Laptop screen goes blank when tilted too far back.

Status
Not open for further replies.
Joined
Dec 8, 2006
Messages
10,351
Location
Illinois
I have a Compaq laptop that I bought in early 2008, so it has served me well up to this point...

However, lately, when I open it up, if I tilt the screen too far backwards, the screen will lose its image and go white. If I pull the screen back towards me a bit (so it is straight up and down) the image blinks back on.

Never having a laptop apart before, I'm assuming there's a ribbon cable in there, that feeds the screen. Is that cable getting a short in it, when I tilt the screen too far backwards?
 
Backlight is going bad. Could be a bad cable or could just be that it is acting up in some conditions. Ill bet the ribbon is soldered to the backlight, and if so, be ready to replace it.
 
Originally Posted By: JHZR2
Backlight is going bad. Could be a bad cable or could just be that it is acting up in some conditions. Ill bet the ribbon is soldered to the backlight, and if so, be ready to replace it.


It's not the backlight going bad.. its going blank white.

losing the signal.

So it either needs reseated or cable/plug is falling apart.
 
99.999% chance it's the ribbon cable. It's the only part that can cause that. Most likely it has a break in it from all the flexing. You can try to reseat it but I have a feeling you will need to replace that cable or the laptop.
 
Ribbon cable is probably pinched or isn't fully seated. I'd download the service manual and see how to access it. Might be a very simple fix.
 
Had this same exact problem with my Acer laptop, ironically I bought it around the same time you bought yours (07/08). The cable that goes from the screen to the motherboard is a very thin cable meant to flex when you open close the screen. It went bad at one of the bends. At first it started by going to a white screen if you moved it too far open. Finally, after a short time, it only had one 'sweet spot' where the screen worked. If you moved the laptop at all, the screen would move slightly and the screen would go out. I'd have to play with the angle of the screen to get it to come back on. Then one day it stopped working all together. I milked that one! lol

$14.95 on ebay for an OEM replacement cable. Replaced it 1 1/2 years ago, havent had a problem since!

BTW, I dont know about your laptop, but this Acer wont die. Its been dropped hard at least a dozen times. With the dual core intel processor, 2gb of ram, and the 7200rpm 160gb HD, its still very fast and never gives any complaints.

Although a new machine with an HDMI output would be nice... a guy can dream I guess, lol
 
Last edited:
+1 on finding a service manual for it.

I had a cracked casing on the LCD section of my old Asus laptop, so I found the manual online (it was a laptop with gaming capability, so that may have helped availability) and Asus actually still sold nearly all the parts on their website for my 2-3 year old model at that time.

Taking it apart actually wasn't that bad if you have a good set of small screwdrivers.
 
Must be the season to repair laptops. My old Dell laptop used for garage OBD II and ATEQ TPMS software was going to a black screen when the screen was moved. I could still see what was on the screen faintly but not the cursor. I had a choice of the backlight or video inverter after finding all the connections were solid.

I went with the video inverter for less than $8.00 including shipping and viola.... the oldy with Windows XP Pro is back in business. Easy repair.
 
Yep, agree with others that it's most likely the ribbon cable. Very cheap part, but getting to it may be very easy or it may involve a ton of steps/parts to remove, depends on the model.

I'm not familiar with Compaqs, but you should be able to find and download the service manual from the HP/Compaq support site. It will give detailed instructions on how to replace the cable.

Read through it and see if you feel up to it. You might need to purchase some special tools (torx driver/mini screw drivers, etc), so be sure you check on that. If you take it into a shop, I'd be prepared to pay around $100 for the job.
 
Status
Not open for further replies.
Back
Top