Apple customers are howling over a pair of recurring flaws in the company's new iMac desktops.

Some buyers say machines are arriving on doorsteps with a conspicuous crack in the lower left-hand corner of Apple's built-in display, while others howl that their freshly-shipped systems won't even turn on.

Each flaw has spawned multiple complaints at Apple's support forums - here and here. Apparently, both issues involve Intel Core i7-based iMacs equipped with 27-inch displays.

"Hey Apple. Just want to says thanks," one sarcasm-soaked buyer writes. "I've spent endless dollars on your products over the years. I order a iMac i7 and wait like everybody else for 'ships:november.' I was scared I might have screen flickering like others but thanks to you, upon unboxing, I actually see nothing because this $2k paperweight doesn't even turn on.

"Thanks for the great product. It's the last one I'll ever buy from you. Customer lost."

His experience is echoed by several others - though some indicate the display is at fault, not the machine itself. "Similar thing happened to me. The imac would chime, and appeared to boot, but the screen was completely dead," says one user.

Meanwhile, on a separate thread, multiple buyers complain of that crack in the iMac display. "Just picked up my iMac 27" from FedEx two hours ago. Outer box, inner box and all packing were in excellent shape. When I finally unwrapped everything I discovered the lower left hand corner of the glass was cracked in three places," one poster says.

One Reg reader tells us he too encountered the infamous left-hand crack, and when he took his machine to the local Apple Store for satisfaction, he wasn't the only one. "The guy behind me was bringing his in for the exact same thing. I live in a small market too," he says.

According to some users, Apple can't provide replacement systems for at least two weeks. Which is no surprise. On a third thread - now 187 pages long - many buyers are still howling over delays with their first machine. ®