Vertical Lines on the LCD

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rooz · #1 Post by **rooz** » Wed Sep 19, 2007 2:07 pm

I live in Canada and Lenovo's Canadian website sucks. Practically no customization and doesn't sell latest models. I wanted a X61s so bad that I asked my brother in law to buy it in US and ship it to me.

Long story short, the LCD displays vertical lines that come and go as I touch the connector area. I was fooled into thinking that Lenovo's warranty is international and actually bought a 3 year warranty. Now they are saying I have to send it back to US and they won't repair it in Canada! Actually they do, but I'll have to pay for it!

My question for you guys
1) Is it hard to fix? I read somewhere that they have to replace the LCD. Is it true?
2) Any suggestions on how to deal with Lenovo about this?

And BEWARE! Your warranty may not be so international after all.

#2 Post by **ryengineer** » Thu Sep 20, 2007 3:44 am

One is expected to do their homework before buying an expensive equipment such as a notebook. Lenovo provides an International warranty service (IWS) webpage for customers to check the IWS eligibility status of their machine by inputing the 4 digits machine type. I humbly suggest you should've done this prior to buying the machine.

As far as your original problem is concerned, I read you saying about a fresh install of Windows and Ubuntu. Please make sure it's not software related by installing the latest BIOS and GPU drivers from lenovo before taking anything apart:

Drivers and software - ThinkPad X61, X61s.

Another option is to revert back to lenovo oem preload via Recovery Partition if not delated or through Product Recovery Disks
if created and try to diagnose and reproduce the problem, if in case it still persists and you're sure it's hardware related then count your other options.

FWIW it only takes around $20-30 to send a box to the US.

Good Luck!

rooz · #3 Post by **rooz** » Thu Sep 20, 2007 7:41 pm

You're right and I'm mad at myself for not checking this properly, but it's not fair to expect a first time buyer to know about all this. I see "international warranty" and assume they mean Canada at the very least. I didn't even know where to find the machine type on the website.

BTW, thanks for the reply!

I'm sure it's not software. The vertical lines show up and disappear at different angles of the lid. Also when I touch the bezel. And even when the machine has not booted yet.

The thing that worries me about mailing it to US is having to pay taxes again.

#4 Post by **ryengineer** » Thu Sep 20, 2007 9:49 pm

Since it's not the software so either it's lcd (could be loose cable etc....) or hardware (GPU) related. For the former you can try hooking it up to an external monitor and diagnose the problem from there, if it still imitates the problem then it is the latter, if not then you can download the following document and try troubleshooting lcd connected problems on your own:

Hardware Maintenance Manual.

In case of hardware (GPU) related, you don't have much choice doing things by yourself.

By the way I sent you a pm explaining another legit way of getting repairs done.

ComputerMinder · #5 Post by **ComputerMinder** » Sun Oct 28, 2007 2:20 pm

Hi There,

I am having the exact same problem as you reported. I have a vertical line crossing my screen, it drives me nuts. Sometimes it appears sometimes not, when I touch the bezel it may disappear. It appears also at bootup before windows, it's definitly a bad connection problem not a sofware issue, but i wonder if i could fix it myself.

I too have a problem with international warrenty. Can you please tell me what was the problem in your case? Did you solve it? Did you send it to repair?

WHAT WAS THE PROBLEM??
If it's a loose cable I may try to fix it mysel, but I'm not sure, so please let me know how it ended in your case.

Thanks.

#6 Post by **ryengineer** » Sun Oct 28, 2007 3:28 pm

Sounds like you've a loose connection on the inverter board or a bad inverter itself. Such and other hardware related flickering usually occur when a notebook is improperly picked up.

Sorry, I don't have any solution to your International Warranty Service problem, this is something you should have looked up yourself before buying the machine from overseas.

Consider looking at the following (software related):

Troubleshooting video display issues - ThinkPad

For hardware related, look at the links and info from above posts.

iamdmc · #7 Post by **iamdmc** » Sun Oct 28, 2007 11:20 pm

Just so you don't feel so bad, I'll let you know that I also had problems with this "international warranty" in Canada. My thinkpad's mic is oversensitive (doesn't bother me, since I never use the mic), but it caused a high-pitched feedback noise if my speaker was about 30/50. I had to go to BIOS to disable the mic, but sometimes after coming out of hibernation it is still on.

Anyway, I went to that IWS page, and supposedly 7668 (my model number) does have international warranty, but I opted to get only one year...

rooz · #8 Post by **rooz** » Mon Oct 29, 2007 2:28 am

Just an update on my case:

I took the laptop to a service center in Vancouver (DTM Systems) and they fixed it with no charge (even though Lenovo had told me the would charge me for it). They were familiar with the issue and immediately said the LCD has to be replaced.

I just looked at the IWS website and noticed that my laptop model (7668) is now supported in Canada. We I posted my first message, it wasn't.

#9 Post by **ryengineer** » Mon Oct 29, 2007 10:51 pm

Unfortunately IWS tool has having a problem lately, your best bet is to contact IBM support at 1-800-565-3344 (in Canada) to inquire about IWS eligibility of your machine, you will be connected to help desk in Montreal. If the tech determines your machine is eligible, immediately request for registration by providing your name and other details.

Vertical Lines on the LCD

Vertical Lines on the LCD

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