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Toshiba Satellite A105 LCD Screen Problem

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by masterarcha 2 views

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I bought a Toshiba Satellite A105-S1014 about 14 months ago. Recently, the LCD screen has been acting strange. When I open it, the image will flicker across the screen an eventually white out if I leave it for long enough. When it does this, the display will show the startup/desktop but will not work in real time. The only way I can get it to work correctly is to flex the screen or press on it somewhere until the screen works. I assume this means I need a new LCD screen, but before I drop 200 bucks on it I'd like to know for sure. Any ideas of what it could be other than the screen? And if it is the screen, can I just pull the old one off and put a new one on?

8 replies

by mjd420nova

THis sounds like a loose connection or fractured flexible trace cable from the main board to the display. The displays are usually pretty easy to replace.

by robo_dev

There are several different types of ribbon-cable connectors. The least reliable are the type that hold the loose end of the cable with a locking clip. These come loose very frequently, and worse, tend to cause damage to the cable itself since the ribbon cable tends to get creased where it exits the connector.

Ribbon cables typically have painted silver or copper traces. Examine the cable under magnification and look for cracks.

Sometimes you can create a temporary repair with a conductive ink pen, or even with the 'defroster grid repair' paint from an auto parts store. You cannot repair a ribbon cable with solder....it will melt and/or destroy the remaining conductive traces.

In some cases you can replace just the ribbon cable if it is socketed at both ends, but oftentimes, the 'display end' of the cable is soldered on, making repair more difficult/risky. Resoldering ribbon cables is very very tricky and is very likely to end badly.

One very creative repair that I've done is to bypass a broken ribbon-cable trace by using a 36 guage jumper wire, soldered to the circuit boards and both ends.

I hate to admit that I've even replaced an entire 18 pin ribbon cable with jumper wires this way.

by marcellalui

Hi I had a similar problem with mine I don't believe it is all gone it might be a simple problem with the connection... I don't know if it is the screen you will have to make some checks. I would suggest asking in the free live chat support their expert might have an idea.

here is the page for Toshiba A105 Support

Good luck

Marcy

by rnordentoft

Hi, I had a similar problem and found a second hand bargain LCD on eBay for 60$. It worked better, but I saw some similar tendencies with the "new" screen as well. Today I was back at rock bottom again. All in all this tells me it was not the screen itself; so I would think twice about spending the 200 bucks. I will open it again tomorrow and keep you posted. BTW: does anyone know what the silver foil which is glues to the plastic cover is for? I am wondering if that is where the problem is.

by robo_dev

and also to prevent the case from melting.

Inside most laptop displays is the inverter board which runs very hot and creates a certain amount of EMI/RFI (electro magnetic/ radio frequency interference).

Without the shielding, the laptop might not pass FCC (or CE, NOM, etc) certification.

In some cases a tin or foil shield is used to protect the outer plastic cover from getting too hot and/or melting.

by sbk93036

Toshiba's quality is horrible. i hear they make OK tvs, but i will NEVER buy toshiba again. i had the a105 s1014. was great, and i took great care of it, for 12 1/2 months. a little under 2 weeks after the warranty was out the battery stopped charging. about 2 days later the motherboard died. yep, the motherboard. the battery recall stated something about updating bios, which leads me to believe that toshiba knew there was a larger problem. i called them and they said it was 11 days out of warranty so i was out of luck. i told them i had 2 toshiba computers, 2 tosh tvs, and that i will NEVER but a product of theirs again. i wont! i have never had a computer crap out in less than 3 years. i have a dell and hp that are well over 5 yrs old, though not used much (but by the kids). a company that has no integrity in their product or respect for their customers does not deserve anyones business. period!

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