screen blank, but external vid works

[albo]

hi folks,

i just replaced my t400's screen, and it was working just fine for days. I just now rebooted, and the screen is blank. There is power getting to it - you can tell that there is some back-glow of the LCD, but it's basically black. I've tried swapping on-board and ATI graphics, but nothing changes. I've tried going straight to the boot menu upon startup, but it still remains blank. Hence, it doesn't seem to be a windows or driver issue.

External monitors work just fine (i'm using one right now). Any idea what might have happened here? Totally strange that this started with a reboot, but doesn't seem to be a software issue. Regardless, for some f'ed up reason, no previous restore points are available. ATI Catalyst Control Center doesn't even detect the laptop's LCD.

I might try putting my old screen back in to see if that fixes it (ugh, what a pain). But, based on these symptoms, anyone have a guess as to what might be failing here?

thanks,
allie

T400 2764-CTO
ATI Mobility Radeon 2450

[Harryc]

Reseat the connector at the back of the LCD. After you do that use some very strong and sticky tape over the connector to hold it in place.

[albo]

will do - thanks for the quick response. that connector is a real b*tch - not sure how to get it in there good. any tips? i'll put the tape on there too. also - any way to get at that connector without removing the entire lcd assembly from the base?

[albo]

quick update: wasn't the connector on the back of the lcd. tried reseating, and tried another screen, but no joy. about to open up under the keyboard to see if something funny is going on down there...

[albo]

nothing seems to be wrong underneath the keyboard. any other ideas, or time to go through the ultimate PITA of getting this machine to a lenovo warranty repair center (even more of a pain now that i'm living outside the US).

[Harryc]

The fact that anyone would try to replace the LCD on a machine under warranty is really amazing to me. I don't recall ever having contemplated doing that. Why did you replace the original LCD?

[albo]

hehe. want the whole saga? see my thread here:http://forums.thinkpads.com/viewtopic.php?f=45&t=87327 . But basically: trust me. I'm not doing it just to do it. Plus, i don't want to change my LCD, i just want to make my current LCD work.

So - back to the point - any other ideas, or time to try to get a tech to look at it?

[albo]

new twist: the internal camera isn't recognized either. does that suggest a faulty cable is the culprit? though, my led keyboard light still works, so...