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Slapping my Powerbook no longer fixes it
JimJimBinks
Registered User regular
Registered User regular
For a few months now, my wife's powerbook has had a strange problem where the display would get distorted. Horizontal and vertical lines would appear all over it. It mostly would happen either when the Laptop was waking up from sleep mode (Different patterns every time it woke) and when we'd open the laptop. Amazingly, smacking the side of the powerbook always fixed the issue. Never bothered to get it serviced. We both thought of it as a cool Millennium Falcon-like quirk.
Two days ago my wife's powerbook stopped responding to the awesome power of her mighty slap. The screen is distorted 100% of the time. When she uses the trackpad, the pattern changes as the cursor moves on the screen, and the colors change on boot-up when it goes from the gray apple logo to the blue OSX loading screen. Also, whenever we open and close the laptop to force it into sleep mode the pattern changes a lot.
I'm about 90% sure there's a loose connection between the display and the rest of the machine. It would explain why smacking the computer would cause it to go back to normal for so long.
Does it sound like I might be on the right track here? Anyone have any other ideas what the problem could be?
My biggest concern with getting it serviced is I'm either going to go through the geek squad at Best Buy, or Apple. Either way it'll get sent to a service center where I'm really afraid the tech will see the screen, and right away write it off as a bad LCD without even reading the issue as described by the customer and attempting to re-seat or replace cables. Is this the kind of thing I can fix at home? If not, what's the best way to go about sending this in for service?
Two days ago my wife's powerbook stopped responding to the awesome power of her mighty slap. The screen is distorted 100% of the time. When she uses the trackpad, the pattern changes as the cursor moves on the screen, and the colors change on boot-up when it goes from the gray apple logo to the blue OSX loading screen. Also, whenever we open and close the laptop to force it into sleep mode the pattern changes a lot.
I'm about 90% sure there's a loose connection between the display and the rest of the machine. It would explain why smacking the computer would cause it to go back to normal for so long.
Does it sound like I might be on the right track here? Anyone have any other ideas what the problem could be?
My biggest concern with getting it serviced is I'm either going to go through the geek squad at Best Buy, or Apple. Either way it'll get sent to a service center where I'm really afraid the tech will see the screen, and right away write it off as a bad LCD without even reading the issue as described by the customer and attempting to re-seat or replace cables. Is this the kind of thing I can fix at home? If not, what's the best way to go about sending this in for service?
JimJimBinks on
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And as a former Geek Squad employee, let me be the first to implore you: Please, for the love of God, ha-Shem, Allah, Vishnu, Kali, the Flying Spaghetti Monster, or whatever you find holy, do NOT take it to Geek Squad.
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As for being comfortable with the insides of notebook computers, I'm comfortable with just about everything except directly behind the LCD itself. Which is where I think the problem lies.
I have the same problem with my girlfriend.
All kididng aside, yeah, it does sound like a loose connection. You will void your warranty, but it should be a relatively easy fix - it's been almost a decade since I assembled these things for a living, but the very most you'll need is a bit of solder and a screwdriver. It's far more likely that you'll be able to fix it by hand, however.
Applecare expired in August of 2006.
Ouch... well, it can't hurt to take it to the genius bar at your apple store... even if they say it's a bum lcd it's not like it cost you anything. Most of them actually do care about their job and macs in general though. I'd give it a shot
The closest Apple Store to me is about 65 mile (I miss living in Los Angeles where everything is close.)
I think I might try to get there this weekend. Gonna try opening it tonight though to see if I can get close to the cables I wanna re-seat.
I'm actually looking into Powerbookresq.com. For $50 they'll overnight me a box. I put my powerbook in the box and it gets overnighted to them. within 24 hours after that they'll give me my estimate. From what I've heard about apple, they'll want to charge $75 to send it into their repair center so someone look at it. Then they'll give me the estimate from there.
With Powerbookresq.com it sounds like I'll at least be able to speak to the tech and tell him my theory about the cables being loose.
I work in a store myself in TX. We do fix that sort of thing, sounds like you either have a bad LCD, Inverter board (circuit board connecting LCD to Mobo", or possibly some random motherboard issue.
Trust me your not gonna have fun taking that thing apart. And macs do use funny ass screws .
Applecare? That sounds so.... fruity... (pun definitely indended)
It could be a loose connection, if you're lucky, and especially taking into consideration that physical force corrects the issue. I've seen lines appear on-screen, though, for things like corrupt video memory and overheating.
If you decide to open up your powerbook, you'll probably find a thin (paper-fucking-thin), flat ribbon cable coming from the display going somewhere on the main board. Be. Careful. With. These. Things. They have miniature locking tabs on either side of the connection that will release the über-thin connector from the slot and lock it back into place. If you jack around and manhandle the thing, you could tear the ribbon and fuck everything up.
being a michigan resident, i dare say, what is the deal with the lack of apple stores in MI?! they're all around detroit and junk.
i live right by lansing, and have always wondered why they're nowhere to be found around here - you'd think that east lansing with michigan state university would be enough to merit the thought of one, but hm, must not be big enough.
sigh sigh
The problem with LCD connections is that some connection cables are wired directly to the LCD end and use a connector only at the mobo end, requireing the entire LCD assembly to be replaced if there is any damage to the connector cable.
The cable usually runs flat down the back of the lcd unit then across to one to one of the hinge joints (usually the left), turns into a bundle of wire and goes down through the hollow core of the hinge, and into the body of the notebook.
The connector is usually located under the keyboard or a plastic panel just above the keyboard, sometimes held down by guards or screws or both.