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X230 screwy screen

X230-X280, X390 Series
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Paul Unger
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Location: Solomon Islands / Canada

X230 screwy screen

#1 Post by Paul Unger » Tue Jul 03, 2018 10:24 pm

Has anyone ever seen a screen do this on boot?
https://www.dropbox.com/s/gz5jadg46hkdb ... 5.jpg?dl=0
External monitor doesn't help. Neither does trying to boot from a Linux image on a flash drive... Monitor? Cable? GPU? If anyone has any experience with this kind of thing, I'd love to hear from you!
Thanks.
X230 2324-HW5 3.3GHz (i5), W7 (64)
T430s 2352-CTO 2.60GHz (i5), W7 (64)
X201 3249-CTO 2.53GHz (i5), W7 (64)
T42 2373-3UU 1.7GHz (PM), XP SP3 / Ubuntu 9.04
T42 2373-4TU 1.7GHz (PM), XP SP3

axur-delmeria
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Joined: Mon May 28, 2012 5:49 am
Location: Metro Manila, Philippines

Re: X230 screwy screen

#2 Post by axur-delmeria » Wed Jul 04, 2018 3:24 am

Paul Unger wrote:
Tue Jul 03, 2018 10:24 pm
Has anyone ever seen a screen do this on boot?
Not that awful, but still pretty bad.

Let's try to analyze the problem:

- screwy display output
- external display doesn't help

Garbled display output could be caused by GPU or video memory failure.

But the GPU in the X230 is an Intel HD 4000, which means it's part of the processor.
Intel HD 4000 uses system RAM for its video memory.

First suspect : bad RAM.

Test with known good RAM and see if the display output returns to normal.
Planned Purchase: T480s i5-8350 FHD Touch
Impulse Buy: Thinkpad not named for safety reasons :lol:
RIP: X220 4291-C91 X61 7676-A24 760XD-U9E :cry:

Paul Unger
Senior Member
Senior Member
Posts: 565
Joined: Mon Jun 14, 2004 8:18 am
Location: Solomon Islands / Canada

Re: X230 screwy screen

#3 Post by Paul Unger » Thu Jul 05, 2018 4:41 pm

Thanks for the troubleshooting tips. Before I wrote I had already tried swapping out the two sticks of RAM in the x230 (2 x 4 GB), running one at a time, but the results were the same. So I tried a stick from my T430 this morning, but no change--the machine 'booted' to the screwy screen... Just for fun, I tried the mSATA SSD from the x230 in the t430, and it booted fine. So I'm thinking the x230 has a messed up GPU (i.e., processor) / motherboard. Unless there's something else to try?
X230 2324-HW5 3.3GHz (i5), W7 (64)
T430s 2352-CTO 2.60GHz (i5), W7 (64)
X201 3249-CTO 2.53GHz (i5), W7 (64)
T42 2373-3UU 1.7GHz (PM), XP SP3 / Ubuntu 9.04
T42 2373-4TU 1.7GHz (PM), XP SP3

axur-delmeria
Senior ThinkPadder
Senior ThinkPadder
Posts: 3810
Joined: Mon May 28, 2012 5:49 am
Location: Metro Manila, Philippines

Re: X230 screwy screen

#4 Post by axur-delmeria » Fri Jul 06, 2018 2:14 am

Try disconnecting the LCD cable from the system board to force it to use the external monitor. Don't forget to disconnect both the battery and charger beforehand.
Planned Purchase: T480s i5-8350 FHD Touch
Impulse Buy: Thinkpad not named for safety reasons :lol:
RIP: X220 4291-C91 X61 7676-A24 760XD-U9E :cry:

Paul Unger
Senior Member
Senior Member
Posts: 565
Joined: Mon Jun 14, 2004 8:18 am
Location: Solomon Islands / Canada

Re: X230 screwy screen

#5 Post by Paul Unger » Fri Jul 06, 2018 7:41 pm

I disconnected two silver LCD-ish looking cables from the motherboard and booted. Wonder of wonders, the external display showed fine! So, maybe it's just a LCD? Or even a cable?

Thanks for walking through this with me!
X230 2324-HW5 3.3GHz (i5), W7 (64)
T430s 2352-CTO 2.60GHz (i5), W7 (64)
X201 3249-CTO 2.53GHz (i5), W7 (64)
T42 2373-3UU 1.7GHz (PM), XP SP3 / Ubuntu 9.04
T42 2373-4TU 1.7GHz (PM), XP SP3

axur-delmeria
Senior ThinkPadder
Senior ThinkPadder
Posts: 3810
Joined: Mon May 28, 2012 5:49 am
Location: Metro Manila, Philippines

Re: X230 screwy screen

#6 Post by axur-delmeria » Sat Jul 07, 2018 12:09 am

It's hard to tell at this point, but I'm leaning a little bit towards the cable. Grab one if it's much cheaper than an a new screen. Also check the prices and availability of a complete lid assembly (with LCD, antennas, cables, and all).
Planned Purchase: T480s i5-8350 FHD Touch
Impulse Buy: Thinkpad not named for safety reasons :lol:
RIP: X220 4291-C91 X61 7676-A24 760XD-U9E :cry:

Paul Unger
Senior Member
Senior Member
Posts: 565
Joined: Mon Jun 14, 2004 8:18 am
Location: Solomon Islands / Canada

Re: X230 screwy screen

#7 Post by Paul Unger » Mon Jul 16, 2018 6:06 pm

New cable, new screen (IPS), no difference... I tested: new cable with new screen, new cable with old screen, old cable with new screen, and they all failed to display anything other than the garble I first posted. External monitor displayed in all three scenarios (and also old cable / old screen). Interestingly, with external monitor connected, new cable / new screen showed a bold white band about 3/5 of the way across the screen, 1/5 of the screen wide, top to bottom; but still no clear image of the desktop... Given that CPU and GPU are combined in the x230, I'm thinking it's a processor / motherboard problem. :-(
X230 2324-HW5 3.3GHz (i5), W7 (64)
T430s 2352-CTO 2.60GHz (i5), W7 (64)
X201 3249-CTO 2.53GHz (i5), W7 (64)
T42 2373-3UU 1.7GHz (PM), XP SP3 / Ubuntu 9.04
T42 2373-4TU 1.7GHz (PM), XP SP3

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