X230 - Would you live with this amount of backlight bleeding?

So, got my X230 in the other day. 2 issues. 1 is that it came with a Ctrl button broken off, but that is now fixed thanks to a CRU call

But the backlight on my LCD also bleeds a slight bit in the lower left corner. Am I likely to even get a panel better than this if I call for a replacement? The screen has 0 dead pixels, so I am unsure on what I want to do here.



Thanks all!

 

I can only advise you to get used to it. The backlight bleeding is noticeable when the screen is predominantly dark or black, which is not the typical use-case. I don't think you'll get a better panel by a replacement. You might be seeing two smaller bleeding spots at the bottom of the screen, for example.

The X220/230 IPS panel is at the low end of the spectrum, and observations related to backlight bleeding of varying degrees have been made for two years now.

 

Thank you Kaso, I appreciate the candor.

 

All of Lenovo's panel choices are at the low end of the spectrum. The one exception might be the FHD screens on the W5x0 series.

 

I mean aside from that one issue I love the panel, so don't go too overboard here guys

Beats the hell out of my Dell Latitude XT panel. That thing looks downright fuzzy now.

 

I disagree. The 15" HD+ displays are clearly not "low end of the spectrum".

Also, backlight bleeding is a common issue with some higher-end screens, for example, the Retina MBP has also some problems with backlight beelding: Retina Macbook Pro Backlight Bleed? - MacRumors Forums And I would not say that this screen is "low end". It appears that the backlight bleeding is more common to IPS screens than to TN screens.

 

Can this backlight bleed be eliminated by reseating the bezel? It seems like it's caused by specific portions of the bezel applying pressure to the screen...

 

backlight bleeding maybe reduced or increased by reseating the bezel.

 

It is. Being "IPS" does not mean that it is awesome. (I am surrounded by premium IPS panels, the latest being Dell UltraSharp U2711H. I know.)

I use only ThinkPad 15.6" FHD screen (AUO B156HW01 V.4). I am not one of those office slaves in the corporate/business classification that is bound by Lenovo's choice of below-average screens.

Your suggestion is partly relevant. However, the pressure points are inherent in the way this low-end panel is built.

This directive should be given to Lenovo manufacturing, not customers.

 

The IPS panels used today in the consumer market (apart from the Dreamcolor 2 from HP) are e-IPS panels which are far more translucent compared to different type of IPS panel. This is what I have seen from many laptop and desktop IPS panels.
This change in design for one reduces manufacturing costs, but also reduces costs and performance from backlighting (in the form of low end LED or CCFL lamps, and poor backlight design).
This can lead to heavy backlight bleeding, which is found in many eIPS panels, and not just limited to laptops but also Monitors.

@Kaso

Exactly, inherent eIPS manufacturing designs leads to this heavy backlight bleeding.

 

Thank you. It is refreshing to come across a fact-based statement, not random brand-myopic opinion.

 

Sorry, I have only had brief exposure to the 15" HD+ displays. They seemed good enough but I would never order one, and they aren't an option in my company. We only order the FHD displays on the 15.6" ThinkPad W530 notebooks.

 

I wouldn't be happy with display looking like that.

heck this IPS screen has so many issues that I still prefer the TN panel, despite its poor viewing angles.

 

It's really not that bad. I've seen a lot worse.

There's a reason why an IPS screen is merely a $50 upgrade on these machines. That being said, it's still money well spent in my opinion.

If you like the X230 as a whole, I'd suggest learning to live with this imperfection. There's absolutely no guarantee that a replacement panel - even if you were able to persuade Lenovo to swap the current LCD - would be defect-free.

Good luck.

 

Well, it's up to you. Personally, I've found photographs to greatly exaggerate the appearance of backlight bleed.

Camera: looks horrific
In person: does't look horrific

I'd say if you aren't totally dashed by it, just keep it. Rarely does anyone find an pristine IPS laptop panel. Just the way it is and don't let your photo sway you to being overly-negative. I'd bet it's not that bad in person. Cameras pick up a lot that the human eye doesn't see.

 

I just have a new X230 as well and have the same bleeding issue ... not only left bottom but also at the top. Checked the bezel and looks ok there ... but on the whole the screen looks much better than the bad quality TN of T400 and T61 series I also still have ... so it's an improvement. Ok sometimes with very dark scenes in movies you can see the bleeding when you are looking for it. Other than that I would simply live with it... If I lived in the USA where you can simply return products no questions asked I would order 3-4 X230, 3 with IPS and one TN... compare them all, keep the best one and send the rest back. AND also ... I have IPS bleed yes BUT my X230 is very quiet and has NO heat issues ... and no whining CPU, so I wil keep it ... otherwise you swap and get a heat issues, or noisy fan etc ... rather stick with the bit of backlight bleed that in normal usage I don't notice

 

Lenovo does not have a no questions asked return policy in the US and one of the main reasons they don't is when they did, people would order four, keep the one they want and send the rest back, which Lenovo then had to sell as refurbished at a loss. That also raises the cost for everyone else who buys one and does not return it. If someone is that fastidious about their notebooks, they should buy them somewhere with a lenient return policy. There a still a few places with one, like Costco, though it will cost more.

As far as the backlight bleed, I've got a small amount on my X220i. I rarely notice it, but at $50 for the IPS, it's a no-brainer. $50 seems pretty cheap to expect perfection, which few things in life are. On the whole you seem pleased with your X230, why sweat the small stuff and cause yourself aggravation?

 

Actually, they did for the holidays, that's why I was asking all of this. I had 30 days to return it, shipping paid and no restocking fees.

but now that my keyboard is here and I only have the screen blotch, I am not even thinking about it. This laptop is serving me very well

 

"Just the fact, ma'am. Just the fact."

Good luck with your new purchase.

 

I upgraded my screen to the IPS, got for 100€ from Estonia. It seems I got an SLB1 too. Unless the Background is black you don't see it anyway so why bother.

I'd keep it anyway.