LCD dims

[enndy10]

I have a thinkpad T43 with a screen problem. I'm trying to figure out if the problem is with the backlight or the inverter. It has the following symptoms:

1) A little after turning it on, the screen will dim, but everything is still visible if you look hard enough.
2) Pressing the little button (that is pressed when you close the lid) will bring the screen back, but it will return to the dimmed state before long.
3) Also, when the screen comes back, it has a red tint which eventually returns back to normal.
4) Interestingly, if I reduce the brightness level, the screen will last longer before dimming, or not experience the problem at all.

Any help would be very much appreciated.

[ajkula66]

The backlight (CCFL) in your LCD has gone south. No other component fails with redness or pinkishness of the screen.

[rkawakami]

Could be a weak inverter. The backlight (CCFL) is definitely going bad. The cheapest thing to try would be to get another inverter board and see if that helps. My favorite T23 (coincidentally from ajkula66) came with a slightly reddish backlight a couple of years ago. It hasn't gotten any worse when the brightness is up all of the way but it's very pink when the intensity is turned down to the lowest setting.

[kai920]

I have a thinkpad T43 with a screen problem. I'm trying to figure out if the problem is with the backlight or the inverter. It has the following symptoms:

1) A little after turning it on, the screen will dim, but everything is still visible if you look hard enough.
2) Pressing the little button (that is pressed when you close the lid) will bring the screen back, but it will return to the dimmed state before long.
3) Also, when the screen comes back, it has a red tint which eventually returns back to normal.
4) Interestingly, if I reduce the brightness level, the screen will last longer before dimming, or not experience the problem at all.

Any help would be very much appreciated.

I just ran into the same issue with my T43 (1400x1050 LCD) Was working last night when watching a movie via external VGA but then decided to die

I have the same symptoms as #1 and #2, but when it comes back on there is no red tint... it looks "normal". But then after a while it turns all dim again (the picture is still there if I look hard enough). This also happens in Rescue & Recovery but interestingly I paused it on the IBM Thinkpad logo screen and it does not dimmed.

Any chance this can be software related? How do I further narrow down the cause(s)?