external monitor to bypass this screen.
MacBook Display with Damaged LCD Panel. You can use an external monitor to bypass this screen.

MacBook Air Display with no recognizable content

Oftentimes when a display is damaged you will still be able to see and use part of the screen. But in some cases, the screen is damaged in a way where it becomes completely unusable. In cases like the one above with the pretty green hue, the issue is just the LCD panel. Replacing the LCD panel will get the computer running properly again. Sometimes you may need to use your computer while the display is not working. Read on to find steps for connecting your MacBook to an external display.

Using a secondary Display

The first step is to gather a couple of items you will need to connect your MacBook Air to the secondary display.

  1. You will need a secondary display with VGA, DVI, or HDMI inputs. If you have a even slightly modern TV, it will likely have HDMI inputs.
  2. An adapter to go from your mini display port to the port on your monitor. If you are going to use your TV with an HDMI port, here is an example of an adapter that would work with a MacBook Air.
  3. A cable to connect to your adapter then to your monitor. If you are using your TV, you could disconnect something that is plugged in currently using HDMI (like a blu-ray player), and connect your MacBook Air.
  4. Once it is connected, you will see a secondary screen on your monitor where you can work. You may want to go a step further and have the secondary display be your primary display. If so, just connect a keyboard and mouse to your computer. After you have made the connections and are sure you are connected to power, close the MacBook lid. This will force your machine to use the external monitor as the primary display.

Goodbye Blue and Green Hue

Using a secondary monitor is a great workaround for an emergency. Once you want your portable MacBook Air to be up and running again without having to connect to an external monitor. We can help! We offer the MacBook Air LCD replacement you would need to get your computer back up and running properly.

If you have a 13″ MacBook Air with a broken screen that looks like this one, our LCD replacement service will fix your issue:

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MacBook Pro Refresh and Touch bar with Physical Escape Key

MacBook Pro 16″

The Touch Bar on the new MacBook Pros is finally less annoying. With the 16″ MacBook Pro, Apple has finally given us a separated physical escape key to work with. This is the main issue that caused me to use my 2015 13″ for the last 4 years (besides the lack of ports and the keyboard that doesn’t work when dusty.

The new 16″ MacBook Pro has an old style keyboard which fixes the pesky problematic keyboard as well. The ports are still lacking, but Apple is not going to go backwards on this area no matter what we say. Now we are just waiting for the 13″ variety (or perhaps 14″?) to be released so we can start recommending the MacBook Pro lineup once again.

At MacScreenRepair.com, we love MacBooks. They’re pretty…and pretty awesome. BUT they come with a significant price tag. Apple is confident in their prices because they’re confident in their product. If you are a MacBook Pro owner, we realize that you have made a substantial investment in your MacBook. Therefore, we do what we do to ensure that you have maximum life out of your technology.

Apple MacBook Pro Touch Bar
Apple’s Elegant MacBook Pro Touch Bar. Img from PCMag.com

Recent Changes to the MacBook Pro

A few weeks ago, the folks at MacRumors.com updated a post they had written about recent updates to our beloved MacBook Pro. They discussed new processors and GPUs that Apple dropped into their MacBooks back in June of 2018. The updated article can be found here.

Although faster processors are always a welcome modification, we still can’t get over the physical escape key and older style keyboard. It looks amazing and adds useful functionality. Whenever you have a union between sleek aesthetics and increased functionality – we feel that it’s a union to be celebrated.

Tips and Tricks for Using the Touch Bar

While we are not huge fans of the Touch Bar, we do understand it is useful to some people. Recently, MacWorld.co.uk wrote a useful article regarding tips for fully utilizing the new touch bar. These tips include information on how to…

  • turn it on
  • customize the Control Strip
  • add favorite apps
  • adjust brightness
  • adjust volume
  • open Siri
  • use predictive text
  • correct spellings
  • format your text
  • add emojis
  • see Function keys
  • get the Escape key

This brief list barely scratches the surface of what’s in the article. If you have a MacBook Pro with a touch bar, head over to the article and give it a read. After all, technology is only as useful as it’s user allows it to be.

Are you in Need of Screen Repair Services?

Do you have a cracked screen on your MacBook? Do you have a damaged LCD panel? We can help! Allow us to give you a free quote. Experience our quality service with an industry-leading 24hr turnaround of most repairs. Contact us today!

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Mac Screen Repair

Offering MacBook, MacBook Pro, and MacBook Air screen repair services, general Mac repair, as well as data recovery for Macs, PC's, and iPhones.



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