Backlight Problems on Dell Inspiron 600m

Hey everybody. I haven't been on the site in 3 years since I first started searching for my laptop. I've had my 600m for the last 3 years and its worked beautifully till now. Yesterday the screen went black on me out of the blue (it actually dimmed to almost black although I could still see the contents of the screen with an overhead light). I closed the lid and after opening it again the screen came back normally. The battery was plugged in and fully charged. It happened 2 more times to me that day. Also, when I had it on battery power, it flicked off quickly twice (but came back on instantaneously). After a while on battery power though, there is a very slight flicker to the screen. Today, the screen has blackened on me again (while battery is plugged in and fully charged). I closed the screen 3 times in a row, each time the light came back on but only for about 30 sec. I turned off my computer and decided to give it a rest. Now I am using it again on battery power where there is a slight flicker to the light. After doing a little research, keeping in mind that I am not computer savvy, is this a backlight problem or an inverter problem? I have not noticed a red tint to the screen. Also, usually the problem does not appear until after 2-3 hours (overheating issue?) Are either easily fixable without having to shell out lots of money? Do i have to send my computer back to Dell to fix or can I go through Best Buy? Is it worth fixing for the money? Keeping in mind that I would rather not have to ship my computer away (I use it every day for school), should I just use an external monitor for the time being? Thanks for all the replies.

 

You can just buy the parts on eBay. A temporary solution is an external display, but then he laptop really isn't portable anymore.

 

Maybe LCD inverter cable is loose...you'd better check it out.

 

I would agree it's probably cabling connecting to your LCD. If it is it should be pretty inexpensive to fix although you would have to take apart your notebook somewhat to find out. If you are talking about the Inspiron 600m, Dell has service manuals on their support site available to the public at support.dell.com

 

Same thing happened to me.. do you notice a red tinge or pinkish tinge on the screen before. If not, and the screen is just blank you may have a bad inverter, 30.00 on ebay. if there is a red tinge on the screen then it just goes blank, you will need to replace the ccfl bulb. ebay for one pretty cheap. You state there is a flicker, then it is definately the ccfl (backlight) bulb of the display. 20.00 on ebay. google how to replace for your model and get the right model backlight / ccfl.

 

Regarding your specific problem, I would open up the laptop and check that nothing is broken inside. I can't say anything about costs since I don't know what the problem is exactly. The other posters seem to have pretty good suggestions as to what the problem is. Now regarding your other questions...

DO NOT USE BEST BUY! Best Buy does all computer service through their Geek Squad division. Geek Squad is an awful outfit for computer service. If you don't believe me, go to Consumerist and search for Geek Squad there.

Dell would be a better option for service. Otherwise a local reputable computer shop would be a good option. What warranty did you get with that computer?

 

I am having same exact issues right now with my 600m...any new update? were you able to fix it?

 

If there's no miscoloration or noises, and you can dimly see the screen's contents, then the little knob on the corner of your chassis that detects whether your screen is open or closed is probably stuck closed. Poke it with your fingernail and all should be well. This happens to my 700m once in a while.