Thick purple bars when screen is at certain angles, normal other angles

[tyune]

2015 12 inch MacBook retina is showing thick purple bars on the screen when it is at certain positions/angles and is showing normal screen at other positions/angles. Rebooting and clearing NVRAM does not change it. The issues seems highly sensitive to the position of the screen, what angle it is at. Everything else is functioning properly(keyboard, mouse, internet..etc) as far as I can tell.



[video]https://ifixit-guide-objects.s3.amazonaws.com/igo/video/ifixit/fXSIrKSK1MCmVJo1_MP4_592.mp4[/video]

 

[pm-r]

2015 12 inch MacBook retina is showing thick purple bars on the screen when it is at certain positions/angles and is showing normal screen at other positions/angles.

That sounds to me like the flat video cable that goes up to the screen through the hinges has been damaged and needs to be replaced.
Otherwise you will have to place the screen into a position where it works normally each time you open the lid.

I don't think there is any extended warranty in place that would cover the repair, but you can certainly check and see.

If you are a DIYer type, you could check here and see if it is within your scope to replace it:
MacBook 12" Retina (Early 2015-2017) Display Cable - iFixit



- Patrick
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[chscag]

Welcome to our forums.

Thanks for including the video. It's most likely a loose or pinched video cable that's causing the screen to change like that. This is a problem we've seen before with MacBook and MacBook Pro machines. You may be able to disassemble the machine and check the cables and connectors. You can find instructions for doing so at iFixit: The Free Repair Manual.

 

[tyune]

Thanks for the reply!
I'm thinking of taking it into an independent mac repair store to have it done since the tools themselves will cost around $40 and I don't think I want to risk it. Is it likely that either the connector on the board or on the screen is damaged and not the cable itself? I heard this particular cable is hard to stretch/damage.

If it ends up being just the cable that would be terrific.

 

[pm-r]

If it ends up being just the cable that would be terrific.

I'm sure your independent mac repair store will be able to do the repair correctly and no doubt cheaper than any Apple Store.

The Apple run places from what I've read seem to have a habit of "tossing the baby with the bathwater" when doing such repairs which can be rather expensive as a result.

Let us know how it goes after it's all fixed.

Good luck.


- Patrick
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