Bezel mod - build log

I had originally though of posting this once I was done (I don't like taking the wraps off a project till I'm completely done) but magic0200's post earlier this evening prompted me to get a build log going. I'm still about a month out getting this thing to work exactly the way I want to but here goes....

This originally started off as a project to get a matte screen on the M11x. I didn't completely fail with that but the compatible matte screen that I found didn't exactly meet my needs, but what i did find after having removed the front plastic edge to edge bezel and using the laptop without it for a month was that i didn't mind the glossiness of the AUO screen nearly as much once the plastic in front of the screen had been removed. (no weird double reflection)

FYI the matte screen i found and used was the LG LP116WH1. It's spec sheet and the spec sheet of the AUO screen are nearly identical and i expected the screens to perform as such. They're close as expected, though to my eye the AUO is more forgiving with it's viewing angles. (pics below, though they look nearly identical when photographed, just that you can see me reflected in the AUO.) The real problem with the LG is that it's backlight is wired differently than the AUO so when you try to control the brightness on the LG it cycles between full bright and full dark without anything in between. That and the fact that it's about the same as the AUO made using the LG a deal breaker for me.

So after having used the AUO without the bezel for a month i've been looking at a way to create a bezel simply around the screen. At the moment i'm at the prototype stage (pic below, bezel in white plastic to be painted later) and hope to have one that fits perfectly by the end of the month. Then it's just a matter of painting it and tweaking.

I've never added multiple pics in a post so in order of left to right: AUO screen from above, LG from above, AUO head on, LG head on, Bezel prototype:

 

This screen?
LG LP116WH1-TLA1 11.6 inch LCD Screen

 

Nice! But what's the reason for doing this?

 

Yep, that's the one.

It works, and it's matte which is nice but it's not any better than the AUO. Though try as i might i can't seem to find a 11.6" screen that isn't either the LG or the AUO. so....kind of at an impasse. I believe the macbook air screen is a LG LP116WH4 (which might be a "better" screen in regards to IQ) but no suppliers have it in stock.

 

Wow, nice job man. This is looking very promising.

The only grievance I've had with this machine is the extreme glossiness of the display and the relatively substandard LCD in comparison to the high quality laptop that the M11x is (obviously excluding the hinges, in which I have not had any trouble with yet).

I can't wait to see the finished product!

 

I'm not a fan of glossy screens, and I don't like that alienware covered one glossy screen with a glossy piece of plastic. Maybe i'm in the minority but i kept on seeing a double reflection between the bezel and screen surface.

So basically i was trying to get/make a matte screened M11x. That didn't work out perfectly so i settled for trying to get rid of the double reflection.

 

I don't care for glossy screens either, but have made due with them in the past. It's this obscenely over the top plastic that's a kick in the teeth. Would LOVE to see how your bezel project turns out. Great job so far.

As for the IQ of the MBA panel? It's loads better than my 2 AUO's have been. I'll post some side-by-side comparisons some time this weekend.

 

Thanks.

So far so good, I'm surprised i got the hinge covers right and that they didn't warp during manufacturing. What I've been working on now is lining up the screw holes which I got wrong, save for two. I'd replicate the mounting tabs and use them to secure the bezel but i'm afraid that i stressed the tabs and the slots they pocket into enough just getting the original bezel off (definitely broke at least one) and should I ever need a repair, i'll have to get the original back on there.

Please post those comparisons, it'll be great to see them side by side. The next hurdle will be sourcing the MBA screen.

 

without the front panel on and no bezel did the computer sit more flatly when closed? I might roll with no front panel/bezel.

 

Holy dead thread.

I would NOT run without a front panel / bezel - that protects your LCD.

 

You should have post some screens with lcd turned off, and few close-up pics. From here i don't see any changes. Too small, too far.

 

After reading this it has inspired me. OP you have a private message. If your still around please send me a reply, I think we can make something really great.

 

Judging by his recent posts, he has a Sony now so I don't think he finished what he was doing with the M11x.

 

Well I guess I can just post it in here then. the screen he used has a larger brother in the form of a 13.3 inch lcd... same specs, same 40 pin connecter.

Thinking that maybe, just maybe it could be shoe horned into a m11x lid.

I am going to get measurements of the screen and then compare them to how much space is in the m11x lid... maybe I can make my own m13x

 

I would think that would be an extremely tight fit... Do it and see what happens!

 

Looks like I can get a spare stock screen with backing for about $120 then the 13.3 inch lcd is under $100.

I might give this a try next month.

edit:

I used the spec sheets to make some cardboard screens today at work, I put the 11.6 inch one over the new 13.3 and it looks like its going to be just a bit too big, The new screen is 11.7 inches wide, so its .5 inches too wide to fit.

Back to the drawing board I guess...

 

Hey guys!

Yeah i kind of dropped off the radar (been out of town for work) but I’ve been getting a bunch of private messages about the screen and bezel so here goes:

Update:

First the bezel mod, I’m currently on my 3rd prototype. The last 2 basically fit, I’ve had some trouble lining up screws etc, but the area around the hinges works perfectly. I'm surprised since it's all been measured with a $5 shop ruler and i was afraid I’d mess up the radius and how the hinge covers meet the flat of the bezel.

Another member on these boards, whitrzac has been PMing me to see if i can get him the 3d model of the bezel so that he can give it a go in aluminum. Like I’ve mentioned above, I’m away but if i can get a hold of my files i might just send it over to him. (I’d like to give it my own shot in aluminum once i get back home but I’m no milling expert.)

Screen:

I just noticed your PM ejohnson. The 13" model of screen, in both the AUO version and the LG version are about 12 1/8" wide (i've got one document showing it to be 308.1mm and another that puts it at 307.6mm,) the M11x screen is about 11 5/8" (or so i remember.) I once considered a full body replacement mod on the M11x where you turn it into a makeshift M13x (went so far as to start making measurements), but with the advent of the 14 i gave up on that idea. That, and unless you have access to a plastic shop/metal shop with would make the panels on the cheap it'd be really expensive.

That being said, there aren't that many 12" screens with a 40pin connector out there, HannStar makes one but you'd have to make some sort of connector/adapter board that would take in the 40pin signal from the computer and break it out to 30pin. One screen to try and track down would be the one used by Lenovo in their 12.5" laptops.

As to replacing the M11x screen with the MacBook air 11" screen, I’ve only found one supplier that claims to be able to get me one...for the low low price of $599(ridiculous) but the answer I’ve gotten most often is that the apple screens have yet to saturate the market and that at best i might see them become available through 2nd and 3rd parties sometime around Q1 2012. FYI the MacBook air screen is a specialty version of the LG screen i tried out in my original post or so I’m 98% sure of.

The problem i had using the LG screen in the M11x is that the backlight output coming from the motherboard of the M11x is wired for an AUO screen. With both screens being almost identical both companies for whatever reason, wire their backlights differently. Basically when the LG screen is in the M11x it can only switch between backlight off and full brightness. I didn't follow-up on the issue, and i might be as simple as removing/adding a resistor to the screen's inverter.

I'll be checking this thread again regularly, (in the last week or so interest has seemed to be renewed on this subject) so post any questions you might have. I'll see if i can get a bead on any 12" screens. Though if we do find a screen that does fit within the required dimensions you'll still have to modify the LCD case of the M11x to get it to fit. There's too much stuff in there (mostly the way the plastic is molded) for anything larger than a 11.6" to fit. I also had figured that dell would have improved upon the screen in the R3 but I’ve been told they didn't.


Edit:

Added link to the macbook air screen. Too rich for my blood.

http://www.welovemacs.com/6615737.html

 

would love to get one of your new bezels

 

I am very interested in this project. I really can not believe alienware only offers the glossy screen option. I really dislike glossy screens. I have ordered an antiglare filter from Photodon to try to address this issue. But I suspect it will not work terribly well. I will try to post some photos and let people know about that once it arrives and I have it applied.

Ideally I would like to replace the screen with a traditional matte lcd, this would require some sort of bezel mod to make the laptop look decent. Looks like you guys are doing exactly that =) Perhaps I could fabricate something from your designs if you do not mind.

 

i realize this thread has been dead for almost a year now and that this was probably about modding the r2 not the r3 but i would like to modify an r3 in a similar manner. apparently now, they sell official r3 matte screens for a hundred bucks even tho the laptop is discontinued...

Buy Laptop LCD Screen Alienware M11X 11.6" WXGA(1366x768) Matte LED Online, Cheap Laptop LCD Screen Alienware M11X 11.6" WXGA(1366x768) Matte LED Online Sale

im wondering if replacing the glossy screen with a matte one would really solve the problem though... as many have said it is the plastic bezel which causes the most reflection/glare issues. im also wondering if perhaps just the middle section of the plastic bezel could be cut out somehow, leaving only the borders to cover the electronics and the screen exposed. i think that would make the screen much more easily visible on its own (without a matte screen replacement).

so what do you think? probably no one will check this response/thread anymore but i would love to fix my m11x's visibility and im going to try these things.. will probably start an entire new thread on my attempts and progress.

 

Hello, synikk, welcome to NBR.

Actually this has been done on the larger M17x and M18x by a few members including me.

This is one example (click to enlarge)


It belonged to Quadzilla
Not an easy task but It is totally possible with the right amount of patience.