A31 screen ...need some help

[drwho]

hi,

two days ago, my lcd on my laptop did not display anything. i thought it might be a mistake. i then decide to remove it from my dock station , the one that has the extra drive space.

i then turn the power on with the laptop out of the dock...it decide to work...with a power adapter plugged in. so i thought that since it worked it might be a just a power mishap...and i then docked it again without turning the power off. but, you always wonder when the screen does not start up correctly...there maybe that reddish failure....you know what i mean if it has happened to you before. so i turn off the laptop in the dock and restarted it up again....no problem, worked, so thinking it just maybe a glitch.

the next day i tried to turn the laptop and nothing, looked a little reddish and now i thinking ...oh god it going....the screen not again.

well, i asked a friend who has replaced Dell laptop screens before and we decide to try. it decided not to work, i now thinking it over, laptop is gone.

i would like some advice, i have a ibm600 that also was acting strange...it too was working fine then decide to fail, the screen was working one minute, then stop. i notice the power status on running on battery was dropping quickly, but i knew the battery needed to be replaced. i was very puzzled because the errors on the 600 was saying keyboard error...very strange. the keyboard was working fine two minutes ago when the power reading was 90%, as power was dropping and reached below 50% there goes the screen , here comes the errors. so i decided to purchase a replacement battery on ebay and the screen worked, error messages were gone and til this day...working now as i am typing this message on it.

so, my problem and questions regarding my A31. i also notice the power metre reading on the bottom of the display was dropping, its always plugged into an outlet. normally it reads 100% but it started to read 98, and 96 at one point.

now is it the inverter, backlight , or somehow related to the battery, could it be the same situation as my 600, i need a new battery and there is nothing wrong.

today i decided to plug an external monitor into my dock with my laptop docked. it did not want to work on an external monitor. ok, i plugged it directly into the back of my laptop....external monitor worked...laptop screen...nope and it was not plugged into an outlet. so, i toggle back and forth FN F7 to switch between laptop screen and external monitor, monitor was working, lcd not.

now i docked it again hoping it might switch back and forth with some luck. as i was FN F7 back and forth the lcd display was getting brighter and brighter, power display was charging and was increasing from 81% to 100%.

so, the lcd display is now working and i have restarted the laptop with screen working, no reddish display in the beginning at all.

any thoughts on what could be the cause of my screen display failure. could it be a simple matter of buying a new battery and it will not have anymore problems.

if anyone has a link from ibm on the removal and replacement of the the screen and the backlight tube, how to would be great. how hard is it to replace

thanks for any help, i know my post is long but i thought it would be good to give all the info.

IBM A31, 1gb ram, 80 gb hard drive, plugged into a docking station.

thanks again

drwho

[drwho]

hi,

i guess my problem is uncommon....i thought others would have had this problem too. i hope anyone who has had this could help me to determine, i really hope it could be the replacement of my battery only. i have searched the forum but i would like some replies.

thanks again

[drwho]

well, i just tried to turn my laptop on and the screen it down again, power is 100% any clues, and help would be great

thanks

[AbsoluteRaleigh]

If it has been OFF for a few hours and you power it up, is the screen red?

A31 video failure can be related to the LCD, LCD backlight, inverter, cable or system board.

[drwho]

hi, thanks for your reply, any suggestions on a course if action, i trully like my laptop but this is the second time, once a 600E and now my A31. should i try to change the inverter first...i have never changed an internal device part before. i'm hoping its the inverter and it looks easier to change.

when you say video failure, i still get very dim picture, when i toggle back and forth between lcd and external monitor it shows.

so any other help thanks

[ARD]

If the actual LCD crystals are working and showing
an image of the desktop, then your problem is the
inverter.
The fluorescent tubes are not getting enough power.
Go to Lenovo and order the part, or go to Ebay.
They go for $15-$20 on Ebay.

[drwho]

hi, thanks for the reply...so its the inverter you think.

i see images on the screen....very dim, any links on how to replace the inverter...i downloaded the user guide, but want to see if there is a better one.

thanks for your help, so far the inverter is the lowest in the cost for replacement, backlight seems to take more effort

[dannydoo]

if you still need help i can get you a link