Faulty Dell Inspiron screen - any advice please?

pixiechick99

My daughter has had a Dell Inspiron 1545 since last May, so not 18months old yet.

Recently the screen was flickering at times, but if you moved the screen about a bit then it was fine. Last week the screen has just gone white though and no amount of adjusting it will make it work.

It's been taken in to a repairer who have opened it up and said it's not the simple job they thought. They connected it to an external screen and it worked. They've said it'll cost £250 to replace the screen so haven't done anything as it was such a lot considering I paid about £330 for it.

Is there another way to get this done cheaper - maybe buying the screen myslef and paying someone to fit it? Or are they quoting me too much?

My daughter is missing her laptop, needs it for school and I'm fed up of lending her mine:D

Any advice would be wonderful;)

redped

Sounds like it need a new LCD panel - if the inverter had gone, the screen would be very dark but you could still make it out. £250 sounds like a rip-off - my Dell laptop also needs a new screen, and they're about £70 - £80 from ebay if you're prepared to change it yourself - an hour should do it. Otherwise, take it to another repair shop and get a more realistic quote.

pixiechick99

Thanks for replying - how complicated is it to do it myself?

I've just got the laptop back from the repair guy - he said it worked when hooked up to an external monitor, but I've just done that and nothing on the monitor:mad:
I know the monitor works as I connected my own laptop to it and it was fine...
The broken screen is bright white all over, no lines nothing.
I have seen a company online that a friend used to replace a screen - for £100 including fitting and collection/delivery. So, hoping that'd be ok...better than £250 anyway;)

pixiechick99

Just to add - my laptop (same Dell model) works fine when I connect the expernal monitor, but the other laptop does nothing when I plug the monitor in. Same light, white screen.

Thing is, the repair man said it worked when connected to a monitor so it must be the screen that needs replacing.

Can anyone help? I don't want to get it sent off for a new screen if it's not that. Just wondering why the monitor won't work through it.

Thanks for any advice:D

GunJack

when you connect the duff lappty to the external monitor, you should have to use Fn key plus one of the top-row keys to toggle the display from the internal screen to the external monitor. The key will have a pic of 2 monitors or something similar.....

pixiechick99

Ok, after fiddling about I have it working through the external monitor - so at least I know the laptop works, just no it's screen.
I think £100 for the new one plus fitting will have to do;)

redped

You've now proven that the problem definitely lies with the LCD panel, which is good - it's (relatively) easy to replace. If you don't mind taking your laptop apart, then you could have a go yourself and save £20 - there are plenty of videos on youtube about replacing screens. If you'd rather not take this risk, then £100 sounds like a fair price for it - much better than £250 which sounds like your repair man is looking for you to pay for his next holiday!

closed

http://whatconsumer.co.uk/how-long-should-it-last/

Hammyman

pixiechick99 wrote: »

It's been taken in to a repairer who have opened it up and said it's not the simple job they thought. They connected it to an external screen and it worked. They've said it'll cost £250 to replace the screen so haven't done anything as it was such a lot considering I paid about £330 for it.

Seriously? The screens are £60 off Ebay for a brand new one and its a 30 minute job if you have a cup of tea whilst you're doing it. I'd do it for £100, less if I had a used one on stock.

I couldn't look someone in the eye if I tried to charge them £250.

closed

16 months old, use sale of goods act

HO87

Hammyman wrote: »

Seriously? The screens are £60 off Ebay for a brand new one and its a 30 minute job if you have a cup of tea whilst you're doing it. I'd do it for £100, less if I had a used one on stock.

I couldn't look someone in the eye if I tried to charge them £250.

But as we know at certain establishments so-called expert staff seem to have all had a conscience bypass and apart from making it up as they go along want to charge ridiculous amounts for the simplest repairs or tweaks and the cheapest quality parts.

@OP - seriously this isn't a particularly difficult repair. Following video instructions (having watched it through a few times) and having the right tools to hand (probably just a small flathead and a small Philips screwdriver) is all that you need.