Thinkpad A22m LCD not displaying, (External monitor OK)

[mx3com]

Thinkpad A22m, LCD screen was badly cracked as it was dropped on the corner and stopped working. (No display at all on the LCD, and works perfectly on an external monitor.)

Bought a new LCD from ebay, which includes the complete lid assembly, including bezel hinges, LCD and associated cables.

I just replaced the unit on the laptop, and still no display on the LCD. Again the external display works like a charm.

The good thing is, I have a screen with no cracks in it, but the bad thing is, still nothing appears on the LCD. for now I have it hooked up to an external monitor, but it kind of defeats the purpose of having a laptop.

Anyone have any ideas what I might be? I tried removing and reseating the Subcard, FRU p/n 08K3261, but that also made no difference at all.

I am guessing my options are get a replacement subcard, and or a replacement motherboard.

Any other suggestions on what could be wrong?

Thanks in advance,

[rkawakami]

Welcome to thinkpads.com!

Assuming for the moment that the panel in the replacement lid assembly works correctly, then here's what you should double-check:

- make sure that the external monitor is disconnected prior to powering up the laptop
- try pressing the Fn+F7 key combination a couple of times when the system is on (this manually activates the LCD, the external monitor only or both the LCD and external)
- shine a bright flashlight on the display when powered up and see if you can see any pixel activity (if you can see images then the problem is with the backlight or associated circuitry; i.e. the subcard or motherboard)

[mx3com]

Thanks for the welcome!

We are assumign that the replacement LCD is working fine. It is not b rand new, so there is a possibility we were sent a non-functioning LCD, it was bought off of ebay. I prefer to think that this is not the case, mainly because, the cracked LCD had the same symptoms, plus has multiple cracks in it.

- External monitor IS discnonected at the moment.
- Fn+F7 keys have been pressed multiple times. (I use that feature quite often on my other laptop when I connect it to a projector at the office, so I am familiar with it.)
- Shining a flashlight on the display as it boots up shows nothing. The display still remains completely black, with no indication of any pixel activity whatsoever.

Should I attempt to buy a replacement sub-card, or does the issue point more towards the motherboard?

Remember the external display looks perfect when hooked up. (Also Fn+F7 will not turn off the external monitor when it is hooked up. If the external is hooked up, it stays on until the laptop is turned off.)

[mx3com]

Anyone else have any ideas and/or suggestions on this one?

Thanks,

[mx3com]

Just to keep everyone up to date, the video subboard was replaced, and still the same symptoms. Complete blank screen no pixel activity at all.

My only guess now is the main system board could be at fault, but I'm not sure the owner wants to put the money forward to replace that, so he may end up just using the laptop with an external monitor as he has since it stopped working.

[Robbyrobot]

Did you replace the LCD cable at the same time as the display? And have you checked the cable seating on the LCD panel and the subcard?

[mx3com]

LCD cable was changed along with the new LCD. All the replacement parts were purchased from ebay, so really no guarantee that they were working when we got them.
Since we don't have a second working laptop to test the parts on, I guess there is no easy way to know where the faulty item is.

Even ran the IBM PC Doctor diagnostics and no errors were found on any of the tests, except a bad sector or 2 on the hard drive.

Thanks,

[Robbyrobot]

LCD cable was changed along with the new LCD.

The only further thing I could suggest would be to remove and reseat the cable on the LCD panel, and maybe to also try the old cable with the new display as well.

If that doesn't help either, I'm afraid I'm out of ideas.