iBook (Dual USB) screen ripples: a follow-up

We have received a flood of messages in response to yesterday's item on iBook screens that display a flicker or rippling effect in one corner, especially when touched. Clearly there is an issue here, however, it remains unclear to us if the problem is one of quality of construction or if it is inherent in the design. Here are the highlights:

Confirmation from other users Thomas Koons writes: "I have seen this problem on both of my iBooks but it only happens when I place a finger on one of the 4 screws that hold the upper plastic cover on the LCD. My wife's machine seems more susceptible to it compared to mine." Claes T. Malmberg notes: "I too have seen this on the first iBook we received in early June here at my department at Vaxjo University, Sweden. The bottom right corner shows an half-cricle area about 1x1 inch where the screen seems to 'float' every time the iBook is subject to even the smallest movement."

Screw too tight? A reader who wishes to remain anonymous was told by someone in Apple's iBook engineering department that the ripples are a known issue caused by a screw on the back of the LCD screen being too tight or screwed in too far. When the screen wobbles it presses up against the screw tip."

Power cord position? Michael Newman suggests this potential fix: "I have one of these nice machines. The "flaw" noted happens only when the power cord wraps around close to the screen. (The plug for the power cord is located near the bottom right of the screen.) Try routing the cord away from the display and I bet the ripples disappear."

Tap it? Isaac Rivera found that "gently tapping on the frame of the display where the epicenter of the ripple seemed to originate took care of it."

Problem not serious, a least for some Another reader offers: "I can confirm the presence of the ripples described on MacFixIt. However, they are only a mild distraction and seem to be exacerbated by a wobbling table beneath the iBook. I suppose this isn't the way the screen should work, but I see it a such a minor flaw that for me it really qualifies as only a minor distraction."

Not limited to the iBook "I have a Powerbook G3 Lombard 333 MHz that has the same problem, but it creates a ripple in the upper left hand corner when the LCD screen is jiggled. It looks like a rain drop fell in a pool of water in corner of the monitor," writes Steven Massey.

Not limited to Apple laptops Steve Solomon writes: "This doesn't seem to be a problem limited to Apple LCD screens. Just for grins, I went to Best Buy this evening and 'jiggled' all of their laptops. About 2/3 of them had a similar ripple at one or more sites around their margins. One of the Compaq laptops had more of a typhoon than a ripple. My little right lower corner ripple doesn't seem so bad by comparison."

Of course, almost any LCD screen will ripple when you press on it; this is not a sign of a defect.