LCD Swap M1530 (wsxga+) ? Inspiron 9100 (wuxga)

My previous computer was an Inspiron 9100 which served me very well for a number of years. The thing I loved the most about it was the 15.4” wuxga (1920x1200) lcd. Having extra desktop space was something that I grew to really appreciate as I work with a lot of multimedia. When I got my 1530, it came with the wsxga+ (1680x1050) lcd which seemed to be adequate. However, I realized that it had poor viewing angles and some graininess. Yes, I got stuck with the infamous Sumsung SEC3350. After days of frustrating talks with dell customer service, it was clear that they were not going to give in to my demands for an LG replacement. I wasn't about to drop ~$300 for a new lcd and I really missed my wuxga screen, so I decided to attempt something crazy and swap out the samsung for my old tried and true 9100 lcd. This is a Toshiba LTD154EZ0D if you're curious. I'm convinced however that most lcds will work. More on that later. I'll tell you right now that this mod can be a bit “scary”, but if you're pretty comfortable working with electronics this will be nothing. At any rate, try this at your own risk. I'm not responsible if you mess it up.

I won't go step by step on how to remove the lcd. I've seen a great guide on this forum or you can use the manual. Many of the steps in the m1530 manual for accessing the lcd are unnecessary. After removing the battery, I went straight to peeling off the bezel and unmounting the lcd.



After extracting the LCDs from both computers, right from the start I could see that the Toshiba frame was not going to fit. Here are the two screens side by side. The Samsung is on the left. You can see that the inverter from the 9100 (right) is fatter and will not fit in the 1530. Also, the mountings at the top of the frames were different widths. The solution was to take apart the lcd assemblies and switch frames.



Now, I didn't just decide do this on a whim. I have had experience taking apart lcds on other laptops, so I was confident that all would be well. So here's what is involved in taking apart an lcd. First of all, there is tape that holds the metal frame to the rest of the assembly. Don't be afraid of labels that say “do not touch”. These screens are actually pretty durable, but still be careful of course. After removing the tape, the toshiba had a few screws in the frame to deal with. The samsung assembly does not have this. Once the frame is separated from the rest of the screen, you'll see that the lcd is made up of a few layers. It opens like a folder. The glass screen on top, followed by a reflective sheet in the middle and the backlight right behind. You don't need to open it for this mod and I don't recommend it since you could get dust or hair in there.

http://forum.notebookreview.com/attachment.php?attachmentid=18298&stc=1&d=1210003826

Anyway, once the frames were off, I was able to switch them pretty easily. I retaped the new assembly and reconnected the two ribbon connectors and the power connector. Everything fit just fine. And there you have it! A new (old) wuxga for my m1530.

Notes:
The power connector on the toshiba display had longer wires which was no problem to reposition on the m1530, but on the 9100 I had to reposition the inverter so that the shorter samsung wires could reach it.
The brightness controls somehow switched. So now to make it brighter, I have to hit Fn+Down arrow and vice versa.
The inverters were interchangeable. I tested them with different combinations of screens and laptops.



The wuxga looks amazing on 1530. I definitely prefer the matte finish as I don't like the excessive reflection from the gloss. The screen is very bright and it has great viewing angles compared to the old samsung. I'm extremely happy with it.



I know that the wuxgas that are being shipped with the m1530 now are samsungs and from what I have heard, they are great quality. However, if you are interested, there is a wuxga version of the LG LP154WE2 (wsxga+) which many of you are fortunate to have in your 1530s. The model is LP154WU1 (TL)(B2). The (TL)(B2) part refers to the specific frame so that it is directly mountable on the 1530. This screen is actually popular among mac users who self upgrade to wuxga.

 

nice!!!!

 

hmm, very cool. i might try this on my own lappy. nice to see adventerous people +rep for u!

 

I'm impressed at your technical ability to be able to pull this off.

Personally, I find even the WSXGA+ on my 9100 to be too small for extended viewing, so I don't know how anyone can work on a WUXGA at 15" all day. My question, though, is this: hasn't your 9100's screen dimmed by now? Mine is already too dim to be used enjoyably - it is usable, but I wish it were brighter to the point that I just use the external LCD whenever I use the 9100.

Again, great work (and I assume you didn't order the extended warranty which, presumably has been voided, if you did).

 

Thanks. No, I didn't get the extended warranty.

I haven't noticed any dimming on the 9100 lcd. I was comparing it to the samsung before I did this and it was very close if not brighter. Now that you mention it though, lcd backlight bulbs are fairly easy to swap out as well if dimming has ocurred. I have a busted lcd that I can take apart and post the process if anyone is interested in this.

Honestly, this lcd swap was not difficult at all. There's a bit of a fear factor since this is probably one of the more fragile parts on a laptop. Even so, like I was saying, they are quite durable. These things are built to be assembled and taken apart with relative ease.

 

hahaha good job man!

 

Ah, you're my hero, thought I'd reply in your thread instead of the other one. I'm so happy to learn that the connections are fairly compatible, even the inverters being compatible.

The 9100 is in the 8600/6000/D800 "family" as I put it in my post, so the fact that your display fit in the M1530 means that pretty much ANY 15.4" WUXGA should fit... well that's how it seems to me anyway.

Begs the question - which one do I get! The LG's seem to have a good success rate so I guess I should go with that, I had a quick google and the MBP users seem to be praising that display no end.

I think it should work okay, apparently the LG you listed was one of the screens used in the 8600/6000/9100 laptops, and the inverters for them are sold on ebay too... should the stock inverter that comes with my laptop not work for some reason.

What do you think, would you go ahead with it?
Should I buy an inverter too, or do you think the stock 1530 one will be okay? I'm worried I might fry the new display with the old inverter but I'm probably worrying for no reason going by what you've said.

Cheers

PS, how do you know that the (TL) (B2) is the mounting config to suit the M1530?

 

If this experiment didn't work, I was set to buy the LG. I'm pretty confident that the 1530 inverter will work. However, I'm not an engineer so I don't make that claim with absolute certainty. If you buy a new one it may not fit.

If you're willing to put down the money for the screen then by all means go for it. I'm sure a lot of people on this board, myself included, would love to hear how it works out. As you mentioned, the mac peeps seem to love this screen.

Regarding the TL B2, if you sift throught that huge m1530 grainy screen thread, someone took a picture of their LG wsxga+ info label and it showed LP154WE2 TL B2. So logically, you should be able to mount any screen with that TL B2 configuration. Otherwise, you could do what I did and swap out the frames.

 

That's good enough for me. I think I can afford to take this gamble just once, if it fails, the Toshiba panel you used is on ebay currently (cheaper) so I could probably try and find one of those again if it doesn't work out (as we know that works for sure) - and as long as I don't blow it up, the resale value on the LG seems like it'd be solid.

To be honest my biggest worry is the inverter still, I'm just scared. Do you think the inverter used in the 1530 is the same between the samsung and LG WSXGA+ display? That'd put my mind at rest I guess.

I think I'm going to order my M1530 tonight (with the WSXGA+, I'm sure I'll get a samsung... cross my fingers for a good one, but not really worry I guess)... and then as soon as that's ordered I'll grab the LG panel off ebay.

Appreciate any thoughts again on the inverter thing.
I'll definitely take pics of the process and let you know how it goes, this could be good news for a lot of people.

 

I bought the LG Philips WUXGA panel.
LP154WU1(TL)(B2)
http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=310021037635

Hopefully be able to post how it went in about 2 weeks, new M1530 en-route too.

 

Hey guys,

So I had to do the same thing since the new WSXGA+ LG screen I got didn't come with an inverter. I had an LG screen before @ 1400X900, but it cracked over the weekend (stupid house party) and since I had to replace the screen, I opted for the higher resolution. However, I'm now having problems starting up the computer. I tested the inverter and the backlight works, but when I connect the video ribbon, nothing comes one.

Has anyone else had this problem?

 

Yeah I had a similar problem.

I switched in a WUXGA LG screen (took a bit of messing around), which works great, but when I plugged my old Samsung screen in again (which was previously working fine), the backlight works but it doesn't display data.

I didn't really look into it further because my new screen works great... guess I'm still interested in knowing what happened with the Samsung though.

First thing to test is that the ribbon cable is working properly, try it with your cracked display (if it still works at all) to make sure data is being transmitted through it. If it is, then it must be some issue with the new panel I guess.

 

Did you try demanding a 1920x1200 from Dell when your 1530 screen had graininess? Did you ask for a supervisor when the rep said no?

 

Congrats on missing the point of this thread...

 

Hey Udi,

So I just tried my new screen on another XPS (hope my room mate isn't mad I raided his computer while he was asleep LOL!). The screen is having the same issues, so it looks like I'll be sending it back.

I did notice one thing when I pulled his screen out though. It has a different inverter than mine. His screen was the LG WSXGA+ while mine was just the WXGA+.

Do you know if all dell inverters will work with either screen? I tried the new one with both inverters and it failed. Coincidentally I tried his screen on my laptop and it worked fine so I can rule out the malfucntioning data cable.

If I order another LP154WE2(TL)(B2), do you think it will work with the inverter for my old screen?

Thanks

 

I found different inverters give different results hey...

My laptop originally had a Samsung 15.4" WSXGA+.

When I put in the LG 15.4" WUXGA panel, the stock inverter (that came with the laptop) worked perfectly, although the brightness controls reversed (like Rikkimaru) which is no problem.

However my LG 15.4" also came with its own inverter, and when I used that one, it worked well except the brightness controls didn't work (just stayed on full). Also that one was a bit too tall to fit in the lid, so the best bet was the stock one.

Didn't you say your backlight was working originally (on the new display)? That means the inverter is fine. Or did I misread? Honestly I don't see why your old inverter wouldn't work with the new display (unless something is wrong with the new display). Considering both old and new panels are LG, and that resolution has no bearing on the backlight/inverter assembly..

Also, careful buying panels off ebay, those sellers that sell "compatible" displays often give you different brands of panel - sounds like you just got lucky (to actually get an LG). On my first go I got a Toshiba panel (when I peeled off the "LP154WU1 compatible" sticker). Was more careful next time and found a seller that verified the screen was definitely LG brand and the exact model I would receive.

 

Great post. I was replacing an LCD camera for an m1530 and scratched the LCD by dropping the screwdriver, resulting in a big black mark and a nasty scratch all down the LCD. So, I ordered a replacement LCD on eBay for 69.99
and referred to this post since I was encountering some of the same issue. I ended up with an LG display. However, it worked perfectly with the inverter after swapping the frames and mounting.

I noticed that the LCD I ordered came with the part that plugs into the inverter attached (it's at the bottom and there is a wire and it is held by a white removable frame), but I swapped that one out from the Dell LCD. Maybe that is why you are experiencing reversing? Not sure, anyhow, great post.

 

Guys,
First sorry for my bad english.

I have a question, I have a WUXGA (1920x1200) samsumg screen, and I'm having a hard time reading because it looks all very small, and I've been playing with the DPI function in vista, but, to be honest, it doesn't look very good changing the DPI.

My question is, can I downgrade to a WXGA+ (1440x900) screen without any problem, in case I could do the downgrade, which is the label number of the LG LCD model?

Thanks in advance!

 

Where are u from? We can change our screens, if u want

 

Good job. + rep.

You are truly daring.

 

I'm from Argentina, and I live in Los Angeles.

Well yeah, I was planning to sell that screen on Ebay but if you have a WXGA+ LPLDF00 (1440x900) we can swap the LCD.

How old is your screen??, and have any scratch or something? (I guess not, but I just asking xD )

My screen is 6 months old and is in perfect condition, also I must tell you is a samsung screen (SEC 3255), but I don't think is grainy at all, well I compared the screen to my old compaq presario V2000.

If you live in the same area than me we we can meet and do the swap!

P.S: Thund3rbal is great to see you on top of me now!!, so I can tell you: thanks a LOT for your guide, is was very usefull when I swap the lid of my XPS (from black to RED) you not only pull a great guide, also you give corage to the people to do it!!

Thanks!!!


Edit: heeeeyyy i see Now your location, you live in brussels! thats Belgium... LOL

Thunr3ball you you know what is the part number of the 1440x900 LG Screen? I know LP154W01 (TL)(B2) is for LG WXGA (1280x800) but I don't know wich is the part number of WSXGA.

 

Yup, that's difficulty then, because I definitely need help for swapping the screens...

 

dam, that is just awesome!! i congratulate and respect that mod. real modification is rare anymore

 

Thanks, I am very happy to be of help to you. According to the grainy screen thread here this is the part number of the CFL 1440x900 LG screen.

LG Philips LPLDF00 - Dell P/N: XP059 - Size: 15.4"

Cheers

 

Thund3rball I really appreciate your help again, I'll be ordering that part and then let you know how it go.

BTW: is some body interested in a WUXGA (1920x1200) Samsung screen??

 

maybe how much shipped to uganda in africa?! n if possible post pics of it running as in mwhen it is switched on. n i have the 1280x800 CCFL scree. will your screen work?! Hope to hear from you soon!

 

i really wanna buy your screen! pls gimme the price with shippin! PM SENT!

 

I just changed from a 1280x800 up to a 1650x1050 LG Panel. Changed the inverters over at the same time, and its all working brilliantly.

 

Please tell me more info about your changing. What screen did u buy- KX309? Who did installation of your screen? I am very interested in, please tell me one more time how much did you pay for this screen and if i take one for myself, where I must go to make replacement- in Dell service or somewhere else? If you are living in London and have a free time I can come for one day, just to get help from you

 

Hey dude,

I bought the part from Trend Micro USA for £140 from the US. The exact part number I bought was LG LP154WE2-(TL)(B2), which is what I believe Dell call KX309.

I did the entire installation myself, it took about an hour being really careful. Although it seems pretty daunting, its not really hard to do. I've taken apart computers and stuff before, so I was quite happy to do it.

I don't know if Dell would do the change for you; if they did they would most likely charge you a fortune.

 

Can I ask you to help me if I make an order and get this screen here in Brussels, after that can I come when you have a free time just for an hour to help me- I will pay you for it, of course. Is it possible?

P.S. Is this the same one like your order:

http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=260331441016


P.S.2 Now I saw your order- it's different than mine- there are shipments only to UK in Europe and there are only 5 screens available, so I am very asking you to help me- I will send you the money for this screen in your bank account and if it's possible for you to make another order of this screen for me. After only if it's possible I can come to get help from you or if it's hard, you can just send it to me here on my address in Brussels (I will pay all shipments). What do you think, I will very appreciate this value help!!!

 

After install my new screen (some day next week), I'll be putting the WUXGA (1920x1200) on Ebay up to bid, so I'm going to let you know.

About the screen, is almost new I can say, only 4 months old, not grainy, no dead pixel, no scratch, no nothing..... Still on warranty too...

But let remember you, if you don't have a confirmed Paypal account I can not ship this to South Africa.

 

Rikkimaru you seem to have had great success with swapping LCD's - and I was wondering if you know does a person match an inverter to the motherboard or to the LCD itself?

I have gotten a nearly identical LCD replacement for my cracked one, it is used but the display is mint - however the brightness function no longer works and I am stuck with 2 brightness, about 30% and 40%. The only difference between the screen is age and inverter - the replacement was manufactured in 2006 and was originally connected to a different inverter than my current 2008 laptop (who's screen was manufactured in 2008).

The cracked screen worked perfectly, despite the crack and there were no issues with the brightness function - I also tested both backlights on the new LCD and it is not the backlight as the original (fine) backlight is dimmed when paired with the replacement LCD.

Could this be an inverter pairing problem in your opinion? The 2006 screen is from a Toshiba mx6710, same one is also used in the Dells 9100, 8500,8600 and D800 - I put it in my Inspiron 1525 because all the specs matched, but the inverters are different. Do you think if I got a Dell 9100 inverter and swapped them it would function properly again? The Toshiba inverter has a different connection on the left end than my Dell so I cannot try it as a replacement.

Any thoughts or advice would be greatly appreciated

 

Well it isn't the inverter causing the issue...

I put the cracked screen back in today - and it is working fine again, all controls functioning properly. It would seem there is something specific about being connected to the new screen it does not like. I found the data sheets for both and compared their attributes, the only difference is that the replacement screen does not have ambient light sensor built into the screen, whereas the cracked one does - other than that they have identical specs.

They do have different numbers on their respective pcb boards however, and when I googled said numbers I did find another person with the same issue, who seemed to have solved the problem - however it is in Russian and the google translation was only adequate enough to show the issue was the same and the solution had something to do with the EDID EEPROM.

Anyone here read Russian? =)