The dark satanic rumour mill claims that Apple has stopped its assembly lines producing its faulty 27-inch Core i5 and i7 iMacs and issued a firmware patch which is supposed to fix problems in graphics.

Despite managing to get over the top reviews from its tame press in the US the new flagship iMacs have had problems with cracked screens and graphics problems. Apple issued a firmware patch today which is supposed to fix the problem however it might be Jobs' Mob's last attempt to get a cheap fix. If it fails then it might have the huge embarrassment of making a product recall.

Already 27-inch iMac models are three weeks late. We have heard that the company completely stopped the iMac 27″ assembly lines and the production will not resume before Apple has finally found a definitive fix for the flickering and flashing display. New problems have recently been reported of a yellowish panel too..

Gizmodo posted what looks like an internal Apple document, included below, revealing that Apple is aware about iMac issues and is moving to solve them. It suggests an LCD panel replacement for iMacs with yellow-tinted displays and a second software patch in three weeks’ time. What is amusing is that the advice suggests that staff not to try to fix the problem yet but spin a yarn that slight colour variability is normal for LCD displays and in general does not warrant replacement. Those who have the yellow tint issue, and who provide contact information, will be contacted by Apple in approximately three weeks to arrange a LCD panel replacement. Customers who require an immediate resolution should be offered a refund.

When Apple delayed 27-iMac shipments about two weeks ago, AppleInsider correctly worked out that Apple might fix the flickering problem with another patch. It is one thing to force users to pay over the odds for hardware that is locked into another range of your products. However if the gear is as shonky it is a complete insult.

Steve Jobs blamed most of Apple's product woes on Flash software, however it is fairly clear that it is flaky hardware running an operating system which is equally buggy.