XPS 1330 Screen Problem

Hi All,

I'm a bit of a noob and am more on the software side of computing so please bear my hardware ignorance!

Right, problem I have is I was streaming a TV show from my XPS via the HDMI port to my HD TV. All of a sudden it froze. Couldn't Ctrl+Alt+Delte, couldn't do anything.

Shut it down with the power button and left it for a few minutes, re-booted and all I got was a white screen followed by strange lines on the screen.

What I have garnered from the forums that with the Nvidia GPU is burnt out or the motherboard needs replaced. Now I have no idea what the problem is!!!

Can anyone point me in the right direction? Its out of warranty so I wonder how much it would cost to fix or is it fixable if I bought the parts myself. I seen a link on the forum about replacing the Copper mod but surely this won't work if the GPU is burnt out?


Thanking you all in advance


Patrick

 

True.. The copper mod is for preventing the GPU from dying, not fixing it.. The mobo costs around 500$, from what I gather..

 

If it is a GPU problem, your unit should have an additional one year warranty (just for the GPU).

See:

http://en.community.dell.com/blogs/...ment-to-all-affected-customers-worldwide.aspx

 

Thanks for the info, I did however replace Vista with XP when I bought it. Would this void the warranty?

 

I don't think so....they just won't support any XP issues you may complain about. Your issue is a hardware one, which you can prove, I assume, by trying to go to BIOS setup.

 

Excuse my studipity but I can't get into the BIOS as when I power on, I get a white screen and then the lines. Any ideas?

 

Well, if you can't even get into the BIOS, it is definitely not even trying to load Windows XP, so they can't say it's a driver problem.

It's definitely hardware.

 

I don't think so. I had XP when the GPU died and the mobo got replaced. Only one representative got a bit funny about the laptop having XP, but I explained why I switched to it, and he was ready to help me.

Oh, by the way, check if you still have that extra year of GPU warranty mystery905 mentions. If you don't, still chat with Dell, they may be able to help (who knows!). But yeah, get your mobo replaced first, then do the copper mod (it is for extending your GPU life, but since it has already died, then it's not of much use now lol).

 

, I bought mine in Japan last year and brought it back to Ireland with me. Just read on website
"Service Contract and Warranty Detail Information is not available for non EMEA systems."

Looks like im screwed unless anyone knows a way around it?

 

same problem as mine
I bought my XPS 1330 5 months ago and it works very cool at the beginning. But 3 weeks ago, when I play my DVD, there are some white lines appeared on the screen and then the black screen. Windows Vista report that " the video driver disconnect and then recovery"

I contact XPS support and thet told me to reinstall driver for the Nvidia 8400M GS and the Bios. After that it worked well until yesterday the problem occur again. I call XPS support again and they said the problem is drivers conflix, so I tried to install Windows XP but the problem became worse.

flickr.com/photos/43624429@N00/3059782458/

 

@paddyrogue: Do you have a service tag? I would give Dell chat a try, explain the problem, and see what happens. They may be able to help.

@palyset: Mmm.. I think your GPU may be dying, check out this thread:
M1330 Display Issue (Vertical Lines on Reboot & Crash & Vertical Lines)

 

I have tried to log into the Dell Chat but it recognises my service code as being from Japan not Ireland. It re-directs me to Japan and my written Japanese is no where near good enough to converse!

I'm gonna try and get them on the phone tomorrow and see what happens. I'll keep you posted

Thanks everyone for their input

 

Well , been onto Dell 5 times and they keep pushing me in circles. Twice I was given phone numbers that don't even connect. They don't wanna know about it. I'm on hold now after giving one of their operators an ear bashing. NEVER BUY DELL AGAIN!

 

After kickin sone A*ss on the phone, I have a technician coming out this Fri, woo hoo!

 

Congrats!