Saturday, May 14, 2011

My Flat Screen Monitor Also Seems To Have Given Up The Ghost

It looks like a bad power supply.  It powers up--then as soon as the notebook tries to display anything there, it flashes briefly and goes black.  There are places in Boise that promise to repair these for $45.  If it is much more than that to get a power supply replaced, it makes more sense to buy a new one (and probably a bigger one).

Right now, I am using an antique HP monitor that is pretty dim, but at least shared between my Windows and Linux notebooks.  My wife is driven a bit crazy by my reluctance to throw away working but obsolete equipment--but this is one of those times that I am glad that I did not discard it.

1 comment:

  1. I'd open it up and locate the power supply. Look for any capacitors with bulges or split tops. If you find any replacing these are easy and cheap (but you need to know how to solder, identify the specific type and observe polarity for proper installation). Manufactures are using cheaper China sourced parts and this is a common problem (do a web search or ask any service tech and you'll confirm this). I fixed my Toshiba DVD player recently by replacing a cap for a couple of bucks (I was mad that while the player was 2006 vintage bought new by me it had rarely been used).

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