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    t400's issue with external monitor

    Discussion in 'Lenovo' started by bayernjuven, Oct 26, 2008.

  1. bayernjuven

    bayernjuven Notebook Consultant

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    Hi, I connected my t400 to an Acer external LCD (22inch, 1680*1050) through VGA output and expanded the desktop to the LCD. However, the external LCD often gets black and loses input signal.

    Sometimes, I have to replug the VGA connector or press it harder or tweak the angle of the VGA connector to restore the external display. Sometimes, I just can't have it work.

    The Acer LCD has been and is still working well with my old HP notebook. So I guess it is my t400 that causes the problem. I upgraded the video card driver with ver 6.14.10.4957 downloaded from Lenovo's website but the problem still exists. The t400 can recognize the external LCD when the VGA connector is plugged in and can go back to single notebook screen display when the connector is unplugged.

    My t400 has P8400, 2GB Ram, 160GB HD, Intel integrated video card, Intel 5100 wireless card, Win XP Pro (deleted the Vista Home), no bluetooth, no fingerprint reader.

    Any suggestion?? Thank you!

    Also, does Lenovo provide tech support for t400 with self-downgraded OS?
     
    bayernjuven, Oct 26, 2008
    #1
  2. srunni

    srunni Notebook Deity

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    No, just say you bought it with XP or something. Make sure you have the correct video card drivers installed.

    The problem may actually be that you have an Intel integrated video card, which may not support connecting a WSXGA+ monitor via VGA. I ordered my T400 with a discrete graphics card for this precise reason.
     
    srunni, Oct 26, 2008
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  3. bayernjuven

    bayernjuven Notebook Consultant

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    Thanks for the reply. But this monitor works well with my 3-year-old Hp notebook, which is based on older centrino platform with intel's integrated video card ...
     
    bayernjuven, Oct 26, 2008
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  4. srunni

    srunni Notebook Deity

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    Then it's probably a driver issue. VGA does support WSXGA+, so that is not the problem. However, the only way to confirm this would be to try another OS. If you don't want to install Vista, try running the Ubuntu live CD (available from http://www.ubuntu.com/) and see if it works with your monitor. However, make sure you wait 4 days, as Ubuntu 8.10 is coming out on the 30th, and it will be more likely to include support for newer hardware like the T400 has.
     
    srunni, Oct 26, 2008
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  5. bayernjuven

    bayernjuven Notebook Consultant

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    Thanks a lot! That's really a smart idea!
     
    bayernjuven, Oct 27, 2008
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