The Touch Bar generation of MacBook Pro always had its quirks, but the thin-at-all-cost design may finally be proving more trouble than it was ever worth. The latest issue to crop up—dubbed “flexgate” by one of our users, Alex—reveals that the compact design for the display’s flex cables is prone to fatigue and failure, leading to a host of display problems that can’t be easily (or cheaply) fixed.
The display cables in question, loosely wrapped around the display controller board. The cables are pulled taut as the display is opened, causing them to tear over time.
Of course, any product produced at the scale of the MacBook Pro is bound to run into a few QC issues—that’s understandable, providing the company can own up to them and repair or replace the affected users’ machines. But for most of us, there’s a limit to how many unnecessary repairs we’ll put up with on an expensive “Pro” laptop. Problems like the keyboard (which has, thankfully, been at least slightly addressed by Apple), poor thermal performance, and questionable battery performance and lifespan point to a bigger picture: This MacBook Pro design is a bit too far on the form side of the line between form and function that Apple is known for walking so well.
With that bigger picture in mind, let’s address the latest problem—which, to me, is the nail in the coffin for these laptops.
The issue is fairly simple: the current generation of MacBook Pro laptops (2016–present) uses flexible ribbon cables to connect the display to a display controller board beneath the Touch Bar. These cables wrap over the board, where they’re secured by a pair of spring-loaded covers—and they’re subjected to the stress of bending with every opening and closure of the laptop. Within a seemingly short time, those cables are starting to fatigue and tear. The backlight cable is generally the first to go, producing the infamous “stage light” symptoms, and eventually giving out entirely when the laptop is opened more than about 40°.
The 2016 MacBook Pro’s delicate display cable setup, dissected.
When it first debuted, the design seemed fine. But as always, the devil is in the details. Apple opted for thin, fragile flex cables as opposed to the beefier wire cables used in previous designs that could be routed through the hinge instead of wrapped around it, helping mitigate the stress of repeated openings and closings. But the bigger problem is that, in an apparent effort to make the display as thin as possible, Apple designed the cables as part of the display, so they cannot be replaced. This means that when (not if) those cables start to fail, the entire display unit needs to be replaced, as opposed to one or two little cables—effectively turning a $6 problem into a $600 disaster. Our good friend Louis Rossmann captured the problem on video; can you sense his frustration?
This problem is frustrating on multiple levels. It certainly feels like this could have been avoided entirely if so many sacrifices weren’t made for the thin-and-light form factor, and it definitely could have been avoided if Apple had just made the cables modular (which may be another thin-and-light compromise in its own right). Perhaps the most frustrating aspect is Apple’s slowness to acknowledge the problem and make amends with customers. A few determined folks have managed to get their local Genius Bar to replace their screen on Apple’s dime, but for now it seems that for every person who succeeds, many more are rejected—or simply end up paying for a new screen out of pocket without realizing how widespread the issue is. There are also multiple people who claim to have started threads on Apple’s support site only to have them deleted.
For now, the issue is only affecting the Touch Bar generation of MacBook Pro. The new MacBook Air doesn’t use the exact same display cable design, but it looks to have a similar vulnerability—its cables wrap over their display board, and appear to be part of the display. We’ll have to wait to see if they exhibit the same cable failure, but color us “not-surprised” if they do.
Alex has started a petition in which he “kindly ask[s] Apple to launch an extended warranty program addressed to this issue as soon as possible.” The petition is currently hovering around 2,000 signatures. If you are affected by this issue, or if you (like us) have passionate feelings about repair and how long a $7,000 laptop should last, let us know in the comments, give Apple some feedback, and add your name to the petition.
Taylor, thank you for the amazing article! Everything is to the point. I have the same issue and today I actually got worse.
Just a side comment: I have a strong negative reaction to the use of the term “flexgate.”
Watergate was a huge scandal that ultimately led to the resignation of the President of the U.S. (the only time in history this has happened!).
Even within the context of tech repair problems, this display issue hardly qualifies as any sort of scandal. It’s a frustrating but relatively minor problem that Apple has yet to address. It’s worth complaining about. But not every complaint is worthy of a “gate” suffix. The term becomes meaningless when used that way — and unfairly plays into the idea that Apple has done something horrible.
I wonder if cold weather makes the ribbons more brittle and failure-prone, something that would go untested in sunny California. At any rate, this is class-action lawsuit material, as with the keyboard, as Apple has shown a shocking lack of transparency and ownership of their mistakes.
Clearly, people are using their laptops wrong. Apple products are for display only; opening and closing the laptop until a cable breaks is just normal wear and tear.
/s
a carefullly handled laptop should last at least twenty years
– TWENTY YEARS
I hope this issue doesn’t get the cold-shoulder approach that the 2011 iMac 27s with the half-dimmed displays received from Apple. Some received replacement display panels, most were ignored (including self). A petition was ignored. The issue was a defective backlight connecter on the display itself which required very delicate and awkward soldering to bypass the connector, a real PITA.
You are opening your display wrong. No just kidding…
When assembling those displays to the top-case its extremely important to mount those flex cables correctly. If not they will tear fast. Maybe the delicate assembly procedure is done too fast at the factory…?
In my research into this, it appears to be a design fault – flexible ribbon cables don’t have a long life when flexed over a small radius (smaller than about 10mm), while the Apple design attempts to flex them over a sub 3mm radius. The copper in the ribbon cables would have to be very thin, annealed perfectly and positioned exactly at the center of bending to have anything approaching a long life at this sort of radius. It seems that the reality is not this ideal. After my MBP failed at about 18 months (which Apple fixed without question here in Australia – consumer protection is a bit stronger here), I have taken to minimizing the number of times I open and close the display. It goes without saying that I regret buying one of this generation MBP’s, and it is sad to see that design has overruling good engineering once again.
My MacBook pro 2018 came out of the box looking like that I had to send it back right away.
I have always liked Apple laptops but they’re starting to scare me away.
Another fumble from Apple QC and design, the latest iPad Pro was a fizzle and now this oversite. I have a very old MBP 17 that lasted years until the display died and became so slow you could catch a shave between file openings.
Hope Apple gets it together, love the product but not so much lately.
That’s not a fault, is the new feature! Portrait mode and Stage light mode, from your iPhone right to your macbook! yikes
The 2018 MacBook Air seems to have the same flex cable setup. Can someone confirm?
https://d3nevzfk7ii3be.cloudfront.net/igi/kHK2yxUIUjLLFxcT.huge
Happened with my 2016 maxed out specs mbp. Apple did nothing to fix it at the Genius Bar. Extremely annoyed by this
My 2016 Macbook Pro also has the same issue. Now, backlight wont turn on past 15 degrees.
https://youtu.be/Z64QiLN5cdw
https://youtu.be/Z64QiLN5cdw
This is on my 2016 Macbook Pro. Backlight wont turn on after 40 degrees.
Could this also happen on the Non-Touch Bar Macbook Pros? The Article only mentions issues with the Touch Bar version
According to flexgate.me,
Affected devices:
MacBook Pro (13-inch, 2016, Two Thunderbolt 3 Ports)
MacBook Pro (13-inch, 2017, Two Thunderbolt 3 Ports)
MacBook Pro (13-inch, 2016, Four Thunderbolt 3 Ports)
MacBook Pro (13-inch, 2017, Four Thunderbolt 3 Ports)
MacBook Pro (13-inch, 2018, Four Thunderbolt 3 Ports)
MacBook Pro (15-inch, 2016)
MacBook Pro (15-inch, 2017)
MacBook Pro (15-inch, 2018)
Non Touchbar Macs have 2 Thunderbolt Ports whereas Touchbar Macs have 4 Thunderbolt Ports. So according to them, irrespective of having Touchbar or not in Macbook Pros launched after 2016, this issue may occur.
I am not sure if a flex cable has to be worse than a wired cable. Back in the PowerBook area, broken – then wired – cables at the screen hinges (and also broken hinges) where really common, and f.e. Thinkpads where using (partly open / visible routed) flex cables already back when it was still IBM and it was a very robust design. Probably the design of the retinas is putting more stress on the flex at it should – thinner als means the radius the cable is flexing around is getting smaller and smaller.
Main flaw to me is – any flexed cable around a screen hinge is prone to wear, and a number will fail, so this is a wear part which has to be easily replaceable. Same as batteries, keyboards, fans (at least they do not glue in these until now)…
I’m not having this stage light issuse on my 2016 MBP, but I know I’m having ribbon cable issues too. Every now and then half the lines on the screen freeze their image (think of interlacing – it’s every other line). I can tilt my screen to about 45° from the base and the lines magically refresh the image. My problem is the issue comes and goes (plus, I didn’t spring for the extra warranty). I don’t think this should be failing so soon. Never dropped and no damage. I have a 2014 MBP I use for work and have absolutely no issues with it.
I *was* getting ready to spend $7,000 (€6,000+) and expected to get at least 7 or 8 years out of it. I have a maxed out late 2013 MacBook pro and no issues. This execution of a new model should be considered as fraud by the authorities. Basically *we all* expect a high quality product that has passed at least some Q&A. Dell had he same issues on the past. I will be holding on until Apple changes the design (even if it means thicker design) or Apple definitely find itself in the situation it was on 1997 when Steve came and they finally ousts Cook, Schiller and all people responsible for this Mac lineup debacle.
I just purchased a 2018 MacBook Pro and due to the inherent screen/cable defect this new Mac of mine is prone to have a “stage light effect” problem. I therefore feel this issue should be addressed by an extended warrenty by Apple pertaining to this defect in construction
I have a 13″ 2018 Touch Bar MacBook Pro. No issues so far but this problem sure concerns me. I did spring for 3yrs. of AppleCare. Does anyone know if that would cover screen replacement should this cable problem occur?
My macbook pro 13 inch 2016, two thunderbolt 3 ports has the same issue. Thank you Taylor!
I suspect this occurred with my 2015 Macbook Pro 13″. Last week, suddenly the display would show nothing. I went to Apple Store and they gave me no reason for the display to stop working. I use under normal use. Of course, out of Apple Care warranty so the replacement would have costed $450 so I went the DIY-replacement route. I did find it odd that all the 2015 Macbook Pro replacement displays were sold out so I had to order from https://mac-parts-usa.com . Costed me $340.
This happened to me a week before the warranty ran out (2016 13″ with touch bar). Apple did replace it.
But now, (a bit over a year later) the display sporadically shows horizontal lines. This reddit user documented the issue for his machine. https://www.reddit.com/r/applehelp/comments/9rt414/macbook_pro_15_touchbar_2017_display_glitch/
It’s a shame that this is happening to machines at this price point.
Jony Ive needs to be fired, and his idiotic regressions corrected on all of Apple’s products.
The guy is a pompous hack who has waged a non-stop war on usefulness and quality, because he has no ideas for advancement or improvement.
Hi IFIXIT! Can you open and close a macbook air 2018 about 40000 times for me? I would like to know if stage lights will appear on the screen.
Happened to us too!! MBP retina display 2016. At first it was a broken screen. Spend a fortune as apple says its our fault. After 6 months or so now we have the issue exactly explained here. At around 50deg. We went to apple repair centre and the fella over there says oh it’s quite common. You are among 6-7 others who have this problem. Now we paid kidney-worthy price and i feel we kinda get black market scam after service
After I initially commented I seem to have clicked on the -Notify me when new comments are added- checkbox and from now on whenever a comment
is added I recieve 4 emails with the same comment.
There has to be a way you can remove me from that service?
Cheers!
I’m actually having this EXACT same problem with my 3DS!
An Aliexpress seller offered to replaced the cable on the display for around 100EUR + shipping.
I think the non repairability of the display is a bit of a myth. It might not be an easy task and it might be costlier than expected, but I think repairing this kind of things should become more frequent.
I think that Apple did it intentionally.
Feel like a 1990-2000 era where you mobile phone flex cable keep dying. Something like Nokia 8850 that flex cable continuously make display dead.
Apple is genius to go way back to retro.
My MacBook pro with touch bar bought in 2018, and the stage light effect appeared at the first week while watching video! And it is still regularly appeared…after reading this blog, I just realized how serious it is and will send back asap! Thanks.
2017 MBP here…. after about 3 months of usage I got the stage lights effect. It was quite annoying. Apple’s official repair order listed them replacing the mainboard.
It’s nice to see folks pushing for Apple to do something about this. I’m out of warranty at this point and will be very annoyed if it crops back up and Apple suggests it is something I have to pay for.
So, to us repair techs, and within a couple of months of their arrival, the design / utility ratio on this gen of the MacBook “”Pro”” was obviously flat-out grotesque.
And hey, who uses the screen hinges on their laptops anyway?
When they introduced their 1×12 CM touch screen (sorry – I mean the uh, “touchbar”) it was an insult to their customers’ intelligence. Like, did it ever occur to anybody at apple that they could have placed that ‘feature’ another 2 or 3 cm’s farther away – as in across the bottom of a REAL touchscreen, right underneath (or in place of) the dock? It would have been more visible and left the keyboard alone.
But along with the outrageous price, for me the near-perfect UN reparibility of these poorly-designed computers is the final, hard to overlook, deal-killer.
After using Mac laptops non-stop & exclusively since 1991, (yes, that’s right, 1991) I’ll not be buying another. Surface Pro, here I come!
Hey Apple, while I may be dumb, I’m not stupid. As for everyone else, we’ll see.
Sorry situation. Just a comment on nomenclature, however.
“Stagelights” can refer to lights above the stage, projected from the back of the hall, or from the sides, as well as the footlights that classically gave the illumination pattern you’re seeing on displays with the issue. See, for instance: https://www.americanmusical.com/Stage-Lights .
You should seriously consider changing your terminology to “footlights.”
->Ted, who protests the use of the term flexgate: The ‘gate’ terminology refers to the Apple coverup, not the seriousness of the original product defect. When one of the world’s largest, richest companies won’t back its products when sub-standard fabrication is revealed the cause of a higher than normal failure rate, it is an issue affecting millions of customers. And when it’s an American company, that is even bigger news.
I’m just sick and tired of why laptops have to get thinner and thinner. It causes (or at least a weak explanation for) motherboard soldered memory and SSD’s. I would gladly have a slightly thicker machine that allows replacement of these items, even if it added a minuscule amount of weight. In addition, the thinner the laptop becomes, the more fragile it becomes. This cable problem is one example of the fragility of the thinner design, in addition to vulnerability to being dropped.
Suspect the cable issue is older than 2015!! In a different location, but 2 years ago my bff sent me her son’s “no longer finds the drive” Macbook Pro from 2010, hardly used except for internet and Skype. Yup, it was a known cabling issue (from an out of warranty Apple certified repair shop). With repeat clamshell opening and closing, gotta wonder if temperature, humidity, and any other environmental factor is causing the cables to stretch or shrink, then these are easily pinched, shredded or somehow degraded over time…I may tip the cover but rarely close my newer MacBook Pro.
I have had most of 40 years of Apple computers which I never abuse. My 2008 MBP after outside upgrades is still working great with only 2 small repairs. I refused to buy 2016 products. The Doogle and non magnetic power cord is a deal breaker alone. As I grew up with the easy self up gradability of Apple computers, I find the negative engineering to maximum profit is discouraging. The engineering of power cords at our expense so only they could gouge the Apple customer was a tell as to what was to come. I purchased a barely used fully loaded mid 2015 MBP and 2015 Air for travel (My 2008 Air is not upgradable and obsolete but never repaired and traveled about a million miles. My wife’s brand new iPad broke down 2 days into it’s first trip to Europe. ) . The MBP electronic track pad failed and needed part replacement.
Thank you for this article. We are in the market for a new pro but was looking strongly at the new air. If it uses the same type of cable forget it. We will go with a slightly older model that does not use this technique. Or we might switch to a thinkpad carbon with windows. Ugh I know it’s windows but if Apple is making engineering mistakes like this it might be the way to go.
I would appreciate hearing from anyone with expertise in cabling design as to whether this display cable issue is actually repairable. It means little to have Apple replace the whole display if its cable will fail in like manner after a year or two of normal use. So far, only one poster has suggested any possible alternate causes of the failure, those being insufficient QC during computer assembly, or, during manufacture (copper annealing QC).
Another poster claims cable replacement is possible, albeit at considerable expense, but is a reliable repair or replacement even possible, given the engineering design constraints on the cabling (thickness and bending radius)?
It seems Apple loves to replace MacBook Pro screens for free. Does anyone remember the anti-reflective film delamination fiasco?
Quote: “…the line between form and function that Apple is known for walking so well.”
Thanks for the best laugh that I’ve had all week.
Simple Answer:
STOP BUYING (CR)APPLE PRODUCTS!!!
Money Talks, BS WALKS!!!
After reading this article, and number of people reporting this problem has scared the….. as i own 2016 13″ MBP with touchbar.
If i understand correctly Apple would have done R&D to determine the lifetime of MBP opening and closing operation. 2 years is termed as premature failure.
Apple should accept and recall these MBP for cable replacement.
Instead of buying would leasing, like leasing a car which is covered by a warranty during the lease period, be a solution to the high cost of ownership and repair of Apple’s design defective products?
I have a 13” 2014 MBP. I used the computer 1-2x a month. Updating software and paying bills. Neat scanning docs. 125GB is used 50% in software.
Finally opened it and had screen problems. A green and white flickering of pixels in the lower left of the screen. Turn off. Turn on. Get the loading bar. Then reboot loop. Tried all the tricks on posts. Take it to the Apple store. Bad display cable. Then looking further. Bad Sector in SSD. Then bad RAM. So I had a $1500 useless computer. Oh but for $795 they could fix it. So. New screen, new hard drive. New RAM….. for a laptop used maybe 200 times max. They cut me a deal on the ram and hard drive and didn’t charge me. So do I ditch $1500 or spend $795 to fix? Or spend another $1800 for a newer Model with questionable quality?. I can fix it myself but the deal they gave me would be equivalent of what I would have spent at ifixit. Thinking. I could have gotten a nice Windows Laptop for $800 that would last 4x as long as this MBPOS.
Something is wrong… very wrong. Recently tore an iPhone 7 cable during a battery replace. I’ve replaced 6 iPhone batteries from iPhone 3s and 5s. Without issue. Now 7. I noticed on the 7 the ribbon cables thickness is paper thin. 1/2 the thickness of the 3 and 5. Not that they need to flex like a laptop.
I felt like I went in for a brake job and ended up finding out I had a bad engine that needed replacing.
Failed stress testing. Anyone who pay that amount of money would expect things as notable as this to be fully tested. Remind me of crappy motherboard makers like Gigabyte, premium goes to advertisements, nothing they ship is tested.
Xps13 had similar issue with cable loose connection, lucky for me the cable itself still intact.
another epic fail by apple…
Return them all as ‘unfit for use’
A cheap solution to this problem could be to reinforce the flex cables with shirt slats (https://goo.gl/images/VY7nQB) or similar soft plastic pieces by gluing them on the cable before it breaks.
In order to obtain a reliable drag chain effect commonly used in the mechanical industry.
Example of drag chain: https://goo.gl/images/mEUdJP
This could strengthen the breaking point and lengthen the cable’s life at a very low cost.
Understand the competitions among high-tech products are quite fierce.Apple considered the customer’s demand for a thinner, lighter and more beautiful laptop, but they may ignored the core part of a laptop—functionality.I’m the lucky person who also have this problem(2016 Touch Bar model), just will not buy any apple products if they continue this trend. We are the victims, we should know these information before we made the choice to buy it. Anyway, it’s also my fault for not doing a research on how Apple managed to make their laptop thinner and lighter.Already sign the petition, we should not keep silent and pay for Apple’s design flaw!
I don’t know weather it is a permanent solution or no but i think just applying a piece of cloth tape on both sides of the flex cable can significantly reduce stress on cable and can help in increasing its life span. it might sound weird but i have used this solution many years ago on a slider cellphones which also had similar type of problem where flex cable tend to break due to again & again bending of cable.
for people who don’t know what cloth tape is ” https://www.advancetapes.com/tapetypes/cloth/ “.
According to many users who had the same issue, at very beginning, users would see the stage lights and then blackouts.
Sign the petition please:
https://www.change.org/p/apple-fix-all-macbook-pro-2016-and-later-with-stage-light-effect-or-backlight-shutdown-flexgate
Just returned from my Apple Genius appointment today after stage lights appeared on my MacBook Pro screen (purchased new in January 2017), followed by complete display blackout. I’ve been quoted over 400 GBP for a replacement screen….I don’t currently live in the country where I purchased the MacBook Pro, but the helpful Apple Genius technician actually suggested I should go for compensation under the consumer law in the country of purchase…
I’m confused. Didn’t Apple’s MacBook 12″ (Retina) also use flex cables for the screen? It’s very similar, minus the fact that it doesn’t wrap around a daughter card, but are folded instead. Why weren’t those affected?
I’m also very concerned considering that I just bought a MBP 2018 last month. It’s a bit too late to return it.
We bought 3x 2017 MBP Escapes – one was fine, one has already been replaced twice for keyboard problems, and the other just got the flexgate and keyboard problem together and has been sent in for repair.
We’ve owned pretty much every model of Macbook Pro over the years and all were excellent until this generation. I used to expect to get 5 years of reliable use out of an MBP and then to be able to sell it for a decent price. Now it seems it’s just a matter of time until the keyboard AND the screen fails. C’mon Apple – that’s really not what’s expected by your customers. If this doesn’t get solved, you’ll soon have squandered all the goodwill you worked so hard over the years to create.
Hi,
A recent Belgian mainstream television news covered this issue stating that Apple did modify the screens to resolve this issue on the 2018 models while not covering the failure for previous 2016 design consumers. I think this petition is even more needed as I personally bought my MBP 13″ non TB like probably a whole bunch of others. So facing a response like “The issue is covered” is not acceptable for us!
At least I want an Apple tool to check with my SN if I’m really concerned (scr*w*d) by this issue. ’cause a Late 2017 13″ MBP is a very expensive low-end Mac Mini to be used with closed lid when connected to my docking station……..
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I have a feeling that Apple has a script that prevents you from posting anything that includes stage light, design flaw, or extended warranty. A tl;dr for that idea is that my Mac (2016 touchbar model) screen just died after suffering from the stagelight issue, so I wanted to rant on Apple support. Bad idea. It was instantly deleted.
Apple not admitting this issue and the shop staff gaslighting me has been the worst part for me. The computer that I care for like it were more fragile than an egg had to go in for repairs twice before the light went off. They demanded that I pay for the repair, with zero guarantees that it’d even work. 70,000 yen. LOL. I’ll wait for them to fix the mess they’ve put me in but I’m not giving one more yen to that company in any case. It’s all been a series of nightmares since I switched. I have fewer regrets in life.
This just happened to my macbook pro 13′ as well. First the stage light appeared and now, two weeks later I can’t open it more then 45° without it’s going black. 1 year warranty has just expired ):
Thank you for this. I’ve had the exact same problem with my 2016 MBP 13″ with Touch Bar. First the stage light effect, then the blacking out if opened past 45 degrees. Warranty expired six months ago. I didn’t expect to need Apple Care for a $3k machine, given my last MBP lasted five years and was still going strong when I passed it on to a niece. Apple should do the decent thing. I’ve been a loyal Apple user for years but this has me questioning that.
Hi! I am graduate student who spent 1700 dollar out of 2000 savings for MBP 2016 oct Model. Now I am screwed. The screen is very dark. It first seems completely turned off. But after looking very carefully, You can see that it is actually on. But definitely in a non-working condition. What can I do? Should I replace it? If it replace it, do I have to do that again in 02 years? Is there a lawsuit or petition?
I am thinking about using it with external monitor instead of replacing display.
Mine is the same generation but without touch. Unfortunately I’m facing the same problem right now. My question is, mine have no Touch Bar, do I have the change the whole screen as the Touch Bar one or just change the connector only?
Hi!,
This happened to my MBP 2017, just one week after the warranty. Went from dealer to dealer, tried Apple, finally paid LKR 95,000/- (USD 534) and got the whole screen replaced. I don’t know if this is a permanent solution since the new screen cable is bound to fail too, just around the year mark. It is not how, it is when your MBP get affected, because ultimately all MBP will end up with this issue sooner or later. So if your are thinking my MBP is still not affected, don’t worry it will….
This is what happen when ‘Tim Apple’ takes over from ‘Steve Apple’ and end up with ‘Rotten Apples’. Singed the petition and waiting for some good news.