Mid-2012 display flickers

I've had my Macbook Pro Mid-2012 for just over a year now and never really experienced any problems until recently.
The screen gets horizontal lines running across it, which flicker. Sometimes it won't do it for ages, and, when it does, it barely happens, then sometimes it's really frequent.
Has anyone else had this issue? I've been searching online all day and can't find a solution. Apple support asked me to reset the SMC but that hasn't fixed the issue.

A pro forum user chimed in with this info:
Vertical Lines - Bad LCD or LED Screen
Dim Screen - Bad Inverter, Backlight, or (unlikely) Motherboard
Garbage On Screen (symbols) - Bad Video Card
Horizontal Lines - Bad LCD or LED Screen or Video Card
White Screen - Video Cable not connected, but inverter cable is still connected
Black Screen (No signal) - Video cable (Motherboard Side) not connected or (unlikely) both video and inverter cable not connected
Partial Black Screen - Bad Screen or Video Card
In other words, it's probably either a bad LCD or LED screen, video card, or loose connection. Definitely related to hardware, not software. Hopefully, someone with more expertise can narrow things down.

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Why is my mac book pro mid 2012 display green flickering screen?

Why is my mac book pro mid 2012 displays green flickering screen? I was able to return the screen back to normal after i turn the lid up and down.
Is this a hardware issue ? should i return to applestore since the warranty still valid?

It seems like your display is damaged. As your computer is in warranty, take your Mac to an Apple Store or reseller to get the display replaced for free, as it's in warranty

Macbook pro retina 15 mid-2012 display problem : solution :)

Well. This topic is not really a question, I hope this could be a solution for both users and Apple. Its free, but if Apple wants to offer me a full options Mac Pro, or hire me as consultant we can discuss ^^
The story is long, but is worth. Sorry in advance for my swissy english. I hope you'll enjoy.
As many of retina mid-2012 owners (and perhaps other versions) I encountered the symptom of my machine crashing more and more frequently (from once per week to more times per day). Crash usually with a message of "read error" or some display related crash dumps, often linked to the switching of graphic card (integrated<->dedicated).
For a long times a suspected some burnt chip (because of using 1-3 external screen all the day) and seeing istatmenu with crazy temperatures of 90-105°C. I was disappointed because of the evolving symptom (crashes more and more frequent and sometimes no display at power on)
It took me ages to discover what exactly did my MBPR crash, as it was crashing "randomly" for me. Sometimes after crashing, hard shutdown and restart, it wouldn't display or even power on the backlight, for one hour or one day and suddenly it would display again !!
I tried all the solutions found here and there including replacing the thermal paste, smc or pram reset -> no luck.
I took it to my local Apple provider and I was told I would have to change the motherboard. An expensive operation, since the warranty was expired by 2-3 months.
So I bought a 13 inchs retina as replacement and continued to diagnose my 15 inchs in parallel.
I discovered that it would crash if I bend it : Power on, one hand on each side applying a light bend in the two directions made my MBPR crash. So suddenly the problem wasn't random anymore. Mouhahahaha. This could be motherboard or chip related (de-soldered solderings here or there), or case related. Let's hope the problem's not mobo related.
I opened the case and tried to see in the dark if I could see a mini lightning when bending (because of a bad ground somewhere). -> No luck
So I tried to put paper here and there to try to locate the potential bad ground. Booting, bending, hard shutdowning, papering, booting, bending,...
And suddenly the darkness became light : If I put a paper at the right place, my MBPR will resist to the bend test. Was my mobo alive, and was this nightmare only a progressive bad ground ? Yes.
Here me good : the progressive symptom of random crashing of my MBPR (which I imputed for a long time to an old chip since the symptom was the same under windows 7 bootcamp + because of the graphic switching behaviour) was in fact only a bad contact at a very given place.
The very given place (my diagnose and my solution) ?
The screws of the left's fan (thunderbolt's side) or/and the fan case itself are screwed through the motherboard. For a reason (temperature, mecanic constraints or corrosion) this stuff entered in contact with each other, the redox gained the near electronic motherboard tracks (especially the thunderbolts one I guess).
Proof :
If I put a piece of paper between the motherboard and the case, I can bend my MBPR without it to crash and use it as before (except for external screens).
My diagnose :
once the material of the screw/fan case/motherboard track enter in direct contact, there is a corrosion effect that affects more and more the neighboor.
Here is a pic of my repair :
I can now :
play hours in windows 7 bootcamp
switch between graphic cards with gfxcardstatus (even with a playing itunes animation)
sleep and wake up with integrated or dedicated graphics
I can't :
connect a screen through thunderbolt since it activates the corosionned part of my MBPR, so it will work for a period of time but will assure me that a crash is awaiting (perhaps after a wake up or randomly from this time)
I'm confident that this problem is conceptual and that a big part of 15 inches retina mobo's exchanges are due to this question.
Hope this helps
Kisses from Switzerland

I tried to diagnose this mid 2012 retina 15 inchs for a couple of month now. With a very similar symptom of a lot of people :
some that exchanged the motherboard more times and experienced again the same freezes / shutdown again
some that installed mavericks by believing it workarounded the problem (but majority also says after a while that actually the problem was only differently reproduceable)
some hoping Apple to release a sowtware fix for that or a recall of the concerned machines
I now think to have isolated one of the cause of such symptoms. At beginning I thought that the fan electric insulation had worked but actually not.
Solution for me :
open the under case
dismount a bit the two fans
insert paper bands under the motherboard (between the black bottom and the motherboard, I used ~120gr/m2 paper and cut it into bands of 10-13cm by 2-3cm).
I would have dismounted the motherboard if I had the right screwdriver, but this seemed to be a too long/hard work, so I went into this idea that my motherboard was ok and that the problem was only caused by a supposed short-circuit under the motherboard.
My thoughts :
The more big the hole in the black tape under the motherboard, the more frequent the freezes / shutdown due to a short circuit (electronics grounded at the false place because of the mobo entering in contact with a grounded metal part through the black tape)
I also thinks this short circuit is more dedicated graphics linked than integrated and that this is the reason why the symptom persists or reappear even after multiple motherboard exchanges for a lot of people and the reason some people use their machine with forced integrated graphics
This solution should apply as self doable for a lot of people
If I should bet, I think that the black insulating tape under the keyboard is scratched by the time (mecanic constraints on the chassis) by some mobo component until a false contact is created through the insulating tape
I can now (mid-2012 retina 15 inchs I7 8go 256go, osx 10.10.2) :
run firefox or VLC with integrated or dedicated graphicssleep/wake with integraded or dedicated graphics (forced or auto-switching) with such programs runningrun multiple screens (2x TB + HDMI at the same time), sleep the machine, unplugging 1 of the 3 screens during the sleep, wake the machine + bending the machine during the process without it to crash. \o/
The goal of this post is to share this amazing experience with both Apple and the users facing such a problem.
Problem solved without motherboard exchange and with a quite easy workaround

MBA mid-2012 Display Port Support

I have a Mid-2012 MBA 13", with the maximum configuration 8 gb + 512, running OS X 10.10.3. I see that this CPU will not support 4K resolution but it is supposed to support WQHD at 2560 x 1440 using a Display Port monitor. I have bought three different thunderbolt-Display Port adapters and all of them support 1080p (and audio) on two different (HP and ASUS) monitors but while the preference panel shows the resolution 2560x1440 (under "scaled") and tries to use it as "default" the whole screen gets packed into the left ~20% of the screen. I switched all of the options on the monitor, including DP 1.1 vs. 1.2, and "pixel for pixel" (which shows the 1080p in the center of the screen).
What makes this more frustrating is I plugged in my old 11" 2011 MBA, and with the same cables etc. it is perfect, gorgeous, flawless at 2560 x 1440.
I plugged into a Thunderbolt monitor at a store and of course it works perfectly. Does this MBA not support WQHD using a Display Port cable? I know it won't work with HDMI either, I get the same 1080p but no options.
I upgraded to the 2012 model because the 2011 ran out of hard drive space and had recurring battery issues. I have several work locations and I need a solution that works without investing in several $1,000 monitors.

So it gets weirder. I tried the work-around of holding the option key when selecting "scaled" with an external display, and of course it shows lots of additional resolutions. The native resolution 2560x1440 still shows a jumbled mess at the left side, but the next resolution says it is 2048x1152, so I tried it and VIOLÅ it seems to trick the monitor into showing its native full resolution. The OSD on the monitor now says it is operating at the full resolution, but the Mac continues to believe it is 2048x1152.
Apple, is this a BUG or a FEATURE?

Mid 2012 display hinge loose (oh no not again)

Just purchased 7 of the brand new mid-2012 13" MBA's. I've noticed with all of them that when I use the protective case I've been using for more than a year that the display cannot hold itself up once I open the screen to approxiamtely 100deg-- it falls all the way back to its wide open stance ~135 deg.
Anybody else with the new MBA experiencing this?

I just bought MBA2013, it has the same problem you had.
It has past an year after you post about this matter, I wonder how you treat it after then.
I am thinking to replace it.

My MBPr (mid 2012) displays a black screen on startup but when I close the lid and open after a few minutes, it seems to wake up as it should.

Can anyone advise what is going wrong on startup and what steps I can take to resolve this issue? This has been occurring for the last month or two.
The specs of this machine are:
Macbook Pro Retina (mid 2012)
OS X Mavericks 10.9.4 (13E28)
2.6GHz Intel Core i7
16GB 1600 MHz DDR3
Intel HD Graphics 4000
256GB SSD

Can anyone advise what is going wrong on startup and what steps I can take to resolve this issue? This has been occurring for the last month or two.
The specs of this machine are:
Macbook Pro Retina (mid 2012)
OS X Mavericks 10.9.4 (13E28)
2.6GHz Intel Core i7
16GB 1600 MHz DDR3
Intel HD Graphics 4000
256GB SSD

IMac 27' Mid 2011 display flickering and going dark

Having bought an iMac 27' in may 2012 I was confronted with a flickering of the screen and the display eventually going dark for a certain amount of time.
Unfortunately the first level support wasn't helpful and the second level support rather rude.
Have taken the iMac to the seller I was told they would have to change the display for € 700,-. Apple would refuse to extend the one year warranty though other people have encountered the same problems obviously after checking in different support forums.
So did anyone find a cheaper solution then just to exchange the whole display? Having to spend half the prize of a new iMac can't be the answer.

Yes, the light comes back after a few minutes or half an hour.
Will try take a screenshot when the display is off again as soon as I get the iMac back from the workshop.
I have decided not to spend so much money on the replacement of the display for the moment. If the light goes off more often I will buy another display (probably a non-apple-product with a better warranty) and connect it to the iMac.
As much as I love the concept of the apple products and the idea of an All-In-One computer (it's my 7th apple in 25 years), I really disliked how they treated me as a customer with a valid complain.
If it just this little cable why would Apple replace the whole display? I'll check if I can fix it myself then.

MacBookPro5,2 mid 2009- display flickers and no contrast on start up

After low power shut down the display comes up flickering and looks bled out (as if the brightness is set way to high) Is this something anyone else has noticed? Is it a hardware problem I should be concerned about? Thanks
Model Name:          MacBook Pro
Model Identifier:          MacBookPro5,2
Processor Name:          Intel Core 2 Duo
Processor Speed:          3.06 GHz

Hi ammartq,
Usually such a beep code means there is a problem and this has nothing to do with preinstalled OS version.
So I agree with Tonny and I think you need professional help from an authorized service provider to get rid of this because the guys have professional diagnostic tools to check the hardware.
You can find a list of authorized service providers here:
http://eu.computers.toshiba-europe.com > Support & Downloads > Find an authorized service provider
Good luck! :)

Duo Displays Problem on MacBook Pro (13-inch, Mid 2012) Resolution 2560x1440 and 1280x800, Sometime 2560x1440 is blank screen and must restart to fixed it

Dear all,
I found some problems for using Duo Displays with MacBook Pro (13-inch, Mid 2012) display and Samsung UHD Display (U28D590). I use resolution on my macbook is 1280x800, Samsung UHD Display is 2560x1440 And Connect with Display port to mini display port.
But I use sometime found always blank screen on Samsung Display and I tried to unplug mini display port and plug it again but it is not working until I shutdown and restart my macbook pro, my display back to working.
I want to fix this problem because it is very trouble for my working a lot.
Thank you very much
Phot

The symptoms I'm getting now, and I'm not sure if they're any different, suggest that for some reason Mountain Lion thinks my display resolution is higher than what it is, as wether I'm turning AirPlay on or off, it keeps changing it (on the MacBook) to what looks like maybe 1080p.

Extract data off a broken MacBook Pro 15" Retina Display Mid 2012?

Hi,,,
I had a problem with my MacBook Pro 15" Retina Display Mid 2012 - display and something ending with logic being broken = black screen. Since is was over £1000 to fix it, i decided to buy a new Macbook pro with Retina Display 16gb ram, 512gb.
Now, what is the best way to retrieve the data out off the old macbook pro SSD? If I open the computer and take it off, how do i connect it to my new mac? is there a cable to connect to the SSD, as i searched and can't find. Really need to transfer all my files that is inside the old mac to the new one.
Thank you in advance for the help

Remove the SSD from the old MBP and put it in an external USB enclosure. Connect to your new MBP and transfer your files. You can find a good enclosure at OWC.

Macbook pro 15" mid 2012 non retina display flickering

My macbook pro 15" non retina mid 2012 (got it 15 days ago) is flickering on any website in Safari. Any reason why is like that? Adding screenshot of example (gmail and Facebook)
http://shrani.si/f/2q/kE/9ex36nw/screen-shot-2013-01-25-a.png
http://shrani.si/f/1A/nP/2wr0HIid/screen-shot-2013-01-25-a.png

Anyone? Someone told me, it could be also because java is disabled by default. Mine is enabled everywhere, where is possible. Also I made a short video about how my picture is shown on non retina macbook pro (17 days old now)
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QEFDPAr1RJ8

My Macbook Pro (Mid-2012) won't connect to an external display using my MiniDP to VGA Cable.

I'm on a Macbook Pro (Mid-2012) on Mac OS X 10.8.3 (currently downloading the update to 8.4). When I plug in my Mini Displayport to VGA adapter to my Mac, the screen flickers blue for a second and the Display Settings window detects the other monitor and allows me to rearrange the screen, but it does not project anything onto the other monitor. However, I tried connecting an Apple Thunderbolt Monitor to this computer today, and it worked. This wasn't a problem before, as I was able to connect this Mac to other LCD projects before. Furthermore, I don't think it's an issue with the adapter either because it's relatively new. I also tried plugging in the adapter of another Mac (which was working fine) into my Mac, but it didn't work either.
Here's what I've tried:
1. Restarting the computer with everything plugged in
2. Pressing Command + F1 when it's plugged
Any advice would be helpful!

Hi lancekatigbak,
If you're having issues with the display out on your MacBook Pro, you may want to take a look at the troubleshooting steps in the following article:
Apple computers: Troubleshooting issues with video on internal or external displays
http://support.apple.com/kb/ht1573
Cheers,
- Brenden

MB PRo 15" mid 2012 flickering

Hi , guys
I have a problem with the screen of my MB Pro 15" mid 2012, with some grey gradient , the display is flickering or cut some color and add some purple and green color. At the Apple store they has changed three time the logicboard but the problem is still there and they don't know how to fix it and they give me back my computer !!
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VGDr-Q0jlBs
they said that they tried with another lcd display but the problem its still there ... it's a machine limitation or maybe website problem ( no sense ) ! and can't do anything. its flickering also when i open an image in the desktop whit so grey gradient .

You can either CALL Apple tech support & tell them what you stated in your post or you can CALL Apple Customer Relations - 1-800-275-2273. Ask politely & firmly that you want to be transferred to Customer Relations. Tell them exactly what you stated in your post.
GOOD LUCK!

HT201177 How to connect my MBP 13" (Mid-2012) to a projector/LED TV using a mini-display port VGA adapter (CAPDASE)

Hello Sirs, I'm having a hard time connecting my MBP 13" (mid-2012) to my projector using my mini-display-VGA out adapter. But when I switch to Windows 7 (via bootcamp), it can easily be connected... Please help me with this problem. Thanks

Try connecting the Minidvi to the VGA and connect it all together, first try turning ing on the MBP, then connecting dvi to the the projector. Make sure your projector input is set for VGA. If noo joy invert the affored mentioned proceedure. You should see your image if not, try going to system preferences>displays, click display. Try readjusting the resolutions in display. reboot monitor.

Mid-2012 MBP with 27" Cinema Display SCREEN GOES BLACK WHEN USING USB PERIPHERALS IN DOCK

I haven't been able to find any straightforward answer as to why this is happening and it's becoming one of the most infuriating things in my life, impeding my workflow and costing me unmeasurable time in waiting, rebooting, screwing with cables, etc.
I use my MBP as a DAW for multitracking live audio events to ProTools through a digital console where I work. Here's my gear list that I use every day:
Mid-2012 MBP - Yosemite, 8GB, i7 quad 2.5, mechanical hd
HengeDocks dock for my exact model machine - has set-screw jacks for CinemaDisplay power, Tbolt, FW800, USB, USB, SDcard, headphones, etc
USB wired keyboard
Anker 1x4 USB3.0 hub - I have a TimeMachine 1TB drive, 3TB project backup drive, audio interface and MIDI I/O or PT iLok, depending what I'm working on
Magic Mouse (BlueTooth)
Here's what's happening:
SCENARIO 1 - I insert the CinemaDisplay (cD) power connector and TBolt plugs into the dock, tighten the set screws, close the lid of my MBP (already logged into Yosemite & linked with MagicMouse [mM]) and stick the MBP into the dock... everything comes up on the cD and I can go about my day. At this point, I can plug the USB hub into the back of the cD and the system sees the hub & all peripherals listed just fine.
SCENARIO 2 - Install cD powercon, TBolt connector, USB3 hub, USB keyboard into the dock, close the lid on MBP (again, logged in), insert into dock... cD comes up, looks great for about 15 seconds then goes completely blank. No response from key presses, mouse clicks, threats with a hammer, etc. Then, of course, I have to yank the MBP out of the dock, which hard-disconnects the external drives (backup and TimeMachine... good for them, right?) and causes the MBP to flake, thinking it's still in the dock, then not, then logging me out & requiring a password (not a big deal- I deal with copyrighted stuff, so passwords aren't the issue).
***EVEN IF I DO NOT PLUG THE USB3 HUB INTO THE HENGE DOCK, THE cD STILL GOES BLANK AFTER 15 SEC... IT ONLY SEEMS TO LIKE THE TBOLT AND POWER... NO OTHER PERIPHERALS (fw800, USB, etc)***
It seems like the MBP freaks out when the lid is closed and there are USB/FW peripherals plugged in while using a secondary TBolt display as the main output... seems stupid... if I need a closed-lid dock, the MBP shouldn't care what I have plugged in while the lid is closed. I had the same issues with Mountain Lion & Mavericks and now it's being repeated with Yosemite.
My goal in this exercise is simply to free up the USB jacks on the back of the cD for two reasons - #1) from time to time, I have extra things to plug in and I don't want some massive USB 1x8 hub on my desk... looks stupid; #2) the bottleneck created by plugging in the hub to the back of the cD (another hub via TBolt) almost triples the time required to back up/copy files. I move files from system drive to backup drive & back VERY often due to the nature of my job... speeding up this process would greatly improve my efficiency in the matter. Why would Henge create a dock with all the jacks on it to allow someone to plug into a cD that won't frickin work with said cD? Every other dock I've found makes the user stick the MBP on a slanted, goofy-looking stand and have the lid open or something dumb like that... what I have is the setup I need... just need the USB stuff to work while lid is closed and everything from powercon & cD to USB3 hubs will work without making the cD freak out.
Any ideas out there?

Have now taken the 27" display into the repair shop and after 24 hrs got the phone call - "appears to be nothing wrong with it, will check again on Tuesday and let you know".
I can't seem to find anything on the net describing a similar problem. Everything is working fine right now with the Mac Pro connected to the older 20 inch Cinema Display. In fact, everything seems to be working about a second faster.
I was told by the local retailer that Apple no longer makes the 27 inch LED Cinema Display product and the new display, the "Thunderbolt" will not work with my 13 month old Mac Pro.
***??? In 20 years of owning Mac equipment, this is my first major "uh-oh".

Mid-2012 display flickers

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