late 2007 MacBook Pro black screen on boot up.

If the hot-air treatment works, I guess it's because your problem came from use of Lead-Free Solder in manufacturing.

The world electronics assembly industry was forced to switch in mid-2000's from tin/lead solder to Lead-Free (mostly just tin) Solder. That led to many quality problems. Not enough research had been done. Lead-Free Solder is very particular about how it's used and treated, or you end up with bad joints, or short circuits (over time, from tin whiskers). The industry eventually learned, after a few years. Unfortunately, some products made during the mid-to-late-2000's that had passed QC and got shipped out, then failed after some years of use and stress (thermal cycling=turning on/off, humidity, bending, etc.).

Lead-free solder melts around 425 deg-F. But a lower temperature like 300 deg-F can solve problems - relieve stressed joints, close small cracks. This is what the internet videos are doing -- with a hair-dryer or oven.

Tin whiskers is another possible problem. To melt tin whiskers -- each & every one -- you probably need to go to 425 F. That heat could damage certain parts -- battery, aluminum electrolytic capacitors, beepers/buzzes/speakers,... anything with soft plastic. You have to remove these before a heat-treatment.

Instead of high heat, you can take out the circuit board, and use a soft brush and vacuum cleaner to dislodge and suck up the whiskers. Go thru every nook and cranny, especially around the ICs. Be sure to use anti-static tools and work area so you don't 'zap' your electronics. That is, you, the table, and every tool should be grounded.

UPDATE 5-16-16: I had to do the oven treatment twice. (The problem resumed after the first bake, a few days later). The MBP has been working fine now for several months of constant use. But I also did an OS update right after that. The fans run faster now. I'm not sure if I did something wrong in re-assembling it, or maybe Apple purposely tweaked the fan settings for problem-prevention.

I had the same problem with my Macbook Pro 17, follow those steps, but I live in Mexico, so Apple refuse the service. Top quality product? I dont think so.

you'll need a small philips head screw driver, a torx T6 screwdriver, some thermal compound, tin foil, and a hair dryer. lol

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1jFTi_P24... http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oMEsexDak...

2007 MacBook Pro 15 inch. This much loved computer suddenly came up with black screen, normal boot up noises. Extrnal monito port was black as well. Bad video card.

Took it to a "UBreakiFix" shop and they took a week or two to tell me what I already knew and quote me a repair for just a tad more than the puter is worth.

OK, let's harvest that data before recycling it - I ordered a Firewire cable (surprised to find it is rare now) and when that came I hooked it up to my newer notebook in Target Disk Mode. Tip - when you can't see the screen to watch for the Target Disk Mode icon, just hold that T key down for a minute or so - it will eventually show up as an external disk on the Host puter.

So the old unit was sitting on a metal flip top trash can next to my desk while humming along having its data copied over. The next day I checked on things and Video is back in gear! I love that old matte screen.

No ovens, heat guns, solder irons, nothing - just sitting on a trash can lid running a little hot and it seems that some circuit / connection that had opened up was closed again.

So maybe less drastic measure could work for you - a true story.