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MacBook Pro 2011 graphics defect

The 15- and 17-inch MacBook Pro models from 2011 have a graphics chip that fails with time. Here are the symptoms, and what we can do.

Updated

The defect

The 15- and 17-inch MacBook Pro models from 2011 have AMD graphics chips that fail with time. When the chip fails, the computer can stop working at any moment.

For some years Apple replaced the logic board of affected computers for free. The replacement boards had the same chip, so they can fail the same way. Apple ended that program in December 2016.

Symptoms

  • horizontal lines on the screen;
  • a gray screen at startup;
  • a computer that does not start at all.

If your MacBook Pro from 2011 has graphics problems that come and go, back up your data now, and keep backing up often. Once it no longer starts, the only way to your data is to remove the internal drive.

Why we do not repair these models

Every logic board of these models has the defect, the boards Apple replaced included, so any repair is only temporary. Even a repair that does not touch the logic board leaves a computer that can fail at any time.

What we offer instead

For the 15-inch model, we fit a logic board from the Mid 2012 MacBook Pro, which does not have the defect. See MacBook Pro Mid 2012 logic board upgrade.

We cannot do this for the 17-inch model, because Apple made no 17-inch MacBook Pro in 2012. For the 15-inch model from 2010, too many parts differ from the 2012 model for the upgrade to be worth its cost.

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