M45-s351 screen needs to be replaced

My M45-S351's screen needs to be replaced (the inverter had been replaced twice already but the LCD went bad this time). The computer repair shop wants $360 plus tax ($60 for the initial diagnosis and $300 for the LCD). Does that sound reasonable to you guys? If so, I don't think I'm going to bother since I can get a brand-new netbook for that price. I can still use the computer with an external monitor but it kind of defeats the purpose of having a laptop. What do you guys think?

 

I would definitely advise NOT to pay to fix the old M45. You can actually get a fully functioning new laptop (not just a netbook) for under $400!

BEST BUY has two very good deals at the moment-

Toshiba Satellite L305-S5944- $379.99 - LINK

Dell Inspiron 15 - $399.99 - LINK

 

That's kind of what I figured but if I was able to get it repaired somewhere else at a reasonable cost, I guess I would consider it. Thanks for the recommendations on the other two computers. I'm done with Toshiba laptops for good (mine has been a disaster and my sister has had multiple problems with hers as well), but I may look into the Dell and some others in the near future.

 

You can save a lot of money if you have the technical ability to replace the LCD yourself. The LCD could be bought for around $100 from Ebay or other sources. $300 sounds like the typical price I hear quoted to have it done by a professional. It would be prudent to look through the phone book and ask other places if they could beat the price.

If you aren't positive you can replace it yourself, I wouldn't attempt it. LCDs are pretty sensitive as is the procedure. However, if you were to, there are guides here for your notebook.

 

First of all the 60 dollars for the diagnosis is too much. We diagnose laptop too and I never remember charging more than 10 euros for the diagnosis phase.

Changing the LCD is indeed easy as gregory said, but if you don't know how to do, you might not be able to swap it...

 

Is everything I need to do in that link you referenced? It doesn't seem all that complicated - just a bunch of screws basically. Am I missing something here or do I just need to unscrew the LCD and disconnect the cable?

 

Yeah, it's not a complicated procedure, just a sensitive one. LCDs are pretty delicate, so extreme caution is needed.

If you've already made up your mind that you definitely won't pay the professional rate, and otherwise it's abandoned, familiarize yourself with the procedure before buying the replacement. Go through the steps removing and replacing the LCD using the broken one. If you feel you've got it down, then go for it. This will give you an opportunity not only to learn before an accident occurs, but if you find that any steps weren't laid out properly on that site, you'll know before spending any money. (Though the steps look good to me, exactly the same as it was on the last Toshiba I dealt with.)

Also read that page's " things to know" about taking apart a laptop.

 

I may give it a shot then. It looks like the LCDs can be had for about $80 on ebay so that's not so bad. How do I know if my inverter is bad though? I'd hate to order an LCD and install it only to find out that my inverter is bad. I don't want to spend money without knowing for sure. The repair shop definitely said that it was the LCD but how do I know that they're right?

 

A thorough test is beyond my technical knowledge . However, here it is from a very able source when I asked a similar question last year. The procedure he offered was for me to test my backlight, but the first step of that procedure was testing the inverter, so that bit will apply:

 

Thanks but that's a bit over my head. I think I'm just going to go ahead and order an LCD on ebay and try to replace it. If it doesn't work, I'll just return the LCD and get my money back. Hopefully the computer place was right and it's just the LCD that's bad, not both the LCD and the inverter.

 

Just wanted to post a follow-up to say thank you for the help you guys gave me here. I ended up ordering an LCD on ebay for about $92.00 shipped and replaced the LCD myself in about 1/2 hour. Works great and I saved myself over $200 in the process! It's amazing how much money you can save if you can do things yourself and I never would have known to do it if not for this website. Thanks again to all - I really appreciate it!