Another t30 Display Problem

[jayw]

I saw another post on this - but to keep confusion to a minimum thought it best to maintain a separate thread.

My LCD has gone out. It started flickering from bright to dim last week. (A constant flicker, like someone standing at a light switch flipping it on and off.)

A few days later - I booted it up and all I could see was a feint image on the screen barely detectable.

I did some research and it seemed the likely culprit was the inverter board. So I purchased and inverter card and replaced it.

No dice. The screen is still feint.

Am I looking at a bad LCD panel? If so, can anyone recommend whether or not I should replace it myself? (I've built many computers, I am comfortable with hardware.) Or is it to delicate an operation for someone who has never done that before?

Is there something I am over looking? Like the other poster, I am currently using the faulty laptop with an external monitor.

If I need to replace it - Can someone recommend a place to find an affordable replacement?

Model: T30 2366-41U

Thanks for the help!

[rkawakami]

Welcome to thinkpads.com!

I assume you are referring to this thread:

screen went dark on my T30

If you've followed along and tried everything that was mentioned there up until now, then you also may be in line for an LCD replacement. If the root cause of the problem is indeed the backlight (aka CCFL), it is possible to swap out just the lamp but it is very delicate work. Here's a site which shows some of the details:

http://www.lcdpart.com/doc/ccflinstallation.html

Because I have never attempted this replacement before, I have purchased a system with a broken LCD to practice on. I have yet to tear it apart, so I can't give you any first-hand experience. I believe that at least one member here has done this operation for people before; since I can't speak for him, I'll PM you the details. If you aren't comfortable with this type of replacement, then you have several options:

- troll eBay for a replacement panel
- post a "looking for" note here in the Marketplace forum for an LCD
- try "The Laptop Guy" (ad at the top of the page)
- find someone locally that works on laptops

[RealBlackStuff]

Make sure you get the same resolution screen as you have now,
either XGA: 1024x768 or SXGA+: 1400x1050
If you want to change resolution, you'll also need a matching LCD-cable!

[jayw]

Thanks for the replies!

There is a local guy here who claims they can replace the backlight. However - I was worried about trusting this operation to them, and wanted to make sure he wasn't full of "it" about it even being possible with this display.

They are a certified IBM warranty repair shop. But if its that delicate of work, I'm afraid I'll get the "We weren't able to find a backlight so we have to replace the lcd" call.

I guess I just want to be armed with the most knowledge before I leave my laptop with them!

So replacing the backlight CAN be done - and has been with the T30s?

[schen]

It not only can be done, but has been by folks on this list. Yes, it is delicate work, but ooable. So I'll bet that a Certified IBM repair place can get it done for you.