Late 2008 MacBook Pro 17" broken screen display

I have been using my old MacBook Pro (A1261) for some design work since 2008. It's been a good sport and I love it dearly. Unfortunatelly, recently my screen started working intermittently. This week it has died completely. I am not convinced it's worth having it repaired as it might cost more that the laptop itself. Could anybody help me view my display using another laptop or TV? I have previously been able to view it's display on my LG TV (even when the mac displayed wasn't working) using the DVI External Display Port but I have changed my display settings so I am unable to connct it now. I have also been able to detect its display on my Mac Book Air but again, I must have changed the setting because I get no luck this time. I have been using BootCamp and most of my design work sit in the Windows part (pardon my lack of IT jargon) so perhaps I could retreive it using a PC??? Any help would be much appreciated

You are right about the cost of screen replacement if you have it done (by Apple $700-600, by others $400-500, approximately.) I spoke to my (authorized independent) Mac repair shop when a friend trashed his screen and my Mac guy told me to replace it for him (I'm a geek) because I could do it for under $200 in parts and the DIY instructions on ifixit dot com. If you're a little geeky and have a couple of tiny tools, you can too.
Your other option is to use the mini displayport to hook up to a HDTV or external monitor. I can't tell you the exact procedure because this is the Mac Pro forum, not the MacBook Pro forum and I don't know all the details for those tiny machines. I figure if you wrote that post you can also read, so I'd suggest reading the Mac Help files that are included in the OS. It can't be that hard.
good luck

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15" (late 2008) macbook pro and 30" cinema display??

Im looking to buy one of the new macbook pros, and I know that you need the$100 dual link cable to get it to work with the older apple displays.
With that cable what is the max resolution I will get on a 30" cinema display?
The max res for the 30" is 2560 x 1600 pixels, but I have heard that you may not be able to get real high rez with the 15"
anyone know, I would appreciate the help....
-bill

You'll get 2560 x 1600 - that's the max resolution of the display, and it's the max resolution of dual-link DVI (at least, at the standard refresh rate).

Late 2008 Macbook Pro Random Black screen

My Macbook Pro had been having this problem for the past year or so, but lately it has gotten significantly worse. Whenever I am watching a YouTube video, or playing music, the screen will turn black for about 10 seconds and then turn back on by itself. This happens whether or not the computer is plugged in to an outlet, or is just running off the battery (I just replaced the battery last week). It will even do this when I am just sitting here browsing the internet. I took it to an Apple Store and they reset the SMC and had be purchase a new battery saying that was the problem, which I doubted, and the problem is still here. I have all my energy saver preferences off, ran system updates, and have done pretty much everything I can think of. Does anyone know what can cause the computer to randomly go to sleep for 10 seconds and then turn back on?

Hi,
I tried it all but it didn't work,
The Nvidia problem is when the screen is fully black, but when my screen gets black I can change the background lighting, they also tested the Nvidia chip but that was fine.
I also tried the Pram/Vram etc but it didn't work.
I now downgraded back to 10.5 and upgrade again to 10.6 and I hope it will be fixed,

Crack in screen (late 2008 MacBook Pro)

Hello everyone,
I have searched the 'net and this forum about cracked screens, and have found a lot of useful information, but wanted to post this and ask a few questions anyway, as I haven't found exactly what I am looking for.
My late 2008 MacBook Pro screen cracked just tonight. The crack begins near the bottom left, in the black border along the bottom, horizontal edge of the screen. From there, it goes up a few cm above the black border, curves to almost horizontal, and then curves and goes back down to the horizontal edge, about 2 inches from where it began. So, it is a very small crack that goes up from the bottom edge, over just a little, and then right back down to the edge. It is barely noticable doing normal work. The crack can not get longer since it goes up and back down to the edge. I suppose the only way it could get worse is to deepen (you can barely feel it) and cause other problems. I tried to take a picture for this thread, but the crack doesn't even show in a picture. My questions:
(1) If I don't get this fixed, what are the chances it will damage the display over time? Will it create lines and/or green/blue/etc. spots or anything else? Could it cause other problems to the computer?
(2) What do you reccommend as the best way to go about fixing this if I decide to do so? I know my local Apple Store will fix it, but I also know they'll charge more than I probably want to spend. Other solutions? Positive experiences?
It kind of saddens me to see it; crazy as that may sound! This has been (still is) a great notebook (I even purchased AppleCare, which I never needed) that went with me through making my first full length film.
Thank you in advance for help concerning this issue.

I uswed to have that problem in my Macbook OPro early 2008, and I ordered an LCD panel, it's a Samsung 15.4 inches LED panel, then I disassembled MBP, involved more than 40 screws and very delicate parts removal and reassemble. It cost me US$ 120 and 2.5 ghours to do.
But if you take it to Mac Service Center, they will change the whole lid and thjat will copst you more than US$ 600

I have a late 2008 Macbook Pro last updated to Mavericks OS. The screen died and it's not worth replacing. How do I remove the hard drive and use a drive sled to access info I need?

I have a late 2008 Macbook Pro last updated to the Mavericks OS. The screen died and I took it into an Apple store and was told replacing the screen and the hardware to repair everything would cost almost as much as buying a new laptop or a cheaper model. I was told that I can use a drive sled to access data I need on my hard drive. How do I remove my hard drive and use a drive sled to get to the information I need? What makes matters more complicated is I need to update my iPhone and my iTunes/App store purchases. How can I accomplish this?
My wife has a late 2008 Macbook Pro as well, which I am assuming I need to run my hard drive. Is there a way to just access just my hard drive without interfering with hers?
I know this is lengthy. Thanks to whoever looks at this and offers advice/instruction.

the device you need is an External enclosure for a 2.5" (laptop form factor) SATA drive.
A USB-interface enclosure will be slow, but is adequate for this task and for re-purposing as a backup drive later. A firewire-interface drive would be faster, but is harder to find, more expensive, and faster than needed for this purpose.
The drive will mount as an "extra" drive on your wife's Macbook, and you can drag and drop whatever you wish. You could create a separate Account for yourself on her computer, and use Migration Assistant or just copy your stuff over to the new account. Then it would not interfere with her files.

Can i connect thunderbolt duo hard drive to the mini display port of a late 2008 macbook pro which do not have thunderbolt port, but have mini display port.

hi, i have a late 2008 15 inch macbook pro, which have a mini display port.
I noticed that thunderbolt and mini display port looks a like. So, my question is :
can i connect thunderbolt duo hard drive to the mini display port of a late 2008 macbook pro which do not have thunderbolt port, but have mini display port.
thank you

ken94538,
no, you’d need a Thunderbolt-to-FireWire adapter or Thunderbolt-to-USB adapter to be able to access your Thunderbolt hard drive from your 2008 MacBook Pro.

Late 2008 MacBook Pro "blackout" screen flickering - Revised

--NOTE: I have written this thread as a continuation of the following thread, as the solution in it is slightly different from my issue. I apologize to the community for the confusion. http://discussions.apple.com/thread.jspa?threadID=2230532&tstart=0 --
Many of us Late 2008 MacBook Pro owners have been experiencing a moderate to significant screen flicker when using our MacBook Pros in Better Battery life mode, which uses the 9400 M chip. While I had thought that 10.6.2 had resolved this issue, I have since discovered that it has not. In fact, some believe, myself included, that it has made it worse, as, for me, it has been happening far more frequently.
My screen flicker is like a black frame popping in randomly. This frame does not even last a second, but it does create a "flicker" effect.
These YouTube videos show it best and are virtually identical to mine.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SNQofnQKrDA
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EATI_kh6GOw
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qODFFWbiGUI
*Does anyone think that this is indicative of a logic board problem?*
*Has anyone resolved this by going back to 10.5.8?*
I had never experienced this in Leopard.
Thanks.

Hi Luke,
Having the logic board replaced terrifies me, as that could lead to further issues.
I think you've rationalized out the whole situation perfectly, and I do think you're right about the logic board replacement. If the issue were a lot more frequent (or becomes more frequent) and/or is overly annoying then I would have it replaced. The chance that you'd get a bad replacement logic board would be sufficiently small in comparison to the overall pain and frustration that you'd be going through.
What I possibly can do is try to get the issue looked at by someone at Apple. If it is, indeed, a software issue, perhaps they can engineer a fix for you. At the very least we'll know that the issue was brought to someone's attention! They probably will never contact anyone with the outcome, but at least we can say we tried. You should continue to submit the Bug Reports and encourage others to.
--Travis

Just updated from a late 2008 Macbook Pro and I am getting a blink on my external screen

I just upgraded from a late 2008 Macbook Pro with a AMD Radeon HD 6770M 1024 MB graphics card and I am now getting a blink (black screen) every few seconds.
Anyone know a fix.
Thanks

You could always give it a shot - the only problem that you might run into is that the the early 2011 might not boot when the hard drive is swapped from the 2008 hard drive. Some versions of OS X are simply not compatible between different models.
But it's worth a try...
Clinton

Late 2008 MacBook Pro - Bootcamp (Vista-32bit) issues

Hey all -
I have a couple issues with my late 2008 MacBook Pro when I use bootcamp to switch to its Vista (32 bit) side. I've never been able to solve these issues myself, so I was hoping I could get some help here.
When on the vista side, when I close the lid the computer display will shut off but the actualy computer will continue to run, and after some time I will no be able to wake it from its sleep.
When I try to turn the brightness down on my screen, it will turn down but then turn back to full brightness a few seconds later.
Scrollng with 2 fingers on the track pad is erratic (I read there was going to be a fix for this?)
The laptop gets so hot to the touch that it is almost painful (I imagine this can't be good for the computer)
It has also become sluggish to the point where even simple games and those on steam won't work without incredible lag. Are there anyways to stop some processes to speed up the vista side?
Like I said, this is all while in bootcamp, not experiencing any of the issues on the OSX side.
Thanks for any help

Would love some help if anyone knows

Late 2008 Macbook Pro: Which power adapter?

Hello all. I have a Late 2008 Macbook Pro 15", MacPro5,1. A few months back my dog ate the power adapter (unplugged, thankfully.) I thought I did the proper amount of research to order the correct adapter from a third party on Amazon, because I'm pretty darn broke and need to save every penny I can. When I got the adapter, the connector was different from the one that came with my Macbook Pro. It was 85W, all the numbers matched up, but the style was different. But, the plug worked enough to let me get the work done that I needed, so it didn't concern me too much.
That is, until this cord just stopped working. That's what I get for getting a third party cable from China off Amazon.
So now, I'm trying to research again to make sure I'm getting the right cable, and I want one that's made by Apple, and is exactly like the one that came in the box when I bought my Macbook Pro new. I went to MacSales.com and checked their compatibility pages, and ran into some issues. What is showing as compatible with my Mac is the 85W Magsafe MC556LL/A, but this is shown with the incorrect connector (like the one I got off Amazon.)
When I looked at the other adapters that were available, I found the MagSafe 2 85W MD506LL/A, which has a connector that looks like the original, but it only shows as compatible with 2012+ Retina Display Macbook Pros.
So, do I have to buy the MagSafe that is not like the original that came with my Macbook Pro, or can I get the MagSafe 2 that does match what I got out of the box?
Reference pages from MacSales.com:
http://eshop.macsales.com/item/Apple/MC556LLA/
http://eshop.macsales.com/item/Apple/MD506LLA/

Thanks! I didn't realize there was a revision, but that makes sense. I guess I don't understand they would change it, then use the original design for the later Retina Display models. Oh well, as long as it works!
On a similar note, is OWC the best option for a cheap Apple-brand adapter? They're selling them for $47, when the cheapest I can find anywhere else is like $75. They seem pretty reputable with all the options and Apple-specific stuff they offer, I just didn't want to make the same mistake again and would like other options if they are available.
Thanks again!

How many hours does a brand new battery last after fully charged. I have a late 2008 Macbook Pro.

How many hours does a brand new battery last after fully charged. I have a late 2008 Macbook Pro.

clintonfrombirmingham is right, there is no way to exactly tell. But from personal experience, a new battery on a 2008 will last for about 2 1/2 hours with a higher screen brightness and doing something taxing to the battery (like gaming or running lots of 3D programs). But if you're just listening to music with the brightness all the way down, and no programs running, you could get up to 12 hours. So for average use, it should last you a whole business day (assuming you don't use it more than 30% 0f the time). Hope this kind of gives you more of an idea of what to expect:)

Late 2008 Macbook Pro doesn't boot after installing Mavericks

I have a late 2008 Macbook Pro, dual core 2.53 GHZ, 4 GB Ram (2x2).
I've been tearing my hair out trying to get this computer to boot up. Many things have been tried here. So here's the history.
Before starting this, I was running 10.6.8 on this computer.
First time I tried to install Mavericks, the installation failed, and when the computer went to restart, it just went in a loop, never really booting up, just getting the to gray screen with the apple symbol, spinning the wheel, and then going black again, restarting, and repeat. So, I took it into the Apple Genius Bar, and they diagnosed a bad battery. I replaced the battery, and had them do a clean restore back to 10.6.8.
I got it home, and tried to do an install again. This time, I downloaded the installer, and put in on an external firewire drive, and attempted to do a clean install of Mavericks. I ended up with the same boot failure problem.
I went back to the apple genius bar, and even though the diagnotics said my harddrive was fine, they said in the troubleshooting list, that the harddrive with the first thing they suspected. So, I replaced the harddrive. I did the Mavericks install again from an external HD, and for a moment, everything was great. It booted up into Mavericks. But, after my first restart, the problem was boot failure was back.
After reading a few articles, I tried booting in Safe mode. That worked. I also ran disk repair on the HD and it looked great. Still, it won't boot up out of Safe mode.
After being very frustrated, I tried just installing snow leopard from the dvd, but the install keeps failing.
Not sure what to do next.

Micajah10,
rather than a hard drive problem, you might have a faulty internal SATA cable. Do you have an external disk enclosure, or a SATA-to-USB or SATA-to-FireWire adapter? If you can boot from your hard drive without problems when it’s external, but it remains problematic internally, then that could point to the internal SATA cable as the culprit.

New macbook pro battery for late 2008 macbook pro dies fast.

I have a late 2008 macbook pro 2.4 HGz Intet Core 2 Duo with 2 GB of ram. I've had it since 2009 and just got a new battery, as the old one finally gave up. That being said, the new battery dies quite fast and I'm not sure why. Any suggestions would be greatly appreciated! thank you

Only problem is that maybe the battery you were sold was manufactured around the same time as the Mac. And LiPo batteries die because of old age as well as use. Take it out and carefully examine all markings, especially anything that can date when it was made, like copyrights or such.
With that evidence you can go back and demand a refund.

How to connect a late 2008 macbook pro to hd tv

I have a late 2008 Macbook Pro and want to connect it to my HD TV what cables do I need ?

looks like if you'll use exactly this adapter you'll get audio over HDMI

I have a late 2008 Macbook Pro, I am trying to run MW3 but it will not work without crashing a few minuets into the game. The general specs on my computer are a dual processor 2.53 ghz. 4 gb ram and a NVIDIA geforce 9400 (9600 is the alternate card)

I have a late 2008 Macbook Pro, I am trying to run MW3 but it will not work without crashing a few minuets into the game. The general specs on my computer are a dual processor 2.53 ghz. 4 gb ram and a NVIDIA geforce 9400 (9600 is the alternate card).
Things to note:
I have been unable to update firmware on this computer for about a year now. Im not sure why.
I am running a bootleg copy of Windows XP on this computer, I would not like to spend $149 to get Windows 7 if possible.
any thoughts on the matter would be greatly appreciated, thank you.

Why don't you take your 'old' MBP into your local Apple Store and have them check out everything that's wrong with it - and I mean everything? Then, when you get an estimate about how much it would cost to get the machine completely repaired, ask about the Apple flat-rate repair pricing?
It's worth a shot - and with what you may save, you can put in the bank for a new MBP.
Clinton

Late 2008 MacBook Pro 17" broken screen display

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