Thinkpads Forum

Hi, I was wondering if it is possible to get my hands on a X220 IPS screen and replace it myself? I can get a great deal from my school, but the problem is they don't offer the IPS screen. So is getting one and replacing it myself possible? I am from Singapore BTW. Thanks!

That seems like a reasonable proposition, but it's an unknown for the time being. Why not just buy a X220; I mean is it that much cheaper from your school? I picked up my X220i for a little over $700.

Costs about 1400 converted to USD. i7, 4 yrs onsite, 4gb ram, 320gb hdd. I really want the IPS panel. If they had that option i would have gotten it long ago. Question is, where do I get the IPS panel?

Hi

I have the exact same issue: I can get a massive rebate from my school for the X220 but the laptops are pre-configured and come with the standard TN panel. I need an IPS panel for my work so I'm looking for a way to swap the panel for an IPS replacement. I mean this should be possible since people that will break their IPS panel will be able to get a replacement unit no? Any idea if Lenovo sells replacement panels for repairs and at what price?

Without this possibility, the X220 and Lenovo is a no-go for me as I cannot afford ordering one and configure it myself: the price would be about 2x the one I'd pay through my school...

Thanks for any input!

You're going to have to wait until someone pulls an IPS X220 apart to see what LCD is there. You won't want to pay full price for a replacement IPS LCD from Lenovo...take my word for it.

The X220's IPS displays are LG panels. Model number is unknown until somebody dumps the EDID or disassembles an IPS-equipped X220.

Given that you are from Singapore, I suppose you can read some Chinese?

The X220 IPS screen can be found fairly cheaply on Chinese website taobao.com, as with many hard-to-find computer parts. Look around this site for the exact model of the IPS screen (I remember we talked about it, but don't want to bother finding the thread now), just type that model on taobao and you will find it. The problem is you will need someone in China to get it for you, as the sellers there don't ship outside China.

khtse wrote:Given that you are from Singapore, I suppose you can read some Chinese?

The X220 IPS screen can be found fairly cheaply on Chinese website taobao.com, as with many hard-to-find computer parts. Look around this site for the exact model of the IPS screen (I remember we talked about it, but don't want to bother finding the thread now), just type that model on taobao and you will find it. The problem is you will need someone in China to get it for you, as the sellers there don't ship outside China.

Does taobao.com ship overseas?

Is there a higher resolution screen available ? I'm currently running the SXGA+ modification on my X61 and can't imagine replacing it with a lower resolution. Till then the X220 is off the radar

Hello guys,

I think you might find some model numbers in the discussion about the Lenovo OEM IPS screens...here

They have mentioned:
LP125WH2
LP125WH2 -SLB1 & LP125WH2-(SL)(B1)
LP125WH2 -TLB1 & LP125WH2-(TL)(B1)
LP125WH2 -TLD1 & LP125WH2-(TL)(D1)

But I would not at all recommend these LG-Philips panels, as the thread states, they have several image persistence issues, possibly linked to an overdrive of the panel or faulty production (or bad characteristics).

However, it would be very interested to many of us to see someone put another IPS panel into their X220 like has been done with the X200:
here and here

Post here if you do!!!! Happy DIYing

welcome to the forum.

as a point of clarification, LP125WH2-SLB1 is the only IPS panel being used in X220 notebooks.   the TLB1/TLD1 panels are TN and intended for other systems.

just because the above numbers are mentioned in the same post doesn't make them interchangeable.

If you know someone in China, you can get them here (China's eBay):

http://search.taobao.com/search?q=LP125 ... rFineness=

They are selling for about RMB400~450, which is roughly $60~70. Most of the sellers don't speak English very well, they don't ship overseas, and you need to have an account with a selected few Chinese banks in order to buy there. A little more than a year ago I had a friend visiting me from China, and he hand carried with him a few of those AFFS panels for X200 bought form this site. Replacing the panel is actually pretty easy, thanks to Lenovo's hardware maintenance manual and servicing videos.

There seems to be some other sites that sell and ship these panels to the US if you Google the model number, I don't have any experience with those sites though.

erik wrote:as a point of clarification

Thanks, erik, you are quite right. And your word of caution is useful.

The bottom line is that it would be nice to see someone put an alternative panel in their X220.

Can someone shed some light on how the panel is controlled - I mean, does changing a laptop panel usually involve major issues with compatibility between the controller circuitry and the panel?

cheers

I have already replace my x220 4286 28B with IPS screen
it's very easy
i am now in China and buy this panel from taobao.com with the price of 400RMB
will show some pics later

Hello yaoxing,

How very nice to hear! It would be very nice to see some pictures of your new screen!

What panel did you replace the old one (TN ?) with? It would be nice to know the specifications; resolution, manufacturer and so on

Do you see any image persistence as described in this thread? They talk about how you can see the "burning in" of brighter portions of the screen when suddenly changing to a dark background. So, lets say you have a light theme on your browser, and a black desktop, you browse for 10-20 minutes before minimizing the browser window. Now you look for the "ghost" of the menu bar (or such) in the top of the screen against the dark background.

I have no knowlegde of how a laptop panel is driven/controlled, so it would be nice to know if a different (new) panel made a difference in the X220. This could shed light on whether or not the image persistence in some of the X220 stock IPS-panels are caused by the panel being driven outside its specifications (to improve latencies or such), or whether it has to do with the panel itself (production quality). I don't even know if this driving/controlling hypothesis is a viable course of events to a phenomenon such as the described image persistence

Thanks!!

From what I understand, yaoxing is replacing his original TN panel with an original IPS panel. It is bought from a third party and not from lenovo.

I see ghosting also on my x220 ips panel. There is also light coming from the bottom, it looks like cinema lights. But this all does not matter, this ips panel is so much better than any other tn panel.

fasterbybike wrote:Is there a higher resolution screen available ? I'm currently running the SXGA+ modification on my X61 and can't imagine replacing it with a lower resolution. Till then the X220 is off the radar

You and me both (although I have a more severe case of "high resolution" syndrome than you lol). Currently owning a Vaio Z with 13.1" 1080p screen. It's so nice that even though I bought a X220 concurrently with it, I've since sold the machine. Heck, I don't even use my X61SXGA that often any more. The Z's 1080p screen is like the apex of screen quality and DPI.

twotoneblue wrote:Hello yaoxing,

How very nice to hear! It would be very nice to see some pictures of your new screen!

dont know how to upload pics .... anyone who can help me??
my icq accout is 361106898
i use QQ in China more than icq, but i dont know what are you guys using

IPS model is ：LP125WH2-SLB1 which show in software "LEN40E2"
original TN model is ：LP125WH2(TL)(B1)

@yaoxing
You can put the images on a free image hosting service, like imageshack.us, photobucket.com (plus many others), and the when you write your post you click on the "Img"-button or simply write: Thanks a lot for posting pics!

@ssd_thinkpad
Thanks for clarifying. The panel he bought is the one most people report having if Im not mistaken. Yaoxings results with his exact panel are still interesting in terms of good/bad batches though.

Nice! one question: does this trick void the warranty? since lenovo makes it that easy to dissect the machines I do have question marks about that in my mind ...

please share the pics, we're eagerly waiting

last but not least, which vendor did you use on taobao? as my parent-in-law are in china I'm interested in this method but want to use a "trusted" vendor for my shopping, so I'd like to buy from somebody with whom someone has already experiences ...

anyone who can see pics by this link?

http://photo.163.com/yaoxingqqq@yahoo.c ... m=0&page=1

dorukg wrote:Nice! one question: does this trick void the warranty? since lenovo makes it that easy to dissect the machines I do have question marks about that in my mind ...

please share the pics, we're eagerly waiting

last but not least, which vendor did you use on taobao? as my parent-in-law are in china I'm interested in this method but want to use a "trusted" vendor for my shopping, so I'd like to buy from somebody with whom someone has already experiences ...

about the warranty, i am not sure
i buy it from taobao.com , i live in beijing now. so its easy to get the panel delivered to me
here is the link http://item.taobao.com/item.htm?id=12297320041

yaoxing wrote:about the warranty, i am not sure
i buy it from taobao.com , i live in beijing now. so its easy to get the panel delivered to me
here is the link http://item.taobao.com/item.htm?id=12297320041

Would you send me one including an additional fee of 30 € of course? I could pay you with paypal.

ssd_thinkpad wrote:Would you send me one including an additional fee of 30 € of course? I could pay you with paypal.

i am not sure whether i can deliver such a 12.5 inch screen panel from China to France
use DHL? Fedex? how much does the delivery cost?

for me its easy, in China, SF-express is the best, so i can get the panel in 2 days at most.
i dont know whether DHL can accept that or not, since its fragile

maybe you can conact me by MSN? woshiyaoxing@hotmail.com
and i am very glad to help you

@yaoxing
Thanks for the pics and congratulations! It looks good!

If you are interested and have time, can you investigate if you see any image persistence like I described above?

twotoneblue wrote:@yaoxing
Thanks for the pics and congratulations! It looks good!

If you are interested and have time, can you investigate if you see any image persistence like I described above?

i am not care about such problems... after all pc is uesd to help us , its just a tool
dont pay more attention to what is not so important

and today i bought a crucial M4 128G
i feel soooo good about the speed just like fly~~

The x220 is indeed a wonderful notebook. I think its build quality is even better than the one of the x301 (which display stays in complete contrast to the ips display of the x220).

ssd_thinkpad wrote:the x301 (which display stays in complete contrast to the ips display of the x220).

I love the X301, but I'm not sure I'd ever use the word "contrast" in a sentence about its screen.

yaoxing wrote: i am not care about such problems... after all pc is uesd to help us , its just a tool
dont pay more attention to what is not so important

wise words to be remembered, friend

I am simply being thorough in my research for a new and durable tool - last time I bought (built) a computer was in 2003, a system based on the AMD "Barton"

I bet the lighter panasonic n series which has a much worse display is more durable than the x220. Here is an ad for the father of the n series, the w series:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QxCV0bZGE00