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    macbook pro broken screen not switching to external monitor

    Discussion in 'Apple and Mac OS X' started by Sir Punk, Feb 4, 2013.

  1. Sir Punk

    Sir Punk Notebook Deity

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    I have a MacBook Pro with a completely dead screen. I just found out that it might be a known issue with the Nvidia graphics card MacBook Pro: Distorted video or no video issues. So I have been trying to connect it to an external monitor. I understand that in the closed shell set up it will not work without a power adapter. But then it should work without power adapter just fine connected to an external monitor in mirroring mode, correct?

    I do not have a power adapter with me but I have tried all the keyboard shortcuts to activate the external monitor but none of them work. If the video card is shot then it would make sense that it is not working with an external monitor.

    What do you guys think?
     
    Sir Punk, Feb 4, 2013
    #1
  2. saturnotaku

    saturnotaku Notebook Nobel Laureate

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    I had one of those MBPs back when they were new (lasted more than 3 years with no trace of the NVIDIA GPU problem). IIRC, you always needed the AC adapter to connect it to an external display.
     
    saturnotaku, Feb 4, 2013
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  3. Sir Punk

    Sir Punk Notebook Deity

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    any laptop i have ever owned worked with an external monitor on battery power, are you sure about that?
     
    Sir Punk, Feb 4, 2013
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  4. doh123

    doh123 Without ME its just AWESO

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    It'll run just fine off battery

    If your GPU is totally fried though, it's not going to drive external screens any better than the internal... But of course other issues could still have those same symptoms. The majority of them all would require a logic board replacement...
     
    doh123, Feb 4, 2013
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  5. Sir Punk

    Sir Punk Notebook Deity

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    I think that's what the problem is, is it worth it to replace? What other troubleshooting should I do to nail down this issue?

     
    Sir Punk, Feb 4, 2013
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  6. Sir Punk

    Sir Punk Notebook Deity

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    I just tried with the AC adapter plugged in but didn't make a difference.
     
    Sir Punk, Feb 5, 2013
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  7. KCETech1

    KCETech1 Notebook Prophet

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    sounds like the logic board issue, and IMO I would pass on repairing it as the board is still a very expensive part and is still prone to failure
     
    KCETech1, Feb 6, 2013
    #7