I dropped my Toshiba Satellite M30 notebook. Everything works fine except for the LCD screen
I dropped my Toshiba Satellite M30 this morning while it was turned off. The only exterior physical damage I observed was at the right corner of the laptop (where the AC power plug is) which showed strained plastic marks. When I turned on my laptop, everything ran fine EXCEPT for the LCD screen. The colors are all inverted (i.e. the black is white and white is black, etc.). It looks like those negatives on a photo film.
I then proceeded to read some related problems on the internet such as one LCD screen being very white, and some guy suggested resetting the flex cable, but I don’t know how to reset a cable. Another guy suggested that the LCD contacts within the cells may have been dislodged in which case a replacement LCD panel is needed (which sucks). I really hope this problem is repairable without having to buy new expensive parts. I have basic experience with electronics, so a detailed (non-laymen) diagnosis would be preferred. Please advice.
I agree with the guy who recommended reseating the flex cable. That’s the first thing that you should try. Not properly seated video cable can cause all kind of weird problems. The video cable has connectors on both sides. One side is connected to the motherboard, you’ll find this connector under the keyboard. The other side is connected to the back of the LCD screen, it would be necessary to open the laptop display. I would attempt reseating the video cable on the motherboard first, because it’s easier to access.
Here’s a guide I’ve created for taking apart Toshiba Satellite M35 notebook (I guess it’s the same as Satellite M30). Follow steps 8,9,10 and 11 to remove the keyboard. It’s not necessary to disconnect the keyboard from the motherboard, just flip it over and place on the palmrest. You can see the video cable on the step 11; it’s a flat black cable. Make sure it’s plugged all the way down into the connector, reseat it if needed. Test the laptop now. If the problem is fixed, you are done. If not, you’ll have to open up the display assembly and reseat the video cable on the screen.
Here’s a guide for Toshiba Satellite M35X display disassembly, it would be different then Satellite M35 but pretty close. Open it up and reseat the video cable on the back of the screen. Take a look at the step 7, it shows the video cable connector. Test it again.
If you still experience the same video issue, then apparently the screen has been damaged and you’ll have to replace the screen.
August 6th, 2008 at 12:02 am
fro my preivious inquiry re; unside down screen and reversed mouse.
I have been made awear of the solution which for future refence is simply CTRL ALT UP
thankyou for making a site like this happen for the technologically inept of the world like me.
Now i know it exsists you’ll prob hear from me again from time to time.
Cheers,
Nique
August 5th, 2008 at 11:01 pm
Laptop Freak Help me please!! What did I do and How do I fix it!!??
My Toshiba A200 laptop screen and mouse have inverted/flipped. The sceern is upside down and the mouse runs backwards. I walked with it open in my hands and have obviously pressed keys to make it do this. It’s driving me crazy and alittle bit dizzy.
I have Vista installed which makes a difference i think to the fix method.
I’ve tried the right ckick on screen to access the properties, settings ect but all i get when i select properties is: Element properties; Text Language- English.
Save me from this madness!
Cheers,
Nique
March 15th, 2008 at 1:26 pm
Dear Laptop Freak,
I have a big problem here on the Toshiba M30. My monitor cannot display anything but I know my CPU is still doing good as I can hear the Window booting and I can close the Window XP too.
I have tried the reseat the Video Cable mentioned above but it does not work.
But the interesting thing is that my Toshiba M30 has a speical function that I can run my VCD/DVD movie without switching on the Window XP. My Monitor shows a bright and clear display, but could not play the VCD/DVD movie. Therefore my monitor is in a good condition.
I suspect that my Nvidia Graphics Card might be the cause.
The problem had started 6 months ago, my screen will flick and flick after 2 or 3 hours. Then the screen will black out, but after giving it a day’s rest, it can be power on. There was once when I could not get the screen back after 3 days of trying, then I leave it aside for 1 month or so, and it worked until now.
If you can, please advise me what is going on with my laptop. It is driving me nuts….
March 13th, 2008 at 12:44 am
Hi,
my toshiba M200′s screen has suddenly inverted its colors, i dont think i dropped it or anything like that,i only got it last october, please help!!!
i can still see on it, the colors are just inverted, i tried it on an external moniter and it worked fine, no probs.
Please help someone!!
Shaun
February 6th, 2008 at 10:00 pm
Juan,
I published my suggestions in this post:
My laptop was dropped and now I cannot access the hard drive
February 6th, 2008 at 8:50 pm
gordon,
I think you should if the video cable is properly connected to the motherboard and to the LCD screen. It’s possible that one of the ends got unplugged and the LCD screen is not getting signal from the motherboard.
February 6th, 2008 at 12:17 pm
Laptop Freak,
I dropped my laptop from a tv tray (About 2ft) onto a hardwood floor and now it won’t reboot. It just turns on then the screen says “PXE-E61: Media Test Failure Check Cable.” It’s still under accident protection at best buy and they said it was either the motherboard or hdd that was shot and that there doesn’t seem to be a way to recover my files. They said they could send it to their data recovery center but they want $500-$1k to recover the files since they said it would be difficult to recover the files. Could the mother board or hdd really be shot or could just be the connections need to be reseated? If it is the hdd or motherboard is paying $500-$1k my only option of recovering my files?
January 30th, 2008 at 2:17 pm
hi there bought my daughter second hand ibm t30 laptop,she dropped it now there is no picture just black screen,plugged in external monitor and laptop works no problem,had the screen out and everything looks ok there is no cracks or damage to the screen so what do you recommend i do next?
p.s when i start laptop you get a mixture of colour on screen for about 1 second then black screen
thanks.
January 2nd, 2008 at 9:34 am
Dear All,
I am using a Toshiba satellite M40 and for some reason, my display has become very blur. I cannot see the display at all and i am not sure what is wrong. It began on Sunday and when i got to the office on Wednesday and connected my laptop to an external monitor, it worked fine. I then tried using the F5 function key to swith to my laptop display and surprisingly, that worked fine…..when i left for launch and came back, i met my screen had gone blurred again…..but connecting it to the external display still worked fine…switching back this time didn’t solve the problem. Any suggestions as to what might be wrong and how it can be fixed? I didn’t drop the laptop or do anything otherwise to it.
Counting on your assistance.
sincerely,
James
November 11th, 2007 at 3:59 pm
I was wondering if anyone on here fixes laptops. I have 2 laptops that need new screens…LOL i know i am rough but i have alot of info on both that I would like to keep i was just wondering if anyone on here does it for a living? LEt me know my email is mariahluvme@yahoo.com
Destiny
November 5th, 2007 at 8:00 pm
I also recently stepped on my Toshiba Satellite laptop but I didn’t crack the screen or anything just the right side of the screen is this lovely black stripe with a few mixed in random colors and I can’t seem to get it to go away. Any ideas? I sure hope I don’t have to replace it… seeing as how I’m just a poor college student.
October 25th, 2007 at 6:19 pm
Karen,
Sorry for bad news, but you’ll have to replace the screen. You cannot fix the screen.
October 25th, 2007 at 8:48 am
I stepped on my toshiba satellite L45 by accident, and now there’s a really big crack with some liquid coming out of the LCD,from the the screen is ok, but when i touch the screen i can feel bumps where the cracks are located at
they said that i problably have to buy a new lap top, but i dont want to because my auncle had just bought it for me a month ago and i feel really bad for what i’ve done, is there any way possible to fix it without having to buy a new LCD (it would really suck if i have to buy a new one!)
July 25th, 2007 at 6:51 am
I’m sorry, i forgot to add that my laptop is a Dell Inspiron 6400. Thanks.
July 25th, 2007 at 6:50 am
Laptop Freak,
Recently while driving, i made a stupid mistake, and left my laptop in the passenger seat, and while braking the laptop fell to the floor, causing the hard-drive to pop out.
WHen i boot up my laptop, i get this grayish straight line going all the way across my screen this line does not move no matter what i do eg) i scroll the screen down, and the line stays where it is.
I was wondering if you could advise me what to do to correct this problem, and hopefully i don’t have to get a new screen.
Thanks in advance
Jon
July 19th, 2007 at 5:10 am
I dropped a box on my toshiba satellite pro L10 i have shattered the screen so i know it needs replacing or need to buy a new laptop but until then im using an external monitor but it will only start in safe mode how do i get the monitor working as normal.
June 14th, 2007 at 7:12 am
I dropped a friends laptop (still in a case) it fell out of the back of her smaller size suv (about 2 feet). It now won’t boot up. It makes a clicking noise when you try. Is there anything I can do to (simply) to fix the problem. She has a hp pavilion ze5200
February 28th, 2007 at 7:42 pm
abby dariel santos,
Most likely you have a loose connection somewhere inside the laptop. In cases like this I usually take the laptop apart piece by piece and check/reseat all cable and devices. There is no simple solution for this problem. Do not forget about the CPU, make sure it’s seated properly in the socket and it’s locked. Find and download maintenance and service guide for your notebook, it has step by step disassembly instructions in the removal and replacement procedures chapter.
February 28th, 2007 at 6:04 am
i dropped my laptop in from about 1 and half height bed and the floor which the laptop landed is concrete..nothing seems to be a problem except after it fell it hanged even the function keys dont work. i removed the batt and turned it on so far no problems yet. is there any way i could check if there are problems in the hardwares inside? my laptop is hp pavilion zt3000 thank you so much
February 27th, 2007 at 1:19 pm
to all of you who have an inverted screen on your laptop.
i dont know if the same case is for you, however my screen has been inverted on my dell c640. when i bend the screen a bit the colors come back to life.. once in a while it happenes again, and i jiggle it till i get it back in place.. Dont buy a new lcd untill u test your screen
i took off the panel on the lappy and it says dont touch the white tape on the back… i have to touch it though when i bend the monitor to get the colors back.. am i playing with fire here?
February 12th, 2007 at 1:27 am
Kat,
Looks like you’ve cracked the LCD screen and it has to be replaced. The LCD screen is one of the most expensive parts in any laptop and in some cases it’s cheaper to buy a new laptop than replace the screen. If you have a regular warranty this problem will not be covered. You have to have a special warranty witch covers an accidental damage in order to replace a cracked screen.
If the problem doesn’t get fixed, probably the screen will not get worst but the problem will not go away either.
February 11th, 2007 at 9:56 pm
i also forgot to ask if you think that my monitor will get worst or turn black if the problem doesn’t get fixed. thanks for helping : )
February 11th, 2007 at 9:15 pm
i recently dropped my compaq presario while it was still open and everything works fine except my screen. it looks as if there are internal cracks (faint lines) on the screen but its only when i turn it on. there’s also black marks on the bottom of my screen that have recently gotten worst and now it looks like ink is coming out of it but it only shows when my computer is on. is there any way i can fix it and do you have an estimate of how much it would cost? if my computer is still under warrently would i be able to return it without a receipt?
February 11th, 2007 at 7:38 pm
Hi, I have just had my motherboard fail on my M30. Probably not economical to repair. If you want to buy it for parts email me at sjk@xtra.co.nz.
Steve.
February 7th, 2007 at 6:41 pm
Robert Rodgers,
I would assume it’s a bad screen and you’ll have to replace it.
February 5th, 2007 at 7:00 pm
laptop freak, the colors are inverted as soon as you turn on the laptop
January 22nd, 2007 at 10:31 pm
Rob Hill,
It’s Toshiba Satellite R10 or R15, isn’t it? You’ll have to replace the entire top cover assembly (includes base cover, LCD cover, video harness). You can find it by the following part numbers: P000423410 and P000458640. That’s a lot of work man.
January 21st, 2007 at 9:57 am
Hi, I dropped my poorly padded backpack and broke off one corner (and cracked another corner) of my laptop case.
Could you please tell me where / how to order a replacement casing part? Thanks! Rob
January 16th, 2007 at 8:28 pm
Robert Rodgers,
The colors are inverter right from the laptop startup, even the Toshiba logo is not displayed properly or it happens only in Windows? What if you boot the laptop in safe mode, the colors are still inverted? Connect an external monitor and start the laptop? Colors on the external monitor are inverted too?
January 16th, 2007 at 10:13 am
hi…i have a toshiba satellite L25 s1192, and like one month ago everything was deleted on my computer(EVERYTHING) included all my drives, so i had to reinstall windowsXP and all of toshibas drives but all the colors are inverted like when you play with windows magnifer…i feel like crying cause i can’t get it two look normal, have graphics adapter and all pleaze can someone help me