Thinkpads Forum

I am looking to upgrade from the stock LG-LP140WD2 (TL)(B1) LCD panel my T420 shipped with. I have done some internet research (reddit, this forum, LaptopScreen.com) but it is NOT clear whether there is a single part number which is universally regarded as "the best drop-in replacement" at the 1600x900 resolution.

Internet advice says to order the "Dell Alienware M14x" from LaptopScreen.com, but there is no control over the LCD part number you receive. I know this because I ordered twice and received two different panels with wildly different tech specs.

So far, I have found the following to be promising upgrades:

Innolux N140FGE -LA 2 Rev C2 Panel

LG LP140WD2 (TL)(G1) Panel

Any others? Can people who have gone with drop-in replacements share the panel numbers they received/researched and were happy with?

jgwentworth wrote:So far, I have found the following to be promising upgrades:

Innolux N140FGE -LA 2 Rev C2 Panel
LG LP140WD2 (TL)(G1) Panel

Any others?

In general you can find ALL the possible replacement panels from http://www.panelook.com . In this case you are looking for a 14.0 LVDS panel. Start by selecting size (14.0) and then LVDS and then 1600x900 and sort by brightness (no IPS models are available). Pick something brighter with more contrast and review the viewing angles (I am pretty sure your stock panel is 250 nits and angles are 45/35/45 or similar). I tried to buy an AUO glossy panel at the top of the list for my t430s but 100% of the ebay sellers send a crapware substitute panel with a mislabeled auction title and data. I returned it last week.

Probably the only solution is to buy a full display-screen (with bezel) from a Thinkpad or Dell that you _know_ came with a quality OEM 1600x900 panel. In general you will find that nobody makes a really great 1600x900 panel, there are no IPS models, and the 60-degree viewing angles of some models occur merely because there is no matte finish. If your panel is a few years old a replacement might fix some pressure sports and/or give a brighter display because the older panels get dimmer. A 50 nits bump is hard to notice.

http://www.panelook.com/modelsearch.php ... =E9&by=asc

There is an LVDS to EDP (2-lane) converter being sold on EBay which might work for you, which would allow you to upgrade to a FHD panel.

jgwentworth wrote: Any others? Can people who have gone with drop-in replacements share the panel numbers they received/researched and were happy with?

Take a look at this thread:

http://www.thinkpads.com/forum/viewtopi ... 5&t=118070

There were really no good 14" HD+ LCDs produced at the time and you're effectively chasing "the best of the worst"...

the "LG LP140WD2 (TL)(G1) Panel" appears to have good view angles, and contrast, according the panelook info, but, it also looks like a glossy panel.

jgwentworth wrote:Can people who have gone with drop-in replacements share the panel numbers they received/researched and were happy with?

A quick (possible) fix which improved my T420 (B140XW03) is to calibrate your screen. Ask a graphic designer if you could borrow whatever they use to calibrate their monitors. It's a small usb device. Maybe they'll calibrate the display for you.

The screen and brightness and contrast my wife prefers is different from what I prefer. My friend's also prefer different screens at different brightnesses.

systemBuilder wrote:A 50 nits bump is hard to notice.

What are you basing that on?
I looked at 13 displays and graded them 1 to 10 for 'how good do they look'.
There was a direct correlation between cd/m^2, nits, and ranking.
50 nits was equal to 3 points between 116-140 nits and was equal to 1 point between 230-280 nits.

Actual values were as follows, measured with a i1 eye-one and dispcalgui and taken from the log file generated by dispcalgui (on my machine
logs are here /home/user/.local/share/dispcalGUI/storage/B140XW03 2016-01-11 2.2 M-S XYZLUT+MTX/ and the line in the log file looks like this
2016-01-12 12:13:49,511 Initial native brightness target = 139.784375 cd/m^2)

Initial native brightness target