Laptop Screen Issue, Please help!

abefastcash

Member
Jul 18, 2006
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This summer I bought a Compaq v5204NR ($479 at bestbuy cheap but good for what i need), and it has worked perfectly up till this morning when i turned it on. I booted it up and the screen was blank, maybe a white or light grey, which it stayed throughout the proccess. The laptop lights up and the wifi button and mute button light up like they should, but i cant see anything but the blank screen.

I hooked it up to an external monitor where it booted up XP on the external screen but would stop and the screen would say "no signal". Then I successfuly booted it up in safemode on the external monitor but still had the same screen on the laptop.

Compaq and geek squad both say the only thing they can do is send it into compaq which will take years to getback, but i need it makes soon for class.

Any help will be grealy appreciated!
 
Dec 10, 2005
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Sounds like you have a bad video card. As the GeekSquad guys said, your best bet would be to send it to Compaq for warranty service. If you send it in, make sure you back up all of your files onto an external hard drive or some other backup medium.

By output, I meant to say card as the poster under me stated.
 

abefastcash

Member
Jul 18, 2006
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So other than sending it back, downloading new drivers or reinstalling xp wont do any good?

Thanks again guys, i was just making sure all my options before i send it in and wait forever to get it back.
 

cheesehead

Lifer
Aug 11, 2000
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If it's under warranty, send it in.

It sounds to me like you have a bad display inverter. With older non-glossy screens, you could usually see faint outlines, but with newer, glossier screens it's almost impossible. I had this exact same thing happen to me with a laptop I just fixed - re-seating the connectors fixed the problem.

Also, do yourself a favor and back up any information you really need. Sometimes, a technician screws up, and you don't want to lose your thesis!