An uneven strip of light along the bottom of the screen, vertical lines, or a backlight that cuts out when you open the lid ? That’s “Flexgate”, a known defect on 2016-2018 MacBook Pros. The good news : it’s easy to identify, and it can be repaired.
Flexgate comes from a display flex cable that is too short on Touch Bar MacBook Pros from 2016 to 2018 : with every open and close of the lid, it wears out and eventually fails. The result : a “spotlight” effect (stage light) at the bottom of the screen, lines, then a backlight that cuts out beyond a certain opening angle. It’s not your fault, and it can be repaired — without necessarily replacing the whole screen. The symptom is very recognisable.
If several of these symptoms sound familiar on a 2016-2018 MacBook Pro, it’s very likely Flexgate.
A row of uneven bright patches, like stage spotlights, appears along the bottom of the panel. It’s the most distinctive signature of Flexgate.
The image turns very dark or black beyond a certain opening angle, then comes back if you close it halfway. The cable, stretched too tight at a wide angle, loses contact.
Test : open the lid slowly — if the screen darkens at about 90°, that’s a strong sign.Lines, flickering or artefacts that vary with the lid angle often go with the phenomenon : here again, it’s the cable making a faulty contact.
Mainly the 13″ and 15″ Touch Bar MacBook Pros from 2016 to 2018 — that is, models A1706, A1707, A1708, A1989 and A1990. Apple later lengthened the cable on the following generations. Check your model number to confirm.
Worth reading : our guide to finding your A#### in 30 seconds.Flexgate gets worse over time : the more the cable wears, the worse the symptoms. It’s best to act early.
Depending on the state of the panel, two routes :
Screen repair on these models takes method and the right tools :
“Screen playing up : you have to replace the whole thing.”
Not always. With Flexgate, it’s the display flex cable that fails, not necessarily the panel. If the display is fine apart from the spotlight effect, replacing the cable may be enough — far cheaper than a full display assembly. A diagnosis settles which of the two.
This defect comes from a display flex cable that’s too short — it’s not your fault, and it can be repaired, often just by the cable. Confirm your A####, go easy on opening the lid in the meantime, and get it diagnosed.
It’s a defect on 2016-2018 Touch Bar MacBook Pros: the cable linking the screen to the logic board is too short and wears out as you open the lid, causing a “spotlight” effect at the bottom of the screen, lines, then a loss of backlight.
Mainly the 13" and 15" Touch Bar MacBook Pros from 2016 to 2018, that is models A1706, A1707, A1708, A1989 and A1990. Apple lengthened the cable on the following generations.
Flexgate shows as the spotlight effect at the bottom of the screen and the backlight cutting out when you open the lid wide, without any impact. A broken screen, on the other hand, follows an impact. A diagnosis confirms it.
If the panel is sound, replacing the display flex cable (the cause of Flexgate) may be enough, which is far cheaper than a full assembly. If the panel is also damaged, we replace the display assembly.
You can’t stop the cable wearing out on the affected models, but avoiding opening the lid all the way all the time reduces the strain. Once the symptoms appear, it’s best to repair early.
Yes: the part is replaced and tested at every opening angle, with a 2-year warranty at Place du Mac. The defect doesn’t come back as long as the new cable is sound.
Place du Mac guide — display flex cables and display assemblies tested, 2-year warranty, repair workshop at 51 rue du Faubourg Poissonnière, Paris 9th. “Flexgate” is a colloquial term for a display flex cable defect; Apple, Mac and MacBook are trademarks of Apple Inc. ; Place du Mac is an independent repairer, not affiliated with Apple Inc.
