Thinkpads Forum

I managed to find a R50p's UXGA screen (IDTech, FRU PN: 92P6683) on eBay, and successfully installed it in my recently built T60/T61 Frankenpad today. The procedure was simple: after taking apart both screen assemblies, I connected the R50p display to the T60's inverter and ribbon cable, and put everything back together. It worked straight away. (Picture.)
Unfortunately, as can be seen very clearly on this photo, it's quite badly yellowed/discoloured around the edges. Is this caused by the aging CCFL backlight?

Welcome to the forum.
Yes, it is certainly looks like a symptom of an aging backlight. Honestly, I'd rate it considerably above average for a screen this old.

dr_st wrote: ↑

Tue Jun 01, 2021 9:34 am

Welcome to the forum.
Yes, it is certainly looks like a symptom of an aging backlight. Honestly, I'd rate it considerably above average for a screen this old.

Thank you, nice to meet you.

Replacing the CCFL backlight seems to be quite involved, but the high resolution looks so nice and sharp that it's probably worth trying. How many people here have done this yet, and do you need any specific replacement lamps (or any that will fit the dimensions)?

dr_st wrote: ↑

Tue Jun 01, 2021 9:34 am

Yes, it is certainly looks like a symptom of an aging backlight. Honestly, I'd rate it considerably above average for a screen this old.

Well to make it clear, the yellowing part may not come from an aging backlight. It can be but usually no.
The unevenness part can be because of aging backlight, or it can also be uneven mounting pressure. For this you can try using the laptop as usual for like a week and see how it goes. If the backlight has life left in it, this can go away after certain amount of use to "wake" up the CCFL. If the backlight is really worn, then it can get worse.
Unless it gets really bad, I don't suggest you replace the backlight unless the red hue appears too. This is because when you aren't experienced enough with the backlight replacement, you may end up having to "shove" things back together and that can create more unevenness than what you started! Plus it always will let in some dust particles. How many depends on the air quality of your room
For 15" screens, you could check out salvaging backlights from some 15" T4x XGA screens as I find the CCFL on those to be pretty reliable and buying new bulbs might be prohibitively expensive due to special shipping required when you aren't in the US or China.