Calling all 14" owners for help >> Screen Flexing

[cerebral_mamba]

My 14" T43 2686DGU has flexing even when I open & close the laptop lid. Even the slightest touch of the laptop screen is causing some level of flexing.

NOTE: Flexing cannot be detected when windows are open or with a white background no matter how hard I press it. But with a lightly dark grey desktop background and no windows open, even the slightest touch of the back cover housing the LCD shows the flexing. (No matter where I touch, the flexing is always in the same particular patters)

I would greately appreciate if you fellow 14" owners perform the following tests and let us all know of your results:

1. Please make you background Grey (the darker one) and minimize/close all open windows. (doing this will set a standard for measurement and will not cause any false results.

2. Check if you can see or experience any flexing when tapping/pressing/closing-opening the lid etc.

3. Please reply your results with:

(A) Your 14" model (mine is 2686DGU) and your LCD type such as SXGA or XGA etc and the

(B) Your LCD FRU # that can be found at "Access IBM >> Get Help & Support >> Warranty & Parts Information" and look for something regarding display (eg on mine it says "FRU-14.1 SXGA+ SEC PB-FREE" and the FRU is 92P6760.

I just want to find out is there is a design issue with any particular model. I have read another user also mention that his 2686DGU has the same problem.

[cerebral_mamba]

You are not entering the No Flexing LCD FRU numbers. I want to figure out a sturdy FRU part so that I can ask for that when I call IBM. That is the whole intention of this post, so please reply with your perfectly working FRU. Thanks a million.

[bill bolton]

has flexing

What exactly do you mean by "flexing"? It is not clear at all from your message!

Cheers,

Bill

[cerebral_mamba]

has flexing

What exactly do you mean by "flexing"? It is not clear at all from your message!

Cheers,

Bill

Ok. even the slightest tap on the back of my lcd causes some level of distortion, more like pattern of distortion to appear on my screen. I am sure you would know what I am talking of if you press the back of your LCD. Only in my case, even the slightest touch particularly on the entire left portion of the screen causes this distortion.

I cannot notice it when I have widnows open or have a desktop wallpaper. But when I have a plain grey background, geez.. even the slightest touch causes the flexing to be clearly seen. This is my first Thinkpad and from all I read of it build like a tank, I am just plain dissapointed with this level of screen flexing. The issue is I am past the 30 day return period or else I would have gladly exchanged, now I have to get this replaced.

For that I am treying to fiure out what is the best FRU out there as a replacement. i initially didn't get the NMB keyboard, but I got it replaced with one and I am so happy with it now. Everyone knows what is the better keyboard out there, yet I don't understand why IBM/Lenovo ships with the inferior one. I guess my whole 2686DGU is made with the inferior components and I want to get it replaced with the right good parts.

Many of you say you have no screen flexing, then why do I have iot on mine.. that too so much?? I hope to find out what models you folks own that does not have any screen flexing and then want to replace my LCD with one of that FRU.

Also, since the flexing causes a distortion in a particular pattern only, that is irrespective of where i tap or press, the ripples appear on the same portions of the screen, i am wondering if i just dissemble and assemble the screen, will it fix the issue? I have read something to this effect on another thread, but would like a more conclusive opinion on the same.

The 8 users who have voted as No Screen Flexing.. congradulations on a perfect Thinkpad. But please take the time to give me the model and FRU of your LCD so that I may also u[pgrade and make mine better. Thanks

[cerebral_mamba]

has flexing

What exactly do you mean by "flexing"? It is not clear at all from your message!

Cheers,

Bill

Ok. even the slightest tap on the back of my lcd causes some level of distortion, more like pattern of distortion to appear on my screen. I am sure you would know what I am talking of if you press the back of your LCD. Only in my case, even the slightest touch particularly on the entire left portion of the screen causes this distortion.

I cannot notice it when I have widnows open or have a desktop wallpaper. But when I have a plain grey background, geez.. even the light touch causes some level of flexing to be seen. This is my first Thinkpad and from all I read of it build like a tank, I am just plain dissapointed with this level of screen flexing. The issue is I am past the 30 day return period or else I would have gladly exchanged, now I have to get this replaced.

For that I am trying to fiure out what is the best FRU out there as a replacement. i initially didn't get the NMB keyboard, but I got it replaced with one and I am so happy with it now. Everyone knows what is the better keyboard out there, yet I don't understand why IBM/Lenovo ships with the inferior one. I guess my whole 2686DGU is made with the inferior components and I want to get it replaced with the right good parts.

Many of you say you have no screen flexing, then why do I have iot on mine.. that too so much?? I hope to find out what models you folks own that does not have any screen flexing and then want to replace my LCD with one of that FRU.

Also, since the flexing causes a distortion in a particular pattern only, that is irrespective of where i tap or press, the ripples appear on the same portions of the screen, i am wondering if i just dissemble and assemble the screen, will it fix the issue? I have read something to this effect on another thread, but would like a more conclusive opinion on the same.

The 8 users who have voted as No Screen Flexing.. congradulations on a perfect Thinkpad. But please take the time to give me the model and FRU of your LCD so that I may also u[pgrade and make mine better. Thanks

[bill bolton]

I guess my whole 2686DGU is made with the inferior components and I want to get it replaced with the right good parts.

Oh, just another troll!

[cerebral_mamba]

I guess my whole 2686DGU is made with the inferior components and I want to get it replaced with the right good parts.

Oh, just another troll!

Who are you to judge me? Is that the only line your brain could register from all I wrote? If you think you know more about the ThinkPads, prove it be providing me with some with some intellectual solution/suggestions... and not by giving me your heroic remarks that doesn't fetch me even a dimes worth.

I got a ThinkPad and I solved one small issue with the keyboard and now have a big one with the LCD and I am going to get it fixed some way or another. So if you have something to contribute, please do so. I have enough frustration already and don't want some blind fanboy's derogations... Thank you.

This post has been up for a few days now with so many users having no issue but no body has given me their FRUs. So now, I am humbly requesting one of the Admins to close this thread as its of no use to me and I doubt it will be to anyone else.

Thank you everybody for your vote anyways. I atleast can go ahead and try to get a replacement without specifying any particular FRU and most likely will end up with a good one.

[draco2527]

Mamba....

By troll I think he meant a "bug" in your hardware!!!! NOT refering to you...

I have seen this on ALL laptops, some are worse then others...also light can play tricks and it might seem like is "moving" but is the light that is reflecting of it!

Another issue could be a "loose" backing on the LCD, there are several layers of plastic (one REALLY THICK that transmits light around the lcd) and about 4 or 5 other sheets that go from clear to "silver" these are for REFLECTING the light forward....if the wire frame around the lcd(thin piece of glass...when you pull the assembly off the bezel, the LCD seems huge..but there are a lot of components that make up the unit..but the glass/transistor portion is really thin)...could have not been attached properly and is causing the distortion! Also there are four screws (6 in some cases) that attach to the side rails (rails are atached to the hinges), if these screws were left loose then your LCD could wooble and cause the distortion.

I am sure is a fluke and not an indication that your system was built with sub-par parts...also the same FRU number on a part, will not guarantee that they are from the same manufacturer OR lot (LCD's are branded GE, IBM, Toshiba, SHARP, LG and about a dozen other names)..


My $.02..hope that helps....


EDIT: Here are the FRU's that IBM has for the LCD on your ThinkPad:


HYDIS 92P6737
HYDIS (Lead Free) 13N7046
SAMSUNG 92P6760

Samsung always made good LCD's....HYDIS I have no clue, I have never seen one!

[christopher_wolf]

OK, everybody...Let's try a little lighter mood on both sides shall we? I didn't want to comment on that "troll" bit or the "inferior" comments that seem to have started it; as far as I have been around, both of those comments didn't provide help and have little to no reason to be in this thread that is, if one remembers the topic and compares, designed to be a poll of screen flexing. Keep it that way.

[keku]

Ok guyz .. let me tell you one thing it's obvious since lenovo started selling those laptop direclty quality has gone down. some of you might not agree coz lenovo used to make those before but it's true.

This is my 7th thinkpad since July 2005. and now I plan to keep it, NOT because I'm happy with quality, just becasue I can't keep sending them those laptop back and receive another with hope of getting a better one next time.

However they are not still as worse as other laptops in market. But not as good as before.

Not to the point, I don't have that so called flexing by tapping on back of my LCD .. even I tried hard tapping ... nothing ...
but when I put my finger on LCD and press it see something .. but that's a normal property of LCD. we can't call it defect.

Back of thinkpads is very sturdy it can even handle some drops. so it's hard for me to believe that it's happening with tap. anyways FRU for this LCD is 13N7046

[christopher_wolf]

I can vouch for that being patently untrue; Me, my friends in research, and other friends in the department have gotten their Thinkpads both before and after the "Lenovo Deal" and haven't noticed anything different...Neither have I.

I think it is pretty much a false impression that Lenovo somehow managed, ovenight no less, to drop the quality of the Thinkpads; it isn't as if that can actually happen that quickly without at least a major effort to change many things on Lenovo's part. That wasn't the original topic of the thread, and it shouldn't turn into a war of imagined/perceived/possible differences between IBM and Lenovo; the original topic was about screen flexing and I can report that I have no discernable flexing with my T43 14/1" screen.

[cerebral_mamba]

....Another issue could be a "loose" backing on the LCD, there are several layers of plastic (one REALLY THICK that transmits light around the lcd) and about 4 or 5 other sheets that go from clear to "silver" these are for REFLECTING the light forward....if the wire frame around the lcd(thin piece of glass...when you pull the assembly off the bezel, the LCD seems huge..but there are a lot of components that make up the unit..but the glass/transistor portion is really thin)...could have not been attached properly and is causing the distortion! Also there are four screws (6 in some cases) that attach to the side rails (rails are atached to the hinges), if these screws were left loose then your LCD could wooble and cause the distortion...

Thank you. I would actually really like to try removing the LCD and put it back in. I read the procedure in the HMM and also read in another post where it solved issues of darker patch on the LCD.

What i want to know is whether I will run into any unexpected surprises. I have never opened any LCD of any laptop and this will be my first. If I follow the instruction in HMM by the word, do you think its straight forward? I had opened my friends HP Pavillion once and there were lots of tiny things that were not clearly mentioned in its manual. IBM HMM looks excellent, but I would like your opinion if you have done the same previously.

Back of thinkpads is very sturdy it can even handle some drops. so it's hard for me to believe that it's happening with tap. anyways FRU for this LCD is 13N7046

That is exactly why i am so troubled. By tapping the back there is some level of distortion (though only noticeable when I have a grey background). When I press the back, there is really a lot of distortion, though in the same place it approx. covers 25-30% of my screen.

It is not an issue of lighting as my roommates, one has an HP 17" and other a Dell 700m 12" and non of the have any such problem. The Dell is really well build, but that could be because of its small screen.

Also, when I look at the LCD from the sides, you can clearly see 2 vertical strips that are much lighter than the area around it. These vertical strips stretch from top to bottom and both the other computers don't have any.

I really don't know if its an LCD issue or mounting issue and since i rather not send it back to them for I use it everyday, I am inclined to open and reinstall the LCD. I just hope there will be no surprises.

My sincere apologies to Bill Bolton for taking your comment in the wrong sence.

[cerebral_mamba]

I have posted the same question here at http://forum.notebookreview.com/showthread.php?t=37219.

How come users there have the scree flex and no body here have it? Not that I am questioning anyone who voted, but being a dedicated Thinkpad forum, I expected a wider array of experience here.

I have read that the 15" models have virtually zero flexing, but not the 14" models. IMO

[dr_st]

I have read that the 15" models have virtually zero flexing, but not the 14" models. IMO

It's possible, considering the somewhat thicker lid on the 15" models. Also, these are completely different panels, so quality could differ...