Dell screen turns dark then completely black.

hello, I am experiencing problem with a dell laptop. Few days ago the screen went dark after I turned it on. Then after few attempts of turning the laptop on and off the screen went completely black.
The video card is working because I am able to use the laptop through a CRT monitor.
What could be the cause? Is it the screen that is dead?

Thanks

 

1. uninstall and reinstall your vid card drivers
2. turn off all screen savers/hibernate/standby functions

if your problem still exists, it sounds like a connection issue or worse, an lcd issue.

what model? how old is it? ever drop it?

 

Depending on what model you have you may see a little rubber/plastic pin sticking up somewhere close to the hinge line of the display. That pin connects to a switch that turns on/off the display/backlight. Try wiggling/pushing in that pin a few times.

If that didn't work ... when the screen goes dark can you still see something in the display? If so then it's probably something wrong with your backlight/inverter. You could try reseating the display cable, but what would entail you disassembling part of the notebook. You may/may not be comfortable doing that. If so you can d/l the repair manual for your particular machine from Dell support. If you're not comfortable then you'll need to give Dell a call if you're still under warranty. Let us know what you find out.

 

If you don't see the post ( turn on computer and stuff displays always) then there must be some hardware problem. The switch is a good idea of a place to look. I think you might still see a faint screen even if the backlight is off using a flashlight. The cable is also a good idea.

 

I had the same thing, and it all came down to the little pin that gets pushed down to turn off the screen when you close it. try pressing it down and then moving the touchpad, and hopefully you will find the machine turn on again. Still happens get Dell to come out and fix it.

 

When the screen turned dark for the first time, I was still able to see something. It was very dark of course, not readable, but was still something. Then after 2 days went completely black, no sign of ¨life¨.
Regarding the little pin that turns the screen on/off, I took it off years ago, and if that was the problem why I am not having problem when I use an external monitor?
I believe is a LCD issue, I going to try to open it, to see if everything is connected. Maybe is the cable that must be replaced?
And yes, it went on the floor once.
Thanks

 

I HAVE FOUND IT!!!
Click here for the article. :asus:

 

hi melopll,

I have the same problem. Suddenly the monitor went back to dark while booting the system and not able to see the screen clearly. But could able to see the desktop icons in the shadow. Checked everything inside the keyboard, everything looks fine. Connected to the external monitor and works fine. I did diagnostic test and results are fine. Please advice what did you do with your system and it will helpful to me.

 

Dearvandy,

I sold the screen and I bought a new laptop! However some people said that was the backlight while one person told me that was the inveter...
I think, since the person that told me about the inverter was a saleman, that the problem is the backlight however I can't guarantee!

Would you like to go for a new laptop? Let me know if You need some tip on your new purchase!!!

PS. I was very disappointed by DELL, I didn't buy another one....

 

ok, well I have the same problem, but Im on an assignment outside the UK. Dell dropped me in the poop and refused to honour my international next business day service warranty but I got in touch with Dell usa and they said they could give me service in 2 WEEKS ! because no parts exist in their inventory for my euro dell inspiron 8600 screen.

it gets worse though -

dell e support told me to connect an external monitor to my laptop which i did , but when i connected a cable modem to the lan port, it went on fire.

i tried another modem - again, it blew ... so there is presumably something wrong more than the screen ,, but dell e support wont answer this part of the problem at all.

Would adding an external monitor to a laptop cause an external modem to blow ? anyone have any ideas about the cause of that ?

Dell .. i too am very dissappointed in them now .. have 3 dells,　 this is the last one now for sure .. and as for their international warranties .. well, my own experience here I think proves, at least for me, its not work the paper its printed on.

 

Arcticwire,

I think there is more going on in your dell... is there a pentium4 inside your notebook?
Have You ever cleaned the laptop from dust?

 

Thanks melopll,
I don't have idea to buy new one now. I am not sure I have warranty. While contacting Dell, they asked me check the video controller inside the keyboard. I checked it and looks fine. Tomorrow I am going to check with one of my colleagues and see what will happen.

 

I think is the backlight....

 

I checked with my colleague and its not working and he mentioned that may be the screen might be burned but he is not sure why it is paritially displayed.

 

Partially dispalyed???

Could You tell me exactly what You are able to see? A pic would be great.

 

I have a dell inspiron 5100 I seem to have the same problem, after turning on my computer, ten mins into doing something my screen goes blank. There is still a visible outline in the back ground while its blank. when i open and close the lid it will come back on but than go again and also when i take out the power adapter the screen seem to work perfectly.Could someone tell me if thats a adapter problem or the screen problem.

 

you mean when you're on batteries your display works ok?

anyway it seems to be either your backlight or the inverter is going bad. by the dependency on the power adapter it is more likely the inverter module. these things are supposed to generate very high voltages to power the cathode tubes needed for the backlighting and they get worn down over time. your best bet is to get another one (new or remanufactured) and replace it. google "lcd backlight". it doesn't seem very difficult to do.

 

viruskilla, I just posted the same sort of issue with my 5100 a few weeks ago. If you decide to do the repair kalm noted, post how it went. I'm punting on repairing mine, choosing to work on my new vostro. You may want to look at the following link from Dell which has some info on taking apart the 5100:
http://support.dell.com/support/edocs/systems/ins5100/en/sm/display.htm#1105384

 

I have the same problem. Black screen by itself. External hooked up - only DVI input works. VGA Port does work too. It started with hook up a 24 inch moniotr, worked for a day. Then the laptop screen blacked permanently.

I did load the latest drivers, no different.

I have the 7800 go graphical card. Do you think it is the graphic card go belly up?

Out of warranty, Called Dell and said it cost $199 to fix, LCD extra $299 if need to be replaced.

 

hmm.. i too have a similar problem

But in my case the screen goes blank when ever i pull the power cord while its charging the screen goes blank.

Now even if i try to shutdown the laptop, by pressing the power button once (which i have configured to shut down) it doesnt reacts. The only option remains is to press the power button for 8-9 secs to manually cut off the power and then restart.

On restart the notebook is great as always.

now i avoid unplugging the power, but if someone can detail out the problem, it would be highly appreciated

Thanks