No display, laptop smells.... HELP!!!!

Hello,

I was wondering if there is any way to fix my Inspiron 8100 without paying tremendous dough. The problem is that the screen has been afflicted with the "Black Screen of Death" syndrome and it had a smell to it right before it went black. The laptop also will power on when plugged in (although without any screen display) but it does not work when using the battery power, even though the battery is fully charged. Someone mentioned it was the motherboard and I was out of luck, my warranty has just ran out and I was hoping there would be a cheaper alternative.

Thanks,

Gonzo

Responses(3)

spiked_martini

948 Posts

0

January 23rd, 2004 14:00

It does sound like it might be the motherboard. Try booting it up with an external monitor attached - does the external monitor get a display? If it does, then you have an LCD that needs to be replaced, and a motherboard that probably has to be replaced, and you'd be better off just getting a new laptop. If the external monitor doesn't get a display, it may be just the motherboard, and it might be worth trying to buy an 8100 motherboard off of ebay and install it yourself. You can get Dell to do this, but it'll cost about $1,000 - $700 for the motherboard, and extra for the labour.

gonzo_00

2 Posts

0

January 24th, 2004 04:00

Martini

Thanks for the reply. I have tried hooking it to my desktop monitor and it is not working. It is disappointing news but the help is much appreciated.

Thanks Again

Gonzo

FG

Farm Girl N2 Te

11 Posts

0

January 24th, 2004 16:00

Gonzo & Martini,

I'm having virtually the same problem on my Inspiron 2600 (less the smell that Gonzo described), but the prob didn't begin until I tried downloading a driver from Windows Update. I came back to check the progress of the download after a few minutes and discovered a blank screen although the power was on. I tried hooking up an external monitor and this didn't have any impact.

Now, nothing I try works to get my screen back, and while my keyboard does respond (I can turn on the CAPS LOCK, NUM LOCK, etc.), it will not allow me to power down or turn off the laptop. I have tried putting in a couple of CDs and I can hear them working, but no screen. Oh, and in addition to the green power light remaining on, the middle light (looks like a battery) keeps flashing.

I have a feeling I made a huge mistake by downloading this driver, but can't undo it since I can see what I'm doing. While it may indeed be the motherboard, I have a feeling that this driver was not compatible with my XP system for some reason and has caused this "double whammy" of no screen and no powering on/off.

Any other suggestions?

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No display, laptop smells.... HELP!!!!