Thinkpads Forum

I wanna hear your answears on my question above... I am so scared to buy x60 because of the IBM policy on dead pixels.

kamak wrote:I wanna hear your answears on my question above... I am so scared to buy x60 because of the IBM policy on dead pixels.

The IBM policy on dead pixels has been derived from the ISO 13406-2 standard on how manufacturers and consumers are supposed to deal with the, quite widespread, issue of dead pixels on freshly purchsed products with LCD TFT screens.

See; http://www-307.ibm.com/pc/support/site. ... IGR-4U9P53

and

See; http://www.new-monitors.co.uk/pixel.pdf

Those pretty much describe what the policy is on what is considered a "defective" amount and grouping of dead pixels.

If the worst happens, you always have the 30-day period to return the unit, no questions asked, and get another one.

HTH

kamak wrote:I wanna hear your answears on my question above... I am so scared to buy x60 because of the IBM policy on dead pixels.

It's been my experience (having purchased many ThinkPads for my company) that IBM/Lenovo has a great track record of delivering displays that are free of dead pixels. That said, there is always a chance of getting a ThinkPad that has dead pixels, however in my personal opinion you have a much better chance of getting a good display on a ThinkPad as compared to the other brands out there.

I just got mine. As far as I can tell, there are no dead pixels on it.

I'd like to run a program to test all of them, but won't have any time to look into this until next week.

ahrkron wrote:I just got mine. As far as I can tell, there are no dead pixels on it.

I'd like to run a program to test all of them, but won't have any time to look into this until next week.

I might suggest that if you have no pixel issues, that you not run the test program as sometimes that actually will cause a problem.

So if your display looks nice and clear, celebrate...

I dunno but the one Lenovo sent me to review has one dead pixel :p

archer6 wrote:

ahrkron wrote:I just got mine. As far as I can tell, there are no dead pixels on it.

I'd like to run a program to test all of them, but won't have any time to look into this until next week.

I might suggest that if you have no pixel issues, that you not run the test program as sometimes that actually will cause a problem.

So if your display looks nice and clear, celebrate...

Half correct on that.

Running some of the pixel un-stickers might indeed generate a set of stuck pixels, but run it again, and they will go away. Stuck pixels are different than the more difficult dead pixels.

christopher_wolf wrote:
Half correct on that.

Running some of the pixel un-stickers might indeed generate a set of stuck pixels, but run it again, and they will go away. Stuck pixels are different than the more difficult dead pixels.

I stand corrected, thanks for the clarification...

Regarding pixel exercisers:

Even if running the pixel exercisers COULD hurt your screen, I would think it's better to do this early on so you can return the machine. If exercising your pixels early on will cause problems, then you will probably run into this same problem later on by accident.

trentblase wrote:Regarding pixel exercisers:
If exercising your pixels early on will cause problems, then you will probably run into this same problem later on by accident.

That would be my luck... the problem would rear it's ugly head just after the warranty expired...

I just received my x60s from Buy.com - had 1 stuck pixel in the middle of the LCD (red) - back to Buy.com it went. After having been issued an RMA# - purchased another; hopefully, this one will be pixel perfect. I refuse to accept a dead/stuck pixel - maybe that is what law school has done to me? I have had a Thinkpad since the T20 and at least in my experience would say that about every other machine has had some pixel / LCD issue. If you are hyper-sensitive to LCD quality like I am - yes, I admit it - than I would make sure to purchase directly from Lenoxx or Bxx.com or other vendor that has a decent return/exchange policy. Cheers.

zgco wrote:If you are hyper-sensitive to LCD quality like I am - yes, I admit it -

Well I see I'm in good company here.... as I belong to the Mr. Picky Club (charter member).

Actually, I must say that my experience with ThinkPads reveals far less pixel issues than with the competitors. Having purchase a few hundred for my company over the years, rarely do we have a pixel problem. Those are saved for MY ThinkPad

I feel confident that this time around you will be very pleased...

Cheers!
Archer6

My first laptop in college was a Mac ('94 ouch) - was great at the time; however, since then I have been a loyal Thinkpad customer. I thought about switching to Mac, but after 1 MacBook Pro and 1 MacBook (both returned to Amazxx) I decided that the only Apple product for me is the iPod (possibly the Mini, but the Xbox 360 can fill its shoes as a media center). Apple is having some serious quality control issues with their new notebooks (processor whine, "mooing," overheating). The MacBook weighs far too much, and, at least to me, it makes no sense to purchase a black MacBook for $1500 when, after the current rebate, you can purchse the X60s for about the same price. Long story short, I will gladly go through 2-3 Thinkpads to find that pixel perfect LCD that you, Bill, and the majority of members on this forum are fortunate enough to have. Cheers.

zgco wrote:My first laptop in college was a Mac ('94 ouch) - was great at the time; however, since then I have been a loyal Thinkpad customer. I thought about switching to Mac, but after 1 MacBook Pro and 1 MacBook (both returned to Amazxx) I decided that the only Apple product for me is the iPod (possibly the Mini, but the Xbox 360 can fill its shoes as a media center). Apple is having some serious quality control issues with their new notebooks (processor whine, "mooing," overheating). The MacBook weighs far too much, and, at least to me, it makes no sense to purchase a black MacBook for $1500 when, after the current rebate, you can purchse the X60s for about the same price. Long story short, I will gladly go through 2-3 Thinkpads to find that pixel perfect LCD that you, Bill, and the majority of members on this forum are fortunate enough to have. Cheers.

Nice post! I will be looking forward to the report on your next ThinkPad.

Archer6

I just found a stuck pixel below the center of the screen!
I'm pretty sure it was not there before.

I'm using a pixel exerciser on it now. According to the website from which I got it, it should be left running for several hours or even overnight. Some websites say that you can fix them by massaging the area or by applying pressure while turning the screen on...

any comments/suggestions?

btw, I'll have to check my receipt at the office tomorrow morning, but I'm pretty sure that the 30 day period is over! $%$@$#%$@%&!!!

Received a second X60s from bux.cxx and this one, happily, was perfect, i.e., LCD with 0 dead and/or stuck pixels. Also, am happy to say that I have already received a full refund from bux.cxx for the first X60s that I purchased that had the stuck pixel; no restocking fee - certainly, beat waiting for 1-2 weeks for Lenovo to ship. Cheers.

ahrkron wrote:I just found a stuck pixel below the center of the screen! I'm pretty sure it was not there before.

2 weeks ago, while I was working on my Z60m a "stuck pixel" appeared. This ThinkPad is three months old and previously was free of any pixel issues. So, here is what I did to easily fix it (I found this fix on the web) I took a terrycloth washcloth, wetted one end of it and with my index finger I gently rubbed the affected area in a circular motion gradually increasing pressure from light to moderate to firm. The duration of this "treatment" was about 30 seconds. When I finished the stuck pixel was still there, however about 30 seconds later it was gone.

So, it has been two weeks since this, and it's just fine now. In addition, I had the exact same experience on my T43 about a year ago and the same fix worked on that one as well. Up until then I enjoyed years of happy pixel Thinkpads.....

archer6 wrote:

ahrkron wrote:I just found a stuck pixel below the center of the screen! I'm pretty sure it was not there before.

2 weeks ago, while I was working on my Z60m a "stuck pixel" appeared. This ThinkPad is three months old and previously was free of any pixel issues. So, here is what I did to easily fix it (I found this fix on the web) I took a terrycloth washcloth, wetted one end of it and with my index finger I gently rubbed the affected area in a circular motion gradually increasing pressure from light to moderate to firm. The duration of this "treatment" was about 30 seconds. When I finished the stuck pixel was still there, however about 30 seconds later it was gone.

So, it has been two weeks since this, and it's just fine now. In addition, I had the exact same experience on my T43 about a year ago and the same fix worked on that one as well. Up until then I enjoyed years of happy pixel Thinkpads.....

I am pretty sure the rubbing didn't do that; I have been able to generate and de-generate stuck pixels on my T43's LCD and pratically every other LCD. They can be generated by a quick loop of flashing colors with varying brightness played for an extended period of time. They un-stick in much the same way; I tried the rubbing technique on several LCDs after generating the stuck pixels and it didn't seem to get rid of them reliably, re-running the loop video that did it, however, did.

christopher_wolf wrote:re-running the loop video that did it, however, did.

What "loop" video do you run?
Thanks

archer6 wrote:

christopher_wolf wrote:re-running the loop video that did it, however, did.

What "loop" video do you run?
Thanks

Simple loop that goes through RGB then B/W of varying shades of grey fairly rapidly. You can either make your own or get the video that is supposed to clear the PSP's screen of stuck pixels. Search for "PSP video." There are others out there as well, so don't worry about finding a particular one.

Each of the pixels has a different characteristic response to signals sent to it since they each have their own tiny hardware variations. You can get this to manifest itself visually by pushing that pixel to its limits repeatedly for an extended period of time and comparing it to the rest of the pixels on the LCD screen.

To be truthful the only way I would notice a dead pixel is if I had an all white screen. The background wallpaper I use is a landscape panorama picture I took which hides any dead pixels. If I look at pictures I probably still would not notice a dead pixel. Although I clean my screen once a week or so it still has enough dust on it any dark spot is attributed to dust. Unless you are very different from most of us you may notice a dead pixel for a while but in the long run they will disappear like all the paint nicks on the walls of your house.

pan wrote:To be truthful the only way I would notice a dead pixel is if I had an all white screen. The background wallpaper I use is a landscape panorama picture I took which hides any dead pixels. If I look at pictures I probably still would not notice a dead pixel. Although I clean my screen once a week or so it still has enough dust on it any dark spot is attributed to dust. Unless you are very different from most of us you may notice a dead pixel for a while but in the long run they will disappear like all the paint nicks on the walls of your house.

The problem is, once you do notice a pixel, you tend to fixate on it!

trentblase wrote: The problem is, once you do notice a pixel, you tend to fixate on it!

Too true! I came home with an Exy last week and only then did I realise I had a dead pixel on the top right corner of the screen!
The only time it was really noticeable was when the screen was black, but it was always there in the back of my mind.

The shop I bought it from had some rule where 5 dead pixels or less did not warrant a return!! I don't think I would agree to that. The shop assistant was nice about it however and let me return it anyway.

So new Exy with no dead pixel