Upgrade the screen of my Inspiron 1520?

Hey all, I'm new here... seems like a great community.

Anyways, I purchased a Dell Inspiron 1520 back in August 2007 to use at college, and I made the mistake of not choosing a high-resolution screen, so right now I am stuck with a crappy WXGA 1280x800 Anti-glare screen. After the few months I've used this machine, I've realized that it would be great to have the higher resolution 1680x1050 (WSXGA+) screen.

The notebook is under warranty until 2011 as I purchased the 4-year CompleteCare warranty. If I called Dell, could they upgrade the screen for me, even if I paid for the new screen? I'm a bit nervous about having to take apart the notebook myself... The only thing I've ever done with it is upgrade the RAM and even that made me nervous. If Dell won't do it, I found a WSXGA+ screen on eBay that was made for 1520s, so I could always order that and attempt to install it myself.

Any suggestions?

 

I don't think Dell will straight up upgrade the screen for you. If you were sending it back for repairs on a broken screen or something, they might do it for a cost, but I doubt it will happen in many other cases.

The best thing to do, of course, is to just call up Dell and ask if they'll do the upgrade for you. If they won't do it, ask them if replacing the screen yourself voids your warranty and/or Complete Care.

Although in the grand scheme of things, it shouldn't be too hard to replace the screen on your own; just follow the service manual and you shouldn't have any problems.

 

They wont upgrade the screen for you unless you pay for the new part and pay for the installation.

If you send it back for repairs, they still will not upgrade the screen at cost or even for a price.

The only way to do it is to buy it on your own and replace it yourself, then sell your old screen again. However, this will void your warranty. You could also sell your computer and buy a new one.

 

That seems a bit ridiculous... I can't believe installing the screen by yourself voids the warranty for the ENTIRE computer. And I'm assuming it would cost like $400 to buy the screen from Dell and have them install it. So it looks like if I want this done, I'll have to do it myself at the cost of voiding the warranty for all parts of the computer... correct?

 

You think it is ridiculous that the warranty will be voided because Joe Public opens up his machine and changes over precision electrical parts?

Would you expect your car warranty to still be valid if you, complete with an adjustable spanner and wooden mallet, decided to swap the cylinder head on your new car?

Not wishing to question your abilities, but this isn't exactly a routine upgrade, like the hard drive or RAM. Nor is it catered-for as such.

 

I understand what you're saying... there's no need to go crazy. I will at least call Dell and see what they say about upgrading it. If they don't charge an arm and a leg for the part and installation then I'll go with them. Otherwise, I'll just do it myself. It's just really hard to multi-task with this lower-resolution screen. Any other thoughts/suggestions would still be appreciated.

 

Sell it, and buy the machine you now wish you'd bought.

 

I paid almost $1,800 for this notebook (including the 4-year warranty). I'd probably be luck to get over $1,000 for this machine on eBay.

 

There aren't many options when it comes to laptops, especially when you're tied-in to a 4 year warranty.

1. Live with it, and learn from it.

2. Buy a replacement screen, assuming it'll work with your video card. Change it yourself, keep your current screen so you can return it to standard if the machine has to go in for warranty work.

3. Sell your current machine, add the cost of the new screen to what you get for your current laptop, and see what you can get for the same money.

4. Pay Dell to do the upgrade. Bear in mind that even if they will do this, your extended warranty will likely only cover the options selected at the time of your order, so damage to the screen will likely result in a replacement of the original specification...

My advice would be to live with it. You're going to take a good hit financially doing any of the others...

 

Well I think I'll choose option 1 for now... I'll just live with it. It's not THAT bad and I can get by with it for another year or so when I give this machine to my dad. It's not worth spending the time and money upgrading it when I'll have a new machine in a year or so. I do think I'll have to get my current screen replaced under warranty, though, as there are several dead pixels right in the center.

Does anyone know if Dell will give me a glossy WXGA screen as a replacement as opposed to the matte one that came with my system? I've seen plenty of glossy screens and I'm starting to really like them.

 

Dell will swop like for like unless they have a good reason ie they dont have any available and are unlikely to get more. In that case they may change the part.

 

i have the same problem with the same screen whith dell 1520
but am not going to change it screen
i think if i try i will buy anew laptob and give oldest to my young brother the cost to change it is to heigh

 

Well I contacted Dell and they said they can't upgrade the screen or even replace a defective anti-glare screen with a glossy one. So I'll be getting a replacement WXGA anti-glare screen to solve my dead pixel issue.

 

Just an update to my situation...

I remembered that I had a $250 PayPal gift card from Christmas, so I decided to purchase a 15.4" WSXGA+ Glossy screen designed for the 1520 from eBay. I got extremely lucky and got the LG screen that everyone says is supposed to better than the Samsungs with the grainy screen.

The installation of the screen was a great learning experience to say the least. People were saying that it takes about an hour to complete, but I was EXTREMELY careful and patient and it took me about 2 and a half hours. My brother helped me as well -- I would strongly recommend having someone help you if you attempt this. I followed the instructions in the Inspiron 1520 Serivce Manual step-by-step. The absolute hardest part was getting the bezel around the screen removed from the front cover... I have cuts and chipped nails from prying it open. I didn't damage anything, though. Also, two of the eight screws holding the screen in place were stripped, probably done at the factory with a power-tool. It was not easy to get those screws removed... I literally had to pull them out with my plyers. I replaced them with two new, identically-sized screws. All the cables and connectors on my old screen transfered to the new one without any problems. I then put everything back together, booted up, set the screen resolution to 1680x1050, and everything is perfect. I couldn't be happier with this machine now! I will keep the old screen in case I ever need to send the machine in for service under my warranty.

If anyone is considering upgrading their screen on an Inspiron 1520, search eBay for the proper screen and then follow the Inspiron 1520 Service Manual (found here). Just TAKE YOUR TIME and everything will work out perfectly in the end. Feel free to PM me if you have any questions with installation!!