Thinkpads Forum

In a quest for a cheap SXGA+ T60 panel, I've bought two complete panel assemblies off of eBay for about $16 each. The first one came with the wrong resolution (XGA) and a thin white line running across the middle of the screen when you turn it on. The second turns out to have the SXGA+ resolution I was looking for, BUT it's slightly, yet noticeably, dimmer than the XGA panel that the laptop came with and has a weird yellowish tint.

I've tried cleaning the screen, but that did nothing. I also tried messing around with the colors. When I turn the contrast down a little, the tint goes away, but the screen looks dim. Turning the brightness up to compensate makes it look washed-out.

I was wondering, if it's the CCFL bulb or the polarizer, is there a chance I can swap them out from the other panels I have?

A bad CCFL manifests itself with an ever getting more pinkish/reddish tint.
But it will burn out eventually, getting dimmer at first (part of your current problem), then pink, then nothing.
CCFL can be swapped out with one from the same size LCD (or replaced with a new one).
The CCFL swap is a PITA, see e.g. this: http://forum.thinkpads.com/viewtopic.php?f=31&t=88991

The yellow tint comes either from nicotin on the screen (you cleaned it, so that's not it) or from the polarizer which doesn't like UV light all that much.
You can swap it with one from the same size (AND same brand only!) LCD, but the risk of getting dust between the layers is huge.
Both jobs normally require a dust-free "Clean Room".

Alternatively, check out the website (LED-mod) in my signature, if you have a 15" screen.

Swapped out both CCFL and the inverter, but it's still got the same tint. =/

RealBlackStuff wrote:Alternatively, check out the website (LED-mod) in my signature, if you have a 15" screen.

I've got the 14.1 version. =(

RealBlackStuff wrote:The yellow tint comes either from nicotin on the screen (you cleaned it, so that's not it) or from the polarizer which doesn't like UV light all that much.
You can swap it with one from the same size (AND same brand only!) LCD, but the risk of getting dust between the layers is huge.
Both jobs normally require a dust-free "Clean Room".

About the polarizer. What exactly does it look like? Is it supposed to be tinted? I took one of the screens completely apart and behind it were a couple of clear pieces of plastic that look blurred/magnified when you look through them. There's no tinted sheets there. I thought it might be stuck to the LCD like a screen protector, but I don't see any thing I can peel off. Maybe if I examine it closer.

Screens from different manufacturers have different constructions and/or number of layers.
Check Google for images of "laptop lcd screen layers diagram" that will give you an idea.
Sorry, can't help you with any more details.

some of the generic replacement screens are yellowish too, even when brand new, but usually it's just a sigh of old age, but for what you paid it was probably a good deal and you may not be able to do anything about it short of finding a nice genuine screen but they are getting harder to find.