Thin 1 pixel Intermittent Horizontal Line on Screen

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MacBook Pro 13" Retina Display Early 2015

The March 2015 update of Apple's 13" MacBook Pro Retina Display, model A1502, features fifth-generation Intel Core i5 and i7 processors and introduces the Force Touch trackpad.

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livfe @livfe

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Thin 1 pixel Intermittent Horizontal Line on Screen

We have 2 A1502 units here (2013 & 2015) that both have a tiny 1 pixel vertical lines on the display, it is sometimes there at boot, then they go away, and sometimes appears after a period of time (On both units). (2013 1 line) (2015 4 lines at equal distance apart). The lines do appear to show at the same point each time. We have cleaned the connections and all appears super clean. Is this a sign of a faulty LCD or something else. The next step I guess would be to swap out the LVDS cables as we haven't as yet tested that way. Testing with other displays & externally there is no issue at all, displays tested on other units and the issue persists so it is 100% something in the assembly, so each display likely is suffering the same or very similar problem. We have reset SMC / PRAM to. no avail and both units are using a clean installed stock SSD. Or is there something simple I may have missed? Or are we facing early signs of a failing T-Con or LCD?

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DanJ @danj Rep: 501.5k Self employed contract worker 35 344 977 · Answer 1 · 2026-07-10T05:54:07-07:00

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DanJ @danj

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The issue is not within the Display Cable (Retina systems don't use LVDS signaling, they use iDP or eDP). Yes, the early Retina models used the same connector system like the older Unibodies.

Anyways... your issue is within the ribbon cables between the LCD panel and the narrow T-CON board near the hinge side. The T-CON converts the iDP/eDP signals into what the LCD needs to power up the horizontal row and its corresponding vertical row so the intersecting Pixel is lit. Here the horizontal row connection is not holding fast either due to a misalignment and/or bad connection solder or clamp pressure. It can also be caused by a micro-fracture within the LCD panel so the pathway to the horizontal row point of the panel given row is not a viable path. We call this problem generically a TAB error.

To fix this might be as simple as adding some slight pressure across the ribbon solder joint on the LCD panel. Massaging or adding additional padding to press the area down. With solder joints passing a hot soldering iron across the ribbon to re-melt the joint might also work if you suspect a cold joint.

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I will try these tips, thanks dan, I was sure there was something we could try as they are both not seriously dead (yet). If you can add some picture of where exactly to run a solder iron or where pressure maybe required would be great.

Jul 10, 2026 by livfe

@livfe - Here's a view of the T-CON and the four ribbon cables to the LCD panel.

Jul 10, 2026 by DanJ

@danj Ah OK yes, so this is a tricky one ;) A bit of tape or something to sandwich the joints? Now to figure out which of the 4 to focus on.

Jul 10, 2026 by livfe

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MacBook Pro 13" Retina Display Early 2015

Thin 1 pixel Intermittent Horizontal Line on Screen

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