Heartbroken, my 3 week old imac 21.5 i3 has just died!! Help anyone

Question

Tonight whilst working in Logic 8 my 3 week old imac i3 21.5 just powered off instantly. Not a proper shut down, just like someone flicked of the power supply. Now there is no life at all. I have swapped power cables and and plug sockets, tried the holding in the power button reset. There is no indication of any power from the imac. Totaly dead. Any suggections before I call Apple on Monday morning?

Answer 1

First thing to do, is plug it in, and then move the system to the edge of the desk/table/whatever. Tilt it up as far as you can. Then look in the little grille on the bottom, and see if you can find any green lights. I believe on the 21" model they should be on the right side, but check both sides. They can be a little difficult to find, even if you know what you're looking for. They're usually pretty close to the little cover for the RAM slots, and sometimes you have to look at just the right angle because of the nature of the holes in the grille.
If you see one light, that means that the PSU is almost certainly good. You're getting "trickle" power. Now, while still looking at that green light, press the power button, and see if you see a second light turn on. If not, then you're not getting communication between the PSU and logic board, and it's PROBABLY the logic board that went out, though these issues can be difficult to pin down. Sometimes everything points to the PSU but it's really the logic board, other times it's the other way around.
Either way, you're better off taking it somewhere than calling, unless you call just to set up an appointment somewhere. Since the SMC reset didn't do it, it's a hardware failure and they're going to have to swap something out.
The good news, however, is that the data on your drive is almost certainly still there, and when you get the system back you'll be able to pick up right where you left off.