These are the sort of things that will bother Mac owners a lot. I’m that kind of person, and it’s annoying me a lot. A stain just appeared on the glass surface of my Retina MacBook Pro’s display as I was wiping it with a micro fibre cloth. It’s almost like I had just wiped off part of the display.
It turns out that’s practically exactly what it is. A check on the Internet finds that this stain is due to the anti-reflective coating on the glass coming off.
The issue, it seems, has dated back to at least August 2013, but has been gaining momentum earlier this year according to MacRumors. A website, www.staingate.org, was launched in March 2015 for users to join a database and submit photos of their Retina MacBook Pro display coating wearing off.
Some users had reportedly been lucky for their display to be replaced under warranty. Others, however, have been told that the issue is cosmetic and thus not covered under warranty. Repair costs will run into hundreds of dollars.
To be honest, the stain in my case is relatively minor compared with many photos I’ve seen of other users’ affected displays. I think I’m really lucky that, by some fluke, the stain stops exactly before the actual display screen begins. It did lead me to wonder if the problem was something under the glass, as opposed to the anti-reflective coating that is presumably on the glass.
Regardless, this stain is annoying. At some point I’m going to have to call Apple to complain about this problem and see how they can help me.