Isopropyl okay to use on MacBook screen?

Solution 1:

Like the OP, I've always used a 50/50 mixture of isopropyl alcohol and distilled water. Just now, I seem to have damaged the screen of my (Late 2013) MacBook Pro Retina by cleaning it with this mixture and a microfibre cloth.

There is a coating on the screen that has rubbed off in a patch about a quarter inch wide and two inches long. It's very noticeable, but luckily it's on the bezel rather than the screen proper. I'll probably live with it, as a repair would probably involve replacing the whole screen. ($$$$)

This was possibly the third or fourth time that I've used this mixture to clean this screen in the few months that I've owned this machine. It's really annoying to find that the most expensive laptop I've ever bought has a screen that can be so easily damaged, using a cleaner that I've seen recommended lots of times on the web and which has worked well for me in the past.

Bottom line: Do NOT use isopropyl alcohol (or anything other than water) to clean a screen unless the manufacturer says it is okay.

To be fair, Apple does say something to that effect here: http://support.apple.com/kb/HT3226#portables

(Yes, I know this is an old question - just adding this reply for the benefit of those who, like me, find this page in future by Googling.)