flexgate repairs
flexgate repairs
WHAT IS THIS “FLEXGATE”?
“Flexgate” refers to display backlight issues caused by a fractured display flex cable. This flex cable connects the display to the display’s controller logic board (aka T-CON board). It’s a highly delicate part. It now tends to break over time due to a recent design flaw caused by repeated opening and closing of the lid.
WHAT MODELS ARE AFFECTED BY THE FLEXGATE ISSUE?
This design flaw primarily afflicts the MacBook Pro 2016 and 2017 models. Both 13-inch and 15-inch models are affected.
- A1707 – MacBook Pro (15-inch, 2016-17, Touch Bar model)
- A1706 – MacBook Pro (13-inch, 2016-17, Touch Bar model)
- A1708 – MacBook Pro (13-inch, 2016-17, non-Touch Bar model)
Apple made a minor change in the 2018 model to address the flex cable issue. Of course, now these problems are becoming less common.
THE SYMPTOMS
The symptoms of Flexgate vary, and your MacBook may exhibit one or multiple of the following:
Stage light effect: The display backlight shows bright and dim areas along the bottom of the screen, creating a “stage light” effect. This is usually the initial symptom.
Backlight turns off beyond a certain lid angle: The display works fine initially, but goes black when you open the lid beyond a certain point. It comes back on if you reduce the lid angle.
Complete backlight failure: The backlight completely fails, making the display look blank or very dim. If you shine a flashlight into the display, you’ll notice that the content is still there, but it’s too dim to be visible.
Graphic Glitches: The display shows negative colours, or a tint of a certain colour throughout the screen, with a vertical patch of varying brightness and colour.
THE REPAIR
I offer a component-level repair for Flexgate. Instead of charging to replace the entire display, I have a tried and tested method of cutting and modifying the flex cable to the T-con board. I have repaired hundreds of Macs with Flexgate and offer a 12 Month warranty on this repair.
This kind or repair requires not just expensive tools to carry out but experience in micro-soldering and a surgeon like steady hand, It is also a very time consuming job.
